Haley nervously sat on the bed by the bassinet. It had been a few days since Lillian's homecoming. She had made an honest and sincere effort to bond with her baby. Slowly but surely they were making progress. The child still preferred her aunt at certain times but she had become accustomed to her mother's touch and voice. It was a step and Haley would take what she could get.

But the day had come that she had been dreading. That afternoon she had put Karen on a plane back to North Carolina. She had been a surrogate mother to her and had been there to help in Haley's darkest hours of need. But the saintly brunette had her own life and it was time for her to return to it. And on top of all that, Taylor and some friends had decided to spend a few days partying at the Jersey Shore. Lucas and Brooke were still on their romantic island vacation. That only left a baby and two very frightened awkward parents.

She waited with nervous anticipation for her child to wake and after almost an hour if just staring at her, Lillian's eyes fluttered open. She was fussy at first but seemed to calm the minute her mother held her.

"It's okay", Haley cooed.

She held the contented child close and all seemed to be going well as rain drops fell on the roof. Out the window in the distance, Haley could see a flash of lightening. It seemed a mild storm was on the horizon but a loud clap of thunder caused Mother to jump and Baby to scream.

"You okay, Hales?" Nathan asked.

Haley walked back to the living room.

"We're fine. The thunder scared her."

Nathan peered outside.

"Looks like it's going to be a big one", he observed.

"Maybe I should go ahead and make dinner. Would you hold her for a bit?"

Nathan nodded and took their daughter while Haley got busy in the kitchen. For the most part Lillian was being good but Nathan couldn't escape the irony of the moment. After everything that had happened, a year before if someone had told him he would be in Haley James' loft watching her make their dinner while he held their baby, he would have told them they were crazy. But it wasn't crazy. It was real and true.

"Okay", she said, setting up a spot for two plates on the coffee table. "Fettuccini noodles with homemade Alfredo sauce and chicken, Caesar salad on the side and toasted garlic bread. It's not much but eat up."

Nathan stared at the delicious spread before him. Even in their younger days, she had gone to great lengths to make sure the food always was arranged neatly and appealingly on the plates, even if the ones they used back in the day were mostly made of styrofoam.

He had always had a thing for Italian meals and she had never disappointed. Maybe it was being taught by Karen or maybe it was the result of being one of six kids in a hard working family but whatever it was, it was no denying Haley was a damned good cook. She always made the noodles just right and her Alfredo sauce tasted much better than anything out of a box or bottle. Then she would dice and slowly marinate the chicken, serving it up with a salad she put together by hand, included the grated cheeses and toast browned and seasoned and buttered to perfection.

"This is good, Hales", Nathan complimented her between mouthfuls.

"Thanks. I'm just glad you like it."

"Like it?" he laughed. "I'm just wondering what I owe you after this."

"What do you mean?"

"Don't tell me you forgot."

She thought for a minute.

"Sorry but I have no idea what you're talking about…"

"Let's see…after the time you put a dent in the car, the time you wanted me to let you keep that stray litter of kittens until you could find a home for them, every time you wanted me to watch one of your gay teeny soap operas instead of the game…and uh, basically anytime you wanted anything, you always made this meal as a bribe. You knew it was my favorite."

Haley blushed as she returned his smile. She did remember. It wasn't something she had consciously done after all the years but somehow as she gravitated towards her kitchen, it seemed the natural thing to make. Funny how she hadn't known why at the time.

"Oh my gosh. I had totally forgotten, Nathan. As I recall my secret sauce did win you over a time or two."

"It's one of my favorite things to eat in the world but I'd always get nervous when you made it because I knew something was up and it was going to cost me."

Haley giggled.

"There was one other time I used to make this for you, too…"

She stopped mid sentence. Her cheeks burned bright crimson as Nathan caught her gaze and hidden meaning.

"Oh I remember", he teased.

"Okay, okay. That was a long time ago. Can we just drop it, please?"

"What?" he grinned. "Afraid I might say it out loud?"

"Don't you dare", she playfully swatted at him.

"You would always make this the night after…"

"Nathan Daniel Scott, don't! There's a child in the room."

Nathan laughed so hard his sides hurt.

"Haley, she's two months old. I doubt she understands or cares that her mommy used to make this as reward for daddy laying the pipe extra good the night before."

"Nathan!" Haley shouted, covering her face.

"What? It's true. That was the deal…I gave you more than two orgasms, I got my pasta."

"I can't believe you."

"It's true."

She laughed as she looked away.

"Actually, it was three."

"Two."

"Three."

"Hales, are you sure?"

"Sure, I'm sure. It used to be two but then you were giving me two a night, every night so we upped it to three because we couldn't afford that much chicken."

Both looked at each other and burst out laughing.

"Yeah, you're right. Those were the good old days."

She looked at him.

"We had some good times…"

Her voice trailed off. The key word was "had". Those days were long ago and long gone. Not even a few shared memories or a hearty laugh could completely erase their checkered past together.

"I'll um, I'll get the dishes", he cleared his throat.

"It's okay. I'll get them."

"Let me, Haley."

"Really, it's fine. Lillian's sleeping and…"

Their hands brushed and Haley jerked away like she had literally touched fire. They were standing so close.

"Haley…" Nathan began in a deep voice.

She couldn't make herself look at him, grateful as a knock on the door interrupted their tension filled banner.

"I'll get the door", she murmured.

Struggling to catch her breath, she opened it.

"Surprise!"

Haley's mouth dropped opened. Surprise was un understatement. Hadn't those two ever heard of a phone?

"We came to see our daughters and our newest granddaughter", Jim announced.

"Taylor isn't here."

"Don't just stand there. Don't you have a hug for your mom and dad?"

Haley closed her eyes as she enveloped them.

"Hey guys. It's good to see you."

"We've missed you, Haley bub. Now where is that precious grandbaby of ours?"

"She's sleeping…"

"Wow, you look great, Haley! Who would know you just had a baby?"

"Um, thanks…"

"You okay, sweetheart?" Jim asked. "Looks like you just tumbled out of bed. Did we disturb you?"

Lydia peered in and upon seeing her sheepish looking former son in law, elbowed her husband and cleared her throat.

"Um, I…I can explain. Nathan is visiting for the summer. He wanted to help out and be close to Lillian."

"No need to explain to us", Lydia teased. "You're adults and after all, you were married once."

The James' made their way inside. Nathan nervously shuffled his feet. He hadn't seen them in years and with everything that had happened, he was nervous about how they would receive him after so much passed time.

"Get over here and give us a hug", Jim grinned, immediately easing his fears. "It's been a long time, Nate."

His former in laws embraced him.

"Too long. It's nice to see you, Mr. James, Mrs. James. How have you been?"

"Just groovy", Lydia grinned. "And stop with all this Mr. and Mrs. stuff. Call is Lydia and Jim, please. And to answer your question, we've been all over these united states the last eight years. Every tour, museum, amusement park, national landmark…we've been there haven't we, Jim? And had a ball doing it. How have you been?"

Nathan shrugged and looked away. Stupid question.

"I'm alright."

"We've heard you run into some troubles, son", Jim acknowledged sympathetically. "We've been praying for you. We hope it all works out."

"Thanks."

From either the loud, excessive noise or lack of attention, Lillian began to fuss.

"Who do we have here?" Lydia grinned, picking her up. "Hey sweetie girl. It's Gran."

"She's a beauty", Jim smiled proudly. "Hey, that different colored eye thing is pretty cool. I thought it would be freaky."

"It's just a birthmark, Daddy", Haley laughed.

"I know, pumpkin but we'd never heard of that. But I did hear this story once about a baby being born with a full set of teeth. Talk about giving me the willies", he frowned. "Now that's one hell of a birthmark."

"You're making that up", Haley smiled.

"Am not. Scout's honor."

Another loud clap of thunder and the lights flickered before the place went completely black.

"I knew that was gonna happen", Haley sighed. "You guys hang tight. Let me grab a flashlight and some candles."

Haley felt her way around in the darkness. After a few minutes of stumbling around and cursing, she finally found a flashlight and some matches to light the candles.

"Got it, Haley?"

"Yeah", she said, setting the candles down. "Hopefully the storm will pass over soon. The power shouldn't be out too long."

They all sat down and played with Lillian who after tiring of all the adults around her every few minutes, would begin to scream her little head off. A half an hour later, there was a knock at the door. Haley jumped. She had always been the fidgety type.

"Who the hell could that be in this weather?" she wondered out loud as she took her flashlight with her.

"The Boogeyman", Jim quipped.

Haley rolled her eyes as she opened the door. She shined the light onto Deb, accompanied by the smirking face the one and only Dan Scott. Haley turned off the flashlight.

"Who is it, Haley bub?" her mother asked.

"I told you Lydia, it's the Boogeyman", Jim laughed again.

"Close enough", Haley muttered.