Before Lucas and Haley returned to New York, they made sure to exchange phone numbers with both Mouth and Brooke. Brooke promised to let Lucas know when she was ready for him to meet Ethan. She had to prepare herself to tell her son first about Lucas. She had a feeling that would be a little more challenging since he was a little boy, and he wouldn't comprehend everything she was going to tell him.
Brooke wanted to focus on one thing at a time, and she turned her attention on moving her belongings to Julian's place. Of course, that meant Julian rearranging his things first to accommodate his sister and nephew. Luckily, Ethan loved the idea of moving in with his Uncle Julian. Sam was jealous and wished she could join them.
As they rearranged things in the house, Brooke kept dodging calls from Owen. However, she was more than happy to chat with her new friend, and she smiled to herself as she read the text before responding herself.
"What are you smiling about?" Julian asked, glancing in her direction.
It was just the two of them with Rachel upstairs on the balcony getting some sun. Paul, Mouth and Chase, Brooke's ex-boyfriend who was now her friend, had come by to help move furniture, but they had recently left after finishing their duties.
"Oh, it's nothing. Haley and I are just getting to know each other better," Brooke said as she went back to work. "I know you think I'm crazy for getting to know her instead of Lucas, but she has been friendly to me since we met. Besides, she reached out to me first and wanted my advice for finding a realtor in Tree Hill. She wants to try and convince her husband to move here. I thought about recommending her over to Victoria, but you know how she is with our friends."
"Are you going to be okay if they do move to Tree Hill?" Julian asked. "Because Lucas doesn't even have a relationship with Ethan yet. By the way, when are you going to tell Ethan? How are you going to tell him?"
Brooke let out a heavy sigh. "I haven't quite figured that out yet. I will certainly not take a cue from Victoria and be unsympathetic towards my son's feelings about meeting Lucas. If he doesn't want to meet him, he doesn't have to."
"But you know he will," Julian said, finishing her thoughts.
Brooke didn't respond. "Why don't we just focus on moving in my stuff and then we'll worry about me telling Ethan about Lucas, okay?"
"You know I can be there with you when you tell him," Julian offered. "It might be easier on you if you had another person with you."
Brooke gave him a grateful smile. "Thanks, but I think I can do it on my own." Julian nodded understandingly. She then became serious. "Ok, I think we need to establish some ground rules. I know this is your house, but we also have to set a good example for Ethan. So I would appreciate it if you didn't have any sleepovers."
"Don't worry, Brooke. I know better than that," Julian said. "Besides, I told you that I'm not interested in Alex. Why do you think I haven't had a date with her since my mom suggested it? I know my mom wants me to settle down and start a family, but I'm certainly going to do it on my own terms."
Before Brooke could answer, the back door opened and Ethan appeared with a smile on his face. Sam was right behind him, shouldering a tote bag that looked like it was overflowing with books. Brooke and Julian stopped what they were doing, and they went over to greet them. Ethan embraced his mother in a tight hug.
"Hey, did you have fun at the library with Aunt Sam?" Brooke asked.
"Yep. Aunt Sam let me get as many books as I wanted," Ethan said. "She said she even found you a book."
Brooke turned to Sam with curiosity. She put Ethan down so he could hug his uncle. "Really? Because Aunt Sam knows I'm not a reader."
Sam just smiled back at her in amusement. "Oh, it's really for me, but you can borrow it when I'm done." Brooke knew that look, and she knew her sister was hiding something. Sam pulled out the book she was talking about from the tote bag and Brooke's eyes went wide. "Have you ever read this book?" She tried not to show her surprise as she turned back to her son, who was finishing his hug with Julian. "Well, I'm glad you had a fun time. Why don't you go and say 'hi' to Aunt Rachel? She's up on the balcony."
Ethan's smile disappeared. "I don't want to," he said quietly.
Brooke frowned. "Why not?"
"Because it's near the attic and I don't want the ghosts to get me," Ethan told her.
"Ghosts? Who told you there were ghosts in the attic?" Brooke asked as she turned to Sam, who was trying to look innocent. Brooke looked at her sister disapprovingly. "Sam, did you tell your nephew there were ghosts in the attic?" she asked in a stern voice.
Julian spoke before Sam could offer a response. "Don't worry, buddy. That's why I am moving up there," he said as he picked Ethan up. "To make sure all monsters stay away from you. Now do you think you're ready to go and see Aunt Rachel?" he asked, and Ethan nodded his head.
Brooke waited until they had headed up the stairs before she spoke. She looked at Sam exasperated. "Sam, I know you're upset about the move, but I would appreciate it if you would support my decision."
Sam interrupted her. "Save me the lecture. I have already heard it from Julian," she said.
"If you knew I wanted to make this a smooth transition for Ethan, then why were you trying to scare Ethan?" Brooke asked. "You know how much he is scared of monsters. Did Mother put you up to this?"
"Mom doesn't need my help," Sam said. "She can do it all on her own." Brooke didn't even have a chance to ask what that meant. "Look, I'm sorry that I scared him. I didn't mean to. It won't happen again." She held up the book again. "So have you read this book yet? I heard it was on the best seller's list when it first came out."
"No, and I'm not planning to," Brooke said.
"Why not? After all, he's going to be in our lives full-time soon, isn't he?" Sam asked as she glanced through the book blurb on the side jacket of the hardback book. "You should get to know him better. After all, you're stuck with him."
"We're going to find a way to dissolve our marriage, one way or another," Brooke said. "And we're far from him being more involved with Ethan. And I'm in no hurry in introducing him to the family. I haven't even figured out how to tell Ethan about him yet."
"What about Owen? How does he feel about this?" Sam asked. There was hesitation from Brooke, making her realize the answer. "You haven't told him yet? Why not?"
"Because we're not together anymore," Brooke said. "He hasn't even dropped by to see Ethan."
"Is that really his fault?" Sam snapped. "You're the one who pushed him away."
Brooke was about to defend herself when she heard a familiar ringtone coming from her phone.
Millie.
Brooke was grateful for the excuse and she grabbed her phone. "Millie, is everything okay?" she asked. Even though she was used to Millie calling more frequently because of Victoria, she was always willing to answer the phone for her friend.
"Have you seen Sam? I thought she was supposed to start working today, but she hasn't come in yet," Millie said.
Brooke turned to Sam, who quickly realized she had been caught in the act and was trying to sneak out the back door before her sister saw her. Brooke glared at her and she called after her, but Sam had already disappeared out the door.
Brooke turned her attention back to Millie as she heard footsteps coming down the stairs. "Apparently, Sam forgot to tell me that she was supposed to start working today. Thank you for telling me. I'll take care of it." She said goodbye to Millie before hanging up.
She could hear Julian's frustrated voice behind her. "Do I even want to know what that was all about?" he asked as he reached the first floor and he walked over to her.
"Sam neglected to remind me that she couldn't watch Ethan because she was supposed to start work at the bridal shop today," Brooke said, holding in her own frustration. "I told Mother it wasn't a good idea to allow her to go on the trip before she started work, but Sam is a good negotiator. If she wasn't my sister, she would be fired on the first day."
Julian looked at her with gentle eyes. "That's not what is really bothering you, is it?" He didn't even wait for a response. "I heard what you two were arguing about, and you can't blame Sam for getting upset. She doesn't know the whole story. She doesn't know the real reason why you and Owen broke up."
"I know," Brooke sighed as she took note of something on the counter. She groaned in frustration. "Really? I can't believe she left that book behind. I can't have it here. It's just going to remind of that weekend."
"You're going to have to get over it, especially if you're going to allow Lucas to spend time with Ethan," Julian said as he took the book from her. "I'll make sure Sam gets it back. Now are you sure you don't want me to be with you when you tell him?"
Brooke nodded. "Julian, I appreciate your concern, but this is really something I need to do by myself."
Just then, Rachel and Ethan came down to join them. Ethan was disappointed to see Sam had taken off without saying goodbye. However, Julian cheered him up by saying they were going to celebrate their first night together by getting some ice cream.
"You can join us if you want," Julian told Rachel.
Rachel gave him a smile in return. "I'd love to."
Once they decided on dessert, Julian treated them to dinner first. Even though Julian knew Victoria didn't approve of the move, he still invited her and his father anyway. Paul returned to the house to help celebrate. However, Victoria had found out about her daughter skipping out on her first day of work, and she had grounded Sam. She was staying home to make sure Sam didn't sneak out of the house.
Mouth and Millie were also invited, and they were happy to join them. Millie mentioned to Brooke that Sam did show up after she had called her, but Millie didn't feel comfortable lecturing her about the missed work day.
"Don't worry about it. I'll take care of it," Brooke said.
Julian raised his glass, and everyone followed his lead. Even though Ethan didn't understand what was going on, he repeated his actions, wanting to be included.
"To Brooke and Ethan. Welcome home," Julian said.
"Welcome home," his guests chorused before taking a sip of their drinks.
Paul was the one who brought the ice cream over for everyone. He made sure to get Ethan's favorite flavor of ice cream: chocolate.
Brooke smiled. "Well, I'm glad to know this means you won't stop spoiling your grandson."
Paul smiled in return. "Are you kidding? Of course not. Besides, I want to make sure he is comfortable in his new house."
Brooke was grateful for his thoughtfulness. She was a little nervous about Ethan's first night in their new house. He had never slept anywhere but the house she had grown up in. Even when she went out of town on business, she made sure the babysitter stayed with Ethan at the house.
They didn't make the celebration last too long, knowing it would cut into Ethan's bedtime. After everyone left, Brooke helped Ethan get ready for bed. They did their regular nighttime routine with a bath, brushing his teeth, saying good night to Julian and then story time. It wasn't a surprise for Brooke to hear Ethan chose one of the books he had gotten from the library.
Once Brooke was finished with the story, Ethan wanted her to read him another one.
Brooke gave him a gentle smile. "No, it's time for you to go to sleep," she said as she pulled the covers up close to her son. "But I will stay with you until you fall asleep. Would you like that?" she asked. Ethan nodded. "And if you have a bad dream, come and get us, okay?" Ethan just nodded again as Brooke gave him a kiss. "I love you."
"Love you, mama," Ethan said before he closed his eyes.
Brooke held him close as he drifted off to sleep. She waited until he was in a deep sleep before she quietly slipped out of the room, the nightlight shining bright behind her. She joined Julian in the kitchen. "Well, he's asleep. We'll see how long that will last," Brooke said quietly as she began to get lost in her thoughts.
"Well, he's a brave little boy, just like his mama," Julian complimented. He could see she was in a deep thought. He squeezed her hand, snapping her back into reality. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"You're right about Ethan. He will probably want to meet Lucas," Brooke said. "You know how he is. He loves meeting new people. Why am I so worried?"
"Because you are a good mama who wants to make sure you are doing the right thing for your son," Julian said as he embraced her in a comforting hug. "Don't worry. Everything will work out fine. You'll see. You've already taken the first step by telling Lucas about his son. Now you just need to take the next step and tell Ethan about Lucas."
Brooke sighed. It had to be done. Ethan had to be told, and she had postponed telling him the news long enough. "Tomorrow. I will tell him tomorrow."
