Peyton is taken back by Lucas' question that she begins to shuffle on her feet. "Excuse me?"

Lucas looks her dead in the eye and feels more than ever that indeed there is a secret.

"I'm not in the mood to play games, Peyt. Just tell me what the hell everyone else in this town seems to know that I don't!"

Peyton cannot believe the tone that Lucas is speaking to her in. "Who the hell do you think you are talking to me like that? You think that you can just come back into my life and start asking questions as well as demanding answers? That doesn't work with me Scott and it never will!"

Peyton walked away and took Aaron from the café with her. Seconds later, Karen comes out with the ice cream and sees that they are gone. She immediately looks towards Lucas.

"What the hell just happened here?"

"You wouldn't understand."

Hours later, Peyton was reading a book to Aaron before he went to sleep when Russell came home from the fire station.

Peyton wrapped up the story and tucked her son into bed before going after him. She knew something bad had happened that day by the way he came in. She found him in the backyard on the swing set drinking a beer.

"Want to talk about it?"

Russell looks at his beer and then at her with tender blue eyes. She could feel the grief in them and she immediately went towards him and sat down.

"How many?"

"Three. A woman, her daughter, and apparently the grandmother. Smoke inhalation all of them. I could've saved them but I couldn't find a way in." Russell's voice cracked and Peyton hugged his arm and laid her head on his shoulder. Russell leaned his head against her. "Peyton, I was so close to dying this afternoon."

Peyton jumped once she heard that, that she let go of his arm and looked at him with fright.

"Baby its ok. I'm here and I'm still alive."

"No, it's not ok!" Peyton places her hands on his face with tears in her eyes. "Don't you ever tell me it's ok! Don't you realize how much it would hurt me to lose you? I love you with all my heart Russell. You are everything that I've ever wanted in a man and for you to just tell me like that hurts me a lot."

"Did you feel anything today?"

"Like what?"

"Did you feel me in danger?"

Peyton looked around not knowing what to answer. Russell cradles her face in his hands and he touches her forehead with his while he closes his eyes. "It's ok. A lot of the wives don't realize their husbands are in danger until it ends."

"Don't tell me that. Now you're making me feel bad." Tears are now streaming down Peyton's face and Russell envelopes her in his arms. "I love you."

"I love you too Peyton…more than you'll ever know."

Peyton smiles weakly and kisses him on the lips. Both of them look at each other with undying love before Russell stands up and extends his hand towards.

"Want to accompany me to the bathroom?"

Peyton smiles and accepts the invitation. An hour later, both of them come out all prune and in bathrobes. Russell goes to put on his pajama bottoms when someone rings the doorbell. In her bathrobe, Peyton decides to answer although Russell didn't feel comfortable with her doing so.

"Ok, however is there is so gonna die. Don't they realize they're interrupting husband and wife time…"

When Peyton opened the door she felt time stand still.

"What are you doing here?"

Lucas looked at her astound in her attire that he forgot what he was doing there.

"We need to talk."

"WE don't need to do anything. WE have nothing left to say to each other. Why don't YOU go back to YOUR little apartment and leave ME, MY son, and HUSBAND alone. If you haven't noticed, I am a happily married woman." Peyton raised her left hand and showed Lucas her wedding rings.

"Ok, I get that you're married but happily married? Come on, Peyton, a woman who claims to be happy doesn't kiss her ex-lover the way you kissed me that night."

"I beg your pardon? Need I remind you, you kissed me first."

"You didn't step away."

"But I sure did slap the hell out of you didn't I?"

Although Lucas hated to admit it, she was right. He took a piece of paper out of his jacket and put in it Peyton's hand.

"Please read and please meet me at this spot."

And with that, Lucas left in the moment that Russell appeared behind Peyton. She immediately hid the letter in her robe and kissed Russell full of passion.

"Who was that?"

"Nobody important. I seem to remember my husband telling me something about a night full of passion. Do you seem to recall that Mr. Peretz?"

Russell smiled and shook his head as he picked her up in his arms and took her to their bedroom for a night of passion, or in Peyton's case, an hour of passion before she went to read the letter.