Where It All Began
Title: Where It All Began
Author: Diane
Pairing: Nathan/Haley
Category: AU
Rating: Teen Rated
Prompt(s): stuck inside my head; always find you; "when I first met you"
Requested by: Hana
Disclaimer: I don’t own a thing!
Spoilers/Warnings: None as it’s AU.
Summary: She was suddenly transported back to last year’s Christmas party... the party where they’d first met. There had been an immediate spark between them and they’d spent the whole evening together flirting shamelessly.
Author’s Notes: Kristen, thanks so much for all of your help with this. You’re an absolute star!
Hana, I really hope you like this and it’s the sort of thing you were after when you posted your prompts.
“So, we meet again.” Haley teasingly said as she stepped out onto the patio to join him, the chilly December air making her pull her wrap that little bit tighter around her shoulders.
Relief coursed through Nathan’s veins upon hearing her voice and he laughed at her opening line. It sounded like something a Bond villain would say. “It would appear so.” His eyes roamed all over her, taking in her petite, curvy form sheathed in a petrol blue gown which stood out like a beacon in comparison to the muted colours the other women in attendance at the party were wearing. Her honey-blonde hair was twisted up into some sort of elegant chignon with a few loose tendrils framing her face. It reminded him of the last time he’d seen her and he felt a jolt of desire run through him as he remembered releasing her hair from its confines and threading his fingers through her long curls as their mouths had practically devoured one another.
“Penny for your thoughts?” she teased, having a pretty good idea of exactly where his thoughts had disappeared to.
A smirk gracing his lips, he leaned into her and whispered huskily, “Believe me, they’re worth a lot more than a penny.”
“How much more?” she couldn’t resist asking, shivering at the feel of his hot breath puffing against her skin cool.
“Priceless,” he replied.
Haley sunk her teeth into her bottom lip to keep from moaning but she wasn’t able to prevent her eyes from falling shut. She was suddenly transported back to last year’s Christmas party… the party where they’d first met. There had been an immediate spark between them and they’d spent the whole evening together flirting shamelessly. One night stands had never been her thing but she’d thrown caution to the wind that night and let herself go with the flow.
The feeling of regret she thought she’d automatically experience the next morning in the cold light of day hadn’t surfaced and as she’d looked at her incredibly sexy bedfellow fast asleep on his front, the Egyptian cotton sheet pooled around his waist, she’d almost felt invigorated. She wasn’t exactly known for being reckless so, if anything, the events of the previous night had helped free her from her self-imposed shackles.
However, having said that, Haley hadn’t stuck around for him to wake up. She’d quickly gotten dressed and snuck out of the hotel room, making a fast getaway. While she wasn’t ashamed by what had happened, a part of her had still felt embarrassed by her actions and she’d felt her entire body heat up as, on the cab ride home, she’d vividly remembered every little detail of what they’d done to each other.
“Any chance I get to learn your name tonight?”
His voice brought her out of her reverie and Haley glanced up at him from under her lashes. It had been an unspoken thing that they wouldn’t exchange names or personal details and it had somehow managed to add an extra… zing to their passionate encounter. Knowing she was as curious to find out his name as he seemed to be to know hers, she nodded. “Haley.”
“I’m Nathan.”
Before she could say anything, his mouth was pressing firmly against hers and she felt her stomach flip-flop in response. His large hand slipped beneath the hem of her wrap, coming to rest on her lower back which was bare due to the low cut of her dress and her senses were overloaded with memories of the last time their skin had come into contact. When he drew back from her a few moments later, she released a quiet moan of disappointment and felt her face immediately flush.
“You’ve been stuck in my head all year,” Nathan told her, his gaze locked on hers.
Her eyes widened in surprise at hearing that. She thought she’d been alone in feeling that way after their night together. “Nathan—”
“I always hoped I’d find you but… seeing as I didn’t know your name and everyone I asked didn’t seem to know you, I was starting to lose hope.”
“I-I was invited to the party by a friend of a friend so that’s probably why the people you asked didn’t know me,” she said.
Nathan didn’t tell her that although those he’d asked hadn’t known her name, they’d all remembered her, mainly because she’d been the only one to capture his attention and keep him occupied at the party. Usually he cut out of his family’s annual Christmas bash as quickly as he could, but as soon as he’d spotted her he’d known he wasn’t going anywhere. “That’d explain it, then. How come you’re back here tonight though?” he couldn’t help but ask. His curiosity grew when he saw her skin turn a rosy red again and she looked away from him. “Haley?”
“I wanted to see you again.”
His lips quirked upwards into a smirk. Trailing his fingers up and down her back, he took a step closer to her so that his body was pressed tightly against hers. “You did, huh?”
“Yes,” she whispered. “I didn’t know if you’d be here or who to ask about you if you weren’t but… I had to at least try and find you.”
“Why?”
Taking a deep breath, she admitted, “Because every time I think about when I first met you, I can’t stop wondering if what I felt that night was really that strong or… or if my overactive imagination was playing tricks on me and making it seem more than it was.”
Lowering his head, he covered her lips with his own and kissed her softly. “Why didn’t you stick around the next morning?” Nathan had desperately wanted to know the answer to that question from the moment he’d woken up alone and, for the first time in his life, he’d suddenly realised how the women he’d done that very same thing to over the years must’ve felt.
“I’d never had a one-night-stand before and while I didn’t regret what had happened, I still felt embarrassed about it so I… I ran.”
“You had nothing to feel embarrassed about, Haley. I really wish you’d stuck around so I could’ve told you that that night had been the best of my life.”
“You don’t have to say that,” she mumbled shyly, her fingers playing with her wrap.
“I’m not. Believe me, I never say anything I don’t mean.”
Haley shook her head. “Maybe this whole thing feels more intense because we’ve built it up in our heads, wondering about what could’ve been since we didn’t even know each other’s names.”
Taking her hands in his, he gave them a gentle squeeze before interlacing their fingers. “I’ve had one night stands before and I’ve never ever felt this way about any of those women.”
Her stomach soured at hearing his words and she disentangled their hands. “Women?”
He realised what that must’ve sounded like and without thinking, he blurted out, “I haven’t been with anyone since you.”
Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open as his statement registered with her. “W-what?”
Running a hand through his hair, it was his turn to blush, something that rarely, if ever, happened. “I haven’t been with another woman since our night together last Christmas. I know you have no reason to believe me considering we don’t know each other but… I promise you it’s the truth.”
“I believe you,” she said quietly, hearing the conviction and sincerity in his voice and seeing it mirrored in his beautiful blue eyes.
Nathan breathed a sigh of relief and he smiled at her. Ducking his head, he nuzzled his nose against hers in an Eskimo kiss before taking her lips in an achingly tender kiss; a kiss that was a million miles away from the fiery, dizzying kisses they’d shared last Christmas but which was still every bit as intensely passionate. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in as close to his body as he could, smiling against her mouth when her own arms slid up his shoulders to twine around his neck, her fingers idly playing with the short hair at his nape.
“I don’t know about you, Haley, but I’m freezing my butt out here.”
Haley giggled. “Mm, well you’re doing a damn good job of warming me up.”
“Is that so?”
“Uh huh.”
“Well, we could stay out here for a while longer but I was going to suggest we ditch the party and go and grab some dinner,” he said, popping a kiss onto the corner of her mouth and adding, “‘cause I can’t wait to start getting to know you and learning everything about you.”
“I can’t wait either.” Slipping her hand into his, she smiled warmly at him as she lightly squeezed his fingers and let him lead her back into the party. She bit her lip to stop herself from laughing as he managed to maneuver them around all the guests, his eagerness at getting them out of there without any interruption or interference all the more endearing to her.
Her heart raced in her chest at the sexy smirk he threw her and she wondered how he’d feel about postponing their dinner and going straight for dessert.
After all, there was a lot to be said for being spontaneous.
Fin