The Risk

Rating: M

"If I could have one wish, it would just be this, I could take you to my soul and show you all the love there is"Chely Wright

Chapter 2

"Finally!" Bevin bounced in her seat, having waited for the last child to be delivered safely home before she raced back to the bus for an explanation. "Who is he?"

"Nathan Scott," Haley smirk before pulling back on the road and heading for the preschool.

"Hmmm, that's Nathan." Bevin appraised in a heavy sigh. "He's "Mr. Best Buddy" you've been talking about forever?"

"I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to introduce you two. If he's still here next week, you'll be the first one he meets." She put in the last part as an admission to herself more so than Bevin, her fingers clutching the gear shift.

"He'll be here." Bevin reassured sensing her friends insecurity.

"You never know with Nathan."

"Stop being a Debbie Downer, Hales. He just got here! Honey, I know you're crazy about him. I always assumed there was some reason why you keep beating off any other guy with a stick. Looks like I just saw it back at the school. Hell, I thought Nathan Scott was this romantic image you had conjured up. I thought him shooting prize-winning photos all over the map was just an excuse for us to never actually meet him and because you weren't getting any for so long you created a fantasy man, but looking at him." Bevin smiled devilishly.

"Bevin Taylor!" Haley blushed.

"The man is fine, Hales. I wouldn't mind dreaming or posing for…"

"Bevin! If Skills heard you talking like this, he'd …. he'd spank you!" Ms. James stammered not wanted to be reminded of Nathan's man wonder physical attributes.

Bevin raised a brow. "Girl, you act like that's a bad thing."

Mrs. Taylor had been teaching kindergarten at the school since it's opening. Brooke, Bevin and Haley worked well together and had a great camaraderie. Like her secretary, the sweet blonde was constantly trying to hook Haley up with her husbands friends and co-workers. She wanted her to be as happily married as she was.

"I was as stunned as you to see him on the doorstep. Nathan lives by his own rules. I never know when he'll send me a ticket to meet him in New York, Atlanta, or Seattle to name a few. Although he has a house in Manhattan, he's been a nomad for years. But if I need him, he's there in a hurry. He's my family, Bevin. That's all that every really mattered."

No longer did she dwell on the depressing years when they were apart. Gratefully, that time was in the past.

Haley continued to ignore Bevin's remarks on her own feelings for Nathan. She refused to analyze them. She realized years ago that the magnitude of her feeling for Nathan was something she couldn't let herself examine closely. She couldn't.

"It's good he's here, Haley. I'm happy for you. Maybe you can have brunch with us on Sunday. I'm sure Skills would love to meet him." Bevin offered as Haley swung into the driveway and parked in the driveway of the modern Cape Cod home the childless couple had shared since they wed right out of high school.

"I would love to Bevin, but I can't answer for Nathan. His plans can change at a moments notice. I've learn to take him on a day to day basis." Haley looked anxiously at her friend. She was dying to get back to Nathan, but she tried to appear subtle.

Bevin stepped off the bus, turning to her dear friend. "We'll try to set something up later. Have a great time with Nathan." She blew her a kiss, fighting her concerns. Happiness was all she wanted for Haley, but Bevin wasn't sure Nathan Scott could provide that for her.

"Goodnight." Haley chirped backing out as Bevin yell to the side window.

"Don't forget to look into finding a new driver!" She shouted.

Haley nodded, shifting gears and heading back to her estate. She had chosen the isolated location purposely. It had a beautiful view of the ocean, that could be use fun classroom excursion. The other side held a lush forest that she and the children could explore for exercise and education. She was amazed how many parents drove the extra mile five days a week to have them enrolled at her preschool. She and the children were very happy here.
Tree hill was home.

"Steaks and spuds!" Haley did a little head bop. Nathan was without a doubt a meat and potatoes man. She stopped at the local Publix and grabbed the essentials for a hearty home cooked meal. The bachelorette was giddy about cooking for him. He didn't even know she could work magic in the kitchen.

When Haley and Nathan were together, the were usually in hotels and resort, each with their own room. They took all their meals at a variety of nearby restaurants. The safety of numbers held a buffer the strong attraction that prevailed between them. They had made a vow ages ago: to love each other, yet to never become lovers again.

It had been a little less than a year and half since she had seen him. Yes, he telephoned , but infrequently. It was not the same as having him in the same room, staring into his oceanic eyes and masculine good looks. That's the only time she could let her guard down and know he was truly safe and sound.

"Somebody has hooked her a man, woo wee!" Crystal Moore said, placing the items in the bag and snapping the chewing gum in her mouth as she totaled my purchase. The downright nosey mother ofa pair of the preschool's, three and four year olds was managing cashier for the food store. She knew all the town gossip.

"He's someone special." Haley said honestly as she scanned her debit card and pushed in her PIN. She had grown use the small town observations and found it rather charming.

"It ain't Wayne Grissom, that new police officer that just transferred in?" She asked bluntly and loudly with a strong southern drawl. "He had me making him dinner Tuesday night. Well, that's until his wife showed up from Charlotte. I guess a job wasn't the only thing he left there!" She pursed her lips and twisted a few strands of her hair that had been dyed several different shades of brown. "Don't trust him. He's a doggone manipulator!" She warned.

"It's for an old friend from out of town. But I'll be sure to stay clear of Wayne." Haley promised taking her bags.

"Did Shandy ever stop biting those kids at the school? I put her in time out for that, like Mrs. McFadden told me." She yelled, wondering about her middle child's behavior as her customer reached the exit. "She even stopped biting the dog."

"She's been a blessing, Ms. Moore. I'll see you when you drop the kids off Monday. Bye!" Haley called back, giggling all the way to the bus.

Haley decided to open a school in this sleepy Carolina town for several reasons, but young working mothers like Crystal Moore were a prime factor. She didn't want them to loose promising careers or steady work because the didn't have affordable child care.

Thinking about her job caused Haley to wonder about Nathan's career. She never went into detail about his career, because honestly she feared the brutal truth behind what he had to see and go through in any days work. His life was in constant danger for a picture or a story. She stopped burdening him with questions that left even more frightened for his well being long ago.

Haley's chill bumps had nothing to do with the November day and the whipping wind tapping against the bus. She had spent a many sleepless night wonder if he were safe. He was stuck in some foreign country with now one to care if he lived or died. Over the years, she had become an expert at keeping her fears hidden. Nathan had enough to handle without worry about her.

She almost pinched herself. Nathan was at home waiting for her. That's all that mattered. Tonight was special. She blocked out reminders that he had not really kissed her. She knew why he did not …. They both knew why he could not.

Nathan marveled in the luxury and beauty Haley had created in decorating her home. The sunroom was something out of a magazine. The spacious living room had cinnamon walls and butter crème carpet that matched the drapes. There was a flat panel television with satellite and Tivo. The kitchen was fully equipped and stocked as well as the laundry room. He could only image how lovely the rest of the huge domicile was.

Everywhere he looked he saw the warmth and shine that was so much part of Haley. Despite the agonizing pain pounding in his abdomen, Nathan crossed the room to the picture filled end tables on either side of the chocolate leather sofa. He studied the James family oil painting centered behind the couch. Lucas had been about sixteen and Haley thirteen when the portrait was done.

Nathan remembered how nervous he was the first time he met the James. Although popular and talented, Nathan had been distant and a loner when he met Lucas James, his roommate at a high school senior summer journalism program. The golden haired boy was outgoing and extremely bright. He was well liked and gradually able to penetrate the walls that Nathan had put up. Finally, Nathan had a person in his life he could trust. Lucas's friendship had come to mean more to Nathan than he could ever put into words.

The artwork had once hung in the James' opulent home and was one of the rare items Haley had not auctioned off a little over five years earlier, after her parents died when their RV careened down the side of the Colorado Rockies. She rid herself of the grand estate and it's priceless antiques and memories- just to painful for her to hold on to. The table were filled with silver framed family photos. Everyone was gone now, except Haley.

Nathan saw his own image in various frames. There was one with Lucas in the middle, his arm draped around Nathan and Haley's shoulders. They had spent that day golfing. The picture was a gentle reminder of last excursion the threesome shared. The next day, Nathan and Lucas rushed to cover devastating earthquake in China.

Nathan and Lucas shared a bond stronger than friendship. After high school graduation, they continued their education together at Stanford, roommates at the school of journalism. Lucas focused on writing the story and Nathan took the photographs. After graduation, they journeyed the globe together, fearless and determined to get that all important stories. Not only were they successfully, but they made a name for themselves in the industry at the ripe old age of twenty-two.

Seven months after the ideal summer, Nathan carried Lucas's ashes home in 24kt gold urn. Nathan's hand shook as he return the frame to its rightful place. Time had help him cope and accept the loss, but nothing could soften the terror of watching your best friend murdered and not being able to do a damn thing to prevent it.

Mr. Scott easily found his quarters. He sat his bag down on the mahogany hardwoods. Although the room was inviting with its warm greens and deep gold, it held no interest for him. He continued down the corridor to the closed French doors of the room at the end of the hallway.

Ignoring the fierce beating of his heart, he entered Haley's bedroom. He had no right to be here. But damn, for years he had resisted the simple pleasure of being in her home or having her visit his. Now, he was where he yearned to be, surrounded by her things. He treated himself by soaking in the sight of where she slept and performed the most intimate of tasks.

Perhaps his brush with death had been too close this time. Maybe that's why he felt so compelled to come. His light eyes ventured over the heavy wood of the queen-sized platform bed covered with a blue/brown handcrafted quilt and matching pillow shams.

He walked over and studied the wooden vanity-peppered with her lotions, fragrances and moisturizers in much the same fashion in which he would have paid close attention to each detail of an assignment. He inhaled sharply, immersing his male senses in her strictly feminine domain.

"You are so whipped, Scott," He spoke aloud with no one to hear his thoughts. He had been in love with Haley since she was a teenager. Once in the years since they had grown close did relinquish power. That grandiose error nearly cost him what he consider most sacred, his place in her life.

White satin lay at the corner of the changing screen, the built-in book shelves that covered the wall behind the bed were filled with books on every subject imaginable, an entertainment centers, along with DVDs, and a wide selection of music. Each piece held sentimental value for him because they belonged to Haley. A political thriller lay open on the table beside the chaise with a brocaded throw spread across it.

Carefully, he bent to retrieve the scrap of satin in front of the screen, his mind refusing to stray from it for long. He raised the delicate material, brushing the sating cloth over his clean shaven chin, up over his mouth and resting below his nose.

"Beautiful…." He moaned her name hungrily aloud. It held the scent of her softly curvaceous body. His own body becoming hard despite his weakened state.

"Shit! What the hell am I doing?" Nathan unconsciously bawled the lingerie in one of his large palms. "Why torture myself this way?"

There was no reasonable explanation, just an unquenchable thirst to loose himself in her and the sweet goodness that was an intricate part of her personality. His heart thumped heavy in his chest as he placed the undergarment on the vanity's chair and stormed from the room.

In the guest room he stood in front of the window, staring out at the Atlantic ocean. A dumb mistake! Why had he not made that all important stop in Manhattan before leaving for North Carolina/ Sixty minutes with a woman would have relaxed the throbbing in his groin, although the thought of coming to Haley drenched in another woman's smell and touch was disrespectful and disgusting.

He laughed in spite of himself. His body was making demands that were impossible to fulfill. Well, all his body parts were definitely still in working order. Honestly, Nathan hadn't wanted another woman for a very long time.

He nourished himself with small doses of Haley. He had tricked himself into believing that was enough. It had to be, there wasn't any other option open to him. With a frown, he accepted his fate. That was why he was here. He needed another fix… of her light tresses….. Her gorgeous mocha eyes ….. Her breathtaking smile …. Her giggle ….. And her natural kindness.

It wasn't much, but it kept him sane. Nothing could be as horrendous as the three years they spent apart. He knew how fortunate he was she forgave him for that one hurtful error in judgment. He learned long ago not to pressure her for more than she was able to give.

Stop! The things he desired from her was a weakness he couldn't afford. If he had been using his head instead of his heart, he wouldn't have come here in the first place. It was a dumb idea on his part, especially in his present situation. The time in the hospital had left him feeling lonely and empty inside. This wasn't his first brush with death, but his nearest.

After Lucas' death, he'd concentrated on writing aspects of his work, refusing to let his loss be in vain. He refused to work with a partner. He wouldn't set himself up for that type of heartbreak again. He was a natural at the photography, but he had to work diligently to craft the writing and discovered a talent for it. Over the years, it had flourished in depth and intensity. His articles were riveting an his photos visualized the human suffering in worn-torn areas words could not express. His first book on Bosnia had create a buzz and became the basis of an award winning documentary.

His long awaited book on the Sudan, would, he prayed, make a change and shed some light on a genocide of people that were being ignored.

But he was exhausted …. So exhausted. Nathan finally relented and lay across the firm bed. The pain he had fought for hours, he could no longer hide. He frowned at his helplessness, resting his head on the fluffy pillow.

A months recovery, then he would complete the job he left unfinished. The political situation was constantly changing. Although he had a pricey and swanky penthouse in Manhattan, Nathan never felt at home there. It was just a place to leave his dirty boots, which had become a rarity in the last three years. He kept working, and moving- trying not to dwell on his bittersweet urges and touching needs that could never be met.

Haley had made a new place for herself her in North Carolina. She had certainly stomached enough tragedy in her small lifespan, having lost everyone she deemed precious. Now his bull! She didn't need this! What had he been thinking coming here? He hadn't been using his head.

He couldn't let her know how badly he was injured, it wasn't fair. Nathan poured two painkillers from the prescription bottled he took from his pocket and popped them in his mouth. As his drowsy eyes drew close, he knew Haley would be disappointed when she learned he was only staying the night.

The house was peaceful when Haley let herself inside. She put the grocery bags on the kitchen counter. Looking up the back staircase, she could see the guest room door ajar.

"Nathan?"

He was spread across the middle of the bed. His wide shoulders and thick chest was covered in a cobalt button down with a white tee shirt underneath. Dark denim hugged his muscular legs, and trim waist.

Haley giggled when she notice he had been to fatigued to remove his black Timberland boots. Tip toeing over to the bed, she gently tugged one and the other shoe free, all without a peep from him.

He had aged and looked weary, she decided with a scowl. She covered him with the thick fleece throw from the ottoman. Only for a moment did she permit herself the luxury of really feeling him. Mildly, she soothed her fingers across his forehead and down the bridge of his strong nose outlining his plush mouth. She grew a deep shade of pink, remembering how often she dreamed they would feel against her naked skin, before she hurried the fantasy away. She caught her breath when his lips parted, but only to draw a deep breath. She slipped out of the room, easing the door closed behind her.

"Eats or treats?" She giggled at her own vanity as she skipped to the bedroom. She planned to be more attractive than a porterhouse steak and a fully loaded baked potato tonight.

She shed the green v-neck sweater and gray slacks she had worn to work.

Money had never been a problem for Haley, nor important to her. She had been born into it, fourth generation southern blue blood. What mattered was family and goals she set for herself.. Nathan was her only family. She had worked hard, getting her masters in Early Childhood Educaton to achieve ownership of her crown and glory, Mr. Waffle's Learning Tree. It was one of the premier day care facilities in North Carolina and served the community well.

She ran straight for the shower, turning the water on full force. At the end of the day, she usually she cared for a long soak, lounging in bubbles with her head upward, watching the stars through the skybox in the ceiling. But tonight Haley didn't tarry.

The diminutive beauty caught sight of herself in the full length mirror. Although tired, her eyes were still bright like her smile. Her spirit was flying high. There was only one explanation for her jovial mood ….. Nathan Scott.

She sang to the song on the radio as she moisturized her skin with a lightly scented lotion and pulled on a soft blue teddy. A flowing, low cut white blouse covered it and a pair of her best fitting jeans. A simple silver clip held waves of blonde away from her pretty face. A swipe of mascara, a dab of lip gloss, and a pair of diamond studs for ears and she was off.

Was it May the last time they had seen each other? They had met in Los Angeles. He had missed all the major holidays and her birthday: in April. They ended the rendezvous sipping champagne for the "new" year and trading gifts. Forgotten was the lonely Christmas that had passed or the empty birthday: his coming up in July and important occasions that lie ahead. She and Nathan and Haley were together, and that's what they celebrated.

Now, after many years, Nate had come to Tree Hill. It was a surprise, a wondrous gift to have him sharing her home. She wouldn't ruin it by crying. He was here. Soon they would share a meal she prepared for them.

As she marinated the thick steaks, she determined not to ask the questions that filled her head. She would ask not one of them. She didn't need the specifics on the danger he faced. He wasn't in the Sudan or Beirut. She laughed at how sappy and girlie she had been feeling. She was just so elated to have him here. It was typical Nathan to show up without warning, unannounced, so like him.

"Mmmm! I guess somebody finally learned to cook. Eh, Beautiful?"……

Pamela