Chapter 532: Raven Hill
Wednesday, February 22nd, Evening
The cook worked their ass off as always. Dinner was prepared not just for the kids and babysitter but for the four adults. He checked on the kids and babysitter before helping bring the food out to the table. The guest should be joining them soon.
Once Nathan put the last dish down, he headed towards the front door. Having a cook for dinner was one of the few luxuries he would splurge on, mainly because Haley would work late. He smirked; even after all these years retired, cooking was never his strong suit.
Lost in thought, Nathan almost missed the doorbell ringing. After checking on Haley putting on the final touches, Nathan went to the front door. Taking one last deep breath, Nathan opened the door.
Nathan nodded, "Brooke, Lucas, please come in," he said.
"Thanks for having us over," Brooke said as she walked into the house. Brooke and Nathan hugged once she was in the house.
Lucas entered the house, and Nathan closed the door behind them. Lucas and Nathan shook hands and did a brother hug.
"Thanks for the invite," Lucas said.
"Well, I think we need to get together more," Nathan said.
"Where are the kids?" Brooke asked.
"LK is in her room, it's reading time," Nathan said.
"And the grandkids?" Brooke asked.
"They're in the family room with the babysitter," Nathan said.
"Oh, yeah, I brought this," Brooke said and handed Nathan a bottle, "From my personal cellar."
Nathan took the bottle and looked it over. "I'll make sure you're served it," Nathan said.
"We weren't sure what we were having, so, anyway, we brought a second bottle," Lucas said and handed Nathan another bottle.
"Thank you," Nathan said, taking the second bottle, "I'll pour ourselves some glasses."
"You're welcome," Brooke and Lucas said simultaneously. Nathan chuckled and hobbled to the kitchen with the two bottles.
Haley came out of the dining room as Brooke and Lucas removed their coats. Haley smiled and walked over to Lucas; they hugged and kissed each other on the cheek. Their actions reflected their long friendship and status of being in-laws since their late teens.
"Good game last night," Haley said.
"Thanks, the girls worked their asses off," Lucas said.
"You're welcome, but can't you ever take credit for anything?" Haley asked.
"I'm not out on the court," Lucas said.
Haley shook her head, "So, anyway, how have you been?" Haley asked.
"I've been good, considering," Lucas said.
Haley nodded, "I understand," she said, patted Lucas's cheek, and kissed his other one. Haley turned to Brooke, and they hugged and did the air kisses. They looked at each other and smiled.
"I have such great news," Brooke said, excited like a little kid.
"Can it wait a bit longer?" Haley asked, shaking her head with a bit of a chuckle.
"Sure, but why?" Brooke asked.
"Well, for one, dinner is ready," Haley said.
"Oh, good reason," Brooke said.
Lucas smiled, "May I escort the ladies to the dining room?" he asked with a chuckle.
"Sure," Haley said, with a bit of teasing eye roll.
"There are ladies here?" Brooke asked, giggling.
The three friends laughed, and each lady took one of Lucas's arms. He led them into the dining room, meeting Nathan there. Nathan held out Haley's chair for her, while Lucas did the same for Brooke. The brothers took their seats, and dinner started.
The conversation was light while they ate. They mainly told antidotal stories about their respective days. A few jokes, in-jokes, and otherwise were passed around as well. The wine was drunk, mostly, and the mood became lighter as they ate. The cook outdid themselves, and the food was top-notch.
As they finished eating, Lucas took another sip of his wine. "Nathan, Haley, your cook outdid themselves tonight," he said.
"I'll let Hannah know," Nathan said.
"Hannah?" Lucas asked.
"Our new cook," Nathan said.
"Okay, well, she was amazing," Lucas said.
"So, Lucas, what are the plans with Nomi and Ellis?" Haley asked.
"I just talked to Izzy about that the other night. After the basketball season, I'm to start getting Leighton ready, and the plan is to have them move back there after the end of the school year," Lucas said.
"Keith should be back by then?" Haley asked.
"Yes, hopefully," Lucas said.
"Good, it will be great to get back to normalcy," Haley said.
"I hear you," Nathan said, getting a chuckle from everyone.
"Is it my turn?" Brooke asked.
Haley smiled, "Go ahead, Brooke," she said.
"The Met Gala had its sponsor drop out at the last minute, so Sabrina took it on her own initiative and got us in as the sponsor," Brooke said.
"Brooke, that's great," Haley said.
"I was even named co-chair of the event," Brooke said.
"That's awesome, Brooke," Nathan said, partially clueless.
"I already have a few people looking for my designs; it's so short on time, I had to bring Bobbi in to help," Brooke said.
"Doesn't she have her own label?" Haley asked.
"Under the House of Davis, and she's my best designer," Brooke said.
Nathan held up his wine glass, "To Brooke Davis, just as we thought there were no other mountains to climb, she conquerors another one," he said.
"To Brooke," Lucas said.
"To Brooke," Haley said.
"To Me," Brooke said, laughed, and everyone took a sip of their drink.
Lucas at Haley, then to Nathan. "What is your news?" he asked.
Nathan sighed, "I guess the only way to do this is to rip the band-aid off," he said.
"Just say it, Nate," Brooke said.
"Haley and I are grandparents, again," Nathan said.
"Congratulations," Brooke said, puzzled, and turned to Lucas, "How long have you known Ashlyn's pregnant and didn't tell me?"
Lucas held up his hands and shook his head.
"It's not Ashlyn," Nathan said.
"It can't be LK," Brooke said.
"It's not," Haley said.
"What? You mean?" Brooke asked.
"Yes, Brian has another child," Haley said.
"What? How? Age?" Brooke asked.
"His name is Krisztofer, and he's nine," Nathan said.
"That means," Brooke said.
"He's younger than Wyatt and Lennon and older than Lacy and Darren," Nathan said.
"So, what are you going to do?" Brooke asked.
"Some legal stuff is already in motion, and we'll take it slow from there," Nathan said.
"Wow!" Brooke said.
Haley nodded, "We felt the same way," she said.
"That's an emotional load," Brooke said.
Everyone nodded slowly and sipped their drink.
"Congratulations to the old/new grandparents," Brooke finally said, raising her glass.
"Thanks," Nathan and Haley said.
"You're welcome," Brooke said as they finished their meal.
