Title: Dinner

Author: Joy

Email: Julianna@ziplip.com

Rating: PG-13

21.

Keith escaped to the kitchen where upon he immediately poured himself a glass of wine. Karen stared as he drained the cup rather quickly. It may have been a small glass but still. "Something wrong Keith?" she asked with a slight smirk knowing what his troubles were having seen the dress Haley was wearing.

Setting the glass aside he glared, "Shut up."

Karen chuckled, "Little girls grow up and become big girls Keith."

"Like I said...shut up." She was getting far too much fun out of this.

"Just wait until you see one of Lucas's college buddy's without his t-shirt on in a few years...then I'll be laughing."

She continued to smirk, "Yeah but they won't be someone I have watched grow up...and besides men are much more likely to react," she gestured toward him, "in this manner than a woman."

"All I know is I will be there to laugh when it happens to you."

"Well I should hope so," Karen stated leaning on the counter.

Keith sidled up next to her, and then moved more fully into her personal space. "You hope so?" he asked quietly trapping her with one arm on each side of her.

Karen adjusted her body posture so she was standing between his outstretched arms bringing them into a far more intimate position. She averted her eyes for a moment as she said, "Does that mean you want be around...even after Lucas is away at school?" Her eyes met his on the last part.

He smiled lightly. "What do you think?" he whispered before kissing her gently. Karen's arms left her sides to wrap around Keith's neck before she intensified the kiss.

After a few minutes of acting like teenagers on a date they pulled away. "Wow," she whispered and leaned her forehead to his chin cherishing the feeling of him holding her protectively.

"Yeah," he said breathlessly with a small smile.

"I need to go out and check on them before it's your turn." Keith leaned away a second. "You," he kissed the tip of her nose, "stay here. I'll be right back..." He kissed each of her eyelids, "...And I can keep showering you with affection."

"Okay," she said with a big smile and hugged him close before pushing him out the door.

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Hailey smirked, "They just quit."

"Thank you for updating me as to my mother and uncle's tryst in the kitchen..." Lucas groused.

"Oh come on...its sweet. They're sweet."

"So are we, but I seriously doubt either of them wants to hear about or think about us making out."

"I don't know...Keith seemed to like my dress," Hailey smiled evilly.

"You're bad."

Keith entered the room with a pitcher of water and the menus. "Sir...Madame..." Each received their menu while Keith poured. "Please enjoy your time with us. The chef will be out momentarily. Have a good evening," and he exited the room once more.

Hailey handled her menu a bit, "Are these a Sawyer original?"

Lucas examined it as if it were the first time he seen it, "Looks like."

She smirked, "They're lovely. I will have to thank the artist...and the chef. This is my favorite."

"Good...the desert is my favorite. I guess the chef must like us a lot."

Hailey rolled her eyes, "That was lame."

Lucas smiled, "Why thank you." He reached across the table to play with her fingers. She grinned softly almost shyly.

They looked up to see Karen in a full chef's uniform white hat and all. She wore a smile twitching her nose slightly and presented a Caesar salad to each of them. "Good evening," she said in a fake French accent cracking both teens up.

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Jake looked at the scene from the kitchen with Keith. "They're sweet together, aren't they?"

"Always have been," Keith commented. "I'm so glad he woke up before he did something stupid."

"Do you mean Brooke or Peyton?" Jake asked cautiously.

Keith smiled, "Peyton is nice...just complicated. But you don't know anything about that do you, dad?"

The teen smiled, "Am I that obvious?"

"No...Lucas is that vocal. 'When is he going to get off his ass and do something?' Then I remind him he didn't exactly go at lightening speed and that generally shuts him up. Besides if he had he wouldn't be out there now...this is better."

Karen walked in and took off her hat dramatically. "Give them till they finish their salads and then play away." Both men smiled at her. "What?"

"You forgot to take off the fake mustache," Keith said with a chuckle.

Jake laughed too. "It looks a bit funny."

"Well I was not about to mess with the stupid gum to stick it on again, was I?" she said in a huff.

"Just don't expect a kiss with that thing on," Keith warned.

Karen stuffed her hair back under the hat, "Fine. I will remember that when you have the desire to grow a beard again."

Jake blinked rapidly looking to Keith who stared at his feet to avoid the teen's smirk. "I thought Luke said you two weren't involved."

Karen's eyes got big having been caught out. "Let's just keep this to ourselves for now, okay?"

"Fine," the basketball player said with a chuckle. "I'm on," he murmured grabbing his stool and guitar.

Keith snagged Karen before she followed so he could kiss her cheek. "I'll always want to kiss you," he whispered bringing a pretty blush to her cheeks.

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Lucas was kissing Haley's knuckles when Jake nonchalantly sat himself down with his guitar in the corner and began to play his guitar. Hailey turned her head to see where the music had come from as Karen removed their salad plates and replaced them with the main course.

"We are having live entertainment?" she asked her boyfriend quietly.

"He offered. Who am I to refuse?" Lucas explained.

"So your mom made the food, Keith is our host and drink man, Peyton made our menus, Jake is our dinner music...Brooke did what? Occupied me?"

Lucas cleared his throat and then pointed to her dress while sipping water.

Hailey smirked, "I should have known your mom would never own something this form fitting." She laughed, "So when does Cinderella turn back into the servant?"

Lucas looked at her confused, "Is that what this feels like? That Peyton and Brooke are your evil step-sisters?"

Hailey stopped for a moment and thought. She shrugged, "Maybe a little." Luke's face began to darken. "I'm sorry. I don't remember it all. I can know we're friends and see the proof of it...but yeah it feels forced sometimes." He stared dumbfounded at the lack of connection Hailey seemed to have toward her girlfriends.

Hailey grit her teeth and refused to look at him, "Most of the time I feel like their charity case or pet project."

"Hailey..." Lucas murmured upset at the revelation. "They are your..."

"They're your ex's," she snapped quietly so Jake wouldn't hear but staring Luke in the eye as she said it. "For god sake you will always have the proof of that on your shoulder...at least for Brooke."

Lucas was stunned. This was not the way he wanted this night to go at all. He had no idea she felt that insecure about Brooke and Peyton. "What can I do?" he said reaching for her hand. "What can I do to make you feel more secure in us? I mean that was part of tonight." He took her hand into both of his running his fingertips over her palm randomly looking obviously spooked.

"Why haven't you told me you love me since the day we nearly broke up?" she whispered staring straight at her plate of untouched food.

Now Lucas was absolutely floored. He turned it over in his head a few times before he accepted that she was correct. He hadn't said it since that night in her room. "I... I don't know," he answered as he watched her shoulders sag in reaction. "But that doesn't change the fact that I do."

Lucas could tell Hailey was angered by his words by the way she tugged at her napkin. "What are you really angry about Hales?"

That was it. Hailey had had enough. She threw her napkin on the table and stood up to leave.

Luke was up in a second grabbing her arm, "Tell me."

"Alright...you want to know why I am upset? Fine. You don't have one girlfriend Lucas you have three." He looked at her like she had struck him, but he wanted to understand so who was she to deprive him. "You are there with open arms for Peyton as each new trauma comes up. You are always there to provide the stability that they both need...It used to be that you and I would have lunch together, alone and yet now they are always there. We're like a friggin harem. And the worst part is I like them...I really do. I can't exactly blame them for wanting to be around a decent guy...but damnit you're supposed to be my decent guy not community property."

Jealousy was a good thing in one way because it meant Hailey really liked him and didn't want to share him. Bad part was she was right. Lucas may not have been kissing the other girls but they were pretty inseparable these days. 'No wonder Jake felt the need to get permission to ask Peyton out,' Luke thought to himself. He had at least emotionally cheated on his girlfriend unintentionally at the very least. He couldn't lose Hailey...he just couldn't.

"Hailey...I'm sorry. I had no idea you felt that way or that things were coming off that way." Lucas wrapped his arms around her and waited until her arms were twinned behind his neck to speak again. "We'll start having our lunches alone again...I'll...We'll see them less. I will always have you with me if things..."

She pushed back to look at him, "I don't want them to a loose you as a friend. I just want...I don't know what I want."

Lucas cupped her face, "They won't be getting much alone time with me and you will be getting a whole lot of one or one attention." He rubbed his nose to hers before kissing her lips lightly, "How does that sound?"

"Perfect," she responded hugging him closer again.

Jake picked up the pace so that they could actually dance to his music. The coupled held close while swaying to the beat.

"I love you Hailey...don't ever doubt that," Lucas pled. "Don't give up on me either. I may not have all the answers or know how to do this yet but I will do just about anything to keep you," he said staring into her eyes. "I love you...not anybody else...not even close."

Hailey smiled brightly, "I love you too, Lucas...I promise to let you know before things build up inside me like that again." She was sheepish as she finished and kissed him sweetly.

After a long moment she whispered, "Our food is getting cold."

"The chef can reheat it," Luke answered unwilling to relinquish Hailey from his arms just yet.

Tbc...

A/N: The next chapter might be short or long. I have an idea and I can't decide if I should play it out or not. I don't know-you guys want to see Jake ask Peyton out? A few other things will happen like a H/L make out scene most likely. Yes? No? Review with the answer or email me either way.

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