I'm back for a lil' bit with this piece that was on my mind. Just had to!

Usual disclaimer applies...

"I have pictured it a hundred times and none of the scenarios are encouraging."

"We have to do this, Hales, whether we like it or not. Best case, they'll take it as well as Lucas did. Worst case…"

From the passenger seat, Haley pushes strands of hair away from her forehead that are being blown across her eyes by the wind. "Worst case what?"

Nathan shrugs, answering light-heartedly, "Who knows? It'll be the opposite of good."

Her laugh, genuine as it is, is feeble, for anxiety has been skittering up and down her spine all morning. They're approaching their destination and she's becoming increasingly nervous. Nathan makes a slow turn out of the street and into a narrow paved drive edged with trimmed mature trees and shrubs.

She places her hand on his on the gear shift. "How are you? Are you nervous?"

He taps a thumb against the steering wheel. "Honestly, I don't know how I really feel. I've been living on my own for months and making decisions for myself without consulting them. What makes me nervous is telling them at all what I'm up to. I don't want them to think that it's an invitation to meddle."

He glances at her. "Baby, I don't want you expecting the nicest from them. You've seen how they are. If you don't do things their way, they end up hating you or manipulating you or freezing you out. It's like they feed off of it. They're a mess."

She knows that he's talking about more than the reason for their visit; they're his parents, he's known the kind of people they are and his upbringing was strict and challenging. He didn't have the happiest childhood, and he said that dealing with his parents could be hard work.

Haley cranes her neck towards the back seat. "So I shouldn't have brought goodies."

They laugh, and the last few seconds until the house appears they spend in silence. Her heart is thumping and she feels sick to her stomach as they come up the wide circular driveway. Her eyes are drawn to the house, the structure just as beautiful as she remembers. It's a two-story stone house, with a manicured lawn and perfectly trimmed bushes. Parked out front are a sedan and an SUV, side by side like a his-and-hers set.

From the back seat Haley takes out her purse and a Tupperware container. The day is already warm, the summer sun hot and powerful, but she can barely feel the external heat when a wild electrical energy is pulsing through her.

As they walk up the steps, she smooths down her hair and dress self-consciously. Nathan gives her a reassuring side hug and whispers that no matter what happens, they'll be fine. He presses the doorbell.

Moments later, the bulky door opens. Deb is in the entryway, striking and glamorous in a trendy cream outfit that resembles a jumpsuit. Her face is perfectly made up, sleek blonde hair styled, matching jewellery, all put together like she's going out. In her knee-length cotton dress, Haley feels frumpy, even though she's far from dishevelled. Deb just carries an easy classiness that's a second skin.

She's beaming at seeing Nathan on her doorstep, the fine laugh lines around the corners of her eyes puckering. "Nate."

"Hi, Mom."

Typically, this would be the moment for a warm embrace between mother and son but they both keep the distance that was established long ago. Being raised by nannies and housekeepers didn't bring about painless physical affection towards his parents.

Her smile fades at noticing Haley. She eyes her up and down swiftly and then returns her gaze to Nathan. "I didn't know you were not coming alone."

Nathan flashes Haley a look; they opted that he shouldn't mention that she was coming in case his parents refused to meet with them. "There's something we need to talk to you about."

Deb scans back and forth between them. Her breath hitches. An expression of comprehension spreads across her face. She peeks at Haley's stomach, declaring, "You're pregnant."

"No!" they both shout in chorus.

Her face burning, Haley clears her throat and assures her, "I'm not pregnant, Mrs. Scott."

"Then what brings you by? I can't imagine why else you're here."

Nathan's sigh hints of tension. Not even in the house and he's already feeling the stress. "Mom, can we come in? I'd rather not tell it to you in the doorway."

With the door closed, they stand in the marbled foyer in deathly silence, regarding each other like strangers.

"I made you these," Haley says hastily, holding out the container of cookies.

Cookies won't make up for the bomb they're about to drop but she didn't want to come empty-handed. Flowers were a logical choice but Dan, apparently, is sensitive to pollen.

Deb holds it like she doesn't know what to do with it, or perhaps she's wondering if they're spiked with a toxin. "Thank you."

The thin gratitude is obvious. The unease builds, almost palpable.

"Let's go to the den," Deb suggests, misgiving seeping through her voice.

They trail after her, and sensing Nathan's agitation, Haley slips a hand into his. His hand squeezes hers in appreciation.

"Is Dad around?" he asks with a glance up the staircase as they walk past it.

His mother nods, leading the way into the den. "You said that you wanted to see us both."

They take one couch and Deb another, such that there's a solid coffee table between them. Deb places the Tupperware with the cookies in the middle of the table, something they can all stare at instead of each other. Haley sits tense and stiff, while Nathan casually stretches his arm over the back of the settee. She wonders if it's intentional because it's his left arm.

"And Agata?" Nathan asks of the Czech woman who was the housekeeper the last time he visited. "Or did she quit?"

"Shopping. Do you want her here for this, too? Whatever this is?" Deb says, her hand floating vaguely in the air.

"Just asking."

Deb crosses a leg over the other and leans back on the cushions. "How is everything with you?"

"Great," he answers, slyly winking at Haley beside him. "Fantastic."

Heat moves through Haley. An image of being together in the shower this morning flies across her mind, and as though knowing where her thoughts are, Nathan's grin broadens. Her unease grows at his teasing her in front of his mother.

"Agata made lunch. Would you like some?"

"We're good, thanks," he answers, needing this social call to be over as soon as possible.

And that's as far as the chitchat goes. He feels like a guest in the house he grew up in for sixteen years, and he wasn't prepared for how rotten it would make him feel to be in this den where his father harangued him after games.

Deb's gaze locks on Haley, and she feels as though Nathan's mother is accusing her of something. She shifts uneasily. In a few minutes she just might.

The atmosphere, at best, is strained. Haley tries to ignore it by taking in the den. It's a swanky, beautiful room with expensive yet comfortable furniture, and large windows that show views of the pool and a flower-free but colourful garden. Sunshine drenches the room, the grand piano set up on one corner gleaming in the light. There are built-in shelves flanking both sides of the fireplace that carry neatly-stacked books and knick-knacks, a thick floor rug, a vintage turn table, dry bar, ornate drapes, and modern art. She's always found it odd that the only pictures are paintings and none of family. It's still a magnificent room, the kind that would be featured in a lifestyle magazine.

The few times she came to see Nathan while he lived here, this was one of her favourite parts of the house, other than his room. It wasn't long after they started dating that he moved out, but on the same couch his mother is seated on they made out a dozen times. She blushes at the thought.

A cell phone rings. Deb's. She cancels the call. It's at that moment that Dan walks in. A stately man with a commanding presence, Dan Scott, in Haley's opinion, is a cold, calculating, merciless monster who is very deliberate about belittling her. Haley has constantly felt that he glowers at her scornfully, while Deb has remained cool and distantly polite. She's never felt any kind of sincere acceptance from them.

His brow draws together momentarily at seeing Haley but he quickly recovers. He sits next to Deb, clearly not terribly excited to see her with Nathan. There are no handshakes or nods of acknowledgment between father and son.

"To what do we owe this visit?" he casually asks without a shred of curiosity.

Seated together, it makes Haley aware of what a sophisticated couple they are. Barely forty, they are two people indisputable in their status, Deb with her old-school-money poise and grace, Dan and his solid bulk, and the patrician self-assurance that hangs over them completing the equation. He's also dressed fashionably, and he's substituted his customary suit for an equally expensive V-neck sweater, shirt, tie and slacks combination.

"It's against my principles to give you money since you're legally an adult. At least on paper."

Knowing that his father is provoking him, Nathan counters just as dispassionately, "I'm not desperate yet."

"What's all this about, then?"

Haley's back stiffens and giant butterflies flap in the pit of her belly. The moment has arrived.

Nathan lowers his arm, sits forward and then takes her hand, venturing, "Haley and I…"

Her heart leaps out of her constricted chest and into her throat. Nathan looks at her in that way she's come to love; the smirk that lifts one side of his mouth, the open affection in his eyes. She gives him a supportive smile to encourage him.

He faces his parents. "We got married."

His words hung in the air. A long, long silence ensues. It's so quiet that she worries everyone can hear her loudly beating heart.

Dan is the first to speak. "I'm sorry, what?"

Haley quietly releases the breath she was holding. Deb's gaze lowers to their hands and finding what she's after – the matching gold bands on their fingers – her eyes round in astonishment.

"We're married now," Nathan repeats, even though he knows that Dan wasn't asking for it to be resaid.

More silence.

"You want us to congratulate you?" Dan says caustically, getting up. "Is that it? Do you want us to stand up and cheer? Shall we break out the champagne?"

He's never struck her as a man with a sense of humour so he's just being mean. Which she expected him to be.

"We just wanted you to know."

Predictably, Dan shoots her a severe look. She maintains a measure of calm. He makes his way over to the dry bar. The clink of glass and pouring of drink are the only sounds in the room. Haley takes that time to peek at Deb; she seems to be somewhere else entirely, sitting still with her eyes fixed on the floor.

"Son, is she pregnant?" Dan asks, his back to them. "And if so, is it yours?"

Nathan, exasperated at the assumption and annoyed at what Dan is implying about Haley, surreptitiously rolls his eyes. "I love her, she loves me, and that's it."

Haley's sure that it won't be the last time people will assume they got married because she's pregnant but she won't let it bother her; they know the truth and the plainness of it is that they loved each other more than enough to take a leap into marriage at their age.

Dan turns to them, a tumbler of dark liquor caught in a blanched hand and a murderous glare fixed on his face. "It didn't take long for you to worm your way into his life, did it?"

Coldness strokes the back of her neck. Like the athlete he is, Nathan shoots to his feet incredibly fast, his features wound with indignation.

"Dad! Don't talk to her like that!"

Dan ignores him and tosses his drink in one gulp. He pours out another, drains it and asks sharply, "Your parents let you do this?"

Haley nods, wondering what kind of explosion there'll be if she revealed that they were the only witnesses to the ceremony. Deb raises her head and tilts it to the side as though she's paying attention.

"Why am I not surprised? Their catchphrase is live and let live," he states flatly.

She is maddened that he's picking on her parents when they've been nothing but supportive of her relationship with Nathan.

Deb speaks at last, her voice ragged. "You're sixteen years old, Nathan. You—"

"Seventeen this summer," he breaks in with measured off-handedness.

She looks straight at him. Outrage flashes across her brown eyes. "You will still be a minor. You will still not be old enough to be," she makes a noise of derision, "married."

"I'm emancipated," he says reasonably.

Her mouth presses into a thin, grim line. "So what? You remain a child. And clearly your thinking is not as matured as you think it is."

Deb slants Haley a glance, and as brief as it is, it is packed with enough animosity to give her a horrible chill.

"When did this…" Deb trails off, unable to finish her sentence.

Nathan looks down at Haley. They exchange a smile, both recalling the incredible moments that have passed in the small apartment that they've scarcely left recently.

"A couple of days ago," he answers loosely.

"When?" Deb demands of him. The obvious adoration between them has aggravated her further.

Haley silently winces at Deb's stony expression.

"Wednesday night."

Deb laughs hoarsely and mirthlessly. Looking bewildered, she stands and moves towards Dan. "It's Saturday. You waited three days to tell us."

Her gaze bears down hard on Nathan. "What kind of son does that to their own mother?"

He sighs. Her words have little impact on him because he gets the sense that they ooze betrayal more than disappointment. It wouldn't be the first time she's taken him on a guilt trip.

There's movement beside Dan. In a flash, Deb takes the empty glass in Dan's hand and lobs it at the wall. It hits the space between two paintings and shatters into bits and pieces. Haley jumps up with a gasp and reaches for Nathan.

"Three days!" Deb screams, her face contorted in rage. "We've hardly seen you and when we do, this is what you throw at us!?"

It seems to Haley that she's the only one staring at Deb in horror; Nathan is mildly surprised, Dan amused. And for her part she's also thinking, This wasn't one of the scenarios I'd pictured!

Deb puts her hands on her temples, like a woman tormented. She laughs again, this time bitterly. "This has got to be a joke. I must be losing my mind."

Nathan shakes his head almost in pity. "It's not a joke, Mom."

"How can you be married? You barely know each other! I met her for the first time only weeks ago and you were introducing her as your girlfriend!"

"Haley is my wife now, not my girlfriend."

Haley, having not spoken at all since they entered the den, grabs that moment to put a word in. "Mrs. Scott, we've thought about—"

"Shut up! Shut your selfish little mouth!" Deb shouts hotly.

"Mom!" Nathan bellows, the intensity of his own anger bouncing from wall to wall. "That's enough!"

Deb points an accusing finger at her. "It was your idea, wasn't it?"

A little afraid, Haley moves in closer to Nathan and for some reason, she feels a prick of tears. She gulps to restrict them from spilling.

Nathan walks around the table and couch to where his mother is. His six-two height is imposing, and she realizes that the once little boy who couldn't reach the sink without a step stool is suddenly all grown up. How did that happen? Where was she? It makes her cold inside.

"You've got it wrong there. I'm the one who asked her to marry me. Whatever it is you think I'm capable of or not capable of, believe me when I tell you that it was me who wanted to get married."

His mother's head rocks from side to side disbelievingly. Her words are low and menacing. "I don't believe that. She manipulated you into leaving a completely good home and she manipulated you into marrying her. You've not been thinking straight since you became involved with her."

Haley stands still, and for the first time a thought clicks in her head; she considers that part of Deb's problem is that she views Nathan's emancipation as him abandoning them for her. He left for his own sake, when the shadows of self-blame and self-loathing became much too ugly to bear.

Nathan turns to Haley and says with a crooked, adorable grin, "If anything, I manipulated her into marrying me."

She wants to burst out chuckling but with Nathan's parents glaring at her the way they are, it would not be received well. She focuses instead on a stray piece of broken glass on the polished coffee table, mentally coaching back her amusement.

"Tell me one thing, what's in this for you?" Dan flings at her with contempt.

The question catches her off guard, but she's instantly aware of what he's suggesting. "Excuse me?" she stutters.

Nathan bristles. "Dad, stop that."

Dan's rigid stare doesn't waver. "Is it money? Because you are not getting and will not get a penny from us, young lady. We are not going to be your meal ticket to wherever it is you hope to land."

"I cannot believe that you just said that to her!"

Haley doesn't hide her distaste at the accusation that her goal is financial; colour rises to her cheeks and she narrows her eyes at the older man. "I don't want or need your money."

"How dare you say that to her!" Nathan roars, his eyes darkened like storm clouds.

She takes that moment to move and join him before the situation gets worse. They're all standing there together by the bar, everyone livid and confrontational.

Dan pins her with a steely stare, utterly unapologetic. "I want to know why she did this."

"It's because I love your son very much, Mr. Scott," Haley states calmly and confidently, even though fury is threatening to engulf her. "I'm not interested in his money or yours. I fell head over heels for him and I married him because of who he is."

Five months ago, she only knew Nathan by name, face and reputation. Just by tutoring him, she was drawn to him in a way she couldn't explain. He was unlike anyone she'd ever met and the more she got to know him, the harder she fell; he was kind, thoughtful and attentive, and he liked her just as she was.

She can't describe the completeness that she has no words for. She can't put into the right words that he makes her heart race and soar, that he had awakened a longing so unfamiliar but exhilarating, that she's never felt like this for anybody else, that she wouldn't want to be without him, that she's hopelessly and helplessly in love with him. And she won't let them mock her for it.

"How romantic. Are you even interested in his future?" Dan persists. "His basketball career? What kind of sacrifices are you willing to make?"

"Sacrifices? Are you being serious?" Nathan sizzles at his father, his lips barely moving.

"So that's it for basketball?"

"Why should it be?"

"I'm going to spend the rest of my life loving him," Haley breaks in.

Her toes curl when she looks up at her new husband, because in his eyes is the same as what's in hers: the love for another with their entire being. "And whatever the future brings, we're in it together."

Her statement looms large as life. Nathan takes her hand and turns to his parents, and with a single triumphant look seems to ask them, "Satisfied?"

But they're not, because Deb hisses in blatant disapproval, "You foolish, foolish children. How could you do something so premature?"

Dan shakes his head slowly from side to side, disgusted. "He's punishing us for something I still don't understand."

His gaze flits between them before settling on Nathan. "It's only temporary and it won't be long before he runs back home with his tail between his legs."

Her eyes holding a burn of disdain, Deb clips out, "I will not give you my blessing for destroying my son's life. Or you can trust me, your own. You will regret this. Don't come to us when things fall apart."

The words are delivered in such a brutal manner that Haley's stomach cramps. The good Lord help her because she is determined to make her marriage work, and she just knows that she and Nathan will make it, even if other people don't.

"Thanks a lot for the love, Mom," Nathan grunts sarcastically.

Defeat makes Haley's shoulders sag. This feels like a confrontation than a conversation. She was fantasizing that they could count on the support of his parents, and more so with her own off roaming the country, she hoped for a sounding board and an adviser in a woman who had been married for almost two decades.

"What are people going to say when they hear about this?" Deb wonders aloud, her appearance of someone looking into a gloomy future.

Nathan steps away from them, taking Haley with him. His parents have never been so easy to read like today and it's time to end this. "It's not about them. Or you. We're married and I'm never going to hide that. You can flip out all you want but it's done. I don't care what you think."

"I only want what's best for you, Nathan."

"We're happy. That's a good thing."

Deb throws her hands up in the air. "What was the rush? Are you lying about her being pregnant?"

His stern gaze moves between his parents. "No. And if this is the way you'll be treating my wife, I promise that you will never see me again."

It stuns her to hear him say that, and she prays that he doesn't mean it.

Dan addresses her acidly through clenched teeth, "Is this what you wanted? To tear this family apart?"

Haley shakes her head, unable to speak. She doesn't know what she was banking on to happen but this was not what she wanted at all.

"Don't blame that on her. This family was torn long before she came," Nathan says stiffly. "We're done."

There is nothing more left to say so they turn to go. Picking up her purse off the floor, Haley can feel their unforgiving eyes on her, despising her with every passing second, so much so that she can almost taste it.

"And take that with you," Deb snaps coldly, glaring at the table.

Nathan just looks at the container, and by the hand leads Haley out of the room. She has the urge to snatch up her Tupperware and make a mad dash for outside.

Like on autopilot, she closes the door quietly behind them and follows Nathan down the short steps and into the bright afternoon, her hand still firmly clasped in his. Her legs are shaking and she's reeling in some sort of delayed shock. She's feeling the weight of the conversation, half relieved that they've done what they came here to do and half stunned that her in-laws would be so bloodthirsty.

They've been living in a bubble that insulated them from everything and everyone. There were no outside opinions to interfere with the joy of talking and dreaming and dodging phone calls and dozing off and waking up and lying in….

But they needed to get back to the real world and that meant dealing with all the hassles that they'd chosen to be oblivious to. She has never been so happy as she's been these last few days. Right now, she's never been so miserable. That bubble has popped.

Coming to a stop between his parents' cars, Nathan runs his hands through his thick dark hair and grumbles, "Why did we even bother coming? They drive me crazy."

They came because it was the right thing to do, instead of letting his parents find out through gossip that their son had gotten married while still in high school.

"That was so bad," she croaks out, astounded. "Worse than I…"

At her extreme distress, he swings around. It bothers him to see her so disturbed.

"Hey."

Her expressive dark brown eyes move urgently across his face, her voice unconfident and shaky when she asks, "Is she right? Do we barely know each other? Did we move too fast? We're sixteen and we're married. People are freaking out about that and they're making me freak out."

His mind jumps to what his mother said. Unfortunately, he's used to his parents speaking to him like that but Haley's new to all this. She's grown up with loving, caring parents who didn't target her weaknesses and fill her with self-doubt. To think that one conversation with his parents would overwhelm her with the possibility that this is a mistake…

He frames her face with his hands. "What's my favourite colour?"

She blinks at him. A furrow of confusion forms between her eyes. "What?"

"My favourite colour. What is it?" he asks again.

"Blue."

"You like green. What's my favourite food?"

"When we met you said it was prime rib but now you like roast chicken."

He grins. "Mac 'n cheese. Do I prefer a pool or the ocean?"

"Ocean."

"Dogs or cats?"

A smile tugs at her lips. "You or me?"

"Either."

"You didn't have any pets as a child so you don't care for either. I want a dog."

He laughs, enjoying their little game as much as she is. He turns serious. "You want to go to grad school and eventually get your doctorate. Learning is important to you."

She turns her face a little that she can brush her lips on his wrist. He's strong, determined and independent, and he's made a life of his own away from his parents. He had to sell a lot of his personal belongings just to get started – which included golf clubs, expensive watches, and a convertible – and how she admires him for it. He fascinates her.

"What are you saying?"

He chuckles. "I'm trying to tell you that we're great together, Haley James. So what if you're a morning person and I'm a night owl? Our differences are nothing we can't get over. We did not make a mistake."

It occurs to her that he may have misread her moment of post-conversation analysis. It's not hard to see the vulnerability on his face. For so long he was distrustful of steady relationships, but he jumped in with both feet with her. She never wants that uncertainty to manifest towards her.

She presses her cheek into his palm. "Oh, baby, I didn't think that we did. Not ever."

She chances a look at the big house. "I'm just worried that I've added fuel to the fire."

He gazes at her almost searchingly, and he seems to be thinking deeply before talking. "You know what I like about us? We're friends."

Their conversations as they became acquainted jumped from one topic to another and could go on for hours. He had responded to everything about her, and it was shocking. He didn't understand why he reacted to her the way he did when she was five feet away; he was a moth to a flame. It wasn't just physical; she was so warm, sweet, considerate and interesting, and she had an effect on him like nothing and no one ever had. He never opened up to anyone or got close to anyone, yet somehow she shifted something inside him and became his confidant and best friend.

"We were friends before we were anything else and I never had that. I'm glad we got to know each other before everything."

He jerks his head towards the house without taking his eyes off hers. "Ask my mom about my dad or him about her and they'll come up with reasons why they can't answer. My parents are not friends. They're married, but they're not the happiest. Because of them I didn't think I was cut out for a relationship, least of all marriage. But I fell in love with you and I couldn't stop falling. We may not know everything about each other but we haven't started off too badly."

Her hands on his wrists, she presses her lips to his in a hard kiss. She's only had eyes for him, and his life experiences became hers; his anguish was hers, his victory was hers, his pain her own. She can't imagine feeling this way for any guy ever again.

"Would you really not see them again?" she asks hesitantly.

She's woken up to the sudden realisation that she's not only married Nathan but also his family. She would want them in their life, but she would ask them to check their need for control at the door. That their-way-or-the-highway attitude will be a problem.

He towers over her, those incredibly blue eyes of his boring into her. "I've said it before: you're my family now, Haley. The true thing I have. You're all I need."

He's repeating the same words he said to her on the night he proposed, with the same intensity that made her tummy flutter in an extra special way. She can't stop the smile that pulls across her mouth. Neither of them had ever been in love before they met and it was beyond amazing that they were each other's first love.

"I don't want you to miss out on a relationship with your parents because of me," she says hoarsely.

He shakes his head, responding easily, "I'm not missing out on anything. All of this started before you, not because of you. Listen…"

He can't hide the apology in his eyes. "I'm sorry about everything they said. I should have spared you from them."

The burden of their outburst weighs on him, just as it has again and again from the bad memories of growing up with a father who took it upon himself to lay into him about every single thing. He is embarrassed about the way they spoke to Haley and he can't imagine how she must feel.

It's her turn to reassure him. "If they can't understand what we have, it's their problem. Although I wouldn't say that to their faces because they are intimidating."

They share a grin. They came hoping for his parents' approval and blessing but they don't seem ready to accept the change in their relationship status.

Nathan coils his arms around her neck, firmly saying, "What happened in there doesn't change us."

Her arms slide around his waist and she brushes her lips across his. She thanks God for him, thanks God that they found each other. It gives her a warm glow but it also makes her want to cry.

She swallows hard. "I'm so glad I met you. I love you with all of my heart."

He touches his forehead to hers and she takes in the subtle scent of his cologne. "I love you, too."

The top of her head only comes to his chin and she has to stand on her toes, turn her face up, and nuzzle her nose against his. He chuckles softly, pecks her upper lip.

"No regrets?" she says very quietly.

He pulls in a breath. He'd get lost in her warm, honest eyes over and over. "Not one."

She smiles up at him adoringly. "Me, too."

And as he drags his mouth over her soft, full one and kisses her slowly, he knows that he won't let his parents control or manipulate the situation. He won't let them hurt Haley. He'll give them time to get used to the idea that he's married, but if they thought he was kidding about not seeing him again because of their crudeness, they're severely mistaken. They should know by now that he's not only stubborn but also ready and willing to fight for Haley at all costs, even if it means they're the price. If that's how they'll play, that's the way it will be.

"Come on. Let's go see everyone else. Maybe they'll be happier for us."

She nods and they start off towards the car. Their friends will think they're crackers but she doubts any of them will accuse her of being a life wrecker and gold-digger.

"It's Scott, by the way."

His head tilts slightly to the side.

She stops for a second. "Haley Scott." She kisses him lightly. "Mrs. Nathan Scott."

A grin spreads across his face, from the pleasure at hearing her say it and the dusty flush that moves across her cheeks. "Is that right?"

"I believe we have a certificate that says so. Or do you want to take my last name?" she finishes cheekily.

"I'm sure my dad would be thrilled to hear that," he drawls jokingly.

They look at each other and break out into laughter.

After they climb into the car, Haley gazes back at the house through the rear window. She's startled to see Deb's pinched face in one large window of the living room. Even through the glass and distance she can sense the wrath and loathing in Deb's eyes. A shudder snakes its way down her spine. She wonders if she had been watching them the whole time since they walked out of the house.

She tears her gaze away before the house is out of view. Nathan looks between her and the street a few times, that spot between his eyebrows all folded up. He's worried. She smiles at him and rests a hand on his thigh, silently telling him that she's fine.

She looks down at the polished ring on her finger, arguing with herself. Is it crazy for her to hope for the best? That they'll come around and embrace the marriage? That she'll measure up as a good partner for Nathan?

Though the ugliness they've left behind spins in circles in her mind, she believes wholeheartedly that she and Nathan will weather every storm together. They are their own family and no one can take that away.

She settles in the seat and tells Nathan that really, she's fine, that they'll be fine.

"And hands-off in-laws? Maybe there'll be something good in that."

He laughs all the way to the first intersection in his old neighbourhood.