Running to Stand Still

By jd-nomad

***A/N: Warning-sexual content, the kind of stuff you don't see on network television***

Chapter Thirteen: Stormy Waters

A cold breeze wafted in through the open window, bringing in the mixture of the brisk scents of the season and the wet muskiness accompanying the descending winter shower.

Peyton lay quietly beside her lover, listening to the sound of the rain and the quiet cadence of his breathing. Her hand rested in the place just above his heart, felt its gentle, steady beating, the rhythmic rise and fall of his chest. She couldn't help the euphoric, peaceful feeling that filled her, unable to dismiss the contentment and the serenity that came with the aftermath of their lovemaking. It was amazing to be with him like this, and something as simple as lying in bed with her lover, skin to skin, was a sweet and forbidden indulgence.

A wandering foot rubbed against her ankle, hooking around her calf as he shifted beside her. He slipped an arm around her waist to pull her closer. She obliged, fitting perfectly to the contours of his body as she spooned against him. She rested her head on his shoulder as he began to gently stroke her hair, his fingers running through the long, golden tresses. "It's still raining," he murmured softly, the matter-of-fact statement holding an inquiring lilt.

She caught the inflection to his voice, unable to hold back a small smile as she tilted her head to kiss his neck, flicking her tongue against his pulse. "The weather report said it's supposed to storm all night. If it gets too bad, we might have to stay the night."

He gazed up at her fondly through hooded eyes, mouth curving into a smirk. "That's just such a pity, isn't it?"

She laid her hand against his cheek, turning his face to draw his mouth to hers. He returned the kiss lingeringly with a thoroughness that stirred the heat inside her in a slow, steady flame. They parted, breathless, and she smiled as she leaned her head against his. A tiny smile blossomed in reply and he skimmed his hands up the smooth expanse of her back, lingering at her hips, gently cupping the soft swells of her ass, earning a gasp of surprise as he lifted her up to straddle his stomach.

She gazed down at him curiously, wondering at the new position, thought diverted when he reached up to cup her breasts in his hands, teasingly flicking his thumbs over the rosy nubs hardening under his touch. She moaned softly, grasping at his shoulders for some semblance of balance when he suddenly reared up into a sitting position, pulling her tightly to him.

His face level with her chest, his breath hot against sensitized skin, and she shivered. His mouth closed around one soft swell, suckling the nipple between his teeth tight and taut. She gasped his name, her hands sliding up his neck to tangle in his hair, holding him to her. She whimpered in loss when he disobeyed her wishes and drew back, then cried back out in pleasure as he descended once more, lavishing the same attention to the other breast.

Lucas dipped his fingers inside her, wet, hot and ready for him. One finger, two, and she moved against his hand, arching into the slide and friction. He sat up, settling her onto his lap, and with a simple snap of his hips, he was inside her.

The heat generated between them was scalding, and they burned together in a magnificent fire.

She found herself on her back, whimpering with protest as he left her body, though he was soon replaced by her fingers to bring her to the edge and beyond.

Peyton lay beneath him, breathing heavily, aware of a damp slickness at her side as he lay flaccid against her hip. He supported his weight with one hand as he levered above her, using the other to wipe away the evidence of his release with the neglected blanket.

She languidly stroked his back, biting her lip as her thoughts formed to a final conclusion. "Lucas, we need to talk."

Lucas looked down at her, softly smiling as he brushed back her hair. "A guy hears those words," he said with a laugh, "It can never be good."

She reached up, cupping his face. "It's about the baby."

He rolled onto his side, looking down at her curiously. "Yeah, I meant to ask you about that. They okay…him or her okay?"

She smiled, fondly touching her hand to his cheek. "Both, actually. Twins, fraternal- a girl and boy."

He grinned, brightening both face and eyes with pure, light-hearted joy. "Really? What are their names?"

"Elizabeth and Bryan. We call them Liz and Bry."

He nuzzled her neck, making a low humming sound as he pressed his lips to the soft skin. "Those are awesome names."

"I like them. But Luke…there's something I have to tell you."

He cupped her chin, tilting her face toward his. His expression was open, his eyes tender, as he looked at her with trust and adoration. "What is it? You know you can tell me anything."

Peyton swallowed hard, her heart in her throat as she realized that same trust and adoration was not destined to last long.

"Bry and Liz…they're yours, Luke. You're their father."

"No, no, no!!" He shot off the cot.

It couldn't be true. The moment she spoke those words, the moment he escaped her traitorous proximity, his heart and body froze. The world seemed to move in slow motion, ever ragged breath, every twitch of muscle. Even the thundering of his heart slowed to the point of nearly nonexistence.

His mind was sluggish, lethargic, struggling to form a single coherent thought through the shock-induced haze. Thought and feeling fought to banish the numbness, to penetrate the ice that surrounded him. He was so cold. Everything had gone so fucking cold.

"N-no…" A single word fell from his lips as feeling came back to him, his body trembling in the aftershock. The broken voice reaching his ears hardly resembled his own, and yet he knew he had been the one to speak, his desperate attempt to deny what was so blatantly real before him.

No. No…no…no. No, no, NO!

He refused to believe that the one person he trusted the most in the world had betrayed him. He refused to believe she would hurt him that badly. It was a joke, right? It had to be a joke. A cruel way for her to be pulling his leg, but it was just a joke. It just had to be.

Except there was no denial on Peyton's face, no solace for him to be found in her look of pain, in the tears in her eyes. He was a father. He had a son and daughter.

And Peyton had lied to him.

The cold, numb nothingness began to melt away; the rush of molten heat that accompanied rage enveloped him in the arms of devastation. Denial faded into anger- hard, heavy and burning.

"How could you?!" he bit out, jaw tight as his fists clenched at his sides. "How could you do this to me?"

"Luke, I-"

"No, no! You told me to my face, Peyton. You told me your baby wasn't mine. You looked in my eyes and lied to me!"

By now, he was yelling, his body screaming, and eyes black and stormy. Peyton instinctively backed away. "Lucas, I'm sorry, I did the wrong thing-"

"That's for damn sure. I trusted you, Peyton, you!!! You fucking had my children and you hid it from me, lied about it. God, you know how I feel about being a father."

"…how could you do this to me…?" the words were filled with such pain, echoing through the cold, heavy air. She could scarcely breathe with her resounding guilt.

He raised his head once more, expression unreadable. For the first time she could remember, his emotions were so tangled and erratic she could not clearly read him. Lucas was never more who easily admitted to vulnerability of any sort. And he didn't have to say a word; she could feel the raw pain roaring beneath the surface.

He released a broken sound, somewhere between a moan and a sob, viciously rubbing his face uncomfortably wet with tears he had been bitterly shedding, desperately turning away from her for some kind of retribution. He put needed space between them and he took it, tugging on his damp, rumpled jeans.

She panicked, desperately searching his eyes for some answer, but she found them again open and raw, resounding within her with a familiar ugly shame.

"Luke, wait-"

He shook his head, holding up his hands as he rapidly backed away. "I can't…I just can't…"

He was out the door before her tears even had a chance to fall.

Next chapter: Peyton talks with her family, Lucas needs a friend, and the twins finally meet their father.