Changing Circumstances
By Diane
Chapter One
“Hey honey, I’m home,” Haley James teased as she entered the apartment she shared with her best friend and roommate, Nathan Scott.
From his position on the couch where he was watching a basketball game on TV, he tipped his head back slightly so he could look at her and gave her a smile. “How was your day?”
“Not bad but not great either. I can’t tell you relieved I am that tomorrow is Saturday and I can sleep the day away. How was your day?” She asked as she flopped onto the couch beside him and rested her stocking clad feet on the low coffee table in front of it, wiggling her toes back and forth. His own bare feet were resting beside hers and he playfully tapped one of her feet with his.
“About the same as yours.”
“So what’s the reason for the scowl?”
“What scowl?”
“The one that’s etched all over your face. The one that tells me that someone or something has royally pissed you off.”
Nathan sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “Nothing gets past you, does it?”
“Nope,” she replied, giving him a wink. “So c’mon, tell me what’s up? A problem shared and all that jazz.”
“Charlotte broke up with me.”
“Oh. I-I’m sorry.” Reaching over, she placed her hand on top of his which was resting on his thigh and she gave it a gentle squeeze. “Uh…did she say why?”
“No. She just gave me some vague crap about us wanting different things and that I wasn’t the type of guy to give her those things. It would have been nice if she could have told me exactly what the hell she was talking about.”
“Well it’s her loss, Nathan. You’re a great guy and if she’s willing to pass you up, then she’s even stupider than I gave her credit for.” Realising what she had just said, Haley clamped a hand over her mouth and felt her skin grow hot with her trademark blush.
“Hales…”
“Oh god! I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that. I know how much you liked her and--”
“It’s okay.”
“No, it’s not. You don’t need to hear me ragging on her and--”
“Why not? You’re my best friend and what you think matters. And you’re right, she is stupid. I mean, she’s not going to do better than Nathan Scott, now is she?”
Haley couldn’t help laughing. “Nope, she’s not. Even if you are your own biggest fan.”
“Hey, you come in a close second.”
“True.” Moving in a little closer to him, she rested her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes.
While Haley felt sorry for any hurt that Nathan was feeling, she couldn’t help being glad that his eight month relationship with Charlotte had come to an end. Truthfully, she had known it wasn’t something that was bound to go anywhere considering the woman was only a couple of years away from thirty and was going to be looking to settle down in the very near future, especially given the hints she had heard her dropping whenever she had been around them.
At twenty-three years old, she knew that Nathan was a long way off being ready to settle down. Before Charlotte had come along, he hadn’t really had a long-term relationship, preferring to change his girlfriends as often as he changed his sheets and she had a feeling that he would be reverting to that lifestyle now that he was young, free and single again.
“Hey, space cadet, you in there?” Nathan’s voice broke into her thoughts and looking up at him, she gave him a shy smile.
“Sorry, must have spaced out again. Were you saying something?”
“I was just asking if you had any plans tonight?”
Shaking her head, she replied, “No, I don’t. Why do you ask?”
“Well I figured you might want to hang out with me. I could make us dinner and we could watch a movie or we could go out if you’d prefer.”
“After the week I’ve had, the last thing I feel like doing is going out so dinner and a movie here sounds good. Even more so if you’re the one doing the cooking.”
Nathan gave her his trademark smirk. “It just so happens that I went grocery shopping after school and picked up some stuff for dinner. I was going to make that pasta and pesto dish you like.”
Leaning up, she planted a kiss on his cheek. “You are my hero. I love that almost as much as I love mac and cheese.”
“I know. I also picked up some of that ice cream you like.”
Haley was just about to say something when a thought hit her and she cocked her head to the side and asked, “What are you after?”
“What?”
“You’re willing to cook my favourite dinner, you bought me my favourite ice cream and you want to hang out with me on a Friday night so I’m just wondering if there’s a reason behind it.”
Wrapping his arm around her shoulders, he pulled her closer to his body and hugged her. “Nope, no reason. I just realised it’s been a while since we’ve hung out and I know that’s mainly down to me so I want to make it up to you.”
“You don’t have to, Nathan. It’s only natural that you’d want to spend all your free time with your girlfriend and--”
“Maybe so but I’ve missed spending time with you, Hales.”
The intense look he gave her sent a shiver down her spine and she had to look away before she did something stupid. “Uh…I’ve missed spending time with you too,” she said in a low voice.
“Okay then, so how about you go and get changed and I’ll get a start on dinner?”
“Sounds great.” Pushing herself up off the couch, she grabbed her shoes and bag from where she had dropped them and made her way down the hallway to her bedroom. Once she had shut the door behind her, she started removing her work outfit consisting of a knee length black skirt, white cotton blouse and her black pantyhose, dropping everything into her laundry hamper when she was done. Pulling open one of the drawers of her dresser, she removed a pale blue tank top and a pair of dark grey sweats and was just about to get dressed when she decided to take a quick shower.
Grabbing the things she needed, she left her room and walked the short distance to the bathroom she shared with Nathan. Just before she closed the door, she called out and let him know what she was doing.
Nathan couldn’t help groaning under his breath when he heard her tell him she was going to take a shower. The thought of her all wet and soapy sent a jolt of lust shooting through his body and he took a deep breath to try and calm himself down.
From the moment he had met Haley in college when they had been paired up to work on an English assignment together, he had known she was. He had always felt an attraction to her but, for the first time in his life, he had pushed that to the background knowing that should things end the way they normally did between him and the girls he dated, that he would lose her and that was something he wasn’t going to let happen. She was too important to him and he loved having her in his life.
When the time had come for them to leave the dorms, he had suggested they find an apartment and share. Haley had been reluctant at first but he had managed to persuade her and the rest, as they say, was history.
They had met each other’s families and friends and after they had graduated college, they had both managed to find jobs in New York; Haley working for a publishing company and Nathan working as a sports teacher at a junior high school. This time she had been the one to suggest they continue sharing a place and he had quickly agreed.
As he prepared their meal, Nathan smiled as he remembered what things had been like when they had first started living together. She was the ultimate neat freak while he wasn’t, although he wasn’t a total slob. They had had their fair share of arguments over the years but they always made up. He was well known amongst his friends and family for holding a grudge but that wasn’t the case where Haley was concerned. Even when he felt he wasn’t in the wrong, he would often be the one to make the first move and apologise. He hated having her mad at him and he knew she hated being mad at him.
“Mmm, that smells delicious,” Haley said as she entered the kitchen and hopped up onto the counter beside where he was chopping up some tomatoes for the salad. “Do you need me to do anything?”
“Nope, you just kick back and relax. Actually, I take that back. You could set the table for me.”
“Or we could eat in front of the TV.”
“Works for me,” he said smiling at her.
Jumping down, Haley started gathering plates and cutlery and going over to the fridge and opening it, she asked, “Do you want wine or beer?”
“Whatever you’re having.”
“Wine it is,” she said grabbing the bottle of Chardonnay from the shelf and opening it.
Less than ten minutes later, the pair of them were seated on the couch with trays on their laps eating their food. An old black and white movie was playing on the TV but neither were paying much attention to it.
“I’m kind of surprised you wouldn’t be hitting the town tonight,” Haley said after she had swallowed a forkful of pasta.
“Maybe I’m growing up,” he offered in response. “I know I dated her for a while…longer than anyone else really, but I wasn’t…I mean...” He released a heavy sigh. “I wasn’t in love with her or anything.”
Haley couldn’t stop the surprised look from creeping onto her face. She had been sure that he must have fallen for Charlotte seeing as the relationship had lasted for so many months, something of a record for him.
He couldn’t help chuckling at the expression on her face. “Nice to see you think so much of me,” he couldn’t help teasing.
“What? No, no, that’s not it. I-I just figured you must have…um…been in love with her. I mean, all your other relationships have fizzled out after a few weeks, a couple of months tops.”
“Yeah, I know. Don’t get me wrong, I did like her but…there was just something missing. Maybe I do know what she meant when she dumped me after all.”
“It’s a shame you didn’t get in first and dump her,” she said playfully.
“Tell me about it. So, how was that date you went on last weekend?”
“Ugh! Don’t even ask. All he did was talk about himself all night.”
“Sounds like me.”
“Nuh huh. When you do it you’re not taking yourself all that seriously, this guy on the other hand was sooo boring. And when I made the mistake of interrupting him, you should have seen the icy look he gave me.”
He laughed. “I take it you won’t be seeing him again then?”
“You got that right. I don’t know what Brooke was thinking when she set me up with him. I must have done something to piss her off.”
“Speaking of your sister, how come the two of you aren’t painting the town red tonight?”
“Because she and Jake are attending some dinner party at his boss’ house. I can’t tell you how relieved I am because my feet wouldn’t have been able to take the added strain.” Leaning forward, she picked up her wine glass from the coffee table and took a long drink of the refreshingly cool liquid.
They finished off their meal while chatting about a variety of things, from what they had been up to at work to the latest news regarding their respective families and friends. Once they had done the dishes, they had returned to sit on the large, comfy couch with another bottle of wine.
“So what movie?” Nathan asked before taking a large gulp of his drink.
“Bridget Jones,” she suggested.
“No way! I still haven’t forgiven you for making me watch it the first time.”
“Okay, how about Moulin Rouge?”
“Try again.”
“Pretty In Pink?”
“Hales, c’mon,” he whined. “No chick flicks. I’ve just been dumped by my girlfriend so I think it’s only fair that I get to watch some mindless violence.”
“Fiiine. What’s your suggestion?”
“Terminator 2,” he replied without missing a beat.
“Okay, you can set it up seeing as it’s your suggestion and if I fall asleep, then it’s your fault.”
“Whatever,” he teased before getting up from the couch and making his way over to the shelf where their DVD’s were situated. Running his finger along until he came to his choice, he then backtracked when another movie caught his eye and he removed that instead and then popped it into the machine.
“Hey, this isn’t Terminator 2.”
“I know. I figured we could watch this seeing as you like it so much.” The smile she gave him was definitely worth the sacrifice, he thought to himself as he sat back down on the couch and made himself comfortable.
“Why she dumped you I will never know,” Haley said with a serious look on her face and once again that evening, their eyes locked before they both quickly looked away.
“Well we’ve already established that she must be stupid,” he said trying to lighten the atmosphere and it seemed to do the trick. “Do you want some more wine?”
“You wouldn’t be trying to get me drunk now would you, Mr Scott?”
“Damn, I’m so transparent.”
“Ha! I could have told you that. Sure, I’ll have another glass,” she said holding it out so he could fill it up with the bottle he had just picked up off the table.
As the movie played on the TV screen, they polished off the bottle of wine before Nathan suggested they have something a little stronger and he was a little surprised when Haley agreed. She was well known among their friends for not being a big drinker. Regardless of that fact, he went into the kitchen and retrieved a bottle of vodka and a couple of shot glasses.
“It’s a shame we’re out of tequila, we could have done shots,” she said once he had returned and she had snuggled into his side. The alcohol was definitely doing its trick of loosening her up and making her less self-conscious that she usually was.
A sudden vision of them doing body shots off each other flittered through his mind and he inwardly groaned. Just the mere thought of her licking salt off his skin was sending his blood pressure through the roof and he sucked in a long, drawn out breath. Having her curvy body so close to his wasn’t helping matters either.
“How many times have you seen this movie now?” He asked, trying once again to lighten the mood.
“Hey! Don’t mock the movie. I’ll have you know that Married To The Mob is very underrated.”
“Uh huh. And it has absolutely nothing to do with your old crush on Matthew Modine.”
“Shh! You’re the only one who knows about that and besides, it’s not my fault he happens to be in the movie.”
Nathan couldn’t help laughing at how much freer she seemed thanks to the amount of alcohol she had consumed. He’d seen her intoxicated on a few occasions, usually thanks to her older sister, but he never got tired of seeing her so much more relaxed. At times it was almost like she was another person. Of course, it wasn’t so much fun being around her the next morning.
“How about we play a game?” Her loud voice suddenly broke into his thoughts and, not for the first time, he groaned but this time he did it loudly.
“How about we just finish watching the movie?”
“Don’t be such a spoilsport, Nathan. C’mon, I’ve seen this movie a million times. I know, let’s play I Never?”
He shook his head. “Nah, I don’t feel like it.” Despite her knowing most of his secrets, the truth was he was scared of what she would come up with, particularly since his mind wasn’t as sharp as it usually was thanks to all the wine he’d been drinking.
“Okay, then what about Truth or Dare?”
“Crap,” he muttered under his breath. That was even worse than I Never. Before he could say anything, she was sitting up on the couch and pouring vodka into the shot glasses. Why did he have to suggest they have something stronger, he thought to himself.
“You can go first,” she told him as she handed him one of the glasses and she watched him down it in one go.
“Fine, truth or dare?”
“Dare,” she said smiling at the surprised look on his face. He had obviously been expecting her to take the easy route and say truth.
Nathan wracked his brain to think of something that wouldn’t be too bad and suddenly his eyes twinkled with mischief as the very thing popped into his head. “Okay. I dare you to do that little victory dance thing I walked in on you doing a couple of years ago after you aced that quiz. I only caught the tail end of it so I wanna see it in full.”
Haley’s eyes widened and she shook her head. “No way! I’ve changed my mind…I’ll take truth.”
“Sorry Hales, no can do. You picked dare so you have to do what I say. C’mon, I promise I won’t laugh.”
“Riiight! Damn you Nathan!” she said before reluctantly getting up from the couch and going to stand in the centre of the room. “You do realise I’ll get you back for this, don’t you?”
“Of that I have no doubt,” he teased giving her a wink. His eyes were trained on her as he watched her mentally prepare herself and he let them roam all over her petite form. The tank top she was wearing displayed her lightly tanned, toned arms nicely and the hem of it didn’t quite meet the waistband of her sweats and so he was being treated to a nice glimpse of her flat stomach. It wasn’t difficult to tell that she wasn’t wearing a bra under it and he could see her breasts straining against the figure hugging cotton. His mouth suddenly felt too dry and he helped himself to another shot. He almost choked on the fiery liquid when she started to move.
Closing her eyes, Haley started to do the victory dance that she had come up with one day during high school. She and her best friend Brianna had been up in her bedroom when they had decided to devise something to help them celebrate them passing milestones in their lives as well as the more insignificant things. Unfortunately, she had made an error in judgement the day she had done it in the apartment she and Nathan shared at college although, in her defence, he wasn’t supposed to be back from basketball practice until much later. Thank god he hadn’t caught the whole thing…well, until now that is.
His eyes were riveted on her as he watched her shimmy and shake her hips to an imaginary beat, her arms coming up above her head and causing her breasts to jiggle enticingly due to their lack of support. Her beautiful auburn hair which was hanging loosely around her shoulders swung with each movement she made. When the dance ended a couple of minutes later, he released the breath he hadn’t even realised he had been holding.
“There, happy now?” Haley pouted as she threw herself back down on the couch and downed her vodka shot, hoping that the drink would somehow remove what she had just done from her memory.
“Uh…yeah…” Nathan managed to say when he had found his voice.
“My turn. Truth or dare?”
“Truth?”
“Chicken.”
“Yep,” he said giving her a smirk.
“We’ll see how long you’re smirking for when you hear my question. What’s this story Lucas and your friends back home keep hinting at…something about you and a teacher when you were a senior?”
It was now Nathan’s turn to shake his head. “Nope, ask me something else. Anything else.”
“No way, buddy. You got me to wiggle my ass for you--”
“That’s not all you were wiggling,” he interrupted and his words caused her to blush.
“And for that comment, you definitely have to answer. C’mon, we know practically everything about each other already, what’s one more little thing,” she coaxed before pouring another shot for each of them and handing him his glass.
“It’s not as bad as Lucas likes to make out it is,” he told her after knocking back his drink.
“So tell me then. I’m not going to judge you, you know that. I’m just curious.”
An idea began forming in his mind and he mentally debated whether to follow through with it or leave well enough alone. Drinking another shot in an attempt to give himself more courage, he finally said, “Okay, if I tell you this, then you have to let me do something.”
“Um…well that depends,” she replied nervously.
“No, it doesn’t. If I tell you the story, then I get to do something, no questions asked. Deal?”
Looking into his beautiful blue eyes, Haley felt herself getting lost and all she could do was nod. When he licked his lips, she all but melted. “Deal,” she whispered.
Chapter Two
Hearing the whispered word pass her lips, Nathan couldn’t help asking, “You promise?”
“Yeah, now hurry up and get started on this story. What happened between you and this teacher?” Turning in her seat, she brought her legs up so that she was sitting cross-legged and could face him better.
“Nothing.”
“Nothing? Excuse me, but I don’t think so. The way your brother and your friends talk about it, it seems to be this legendary tale.”
He laughed. “Hey, it’s not my fault if they hear something from me and make up their own sordid version of events. If there’s any legend, it’s down to them.”
“So you’re saying there wasn’t a teacher?”
“Oh, there was a teacher.” He smirked. “And damn, she was hot.”
“Why don’t I believe you?”
“What, about her being hot?”
“No, I can well believe you and your pervy little friends all fantasizing about some older woman. I meant about nothing happening.”
“Okay, fine. Something sort of did happen between the two of us but it wasn’t my fault. She came on to me.”
Tilting her head to the side, she regarded him closely. “You expect me to believe that a teacher came on to a seventeen-year-old student?”
Tossing back another shot, he refilled both their glasses. “I’m not lying, Hales. And hey, you’ve heard about those kinds of things happening before. Basically, she asked to see me after class and believe me, it took me a good while to charm my way out of there.”
“You weren’t tempted?” she asked, curious to know the answer.
“You think I would have been wouldn’t you, but I really wasn’t. If I’m being totally honest, she was scaring the crap out of me. She kept stroking my arm and then stood between me and the door so I couldn’t get out.”
Haley couldn’t help laughing. He was always so cocky around the opposite sex and the thought of this older woman having him trapped in her classroom was priceless. “I-I’m sorry,” she said a moment later as she tried to compose herself. “Do you know why she might have come on to you?”
“No idea, other than maybe she’d heard what we used to whisper about her. Anyway, the long and short of it was that she promised me an A if I…uh…well, you know.”
Staring at him open-mouthed, she managed to squeak out, “What did you say to her?”
Nathan shook his head. “I had no clue what to say and thank god I didn’t have to because Whitey suddenly burst in the room looking for me, wanting to know why I was late for practice. We had a big game coming up and he wasn’t going to let me miss any practice sessions beforehand. I tell ya Hales, I’d never been so relieved to see the old guy.”
“Wow! What happened afterwards…I mean, the next time you had a class with her?”
“Nothing happened. She just ignored me during lessons, made sure she was last in the room and first out and then a few weeks later we had a new teacher taking us through the rest of the semester. Apparently, Ms O’Neal had only ever been a temp but the whole thing was just weird. And the biggest mistake I made was--”
“Not sleeping with her?” Haley interrupted, a smirk gracing her features.
“No,” he told her, childishly poking his tongue out. “The biggest mistake was telling Lucas what had happened. The next thing I know everyone’s talking about how I screwed her in the classroom and that she quit teaching there because she couldn’t take me giving her the cold shoulder afterwards. I could have strangled Luke when I heard that going around. You should have seen some of the looks the other teachers were giving me, especially the female ones. I’m sure they believed the rumours.”
“I can imagine. So the story just got bigger and bigger as time went by?”
“Pretty much. I think people still talk about it even now.”
Grabbing the bottle of vodka off the table, Nathan ignored the shot glass and drank straight from the bottle. After revealing that little bit of information, he needed a much bigger drink than a mere shot.
“Hey,” Haley said taking the bottle from him. “Don’t drink it all.” Holding it up to her lips, she too took a long drink.
He couldn’t help noticing that she hadn’t bothered to wipe the mouth of the bottle before she had taken a drink from it and that sent a jolt of lust coursing through his body. Taking a deep breath, he looked into her eyes and forced himself to do what he was about to.
“Uh…remember what I said before…you know, about you letting me do something if I told you that story?” Receiving a nod from her, he continued. “Okay then.” Leaning forward quickly, he covered her lips with his and kissed her softly. A long moment later, he broke the kiss and moved back into his own space. His heart was thumping wildly in his chest as he waited for her reaction.
“W-What…what was that for?” Haley finally asked in a low voice as she tried to work out what had just happened.
“I’ve wanted to do that for a long time,” he confessed while keeping his eyes locked on hers so that she would hopefully be able to see the truth there. After a minute or so had passed and she hadn’t said anything, he realised that kissing her was something he shouldn’t have done and he got up from the couch. Not knowing what else to do, he quickly mumbled “I’m sorry” before rushing out of the room.
Walking into the kitchen, Nathan paced up and down before walking over to the fridge and resting his forehead against the cool metal appliance. What the hell had he done? It didn’t matter that he had wanted to do that for as long as he could remember, she was his best friend and he had crossed a line. A line he had promised himself would always stay intact. Maybe he could just put it down to all the alcohol he’d had.
Meanwhile, Haley remained frozen to the couch, her fingers touching the lips he had just kissed. Never in her wildest dreams – and some of them had been pretty wild over the years – had she thought that Nathan would ever kiss her. God, she had lost count of how many times she had thought about telling him how she really felt about him but she had always chickened out. Why would he want to be with her when he could have his pick of all the tall, buxom beauties he normally dated?
Suddenly, the words he had spoken seemed to register in her brain and she jumped up from the couch and seeing that the kitchen door was closed, she guessed that he was hiding in there. Hiding? Since when did Nathan Scott hide from a woman, she couldn’t help thinking with a wry smile.
Taking a deep breath, she slowly opened the door and saw him standing with his head resting against the fridge and she took small steps until she had reached him.
“Nathan?”
“Look, I said I was sorry and--”
“Did you mean it?”
“What, that I’m sorry? Yeah bec--”
“No. I meant did you mean it when you said you’d wanted to do that for a long time?”
Pushing himself away from the appliance, he turned to look at her and his eyes met her large brown ones and he nodded. “Yeah.”
“Okay then,” she whispered his earlier words to her before taking a step closer to him. Raising up on her tiptoes, she looked into his eyes for a long moment before bringing her mouth to his and kissing him, gently at first but then pressing her lips against his a little more forcefully. She suckled his top lip between hers before repeating the motion with the bottom one, licking the sensitive skin just inside it.
Nathan stood stock still before he realised that what was happening was actually real and not a figment of his alcohol induced imagination and a second later his arms wrapped around her waist as he pulled her even closer into his body. His mouth crushed against hers and he repeated what she had done to him by suckling and nibbling on her lips in turn.
Haley’s arms came up to twine around his neck, her fingers idly playing with the short hairs at the nape. When he broke the kiss a short while later, he once again looked into her eyes and his lips parted to say something but she quickly brought a finger up to his lips. “Don’t say anything,” she whispered with a shy smile and in return she received a nod.
Instead, their faces inched closer together and they shared another sizzling kiss. The passion quickly escalated and burned out of control as their mouths devoured each other’s. Tongues tangled wetly while hands began wandering along areas already unhindered by clothing.
Nathan’s hands ran up and down her bare arms causing goose bumps to break out on her skin before they came down to grip her hips. His heart was threatening to burst out of his chest as the feel of Haley finally being in his arms seemed to register, although a certain part of his anatomy had long been aware of that fact. Hell, he’d been hard from the movement she had come into the kitchen after her shower.
“God Hales, you feel…feel so good.” His breaths were coming in harsh pants as she licked and then suckled on his Adam’s apple.
“You do too…” she said quietly before yelping when he picked her up and placed her on the counter.
His eyes roamed all over her and when they settled on her breasts, he could see the hard points of her nipples straining against the fabric. Letting his eyes meet hers again, he smiled and cupped her cheek in his palm. “You’re so beautiful,” he told her honestly and he saw the blush creep onto her face.
Instead of answering him, she wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled him in closer while her hands settled on his shoulders. Moving forward, she licked his lips before tilting her head and slanting her mouth over his.
His mouth opened under hers and he felt her tongue tentatively slide inside to tangle with his. As her fingernails raked across his scalp and down the back of his neck, his hands wandered underneath her top, revelling in the soft silky skin of her back. As things progressed and became even more frenzied, he attempted to break the kiss and take a step back but she wasn’t prepared to let that happen, not if the tightening of her legs around him was any indication. When her teeth grazed his jaw-line and then his neck, he felt the sensation all the way to his groin and he couldn’t stop the moan from escaping. While one of his hands splayed against her bare back, the other kneaded her ass through the soft fabric of her sweats.
“I-I want you…so much,” she whispered huskily a moment later when she had drawn back from him slightly, her forehead resting against his.
“I want you too. I want to kiss you all over…taste you…” he murmured seductively, his mouth next to her ear.
Haley shivered at his words and in that second she didn’t care that he was probably too drunk to realise what he was doing and saying. She knew he was most likely on the rebound but again, she didn’t care. All she wanted was him…even if it was just for one night. She just hoped and prayed that their friendship wouldn’t be ruined as a result.
Pulling his mouth back to hers, she kissed him hotly, her tongue exploring every nook and cranny. Her hands wandered all over his back and shoulders before slipping between them to unzip the black and green Celtics fleece he was wearing. As soon as she had pushed it off his shoulders and he had shrugged his arms out of the sleeves, she grabbed the hem of his white wifebeater and pulled it up and off over his head, tossing it to the floor as soon as it was clear.
Her hands stroked and caressed over his warm skin, raking her nails up and down his back which, she noticed, caused him to shiver in her arms. So lost was she in the feel of his mouth exploring and devouring hers, that she missed him picking her up off the counter and carrying her out of the kitchen and down the hall. She gripped him between her thighs as their tongues continued to dual but she couldn’t help giggling when he almost stumbled.
“You won’t be laughing if I drop you,” Nathan teased. Reaching his bedroom, he was glad he’d left the door open; the less obstacles in their way the better. As soon as he’d crossed the threshold, he made his way quickly over to his large bed and he gently laid her down on it before crawling on top of her.
Their kisses became even more heated if possible and their hands moved feverishly over each other’s bodies. He was being careful not to rush things, not wanting to push her into anything but it would seem Haley had her own idea of what she wanted. Taking his hand in hers, she placed it on the hem of her tank top and when his eyes met hers, he saw exactly what she was telling him and when she gave him a reassuring smile, that was all the extra push he needed. He slowly eased the fabric up her body, holding his breath as her golden skin was revealed to him inch by inch.
As soon as the garment was off, he couldn’t tear his eyes away from her. He’d always known she had a gorgeous body but unclothed…god, she was even more incredible. His hand reached out, cupping one of her breasts and he smiled when he heard her moan his name. His thumb circled around and around her nipple but he didn’t actually touch it and he could see the sensation was driving her mad. His lips curved up into a smirk when she practically thrust herself into his hand and he finally gave in and touched the sensitive nub.
“Kiss me,” she demanded a moment later and he was only too happy to oblige. Crawling further up her body, their naked chests pressed together and they both sighed at the electricity that seemed to course through their veins as a result. Their mouths fused together as they kissed hungrily, tongues once again tangling and duelling.
Kissing a path down her body, he latched on to one of her breasts, sucking and playfully biting it while his other hand cupped and kneaded the other one.
Haley gripped the headboard with one hand while her other held his head to her. She couldn’t believe what was happening but she was loving it. The feel of his hot mouth surrounding her was absolute bliss and she couldn’t get enough. She voiced her disapproval when he stopped what he was doing but she moaned again when he repeated his actions on the breast his hand had been playing with.
When their eyes locked while his tongue licked around her aureole before touching her nipple, she felt herself grow even wetter than she was already. The look of blatant lust in his eyes went straight to her core and she bit her lower lip in anticipation of what was to come as she felt his erection rubbing against her cloth covered thigh.
Once again, she took his hand only this time she placed it on the waistband of her sweats and with her eyes she told him what she wanted. She saw him hesitate for a moment before he grinned at her and slowly drew the fabric down.
Nathan couldn’t stop the groan from passing his lips when he saw she wasn’t wearing any underwear beneath the dark grey material. Meeting her shy gaze, he raised an eyebrow. “Why Miss James, I wouldn’t have had you down for the commando type?”
“I…er…I need to do laundry,” she confessed quietly.
His hands continued their journey until the sweats were off and tossed to the floor. “It’s not like you to be so disorganised?” he teased.
“What can I say, it’s been a helluva week.”
“It sure has,” he agreed before adding, “but I think things are looking up.”
She giggled at the playfulness of his voice and not for the first time that evening, she didn’t care that that was probably in large part due to the amount of alcohol they had both had. “Hmm, I think you might be right.” The fact that she could hold a conversation while lying before her best friend completely naked definitely proved that she was as drunk as a skunk, the thought making her giggle again.
“What’s so funny?”
“I’m just trying to work out how drunk we are,” she admitted.
The expression on Nathan’s face turned serious for a moment when he asked, “Do you, uh, want to stop this then?”
Haley quickly shook her head. “N-No…unless you do…”
“No!” He exclaimed loudly before lowering his voice slightly and repeating, “No, I don’t.”
“Good. Now lose the pants, Nathan, ‘cos I’m feeling a little underdressed here.”
His face relaxed and he smirked. “Whatever you say, Hales.” He had his jeans off in record time leaving him clad in his dark blue boxers.
She licked her lips appreciatively when more of his body was exposed to her gaze. Over the years she had seen him in his boxers, it was only natural since they had lived together for so long but this was so different to all those times. She watched as he inched closer to her but she held a hand up before he got too close. “I think you’re forgetting something,” she said, lowering her eyes to his last remaining item of clothing.
Doing as she requested, he stripped them off and then made his way up to where she was, letting his body cover hers. Her arms embraced him as their lips met once again and their hands explored every available inch of skin they could reach. He settled himself into the cradle of her body when her legs parted and wrapped around his hips. When he felt her hand slip between them to stroke his erection, he released a long drawn out moan and found himself thrusting further into her small delicate hand.
“That feels…”
“Good?” she panted against his lips, her eyes twinkling with mischief.
“Try amazing.” His lips latched onto the smooth column of her neck and he sucked furiously, determined to leave his mark. Her own moans and hitched breathing spurred him on.
When he slipped out of her hand when he began moving down her body, she stroked her hands over his back but her nails dug into his skin when she felt him sliding two fingers along her lower lips before circling her entrance. Her panting became heavier, especially when his thumb drew lazy circles around her clit while his mouth began suckling on one of her nipples. The sensations were driving her crazy and she found herself undulating her hips against his hand as she urged him on.
“Pl-please…” she begged as she felt the faint stirrings of her first orgasm.
Nathan gave her neglected nipple of her other breast a few languorous licks before kissing his way down her body until he reached his destination. He licked all around the sensitive area of her womanhood before sucking her clit between his lips and then grazing his teeth against it. Repeating the action a few times and then slowly sliding two of his fingers deep inside her had her hips shooting up off the bed as she began rocking against him.
“Oh…oh god…Nathan…please…please…” she chanted as the feelings within her became too much and a few seconds later she opened her mouth wide in a silent scream as her orgasm finally hit.
He continued his ministrations and wrung two more orgasms from her with his mouth and fingers before slowly sliding up her sweat-slicked body and kissing her fiercely, sharing her taste with her.
Haley kissed him ferociously, sucking on his tongue while her hands wandered up and down his sweaty skin. After breaking the kiss to breathe in some much needed air, she slowly began licking and sucking on the saltiness flavour of his neck, savouring the taste and filing it away in her memory.
“That was…”
“Amazing?” he suggested.
“Try incredible,” she said with a broad smile etched on her face. “Thank you.”
He shook his head. “You don’t have to thank me. Believe me, it was my pleasure.”
She giggled at his words before pushing herself up slightly and kissing his mouth again. In all of her life, she had never had anyone kiss her the way he did and she loved it. There was a sweetness to the fieriness that she could see herself craving if she wasn’t careful.
“Do you…uh…have something?” she asked, blushing as soon as the words had left her mouth. God, anyone would think she was a sixteen-year-old virgin the way she was carrying on, she mentally berated herself.
“Uh…yeah.” Shifting his position on the bed, he leaned over and opened the drawer of his nightstand, removing a foil disc from inside it. He was about to ask her again if she was sure but he thought better of it. If she had changed her mind, he knew she would tell him.
Ripping the package open, he quickly sheathed himself in the latex before once again moving on top of her. Kissing her mouth softly, he kept his gaze fixed on hers as he gently pushed himself inside of her, his weight resting on his forearms.
Her lips formed an ‘o’ as she felt the full length of him deep inside of her and she couldn’t help releasing a quiet sigh at the exquisite feeling. She had only been with two guys before Nathan but he had them beat hands down, particularly when it came down to size.
He held himself still as he let her get used to the sensation of them being joined but he soon began to move when he felt her rocking her hips against his, her vaginal muscles clenching and releasing around him. The pace started out relatively gentle but it soon turned fast and frantic. Burying his face into her neck, he breathed in her natural scent before he shifted his position slightly so that his pubic bone ground against her clit on each downstroke, causing her to tighten her thighs around him.
Haley met his thrusts stroke for stroke while her hands gripped his shoulders. When her orgasm hit this time, her toes curled and her scream wasn’t a silent one. In an attempt to muffle the noise, Nathan quickly covered her mouth with his and kissed her passionately, his tongue mimicking what his lower body was doing to her. The feel of her feminine muscles fluttering around his shaft as she rode out her climax was his undoing and he came deep inside her, her name leaving his lips in a chant.
They stayed as they were for as long as possible until, as gently as he could, he withdrew from her and grabbing some tissues off the nightstand, he disposed of the condom. He managed to pull the sheet out from underneath them before slipping back into bed and covering them both up with it. Pulling her sleepy form into his arms, he held her tightly to him and dropped a kiss onto the top of her head. His fingers idly stroked her hair as his thoughts were dominated with what they had just done. Long moments later, her voice broke into the silence.
“Nathan?”
“Yeah?”
“Thank you.”
Before he could ask her what she was thanking him for, she was fast asleep and it wasn’t long before he too followed.
Chapter Three
Haley’s eyes flittered open but they quickly closed again when the bright sunshine coming in through the window hit them. She tentatively opened them again, letting them adjust to the light before opening them fully. Rubbing a hand over her face, she suddenly seemed to notice that she wasn’t in her own bedroom and letting her gaze fall slightly, she saw a hand resting just underneath her breasts which were just barely covered by a thin white sheet. Lifting it up slightly, she saw that she was completely naked beneath it, something she had already guessed to be the case.
Her mind was foggy with sleep and…something else but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. In that moment all she felt was a rising sense of panic and as carefully as she could, she shifted and turned over so she could see who she was sharing a bed with. A quiet gasp left her throat when she saw her best friend lying next to her and suddenly visions of exactly what had taken place the night before played through her mind like a movie. She felt her entire body heat up with a mixture of arousal and embarrassment as she remembered the intense kisses and scorching passion of their lovemaking.
When he moved a moment later, his arm searching for her in his sleep, she held her breath, not wanting to wake him up. For the moment she was content to watch him sleep, savouring the intimate details of what had taken place knowing that all too soon they would have to deal with the reality of the situation.
As the minutes ticked by, Haley didn’t know what to do. A part of her strongly considered getting up and escaping to the sanctuary of her own room but deep down she knew that would probably make things worse. Whatever happened, they needed to discuss what they had done and take it from there. The one thing she knew for a fact was that she wasn’t prepared to lose him. He meant too much to her and she didn’t know what she would do without him in her life.
Taking advantage of his sleeping state, she drank him in; her eyes roaming all over his beautiful, handsome face, and strong muscled arms. She felt herself blush as she recalled the way her hands had gripped his biceps in the throes of passion, how hot his skin had felt sliding against hers as he moved above her…inside her.
Despite not wanting to wake him up, she wanted to touch him one last time and as gently and softly as she could, she trailed her fingers up his arm, letting them slide up his shoulder before lightly running them through his mussed hair.
“Hi.”
Hearing his husky voice had her quickly moving her hand away from him and she felt embarrassed at having been caught. “Uh…hi,” she whispered, her eyes lowering and focusing on the sheet.
“How long have you been awake?” Nathan asked as he propped himself up on his elbow and rested his head in his hand.
“Not long.”
They both tried to think of something to say to break the awkward silence that seemed to be consuming them but nothing seemed to come to mind for either of them.
“Do you have any…um…plans today?” Haley asked him a few minutes later, letting her eyes flicker to his before once again looking away.
Shaking his head, he replied, “No. There’s no practice today so I thought I’d just hang around the apartment and relax. Maybe call Luke and see how things are back home. How ‘bout you?”
“No, no plans. I need to do laundry,” she said and she blushed when she remembered telling him that last night while being stark naked.
Nathan obviously remembered it too because his lips curled up into a smirk and his eyes twinkled mischievously. “Yeah…I know.”
Again they lapsed into silence, each of them knowing they needed to discuss what they had done last night but neither knowing how to start that conversation.
“I guess we need to tal--”
“We’d better get up,” Haley interrupted, clutching the sheet tightly to her chest and slowly edging away from him. The last thing she wanted to hear was him telling her it had been a drunken mistaken. Before she could get too far though, he had grabbed her wrist and still her movements.
“Hales, we need to talk. What happened last night…we just can’t ignore it and--”
This time Nathan was interrupted by the phone ringing and he inwardly groaned. He debated whether or not to ignore it but he knew she wouldn’t so reluctantly, he turned and picked up the phone from his nightstand, pressing the talk button.
“Hello…oh hey…yeah, yeah she’s here.” Covering the receiver with the palm of his hand, he held it out to Haley. “It’s Brooke.”
Making sure the sheet was secure, she gave him a crooked smile before taking the phone from him, trying to ignore the electrical charge she felt as their fingers brushed. “H-Hey Brookie, what’s up? … Um…sure…that sounds good … What time? … Okay, I’ll see you then. Bye.” Handing the phone back to him, she then made to get up out of bed when his voice stopped her.
“What’s going on?”
Keeping her back to him, she replied, “Brooke’s asked me to go shopping with her and--”
“And you said yes. Yeah, I heard. Avoiding me isn’t going to help, Haley, you know that.”
“I-I’m not avoiding you,” she said weakly knowing it was exactly what she was doing, but wanting to keep the pretence up, she added, “If I’d wanted to avoid you I could have snuck out of here while you were still asleep. Look, I’ll only be gone a few hours and then we can talk.”
“Right. I’ll remind you of that when you call me later to tell me you’re spending the night at her place.” Throwing the sheet back, he swung his legs over the side of the bed and leaned forward to grab his boxers off the floor. Pulling them on, he got up and walked towards the door. He was just about to go through it when he turned and faced her. “And just so you know, I wasn’t asleep,” he told her before leaving and the last thing she heard was the sound of the bathroom door slamming shut, causing her to wince.
With the sheet wrapped around her, she bent down and retrieved her discarded clothing and then quickly made her way back to her own room where she quickly pulled them on. Going into the kitchen, she opened up one of the cabinets and removed a bottle of aspirin. Taking out two tablets, she put the bottle back before going over to fridge and grabbing a bottle of water so she could wash down the pills and hopefully the pounding in her head would soon cease.
The last thing she felt like doing was traipsing around the shops with her sister but right now she needed to think and she couldn’t do that while being in the same place as Nathan. She needed some space to get her head together. The only problem was that her sister was very perceptive and was bound to pick up on her mood and she didn’t want to discuss things with her when she hadn’t had a chance to digest what had happened herself.
Hearing the shower come on, Haley knew she had a while before she’d be getting in there so she decided to make a start on her laundry and so going back into her room, she grabbed her hamper and carried it out to the utility room where she began sorting out her clothes. Deciding to do her coloureds first, she found that there was still plenty of room in the washing machine so she quickly headed to Nathan’s room and grabbed the coloured items from his own hamper and stuck them in with her stuff. Closing the machine door, she added the detergent and fabric softener before pressing the necessary buttons and switching it on.
While she continued to wait for the bathroom to become free, she tidied up the living room, disposing of the empty wine and vodka bottles and washing up the shot glasses. As she did so, she couldn’t help wondering how much of what had taken place last night was due to the alcohol and how much was due to them wanting to experience being together. She would be lying if she said she hadn’t noticed the occasions where their gazes had lingered on each other for a split-second longer than they should have done or that she hadn’t felt sparks of electricity shooting up her body when their bodies had brushed together, no matter how innocent the contact.
Satisfied that the kitchen and living room were tidy, she made her way towards her bedroom just as the bathroom door opened and she bumped into him as he was exiting the steam-filled room.
“S-Sorry,” she muttered, not failing to notice how gorgeous he looked with just a towel wrapped around his waist and droplets of water glistening on his chest.
“It’s okay. The bathroom’s all yours,” he told her as he made to walk away. He stopped in his tracks when he felt her small fingers wrap around his wrist.
“Nathan, I--”
“It’s okay, Haley. You should get ready.”
“I promise I’ll only be gone a few hours and as soon as I get back we can talk about what happened.”
“There’s no rush so don’t worry.” He tried to keep his tone light but in truth, it was killing him. All he wanted to do was crush her to him and kiss her senseless, making sure she knew just how he felt about her…how he had always felt about her.
Haley nodded. “Um…is there anything you want me to pick up for you while I’m out?”
Turning to look at her, he saw the worry etched on her face and he couldn’t help feeling bad. Unconsciously, he reached out a hand and cupped her cheek with it. “No, but thanks for asking. I, uh, forgot to ask before but how’s your head?”
She smiled and couldn’t help leaning in to his touch. “Pounding but I’ve taken a couple of aspirin so hopefully they’ll kick in soon. How’s yours?”
“About the same. I’ll take a couple after I’ve gotten dressed. Speaking of, you’d better get ready. You know how much Brooke hates being kept waiting,” he said teasingly as he let his hand fall away.
“Uh huh. If she gets here before I’m done, will you be nice?”
“I’m always nice.”
“Oookay. I’ll see you in a few. Oh, before I forget, I’ve put a load of laundry on and since I didn’t have that many coloureds, I put some of yours in. Hope that’s okay?”
He nodded. “Of course, I’m not about to bitch at the fact that someone else is doing my laundry.”
“Hmm, I thought not. Anyway, when they’re done, would you mind sticking them in the dryer and then putting in the whites? Everything’s in the utility room.”
“Sure, no problem.”
“Thanks Nathan.” Giving him one last smile, she quickly stepped into the bathroom and closed the door behind her, breathing a huge sigh of relief that the awkwardness had lessened if only slightly. It was definitely better than nothing, she thought to herself as she stripped off her clothing and stepped into the shower cubicle.
* * * * *
“What is with you?” Brooke Jagielski asked her sister as they waited for their coffees and cakes. They had been shopping for the past couple of hours when she had decided she needed some fortification before they continued. “You’ve hardly said a word all morning. Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, why wouldn’t it be? I guess I’m just tired.”
“Didn’t get much sleep, huh?” Seeing the blush that crept onto her face, she knew that something was definitely up.
“Something like that,” Haley whispered, sighing gratefully when their waiter arrived at their table. After thanking him, she picked up her fork and dug into the rich chocolate indulgence cake she had ordered, savouring each delicious mouthful.
“Woah, slow down,” Brooke teased. “You’ll give yourself indigestion. Didn’t you have any breakfast this morning?”
Haley shook her head. “No, I didn’t have time.”
“Hmm, Pretty Boy hogging the bathroom as usual, huh?”
She couldn’t help laughing. Her sister and best friend had never really gotten on well together and only tolerated each other for her sake which she was grateful for. However, she didn’t feel up to talking about Nathan, not when things had suddenly twisted out of control.
After swallowing a bite of her apple cinnamon cake, Brooke asked, “So what did you get up to last night?”
The question threw Haley and she choked on a crumb which had gone down the wrong way. After coughing and clearing her throat, she picked up her coffee cup and quickly took a sip of the hot liquid. “Sorry,” she squeaked a moment later when her breathing was back under control.
“Seriously Hales, what is with you? You’re definitely not acting like your usual self.”
“I-I told you, I’m just tired. This week has been long and exhausting and…”
“Uh huh. Why don’t I believe you?”
“It’s not my fault if you don’t believe me,” Haley told her, forcing herself to keep her big sister’s gaze.
“You know you can tell me anything and whatever you say stays between us, right?”
Haley felt the sting of tears prickling behind her eyelids and she squeezed them shut in an attempt to stave them off. Nodding at the brunette’s question, she finally opened her eyes and looked at her. “I-I think I’ve done something really stupid, Brookie. In fact, I know I have.”
Pushing her uneaten cake to one side, Brooke leaned forward and took her sibling’s hand in hers and gave it a reassuring squeeze. “I’m sure whatever it is isn’t as bad as you think and--”
“I slept with Nathan,” she blurted out in a whisper and she saw the other woman’s mouth drop open.
“Y-You mean slept as in just shared a bed or slept as in…did the nasty?”
Haley scrunched her face up at her sister’s choice of words. “Believe me, it wasn’t nasty,” she couldn’t help saying before clamping a hand over her mouth.
“Oh my god! I can’t believe you had sex with him! Finally!”
She cringed at the loud tone of voice Brooke was using and she gave her a kick under the table as her eyes scanned the other tables to see if anyone was taking notice of their conversation. “Hey, keep your voice down.”
“Oops, sorry. So what happened? I mean--”
“I’m not giving you details so don’t even go there. All I will say though is that a helluva lot of alcohol was involved.”
“The little bastard got you drunk? I’ll kick his ass when I get my hands on him.”
“No!” She bit her lip at her own loudness and lowering her voice, she continued, “He didn’t get me drunk. We were having dinner together at home and we had some wine and before I knew it we’d opened another bottle before moving on to the vodka.”
“So you just woke up together naked this morning and realised what you must have done?”
Shaking her head, she replied, “Uh…no. I was aware of everything that was happening last night. I-It was almost like the alcohol heightened my senses or something.” Suddenly, she remembered what her sister had said a moment ago and tilting her head to the side, she regarded her closely. “Hey, what did you mean when you said ‘finally’?”
“Um…nothing.”
“Don’t give me that. You meant something and I want to know what it is.”
Sighing loudly, the brunette said, “I guess I had a feeling something like this was always going to happen. It’s obvious how you feel about him, Hales. How you’ve always felt about him. I remember how you never stopped talking about him after you two met properly. And I’ve seen the way he looks at you when he thinks no one is looking.” Seeing the incredulous look in her sister’s eyes, she quickly added, “Okay, from what I can tell, he’s always had an eye for the ladies but he looks at you differently.”
“Yeah, like I’m his best friend…”
“No, more like he wants to pick you up and carry you away so he has you all to himself.”
“Uh huh. He looks at all women like that.”
“No Sweetie, he doesn’t. He gives them the eye, gives them his cocky little smirk and uses his tried and no doubt tested pick up lines on them but he looks at you in a completely different way. It’s almost like he’s petrified he’s going to lose you.”
“Don’t take this the wrong way but you don’t know what you’re talking about. You’ve seen the women he’s dated and they’ve all been gorgeous; tall and leggy with big boobs and--”
“And what are you, chopped liver? You’re beautiful and he’s well aware of that fact.”
“Whatever you say,” she replied before taking another sip of her coffee.
“Okay, remember that guy I set you up with a few months back? Uh…Mike something or other?” Receiving a nod from her, she continued. “I came over to help you get ready for your date with him and Nathan happened to be home. You should have seen his face when you came out of your room in that white strapless dress with your hair all done up. I thought he was going to have a heart attack. And oh, the look on his face when Mike placed his hand on the small of your back as he led you outside the apartment. I thought he was going to run after you and drag you back inside.”
“He didn’t look at me any different than he always does,” she argued.
“I’m telling you Sis, he’s head over heels for you and you obviously feel the same, especially now that you two have…” She didn’t finish the sentence, instead choosing to wiggle her eyebrows suggestively which helped raise a smile. “You are in love with him, aren’t you?”
Haley’s eyes welled with tears as she nodded her answer. “Yes,” she whispered. “I think on some level I always have been.”
“Sweetie, don’t cry. This is good, especially for me as Jake now owes me fifty bucks,” she teased.
“You bet on me being in love with Nathan?”
“Uh…yeah,” Brooke replied sheepishly. “But forget about that. The main thing is that you have to tell him…it’s about time you two sat down and had a serious talk. The longer you leave it, the harder things will be and that’s when it could badly affect your friendship.”
She nodded, knowing that her big sister spoke the truth. “I-I know but I’m so scared. What if he tells me it was a drunken mistake?”
The other woman shook her head. “Believe me he won’t. But if he does, I’ll go over there and kick his ass into next year.”
The two women laughed and reaching into her purse, Haley grabbed a tissue and dabbed at her eyes. “Thanks Brooke, I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“I know the feeling,” the brunette told her honestly. “Now, let’s finish up here and hit the shops again. I think we need to cheer you up a bit more and I know just the place.”
Seeing the sparkle in her eyes, Haley groaned. She shuddered to think about what her sister had in store for her.
~*~
Even though a basketball game was playing on ESPN, Nathan couldn’t concentrate on it. His mind was too preoccupied with thinking about Haley and what they had done last night. He couldn’t believe that his biggest wish and fantasy had finally come true and it had been even more amazing that he could have ever dreamed. Her body was incredible with curves in all the right places and then some. And god, her skin…it was so soft and silky and she smelt so damn good.
Even now, he could feel his body’s reaction to her and he groaned. Picking up his glass of orange juice, he took a long drink of it but it did little to cool down the intense heat he was feeling. After placing his glass back on the table, he checked his watch again and saw that only five minutes had passed since he’d last looked.
She’d been gone all day and he kept waiting for the phone call that he knew was coming from her, telling him that she was indeed spending the night at her sister and brother-in-law’s place. Regardless of what she had told him, he knew she was avoiding the situation and a part of him couldn’t blame her. But he knew that avoiding what had happened wasn’t the answer and they needed to have a serious talk. He just hoped that whatever happened, their friendship could remain unaffected. Yeah right, he thought to himself bitterly. How could their friendship not be affected by the fact that they’d had sex. Really amazing, intense, mind-blowing sex.
Quickly picking up his glass, he held it up to his lips and drained it in one go. What he really wanted was to grab a cold beer out of the fridge but after last night, he needed to keep a clear head for when she came home. If she came home, he quickly amended.
He suddenly heard the key turning in the front door and he took a couple of long, deep breaths in the hope of calming himself down. Shifting on the couch, he tried to look as relaxed as possible for when she came into the living room which she did a moment later.
“Hey,” Haley said as she walked over to one of the oversized armchairs and flopped down into it.
“Hey,” he responded and if he had been planning on saying something else, it died in his throat as he took in her appearance. That was definitely not how she’d looked before she’d gone out for the day.
She bit her bottom lip and forced herself to keep her eyes on him as she watched him look her up and down which sent shivers of delight running through her. “Are you okay?” she asked a moment later when he hadn’t said anything.
Nathan couldn’t stop staring and somewhere in the distance he thought he heard her say something so he replied with, “Huh?”
“I asked if you were okay?”
“Y-Yeah…I’m fine.” His eyes seemed to be glued to her cleavage which was being nicely displayed thanks to the V-neck cut of her midnight blue, silk sundress. A certain part of his anatomy was as hard as a rock but he felt himself harden further when his eyes drifted lower and he was treated to a glimpse of her slim thighs before she smoothed the silk down over them.
“Nathan?”
Forcing his eyes back up her body, he met hers and he again saw the concern in them. “Sorry,” he muttered before asking, “Are you going somewhere?”
Haley shook her head. “No.” Giving him a shy smile, she continued. “Brooke insisted I buy this dress amongst a few other things and…” she trailed off.
“And?”
“And I thought I’d wear it home,” she said shyly waiting for his reaction.
“I’m glad,” he told her with a genuine smile. “You look amazing, Hales.”
“Really?”
“Really.
“It’s not a little too--”
“It’s not too of anything,” he quickly interrupted.
Coughing to clear her throat, she said, “So I guess we should…um…talk.”
“You expect me to talk while you’re looking like that,” he teased as he looked her up and down again.
She laughed nervously. “Do you want to go first or should I?”
“I will.” Holding out his hand to her, Nathan waited for her to take it which she did a long moment later, a long moment which had him wondering if she would take it at all. He couldn’t help breathing in a quiet sigh of relief when she did. Shifting over on the couch, he pulled her down beside him and he turned to face her, keeping her hand in his the whole time.
“First of all, I need you to know that last night wasn’t a mistake…at least not for me. I know we’d had a lot to drink but I wasn’t drunk…well, not that drunk that I didn’t know what I was doing or how I was feeling. If I took advant--”
“You didn’t!” she quickly interrupted. “I knew exactly what was happening too and I…”
“You what?” he asked when she didn’t finish.
“I didn’t want to stop…I wanted to be with you and I…I didn’t care about the circumstances and the fact that it could harm our friendship,” she admitted, keeping her eyes trained on her lap.
Placing his fingers under her chin, he directed her to look into his face and when she slowly tilted her face up, she saw he was smiling at her. “I didn’t want to stop either, Hales. I-I’ve wanted to be with you for so long,” he confessed in a low whisper.
“How long?” she couldn’t help asking.
Taking a deep breath, he said the words he hadn’t told anyone except for his brother. “Since we first met.”
“We were eighteen, Nathan.”
He nodded. “Yeah, I know. I’d seen you around campus with a couple of the girls you hung out with and you definitely caught my eye. I’d never seen anyone before that I’d considered beautiful but…”
“Right,” she scoffed.
“I’m serious. All the other girls I noticed I tended to peg them as hot or sexy but…”
“Gee thanks.”
“Will you let me finish,” he said taking her other hand in his and giving both of them a gentle shake. “You’ve always been hot and sexy to me, Hales, but you’re also beautiful but it wasn’t until we were paired up for that assignment that I found you were beautiful inside and out.” He felt his face growing warm as he confessed that to her.
Haley’s eyes met his and her mouth dropped open in astonishment. “Oh my god,” she squeaked out when she realised he was telling the absolute truth. “I-I didn’t know.”
“I know and that’s the way I wanted it. The more I got to know you, the more I liked you and I had this crazy idea that if I went after you the way I did those other girls, that that’d be it and I’d have ruined it. I wanted you in my life and if the only way that could happen was if we were just friends, then I was going to take it.”
“Do you want to know a secret?” she asked him a few minutes later when her mind had taken in everything he had just told her.
“Only if you want to tell me.”
“I’ve wanted you for almost as long, Nathan. I can’t tell you how jealous I was of all those girls you hooked up with and--”
“They didn’t mean anything, Hales. I mean it.”
“What about Charlotte?”
“I liked her but I…I wasn’t in love with her. I meant that when I said it last night. Sure, I liked her, she was easy to be with…well, at first anyway before she started busting my chops and dropping hints about commitment.”
“You were with her for months though?”
“I know but I, uh…I was--”
“Was what?” she prompted, curious to hear his answer.
“I was just making do until I could pluck up the courage to tell you how I felt. All those times that Brooke or one of your other friends would arrange dates for you…I was so scared that one of them would sweep you off your feet and I’d lose you.”
Reaching out a hand, she cupped his cheek in her palm and not being able to resist a moment longer, she brought her lips to his and kissed him softly. “You could never lose me, Nathan. Never. Why do you think my friends were always the ones to find me dates, huh?”
He shook his head. “I don’t know.”
“Because I wasn’t looking for anyone but they obviously felt I needed a guy to be happy. They didn’t know that I’d already found my guy…even if he didn’t feel the same.”
“But I do, Hales. I really do.”
She smiled at him. “I know that now but I didn’t then. All I knew was that several nights a week you either didn’t come home or you’d creep back in during the early hours.”
“I’m sorry. But did you ever wonder why I never brought anyone home to stay over? This was our place and I-I didn’t want--”
“Shh,” she whispered before covering his mouth once again.
The kiss was even more passionate than those they had shared last night as the words they had exchanged made a world of difference. No more doubts lingered in either of their minds and they were able to let go fully, concentrating solely on the feel and taste of each other.
“As amazing as you look in this dress, it’ll look even better on the floor,” he told her breathlessly before nibbling on her jaw-line.
She giggled and said, “That’s so cheesy. I can’t believe those lines worked.”
“Well it’s a good job I won’t be needing those lines anymore, isn’t it?”
“Definitely,” she told him feeling her insides melt at what he obviously meant by that. Turning her head, she captured his smirking lips again.
They made short work of removing each other’s clothes and they were completely naked when he carried her into her bedroom and dropped her onto her bed, causing her to bounce. “Hey!” Looking around her, she realised where she was and she cocked her head to one side and asked, “How come we’re in here and not in your room again?”
“I figured we could christen this room too,” he said, wiggling his eyebrows and causing her to laugh. Before crawling onto the bed to be with her, he asked, “Do you have--”
“Uh huh,” she interrupted before adding, “In the drawer of my nightstand.” Seeing the frown on his face, she couldn’t help smiling knowing why it was there. “I bought them today when I was out with Brooke. I know I was jumping the gun but I, uh, wanted to be prepared…just in case.”
Nathan grinned. “Good thinking. So, I’m guessing Brooke knows about last night?”
“Yeah…she picked up on my strange mood and refused to stop the twenty questions so I told her and--”
“And what? She’s going to kick my ass, isn’t she?”
“No, although she did offer. Apparently, she already knew how we felt about each other and just said ‘finally’ when I told her. Oh, and that she’s won fifty dollars in a bet she and Jake had on us.”
He laughed. “Nice.”
“I know. Anyway, after she knew about what we’d done, she insisted we go to Victoria’s Secret which we did and let’s just say I picked up a few things in there.”
“What if we hadn’t talked like we just did and admitted how we felt? What would you have done with the lingerie?”
“Hmm, I guess I could have worn it on one of my next dates,” she teased.
As soon as the words had passed her lips, he practically jumped on her and sealed his mouth over hers, kissing her breathless. “No more dates with other people,” he said, panting harshly long moments later when the need to breathe had become an issue and he’d broken the kiss.
“No more dates…for either of us,” she said wrapping her arms around his shoulders and bringing his body down to press into hers, savouring the feel of their naked skin touching.
“Definitely.”
They both knew they had more to talk about and to work out exactly where things would go from here but they knew whatever happened, they would do it together.
The End
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