Chapter One
Turning over for what felt like the hundredth time in the space of a couple of hours, Haley James finally threw back the covers and got out of bed. Pulling on her robe and pushing her feet into her fluffy slippers, she grabbed something off of her vanity unit before opening her bedroom door as quietly as she could and creeping downstairs. Making sure to avoid the third step from the bottom which always creaked, she made her way out of the house and sat down on the loveseat situated on the front porch.
Hitting number one on her cell phone’s speed-dial, she waited patiently for him to pick up on the other end. She smiled as soon as she heard the husky sleepy tone of his voice.
“Hey, baby.”
“Hey, honey, did I wake you?”
“Nah,” he lied unconvincingly and she laughed in response.
“So, what are you doing awake at…” she paused to glance at her watch and continued, “…two thirty-five?”
“Okay, you got me. I was asleep but I was dreaming of you. Want to know what it was about?”
“Uh huh,” she whispered, smiling, “but it’s probably better that you don’t tell me because otherwise I’ll be coming over there which isn’t a good idea seeing as it’s bad luck for us to see each other before the wedding.”
“C’mon, you don’t believe in that—”
“You’d better not finish that sentence, buddy.”
Nathan Scott laughed on the other end of the phone. God, he missed her. This was the first time in almost eighteen months that they had slept apart and he was missing snuggling up to her warm little body. “So, why are you up at this ungodly hour?”
“I couldn’t sleep,” she admitted. “I miss sleeping with you.”
“I miss you, too, baby. Just think though, this’ll be the last time we’ll have to sleep apart.”
“I know and I can’t wait to be married to you.”
“Me either,” he said and in an even huskier tone, he added, “And I can’t wait for our honeymoon.”
Haley giggled. “Trust you to be thinking of that,” she teased.
“Oh, like you’re not?”
“Okay, I’m busted. That’s all I’ve been able to think about since your dad sprung the surprise on us.”
A couple of months ago, Dan Scott had surprised them by saying he was paying for their honeymoon and that it was his and Deb's wedding gift to them. Instead of arranging a stay in a hotel, he had rented a beach house in Hawaii for them which would enable them to have the privacy he was sure the young newlyweds would appreciate all the more.
“Me too. So, where are you calling me from? I would’ve thought they’d have you under lock and key to protect you from me.”
“Brooke and Peyton did want to share my room to make sure you wouldn’t be making any surprise appearances through my window but thankfully my mom stepped in and stopped them.”
“Ah, now there’s another reason for me to love Lydia more than I already do,” he joked.
“How about you? Has Luke tried anything to stop you coming over here?”
“No, but that’s only because he knows he wouldn’t be able to stop me. If it wasn’t for you wanting to be all traditional, you can bet your sweet little ass I’d already be there with you... kissing you, touch—”
“Nathan…”
“I’m joking, well sort of. I just miss you being in bed with me. Speaking of bed, what are you wearing?”
“Well, since I’m sitting outside on the porch, I’m wearing my robe.”
“I’m more interested in knowing what you’ve got on underneath it.”
“Really?”
“Uh huh… so, you wanna share?”
Haley feigned a yawn. “You know what, I’m tired and it’s late and tomorrow is a huge day for us so…”
“No way, Hales. If you don’t tell me, I’m driving over there right now.”
She laughed and could hear the poutiness in his voice. “I’m teasing, honey. I’m wearing the Knicks sweatshirt you wore last night,” she told him before adding, “Well, wore until I stripped it off you, that is.”
Nathan’s mouth went dry as he remembered the feel of her soft, gentle hands pulling the shirt off him before they smoothed and caressed all over his skin. Her lips had then followed the path of her hands; kissing his chest and stomach while her fingers made short work of unbuckling his belt and then unzipping his pants. Haley had initially come up with a plan for them not to have sex until their wedding night but after just a week she'd been antsy as hell - the stress of organising a wedding adding to her frustrations - and she'd practically jumped him as soon as he'd arrived home from work one evening.
“You still there, honey.”
“You are so going to pay for that tomorrow,” he whispered huskily into the mouthpiece of his phone.
“Whatever do you mean?”
“You’ll see.”
“I-I wish I was there with you,” she confessed as she too remembered everything they had done the previous night.
“I can be there in less than ten minutes.”
She debated it for a moment before sighing and finally saying, “We can’t. As much as I want to be with you right now, I want us to follow tradition and not jinx ourselves before we’ve even started married life.”
“We won’t be jinxing anything. We’ve survived a long-distance relationship so I think seeing each other the night before our wedding isn’t going to be—”
“Please don’t finish that sentence,” Haley interrupted. “I just want everything to be perfect tomorrow and then forever after that.”
On the other end of the line, Nathan couldn’t help smiling at his fiancée’s old fashioned values though he knew better than to say anything. “Okay, I won’t say another word on the subject.”
“I’m sorry.”
“You’ve got nothing to be sorry about. It’s probably best not to tempt fate or any of those other things and it’s just one night. You do know you won’t be able to get rid of me once those rings have been exchanged, right?”
“Good and you won’t be able to get rid of me either.”
“Good.”
Haley smiled at the conviction in Nathan’s tone as he repeated what she had just said. Closing her eyes, she conjured up a picture of him and lowering her face slightly, she breathed in his scent from the sweatshirt of his she was wearing.
“It’s getting late so you’d better get back to bed. Tomorrow’s going to be pretty crazy, especially given what your two best friends are like.”
“I know, I’m feeling tired already,” she teased. “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow afternoon then.”
“Yeah, you will. I can’t wait to see you in your dress.”
“And I can’t wait to see you in your tux.”
“You know what I can’t wait for even more?” His husky voice sent tingles shooting up and down her spine.
“What?”
“Taking the dress off you.”
She giggled. “You’re so bad.”
“I know,” he said chuckling. “I’ll see you tomorrow then, baby. Sweet dreams.”
“You too, honey. And make sure Luke doesn’t forget the rings.”
“I won’t. Just be grateful Tim isn’t my best man.”
“Oh, believe me, I am. As much as I love him, I’d be even more of a nervous wreck if I knew you were trusting him with the rings,” she kidded. “I’m going to hang up now and try and creep back into the house without Brooke or Peyton busting me. I love you.”
“I love you, too. Good luck not getting busted.”
“Thanks. See you tomorrow,” she whispered, wishing she didn't have to hang up.
“Bye, baby.”
Clicking off their respective phones, Nathan placed his on his nightstand before turning over and literally falling straight back to sleep.
Haley, meanwhile, got up from her seat and quietly opened the front door and slipped inside. She had managed to reach the top of the stairs without any problem and she was just about to open her bedroom door when a noise behind her had her freezing in her tracks.
“How is he?”
She sighed with relief as she turned and faced her mother. Giving her a smile, she said, “Oh, thank God it’s you, Mom.”
Lydia James chuckled knowingly. “Don’t worry, Haley-bop, I don’t think they know you managed to escape their clutches. So, how's Nathan?”
“He’s fine,” she said, a big smile forming on her face. “I woke him up.”
“I doubt he minds too much,” she said knowing just how much her future son-in-law loved her daughter. “Now, off to bed with you. It’s an early start tomorrow and you don’t want puffy, tired eyes.”
Haley nodded and taking a step forward, she wrapped her arms around her mother and hugged her. “I love you, Mom.”
The older woman’s eyes watered slightly as she held her youngest daughter in her arms. “I love you, too, sweetheart.” Gently releasing her, she held her at arms length as she looked into her large brown eyes. “You’ve picked a good man and I know you two will be just as happy as I’ve been with your father.”
“You saying that means so much to me.” Leaning in, she kissed her mother’s cheek and gave her a watery smile as her own tears threatened to fall.
“I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t mean it,” she told her truthfully. Sniffling slightly, she shook her head and laughed softly. “C’mon, let’s get back to bed before we burst into tears and not only will our eyes be tired, they’ll be red. So not an attractive look and no doubt Brooke will be giving us both hell.”
Haley joined in with her mother’s laughter, clamping a hand over her mouth at the last minute so as not to wake her two friends in the guest bedroom they were sharing. With one last hug, the two women said their goodnights before going into their respective bedrooms and getting back into bed.
Snuggling down under the covers, Haley took one last look at her wedding dress which was hanging on the back of the closet door in it’s clear, protective covering and she smiled as she felt herself slowly drift off to sleep. She couldn’t wait to see Nathan’s face when he saw her walking down the aisle in it.