Disclaimer: I do not, as much as I wish I did, own OTH or any of the songs in this story. All I own is the plot of the story, and I barely own that.

AN: Okay, guys, I've got the endgame couple possibilities down to two.

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Chapter 10: You

Brooke grinned at Julian's far away expression and pulled him closer to her, leaning her body as near to him as was physically possible, and nibbled softly on his bottom lip, knowing that the taste of cherries on her lips drove him absolutely crazy. His usual smirk was replaced with a look of pure lust as he lifted her into his arms almost roughly and sat her down on the counter near the cash register, all her sketches crashing to the ground, her legs locking tightly around his waist. She held his lips against hers, the stubble on his cheek scratching her slightly, heightening her senses immensely as their kiss became more frenzied and out of control.

Brooke giggled as his fingers tried desperately to unbutton her top, "Mm, Jules…Public place…"

He grinned and snapped another button on her shirt, his lips tracing down along her throat, knowing exactly which spots made her ache in the most delicious and naughty ways, "C'mon, Giggles…What's the fun of owning a store if you aren't going to christen it properly?"

Brooke sighed, the feeling of his surprisingly soft lips torturing her into submission; suddenly she grinned, pushing him backward as she untangled their limps and hopped off the counter, her look both sinister and sensual. "Here's the deal," her voice became raspier, more seductive, as she began walking slowly toward him, backing him away from the counter. The back of his knees hit the long couch and he smiled, believing that he was about to get exactly what he wanted; Brooke raised her eyebrow and, with the softest touch, pushed Julian down onto the couch, "We have to meet Haley and Nathan in twenty minutes…" he frowned, the mention of the other Scott brother turning him off. She smirked again, "So we can only…play for another…seven minutes or so…I make the rules, and you simply obey, can you do that?"

Julian breathed in deeply as she crawled on top of him, her right hand on his upper thigh, "First rule, no touching…" Her lips grazed his ear, sending shivers up his spine, "Can you be a good boy and control yourself?"

His eyes glazed over and he nodded enthusiastically. She giggled, her lips finding his again as her left hand cupped both his wrists, bringing his hands above his head; both brunettes knew that if he wanted, Julian could break her hold easily, but this was her game…he'd do anything she asked him to, as long as she kept her hand right where it was.

Julian lifted his body slightly, knowing that he was about to break her one and only rule, and rubbed himself against her; she shook her head at him mockingly and lifted herself so she was straddling him, her legs and hands being the only parts of her body touching him, "Uh uh," she leaned over him and rubbed her nose against his, "I said no touching…"

"Brooke…I need you to let me…"

She smiled, her lips finding his again for the briefest of moments, "I love you, Julian Baker, but if you can't do as I ask, then maybe we'll just have to stop now..."

She stood, looking down at him like a predator stalking its prey, and she popped another button on her shirt, revealing the creamy skin of her flat belly. Her laughter was soft as she watched Julian's eyes switch from the minimum amount of cleavage he could see to the soft expanse of her abdomen. A sigh escaped her lips and she ran her hand slowly along her collarbone, unbuttoning more of her shirt with her other hand, "You know…if you had just followed the rules like I asked, you could be the one touching me. I really do hate to play by myself."

He stood up quickly, his arms going around her waist, and pulled her down next to him on the couch, quickly rolling her underneath him. She screamed, giggling all the while as he sank down on the couch, kissing his way toward her midriff. "I bet you do…"

He pressed his lips against the center of her belly, his eyes still filled with lust, but slowly filling with another emotion as well, "Brooke…"

She kinked her brow, wondering where the seriousness in his eyes had come from. She lifted herself onto her elbows and looked down into his eyes, "Yeah?"

"I love you," he pressed his lips against her stomach again, placing his hand next to them, feeling her abdominal muscles contract slightly at the touch, "I just…I need you to know, that you are the woman for me; you're the woman that I want to start a family with," her eyes widened almost comically, "I know we're not ready for that; you've made that very clear," her eyes dropped sadly, and he reached out, lifting her chin, "But someday, you will be the mother of my children; I know it. You're the one…"

Brooke didn't answer for a minute, her eyes glued to his, "I've never…" she paused, wiping at the tears in her eyes as a small smile lit up her face, "never been so turned on in my entire life…"

Julian's eyes widened, confused, as Brooke launched herself at him, her lips bruising his with each kiss. She placed his hand on her stomach as they kissed, and suddenly things appeared much clearer; her future with Julian Baker seemed within grasp now, and she wasn't letting go for anything.

The two brunettes were so wrapped up in each other that neither noticed the attractive man enter the store until he spoke, embarrassment in his dark eyes, "Oh my god…I am so sorry!"

The man turned away quickly, laughing to himself as he heard one of them hit the ground in front of the couch, both of them buttoning and straightening their clothes as swiftly as possible. Brooke blushed, ashamed that she'd let her emotions get the better of her in the middle of her store, her eyes falling on the man; and, within seconds, her look of shame was replaced with colossal joy.

"Oh my…Jake?" He turned back toward her, a smile on his face, all traces of mortification gone, "What are you doing here?"

She pulled herself completely from Julian's arms and threw herself into Jake's, confusion shining in her eyes at his sudden appearance. The young father smiled and pulled away from her, noting the jealous look in the other man's eyes, "Uh, Chris called me…" Julian noticed the way her eyes were suddenly sad, not meeting either man's gaze, "He said that you asked him to come home and that it would be a few days before he could get here, so I got in my car, picked up my little girl, and here I am."

Brooke smiled again, glad that Chris knew her as well as he did, "How long are you staying?"

"As long as you need us."

"Even if it's forever?" The two old friends stared into each other's eyes, remembering every touch and hug and kiss, and simply feeling grateful to have one another back in their lives. Behind Brooke, Julian coughed, having seen enough of the two friends to know that they shared history.

Brooke jumped slightly, "Oh, sorry. Jake, this is my lovely boyfriend Julian Baker; Julian, this is a really good friend," she shook her head, "my best friend, Jake Jagielski."

Julian's eyes widened, "Wait, Jake from the book? Peyton's Jake?"

Brooke rolled her eyes at her boyfriend's sudden excitement, "Well, we don't call him that to his face, honey, but yes."

Julian suddenly smiled and held out his hand, "Nice to meet you, man."

"You too."

Brooke smiled at Jake, completely forgetting that she and Julian were supposed to be at Nathan and Haley's right now, "So, where are you staying?"

"Eh, my parents said I can stay on their couch."

The bubbly brunette rolled her eyes, "Don't be silly, I have an extra bedroom. You and Jennybug can stay with me." Jake and Julian both opened their mouths to protest, "Nope! Don't want to hear it…you're staying with me." Brooke smiled, "So where is Jenny anyway?"

"With my mom. She can't wait to see her Aunt Brooke though."

She smiled, "I can't wait either…" suddenly her eyes filled with realization, "Oh crap! I forgot that we were supposed to be at Naley's like…ten minutes ago. Wanna come with, Jake?" She smiled innocently, "It'll be funnnnnnn."

He frowned, "Will…you know?"

"Nope. Peyt and Luke won't be there."

Julian smiled at the discomfort on the other man's face, "Nice to know there's another guy who doesn't want to be around the annoyingly cutesy couple."

Brooke rolled her eyes as the two men touched knuckles, looking happy to have met, and headed for the door.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Twenty minutes later, as the trio was getting situated on the couch, Haley wwas going a mile a minute, asking question after question, barely giving the young musician time to breathe before answering, and Brooke couldn't help but think that this is what her life should be like. She had the guy, the great friends, the career, and, maybe someday soon, she'd have the family too. Her hand fell to her stomach as she listened to another of Jake's stories about silly girls he'd dated over the years, one she'd heard a thousand times in his emails, surprised that she didn't feel the usual twinge of jealousy she always used to get when he talked about other girls. She smiled, her fingers locking with Julian's; this was heaven.

TBC…

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AN: You know the drill – if you see any mistakes, please tell me.

As always, read and review! :)