Layton studied her mom skeptically as she re-entered the living room

Layton studied her mom skeptically as she re-entered the living room. Karen and Lily eyed her, too. Peyton was holding her left hand behind her back. "I didn't hear any yelling," Layton said, still looking at her mother.

Peyton shrugged innocently. "Isn't that a good thing?" she asked. Finally she couldn't take it anymore. She pulled her left hand from behind her back and held it out so they could see the ring.

Layton, Karen and Lily sat in shock for a moment. Then Layton jumped up and nearly knocked her mother over in a hug. "Mom that's amazing!" she shrieked. Then she pulled back and looked at her curiously. "Wait, where'd the ring come from?"

Peyton shrugged again, but couldn't keep the smile off of her face. "It's the one he proposed with in Vegas. I kinda kept it all this time," she kind of mumbled.

Layton was grinning like the Cheshire cat as she hugged her mom again. It wasn't even the fact that her parents were getting back together that made her happy. It was the fact that her mom was happy again. In all honesty she had never seen her mother this happy.

Karen stepped closer and Layton stepped out of her way. Lily was waiting for her mother's reaction and, to be honest, so was Peyton. She knew Lucas would marry her if his mother said no, but she wanted Karen's blessing.

Karen finally smiled and pulled Peyton into a hug. Peyton hugged her back. "You don't think this is too fast?" she asked, seriously worried that they were rushing things again.

Karen shook her head. "No, I think this is too late actually. You two have been in love since you were sixteen. It's about time you tied the knot," she said with a smile.

Peyton looked at Lily and Lily came over and hugged her soon-to-be sister-in-law. "You better be good to my brother," she said seriously. "If I hear you've hurt him, I'll," she trailed off, letting Peyton fill in the blank.

Peyton nodded. She knew Lily was just trying to protect her brother. She knew that if she had a sister, or brother that was around, they would say the same to Lucas. Actually, she knew Haley had probably already told him as much. "I have no intention of letting him go this time. This is it. Life's too short for any more mistakes," she said.

Peyton smiled at her soon-to-be in-laws and then turned to her daughter. "You ready to go? If I don't stop by and see your Aunt Haley and Brooke then they'll kill me when they find out," she said.

Layton smiled and nodded then turned to her grandmother. Karen gave her a hug and then Lily did. "See you around kiddo, don't be a stranger," Karen said to her granddaughter.

Layton smiled and waved before she headed out of the house with her mother. When they got into the car Peyton turned to her daughter. "Are you sure you're okay with this?" she asked.

Layton thought about it for a minute. "You know, after I got over being mad at you, I wanted to be mad at him. Well, I think I just wanted to be mad at anybody, and he seemed like the most logical person to be mad at. But then I met him, and before I knew he was my father I saw what kind of guy he is. Then when you told me for sure I kind of got angry at him for abandoning me, but I thought about it some. Then the accident happened and I just figured that I can't be mad at him for that. I have to let it go. For myself and for him," she said.

Peyton listened to her daughter's speech. She realized that Layton hadn't really answered her question. Layton realized that too. "Mom, he makes you happy. I've seen you happier today than I've ever seen you," she paused. "So, yeah, I'm okay with it," she added.

Peyton smiled. "Your approval means more to me than anyone else. I'm not sure I would have gone through with it all if you said you didn't want me to," she said honestly, taking her daughters hand.

Layton smiled back and squeezed her mom's hand. Then she turned to face forward. "Stop with the mushiness. Let's just go," she said.

Peyton drove to Nathan and Haley's house and saw Brooke's car in the driveway. That was good; she could tell them all at the same time. She took a deep breath as she walked into the house, Layton following her.

They found everyone in the living room. Peyton had to clear her throat to get everyone's attention. When she had their attention of everyone she cleared her throat again. "Well, I uh, have an announcement to make," she paused. Haley was looking at her with anticipation while everyone else was looking at her in confusion. "I'm, uh, getting married," she finally said, bringing her left hand out from behind her back.

About an hour later Peyton was sitting on the back porch with Haley and Brooke. They were each nursing a glass of wine in celebration of Peyton's engagement. Telling everyone had been easier than Peyton would have thought. All the kids were basically unaffected, yet happy for Peyton. Haley had been excited and Nathan had congratulated her, but Brooke had been oddly silent about it.

Brooke swirled the wine around in her glass. "Where'd you get the ring anyway?" she finally asked. It was the first thing she had said since Peyton had made her announcement.

Haley stopped her chatter about wedding plans. Peyton looked over at Brooke. "It's the ring he used to propose to me in Vegas. I've kept it this whole time," she said. She didn't know what else to say.

Brooke wasn't sure why she was reacting this way. She had wanted Peyton and Lucas to get back together, right? She leveled Peyton with a stare. "You sure he won't leave you at the next best thing that comes around? Once a cheater always a cheater," she said.

Peyton stared back at Brooke for a moment. Then she just stood up and left.

A/N: Don't hurt me. I just wanted someone to have a bad reaction to Peyton and Lucas getting back together. Don't worry, though, it'll all be okay. Reviews are always appreciated.

Disclaimer: I don't, in any way, own any part of One Tree Hill.