Chapter Twenty-Nine: What's One More Time?

"It was you, wasn't it?" asked Lucas, stepping into her car. Brooke's breathing sped up at the sound of his voice, the smell of him, the very fact that he was near, but she didn't let it show.

"Haley didn't warn you?"

"She told me what she was doing, but she didn't tell me you were the bait," he explained.

"I thought so. I'm not a lesbian. I was doing it for her benefit," explained Brooke, wondering why she bothered.

"Good to hear. Brooke…" began Lucas.

"Don't. Don't you dare, Lucas Scott. I used to think you were too good for me," she said, looking sideways at him. "Now I know that I'm too good for me."

"Brooke it doesn't matter if you can't bear to hear me say it, if you're just too fragile. I'm sorry I hurt you. It's been eating at me for almost a year now. But I love you, Brooke Davis. I always will. And there's nothing you can do about it," he said.

"Damn you. Why won't you just leave it alone?" she asked.

"I can't, Brooke," he said.

"You can, Luke. You can forget all about me. You did that night, didn't you?" she asked.

"Not for long," he said. She glanced sideways at him and before she could breath his lips were on hers, his arms around her, unable to break away. Even if for some insane reason she wanted to.

"Luke…" she breathed. After months of thinking of him, finally he was hers. Finally he was there, flesh and blood, for her to touch, to love. Finally she was whole again.

Lucas sighed in contentment. No one was like Brooke. No one could kiss like her, feel like her. All the pretty girl he'd been with since her, and none of them had made him feel one tenth what he felt for her. He kissed her eagerly and thoroughly, not knowing when he'd again get the chance.

Eventually Brooke broke away and turned the car into drive.

"We going somewhere?" asked Lucas in surprise.

"Yeah. Haley and Nathan's. I have to show you something," she said, her voice scared but steady.

XxxxxxX

Haley gasped in surprise when Lucas walked in with Brooke. Jackie was in her arms, and she was feeding him with a bottle.

"Luke! This is my sister Vivian's new kid, I'm…" Brooke cut her off.

"Don't bother," she whispered. Lucas looked between the two, but his eyes had settled on the baby before he understood.

"He's mine?" he whispered.

The two women were silent, knowing he knew the truth as Nathan had known.

"He's ours," said Brooke. He turned to her, a mixture of fury and hope on his face. "Don't be mad."

"I'm not mad. I'm…" Lucas took a step toward his child. Jackie was half asleep with barely the energy to drink the milk from the bottle.

"Here," whispered Haley, holding him out to his father. Lucas took the baby and continued to feed him.

"Should we get married, or something?" asked Lucas hesitantly.

"What, to you? Please. He's the only man for me," joked Brooke, indicating her son. Lucas smiled a half smile.

"Are you two together?" asked Haley curiously.

"No," said Brooke quickly.

"No," agreed Lucas. "But I have a hunch that we will be."

XxxxxxX

Nathan stared as Haley walked in. She'd dressed only to save herself from decency, not planning to get out. It didn't bother him. Her freshly washed blonde hair fanned out around her shoulders. Her white tank top revealed a few inches of flesh, and its neckline revealed even more. White was her colour, it brought out the gold in her skin. Her blue jeans were low waisted and snug.

"I want you," he said. She looked down at him and crossed her arms.

"We need to talk," she said, going to the bookshelves and rummaging behind the books before pulling out a solitary photo, one printed off in an ordinary colour printer.

Nathan stared at it. His greatest mistake, the one thing about him he didn't want his wife to know. Peyton Sawyer. He reached out and took it from her.

"I've already gone through denial and a whole hell of a lot of anger, so there's not much left to do but make me accept," she said, sitting down next to him, looking tired.

"I'm sorry. We'd had a fight. I've never regretted anything more. I've never not meant it when I've told you I love you," he said.

"And I don't have the right. I know," she said.

"You do. We're married. You deserve more," he said. She gently took the photo from him and ripped it neatly into eight sections.

"It's okay. Let's just say I've dealt with it in my own fashion," she said, sighing deeply before tucking her head into his shoulder and closing her eyes.