Jeffrey Dean Morgan Reacts to This Celeb's Surprising Return to The Walking Dead Universe: 'Always Wanted Her Back' (Exclusive)

'TWD: Dead City' star tells PEOPLE the fan-favorite reunion has been in the works for a while

Warning: This post contains spoilers for The Walking Dead: Dead City season 2, episode 7.

Hot diggity dog. Lucille is back! Sort of.

One Tree Hill alum Hilarie Burton, 42, made a surprise return to The Walking Dead universe as Negan's wife, Lucille. In the June 15 episode of The Walking Dead: Dead City, Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) hallucinates his dead wife as he grapples with a sick Ginny (Mahina Anne Marie Napoleon) and reflects on past misgivings.

Morgan, also Burton's real-life husband, was thrilled to reunite on screen.

"We've been trying to figure out a way to bring her back into the show since she came on the first time," Morgan, 59, exclusively tells PEOPLE of Burton's unexpected cameo on Dead City. "I always wanted her back."

"Eli figured out a way to bring her back, and we did," Morgan adds of Dead City showrunner Eli Jorné.

Burton first appeared in The Walking Dead season 10 finale, entitled "Here's Negan," via flashbacks as Lucille, the namesake of Negan's iconic apocalyptic murder bat.

Throughout TWD finale, the former gym teacher reflected on the events that led him to an isolated living situation, including his attempts to keep Lucille alive after a cancer diagnosis during the early months of humanity's downfall. By its end, Lucille took her own life so Negan could move forward.

On Sunday's episode of Dead City, "Novi Dan Novi Pocetak," which Mile (Željko Ivanek) translates to "New Day, New Beginning" from Croatian, Negan finds himself at a similar low point. Believing he has failed all the people in his life — Lucille, his current wife Annie, their son Joshua, and Ginny — Negan stumbles during a walker encounter, banging his head on the corner of a sink.

Likely concussed and bleeding from the back of his head, Negan begins hallucinating that he is chasing a thief in the hospital. Negan then tackles the theif and reveals the mystery person is none other than Lucille.

In the brief encounter, which lasts just over a minute, Negan apologizes for failing to keep her alive.

Lucille offers only compassion and love, shaking her head no and responding teary-eyed, "You got me up every morning. You washed me."

And while Negan keeps asserting "it wasn't enough," Lucille continues unwavering.

"You got me dressed. You undressed me," she adds with a knowing laugh.

"I think that it does so much for my character having her around so you can see behind the door of why Negan is Negan," Morgan says of their brief scene.

When Lucille disappears, Morgan is visited briefly by visions of his current wife and child, as well as Ginny. It leads him to find a ventilator to help keep Ginny alive, at least for the time being.