Chapter Sixty-Four: Sympathetic Eyes
Ideally, Haley would have called to Brooke to pour out her heart. But Brooke was under the impression that Haley was blissfully in her love with her husband.
So Haley called the first alternate.
"Well, duh," said Peyton, after listening to Haley tell her everything.
"What?"
"Of course Nathan's in love with you. He's always been. He spent two years miserably regretting not following you to Brown," she said.
"Idiot," she said.
"I always thought so. But then, he is a man," said Peyton wryly.
"Damn, too bad Davis can't hear you now," joked Haley.
She was surprised when Peyton abruptly hung up the phone. Didn't Peyton understand that Haley needed to vent?
Haley slowly put down the phone and wandered over to her bed. Through the open door, she could see their child's room, still in complete disarray. She remembered that she'd have to stay married to him at the very least for another year. For the first time, she wished they'd been more careful.
She didn't need to see him to know he'd arrived.
"Get out," she said quietly, once she'd felt his presence in her doorway.
He slowly advanced in to her room.
"Here," he said. Reaching around her, he dropped a package in her lap. A jewelry box. She flicked it open to reveal an expensive pair of diamond earrings. She closed it again and dropped it on the side table.
"Thanks. Because I just didn't feel enough like a whore," she said bitterly.
"You're not a whore."
Haley turned to him, and Nathan saw for the first time that she was crying.
"Aren't I? You gave me money to marry you. You're giving me goods to say with you. And the whole sex aspect kind of falls in to place," she said.
"Don't think about it like that," he pleaded her.
"And now you're telling me what to do. Well, I guess it's your right," she said.
"Your sister would be dead if it weren't for me," he said.
"Well I guess it's better than me dying slowly," she spat out, standing. She made to move for the door, but he caught her upper arm.
"We're not finished yet," he said.
"I think we are. Let go of me," she said, her voice trembling slightly.
"Make me," he said threateningly.
Nathan released his grip as Haley sunk her long, manicured fingernails in his hand.
"Careful what you wish for," she said. Taking a step away from him, she ran outside to the balcony, firmly closing the glass door behind her. As the raindrops began to fall, she put her elbows on the wrought iron rail and buried her face in her hands.
Nathan slowly walked to the doors and stared at her. The rain slowly stuck her satin dressing gown to her legs, and plastered her hair to her flesh.
The door creaked slightly as he pushed it open and he joined her on the balcony amidst the pouring rain. He walked to her and put a hand on her elbow.
"Go away," she said, shaking him off.
"Get inside, Haley," he said authoritatively.
"Don't tell me what to do, Nathan. I'm not yours to order around," she said. Most of her anger having evaporated, she didn't protest when he angled her to facehim.
"But you are, Haley. You've always been. You promised me once," he said. She shook slightly, a mixture of the cold and of the powerful memory.
"Get off of me," she said dismissively. She retreated a few more steps, but he followed her. He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her in to him.
"I love you," he said. She resisted weakly as he kissed her.
"You don't…" she murmured. As the raindrops began to coat his skin and obstruct his vision, he found his way into her dressing gown. "Nice and bare. I like it."
"Pig," she said. She let out an unwilling gasp of pleasure, and briefly clung to him.
"Don't," he said. Her hair was plastered to her back. Her dressing gown was stuck to her body, showing clearly her black lace bra. Her skin was smooth and drenched by the falling rain.
His shirt was equally plastered, showing his clear muscles distinctly.
"You're wet all the way through, aren't you?" asked Nathan, speaking quietly into her ear.
"You'll never make me love you," she said threateningly. In one movement, he drew her in by the arm around her waist and crushed his lips onto hers.
Haley put her arms around his neck and clung to him. Nathan interrupted their kiss by sweeping her into his arms and advancing back toward their bedroom. He kicked the door open and dropped her onto the bed.
Their slick bodies moved in sync. Underneath him, Haley shed her clothing, letting all of her slick, naked flesh touch all of his. Feeling his desperate need of her course through him, he trapped her wrist in his hands above her head and thrust inside of her.
Haley arched her body toward his, knowing that even with the control of her hands, she couldn't control her emotions around him.
It didn't take long for Nathan to put the puzzle pieces together the next morning when he awoke without Haley. This was payback.
After a brief search, he found her where they'd started. Sitting on the rail of the balcony, facing outward.
"Get down. I know a few people who'd be seriously put out if you fell to your death," he said.
"I can't leave, can I? There's no release. You've caught me, fairly affectively. Good show," she said, turning around and slipping off the rail. For the briefest instant, he caught a glimpse of her slightly pregnant stomach.
"Is there anything I can do to make you want to stay?" he asked. She looked up at him and flung her blonde hair away from her face.
"I don't know, Nathan. But last night you proved you're pretty damn good at getting me to do whatever you want," she said. Putting an arm around his neck, she pulled him down for a kiss.
"Let's go inside. We're shocking the neighbours," he said.
"They could do with some shock," she said. She briefly imagined how they'd looked last night, their slick bodies plastered together, him carrying her to their bed.
Something in her called out to him, and forced her into doing things she couldn't explain. She never had understood it.