"Where's dad?" Simon asked as he sat on the sofa opposite Carla

"He's nipped to Dev's to get some more eggs and milk for breakfast," she responded, "I guess I ruined your first attempt, didn't I?"

"It's alright," Simon responded chuckling as he looked to the kitchen, where the burnt eggs and toast remained on the counter, "are you...okay...now?" he asked tentatively

Carla smiled at her stepson, "yeah," she nodded, "I'm okay now," she reached out and ruffled his hair, "I'm sorry if I worried you, kid."

Simon smiled back at her, his eyes lowering for a few mintues as silence descended upon the flat again.

"Who's Frank?"

Carla's head snapped up as his quiet voice vibrated against her eardrums, "what?" she whispered shakily

"You were shouting at someone named Frank to 'let you go', and saying you wanted him to leave," Simon responded, "and you sounded really scared. Who is he?"

"Ohh ummm," Carla rubbed the back of her neck, "look, Si..." she exhaled, "I don't think it's a good idea to-"

"Wasn't he the man that you worked with at the factory?" Simon asked quietly

"Umm yeah, Si, he was." She responded, her mind racing to find the easiest answer possible. She glanced at the door, silently wishing that Peter hadn't left to go to the corner shop.

"I heard that you had hurt him; that you and dad hurt both him and my mum." Simon said, "and that you tried to have him thrown in jail by lying about him hurting you, like how I lied about you hitting me..."

Carla felt sick to her stomach. "Who told you that Si?"

"Leanne's mum," Simon responded, "I overheard her and Leanne talking about how women like you give others a bad name," his eyes were now looking down at his fingers, "that you use men to get what you want, and you don't care who you hurt. But when they saw me coming in, they stopped talking and wouldn't answer me when I asked them questions," Simon glanced up to see Carla looking into the kitchen, her eyes filled with unshed tears, and biting her lower lip. "You didn't hurt him, did you?"

"No, I did, Si," Carla breathed out, unable to meet her stepson's eyes as she tried to find the most general way of explaining this to an almost 10 year old, "I hurt him the way your dad hurt Leanne. But I didn't lie about him hurting me to get him thrown in jail; he just took my breaking his heart really, really, badly..."

"Did he hit ya?" Simon asked,

Carla finally looked up to the young boy, his face contorted in concern, his eyes wide and brows furrowed. Her lips twisted for a moment, as she pondered how to answer: it wasn't the truth, but it would be the simplest way of answering a difficult question. And, to be fair, it wasn't a complete lie, either. Mentally she kicked herself; she wished she had better control over her nightmares; wished she never shouted Frank's name out loud and opened that can of worms to this young boy who deserved to be shielded from all the bad in the world. Her emotions began to overtake her, and she once again looked to the door of the flat wondering what was taking Peter so damn long...

"You promised you would be honest with me," Simon whispered, "after everything that happened with Tina, we promised we wouldn't keep secrets from each other anymore..."

Carla sighed audibly, smiling as she met his worried eyes and nodded, "I did, didn't I?" at his encouraging nod, she took a deep breath and responded, "Yeah, Si, he did," she responded, "he hurt me very badly."

"Is that why you and my dad got close?"

"I liked your dad for a while before I started working with, or even seeing Frank," Carla said in a low voice, "but he was with Leanne, and Frank really liked me, and he was a very nice man," she swallowed down the bile that rose to her throat, "at first," she blew out a shaky breath, "he really loved me, but as much as I wanted to, I just didn't feel the same way. I think maybe he always knew that I didn't, but he hoped I would. So when I told him I didn't want to be with him anymore, he got really angry. And I asked him to leave my flat but he wouldn't. He just got angrier and angrier, until he snapped," a single tear traipsed down Carla's cheek and she brushed it away with her finger, "and he-he hurt me, very badly. Maria took me to the hospital. The police arrested Frank, and your dad was there to support me when he could while I got better. But in February two years ago, Frank was found not guilty because they realized that your dad and I had started seeing each other in secret a few weeks before the trial. And everyone believed I had made the whole thing up, including your mum and Stella."

"Where is Frank now?"

"He's dead, love." Carla answered solemnly, "accident at the factory between him and his mum. He had come back to the factory after the trial, and was making it really hard for me to be there, or to be in my flat on me own."

"That why you came to live 'ere?" Simon asked

Carla nodded, "Yeah..."

"Because you were scared?"

"Yeah," she bit her lip, "anyways, he eventually admitted that he hurt me, and I didn't know it at the time, but his mum had overheard. I ended up running away scared that he would do it again; they got into an argument and there was a scuffle between them, and he died. It were an accident." Carla took another deep breath, "Look Simon...at the end of the day, what your dad and I did was wrong. We shouldn't have started seeing each other while he was still with Leanne, and I don't blame you for hating me all this time. I may have never lied about what Frank did to me, but I believe I deserved what he did to me, and because of that I get these bad nightmares every so often."

"But Leanne hurt me dad, and he never hit her..." Simon said, "And you and dad have fought too, but he's never hit you either."

"No, because you're dad's a good man..." Carla answered

"So then it's not your fault that Frank hit ya," Simon stated, "no matter how much you may have hurt him. He just wasn't a good man."

"Thanks Si," she smiled at him lopsidedly, "I am really sorry if I frightened you this morning,"

"You frightened me dad more," Simon chuckled humourlessly, "When you started screaming, I've never seen him so scared."

"Really?" Carla asked feeling a horrible guilt take over her, her ears picking up on the sound of the lower flat door opening and closing, and Peter's footfalls making their way up the stairs

"Yeah, he dropped the frying pan on the floor, and ran to you. Kept telling you everything would be okay, and that he loves you, and kept begging you to wake up." Simon told her as the flat door opened and Peter stepped in

"Sorry about that, Dev got to talking, you know how he gets," Peter joked as he made his way into the kitchen and placed the carrier bag onto the countertop. His eyes cast over to where his son and his wife sat on the sofa, and he slowly made his way over.

"You feeling better, love?" he asked as he crouched down beside Carla, his hand running down her hair lovingly

Carla nodded, avoiding eye contact with her husband, "Yeah, Simon's been keeping a close eye on me, haven't you?"

Simon nodded, "yeah we were just talking about how hungry we were, right Carla?"

Carla smirked at him and nodded, "yeah," she glanced in Peter's direction, "having an almighty fit in the morning tends to bring out the hunger in a girl..."

Peter smiled, his hand still smoothing out her hair, "I'm just glad you're okay." At his whispered words, Carla finally raised her gaze to meet his.

The moment their eyes met, they both nearly gasped. That old electrical charge that pulsed between them had finally resurfaced after lying dormant for months. That charge that had always sparked whenever they stole secretive glances to each other when neither Leanne or Frank were looking - neither wanting to express how they truly felt; each resigning themselves to their settled domestic choices; the current that vibrated through them the first time their lips touched when he confessed that he loved her; that spark that resided deep in them every time they were simply near each other, always ready to reignite their barely contained passion into white hot flames...

...That same charge that had fizzled out when his affair with Tina came to light. And yet, here it was, back again. And while Peter relished in its return, it frightened Carla to near tears. She tore her gaze away, just in time to see Simon jump off the couch

"Come on, dad!" he urged Peter, "I'm starving!"

"Coming son," Peter called as Simon headed into the kitchen, his gaze remaining on Carla's profile, "you sure you're okay? Can I get you anything?"

Carla shook her head, hugging the pillow to her closer, "No, I'm okay thanks,"

Peter smiled, as he pushed himself to a standing position, "So, then. Fried egg okay? Or would you prefer scrambled?"

"Fried, ta."

"Coming right up," he gave her shoulder a supportive squeeze and headed to the kitchen where Simon had just scraped the burnt eggs into the garbage pail.

Carla stared straight ahead, trying to ignore the flip in her stomach that remained after Peter's hand had rested briefly upon her shoulder, and she chewed her lip pensively. He always knew how to make her feel safe and secure. How to constantly draw her back from the brink, and how to charm his way out of the doghouse.

She listened as he and Simon playfully chided one another in the kitchen, and she couldn't help but turn to look, her heart flipping when she saw her husband wrap his arms around his son and plant a single kiss upon his head, before ruffling his hair and playfully pushing him towards the toaster. She quickly looked down to her fingers before Peter caught her staring and exhaled slowly.

She was starting to thaw towards him once more.

"Thanks for meeting me," Peter said as Rob came to stand in front of him

"Well, you did say it was urgent," Rob responded, glancing around the darkened factory, "So come on then, what's happened? Is it Carla? Is she alright?"

"Yeah, she's okay. But she had a nightmare this morning, and when I rushed out to get her anti-anxiety meds from Roy's, I ran into Tina."

"How convenient," Rob snarled

"Rob, I promise you, I didn't even speak to her except to tell her to leave me alone," At Rob's disbelieving look, Peter became defensive, "Look you can ask Roy if you don't believe me!"

"I might just do that," Rob challenged, trying to call Peter's bluff, "so come on, if you didn't speak to her, why the urgency?"

"Because after Carla came down from her attack, I went out to pick up some pineapple juice for her and get some more eggs and stuff for breakfast, and when I left Dev's, Tina was there again, demanding to talk to me."

"Go on," Rob prodded

"I told her I didn't want to talk to her, but she's threatening to tell Carla all sorts of lies, knowing Carla will probably believe her because of what I did."

"What sort of lies?"

Peter sighed, "that I loved her, and that I was planning to run off with her."

"Were you?" Rob grilled him

"No!" Peter answered sharply, "I was never going to leave your sister, Rob! Not ever."

"So what do you want from me?" Rob shrugged his shoulders

"I need your help to persuade her not to speak to Carla. Look, I've told her to meet me in the Rovers in a bit, so I can try to talk her out of it, but I don't think she's gonna listen." At Rob's hesitation, Peter continued, "Rob, this isn't for me. Tina doesn't know Carla's pregnant. After the scare with the baby last night and her anxiety attack this morning, I don't know if she'll be able to take this confrontation from Tina. And to be honest, even if Tina did know Carla's pregnant, I don't think it would stop her. She wants to hurt me, and that means hurting Carla."

Rob sighed, removing his eyes from his brother-in-law and pacing about Underworld's office, his hand coming up to rub his mouth. On the one hand, he could let Tina tell her lies and ensure that the wedge already driven between his sister and her husband would only intensify. But on the other, he knew Peter was right: Carla wouldn't be able to take the stress. She was already doubting her abilities as a mother, and the scare didn't help matters.

Rob turned and looked at the man before him, now pacing himself and looking quite lost. He paused as he came around Carla's desk, his fingers reaching out to grasp a recently framed photo of her and Simon; Carla's cheek resting on Simon's head, both of them smiling into the camera, and he choked back the tears he felt lining his eyes.

And Rob almost felt sorry for him.

Almost.

"Where's Carla, now?" He asked

"Back at Roy's." Peter removed his eyes from the photo and looked to the younger man standing near the door, "I walked her there after breakfast. She wanted some rest before your engagement party tonight."

"Well, Roy won't let Tina up to the flat, so she's safe from your bunny boiler for the time being."

"What are you saying?" Peter asked almost incredulously, "you won't help me?"

"I'll think about it," Rob said matter-of-factly

"Rob, please-" Peter tried again, "I'm begging you-"

"Look, Peter," Rob cut him off, "You don't know what she wants to tell you yet. So go, have a listen, and try not to wind her up anymore than she already is." Rob said turning toward the office door

"And if it's just more of the same?" Peter asked, "if it's just more of her threatening that if I don't leave Carla and be with her that she'll spill all these lies to my wife?"

"Well, let's just hope for her sake that it isn't, eh?" Rob responded menacingly before exiting the office.

It was half an hour later that Rob pushed himself into the Rovers, his eyes darting around for Peter and Tina, before coming to rest on a large banner with his and Tracy's faces pictured on it hanging on the wall.

"Hiya," Michelle's voice rang out, "Come to check up on the progress eh?"

Rob let out a chuckle, "no, no, I trust you have it all in hand."

"Oh, well good, because your fiancee's already been a thorn in me side," Michelle rolled her eyes, "can't wait for the wedding..." she mumbled

"I'll try to keep her in check," Rob laughed, "did you see Peter in here?"

Michelle stood up a little straighter, her arms folding across her chest, "yeah, he went out for a fag and Steve went out with him on his break," she raised her eyebrow, "why?"

"Oh, I just wanted to check how Carla was last night, you know, after everything."

Michelle's hands flew up to her face, "Oh my God! I completely forgot! Oh I'm such a cow!" She turned towards the bar, "Sean!" she called

"Yes boss?" Sean responded playfully,

"Could you man the bar for a while I'm just gonna nip out for a bit," She asked, as she grabbed her purse behind the bar and made her way to the doors, "Steve's out back if you need him,"

"Sure thing!" Sean mocked saluted her.

"I'll be over in a bit, yeah?" Rob called after her, as Michelle stepped out onto the cobbles

Rob turned his attention to Sean, "hey, do you mind if I just go have a word with Steve?" he pointed towards the backroom,

"You're the man on borrowed time!" Sean chided him

"Eh?" Rob asked confused

"You know, borrowed time? Being engaged to Tracy and all - ahem!" Sean cleared his throat, "uh yeah, go on through," he told him awkwardly

Rob raised an eyebrow at the barman, before stepping behind the bar and heading towards the backroom, pausing when he saw Steve leaning against the backdoor.

"Steve?" he asked

"Shh!" Steve shushed him, "quick close that door," he gestured to the door leading to the bar, which Rob did before stepping next to him,

"What's going on?" Rob asked

Steve gestured towards the door, "Peter tried to put Tina down gently again, and she's not having any of it."

Rob exhaled. Roy had verified what Peter had told him earlier; he barely gave Tina a glance earlier that morning except to tell her to leave him and his wife alone. Rob had hoped he had been lying. As much as he didn't want Carla to hurt, he wanted nothing more than the perfect excuse to keep his sister from her husband permanently. But now he was starting to see that perhaps Peter was actually trying to change; trying to be a better husband and a father. And while he still caused rob's blood to boil, ultimately his sister's health and happiness were his priority, which is why he had showed up to the Rovers with the intent to help his brother-in-law with his earlier request.

Stepping forward, he pressed his ear to the door, both him and Steve standing face to face, listening to the argument that raged outside...

"Okay, look, let's just try to keep our heads here, eh?" Peter pleaded with her calmly

"Do you think you're going to get away with this?" Tina asked maliciously, crossing her arms over her chest

"There's nothing to get away with, Tina," Peter responded confused, "the affair already came out, Carla and I are on speaking terms..."

"You told me you loved me," she stated matter of factly

"Because you were constantly threatening to tell Carla because I didn't say it back-" Peter answered defensively

"You were never going to leave her were you?" she interrupted him

Peter looked her dead in the eye, "no,"

"Like I said, do you think you're going to get away with this? She deserves to know what a lowlife she's married to," she stepped closer to him, "then where will you be?"

"You didn't think I was a lowlife half an hour ago when you were begging me to take you back!" Peter shot back

"Because I trusted you then, Peter!" Tina shrilled at him, "why her?" she asked quietly

"I love Carla," Peter responded. I've loved her for a very long time."

"You could have loved me too," Tina argued, stifling a sob, "You and I started off the same way as you and she did: sneaking around behind your wife's back, sleeping together until you got caught. it were only then you decided that you loved her more than you did Leanne-"

"Whoa whoa!" Peter interrupted her almost angrily, his voice raising and causing her to step back, "don't you dare compare this fling between us to what Carla and I had!"

Rob curiously listened, having never heard Peter acknowledge the beginning of his and Carla's relationship before

"Oh cause it was so different was it?" Tina shot back.

"Yeah, it was!" Peter shouted back, "I was in love with Carla long before we ever got together. I just didn't want to admit it to myself; felt I owed it to Simon and Leanne to give our marriage another go after she cheated on me with Nick. And I pushed Carla towards Frank, hoping that she would move on so I could move on too. But I hated her with him! I hated every minute I saw her with him, because I wanted her to be with me, not him! But I was a coward and I kept my mouth shut, and kept pushing her to him, pushing her to marry him! But it wasn't until after that animal raped her, that I knew I couldn't deny it to myself any longer. And I still hate myself, knowing that she had to go through what she did in order for me to not be a coward anymore..." he shook his head as the truthfulness of his words sliced through his soul, "I told Carla that I loved her, that I wanted to be with her, and that I would leave Leanne when the time was right,"

"You told me the same thing, though didn't ya?" Tina said, her eyes brimming with tears and arms folded across her chest, "that you loved me, that you would leave her..."

"No," Peter corrected her, "I told you I loved you and I would tell her about us; not that I would leave her. You need to accept this Tina: I was never going to leave Carla!"

"You said the same thing to Carla when she was chasing after you before everything happened with Frank, so what's the difference?" Tina cried

"The difference was, Tina, Carla didn't pressure me to tell her I loved her by threatening to tell Leanne. Carla didn't push me to leave Leanne at all. Not before Frank, and certainly not after Frank; she wasn't strong enough after everything she was going through." He stepped towards Tina, his eyes narrowing, "and I didn't have to sleep with Carla to know how I felt about her. We didn't sleep together the night I told her I loved her and wanted to be with her. It wasn't until days later that we did, when she felt ready to. You see Tina, you believe that us having sex for a few months, equals love. It doesn't. Carla and I were in love with each other for months before we ever fell into bed together. She means more to me than just sex. I love Carla. I know in my heart that I'll only ever love Carla."

"Oh, and I suppose that's all I was eh, sex?" Tina asked bitterly

"No," Peter answered truthfully, "you were a distraction to be sure. An ego boost for a man who felt that he wasn't deserving of his wife after all she did for him. The sex was good Tina, but there were never any deeper feelings behind it for me. I cared about you, and think you are a wonderful person, and I never, ever wanted to hurt you. I wanted to make you happy..."

"No, you wanted me to keep quiet!" Tina snorted derisively, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand, "well no more," she stated before glaring at Peter menacingly, "If I was you I'd brace myself.."

"Why?" Peter asked, "what are you going to do?"

Tina smirked at him, "Oh don't worry Peter, you'll find out..."