A/N: First, Happy Thanksgiving to all my American readers. And Happy Thursday for those who aren't! So, thanks for all the reviews and I'm glad no one had objections of my Dan-love. Anyway, sorry for the lack of updates these last few days, but I've been trying to get this chapter just right. Because this is it. It's the end of the story. Hopefully you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Thank you all for sticking with it. Hope that it doesn't disappoint!

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Later that morning, Brooke made her way downstairs. She wasn't looking forward to telling her best friend what had occurred when she had called Julian last night. Brooke was upset. A little with Julian, but mostly with herself. Brooke had made a promise to herself to make sure that Julian didn't do anything to upset her friend and she had failed miserably. And of course, Peyton had to be up already. Because Peyton never slept in on the days it would be convenient for Brooke.

Peyton was sitting at the table, sketching. She looked up when she heard Brooke's footsteps on the floor. "Good morning, Brooke. How'd you sleep?"

Brooke swallowed hard. "Not very good, to be honest. Listen, Peyton, I have to tell you something."

The blonde looked at the young designer, scared a little by her friend's serious tone. "What is it, Brooke? You're scaring me a little."

Brooke sat next to her best friend. "I kinda called Julian last night. I told him that if he left you guys alone and left town, I'd give him money. He laughed and said he didn't need it and… Well, he made a proposition of his own."

"Let me guess, you for me?"

"Yeah, but not to leave town. Just to not press charges," Brooke groaned in disgust. "You don't even want to know what he wanted for him to leave town."

"Did you do it?"

Brooke shook her head. "No, Peyton, I couldn't. And especially couldn't have done it without you knowing."

Peyton looked confused. "What does that mean?"

"He wanted a threesome with you and me, with a guest appearance from Haley. Can you believe that?"

Peyton made a face. "That would never happen."

"I know! Well, at least never with Julian." Brooke thought about it for a minute. "I think the only candidate would be Nathan, since he's the only guy the three of us have had sex with. And it's Haley's husband, so she wouldn't be cheating on him."

Peyton was staring at her friend, her eyebrow kinked. "What?!?"

Brooke widened her eyes and closed her mouth. Her eyes darted back and forth and she blushed. "Nothing. Never mind."

"Anyway, something must have happened," the blond said. "Did you say anything else to him? Anything at all?"

"No, why?"

"Because he's gone," Peyton told her friend.

"What do you mean, gone?"

"He left. I called his hotel this morning and they told me that he checked out late last night," Peyton explained, shrugging. "He took off without an explanation. No note, no phone call, no forwarding address, nothing."

"Really? I wasn't expecting that." Brooke thought back to the conversation she had with the producer the previous evening. "It doesn't even make sense. Julian seemed pretty insistent on staying in town. There's no way he just took off like that for no reason. You need to call Broody and ask him. He might know what happened."

"He doesn't," Peyton replied. At Brooke's look, Peyton blushed slightly. "I called him earlier when I found out Julian had checked out. He told me he didn't know why Julian left. And I believe him. He was pretty surprised to hear that Julian was gone."

"So do you think, Nathan?"

Peyton pondered the situation. "I don't know. What on Earth could Nathan have done to make Julian leave so suddenly?"

"Killed him?"

Peyton laughed, shaking her head. "No way. You know Haley, she's a smart girl. Knowing her, she kept a close eye on her husband last night. I think we're barking up the wrong tree here. Who knows, maybe there was some sort of emergency back in LA or something. It doesn't matter. All that matters is that he's finally gone."

"I guess you're right, P. Sawyer. But what does his leaving mean for the movie?"

"I don't know," Peyton said truthfully. "Lucas wrote the screenplay and got paid for it. I guess the rest is up to Julian."

-----

Lucas woke up as a ball of conflicting emotions. He was glad that Julian was gone, but he was scared of what Dan had done. He was grateful to his father, but he still hated him for murdering Keith. He was excited to have lunch with Peyton, but was not looking forward to telling her that he had gotten Dan involved. And he knew that he had to have a conversation with his father before he could talk to Peyton. And there was no time like the present. He grabbed his phone and after only a moment's hesitation, called his father.

After a few rings, his father answered the phone. "Scott."

"It's Lucas."

"Lucas? That's two phone calls in less than twenty-four hours. Must be a record for us," Dan said, thoroughly enjoying the fact that his eldest son was calling him once again. "What can I do for you, today?"

"What did you do?"

Dan smiled, grateful that his son couldn't see him. "Last night? Lucas, I didn't realize that you were so interested in my nighttime rituals."

"You know what I mean. What did you do to Julian?"

Dan narrowed his eyes. "Did you talk to him? What did the little shit say I did?"

"No, I haven't talked to him. So, he's okay?" Lucas was relieved.

"As far as I know, he's fine." Dan was satisfied. "He seemed very pleased to be leaving Tree Hill when I last saw him."

"So what did you do?"

"I talked to him. He's a business man, Lucas. I just made him a deal that he couldn't refuse."

There was something in his father's voice that made Lucas worry. "What was it? The deal that he couldn't refuse?"

"I'm sorry, son. But that information is confidential. What I can tell you is that you shouldn't have to worry about Mr. Baker anymore."

Lucas couldn't believe it. Julian was gone and by the sounds of it, still alive. There was only one thing he could say to his father. "Thank you."

Dan heard how genuine the sentiment was and his smug demeanor vanish. "It was no problem. I was happy to do it."

Lucas was taken aback by the Dan's reply. It sounded real and honest. He had to remind himself that this was the man that took his uncle away from him. "So, anyway, I should probably be get going-"

"Lucas?"

"What?" The son was a little annoyed at having been cut off.

"You take care of Peyton, okay? And the baby and yourself, too." Dan paused, trying to figure the best way to say what he needed to. "But if you do run into trouble again… I would really like the opportunity to take care of it for you."

"I'll think about it." Lucas had to force himself to keep his voice hard. "But, I really got to go now. Goodbye."

"Goodbye, Lucas."

-----

Peyton watched Brooke leave the house for a day of shopping. The brunette had tried to get her friend to join her, but Peyton had declined the offer. She was going to be having lunch with Lucas, after all. She also wanted to be alone for when she called Julian. Hoping that he hadn't changed his cell number since they had broken up, Peyton called her ex-boyfriend.

"Hello?"

"Julian?" Peyton wasn't sure if she had gotten the right number. It sort of sounded like Julian's voice and it sort of didn't.

"Peyton."

He didn't sound happy to hear from her. But at least it was him. "So, I tried reaching you at your hotel earlier but-"

"I'm in LA."

"So you did leave town." She shook her head. She couldn't help feeling that there was something that was definitely going on with him. She could just sense it and that worried her. "Okay, what's wrong, Julian?"

"Why do you care?" Julian spit the question out with as much venom as he could muster. The long plane ride had done nothing to help him recover from his injuries. "Why don't you go back to your precious little Lucas and leave me alone?"

"Julian, I'm sorry." She wasn't sure why she was sorry, but she knew that she should be. "But why are you acting this way?"

He chuckled sardonically. "Because I'm just playing my part, Peyton. The part you cast me in when you tried to use me as a placeholder for the love of you life." He coughed violently, bringing a brand new flash of pain all over his broken body. "Your friend Brooke was right. She warned me against trying to get between the two you saying that it never ended well for the third party. I just wished someone had told me that years ago."

Peyton felt awful. "Jesus, Julian, I'm sorry. I really am. I never meant to hurt you, I hope you realize that."

"You did, though. But don't worry, I've been hurt worse since," he told her. Like last night. But he didn't tell her that. He knew Dan Scott meant business and he wasn't going to mess with him. "Why did you call, Peyton?"

Peyton knew how hard this must be for him. Still, he was being honest with her, and he deserved the same courtesy from her. "I just wanted to make sure you're okay. When you weren't at the hotel, I got worried about you."

Julian closed his eyes. Her obvious concern for him was too much. Julian knew how easy it would be for him to fool himself into thinking that she really did care for him like that. But the truth was that she didn't. She cared because she was a good person with a kind heart, not because she loved him. There was only one person who Peyton could ever be in love with and it wasn't him. Knowing that, he couldn't allow himself to fall for her again. She was a dangerous girl, that one. The best thing for his own personal safety and that of his heart would be to keep as much distance between the two of them as possible. He knew it would hurt, but not as bad as Dan would hurt him. "I'll be fine. But, if that was all, then I gotta go."

"Oh, okay."

"Bye, Peyton. Please don't call me again."

And then he just hung up without even giving her a chance to say goodbye. As she hung up her phone she couldn't help feeling a little hurt at the way he had ended the call. She had cared for him while they had been dating. It was a little sad for her to know how badly things have gotten between the two of them. But she knew that it was for the best. Julian was fine and out of her life. And that's when Peyton realized that she was relieved. Now she could concentrate on other things: the baby, her new label, her friends… Lucas.

Her phone rang in her hand. She looked at the name on the caller ID. Well, well, speak of the devil. She smiled as she answered the phone. "Hey, I was just thinking about you."

Her voice warmed him and his face broke into a smile. "Oh yeah? Good or bad thoughts?"

"Good thoughts, Luke. Definitely good."

"I'm glad. So, I'm guessing that we're still on for lunch, then?"

"Of course." She decided to make a move. "Um, you know, I was thinking, I'm not really in the mood for some crowded restaurant."

"Okay…" he said hesitantly. Didn't she just say that the were still on for lunch? He was confused, to say the least.

"So, I'm in the mood for pizza. Why don't I pick some up and come over?"

"Um, yeah! That sounds great. I'll see you soon, okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be right over."

-----

Lucas looked over his room. He had never been a particularly messy person, but picking up after himself had taken a backseat to his writing and his pursuit of Peyton. When she had told him that she was coming over, he had immediately started to clean his place up. Peyton wasn't superficial, but he didn't think that having her step over his dirty laundry was a way to impress her.

When she knocked on his door, Lucas was proud to show off his clean room. He opened the door and grinned, seeing her standing there with a pizza box in her hands.

"I'm sorry, Miss," Lucas said, trying to stifle a laugh. "I seem to have misplaced my wallet. Is there any other way I can pay for the pizza?"

"Perv." Peyton handed him the pizza and then kissed him. "Hi."

It took him a second to recover from the surprise kiss. "Hi."

She smiled at him and he moved towards the living room, letting her in his room. Peyton closed the door behind her and sniffed the air.

"Do I smell cleaning supplies?" Peyton saw Lucas's ears turn red. "Did you clean up for me?"

"Maybe." Lucas set the pizza on the gleaming coffee table in front of the shiny television set.

Peyton bit her lip. It was really cute that he was trying to impress her. "You didn't have to do that, you know."

"I know and it's not like I did it just for you.," he said, his ears still slightly pink. "It needed some cleaning anyway. I've just been too busy with the new book to worry about it."

"Mmm… the new book. Tell me about it?"

Lucas shook his head.

"Why not?"

"Because… I just want you to read without having had any preconceived notions about it."

"When do I get to read it, then?"

Lucas looked into her eyes. "The second that it's finished."

Peyton blushed hard, feeling his intense gaze on her. She quickly changed the subject. "So, I'm starving!"

He looked uneasy. "I'm sorry, was lunch too late? I read somewhere that nutrition is very important in the first trimester. Did you eat enough at breakfast?"

She placed a hand on his face. "Thank you for worrying about me, Luke. But I'm fine. I'm just hungry. Nothing major."

He nodded and opened the pizza box. Soon, they were snuggled up on the couch, eating their lunch and laughing at the comedy that they had found on T.V. She leaned her head on his shoulder and he rested his hand on her knee.

"Hey, you want anything else?" Lucas squeezed her knee gently, just enjoying the feel of being able to touch her freely.

"No, thanks. I'm fine."

"You sure?"

"Yes," she said, laughing slightly at his overbearing concern. "I'm sure."

"Well, just promise to let me know if you need anything, okay?"

"Okay." She gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I promise."

There they sat for the remainder of the movie, physically close and emotionally closer. When the ending credits began to roll, Peyton yawned slightly and Lucas stretched.

"Good movie," she said, turning to look at her.

"Better company," he replied giving her a huge grin.

She smiled at him. "Nice line."

"Nice legs," he said pointing at hers.

She pushed him, laughing. "Always with the comments about the legs!"

He pulled her to his chest. "I can't help it. They're my weakness, Peyt. One that you know about and yet you came over in a skirt."

"So? I like skirts."

"I think you also like that I like you in your skirts."

"Maybe."

He kissed the top of her head. This afternoon had being going so well that he hated the idea of ruining. But he didn't want to ruin their relationship by not being honest with her. "I need to tell you something about Julian…"

"Julian! I forgot to tell you, he's in LA."

Lucas blinked. "How do you know he's in LA?"

Peyton 's cheeks burned. She suddenly realized how bad her answer was going to sound. "I kind of called him earlier."

Jealous raged through him, but he tried to fight it back. Instead, he kept his cool demeanor and asked, "Oh really? How was he?"

Peyton could tell that Lucas wasn't handling as well as he was pretending to. "Fine, I guess. I don't know. But does it matter how he was? He's gone. Isn't that what's important?"

Lucas nodded, still trying to fight off the little bit of resentment. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

"Luke." Peyton lifted her head from his chest until her green eyes met his. "It was nothing. I swear. I love you."

He smiled, her words warming him up and pushing away all the unhappy thoughts. "I love you, too. And that's why I have to tell you something."

"What is it?"

"I did something yesterday that I'm not proud of. I just didn't know what else to do. I was so angry at Julian and had run out of ideas," Lucas swallowed hard, and forced himself to continue talking. "I couldn't just sit back and do nothing as that bastard tried to hurt you like that. So I did the only thing I could think of. I called Dan."

"Dan? Dan Scott?" Peyton searched his face. "You called him in prison?"

"No. He's out on parole, apparently." Lucas moved his gaze away from her, as if he wasn't worthy to look upon her. "Nathan had his number and I called him for advice."

"What did he say?" Peyton couldn't believe that she was hearing this. Lucas HATED Dan. She could never have imagined him going to his father for anything. Not after what Dan did.

"He told me that he would take care of it. And apparently he did. He made Julian leave town." He looked up at the ceiling, letting his head rest on the back of the couch. "I know that going to Dan was stupid and I'm sorry, Peyt. I just didn't know what else to do. I can understand if you never want to see me again."

Peyton took his face in her hands and moved it so she could look at him. He had gone to the one person he hated most just because of her. Her heart swelled with love for him and she kissed him. When the kiss broke, she rested her forehead on his. "I'm not mad. I completely understand why you did it, Luke. Thank you for loving me so much that you would go to Dan. I know how hard that must have been for you."

Lucas blinked. Her reaction wasn't what he had expected from her at all. "It was hard, but I'd do it again in a second, for you." He gave a deep kiss and stared into her eyes. "I'd do anything for you, Peyton, anything at all."

Peyton nodded. She could feel the truth in his words right down to her very bones. She stood up from where she was sitting and took his hand. She pulled him off the couch and tugged him behind her, without saying a word to him.

He chuckled a bit at all this. "Where are you taking me, Miss Sawyer?"

Peyton looked over her shoulder at him, her green eyes dark with lust. "The bedroom."

He felt the heat rise in his body. He swallowed hard, not wanting to jump to any conclusions. "Why are we going in there?"

She reached the doorway of his bedroom and turned to him, her face flushed with desire. "Because that's where your bed is."

Lucas took her hand and brought it up to his lips, kissing it. "Are you saying what I think you're saying? Because I don't want to get my hopes up if you're not."

Peyton grabbed him by the shirt and pulled him close to her. She pressed her body against him and grinded her pelvis against his. "I want you, Luke."

He closed his eyes. God, she felt so good. He knew he was going to kick himself for this later but he had to make sure. "Are you sure you want to do this, Peyt? If you're not ready, I understand. I don't want to pressure you into anything you're going to regret later."

Her want of him grew as he tried to be protective of her. He was always trying make sure that she was safe and that was definitely a turn on for her. "The way I see it, I'm the one doing all the pressuring. I appreciate what you're doing here, I really do, but just stop. Do you want me?"

"Of course, I do! God, I want you so much that it hurts. I just don't want for you to think that it was a mistake."

"I won't." She kissed him deep and started undoing her blouse. "Now, make love to me, Luke, and don't make me ask again."

He kissed her. "That was more of a command than a request, anyway."

He scooped her up in his arms as she let her blouse drop to the floor. He carried her into his room and placed her gently in his bed. Peyton started undoing her skirt as Lucas climbed into the bed beside her. She smiled as his hands traced the lace lining of her underthings, making her tingle. She grabbed his shirt and pulled it off over his head and toss it aside.

"You are gorgeous, Peyton."

She blushed and tried to hide her shyness by fiddling with his belt. He put his hand on her chin so he could look her in the eyes. "I love you and I want to be with you forever. I know you want to take it slow and I respect that, I do. But I want to marry you."

"What?" Her hands dropped to her side and she stared at him, mouth agape. "Are you proposing to me, now?"

"Yeah, I guess I am." He kissed her again, forcing her to close her mouth to allow it. "But I know that you're going to need time and I understand that now. I want to marry you but I'm willing to wait until you are ready to get married."

Peyton's eyes filled with tears. "What are you saying, Lucas?"

He undid his jeans and pulled them off, all the time, never having taken his gaze off her face. "I'm saying that the last time I proposed it was for all the wrong reasons and you said no-"

"I didn't say 'no,' I said, 'someday.'" Peyton forced herself to stay in the mood.

"You're right. And you're were right back then, too. I understand it now. And that's why it's different this time."

"How?"

"I'm asking you to marry me because I want to be with you and our child forever, not because of some adolescent fear. And it's not a limited time offer either, this time." He undid her bra and tossed it away from them, kissing her newly revealed body. "This offer is going to stand for as long as it needs to for you to want to marry me, too. Even if I have to wait forever, I will. Because I love you, Peyton. I know now that I can't be without you. And I know you feel the same way about me."

"I do." She kissed him hard, pushing his boxers down his legs. Lucas grinned and began kissing down her body. He made his way until he was eye-level with her mound and pulled her underwear down her legs. Off it came and there it landed with the pile of the other discarded clothing.

Peyton moaned deeply as she felt him go to work between her legs. His words danced around her head but she couldn't concentrate on them with the way Lucas's tongue was moving about down there. She screamed his name several times before she managed to pry him away from his task and pulled him up so she could kiss him. She felt him pull away and begin his descent down her body again when she grabbed his face.

"Stop. I don't need you to get me in the mood. I'm already there. In fact, I've been ready to go since before we got in here."

He kinked an eyebrow. "Who said I was doing it for you?"

She turned beet red as he licked her lips and raised his eyebrows suggestively at her. She pulled him up again and shook her head.

"Please, Lucas, don't tease me anymore."

Her little plea made it impossible for him to continue his little torture session. He settled his weight between her legs and entered her. Their bodies joining again made the two of them moan with pleasure. She dug her nails into his back and wrapped her legs around his waist. He looked down at her exquisite features and kissed her.

When the kiss ended, he looked deep into her eyes again. "I love you, Peyton."

Peyton nodded quickly, feeling how close she was. "I love you, Lucas."

-----

Hours later, the two laid in bed, tangled in the sheets and each other. Both were completely exhausted from their marathon session. She could feel his heart beating through his chest. She looked up at him with a worried expression.

"How's your heart doing?"

He pressed her hand over his left breast. "It's fine as long as you're here with me, Peyton."

"Stop it! I'm being serious."

"So am I." He brushed her hair away from her face. "But I get what you were asking. You have nothing to worry about. I'm fine."

"Good, because we need you, Luke," she said putting a hand over her stomach. "We need you right here with us."

"Well, it's a good thing that I'm not planning on going anywhere."

Peyton rested her head on his chest, just listening to his heart slow down. He ran his fingers through her hair and traced a finger over her arm. They stayed there for a while, just relaxing with each other in the comfortable silence.

"Luke?"

"Hmm?" He blinked. He must have started to drift off.

"Did you mean what you said earlier?"

"I said a lot of things earlier, Peyt. You're going to have to be a tad more specific."

Peyton lifted her head from his chest so she could read his expression. "When you were proposing to me. Did you mean what you said then?"

"Every word. Why?"

"Because… Yes."

He straightened up a little and looked at her, wide-eyed. "Yes?"

"Yes!" Peyton nodded, her voice firm.

"Are you agreeing to marry me?" Lucas just needed one final confirmation of what he dared not hope to think she was saying.

"YES, Lucas! I want to marry you!"

He grabbed her face and their lips touched and immediately melted with each other. Lucas had never been so happy in his life like he was at that moment. He knew that this was how it was supposed to be between them and it was how it was going to be from now on. They were together and they were going to be together forever. He didn't fool himself to think that their life was going to be free of problems now, but he knew that as long as they had each other, the two of them could handle anything that was thrown their way.

Peyton smiled brightly. She had wanted to wait, but she knew that there was no reason. The two of them belonged together and it didn't make sense to take it slow when they had spent so much time away from each other already. They had hurt each other but their love had never wavered. And as long as they had faith, nothing was going to tear them apart. She still had things that she was worried about and she knew that it was only going to get worse. But she knew that with Lucas by her side, she was going to do just fine. She was happy. She got her happy ending, after all.

The End.

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A/N: So there it is, folks. The End. I'm probably going to take a short break this weekend to enjoy the holiday with my family, but I already have some ideas for a new story. I'll probably start it on Monday, so I really hope you guys check it out! Thanks again for all the time spent on my little story. BYE!