Disclaimer: I do not own One Tree Hill or any of its characters.

A/N: Hi guys. Here's the latest chapter. Hope you enjoy. As always, thanks to all the readers and especially reviewers. You guys are awesome! Love ya all!

Nathan plunged his full length deep within the moist warmth of her center, groaning as he did so. He pumped furiously within her, one purpose in mind. Ejaculation. He could already feel himself reaching that edge and it made him quicken his movements, craving that sweet release.

She moaned softly as her body felt the first stirrings of what she knew would be an explosive climax. She writhed beneath him, keeping up with his speed, her moans getting uncontrollably louder as she got closer to that point.

But before she could reach it he was jerking violently overtop her, his seed spilling into the condom he wore. He let out one more gravelly sound from deep in his throat before collapsing on top of her and rolling off to lay beside her, his breath coming in short, uneven gasps.

She lay there, arms crossed angrily as she realized that he was done. Done. And she'd barely gotten started. "Are you kidding me?" she mumbled more to herself than to him, cursing him under her breath.

She shook her head refusing to look at him, thinking of what had just transpired. She'd heard him come in, heard him knock over something downstairs – probably the lamp – and she'd heard him talking with Cooper and Jess, although she couldn't make out any words. And then she'd heard him come up the stairs.

Flashback (Few minutes ago)

He practically crawled up the stairs, tripping over each step. He was so unsteady on his feet that Cooper followed behind him to prevent him from falling down the stairs.

Finally they made it up and Cooper went to his own room while Nathan went to the one he was sharing with Peyton, stumbling all the way to the bed before nearly falling on top of her trying to get on. "Oops, whoa, sorry," he said, pushing over to his own side.

But Peyton almost had to laugh when he came right back and put his hand on her waist, "You awake?" he asked.

Since she was lying on her side and he couldn't see her face in the darkness, she could easily pretend she wasn't. This is what she did because he'd clearly been drinking and she wasn't in any mood to deal with him in that state.

He shook her gently, trying to wake her. "Peyton," he called. "Wake up. I wanna tell you something," he slurred.

He sighed impatiently when she didn't budge, but he continued to shake her. "Peyt, come on. I'm horny," he said as his hand moved up her body to fumble with the buttons of her night shirt.

She rolled her eyes. After what he'd just pulled, that's what he wanted to tell her? That he was horny? And naturally, she was just supposed to roll over and give it to him. It was all she could do not to haul off and slap him, and if he wasn't so obviously drunk out of his mind, she would.

End of Flashback

But she hadn't. What had she done instead? Rolled over and gave it to him. Stupid, stupid girl, she berated herself. Now as she lay here sexually unfulfilled while he slept contently, she wished she'd gone with her first option of slapping him instead of giving in to what he wanted.

What was she thinking? She should have known he was way too trashed to make it good for her too, to even try to make it good for her, or think about it even.

Why, after abandoning her all day and evening, doing who knows what besides drinking, had he still been able to return, and with hardly any effort, have his way with her? Was she really that weak? Apparently she was and she could kick herself for it.

But deep down, though she didn't want to admit it, she knew it was more than that. It was a combination of not wanting to disappoint him with another rejection after turning down his proposal, and the hope she held that keeping him sexually content, no matter the circumstances, would prevent him from seeking gratification elsewhere. Neither was a decision she'd consciously made but as she lay here thinking on it, she knew it was why she'd done it. It was stupid and now she just felt cheap – like her body had just been his tool to get off – but she'd wanted to show him that she could please him better than some bar skank, whom, she was sure, had gotten just as much of him tonight as she had. Probably more, since he likely wouldn't have been at this stage of intoxication earlier in the evening.

Silent tears sprang to her eyes. No matter how much she always expected it, it never hurt any less. "And this is why I can't marry you," she whispered into the night. "It's hard enough being the girlfriend you cheat on, let alone the wife."

"It's not right," he surprised her by mumbling back.

"What's not right?" she asked him.

"A leopard doesn't always cheat," he responded. "Even if everyone thinks so."

"Ok, what?" she asked, his slurred statement lost on her.

"I don't even have any spots," he answered. "And plus I'm not a leopard either so how can that even make sense?"

"It doesn't," she said of his drunken gibberish. "Just go to sleep, ok?" She was ready to leave it at that until she felt a warm dampness against her neck. She turned to face him, her eyes long ago adjusted to the darkness, and was surprised to see tears had formed in his eyes. Though drunk and sentimental tended to run hand in hand, she was still taken aback. He never cried. Well, seldom cried. "Nate, what's wrong?" she asked softly.

"I'm sorry, Peyt. Don't hate me. I just got horny, I'm sorry."

She closed her eyes in anguish. That was a confession if she'd ever heard one. "What did you do, Nathan?" she asked him, though she was sure she already knew. When he didn't respond, she opened her eyes to find that he was out like a light. "Was she worth it?" she asked his sleeping figure, as her tears spilled freely.

How in the world would she ever manage to accept this part of him? All she knew was that she'd have to find a way because if one thing was clear from those months apart, it was that she couldn't live without him. She wanted to take comfort in the fact that he'd been honest about it instead of hiding it from her – that was progress in itself – but even that didn't make her feel any better.

She didn't sleep that night. Instead she made her way downstairs with her sketchbook, intending to sit out on the patio and draw for a while.

She was surprised to see Jess already sitting out there sipping a glass of juice.

"Hi," Jess greeted her sweetly.

"Hey," Peyton responded. "Mind if I sit with you?"

"No, please do."

Peyton took the chair beside her. "Tell me we didn't wake you up," she said, already feeling her cheeks growing hot.

"No, I couldn't sleep anyway. And if you think that little 20 second tumble would wake me up, think again," she couldn't help teasing.

Peyton smiled sheepishly. "That's about all it was," she deadpanned, not knowing what else to say.

"Yeah, aren't inebriated guys fun?" Jess said sarcastically. "How they're so selfless and considerate in their lovemaking?" she added in the same tone.

Peyton had to laugh. "Been there?" she asked.

The older woman nodded. "Coop used to pull that crap on a regular basis. At first, naïve girl that I was, I just let him do it. Now, though it's not often he tries it anymore, I just toss him a box of tissues and tell him to have at it. Come back when my orgasm's as much a priority as your own."

Again Peyton laughed. How could she not? And she suddenly didn't feel so cheap anymore. After all, if Cooper could do it to his own wife, whom he obviously loved with his whole heart, then that made it somehow less demeaning. "I'll bet he loves that."

"I'm guessing not since it's become very rare these days."

"That's good," Peyton said. "Nathan's only done it once before," she added before giving Jess a side long glance as it occurred to her that the woman might not want to hear this about her nephew. "Are you ok with me talking about this?"

"Are you ok with you talking about this?" Jess challenged.

"Oddly enough, yeah," Peyton admitted. Sure the woman was older but still young and she felt an easy connection with her. This is probably how Nathan felt about Cooper, she thought.

"Well then I'm fine too," Jess reassured her. "I don't see anything embarrassing or shameful in talking about sex. Of course, if you start getting into all the gory details, I might cringe a little bit…"

"Don't worry, I won't," Peyton said with a smile.

"Anyway, it's good that Nate hasn't done this often, but pre-warning, it could be a bad habit in the works so watch out."

"Thanks," Peyton replied. "He's got enough bad habits. Anyway, he doesn't even usually come back the same night we've argued, so that probably explains why it's not already a habit."

"Well then, I would take tonight as kind of a good sign, in a way."

"Ok, what? Why?"

"Because, even though you two argued and he got completely smashed, he still came home, so to speak, to you." She shrugged her shoulders. "Sounds bad, I know, but, the way I see it, if a guy's coming home for some action, then there's probably nothing to worry about. It's when he doesn't try anything that you have to worry because then you're left wondering why. At least that's how I always looked at it."

"Makes sense, but doesn't really apply to Nathan," Peyton said. "He could have gotten some somewhere else earlier and still come back and want more from me. I swear that guy's always horny."

"What teenage boy isn't?" Jess remarked. "So you still suspect him of cheating?" she asked, remembering Peyton's comment from earlier. I may not know exactly where he is, but unfortunately, I have a pretty good idea what he's doing.

Peyton nodded her head. "I more than suspect him," she said. "He pretty much confessed to it."

"Aww, what did he say?" Jess questioned.

"That he was just horny and he was sorry."

"That's the excuse he gave you?" Jess asked incredulously.

"Yep. Right before he passed out."

"Damn," Jess muttered. "Love the boy to pieces but that honestly makes me want to slap him upside the head."

"You and me both," Peyton said, laughing. "Doesn't make any difference though. I've tried it."

"You know, it's just so weird," Jess mentioned. "Whenever he comes up here, you're practically all he talks about. I could swear you're the only girl he sees." It really didn't make any sense to her.

"Yeah, I don't really get it either," Peyton admitted. "He just loves sex, I guess. And lots of it. But hey, enough about my problems. I'm sure you got enough to worry about."

"Yes," Jess agreed. "But, to be honest, it feels good to focus on someone else's for a while."

"Well, in that case," Peyton said with a smile. "I could talk your ear off."

"Fine by me. It'll feel just like having the little sister I always wanted."

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Nathan awoke feeling like he'd been hit in the head with a sledge hammer. He grunted in complaint when he turned over and the sun shone brightly in his eyes. He turned the other way, his stomach dropping when he spotted Peyton's bags lined up by the wall. He sat up, ignoring the pounding ache in his head, staring despondently at the luggage for a long while. They weren't set to leave until tomorrow afternoon. But she was already packed and ready? That couldn't be good. Then again, she did like to be ready early so maybe it didn't mean anything.

He stood up groggily, dressed, and went downstairs, finding Peyton loading the dishwasher.

"Coop and Jess hire themselves a new maid?" he asked as he reached into the medicine cabinet for aspirin.

"It's the least I could do," she replied evenly while Nathan got himself a bottle of water and swallowed the pills.

"Where is everyone?" he asked.

"They didn't say," she replied with a shrug.

He was quiet a while before speaking again. "I see you're all packed," he told her hesitantly.

"Yeah," she replied dryly.

"When d'you do that?"

"Last night," she answered, still facing the dishwasher. "Before you got back."

He looked down, afraid of what that meant.

"I've been debating calling Rachel to pick me up," she informed him before he could ask.

He was behind her in an instant, wrapping his arms around her. "Don't, Peyt. Don't leave," he pleaded. "I'm sorry, ok? We don't have to get married. Just don't go, please."

She broke away from him instantly. "It's not because of the proposal," she said angrily. "It's about what you did after that."

"I'm sorry,"

"Don't tell me you're sorry, all right," she shouted. "I know you're sorry. You're always sorry."

"Ok, ok, calm down," he told her.

It was possibly the worse thing he could have said as it only fueled her anger. "Calm down? You're really something else to say that to me right now."

"Well, what do you want me to say, Peyton?" he asked. "You won't let me apologize and…"

"Nathan, you said things would be different this time."

"They will be," he returned. "They are."

"Oh yeah, as long as everything goes your way, right?"

"No. What are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb," she nearly growled. "Was she worth it? Did she make you feel better?"

"Peyton, I wasn't with anyone, ok," he said with a sigh.

"No, not ok. And wrong answer!" she shouted. "You maybe wanna try another one?"

"Is there a right answer?" he asked her.

"You already confessed last night, you jackass, so don't! Just don't."

"What did I confess?" he asked. "I didn't do anything except with you."

She turned on him and stared hard. "And here I thought you were actually making progress by continuing to be honest, but I should have known that wouldn't last."

He looked away from her, breaking eye contact, and heaved another sigh. "So, you're dumping me again?" he asked forlornly. He couldn't handle that again.

"No!" she screamed. "I'm not! And you want to know why? Because, for some reason, I can't be apart from you! No matter what you do!"

He sighed in relief before asking, "Then why are you thinking of calling Rachel?"

"Because I'm mad, ok? I'm so pissed at you right now that I can hardly look at you."

"Peyton, I'm sorry," was all he could think to say that wouldn't make her angrier.

He thought wrong. It infuriated her even more. "Stop it! I don't care that you're sorry! I know it's just a word you throw at me to shut me up!"

"That's not true," he denied.

"It is! You do it all the time!"

"All right," he said with aggravation. "Can you quit yelling at me?"

"Why? Is it hurting your head?"

"Yes."

"Good."

"You know, you're not the only who's pissed, ok," he told her, his own temper coming out. With the fear of her breaking up with him gone, he too could vent some frustration. "Everything would have been fine if you would have just admitted you didn't want to marry me instead of throwing every excuse in the book at me to say no."

"Oh, so once again, your cheating ass ways are my fault! And, for the record, I didn't say no!"

"Not straight out but it's what you meant," he said, ignoring the first part of her statement.

"No, it's not," she denied. "But apparently you have selective hearing because you only heard what you wanted to hear and blocked out the rest!"

He shook his head and scoffed at that. "If I'd heard only what I wanted to hear, I would've heard you say yes," he countered. "But that word never came out of your mouth. Not once. It was just, we're too young, we can't cook, we're broke, we argue too much, and all kinds of other crap."

"You're still not listening to reason."

"I am, Peyton," he countered. "Just because I don't agree with your reasons doesn't mean I'm not listening. And I don't want to wait until after college."

"I know," she agreed. "Because you want what you want and you want it now!"

"So? What's wrong with that? I told you I want to be with you and nobody else for the rest of my life. I wish I knew a better way to say it that would make you believe me, but I don't know how…"

"It's not about what you say, Nathan, it's about what you do! Actions speak louder than words."

He sighed in frustration and shook his head. "I proposed," he growled. "How much fucking louder do you want me to get? I'm ready right here and now to spend forever with you. Doesn't that prove anything?"

"Of course it does, Nate" she replied in a considerably softer tone.

"But you're still not gonna marry me," he guessed.

"Not right now," she said.

His shoulders slumping, he asked, "Why not? If we both want to be together forever, then why can't forever start today?"

"Why does a piece of paper get to decide when forever starts?" she countered.

He just sighed dejectedly at that and slumped into the chair, no ready reply.

"We can make our own forever, Nate," she said softly. "Starting right now if we want."

"It's not the same," he argued. "I want this life that Coop and Jess have, and I want it with you right now. Why can't you just say yes?"

She let out a scream of frustration. "You make it sound like I'm completely rejecting you by wanting to wait. We are not Cooper and Jess, ok. They're older than us and in a solid relationship and ready for that kind of commitment…"

"And we aren't, I get it," he shot back irritably.

"Do you?"

"Yeah," he said. "All your excuses make sense, Peyt. You don't want to get married, we won't get married. Whatever."

"Nathan…"

"Just don't pretend like you're not saying no, ok, because we both know you're gonna dump me way before we get done with college."

"Why do you say that?"

"Because that's what you do," he replied evenly. "Saying not right now is the same as saying not ever and you know it. You know I'm bound to screw up before we get there."

"Getting married isn't a guarantee that we'll stay together," she pointed out. "Do you know what the divorce rate is?"

"We wouldn't get divorced," he argued weakly.

"How do you know?"

"Because I would never file for one and if you did, I wouldn't agree to it."

She couldn't help it. She laughed. In turn, he smiled too. She approached him where he sat on the arm of the couch and forced his chin up to look at her. "What's really going on here, Nate? Why the big rush, all of a sudden, to get married?"

"I just don't want to lose you," he told her. "I can't be without you."

"You're not going to lose me, ok," she replied softly. "I'm here, Nathan, for better or worse. With or without that piece of paper, you're stuck with me. So can't you just let that be enough for now?"

"I don't have any choice."

"You do have a choice," she countered.

"What? Agree or do without you? Second one's not even an option so, like I said, I have no choice."

"Hey," she said. "I love you. You know that, right?"

He nodded his head. "I love you too," he responded, pulling her into him.

Her cell went off just before their lips met and she rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Yeah?" she answered. She glanced at Nathan. "Yeah, he's here. Oh, ok, I'll tell him. Thanks. Yeah, we'll be there in a bit. Bye."

Nathan looked at her curiously.

"Missing your phone, by any chance?" she asked.

"I don't think so," he replied, his brows creasing.

"Yeah, you are," she told him. "You left it at the bar and the bartender's getting annoyed that it keeps going off. He found my number in your contacts."

"Oh," was all he said.

"I'll drive," she offered. "You probably still have alcohol in your system."

–––––––––––––––

Dan Scott lifted the weights in his home gym, mulling over the mess that was his life. As far as he could tell, this physical exertion did more to calm him down than any of those damn anger management exercises. 'Accept the angry feelings and learn to manage them. Concentrate on breathing and relaxing.' How in the hell were those techniques going to help him with his anger problems. How were they supposed to prevent him from getting physical with his mouthy, out of control teenaged son who made a habit of pushing his limits to the absolute extreme? And what was more, how would it help him when he also had a suicidal wife threatening divorce to contend with. He was all for making a change, he was, but he didn't see any of those methods being particularly effective.

Right now he was dealing with the situation. It was easier right now. Deb was still undecided and Nathan was in Charlotte with Cooper. But sooner or later his wife would make her decision, and his rebellious son was due back tomorrow. He pumped the weights furiously, vowing to find a way to get through these issues. He had to. Because he loved his son too much not to.

He set the weights down when the doorbell sounded, wiping the sweat off his brow with a towel that hung from his neck, and made his way to the door. He opened it and sighed heavily. "Officers," he greeted evenly. "What can I do for you?"

–––––––––––––––––––––––––

"I'll wait here," Peyton said, sitting on the hood of the car.

He nodded and gave her a quick kiss before walking toward the building's entrance.

Peyton watched him until he disappeared inside.

"You've got to be Peyton," she heard someone say.

She turned to find a pretty brunette standing beside her. Peyton regarded the unfamiliar face with perplexity. "I'm sorry, do I know you?" she asked, pretty sure she'd never met the woman in her life.

"No," the other girl said. "But your man does. Well, not really. We just met yesterday, actually. I admit I was totally hitting on him," she said honestly.

Peyton eyed the girl with open disdain. So this was the skank he'd hooked up with. Figures she had to be gorgeous. Damn it.

To Peyton's further disgust, the girl giggled and playfully slapped her arm. "Oh, don't look at me like that, girl. He's hot," she told Peyton. "And I've been waiting for some fresh meat around here for a while."

Peyton rolled her eyes and turned her head away, sure she would hit this girl if she didn't.

"But in my defense," the brunette went on. "I didn't know he was taken and I totally backed off when he said he was engaged."

Peyton's head whipped back around as she stared at the girl incredulously. "Engaged?"

"Yeah, congratulations, by the way!" she said, missing Peyton's shocked expression. "I love weddings. But I really hope you two can settle on a date because he doesn't want to wait. I think that's so sweet and romantic that he wants to marry you right now. Most of the time it's the guy who wants to delay it as long as possible, right? At least that's been my experience. And then comes along a guy who's so sure of what he wants. I'll tell you, I really enjoyed talking to him, although it didn't bode too well with my ego to be brushed off so easy, but after a while I didn't even think about that. It was just nice to talk to a guy who's so completely in love with his girl." She stopped and took a breath before finally saying. "I apologize if I seem too forward, but I feel like I practically know you with how much he talked about you yesterday. And I'm so glad you two made up. He was so afraid you were going to be mad at him…"

The girl was rambling for sure, but Peyton hung on to every word, her heart lifting more and more as she went on.

–––––––––––––––

Lucas watched as Haley wiped down the already-clean counter and sighed. Things had been so tense and awkward between them ever since she'd confessed her love for him. It wasn't entirely her fault, he knew. He wasn't sure how to feel about what she'd told him. She'd never let on before – although, according to his mom when he talked to her about it, it had been obvious for years. And she'd also insisted, with a wink, that he loved her too.

But that couldn't be true, could it? Yes he loved Haley, but he couldn't love her, love her. Could he? She was his best friend. They couldn't go there. Right? 'Best friends make the best couples,' Karen had told him. 'They already know each others' flaws.'

He stole another glance at her. He couldn't deny something had shifted within him since that day she'd blurted those words, but he wasn't sure what it was or what it meant.

One thing he did know was that they couldn't continue how they were right now – awkward and uncomfortable around each other. That wasn't them. He already missed how they used to be, missed his Lucas and Haley friend time.

He opened his mouth to say just that when the café door swung open and her parents came in.

Haley offered them a warm smile, but rebuked them gently. "I told you guys you don't need to check up on me. I'm fine here, I promise."

"You think we're here to check up on you?" her dad rebuffed. "Where's your faith?"

"Really," her mother added. "If we were checking up on you, we'd have done it in disguise from across the street so you wouldn't know."

"You mean like you've done my last three shifts?" Haley asked, pointing out that she did, indeed, know.

Both parents just shrugged it off, more pertinent issues to be discussed at this moment.

"Haley Bob," her mom said, taking both her daughters' hands in hers. "We have great news," she revealed. "And we wanted to come down and tell you in person."

"I'll just go re-stock the shelves," Lucas said, heading toward the back room.

"No Luke," her dad said, halting the blond boy's footsteps. "You'll probably want to hear this too."

"Mom, Dad, what is it?" Haley asked curiously.

"A young lady's come forward," Lydia said. "An eye-witness who saw Nathan spike your soda."

Haley and Luke's jaws both dropped as they took in the words.

"Really?" Haley asked, afraid she might be hearing things.

"Really," her dad confirmed. "The police are on their way to his house to arrest him as we speak."

Haley nearly fell over in sheer relief and if Lucas hadn't been right beside her to catch her, she would have. "We got him, Hales," he said. "You did it," he added, pulling her in for a hug.

A smile spread across her face even as tears fell down her cheeks. She'd truly felt alone in this, despite the support of her friends and family. She'd thought it would be her against Nathan, a fight she'd surely lose. But in a split second that had changed. The revelation of an eye-witness brought forth a renewed hope that he would have to pay for what he'd done to her. That he wouldn't just get away with it because he was Nathan Scott. And right now that was the best feeling in the world.

–––––––––––––––––––––––––

Nathan approached the car a little uneasily, wondering what the two girls were talking about. He vaguely remembered the brunette he'd spent hours talking to yesterday. There was no chance Peyton knew her; she'd never even been to Charlotte until this week. So what were they saying?

"Hey there, cutie," the woman greeted him when he was near them. "Long time no see. I was just getting acquainted with your girl here. You're right, she is hot. In fact, if you were both single in the bar, I'd be hard put to know which one of you to hit on. You two wouldn't happen to be interested in a threesome, would you?"

Nathan glared at her but didn't comment.

"No? I didn't think so," the girl said. "Well, ok, I'll leave you two alone then. "Oh, and good luck with your art," she said to Peyton. "I hear your sketches are awesome."

"Thanks," Peyton replied as Nathan shook his head.

Just great, he thought. Now Peyton knew he'd been in the bar spilling his guts about their relationship. Not only would that piss her off, but it was also embarrassing as hell. Like she really needed to know what an emotional, pathetic wreck he'd been over her rejection. He stole a glance at her, almost expecting her to be gloating. But instead she was staring hard at him.

"You bought her a drink?" she asked, though it wasn't so much a question as a statement.

He closed his eyes and sighed deeply. Did she have to know that too? He dreaded the upcoming conversation, knowing Peyton would make a big deal out of that one drink. "It was only one drink, ok," he told her. "It didn't go any further than that…"

"Well, that's gonna have to stop," she said.

"Nothing happened, Peyt. She just asked for a drink and I said ok, and…." he stopped abruptly as she continued to stare at him. "It won't happen again," he said with finality, really wanting this conversation over and done with. Hell, they'd barely just made up and now this?

"Good," she said, smiling now. "Cuz I don't particularly like my fiancé flirting with other girls."