AN: Thanks for the reviews. I'm sure by now that all of you know that Chad and Hil aren't coming back for next season. I can honestly say that I'm extremely sad about it. I know I'm supposed to be happy because that means more screen time for Naley and I am. I really only watch the show for Naley and Brooke. I'm really happy that we'll get to see more of them but I'm going to miss all the friendships that we're losing. I'm just incredibly sad about the whole thing and excited at the same time, if that makes any sense. IDK. How can you freaking be happy and sad at the same time? I'm freaking weird! Sorry for the rant.

This chapter is really long and I thought about splitting it into two chapters but decided not to. It's really important to the rest of the story. I hope you enjoy it and let me know what you think.

Quote of the Day:

Hendrickson: (after arresting Dean and Sam) I mean, after all, seeing you two in chains...
Dean: You kinky son of a bitch, we don't swing that way.

Chapter Eighteen –You Can't Break A Broken Heart

She sat alone in the back of the club waiting for Brooke and Peyton to be back with drinks. It was Friday night and they were having a girls' night out since the guys were camping. She hadn't seen Nathan since they left school together and he drove her home.

This whole week had gone by so quickly. It was amazing how fast time had gone by since she had gotten back to Tree Hill. Each and everyday it was something new and exciting. She really loved being back here. It was nice reconnecting with everyone and having them back in her life.

Things were better now. Her last session with Olivia had been a few days ago. She didn't need therapy anymore. She had friends like Lucas, Brooke, and Peyton to talk to. And then there was Nathan. She could talk to him now and tell him what she was feeling. That was good to have. It was good sharing things with him again. This whole dating thing was fun with him. They were spending a lot of time together getting to know each other again.

This Nathan was so different. She listened countless times as Brooke and Lucas told her how she had changed Nathan. She didn't know about all that but he did seem to be a better person. He was so sweet and kind. He was gentle with her. He loved his family and his work. He loved helping the kids on his team and she loved watching him doing just that.

The other day after she had left class late from grading papers, she had stopped by the gym for him and just sat and watched as he coached his team. The guys really seemed to look up to him and it was nice seeing him teaching them. It also had been nice when he took of his shirt and joined them. That had been more than nice. She had loved watching him shirtless and when he had winked at her, it was enough to make her extremely hot. She had to leave soon after.

Just thinking about it now was making her hot.

It sucked that he wasn't here. She had missed him already.

She knew that she wasn't supposed to talk about it. Brooke had made that clear before they left earlier. No boy toy talk as Brooke had put it.

It was only for tonight. She would see Nathan tomorrow. He said that he would come over tomorrow night and she couldn't wait for that.

It amazed her how easy it was to get back into things with him. It was like they just jumped right back into what they were before. She wasn't thinking about anything else but how much she wanted to be close to him. It was like a burning desire now. It was why she couldn't stay away from him.

After not being around him for so long, she wanted him more than she ever thought it was possible to want someone. She didn't know how he managed to make her feel this way but he did. That burning passion just didn't seem to want to fade away at all. It stayed deep inside of her craving to be around him.

Of course, when she wasn't attacked to Nathan's hip as Brooke had put it, she was either teaching or recording. Recording had been more fun because bonding with Peyton and making her dream come true was nice. Teaching was good when the kids were listening. They had been nice to her since that second day. She still didn't know what Nathan said to Quentin out in the hallway that second day but it helped. The kids in her class had been so nice to her since then. It made her want to teach a little more.

She noticed Brooke and Peyton laughing as they walked back to the table. Brooke held a tray in her hands with all kinds of different drinks. She wiggled her eyes as she placed the huge drink tray down and both girls took a seat.

"What's all this?"

"Hangover in the making," Peyton muttered as she lifted a drink in her hands. "I'm just glad that Momma Scott has Anna Banana for the night." Then she took a sip before placing the empty glass back on the table.

"I'm going to get you good and drunk, Tutor girl," Brooke smirked as she pushed a shot in front of Haley. She took it reluctantly before lifting it up. She hit it with Brooke's shot glass before they both downed them.

It burned going down. "Brooke, what the hell was that?"

"Owen named it after me," Brooke smirked proudly.

"I don't like the Brooke Davis," Haley muttered as she pushed the shot glass away. Peyton giggled and already she could feel the affect the alcohol had on her.

"Anyway," Brooke rolled her eyes, "I'm happy that we're all here together again. It's been a long time but I'm happy that we've all found our way back home." She smiled before holding up another shot glass in her hands. Haley and Peyton did the same. Slowly Haley could feel the liquid burning down her throat and into her chest.

"Where's Mia?" Haley asked seconds later.

"Where do you think?" Peyton giggled. "Shacked up with Chase at his apartment I'm sure. He doesn't have that much time off left."

"I know," Haley muttered. She was happy that Chase and Mia had hit it off that first night. Better Mia and Chase than Mia and Nathan.

"They better do it like rabbits while they can," Brooke commented.

"I'm sure they are," Haley laughed. With the way that they were all over each other that first night, she was sure they were doing just like Brooke said. A few minutes of silence went by and Haley glanced around the club. She didn't recognize anyone.

"Anna did the cutest thing this morning. I wake up and she's sitting next to me, trying to fix my hair and when I open my eyes she giggles before saying 'time to wake up mommy'. It was the sweetest thing," Peyton smiled.

"You want to know what Jordan did this morning?" Brooke asked with a glare. "He glued all the change from his piggy bank onto my kitchen floor! With superglue!"

"He's so adorable," Haley laughed.

"You can have him. I'll give him to you for free," Brooke smiled jokingly.

"That kid's a mess," Peyton added.

"When I asked him why he did it, he said because he thought it would look cool," Brooke smiled shaking her head in disbelief. "I swear I was not that much trouble for John and Victoria."

"You were worse," Peyton smiled.

"Was not," Brooke objected.

"Sure, B. Davis." She rolled her eyes.

"You guys are hilarious," Haley commented. "You're like me and my sisters." She continued to laugh as they smiled at her. She could feel the affect of the alcohol taking over a little.

"So how was your first week of teaching?"

"Better after that first day was over with. My demonic class isn't so bad."

"Sam says that you're way cooler than Lucas in the classroom," Brooke smiled.

She really loved the fact that Sam was in one of her classes. The second day of school she had given all her classes the same assignment of writing something important that has happened to them so far in their life and Sam had wrote about being adopted. It was such a beautiful paper and she was such a talented writer. It was clear that her new family meant a lot to her and it was the best thing that ever happened to her. She had cried while reading it and then called Brooke to let her know how lucky she was.

"Good to know," Haley smiled.

"Lucas is so serious all the time," Peyton laughed.

"He's Broody," Brooke shrugged. "It's what he does. Brood. It's his thing!"

"I don't know why. That guy has nothing to brood about," Haley muttered.

"I know," Peyton agreed. "I think it's just the way he looks."

"All lost in thought," Brooke added.

"Speaking of Brooding Scott men…" Peyton looked from Brooke to her, both of their faces in full blown smiles. Nathan warned her how nosy they could be, not that she needed to be told.

"Yeah, how are things going with the Boy Toy?"

"Great," Haley answered with a huge smile. "I hate being away from him…I think about him constantly. Things are just going really great." She felt no need to hide the progress of their relationship. Brooke and Peyton were her friends and if they didn't hear it from her, they would still hear it. She was sure that they would get everything out of Nathan eventually. Why not tell them?

"I'll bet they are," Brooke muttered with a huge grin.

"What have you guys been doing?" Peyton asked nonchalantly.

She watched as their eyes moved from each others to hers, waiting. They were both smiling and she instantly understood what Nathan meant when he told her how annoying they were, and persistent. He had used both those words when describing their constant need to know everything about his love life.

"Uh, you know just hanging out. Dinner every night, usually a movie, and talking," Haley answered honestly as she lifted another shot glass off of the tray. Her finger traced the rim of it before she brought it to her mouth and downed it.

"And…?"

"And what?"

"Talking?" Peyton asked confused.

"Is that code for…you know," Brooke smirked while nodding her head.

"Code for what?" Haley asked puzzled.

Brooke looked at her in disbelief. "You know for…S-E-X." She spelled it out in a whisper as Peyton started giggling loudly.

That's all it took for her face to get completely red. She could feel the heat radiating of off her cheeks as both girls grinned at her. She didn't know what to say. And she didn't know why the question surprised her either. She was sitting her with Brooke and Peyton. The subject of sex was just bound to come up sooner or later. She just didn't think that it would be tonight.

"Don't hold out on us, Tutor girl. I'll bet the sex is amazing and you just don't want to tell us. I want to know everything!" Her face was so alive with excitement that Haley actually wished she had something to share. Unfortunately she didn't. Nothing had changed in that department.

"I'm still a virgin," Haley muttered awkwardly.

Everything seemed to happen so quickly. Brooke spit out her drink and it flew all across the table, some of it hitting her arm, some on Peyton. She quickly wiped it with a napkin before looking up and noticing both pairs of eyes glued to her in disbelief. Big mistake! Why did she say anything? She wanted to disappear before they could say anything further.

"Good for you, Haley," Peyton smiled and Haley thought she saw a little admiration.

"You seriously need to get on that," Brooke stated in a serious tone. Her face had a different tone and unlike Peyton she seemed in disbelief, like there was something wrong with her.

"Brooke," Peyton scolded.

She ignored her. "You mean to tell me that all you and Nathan have ever done is…talked? Like you've never done anything? Like ever?" Her eyes seemed to be bigger somehow as she tried to figure out how Haley still hadn't had sex yet.

"Not even Brooked yourself?" Peyton asked unexpectedly.

Brooke instantly glanced at Peyton with a glare. "You said you'd stop calling it that!"

"What are you guys talking about?" Haley asked trying to change the subject off of her.

"Trust me you don't want to know," Peyton laughed loudly.

"For the last time I thought I locked the door," Brooke mumbled, shaking her head. "It's not my fault that you don't know how to knock! Now stop changing the subject! I'm not the one with the chastity belt. How have you never…?"

"It's just never came up," Haley muttered. Sure back in high school when they first started dating there had been times when things had gone a little too far between them. It would just come to this point to where she would stop because she was afraid to take that next step with him. Since she'd been back it really never came up. All they had been doing was holding hands and kissing.

"Oh, I'm sure its come up," Brooke commented with a huge grin. Peyton was in fits of laughter and her face, she was sure, turned tomato red. This could not be happening. She wished the ground would open up and swallow her whole. This was mortifying.

"That totally came out wrong," Haley mumbled embarrassed.

"Sure it did," Peyton teased in laughter.

"Tutor girl, you need to do it and do it soon," Brooke declared. "It's just wrong that you haven't."

"B. Davis, leave her alone," Peyton defended her.

Brooke ignored her. "Is it because you don't think Nathan is good in bed? Peyton tell her how he is." Her eyes flew to Peyton waiting.

"Brooke," Peyton whispered harshly.

"What?" Brooke asked amused. She looked guiltily at Haley. "I was only kidding. Only a little."

She felt a little sick. "Peyton, please don't say anything," Haley muttered. Sure she was a little drunk but there was no way that she wanted to hear one of her best friends talk about how good Nathan was in bed. She would never be able to forget it and she didn't ever want to think about it. It bothered her enough that Peyton and Nathan used to date in high school. She didn't want to think about them having sex.

It was bad enough that Nathan had this huge womanizing reputation. She didn't want to think about him with any girl much less Peyton.

"Can we erase the last minute?" Brooke asked hopefully.

"Deal," Peyton nodded before looking at her.

"Deal," Haley agreed.

"Awesome," Brooke smirked. "Now, seriously, Tutor girl. Imagine the best feeling in the world and then multiplying it by like a million. You don't know what you're missing out on!" She grinned before wiggling her eyebrows. "Nothing else in this world like it! You really need to jump on that."

"You're right," Haley admitted.

"Duh," Brooke mumbled. "Who do you think you're talking to? And I promise that you'll be thanking me once you've finally done it. I know everything!"

"She really does," Peyton agreed.

"I don't know what I've been waiting for." The right guy? The right moment? It seemed a little silly to think about now. For so long she wanted everything to be perfect before it would happen. If she learned anything over the years it's that nothing is perfect. It was silly to build sex up to something so high. It was just yet another thing that she thought about with a high standard. What if she waited for the right perfect moment and it never happened? Then what?

"Me either," Brooke muttered before reaching for another shot and downing it. She slammed the shot glass on the table before smiling. "I can't believe you've never had sex before." She genuinely seemed baffled like Haley had just told her that she had a third eye or something.

"You sound like my sister," Haley mumbled.

"Which one?" Brooke smirked.

"Taylor."

"Oh," Brooke's smile faded. "That was a low blow, Tutor girl."

"Sorry," Haley muttered.

"Now let's talk about ways you can seduce Nathan. Not that it'll take much I'm sure. Poor boy's probably going crazy right about now. I can't believe that you've been holding out on him this long," Brooke chuckled. She then brought her finger to her chin and looked lost in thought. "What can she do?"

"Perhaps, getting naked in the backseat of his car," Peyton joked. "That seemed to work for a certain friend of mine."

"No way am I pulling a Brooke Davis," Haley muttered shaking her head. Peyton laughed loudly as Brooke rolled her eyes at the two of them.

"That was so high school," Brooke declared.

"Please, Julian told me that you did that to him last week at the mall," Peyton laughed loudly.

"He said he wouldn't say anything," Brooke muttered with a huge smile. "Besides, he's my husband. Anything is fair game."

"He liked the Brooke Davis move very much," Peyton revealed.

"I thoroughly enjoyed it, too," Brooke smirked.

"How did this night turn into a Brooke Davis sex lesson?"

"You made the mistake by telling her that you haven't given out your V card yet," Peyton commented with a huge grin. Haley rolled her eyes.

"I think I can handle this on my own," Haley muttered.

"Apparently not," Brooke smiled.

"You're never going to live this down," Peyton giggled.

She sighed. "Why did I even say anything?"

"Because you love us," Brooke smirked before clapping her hands. "Now, back to ways Tutor girl can seduce Boy Toy! I have so many thoughts in my head. Just relax and don't worry about a thing. Tonight I'm Tutor Girl!"

They just weren't going to let this go. What's a girl to do? All she could do was sit there, listen, and be mortified. The evening dragging on as Brooke's advice got more animated with each suggestion. After a good hour had gone by all three of them were in fits of giggles as they continued talking. She didn't know how long they stayed there together. It seemed like a long time. When they finally brought her home, she found herself alone, and her thoughts turned to Nathan and how much she missed him.

~***~

She was so nervous. Really nervous. She moved nervously around the living room lighting the remanding candles that she had laid out earlier. Last night had been…educational to say the least. When she had woken up this morning with a little hangout over, Brooke had been at her door with hangover food.

The whole morning was spent shopping and if that wasn't hell enough, she had to sit there and listen as Brooke gave her tips on what guys liked. By the time she had gotten home, with four bags of slutty clothing, she had wanted to lock herself inside of her house forever.

Just when she thought things couldn't get any worse, Taylor had called. Then for the next hour she had to listen to her sister tell her what a huge mistake it was to give Nathan another chance and how'd she be sorry. Taylor was still ranting when she had placed down the phone and started cleaning the house. Once she had been done with the kitchen, Taylor had still been lecturing her and when she told her sister to get a life, she had hung up on her. So Taylor had been mad. Big deal. She'd get over it eventually. It wasn't like it was her life.

She was a big girl. If this ended badly she'd only have herself to blame and no one else. She wasn't deluded enough to think that this would be someone else's fault if things went wrong. She had given Nathan another chance. She couldn't change her mind now. It didn't matter if she was still terrified out of her mind. Nothing mattered but how they did things now. The right way.

She glanced around the glowing living room one last time before she took a seat. Her fingers instantly started drumming against her legs. Her hands were still shaking. What if he showed up and laughed at her? This was a little presumptuous of her. Well, Brooke. This had been the bubbly brunette's idea. Why did she let Brooke talk her into this?

Here she was sitting in her living room with practically nothing on.

She felt ridiculous. The black silk robe was the only thing covering the lingerie that Brooke had told her to wear. In her opinion it was way to revealing and she felt stupid wearing it. She had tried countless times telling Brooke that she wasn't comfortable with this but Brooke insisted that Nathan wouldn't be able to resist. In the end she gave in just because she wanted Brooke to shut up, which she knew was a stupid reason but people had been listening at the next table.

Now here she was half naked waiting for him.

The candles had been her idea. Brooke had been more aggressive about the whole situation telling her that once he walked in the door to let the robe fall and that would be it, Nathan wouldn't be able to take his hands off of her. Although that sounded like the whole point she just couldn't see herself throwing herself at him right away. For one she was going to need to relax a little. The bottle of wine had been the only suggestion that she liked of Brooke's.

She pushed her hair behind her ears as she heard his truck pulling up into the driveway. This was it, she couldn't help but thinking. Tonight would be it. She wouldn't be a virgin anymore. Taylor, Brooke, and Peyton wouldn't be able to tease her about it, her mother wouldn't have to ask about it, and Vivian wouldn't have to defend her anymore. It would be over.

When the lights from his truck turned off she stood up nervously and glanced around the candle lit living room again. She prayed that things would go smoothly and this wasn't a huge mistake. She didn't know what the hell she was doing. This was Nathan. How many girls had he been with? She didn't want to know. How many guys had she been with? None. She was so inexperienced and here she was trying to seduce him. This suddenly seemed so wrong.

It didn't help matters that she heard the front door open. Since last week he had stopped knocking and just walked himself in whenever he came over now.

"Haley."

As he called out her name she felt her heart drop. She could feel her face flush as her heart started pounding fast in her chest. That's when the anticipation hit her. It hit her hard. It was like a wave rushing through her. Like all things that involved Nathan she didn't know what to expect. All she knew was that she wanted him. She wouldn't have agreed to all these silly things Brooke suggested if she hadn't of wanted him. Of course you could have been better about it by waiting for it to just happen!

She tried her best to get herself together as he finally walked into the living room.

"What's –" his words died on his lips as he took in the room. Then at the center of it all was her standing there. His mouth was suddenly so dry. As soon as he noticed what she was wearing all his blood pulled south. He'd been in such a rush to see her. He wasn't expecting something like this. This couldn't be real. Could it? No, he was dreaming. He was definitely dreaming. Maybe he fell asleep at the wheel? Whatever it was, he didn't want to wake up.

She watched as he glanced around in surprise before his eyes finally landed on hers. His face, that beautiful face that she loved, looked at her in wonder. In all the years she had known him he had never looked at her like this before. She could feel the sudden rush of desire at the pit of her stomach. She didn't know why she had been so nervous about this before. She'd been afraid that he wouldn't want her but with the way he was looking at her now…

"What's going on?" Nathan asked huskily. He fought the urge to rush across the room and take her in his arms. He still didn't quite understand what was going on.

"I wanted to surprise you," Haley muttered. "Surprise."

He smiled nervously as he stood there. It was then that she felt confident enough to take a step closer to him. When she finally reached him, she noticed that he seemed really nervous.

"What's going on, Hales?" Nathan muttered again with a nervous laugh.

She reached down for his hand and held it in hers. Bringing it up to her face she held it to her cheek as her eyes closed. She didn't know why she had been so nervous before. This felt right. Everything had been building up to this. His hand was hot against her cheek and she felt so much from him with just one touch. "I missed you."

"Yeah…I –I missed you, too," Nathan stammered. This fantasy was becoming all too real. In none of his dreams of them together had he been nervous before. But standing there in front of her being so confident he felt like a schoolboy again. He wasn't the man who had gotten countless girls into bed. None of that mattered now with her. Somehow it didn't even compare. Nothing would compare to this and that made him completely nervous. In a way he had never got to this point with anyone. Nothing had ever gone this far. He had never been in love before Haley. He didn't know what to do.

"Let's go sit down," Haley suggested in a whisper.

"Are you hungry?" Nathan asked nervously. "We could order takeout or I could heat us up something?" Chicken, he thought.

Their eyes locked and he swallowed the lump in his throat. "I'm not hungry."

Their joined hands dropped from her face as she pulled them back to the sofa. They sat next to each other and he couldn't help but notice how she turned her body sideways to face him. His hands were shaking and he glanced away from her and noticed the bottle of wine on the end table. Needing to do something, he turned and fixed them each a glass before handing one to her.

"Are you ok?"

"Great…I had fun with the guys. The kids loved it and we promised that we would go camping for real next weekend. Jordan wanted me to tell you hi…I…I'm sorry I just didn't expect this and…" his words trailed off as he glanced away. How long had she been planning this? The candles reminded him of the night they were trapped here for the storm. He quickly brought the wine glass to his mouth and drank the whole glass quickly.

Could you sound more like a girl, he thought. Fuck he was nervous. He fixed him another glass before turning to face her again. He could tell now that she was just as nervous as he was. This was Haley, his first love –his only love. He didn't know what to do. She wasn't just some girl that he'd been dying to fuck. This is the girl that he wanted to spend forever with. He couldn't just act like he had before with other women. That wouldn't be fair to her. She deserved so much more. Realizing that made him also realize that he had no moves for this. He was just a guy that was in love with her.

"I'm glad you had fun…I knew you would," Haley smiled before bringing the wine glass to her mouth. This wasn't going like Brooke said it would. She felt so stupid.

He couldn't help but notice how sexy she looked at the moment. His pants tightened more and it was beginning to become uncomfortable. He glanced away from her hoping to relieve some of the pressure. It really didn't help. On the coffee table next to a few of the candles was a small bowl with chocolate covered strawberries. If he wasn't sure before then he was now. He knew what she was expecting. It somehow made him all the more nervous.

Lifting one up, he nervously turned towards her. He took a deep breath before smiling at her trying to ease both their nerves. It worked a little. She smiled back. Then very slowly he brought the chocolate strawberry up to her mouth. Once she bit into it, he nearly lost it. He tossed the rest of it on the coffee table as he watched her chew it. Then before he could stop himself he was pulling her to him and kissing her deeply. With their mouths battling for dominance he couldn't help but taste a little of the strawberry from her mouth. His hand moved through her hair pulling her more into him until finally she pushed herself onto his lap straddling him. His back hit the cushions as he leaned back and pulled his lips away from hers. He was panting heavily as their eyes locked. It was then that he noticed desire swirling her eyes.

She sat on his lap nervously, trying to control her breathing. Her heart was beating a mile a minute as she gazed at him. She was trying to calm herself. It didn't help matters that his eyes were mixed with so many things. Love. Lust. Longing. Need. That feeling of anticipation came rushing back to her. His hands moved slowly up her thighs and before she realized it, he was pushing the robe off of her shoulders. She helped him until she was out of it and he tossed it to the floor. Her eyes quickly turned to his as she watched him gaze at her. She was very aware of what she was wearing in front of him and she was self-conscious. What if…

"God, you're so beautiful…you…you always have been, you know."

Then his hands were holding her waist as he leaned forward. His lips landed on hers roughly. As he deepened the kiss she felt his hands moving up and down her back. Their kisses only grew more heated as the minutes past on. With each second passing by she felt her want for him increase. She could feel one of the best feelings she'd ever felt at the pit of her stomach. It wasn't going away either. It was only building. She didn't know what it was but it felt great. It was like an ember burning slowly inside of her.

He ripped his lips away from hers before moving to her neck. He kissed everything in his way until his mouth found her shoulder. He felt her hands on his forearms holding him tightly to her. He kissed along her collarbone, pushing the black lacy material until the straps fell off of her shoulders. He moved to the other one and did the same. Finally he pulled away and gazed at her for a second before moving his hands to the bottom of the lacy material. Then her hands were over his as she helped him lift the material up. Once it was over her head he tossed it aside as he gazed at her lovingly.

She was suddenly very self-conscious again. This was the first time he was seeing her like this. He'd never seen this part of her. No one ever had. The top half of her body was completely naked. His eyes were glued to her breasts and her eyes were glued to him. His eyes found hers a few minutes later. He smiled at her lovingly once again before his hand slowly moved until they were touching her. Each hand covered her breasts and she bit her bottom lip. When he started kneading them a few seconds later she couldn't help but moan as her eyes snapped shut. She couldn't help but notice that the amazing sensation in the pit of her stomach seemed to grow. His rough hands felt so good against her.

"So sexy," Nathan murmured in a daze.

Her skin was so soft under his hands and even though he imagined this moment thousands of times before, nothing compared to the real thing. His hands were still kneading her breasts softly and he found himself wondering what they would taste like. He licked his lips as he moved his eyes from her breasts to her face. She was biting down on her bottom lip, her eyes were snapped shut, and her face was flushed. It looked like she was enjoying herself. He smirked. Fuck, she was beautiful. His finger tips traced over each of her sensitive nubs before he leaned in. He kept his hand covering one as his mouth made it to the other. Then still very slowly his tongue was moving along her breast and her hand flew to the back of his head holding him to her. His free hand was wrapped around her holding her to him.

Her eyes nearly rolled to the back of her head as she felt his mouth on her. She held him to her, loving the way he was making her feel. Again she could feel something in her body building. It felt amazing. She moaned out as he bit her softly, her fingers sinking into the round of his shoulder with her other hand. This felt amazing. His mouth moved to her other breast minutes later and he did the exact same thing to that one. She was panting heavily as she savored the feeling of his mouth on her.

When he pulled away she crashed her lips onto his and kissed him passionately. Her hands moved to the back of his head again she held him to her. Her tongue sought out his and she moaned into his mouth went his tongue finally touched hers. When air became an issue her lips trailed to his jaw line. She kissed her way up until she found his ear. She took his earlobe into her mouth and sucked on it. She felt his hands move from her waist to her ass as he squeezed it hard in his hands.

"Take off your shirt," Haley demanded.

He reached down for his shirt and again her hands were covering his as they removed his shirt together. Once it was cast to the floor with the rest of their clothes, he noticed her gawking at him. He smirked as she reached for her. His hands returned to her waist. Watching her look at him this way felt amazing.

She took in the sight of his perfectly chiseled abs and her mouth began to water. Nathan had always been sexy. She loved watching him playing basketball shirtless. It was secretly one of her favorite things to do. He had an amazing body. She reached out slowly and touched him. His skin was smooth and hot. She traced the plains of his chest for a few minutes in complete awe. He was so beautiful and perfect. Leaning down, her lips touched his skin. She kissed each spot softly and when she moved down to his torso he was breathing heavily again. She liked the sound of it. It was nice to know that she was the one making him like this. It gave her a little more confidence. His hands seemed to be threading through her hair as he held her to him.

Finally when he couldn't take it anymore, he pulled her up and began kissing her again. Their lips were like fire on fire. Nothing felt this amazing. She had been driving him absolutely crazy before while she kissed his chest. He couldn't take much more. Nothing had ever been like this for him before. Even though they had yet to do anything serious he still knew that somehow they were making love. His heart hadn't stopped hammering the whole time. As he deepened the kiss his hands moved roughly in her hair as he pulled her more into him.

It seemed silly when he thought back to all the girls he fucked. Not one of those experiences even amounted close to this one. He'd never felt pleasure like this before and this was only the beginning. He couldn't wait for the rest. He'd never been so intimate with anyone before.

"I want you so much…I always have," Nathan promised.

He felt like he needed to tell her things like that now. They had been talking a lot lately and when she had told him that she'd gone all these years thinking that she wasn't enough for him. That had killed him. She was more than enough and he told her so. He didn't want her thinking that he only wanted her now. He had always wanted her.

"I missed you so much…I've never stopped thinking about you," Nathan admitted in between kisses. And he hadn't. He thought about her constantly over the years.

Ever so slowly he could feel her hips grinding into him. Every few seconds she'd grind into him and the friction felt good to the bulge in his pants. After a few minutes it was slowly starting to drive him insane. Their chests were pressed into each other and the feel of her breasts on his skin felt amazing. He was ready to explode and they hadn't even started yet. This had never happened to him. He didn't know how to control himself. She continued rocking her hips into him, their lower halves grinding into each other.

"I can't believe that this is happening," Nathan groaned as he pulled away from her lips.

"Maybe…we should take this to the bedroom," Haley suggested hoarsely.

He pulled away from her then, his eyes gazing intently into hers. They stayed like that for minutes both panting heavily. His smoldering eyes were glued to hers. The moment was so intense that she felt it shake something deep inside of her. His arms were around her a second later as he lifted them up. His lips landed on hers languorously as he walked them towards the stairs, his firm hands holding her as her legs wrapped around his waist. Once they were up the stairs and into her bedroom, he stood beside her bed just kissing her.

Then he could feel her hands around his neck slowly start to pull him until both of them fell onto the bed, his body covering hers carefully. His lips never left hers. He felt her hands moving up his back and then make it to his hair, her fingernails raking over his scalp as he groaned in pleasure. This was slowly killing him, all of it. He had wanted her more than anything over the years and now it was finally happening. He was having a hard time taking things this slow. If he had been leading with the wrong part of his brain this would have all been over a long time ago.

Carefully pulling his lips away from hers, he smiled down at her. Her lips were swollen and red from all their kissing. Lifting his hand, he moved it tenderly over her forehead wiping away some of the perspiration there.

"I can't believe I've gone all these years without waking up to you every morning," Nathan stated huskily. "I've missed you so much. I…" words just didn't seem like enough.

"I've missed you, too," Haley whispered, her fingers brushing over his cheek gently.

His eyes closed instantly. "I've wanted this for so long."

"So have I."

She reached up, their lips touching in a sizzling kiss. His eager mouth moved over hers as his hands moved down her body. He ran his fingers slowly over her thigh and he heard her moan into his mouth. He couldn't believe that this was about to happen. He didn't want this dream to end.

"Nathan," Haley moaned breathlessly.

He broke away from her lips and moved his mouth over to her breasts again. "You taste so good, Hales." He ran his tongue over her nipple before biting it softly. Her body started grinding into his again.

How was she supposed to say this?

"I, uh…I've never…I'm…Nathan…I've –I've never done this before." She eventually panted the words out. There she said it. No mater how confident she had been earlier she couldn't hide it anymore. This was all such a new experience –one that she couldn't believe she'd been living without. It felt amazing. "I saved myself for you." It was the truth. She'd never wanted anyone else.

Without even a second thought his mouth stopped kissing her. He glanced at her then as he lifted his head up. Their eyes locked and that's when he noticed it, her innocence. It had been there all those years ago and it was one of the reasons that he fell in love with her. He had loved that she had been so pure.

Then suddenly it hit him.

He hadn't really known if she had been with another man over the years. It had been over nine years and she was a beautiful woman. He had hoped that she hadn't and he thought about it often when he closed his eyes at night. It had been driving him crazy not knowing these last few weeks. The thought of someone else touching her got him mad within seconds. But finding out that she hadn't –that she hadn't been touched –that she was giving herself to him like this. He felt his heart swell up with so much love. He felt like jumping up and down with joy. She was all his. No one else got to see her this way.

He knew now why he had been so nervous and hesitant before when he first gotten here. This was all about one thing.

Her virtue.

"Say something," Haley whispered nervously.

"I love you so much," Nathan breathed. He couldn't believe what he was about to say but that wasn't going to stop him from saying it. He wanted this for her. "And I want to wait until we're married...I know you've always wanted to wait until then." He respected her enough to stop this right now.

This is why he had been so hesitant before. This so wasn't like Haley to just throw herself at him, which she didn't really need to do. He wanted her all the time. Since they had started talking again, this is why he hadn't been pressuring her. He knew all those years ago that she was saving herself for marriage. That's one thought that calmed him over the years, knowing that she just might wait until she was a married woman. He wanted that for her. But more importantly, he wanted to be worthy enough for her. She had waited for him all these years. He could wait for her.

Leaning down his lips started kissing her neck softly.

"No, it's ok," Haley whispered, her hands moving over his back, her nails digging into his skin. "I'm never getting married."

His lips stilled on her pulse point as she pushed her body into his. He could feel his heart slowly start to ache at her confession and just for the moment everything was still around them. Lifting his head up again, he looked at her confused.

"What?"

"Nothing," Haley murmured. "I'm just…never going to get married, Nathan. I don't want to."

"Why?" Nathan asked hoarsely. He didn't like this dream anymore. He wanted to wake up. For some stupid reason he couldn't. He didn't want to be here anymore. The pleasure from before was wearing off quickly.

"Because," Haley whispered. "It's just not real…the whole happily ever after thing. You know, most marriages don't even work out. People end up hating each other and hurting the person that they once loved. It just seems stupid to believe in something that rarely works out. I guess I just don't believe in it anymore. I haven't for a while now." Her voice was nothing but honest, like she believed what she was saying.

"But you were going to marry Chris?" His voice was laced with the hint of anger.

"Nathan, no I wasn't. I told you that," Haley promised. "I made a mistake and yeah, I might have waited to the last minute to realize it but I did. I didn't marry him. I never wanted him as much as I want you." They were supposed to be making love right about now, not talking about stupid Chris Keller. How was this happening? This was all wrong.

"Is this because he ran out on your wedding? Because I swear to you that I won't do that…I'd never run from you…from us. I want you more than I've ever wanted anything."

"This has nothing to do with him," Haley whispered.

"It's not like I'm proposing right this instant," Nathan mumbled hoarsely. "Maybe in a few years once we've been together long enough and you trust me again."

He seemed to be talking to himself and she felt horrible for even saying anything. She was only telling him the truth. What was the point in marriage when it was probably only going to end badly? She didn't want a life where she'd hate Nathan again. She never wanted that. These things just didn't work out.

"Nathan…" Haley started.

"You still don't trust me, do you?" Nathan asked sadly.

"Nathan, I…" for some reason she couldn't find the right words to say. She could feel the tears building up in her eyes. She had never seen someone so hurt in her life and it hurt her more than she could have imagined. Tonight wasn't supposed to turn out like this. She felt completely stupid lying there halfway naked in front of him at the moment.

"You'll never be ready for us again, will you? Not fully. You'll never let me all the way back in…I know that I hurt you in the past but I promise that I'll never hurt you again...You mean everything to me...You'll never want to marry me?" Nathan asked painfully. He could see that perfect picture of what he wanted his future to look like slip away. It didn't mean anything if she didn't want the same things that he did. Over the years as he watched his brother get everything he ever wanted, he couldn't help but yearn for the same thing with Haley. To find out that she didn't want him forever was beyond painful.

He felt her lips press against his in a hungry kiss. The kiss was so full of need and urgency that he almost let it take over. Almost. He pulled away searching her eyes once more. How was it possible that just minutes ago he was so close to getting everything he'd ever wanted in life and now it was being taken from him? He didn't understand.

Is this why fate had brought her back here?

"My body wants you so much," Haley whispered. "Please…" she felt so stupid for ruining this moment for them. She didn't want him hurting anymore. She wanted him more than she ever had before. Just because she didn't want to get married didn't mean that she didn't want him.

He could give in so easily, he knew that. Give in to what they both wanted –what his body was screaming for. But everything was all coming back to that perfect picture that he had created in his head over the years of them. Him getting off of work and coming home to her and their son, them being so in love even after years of marriage, them cooking and then doing the dishes together, a little girl that looked just like her, the smile on her face when he brought home flowers just because he wanted to surprise her…for some reason he just couldn't let that picture go.

"And your heart?"

In the stillness of the room, he watched it all fade away. Everything disappeared until all he could see was her pain, his pain. And as he watched her eyes searching for anything that would ease his fears, he knew that nothing was coming. That's when he started to slowly feel the loss of them and what they could have been.

She searched for the right words. Her mind seemed to be failing her at the moment. She couldn't believe that this is what the night turned to after everything. With each second that their eyes stayed locked she could see his heart breaking right in front of her. The agony of it was becoming unbearable. She couldn't even feel hers. It had been broken years ago and it had never been put back together. All she could do was suffer in a wordless painful silence. Still no words came.

Slowly he got up and moved himself off of her. He stood there for a few seconds looking out at the door. He couldn't believe that this was happening…that they were over.

"I can't believe that after everything…" he shook his head and slowly tears started falling from her eyes. He was out of her room a second later and once down the stairs he searched for his shirt before placing it back on and rushing out of the door. He had to get out of here now. She had made it clear that there was nothing to stay for. But why was his heart telling him to go back? He jumped into his truck and drove off as fast as he could.