That night, Lucas couldn't sleep. His mind was just too full to settle down. He wished he had his laptop with him, but he didn't bring it with him. He thought the impromptu trip to Tree Hill would be just a day or two, but he had a sinking feeling it would be longer than that. But he wasn't leaving Tree Hill without answers.

He was grateful he asked for adjoining rooms. He didn't want to disturb Haley, but she did accompany him on this trip for a reason. She wanted to be there for him as a friend.

She had known about the mysterious woman he had met during his Las Vegas trip ever since he first returned from that trip.

She had mixed feelings when she heard he had not only slept with Brooke, but he had married her. She had teased him for missing his wedding, but she also felt sympathy towards Peyton. She offered to go with him in case there would be trouble with settling the annulment.

Lucas wished their meeting was in the morning, so he could get this over with. He didn't want to be there any longer than necessary. He wanted to get back to his fiancée, who was trying to keep it together.

He was grateful his mom, Deb and Peyton's mom Ellie were now there to help her with the final wedding preparations. They debated on whether to postpone the wedding or not. It was cutting it too close, but they needed the marriage license before they could get married. And they couldn't do that until the annulment was taken care of.

Lucas tried not to worry about the wedding since Peyton and the family were taking care of it. All he had to do was take care of the annulment. Then he could get back to New York and he could forget all about Brooke Davis.

With that thought, he was finally able to go to sleep.

It seemed like his head was just hitting the pillow when he heard a knock on the door. He let out a grumble as Haley poked her head in the room.

Haley gave him an apologetic look. "Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you were already up. Let me guess, rough night?"

"You could say that," Lucas said as he checked the time. He couldn't believe it was already after eight o'clock. "I'll be up in a minute. Then we can go and find some breakfast."

"Do you want to try the Tree Hill Café?" Haley suggested. "I know you're supposed to meet Brooke there at noon, but this gives you a chance to see where it is."

Lucas wasn't really in the mood to argue. "Sure. Like I said, give me a few minutes."

Haley nodded before she disappeared back into her own hotel room.

It didn't take Lucas any time at all to be ready. Soon, they were driving through the streets of Tree Hill. Haley gave Lucas directions to their destination.

When they arrived at the location, Lucas wasn't pleased to see that Brooke's shop was right across the street from the café.

Just as Lucas was about to note how ironic it was for Brooke to have a bridal shop, Haley's eyes went wide as she came to a sudden realization. "Oh my god! I know that name," she said. "She had a booth at the bridal expo last weekend. Peyton and I didn't go over there because Peyton already had her dress."

Lucas then realized it was possible he wasn't hallucinating when he thought he saw Brooke in the park.

"Come on. Let's get some breakfast," he said.

Lucas and Haley walked into the busy café. The line moved fast and they were able to get their coffee and breakfast. They then managed to find an empty table and sat down to eat.

"Hales, I can't thank you enough for coming with me on this trip," Lucas said.

Haley smiled. "Of course." She took a sip of her coffee. "It gets me away from my mom and Deb for a while."

Lucas tried not to laugh. He knew exactly what she was trying to say. "So I can't bring up the subject either?" he teased her. "I can't say how much I would love to be an uncle? Because if you're not careful, Peyton and I will beat you in that department."

Haley took another sip of her coffee, trying to smile. "Maybe you will."

Lucas realized he went too far. His voice became soft. "Hey, don't talk like that. It will happen for you and Nate. Just be patient, okay?"

Haley just nodded as she kept sipping her coffee.

Lucas realized it was better to change the subject. He felt at a loss as he tried to think of something else to say.

To his relief, he heard a familiar voice saying his name. "Lucas? Is that you?"

Lucas turned to the voice and was surprised to see his old friend Mouth McFadden smiling at him, a cup of coffee in his hands. They greeted each other as Mouth recognized Haley. It was a happy reunion between the three friends.

Mouth was the one who asked the questions first. He couldn't stop smiling at his friends. "It's great to see you. I heard you are living in New York now. Congratulations on publishing your books."

"Thank you," Lucas said, smiling proudly.

Mouth turned his attention to Haley. "Are you and Nathan still together?"

Haley smiled. "Yep, we just celebrated our third anniversary last month."

"That's awesome," Mouth said.

"How have you been? I don't think we have seen each other since their wedding," Lucas said. "I knew you lived in North Carolina. I just didn't realized you lived in Tree Hill."

"Yeah, I moved here right after college," Mouth said. "I'm now working as the Tree Hill sports broadcaster." There was a short pause. "And I'm even engaged. We're getting married in a couple of months."

Both friends extended their congratulations at the same time.

Mouth beamed. "Thanks. Millie is really great. I can't wait for you guys to meet her. In fact, you can come and meet her right now. She's right across the street. I'm sure she would love to meet you guys."

Lucas and Haley exchanged looks before turning back to him.

"Millie works at the boutique?" Lucas asked surprised. "So you must know Brooke then."

Mouth nodded. "Yeah, she was one of my first friends when I moved here. Why do you ask?" He looked at his friends in confusion. "Wait, do you know Brooke too?"

"We're just acquaintances," Lucas said, not wanting to tell him about his accidental marriage to her. He was surprised Mouth didn't mention the marriage, but maybe Brooke kept it to herself. "We're supposed to meeting here for lunch."

Mouth nodded understandingly. "How long are you in town for? I'd love to catch up."

"We're only in town for a couple of days. I have to get back to New York," Lucas said as he showed off his engagement ring. "I'm getting married this weekend."

Mouth smiled. "Really? That's awesome. Congratulations!"

"Thanks. I would have sent you an invitation, but I didn't have your address," Lucas said.

"That's okay," Mouth said. "I don't think I would have made it next weekend anyway. But I'd love it if you guys would come to my wedding."

Before they could answer, the bell rang above the entrance, signaling a new customer had come into the café.

Brooke. And who Lucas could only assume was Millie.

Lucas wasn't sure why Brooke was glaring at him as they approached the three. She didn't even acknowledge Mouth. Her focus was all on him. "You know, I really appreciate it if you wouldn't harass my friends to get dirt on me." She gave Mouth an apologetic look. "Mouth, I'm so sorry if they were bothering you."

Mouth just smiled. "They weren't bothering me. We were catching up. Lucas and Haley are old friends of mine. We went to high school together. I was just telling them about my wedding." He kept the smile on his face as he gestured to the woman with Brooke. "In fact, here's my fiancée now. This is Millie Huxtable."

Millie tried to smile, but she looked a little uncomfortable. "It's nice to meet you both. Marvin, can I talk to you for a few minutes?" she asked him.

Brooke remained quiet as Millie pulled Mouth away from the table. Her face was red from embarrassment.

There was an awkward silence before Haley decided to speak, giving Brooke a friendly smile. "Hi, I don't believe we have been formally introduced yet. I'm Haley James-Scott, your sister-in-law."

Brooke finally managed to get her words out. Her voice was now soft. "Brooke Davis. I'm so sorry about that. I didn't realize you and Mouth were friends."

"We didn't know either until Mouth mentioned his girlfriend worked for you. Small world," Haley said.

Brooke nodded. "Yeah, it is."

"We couldn't help but notice your bridal shop was across the street," Lucas said, trying to keep his anger in check. "It's really ironic you chose to help brides with their wedding day when you couldn't even deal with your own."

Haley gave Lucas a look as customers turned their way.

Brooke just glared at him as Mouth and Millie returned to their friends.

Lucas couldn't help but notice Mouth was looking upset.

"Hey, is everything okay?" he asked concerned. "Did something happen?"

Mouth just nodded, not wanting to answer. "Yeah, everything's fine. I should get going," he said. "But we should catch up before you leave town."

"Definitely," Lucas said.

"We should get going too," Brooke said quickly. "But we'll talk later."

Lucas could see she was uncomfortable and she was making the perfect excuse.

Brooke and Haley politely exchanged goodbyes before Brooke headed towards the exit.

"It was nice meeting you both," Millie said again before she followed her friend out the door.

"Mouth, are you sure you're alright?" Lucas asked Mouth as they exchanged their phones so they could make sure they had each other's numbers. He couldn't help but notice how his friend kept messing up his number, trying to put it in Lucas's phone.

"Yeah, it's just wedding stuff," Mouth shrugged. "Don't worry about it. There you go." He handed the phone back to Lucas. "Like I said, please let me know if you guys can catch up before you leave. And I'll make sure Millie send you guys wedding invitations."

"Thanks Mouth," Lucas said.

The three friends said their goodbyes.

After Mouth left, Haley turned back to Lucas with an angry look on her face. "What the hell was that?" she demanded. She didn't even let Lucas respond. "Look, I know you're angry at her, but you are just as guilty as she is when it comes to not ending your marriage. After all, you're the one who went out on your own and ended up at the bar the night before your book signing."

Lucas wasn't happy she was trying to put the blame on him. "Hey, I'm not the one who tried to cover it up. You should be thanking Lindsey for that." He shook his head in disbelief as he remembered the phone call. "I still can't believe she tried to cover it up because she thought it would ruin my reputation. She is as bad as Brooke. Speaking of Brooke, did you see how fast she came over here when she found out we were talking to Mouth?" he asked. "Or how nervous Mouth was when he came back with his fiancée? It's obvious that Brooke is hiding something and she doesn't want me to find out. And I'm not going to wait until noon to find out."

He got up from his seat, ignoring Haley's calls. He stormed out of the café and marched over to the shop.

Millie was the only one working in front of the store. Brooke was nowhere in sight.

"Where is she?" Lucas demanded. He couldn't imagine her too far away since it had just been mere minutes since they left the café. "Where's Brooke?"

There was hesitation from Millie. It was as if she was afraid to answer. "She's not here. She's out for the morning, but I assure you that she will be back at noon for your meeting. She knows how important it is for you two to meet."

Lucas didn't even respond. He just stormed out of the shop.

By then, Haley had caught up with him. She looked at him like she was expecting an answer. Lucas grumbled out an answer. "Millie says Brooke is out for the morning. So I guess I'm going to have to wait again. I'm tired of waiting. I want answers."

Haley looked at him sympathetically. "I know, but you can't do anything about it now. Why don't we spend the morning, exploring the town? Maybe it will get your mind off of all this?"

Lucas let out a heavy sigh. What else could he do? "I want to find a place to call Peyton first."

He hadn't talked to her all morning and he needed to hear her voice.

After talking to Peyton, Lucas had to admit he felt better. Yet, he still was frustrated about not knowing why Brooke was stalling. There was a possibly she didn't know where the marriage license was, but he didn't believe that was enough for her to ask if they could meet.

No, there was something else going on and Lucas was ready to find out what it was.

The two friends took a little tour around Tree Hill, and Lucas had to admit it was a nice town. They found what Tree Hill residents called 'The River Court' and that had to be Lucas's favorite place. He hoped he would have a chance to shoot some hoops before he left town.

After driving around town, Lucas and Haley returned to their hotel to wait until it was time for the meeting. Lucas rested while Haley chatted with Nathan on the phone.

When it came close to the noon hour, Lucas was a little annoyed when Mouth tracked him down and told him that Brooke was changing the location on him. She wanted to have the meeting in a more private setting.

"Mouth, what is going on?" Lucas said exasperated. "Why is Brooke being so secretive? I know you know."

Mouth let out a heavy sigh. He really wanted to tell his friend the truth, but he knew he couldn't do it. "I do know, but it's not my place to say," he said.

"So where exactly is this place we're meeting?" Lucas asked as he and Haley glanced at the address. It didn't look recognizable.

"It's her stepbrother's house," Mouth said. "She's moving in with him soon and she thought it would be the perfect place to talk. I know the way, so you can follow me over there."

Lucas turned to Haley. "You're coming with me, right?"

Haley gave him a comforting smile. "Why else did you bring me along?" she asked.

Lucas wanted to smile, but he was still angry at the situation. "Let's get this done and over with."