This chapter is a bit longer than I wanted it to be, but I really couldn't find a good stopping point. There was a lot to tell in this chapter. I hope you enjoy it! And thanks again to those who took the time to read and review last chapter!

"Hello?" Lucas said, grabbing the cordless phone next to his bed.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the elusive Mr. Lucas Scott," a husky voice said on the other end of the phone.

"Who is this?" he asked, sitting up. He squinted to see the clock. 7:12 a.m. He stifled a groan.

"I'll give you one guess," she said breathily.

"Brooke Davis," he said with certainty.

"Good guess," she returned appreciatively.

"What can I do for you Brooke Davis?" he asked.

"You can start getting ready for our date tonight," she told him.

"We're going out tonight?"

"Yes, we are. And you're paying. So charge your wallet up and get handsome, Lucas Scott."

"Where…are we going?" he asked, holding his phone to his cheek with his shoulder. He leaned back down on his bed, putting his hands behind his head and crossing his legs one over the other. Brooke Davis? he thought with a grin. This girl moved quickly. She hadn't even given him a chance to ask her out yet.

"I'll let you know when I pick you up," she told him.

"Oh, no, no, no. I want to know now," he told her.

"Why?" she asked.

"I like to be informed."

"Well, then…know this. Play your cards right, and you'll be getting lucky tonight," she said. Click.

Lucas pulled his phone away from his ear and then frowned at it. Did she really just say what he thought she just said?

777

"Have a great day," Haley called to the elderly couple as they left the café. She was in a chipper mood and had been since Nathan had left her house last night. At midnight. She smiled as she thought of what they'd been doing. They'd been alternating studying with making out. It was the most fun she'd ever had doing homework. She finished clearing the table off, then brought the dirty dishes out back and dropped them into the sink. She returned to the front, dish rag in her hand ready to wash off the front counter and the tables. It was a slow morning and the place didn't have a soul in it, except for her and Karen. Haley sighed. And Peyton, she thought as she heard the bell over the front door ring. She sighed and started attacking the counter with her dish rag, not looking up. Maybe if she ignored her, she'd go away. No such luck.

"Hey," Peyton said quietly.

Haley looked up. "What can I get for you?"

"A coffee, please."

"To go?" Haley asked hopefully.

Peyton nodded. "I'm not going to tell Lucas," she said as Haley made her way over to the coffee pot.

Haley finished pouring her coffee then put the cover on the disposable cup. She returned to the counter and placed it before Peyton.

"That's what Nathan said. But why? What do you want from me in return, Peyton?" she asked guardedly.

Peyton shook her head. "I don't want anything. Especially to see Lucas hurt," she said quietly. "Do you really think you're going to be able to keep this from him, Haley?"

Haley sighed warily. "It's not like I planned this, Peyton," she said heatedly. "Do you really think I expected to meet Nathan last summer and then move to…surprise! The very same town he lives in and make friends with…surprise!" she threw her hands in the air. "His brother? Who…let's face it. Can't stand him. And really, that's putting it mildly."

Peyton studied Haley for a minute. "Wow," she said.

"Wow, what?" Haley asked in frustration.

"This lying is really taking a toll on you, isn't it?" she asked.

"It's something new for me. And it's…the worst thing I've ever had to do," she said looking down at the counter. She lifted her eyes to Peyton, willing her to understand her predicament. "I feel like I've been lying to every one. And I'm pretty sure that pretty soon, the other shoe is going to drop. I can't do this much longer."

"I can't believe he did that to you," Peyton said softly.

"What?" Haley asked, confused.

"Nathan. He brought me in here and paraded me in front of you," she said disgustedly.

"Yeah," Haley said simply.

Peyton picked her coffee cup up and took a sip. "Anyway, you're secret is safe with me, Haley. I'm not going to tell Lucas." There was a pause. "But I think you should. And the sooner the better."

Haley nodded. "Thanks, Peyton."

Peyton sighed. "I'm not doing this for you. I'm doing this for him. He's my friend. And you're his best friend. This is gonna hurt him. But…he'll get over it eventually, Haley," she reassured her. "And the sooner you tell him, the sooner he can."

Haley looked at Peyton for a minute. "Whyare you being so nice to me?" she asked.

"Because," Peyton hesitated. "Despite everything else, I do like you, Haley." There was a pause. "And I can't imagine what it's like to have to move to a new town just before your senior year. And then to make only one friend that summer, to find out that he's…God this sounds tacky, but…the nemesis of the guy you fell for only a few weeks earlier." She shrugged. "I probably would have been too scared to tell him, too."

Peyton turned to leave.

"So, will I be safe Monday at practice?" Haley called after her in a joking tone.

Peyton turned around and flashed her a grin, then made her way out the front door.

777

"So, what's on the agenda for tonight?" Haley said into her cell phone as she left the café at two o'clock that afternoon. They'd just wrapped up the lunch rush and her relief had come in to take the next shift.

"Actually—I have plans for tonight," Lucas said evasively.

"Oh," Haley said in a surprised tone. Then she gasped. "With Brooke Davis?" she asked excitedly.

"Yes, with Brooke Davis," he said.

"Wow," Haley said appreciatively. "You move fast."

Lucas cleared his throat. "Actually, she called me this morning and asked me out," he admitted.

Haley laughed.

"And she didn't so much as ask me as tell me."

"Well, it sounds like this is going to be an interesting evening for you," she told him.

"Sounds like," he agreed.

"Well, you gonna call me tomorrow with the details or what?" she asked.

Lucas chuckled. "Guys don't kiss and tell."

"Hmmm…" Haley said softly. "Or maybe there just won't be anything to tell," she teased.

"Whoa. Easy there, buddy."

Haley laughed. "Have a good date, Luke," she told him.

"Thanks."

777

"We're closed," Peyton called without looking up from her spot at the bar. She was taking a look at the books to see what they were taking in versus their expenses. They'd actually done very well their opening weekend, but it had been a little downhill from there. She was trying not to get discouraged. Even Karen had assured her that that was normal for a business just trying to take off to get a rocky start.

"I'm looking for a job," the voice said.

"We're not hiring," she said simply. Still, she didn't look up.

"Well, are you working on your manners?"

Now that got her attention.

"Let me get this straight. You want a job here?" she asked.

He nodded.

"But you walk in and talk to me in an abrupt tone and get snippety with me?" she said pointedly.

"Well, I would have made eye contact with you but you couldn't be bothered to lift your head," he said defensively.

"I'm busy," she stated, looking down at the books again.

He came closer and sat down on the barstool across from where she was standing. "Yeah, I got that," he said. "I knew you were a person of few words, but I didn't know it was this extreme," he said in a teasing tone.

She looked up again and gave a deep sigh. Clearly this guy wasn't going to go away. "And how do you know I'm a person of few words?" she asked.

"I'm in your sociology class," he told her. "I sit two seats to the right of you."

"I don't recognize you," she said with a frown.

He grinned. "That's because you always have your face buried in that sketch book of yours," he told her.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"I'm Jake. Jake Jagielski," he told her.

She nodded. "Well, thanks for stopping by and inquiring about a job, Jake Jagielski, but we're not hiring. We have all the help we need," she assured him.

He flashed her a grin and Peyton was struck by how attractive this guy was. Not in a manly way like Nathan was, but in a little bit of a geeky way. His smile was endearing, and his curly hair was a little unruly, adding an air of carelessness to him. His ears were just a little too big, but for some reason, even that was adorable on him. Suddenly Peyton wished she did have an opening. Spending a little time with this guy might be just what she needed.

He grabbed a napkin with Tric's logo on it and wrote something down. He looked up and gave her another of his goofy grins. "Here's my number," he told her, sliding it towards her. "Call me if anything opens up. Or you know…if you're looking for something else," he finished, studying her for a reaction. If he hadn't been watching her for it, he wouldn't have seen her chest stop moving when her breath caught in her throat.

She stood there for a moment unblinking then gave her head a shake to clear it. "I'll just…umm, keep this on file," she told him.

"Great," he said, standing up. "Have a good one, Peyton Sawyer," he said as he left. For some reason, when he said her name, she thought it sounded incredibly sexy. She didn't take her eyes off him until he had left the building.

Trying to force her thoughts from Jake Jagielski, Peyton got back to work, cleaning and tidying up before tonight kicked into full gear. She looked at the clock, and before she knew it, it was five o'clock. She called to order something for a very late lunch and was walking towards the back room when the phone started to ring. She made her way around the bar and pulled it from its cradle. "Club Tric," she said into the receiver.

"Hey, Peyton. It's Lucas," the voice on the other end of the phone said.

"Hey, Luke. What's up?" she asked.

"I'm not going to be able to make it in tonight," he told her.

"Oh, no, no, no, Luke! You can't do this to me!" she said.

"Peyton, I don't work there. I just helped out opening weekend as a favor to you and my mom."

"Luke, it's Saturday night!" she reminded him.

"I know," he said. "And I may just have found a life."

She sighed. "Is there any way I can talk you into coming in tonight?"

"Nope."

"Well, have fun, Lucas. Whatever you're doing," she said, hanging up. She was getting ready to turn around when Jake's napkin caught her eye. Taking a deep breath, she picked it up and looked at it for a minute. Sighing, she grabbed the phone and dialed.

"Hello?"

"Hi. This is Peyton," she said.

"Oh," he said in a knowing voice. "Are you calling for something else?" he teased.

Peyton sighed in frustration. "No, I'm calling to offer you a job. It starts off as a one night deal. If I like you, you come back. If I don't, you're outta luck."

"Wow. A man really has to hold his own with you, doesn't he, Peyton Sawyer?"

"Do we have a deal or what?" she asked.

"We have a deal," he confirmed.

"I'll see you in an hour," she said.

"An hour?" he asked.

"Is that a problem?" she asked in the same tone she'd called him on earlier.

"No, that's not a problem at all. I'll see you then," he said before he hung up.

777

"Hello?"

"Hey," Haley said in a cheerful voice. "What's going on?"

"Nothing that I can't interrupt to talk to you," Nathan said. "What's going on with you?"

She grinned on her end of the phone. "I was wondering what you were doing tonight?" she asked.

"I don't really have anything on the agenda," he lied. He was supposed to go to a party at Tim's, but if Haley wanted to hang out, he was more than happy to ditch his teammates.

"I was thinking maybe we could…see each other," she said cautiously.

"Were you now?" he asked.

"I was," she confirmed.

"Do you want to come over here?" he asked. "My mom and dad are gone for the night. They have some small business league meeting or something that they had to go to."

"Sounds great," she said, hanging up.

777

"Lucas, what is that honking in the driveway?" Karen asked as she peeked her head into his bedroom. "Oh, my," she said, putting a hand to her throat.

"What?" Lucas asked worriedly.

"You look so handsome!" she exclaimed as a knowing grin took over her face. "I take it that's a girl in the driveway. And not Haley."

Lucas walked over to the door and gave his mother a kiss on the cheek. "Don't wait up, Mom," he teased.

"Lucas Scott! You be home by midnight!" she warned him, chasing him to the door.

He threw her a grin over his shoulder on his way out.

"And don't you forget to pull out her chair and open the door for her!"

777

"So, this is the inside of the Scott dwelling?" Haley teased, looking around. Nathan's house was gorgeous, filled with the most expensive furniture she'd ever seen. She wondered if they even sat on the couch.

"This is it," Nathan said, putting his hands in his pockets and nodding his head slowly. He was standing there in a pair of worn jeans, a faded green t-shirt and stocking feet.

Haley looked him up and down and pursed her lips approvingly. She was trying not to grin at the mere sight of him, knowing she didn't have to duck to avoid him or pretend they didn't have a history. She took a step closer so there was just a small space between them and looked up at him. "Hi," she said softly.

"Hi," he said with a grin, stepping forward and closing the gap between them. He pulled his hands out of his pockets and wrapped his arms around her. "I missed you."

She laughed. "You saw me nineteen hours ago."

"That long?" he said, leaning down to give her a light kiss. "That's way too long. There's no way I can do that again."

She laughed and pulled away, looking around. "Your house is gorgeous."

He shrugged. "I guess," he said, leading the way into the kitchen. She followed him. "Thirsty?" he asked.

She nodded. "Sure."

"What do you want?" he asked, opening the fridge. "We have bottled water, Mountain Dew, iced tea—"

"Water is fine," she interrupted him.

He pulled two from the fridge and passed her one, opening his own and taking a big swallow. "So, how about some one on one?" he asked.

Haley shook her head. "We can't go outside," she said quietly.

"Right," Nathan said dryly. "Someone might see us together and tell Lucas."

She nodded, ignoring his tone. Of course he'd be hurt that they had to keep their seeing each other a secret. But until she told Lucas, this was going to have to be the way it was.

"How about some NBA live, then?" he asked.

She smiled at him. "Sounds great," she said as he led the way upstairs to his bedroom.

As Nathan sat up the game, she sat down on the foot of his bed and studied his bedroom walls. There were some posters of some basketball players, and then there were some posters of some rap artists on the wall. Haley frowned. She hated rap music. She continued to look around, wondering what else they didn't have in common. "Ready to play?" he asked, handing her a controller.

She nodded.

"OK, do you know the rules of NBA Live?" he asked with mock seriousness.

"I've played it a time or two," she joked. It was the only video game she knew how to play.

"Then you know that for every basket I make, you get to kiss me?" he asked.

She smiled at him. "Oh, I do, do I?" she returned.

He nodded. "Should we have a practice round?" he asked with a sly grin.

"Sure," she said, turning her attention to the television and positioning her hand on the controller.

Nathan grabbed it from her hand and threw it to the floor. He grabbed her around the waist and hauled her onto his lap.

"Oh," she said in a small voice. "You meant…" she trailed off.

"Yeah," he said, dropping his lips to hers. His kiss was soft at first, but not for long. He swept his tongue inside of her mouth and lifted his hand to the nape of her neck. Haley lifted her hands to his waist, putting her hands underneath his t-shirt and resting them on the bare skin of his stomach. He took in a sharp breath and pushed her away quickly. "OK," he said, his voice strangled. "I…think you…know the rules pretty well."

Haley grinned knowingly at him, but didn't say a word. She climbed off his lap and onto the floor in front of the television. Nathan slid down off the bed and onto the floor next to her and sighed. This was going to be a long night.

777

"Hey there, handsome," Brooke said as Lucas climbed into the passenger's seat of her car.

"Ahhh…" Lucas closed his eyes and shook his head, then opened them again. Nope. He wasn't seeing things. "You…don't have any clothes on," he informed her.

"I don't?" she said, feigning surprise.

"You don't," he confirmed.

"Well, then that means I'm wearing exactly what I had picked out for tonight," she told him, looking down at a hot pink bra with black lace on it and a pair of matching bikini panties.

"So, where are the rest of your clothes?" he asked.

"At my house," she told him unflinchingly.

"Then that's our first stop," he told her.

"You don't like…this?" she asked in a sultry voice.

"Oh, no. I like it," he assured her. "But it's gonna be too hard for me to look into your eyes while you're wearing that."

"What if I said I don't want to talk?" she said, sliding closer to him.

"Then I'd say that this date is over," he told her.

"What?" she asked in a surprised tone.

"I want to get to know you, Brooke Davis. What's under the clothes will come later."

There was a pause.

"Brooke?"

"No one's ever said anything like that to me before," she said quietly.

"Well, I'd say it's about time someone did, then," Lucas told her.

"But…"

"How about we move right to the good night kiss?" he asked.

She bit her lower lip and nodded wordlessly.

He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him. "And then, when you're ready to talk, you can call me again…and we'll set up that second date." He gave her a tender grin. "Clothes and all."

Again, she nodded.

Lucas lifted his face to hers, their lips coming together in a gentle kiss. He lifted a hand to her hair, finding one of her soft curls. He gently pulled his hand down the lock of hair and it sprung back up and fell to her shoulder. He pulled away but she went with him, trying to deepen the kiss. He gave her another push, this one a little more firm. "This is as far as we go tonight, Brooke," he said softly.

She nodded and moved back to her side of the car.

He grinned at her. "Thanks for a wonderful night," he said sincerely, climbing out of his side of the car.

Brooke sat there for a moment in stunned silence before starting her car and pulling away from the curb.

777

"Oh, come on!" Haley said as her ball missed the basket by what must have been a mile. She slammed her controller against her knee. "What is wrong with this thing?" she asked. They'd been playing for hours, and Haley was sure her lips must be swollen from all the kissing.

"Ummm…its operator?" Nathan teased.

"Shut up!" she shot back, laughing.

"Nathan!" they heard from outside of his bedroom door.

"Shit," Nathan said, jumping to his feet.

"What?" she asked.

"My dad's home," he said.

"Are you going to get in trouble because I'm here?" she asked, springing to her feet.

"No," he said quickly. "But you just…you don't know my dad, Haley. If he says anything…well, I apologize in advance for anything he says."

There was a knock and then before Nathan could answer, his father stuck his head in the room. He really is quite a handsome man, Haley thought to herself. She wasn't sure what she'd expected. Maybe someone who looked a little more like a monster from the way he'd treated Lucas.

"Nathan, you really should get to bed," Dan said, moving fully into the room. He saw Haley and gave her an empty smile. "Hi, Peyton," he said.

Haley opened her mouth to correct him, then thought better of it.

"Nathan—you really should think about turning in early tonight. We need to get up early tomorrow to train if you're gonna beat your brother on the court."

Haley stood there, holding her breath waiting for Nathan's reaction. He surprised her.

"It's not about beating Lucas on the court, Dad. It's about playing as a team." Whitey had been right about that, Nathan thought. He'd made it very clear that the reason he'd recommended Nathan for High Flyers was so he could learn to play as part of a team, and he didn't want to let the man down.

"That doesn't sound like my son talking," Dan said. "That sounds like Whitey."

Nathan shrugged. "Whitey's been coaching for years, Dad. Maybe he knows a thing or two."

Dan laughed humorlessly. "Right." There was a pause. "I've seen Lucas play, Nathan. If you want to grab the attention of the scouts, then you've gotta stand out more than the bastard," he said.

"I'm sorry. The what?" Haley asked heatedly.

Nathan took a step sideways, placing himself in front of her and holding out his arm to stop her from verbally attacking Dan.

"That's not Peyton," Dan said. "Peyton knew when to keep her mouth shut. Who the hell is this?" he asked.

"Was that all, Dad?" Nathan asked impatiently.

"We can't afford to get lazy now, Son," Dan said instead of answering. Clearly that wasn't all. "I'll wake you up at five so we can get a run in."

"Fine, Dad," Nathan said, anxious to get Dan out of the room.

Dan nodded. "You can be great, Nathan," he said. "But only if you let me help you. You need to listen to me."

"Fine, Dad," Nathan said again.

"See you in the morning," Dan said, leaving the room and closing the door behind him.

Haley stood there silently as Nathan's jaw ticked.

"Nathan—"

"I'll walk you home," he said flatly, leaving his room. Haley had no choice but to follow.

Nathan put his sneakers on his feet and tied them, then opened the front door for Haley. They walked in complete silence for the first street until Haley couldn't take it anymore.

"Why didn't you stand up to him?" Haley asked quietly, thankful that it was dark outside. At least no one would recognize her with Nathan.

He laughed, but there was no humor there."You don't stand up to Dan Scott," he said.

"Well, what do you do?" she asked.

"You ignore him."

"And how's that working out for you?" she asked.

Nathan took a deep breath, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Not so good," he admitted.

Haley nodded. "I didn't think so."

She came to a stop and laid a hand on his arm. "You do know that you're great, right, Nathan?" she told him earnestly, studying his face. "And…you don't need your dad to help you. You can do it on your own. You have something that he doesn't have. And that's heart."

Nathan looked down at her for a minute before pulling his hands out of his pockets and taking a quick step towards her. He brought his mouth down to hers in a searing kiss. She grabbed the front of his t-shirt and pulled him closer, falling against him. He wrapped his arms around her and gave her a squeeze before pulling away.

She sighed with pleasure, her eyes still closed—a grin fixed on her face. When she opened them, he was watching her. "What?" she asked.

He shook his head. "I just like looking at you," he said softly.

She grinned as they began walking again. She tried to keep the grin off her face, but she couldn't. "OK, now it's my turn to ask. What are you grinning at?"

Her smile got even wider. "You."

"Me?" he asked.

She nodded.

"Why?"

He was thankful for the street light just above them otherwise he wouldn't have seen the blush that filled her cheeks.

"You made my toes curl," she admitted.