A/N: Thank you for the awesome reviews. And thanks to my beta: Leeese.
Disclaimer: Don't own OTH
Chapter Twenty Five
Lucas was sleeping peacefully when he suddenly woke up by Brooke's screaming. He turned on the light and comforted his wife. He embraced her shaking form in a tight hug as she tried to calm down. "Hey, it's ok," he assured her as she held onto him tightly. "I'm here. Nobody is going to get you." He gave her a comforting smile, but he could tell that Brooke was still terrified. "The nightmares are getting worse, aren't they?"
Brooke hated to admit it, but they were. It had only been a week since she had moved in with Lucas and she hadn't had a good night's sleep once. She was too worried about Haley which showed in the constant nightmares that she was having.
Lucas was waiting for an answer. Brooke let out a sigh. "I know I'm stressing out again, but Haley is still missing."
Lucas gave her a reassuring smile. "And Nathan said that they were hot on the trail," he said, reminding her of Nathan's last phone call. "It helped that my mom was able to give the police descriptions of the guys that Carrie hired to kidnap her. They know who they are and have been checking out their histories and families."
"Don't they have priors though?" Brooke asked him in a worried tone.
Lucas knew that was true. "They won't hurt Haley as long as she is pregnant. Neither will Carrie. Haley still has ways to go before she would be able to deliver."
Brooke still wasn't convinced. "Every day that Nathan doesn't find Haley is one more day that she is in danger of delivering her baby early."
Lucas sighed. "I know, but you know Haley wouldn't want you to worry. She would want you to take care of our baby so she will be able to see him or her when she gets back." He then changed the subject. "Speaking of that, when do you want to tell your parents about the baby?"
Brooke gave him a look. "I thought we agreed to wait until after I'm past my first trimester," she replied.
"I know, but I hate keeping this a secret. After all, a baby should be something to be celebrated," Lucas said. "Besides, they are going to need some happy news after telling them that we eloped."
"I'm sure that they'll understand our reasons for doing it," Brooke replied.
"I hope you're right, considering that they are coming today," Lucas told her.
Brooke looked at him. "What do you mean they are coming today? They're coming here for a visit?"
Lucas nodded. "Yeah, they apparently heard about what Carrie did. And they want to come by and check up on you. I told them that it wasn't necessary, but you know how your parents are."
Brooke raised her eyebrows. "Is this why you were encouraging me to tell my parents about our baby?"
Lucas turned red. "Was it that obvious?" He didn't let his wife answer. "Look, I know you want to wait until you're past your first trimester, but I think it would be good to let your parents know."
Brooke gave him a look. "Are you kidding? Ever since this whole thing with Dan, they have been super overprotective of me. They wanted me to go back with them to Las Vegas, but Agent Hargrove convinced them that I would be watched over. Once they hear about Carrie's attempt to try and kill me, I will have no choice but to go back home with them."
Lucas frowned. "But you're an adult. They can't make you go if you don't want to. Besides, they know that I'm back. So that should calm them down." He then looked at her in concern as he added, "It should calm you down, but it looks like I'm making things worse for you instead of better."
Brooke gave him a look. "Don't be ridiculous. It's just me worrying about Haley. That's all."
Lucas wasn't convinced. "Come on, Brooke. You and I both know that it's more than that."
Brooke gave him a reassuring smile. "I'm fine, Broody," she said as she gave him a gentle kiss. "I promise," she said before she snuggled back under the covers and went back to sleep.
Lucas still didn't believe his wife. However, he tried not to think about it as he turned off the light. He just moved back under the covers and tried to get back to sleep. Yet, he couldn't. His mind was now on Keith and Karen. He hoped that he had done the right thing by calling them. He knew that Brooke wouldn't admit it, but she needed more help than what he was giving her.
A few hours later, Lucas and Brooke were in the middle of eating breakfast when they heard the doorbell ring. They went to answer it and weren't surprised when they opened the front door and Keith and Karen were standing there. They greeted the two as they embraced their daughter in a tight hug.
Brooke and Lucas then led them to the living room. They sat down on the couch as Karen spoke. "Brooke, we were so worried about you when we heard about Carrie. Have Nathan and Agent Hargrove found Haley yet?" she asked Lucas.
Lucas sadly shook his head. "No, but they are working on it. I'm sure that they will find Haley soon," he assured her.
"For her baby's sake, I hope so," Karen replied before turning to her daughter. "How are you doing?"
Brooke gave her a comforting smile. "I'm fine, Mom," she assured her. "It's hard, but I'm handling it ok."
"What about your nightmares?" Keith asked her. Brooke turned to him surprised. "Lucas told us that you've been having nightmares. Have they been getting worse or better?"
"Why does it matter?" Brooke asked him, avoiding the question.
"Because if the nightmares are getting worse, then it's time to get some professional help," Karen replied.
"You mean a shrink?" Brooke exclaimed. "Because if you are, I'm not going!"
Lucas sighed. "How else do you propose your nightmares will go away?"
Brooke didn't know the answer to that. "I don't know, but it certainly won't be by me talking to a shrink," she protested.
Lucas knew that the conversation would get ugly if he didn't step in now. "Brooke, can I talk to you for a moment alone?" he asked her.
Brooke didn't say anything as she followed him to their bedroom. "Lucas, I'm not going to talk to a shrink."
"Do you have any other ideas?" Lucas asked her. "Because I think that is the only way you will get better." He could tell that Brooke still wasn't going to do it so he tried one last time to convince her. "Don't do it for yourself. Do it for our baby. I want you healthy so you can deliver our baby safe and sound."
Brooke knew that he was right. She had to think of their baby. She let out a sigh before she answered. "Would you come with me?"
Lucas gave her a comforting smile. "Of course I will," he promised her as he embraced her in a tight hug. "It will all be ok. I promise." Brooke just nodded. "Now let's go and sit with your parents. We can talk and then we can finish our breakfast together."
Lucas took her hand and they walked back into the living room. They exchanged smiles as they sat back down on the couch. Before Brooke could speak, her mother spoke. "Honey, we couldn't help but notice that you're wearing a wedding ring. Do you have something you want to tell us?"
Lucas and Brooke exchanged looks as they held hands again. They then turned back to Keith and Karen. Brooke took a deep breath before she spoke. "Actually, there are two things that we want to tell you." There was a short pause as she tried to come up with the right words. "Do you remember after I was rescued from Dan's men and I was examined?" she asked. Her parents nodded. "Well, it seems that the doctor missed something when he did."
Her parents exchanged looks. Brooke could tell that they feared the worst. Lucas could see that as well. He tried to set their minds at ease. "Don't worry. It's nothing major. It's actually good news."
Keith and Karen were now curious. "Lucas and I are going to have a baby," Brooke told them. Her parents looked at her confused. "I was expecting twins, but I lost one of the babies. I didn't find out until a few weeks ago. I started to have signs of being pregnant, but I thought it was something else. But the doctor told me the good news." She waited for a reaction, but her parents were silent. "We're sorry that we didn't tell you sooner, but I wanted to get past my first trimester before telling anybody."
Her mother gave her a wide smile. "How can I be upset when I'm going to be a grandmother?" she asked her as she embraced her daughter in a hug. "How far along are you?" she asked her.
"I'm going to be two months this week," Brooke told her proudly. "The baby is due around Thanksgiving."
Keith suddenly spoke. "That still doesn't explain your wedding rings," he said.
Lucas knew it was his turn to speak again. "Well, we wanted to get married before the baby was born. We weren't sure if we would have a chance before all of this was resolved. So we eloped with only Nathan and Haley as our witnesses. We're going to have a second wedding with all of our friends and family present after Haley is rescued."
Keith nodded understandingly. "I see, but I don't approve. When I gave you permission to marry my daughter, I didn't expect you to stab me in the back like this. Where the hell did you get the engagement ring?"
Karen gave her husband a stern look. "Keith," she scolded him.
Brooke was sad that her dad was upset. "Dad, we're sorry that we didn't invite you to the wedding, but it was a last minute decision. This is why we want to have a second wedding. So you can walk me down the aisle and see me get married to Lucas."
"Do you think you will be able to fit in your wedding dress by then?" Keith asked her. "And what about your baby? Are you going to take the baby on your honeymoon too?"
Brooke couldn't believe how upset her dad was getting. She tried to find the words to answer. "I don't know. We haven't thought that far yet."
Karen tried to calm her husband down. "Keith, I'm sure that Nathan and Agent Hargrove will find Haley by then."
Keith knew that he was overreacting. He sighed. "I'm sorry, Brooke. But I was hoping that you were going to do this by the book."
This time, Brooke let out a sigh. "I know, Daddy. I was planning to do it. I really was, but everything changed when I found out that I was still pregnant." There was a short pause before she spoke again. "Are you still willing to walk me down the aisle?"
Keith gave his daughter a smile. "Of course I will. I would be proud to do it." Brooke then went over to him and embraced him in a tight hug. He waited until they pulled away to speak again. "So are we having a grandson or a granddaughter?"
Everyone laughed. "We don't know yet, Dad. It's only been two months, but we're hoping for a boy. Since Naley are going to have a boy, we think it would be nice for them to grow up together."
Karen nodded in agreement. "That would be nice."
"We also have a first name picked out, but we haven't figured out his middle name yet," Brooke said. "We want his name to be Jayden. I really wish we could find out early so I could start decorating the nursery in the proper colors, blue or pink."
"Patience is a virtue," Karen replied gently. "You'll find out soon enough."
