Author's note: I own nothing. Please read and review. Thanks for all of the great reviews, it is appreciated. This chapter picks three days after the last chapter ended...
Lucas Scott was back to writing. He had been inspired lately. Lucas owed his recent inspiration to having his son in his life, at least that's what he believed it was. It had been two days since Brooke had come over and found Kenzie at his house. He wanted to see his son, and if he was honest with himself, he wanted to see Brooke. But, Lucas Scott wasn't being honest with himself. Instead he was living inside the walls he put up.
He was packing for a trip to New York. He and Lindsey were working on the new book. She was impressed by it, by the honesty she felt in his writing now. She hadn't seen him this motivated in a long time, and she thought it might be due to his child. Lucas Scott loved his son. That was never in doubt from the moment he laid eyes on that little boy, even before he knew Keithan was his son he loved him. That little boy stole his heart away, much like his mother had done years before.
"Hey," he said as he opened the door.
"Hey," she said standing there holding their son, "Haley told me you were going to New York tonight, I just thought maybe you'd want to see him before you left."
"Hey buddy," he said taking his son from Brooke's arms, "daddy missed you so much."
"How long are you gonna be gone for," she asked, trying to ease the tension as she closed the door behind her.
"I'll be back Monday afternoon," he said.
"Luke, I wanted to talk to you," she said as they sat down on the couch, "I know you're mad at me, but I don't want it to hurt Keithan."
"I'm not mad, Brooke," he said. The truth was the anger wasn't really the emotion he would tie to his feelings. Hurt, yes, fear, definitely, but not anger. But he wouldn't tell her.
"Ok," she said defeated. "I'm not going anywhere," she said, watching the father and son, "we're not going anywhere, I just need you to know that. I signed over the company, the magazine, all of it to my mother."
"Why," he asked, knowing how much that company meant to her, how hard she had worked to get everything she wanted.
"The company used to be everything in my life, but not now. Keithan is my world and I need to do what is best for him." She wasn't lying, her son was her world, and she knew being in Tree Hill was what was best for him. "It's funny," she said with a slight chuckle, "I guess I owe you for both of them."
"Me," he asked.
"I started the company after we broke up," she sighed, "trying to mend my broken heart as Haley puts it. After that night in New York I expanded with my mom, and after you married Peyton we expanded to the west coast," she said watching Lucas with their son, "and we both know where babies come from."
"Yeah," he smiled, "Keith took care of that a long time ago." They both sat in silence watching Keithan with his toy, "I can't believe how big you've gotten in just a few days, I missed you so much," he said in baby talk to the child in his lap.
"I was never going to keep him from you, Luke, you have to know that. I mean, yeah I contemplated moving back to L.A. for the business," she said, "but it was never about keeping Keithan from you. Julian and I haven't been together in a while, I mean even before I came here, so when he showed up I was caught off guard and with Victoria threatening to take the company, it was just a lot, and I needed to go there to handle it." He nodded, still not looking at her, "I just want him to be happy, you know."
"Yeah," he said.
"I am gonna head home," she said, "if you want to bring him by before you leave or something."
"Yeah," he said finally looking at her, "my flight leaves in a few hours, so I can bring him by before I go."
"Ok," she said as she kissed Keithan, "I love you buddy."
"Brooke," he said as she started to walk towards the door.
"Yeah," she said turning towards Lucas and their son.
"Thank you," he said, she smiled and nodded with a slight wave she left Lucas alone with his son.
Brooke Davis was sketching. She loved sketching, she found it therapeutic to a degree. She wasn't sure what her life would entail now that she didn't have her company. She had the papers drawn up so that the store in Tree Hill would be liquidated, but she would still retain ownership of the building. She could not imagine handing over that space to Victoria. She wasn't sure what she would do with it, but seeing Victoria own something that meant that much to Karen and Lucas would have been horrible for her.
"What are ya working on," Millie asked as she walked in the living room of her friend's home.
"Sketching," Brooke smiled. "It's weird, not having the company, I know it's only been a few days, but it feels different."
"Well, now that we have all this free time what are we gonna do with ourselves," Millie asked sitting beside Brooke.
"I don't know," she sighed, "I've never thought about my life without Clothes Over Bro's, it's always been there."
"Well, I think you did the right thing," Millie smiled, "now you have more time for your baby and less interaction with your mother."
"True, I knew there was a reason I kept you around," Brooke smiled, "you're a great assistant Millicent McFadden, but you're an even better friend."
"Well, you're not so bad either."
"So where is my little buddy at tonight," Millie asked.
"With Luke," she said, "he hasn't seen him since last week and he's going to New York tonight so I wanted to let him have Keithan for a little while." The truth was, she did want Lucas and Keithan to spend time together, but there was a part of her that wished she was with them too. That the three of them could build something together. But, for now she was ok knowing that her son was bonding with his father.
"Well, how is that going?"
"Fine, I guess," she sighed, "Kenzie wasn't there if that's what you mean, just the thought of her spending time with my son gets to me, I would love to slap that fake ass smile off her face. I don't like her."
"Brooke, you don't know her," Millie chuckled.
"Well, I know enough, the way her fake blonde ass talked to me," she said, "I don't even know how he can stand her."
"Jealousy," Millie laughed.
"I am not jealous," Brooke said.
"Ok, if that's what you're telling yourself," she said. "Brooke, I have known you for too long to believe that you aren't jealous. I'm not sure if you're jealous that she's spending time with your son, or with Lucas, or with them together, but you are most definitely jealous my friend."
"I am not jealous, I just don't like her spending time with him."
"Him being Keithan," Millie smiled, "or him being Lucas?"
"I so hate you right now," Brooke said playfully. The truth was she hated that Kenzie was in Lucas' life at all. She knew she had no right to be jealous, she had broken up with him all those years ago. She pushed him away.
"I love you too," Millie said.
"You ready yet," Haley asked as she walked in to Lucas' house.
"Hey," he smiled at her as he was sitting his luggage down by the door, "I thought Nate was taking me to the airport?"
"Well, he was going to, but we haven't talked for a while," she said hugging him, "and I just wanted to make sure we are ok Luke."
"We're good Hales," he said as they heard Keithan fussing in the bedroom.
"Is that my nephew," she asked with a smile, he nodded.
"Brooke brought him by earlier, she said you told her about the trip to New York," he said following her to the bedroom, "thanks for that. I've missed him so much."
"Me too," Haley said holding the baby. "So did the two of you talk?"
"Not really," he sighed as he watched Haley holding his son, "she told me about signing the company over to her mom, but I don't know what to say to her, Haley."
"She didn't tell you," Haley asked.
"Tell me what?"
"I don't know Luke," Haley chuckled, Lucas shook his head, "And why is Kenzie not taking you to the airport tonight, isn't that something a girlfriend does?"
"Well, since she's not my girlfriend," he smirked.
"But you told Brooke," Haley said slightly irritated.
"I wanted to make her mad, ok. I was pissed, she just shows up at my house wanting to talk after running off with my son and Julian," he said, "Kenzie was there picking up some stuff. And what did she not tell me anyway?"
"What," she asked.
"Hales, come on, you said there was something she didn't tell me, I'm listening."
"It's not my story to tell Lucas, and you're a real ass sometimes you know that?"
"I'm an ass, yes, because I kept my son from his father for three months, pretended Julian was his father, then ran back to L.A. with Julian, yep, that was me. What makes me an ass in all of this? I wasn't the one who did this."
"No, Luke, you're an ass because you tried to what, make her jealous or hurt her by lying about being with Kenzie," she said, "and are you that blind? Luke, she came to tell you about signing the company away that night, and that she still," she stammered, with a huff, "why do you think Keithan was with me and your brother. She was a mess," Haley said shaking her head, "Luke she was a mess, she needed you and you were mean to her."
"I was mean, wow," he said glancing at his watch, "we gotta get going because I don't want to argue with you, and I need to drop my son off at Brooke's."
"Ok," she said, "if you promise me that you'll be nice to her, Lucas, promise me please."
"Fine," he said, "I will try. I'm sorry."
"Well, it's not really me you should apologize to," Haley said with a sigh.
Lucas was carrying Keithan to the door when Brooke opened it. She smiled and waved as she saw Haley waiting in the car parked in her driveway. She took the diaper bag from Lucas as he was whispering to their son.
"Hey buddy, mamma missed you," she said as Lucas handed her the baby.
"Well," he said as he shoved his hands in his pockets nervously, "I will be back on Monday, so maybe I can see him Tuesday?"
"Luke, you can see him whenever you want, I mean that," she said with a slight smile.
"Ok, well I'll call you then," he said as he turned to walk away.
"Ok," she said as she turned towards her door.
"Brooke," he said as he caught a glimpse of Haley sitting in the car, remembering the promise he made to his best friend, he turned towards the mother of his son.
"Yeah," she said from the doorway.
"The other night," he said, "when you came by, I was an ass, and I wanted to say I'm sorry."
"It's fine, I should've called first," she smiled.
"No," he said shyly, "it's not like that, I mean Kenzie was just there picking some stuff up, and I was mad, and I just said something that I thought might…"
"It's fine Luke, we've both screwed up, right," she smiled, her smile still melted his heart. She started to walk inside, "I'll see ya later."
"Hey," he said causing her to turn back around, Keithan still in her arms, "can I ask you something," she nodded, "well, I was just wondering why you went to L.A. the other day, and now you're back, and Julian.."
"Is still in L.A.?"
"Yeah," he smiled.
"It's over between us, it has been for a long time. I have realized in these last couple of months that I wasn't doing what was right for Keithan, or me, so I went to finish everything with the company and with Julian."
"What do you mean," he asked confused.
"I'm done with the company, with Julian, all of it, Keithan and I are here for good. This is home, it's where we belong."
"That's good," he said as he walked towards them, "Brooke I didn't know, I mean I thought…"
"Hey, it's fine, it was just a company," she smiled, "and a guy who wasn't the one for me."
"That was your company, I mean you worked hard for it…"
"I did, but I have realized that what I want in my life is right here in Tree Hill," she said kissing the top of her son's head, "it always has been."
"I gotta go," he said with a smile, he kissed Keithan's head, "maybe when I get back we can talk, me and you."
"Yeah," she smiled, "I'd like that Luke."
"Me too," he said walking towards the car.
"Daddy will be home soon," Brooke said to her son as she waved to Haley.