Looking Past The Pretence 

Author: PaulenaK ~ toukalah@hotmail.com

Rating: PG
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Everything WWE-ish belongs to Vince McMahon.
Feedback: It's appreciated.

**

Part One

**

"Hey there, little miss ring announcer. Where you off to in such a 
hurry?"

'God not now.' she grumbled silently keeping her head lowered as 
she continued on, walking past him through the hallways of the 
arena in search of the diva's locker room. Praying at the same time 
that he'd accept her silence as her total and utter unwillingness to 
stop and chat right now and leave her the hell alone!

"Where's the fire?"

Lilian rolled her eye's as he fell into step beside her, totally oblivious 
to her wanting to remain 'alone.'

"Or mayhap's you are late for a little tryst with the people's 
monkey... I mean champ?"

She stopped then, catching him off guard as he carried on walking 
a few steps before back tracking, returning like a faithful puppy to 
her side.

But she knew he was anything but faithful. She'd heard the stories 
about him from the other diva's.

"Only after one thing." Trish had said.

"Cares about no one but himself." Ivory had added.

Nearly every diva had something to comment about him and not 
all good. He certainly was a hot topic of conversation with the diva's.

Lilian loved to listen to their stories and often sought the after hours 
comfort only found within the four walls of the diva's locker room, 
something you had to actually be there to believe considering all the 
feud's and cat fights that went on away from the locker room. She 
knew thats what always drew her back there, that feeling of 
oneness all the diva's had inside the locker room. It was like an 
unspoken rule between the lot of them that upon entry all problems 
were left at the door before entering and once inside they were the 
best of friends.

She suddenly remembered the topic of many a diva's animosity 
stood before her now, watching her with eyes devoid of everything 
but the cockiness he was reknown for, his comment about her 
association with The Rock coming back to bite her on the behind. 
That and everything she'd ever been told about him fueling the 
furious stare she pinned him with.

"My association with The Rock is none of your concern." she spat 
flippantly.

"Ah... sweet Vivian..." her eyes rolled at his choice in name for her. 
"...you see, I have decided to make it my mission in life to know 
every little thing there is to know about you." he smirked resting his 
shoulder on the wall next to him, giving his stance a confident aire 
that made her wish the wall would suddenly disappear... with him 
along with it. "Now how lucky does that make you, hmmm?"

"About as lucky as Big Show's toilet brush I would imagine."

To her surprise he smiled cocking his head to one side as he stared at 
her. "hmmm, now usually I would take offense to a remark like 
that," he grinned. "But I'm actually seeing the funny side."

Closing her eye's momentarily she turned away from him to resume 
her path to what she hoped was the diva's locker room.

"You didn't answer my question," he said, again falling into step beside 
her. "Where you off to?"

Lilian sighed... a relieved sigh as her eyes honed in on the 'Diva's 
Locker Room' sign that hung crookedly on the third door they came 
too and she stopped to sneer sweetly up at him.

"Consider your question answered." she replied pointing to the sign 
before opening the door to step through, not giving Chris Jericho 
another thought as she allowed the door to slam shut.

**

Part 2

**

"Hey, Lil."

"Hey, Ivory." Lilian replied sending a smile towards the older diva 
while waving to Trish who sat on the other side of the room at the 
same time before joining Ivory on the bench. "You looked good out 
there tonight."

"Thanks," Ivory winked back, tongue in cheek. "Now if 
only Bubba would say something like that to me after a match, I'd 
be a happy woman."

"And if you wouldn't get all shy in his presense he'd be a happy 
man," Victoria said as she stood off to the side of them wrapped in 
a fluffy white towel. "Ive, the man adores you, the only thing 
stopping you two from exchanging body fluids is that you are both 
waiting for the other to make the first move."

"Your one to talk, I dont see you declaring your love for a certain 
Intercontinental Champion who just happens to be blonde and from 
Toronto, Canada." Ivory enuciated each word, e-longating each 
syllable as it rolled off her tongue, making the ravenhaired beauty 
blush profusely as the other diva's in the room sounded off a round 
of jeer's, Trish even going as far as to hum the bridal walk tune! 

Even though Ivory's words were meant in fun, Lilian could tell she 
immediately felt contrite at causing Victoria embarrassment over her 
infatuation with Christian, and smiled warmly when Ivory set about 
making amends to the still blushing diva. 

"How about we have a girl's night?" she suggested looking around 
the room at the other diva's, "It's been a while since anyone of us has 
had a night out without one of the guys tagging along."

Trish pouted. "But what if we want the guys to tag along?"

"Would defeat the purpose of 'girls night' for one thing." Ivory replied 
curtly.

"And we'd have to settle for action flicks or reruns of Pamela 
Anderson running on a beach in a red bathing suit with perfect 
hair." Molly added.

"No guys." Trish amended after seeing the light through Molly's 
reasoning. "any guy so much as knocks on the door and I will 
personally kick his ass!" 

Ivory stood to her feet to take a few steps away from the bench she 
had been seated on and turned to face everyone. "You all in?"

The response was alot of excited chatter as the diva's started to 
make plans, deciding who would bring what and the movies they 
would watch.

"What about you Lil?" Ivory asked seating herself once more beside 
the little ring announcer.

"I already have dinner plans with Rock, but I'm sure he wouldn't 
mind going stag..." her words trailed off again an amused smile 
lighting her eyes as she stared back at Ivory. 

"Yes, he would." they both said in unison.

Just then amongst all the laughing and chatter a knock sounded at 
the door.

"Who is it?" Trish called in a sing song voice.

There was a moments silence before a deep male baritone replied. 
"Rock." 

Trish winked at Ivory before stating in the same sing song voice. 
"Liliannnnn, it's for youuuuuu."

Lilian playfully whacked Trish on the arm as she passed, pushing the 
sound of Trish's laughter to the back of her mind as she pulled the 
door open.

"Aloha mama!" 

She grinned like an idiot at his greeting, she didnt know how he did 
it, but he always had her and half the female roster feeling like a 
twelve year old with a crush on her teacher.

"Hey Rock..." she replied dreamily.

"Hey Rock..." came a chorus from behind her and she saw him send 
one of his famous smiles over her shoulder before his eye's came 
back to rest on her.

"About our dinner plan's..." they both began at the same time 
before stopping to allow the other one to finish.

"You first."

"No, you."

"I insist."

"So do I."

"The Rock always puts cute little blondes first." he smiled reaching 
out to push her hair back behind her ear and a very audible female 
sigh sounded from behind her, she turned to see Molly had come to 
stand beside Ivory.

Shaking her head at the two nosy diva's she turned back to Rock. 
"The girls have an 'all girls night' planned and I was hoping you 
wouldn't mind..."

"Having dinner alone?" he finished for her.

She smiled. "In a nutshell."

She swore she saw his eyes darken but it was gone just as fast as it 
had arrived and he smiled down at her with that same smile that 
turned her knee's to jelly although his eyes remained hooded. "Of 
course I dont mind, infact I was actually coming here to cancel as 
well, it seems the director of my new movie 'Rock on Rock' found a 
few flaws that we need to work out so..." he smiled again this time 
turning it not only to her but to the small group of diva's who had 
gathered behind her. 

"So... my breaking our dinner date falls into your plans quite nicely?" 
she suggested with a giggle, then rolled her eyes at having actually 
giggled like a little school girl infront of him. 'Get a grip, Lil.' she 
admonished herself.

"Not as nicely as my breaking our dinner date fall's into yours." he 
winked licking his lips suggestively giving the impression he'd rather 
be in her shoes and attending the 'all girls night'.

Rock held her gaze with his for a few more minutes and all around 
her fell into silence before he looked down at his watch. "Well, I 
better go."

"Yeah,"

"Have fun tonight, Lil." he leaned in and kissed the top of her head 
before lifting his hand in a friendly wave to their audience. "Later 
girls."

Lilian watched him walk away before stepping back inside the 
diva's locker room.

"He is such a dreamboat." Molly gushed as she leaned on the now 
closed door. "You are so lucky to have two men after your 
affections."

"Rock and I are just friends..." Lilian began then frowned as Molly's 
words sunk in. "Two?"

"Yeah," Ivory answered for the still flustered Molly Holly. "You got the 
two most talked about men in wrestling after you, wether you 
choose to call him a friend or not, Lil, Rock definitely has the hots for 
you. And-" 

"Like I said you are so lucky." Molly cut in backing away shyly when 
Ivory pinned her with a glare for interrupting her verbal spiel.

"And then you got that jackass Jericho," Ivory continued. "and we all 
know what he wants dont we girls."

A few choice words flowed around the locker room at the mention 
of Jericho's name. Lilian still found it hard to believe that one man 
could evoke so much ill will from so many women and even harder 
still to believe that she was so quick to condemn him based on 
heresay. But she had to admit, from all she had seen since joining 
the WWE Chris Jericho had done naught to defend what everyone 
said about him, he exuded cockiness with a devil may care attitude 
to the outcome or even the feelings of the person on the receiving 
end and that in itself didn't put him high on her 'get to know better' 
list. 

Rock was just her friend no matter what Ivory said or how much he 
made her feel like a school girl in his presense, bottom line was he 
was a friend, nothing more... and Jericho, well Jericho wasn't even 
worth mentioning, as far as she was concerned he didn't even 
register as a blip on her friend radar... and that was exactly how she 
liked it.

Shaking away her thoughts she lifted her eyes surprised to see the 
locker room nearly empty save for Ivory, Victoria and Molly who 
stood by the door staring at her.

"We aint got all night, Lil."

**
 
Part Three

**

"Man, where are all the girls?"

Christian looked around the small room that served as the hotel bar, 
but alas, not a diva in sight. He sidled up to a table and looked 
around at the glum faces of half the male roster.

"I say again, where are all the girls?"

Bubba looked up but quickly lowered his head again deciding his 
half empty bottle was more worthy of his attention then Christian's 
question.

"In true Road Dawg style, I got two words for yah!" Shane said 
leaning back in his chair to stare around at his colleagues. "Girls 
night."

Those two words brought a horde of grunts and groans from the 
others in the group, all obviously at a loss without their female 
counterparts.

Rob took a swig from the bottle infront of him. "I cant believe they 
would rather sit in a room and paint each others toe nails then come 
out with us."

"And doing each others hair." Shane added. "All while sitting around 
in their nighties."

Secret smiles flitted across all their faces.

"Women." Test grumbled shaking his head. "I will never understand 
them."

"Here, here." Rob said raising his bottle in salute to Test's words.

Christian sighed, his bottle inches from his mouth. "I'd be happy just 
understanding one."

Bubba lifted his head again. "Here, here."

**

"Only night of the week I got off and not a female insight."

Randy peeked over the cards he held in his hand. "Will you get over 
it already and place your damn bet."

"Listen junior, if I want to grumble about being stuck here with the 
likes of you three and a deck of cards I will," he picked a discarded 
card up off the table and flicked it at the other man. "You got that 
you piece of k-rap."

The young man's gaze hardened. 

"Settle down boys, school yard is closed for the day so if'n you both 
wanna get physical," Hunter steeled them both with his gaze. "Save 
it for the ring."

"Dont know why you even put up with his canadian ass." Randy 
threw his cards down, nosily pushing his chair back from the table 
and walked out of the room, slamming the door as he went proving 
diva's werent the only ones in the WWE who could have hissy fits.

"And you chose him as a probable protege because?"

"Because I could." Hunter replied with a shrug. "Tell me, Jericho, the 
stories I've been hearing about you sniffing around a certain little 
announcer..." his voice trailed off as he reached forward taking two 
cards from the top of the deck in the middle of the table. "They are 
just stories, right?"

Jericho looked Hunter right in the eye. "Maybe, maybe not."

"Listen, Jericho. You wanna screw with the Rock by screwing with his 
little plaything, you do it on your own time." 

Neither man's gaze wavered as Hunter continued. "I own you." 

Jericho's gaze shifted to Flair who snickered at Hunter's side like a 
pet monkey with an accordian before turning back to the leader of 
Evolution.

"You dont have to worry about me," his words were clipped and 
forced. "I know where my loyalties lie."

Hunter eyed him suspiciously before accepting what the other man 
had said with a nod. "Make sure that you do, Jericho, make sure 
that you do." 

**

Part Four

**

"Guy you most want to bed?"

"Heath Ledger!"

"Simon LeBihan!"

"Russell Crowe!"

"Michael Vartan!"

Ivory stared opened mouthed at Lilian. "Damn girl, what is it with 
you and French men."

"What is it with you and Australian men." Lilian countered easily.

"Okay, next question." Ivory stated tossing a pillow at Lilian, who 
caught it easily and tossed it back.

Lilian sat on the floor with her back resting against the couch with 
Trish and Molly sitting behind her, their hands busy braiding her hair. 
Ivory was sitting across from her with her legs stretched out infront of 
her while Victoria lay on her stomach painting Ivory's toenails pink 
and blue. Music was blaring from the stereo as well as the TV but no 
one seemed to mind that they practically had to yell to be heard.

Ivory picked up the magazine she had been reading the questions 
from. "Have you ever had sex in a public place?"

Trish looked thoughtful. "Do arena showers and locker rooms count?"

All eyes turned to Trish. 

"What?" she grinned wagging her finger at them. "Like you all 
havent tried it." 

The room went quiet as they all looked at one another.

"Well, judging from the silence that has engulfed this room, I'd say it's 
safe to say our answers are all the same?" Ivory asked wondering if 
her face was as red as the other diva's in the room.

Lilian cleared her throat. "Ah... I would be the exception." 

Ivory's stare was open mouthed again. "Get outta here!" she sat up 
so suddenly that her foot knocked the brush out of Victoria's hand, 
the brush leaving a pinkish trail along the top of her toes. Then 
frowned as Victoria retrieved the brush only to swipe it across the 
top of the toes on her other foot.

"Well, you want them to match dont you?" Victoria said in her 
defense.

Ivory rolled her eyes but by time she focused her stare on them, it 
was easy to see that her pink and blue toes were the last thing on 
her mind and Lilian swallowed when her friends gaze honed in on 
her.

"I havent," She said feeling like she had to explain. "I'm not a wrestler, 
I'm an announcer... I dont get all hot and sweaty like you all do. The 
only time I see the inside of a locker room is when I come to chat 
with you guys."

Lilian definitely didn't like the thoughtful look on Ivory's face. She 
could tell a plan was forming in the other woman's head, a plan 
that she, Lilian Garcia, would be the center of.

Ivory stood up with wet toe nails and great big wads of cotton balls 
between her toes and traisped awkwardly around the room. "We 
have a virgin in our midst, ladies." 

"Oh, fun, fun!" Molly clapped her hands excitedly. "We get to have 
an initiation!"

"No! No!" Lilian cried getting to her feet. "No initiation." But her 
words went up and over the other divas heads.

"The guy has to be Rock." Trish stated.

"No!"

"Of course, Rock, no competition there." Ivory agreed.

"We just need to decide 'where' and 'when'... I'm sure they wont 
need help with the 'how'..." 

"Is anyone even listening to me?"

"What about two weeks from now at Unforgiven?" Victoria 
suggested.

"Perfect, gives us time to set the mood."

"No! No mood!"

Molly nodded. "This is a sure thing, Rock is so into Lilian!"

They all giggled, except Lilian. 

"Dont worry, Lil," Ivory said draping her arm over Lilian's shoulder's. "With friends like us, you cant go wrong."

**

Part Five

**

'How do I get myself into these things?'

Lilian thought as she lay in the dark and stared up at the ceiling 
listening to the light rythmical breathing of the other divas as they slept. She was just a little mousey ring announcer who couldn't wrestle to save herself! She wasn't pretty like Trish, or tall and curvy like Victoria, she was the three P's - plain, petite and passable. Her head told her that with the coming weeks her friends would have there work cut out for them. A smile lit her eyes to sparkling and she turned over so that she was lying on her stomach, burying her head in her pillow to squash the giggles of anticipation that rose up inside her. Deep down she knew this would be something of an adventure for her provided everything fell into place... and no one found out... but all in all she had to admit she was quite excited... and Rock... friend or not he was more then a worthy choice. "Lilian, you bad, bad girl." She whispered into her pillow. 

Reaching out she picked up her watch which rested on the bedside 
table next to her. It was just after 2 in the morning and she was no closer to sleep then she had been when she had crawled into bed.
Lifting the blanket that covered her, she set her feet down on the 
floor, wiggling her toes as her feet came in contact with the carpet. 'A walk.' she thought pulling her thick grandpa cardie over her flannel two piece pyjama set. 'She needed a walk to lure her busy mind to sleep.' Not bothering with shoes, she stepped out of the room, her steps muffled by the thick, plush and scratchy hotel carpet.

Once she had pulled the door closed softly behind her, she set out 
down the hallway, not really knowing where she was going, just 
allowing her feet to lead.

She stopped when she came to a window and looked down at the 
street lights that lined the pavement. Again thoughts of Ivory's plan sprang up in her mind and she groaned, leaning forward till her forehead touched the cold glass of the window.

"Vivian?"

Startled, she jumped back from the window, immediately feeling 
his arms on her shoulders, steadying her as she stumbled. He noticed how she looked up, an almost scared look on her face and he took a step back, removing his hands as he did so.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you." he said and for a minute Lilian thought he was going to reach out and touch her again and she shivered at the thought despite the ill feeling that usually came to her when in his presence.

"Y... you didn't," she said for lack of anything better to say. She 
suddenly felt very self conscious as she felt his eyes travel down her attire, his eye brow quirking as his eyes travelled back up to meet hers. "Quite finished?" she asked thoroughly annoyed now. For the first few minutes he seemed like a normal person then just like that, the Jericho she had heard so much about came into view.

"No." he replied, his eyes lazily travelling down again. 

"Pervert." she muttered pushing passed him to walk back down the 
hall but his arm latched out to restrain her.  

"Sometimes, maybe," he shrugged. "But never when it comes to you 
my little ring announcer."

"Get your hands off me!" she demanded, trying and failing to pull 
her hand from his grasp. "And I'm not your little ring announcer!"

"Would you like to be?" he countered leaning in just a tad, just 
enough to feel her breath ruffle the collar of his open shirt.

She could do nothing but stare up at him. She had never meet 
anyone so sure of himself or his actions! "Your attentions are being wasted on me, Jericho. To be frank I don’t know why your even 
bothering to pursue this, number one: I cant quicken your journey up the contender ladder and number two: my father's not the owner 
of World Wrestling Entertainment!" she saw something flicker in his 
eyes at her words but she was too fired up right now to examine it 
more. "I'm sure you can have your pick of girls! Why me?"

He released her then and smiled, not the reaction she was expecting 
but then again, she never really knew what to expect when it came 
to Chris Jericho.

"Vivian, my little buttercup..." he reached up, his hand brushing lightly against her chin. "For all those reasons you just mentioned above, my sweet." He leaned forward and for a minute there Lilian thought he was going to actually kiss her when at the last moment he pushed himself away from the wall, away from her and started 
walking away.

It wasn't until he had turned the corner at the end of the hallway 
that she felt herself breath again. Her hand came to her chest, as if by doing so it would cease her hearts rapid beating. 'Calm down, Lil.' she told herself. 'Remember all the things you've heard about him since joining the WWE and everything will be okay.' She hastily 
counted to ten to pushed herself away from the wall, sending one 
last look in the direction Jericho had gone before turning to walk in the opposite direction.

**

"Wakey, wakey sleepy head."

"Maybe she's dreaming of Rocky."

"Maybe it's what’s she's doing with Rocky in her dream that's 
keeping her in her slumber."

Giggles filled the air around her and she poked her tongue out 
at them before pulling the pillow up and over her face.

"Come on, Lil, we got a busy day ahead of us." 

'A stern voice,' Lilian thought, 'Has to be Ivory.'

"Yeah, and if we hurry we can join the guys for breakfast."

'A flighty, barbie doll voice... that had to be Trish.'

"Turn on the TV!"

That voice brought Lilian to her elbows and she opened one weary 
eye to see Victoria burst into the room and head straight for the 
small YV monitor.

"What is it?" Molly asked, emerging from the bathroom a few 
moments later.

"Just listen, the hotel is in a frenzy, police are questioning everybody."

"Police?" 

"Shhh! Listen." Victoria said turning the volume switch up full blast.

'And now for local news. A woman was found raped and left for 
dead early hours this morning behind one of Pittsburgh’s finest hotel's, The Hatton Star. Identity of the woman is yet to be released but it's said that she has affiliates within the World Wrestling Entertainment. More on that story later. And now for the...'

"My god, someone was raped?"

"Do they know who?"

"Well, we all know who it's not." Ivory said staring at the other diva's who had agreed to the slumber party.

"Just give me ten minutes and we can all go down and see what we 
can find out." Lilian said jumping up from her bed and making a 
mad dash towards the bathroom.

She couldn't help but think that could have been her they found 
behind the hotel if she had of extended her little walk to the 
grounds outside the hotel. Maybe she should let someone know that 
she had been walking the hallways early hours this morning, but 
that she hadn't seen or heard a thing.

'Well... only Jeri-' she stopped herself in mid thought, 'she had seen Jericho while out on her walk.' she shook her head. 'Stop seeing things that aren’t there, Lilian.' she admonished herself. 'He could of had a perfectly valid excuse for wondering around the hotel that late. Just like her. Just because she hated him to no end didn't mean she had the right to condemn him on the spot... but as she thought about it more she couldn’t help but admit that all she'd been doing since she met Jericho was condemn him.

She didn't understand why she cared... but she knew she had to 
talk to Chris Jericho.

**

//Denote's phone conversation//

Part Six

**

Lilian, Ivory and Victoria sat around the dining room of the hotel 
longer then usual, hoping to catch any bit of information they could 
about the attack last night. So far they had found out exactly 
nothing other then what they had learned back in the hotel room.

No one seemed to know anything and the one person with any 
leeway whatsoever of finding anything out for them was nowhere 
to be found.

"Damn, I hope Stephanie wasn't the one who got attacked." Ivory 
said, voicing all their fears as she pulled her bag up from the floor, reaching inside and pulling her mobile phone out a few seconds later.

//"Steph?" They heard Ivory say a few minutes later. "Where are you 
girl? Are you okay?"//

Victoria tugged on Ivory's arm. "Is she okay? Please tell me she's 
okay!"

//"Hold on Steph, I got a worrywort yanking on me arm.// Ivory said 
into the phone receiver before covering it with her hand and sending Victoria a look that said, 'tug on my arm one more time and I'll strangle you with your own hair!'

Victoria poked her tongue out at the older diva before sitting back in her chair.

//"Okay, Steph... now say that again? Where are you?"//

Lilian's mind wondered off on a path of there own as her eyes 
inadvertently focused again on the door. Jericho had yet to make 
an appearance this morning, although, now that she thought about 
it... she hadn't ever seen Jericho take his meals in the hotel dining 
room. 

She yawned.

If he had any sense he'd still be in bed where she would be if she 
hadn't of been woken up by her roommates.

"Earth to Lilian, is anyone alive in there?" 

Lilian felt someone tap the side of her head lightly with their knuckles. 

"What? Sorry... I'm still half asleep here. What's Steph up to?"

"She got called back to Smack Down, seems there gonna go with 
that father versus daughter angle." she shook her head slowly. 
"No matter which way I try to look at it, that angle just doesn't sit right with me."

"I'm with you there." Lilian nodded her agreement. "But what can 
we do? Vince will do anything to fill an arena with screaming fans."

"Even if it's an arena full of members from the 'I Hate Vince 
McMahon' club." Victoria added.

Lilian yawned again and stood to her feet. "Well, I don’t know 
about you two, but this little chicky is going to make her way back 
to her room and make nice with her light fluffy doona."

Victoria snickered as Lilian turned to leave. "Pleasant dreams."

**

She hadn't been lying when she had told the others she was going up to her room, that had been the truth at the time... but as she got off the elevator and started walking towards her room, she found her feet walking right past her door, rounding a corner and stopping a few feet away from the room she knew to be Chris jericho's.

What had he been doing wandering around the hotel early this morning?Was she game enough to ask him up front? Would he even answer her? A thousand questions hummed through her mind and just as quickly a thousand assumptions sprang up, coaxing her, tempting her into believing anything her mind created, but, above all one question stood straight and tall above the rest. 'What the hell was she doing here?'

"Looking for me?"

She jumped at the sudden voice behind her, her hand clutched her chest as she turned to face the voice and her eyes met the crystal blue of Chris Jericho's.

Lilian felt her mouth open to say something but what that something was had totally eluded her and instead she ended up looking like a circus clown awaiting a ping pong ball.

He chuckled as he looked down at her, moving so that his shoulder was up against the wall beside her and he drew out a long sigh knowing his breath would play havoc with her hair just behind her ear.

"I... I wanted to talk to you..." she managed to squeak, her hand 
moving up to brush her hair back behind her ear.  "...about last night."

"Oh?" his eyes took on a suggestive gleam and he leaned in closer. "Was it good for you too?"

"Oh, stop it!" Lilian hissed, her resolve going 'bye bye' as she rounded on him, one perfectly manicured finger coming up to poke at his chest. "Cant you be serious for just one minute! Do you always have to be Chris Jericho the ass! I came here today because I thought we should talk seeing as..." she turned away from him to look down the hallway as if to check no one was coming before 
turning back to him. "...seeing as we were both out of our rooms at an odd time this morning."

His eyebrows rose at her words and he mirrored her actions of looking down the hallway. Then before she could offer a protest he had opened the door to his hotel room and effectively pushed her through it!

**

AN: Austin is still Co-GM of Raw.

Part Seven

**

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Lilian shrieked, barely able to keep her footing as she stumbled into the room, having to reach out to clutch the back of a chair to keep herself upright.

Ignoring her question, he turned his back on her, again checking the hallway before closing the door. In the silence she heard a click and her eye's widened as she realised he had just locked the door.

"Who have you told?"

"W...What?"

"I said, who have you told?" He repeated, advancing on her.

"No... No one. Honest." She replied, stepping behind the chair still gripped in her finger's, effectively putting it between them. An action that went unnoticed by him she realised by the quirk of his brow and immediately his demeanour changed. Going from demanding to almost apologetic as he grinned sheepishly back at 
her.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to sound-"

"Like an ass?" She finished for him.

His grinned widened. "If that's your preferred word."

"It is." She replied, willing her stare to burn a hole right through his forehead. Then she remembered why she was here in the first place and reverted back to the topic of them both being out in the hallway last night. "Why were you out of your room?"

"Why were you?"

"Will you stop answering a question, with a question."

"For a kiss, I may- Ooofth!" He leaned forward, clutching his middle when her little fist connected with his abdomen. "Guess that's a no."

"Someone got hurt last night."

His expression grew serious then and he moved away from her. She stood patiently with her arm's folded across her chest as he busied himself with the magazines lying atop the coffee table.

"I said-"

"I know." He cut in softly.

"We were both out of our room's last night."

"He shrugged still not meeting her eye's. "So?"

She shook her head derisively. "Maybe I was wrong in coming here first. " She said walking to the door. His indifferent attitude causing her patience to snap. "I should've just gone straight to Aus-"

He was at her side before she could finish what she was saying, his palm flat against the door preventing her from opening it even though she still had to touch the handle.

"Your not going anywhere. Not until we get a few thing's straight." Fear crept up her back as instinct had her taking a step back. He sighed at the look on her face. 
"I'm not going to hurt you."

She nodded, but he saw her fear didn't lesson any. "You really are scared of me, aren’t you?"

"N... No, not really." She lied.

He eyed her for a minute, his expression alone stating he didn't believe her in the least. "Well, if not scared... what would you call it?"

"Uncomfortable."

He laughed. Not a small, behind your hand laugh, but a fully fledged belly rumbling laugh that had her brow's raised in surprise. This was the first time she had ever seen him laugh like that.

"Ahhh!" She exclaimed, throwing her hand's up in frustration, again reaching for the door, this time succeeding in reaching past him and flipping the lock open.

"Lilian... wait..." He said before pulling the door open and sticking his head out. All sign's of his previous amusement gone, now replaced with serious concern as he checked the hallway. "Listen." He said, turning back to face her. "I cant explain now, but come to my room tonight and I will explain everything."

"Why cant you explain now?"

"Because it's too dangerous now. Just trust me okay."

She eyed him wearily, nodding her acquiescence before moving to step passed him.

"Oh, and Lilian?"

"Yes?"

"Wear something, comfortable..." His eye's roved down her body, his expression leaving her in no doubt that he liked what he saw. "...Or nothing... I don’t mind."

She glared at him, her arm's moving up to wrap themselves around her middle as if that action alone would stop his blatant stare. "I loathe and detest you, Chris Jericho." She hissed, pushing him back so she could get passed.

His laughter followed her down the hallway. "Yeah," She heard him say before she was out of earshot. "But at least you cant ignore me."

Turning at the end of the hallway she stopped, needing a minute to gather her thought's, his last word's still fresh in her mind. Her heart beat erratically in her chest and she didn't need to feel her pulse to know that it was racing. Her palm's were clammy and she 
hastily wiped them down the front of her Jean’s. 'God, your like a high school girl with a crush.' She silently admonished herself, her eye's widening at her own word's.

"God, no..." She whispered, closing her eye's as she leaned her forehead against the wall. "Not him... not him."

**

Part Eight

**

"Ah, so the prodigal ring announcer return's."

Lilian jumped at the unexpected voice standing outside her hotel room, her head snapping up so fast she nearly lost her footing. A sharp pain spiralled up her ankle and she had to reach out to balance herself against the wall before she found herself on her butt.

"Gee... Shit! Sorry..." Ivory's face was plastered with concern as she came forward, taking Lilian by the arm and taking her room card from her finger's, she swiped it through the slot provided in the door. Leaving the door open she helped Lilian over to the bed before disappearing into the bathroom, returning a few minute's later a with towel soaked in cold water. Lilian sighed her thank's as Ivory applied it to her ankle. "I'm so sorry, Lilian. I'll go get someone-"

"No Ive, there's really no need. I'm fine." She cut in holding her leg up and wiggling her toes when Ivory raised an unbelieving brow. "See."

Ivory relented somewhat, but not much Lilian saw as the older diva began putting pillow's under her sore ankle, propping it up as her motherly nature kicked in.

"Where have you been anyway? You said you were going to make nice with your doona, yet, I come back here and it's obvious said doona is all alone." She said tugging at the cover Lilian sat on.

Lilian couldn't help the blush as she thought of whom she had been with, his cocky grin and sparkling eye's... 'SNAP OUT OF IT LILIAN!' Her mind screamed and she furiously pounded her fist into the mattress.

Ivory watched her curiously. "What's going on, Lil?"

Lilian barely had time to draw breath before Ivory launched into this major drabble about where 'she' thought Lilian and had been and 'who' with.

"You were with Rocky! I can see it in your eye's. You have that love look in your eye's and now your blushing!"

Lilian was beside herself. "What? No!"

"Oh, come on, Lil. There's nothing wrong with getting a little alone time with your beau."

"He's not my beau."

"Sure he isn't." Ivory snickered. "It's alway's the quiet one's." She continued, stretching out on the bed beside Lilian. Her eye's glued to the ceiling. "So... have you seen his strudel-"

"Ivory!"

"What? It's just a question."

Lilian closed her eye's and mentally counted to ten. There was no way Ivory could find out about her little visit to Jericho's room. Maybe Ivory assuming she had been with Rocky was a good thing. Knowing her friend as she did, she knew Ivory would believe what she wanted to anyway. And it wasn't as if the word's had come straight from 'her' mouth... "Look Ive, I love you to death, you know that, but I am tired, so please get out."

"I cant believe you wont share the detail's." Ivory grumbled as she got up off the bed. She pointed an accusatory finger at Lilian. "You use to tell me everything."

"I promise, Ive," Lilian said walking her friend to the door. "When there's something to tell, you'll be the first to know." And with that said she promptly shut the door.

**

Part Nine

**

"Hey Ivory, did Lilian agree?"

Ivory frowned as she approached the other's who still sat in the hotel restaurant waiting for her return.

"Huh?"

"Hello, Ive," Trish piped up, her eye's agape. "Lilian, Rocky, shower... You went to tell Lilian that we changed her initiation from Unforgiven to tonight because Rocky will be off filming his new movie sooner then later."

Ivory clamped a hand across her face. "I totally forgot!" she exclaimed.

Victoria chuckled. "Some messenger you make."

"Hey, my mind was distracted okay." She replied, playfully slapping Victoria on the shoulder.

"Well, it couldn't have been a distraction of the Dudley kind cos Bubba Ray has been sitting across the room the whole time." Trish said loving the way Ivory's face paled. All you had to do was mention to Ivory that he was in the same room as her and she turned to mush.

"B... Bubba Ray is here?" Ivory squeaked.

"Right over there," Trish smiled, tilting her head to see around Ivory before lifting her hand in a little wave. "Hi guy's."

"Trish," Victoria hissed to the little blonde sitting across from her. "Dont do that, they might come over."

"Precisely my point," Trish smiled cheekily waving again. "I've alway's wanted to know how many way's Rob could bend."

"Oh, god," Victoria sunk lower in her seat when just as Trish had predicted, the guy's came over.

"How goes it?" Rob greeted the group of divas as he wedged himself in between Ivory and Trish.

"It goes mighty fine from where I'm sitting," Trish 
replied not bothering to hide her blatant perusal of his form.

"You girl's know anything about what happened last night?"

Victoria's eye's bulged. That was Christian's voice and it came from directly behind her. Just knowing he was so close sent her pulse racing and she wished she had the mindset right then to kick one snickering Trish Stratus under the table, but her feet felt like they were made of lead. She looked down at them as if her gaze could somehow get them to move. But to no avail. Sighing she raised her head, cocking a brow as she stared around the now silent table. Everyone was looking right at her, including Christian and she turned to Ivory with a questioning eye. Her friend's response was to raise her eyebrow's in gesture to the man standing directly behind her and it suddenly dawned on her that they were all waiting for 'her' to reply even though he had addressed his question to the whole group, it was obviously taken for granted that she would be the one to reply and she couldn't help the blush that crept up her neck at there scrutiny.

"I... that is, we haven't heard anything new." she mumbled softly, her eye's appealing to Ivory to say something.

"We've been waiting here in the hopes of running into someone who could shed some light on what happened last night... but..." Ivory shrugged as if that small action said it all.

"We had planned to met Shane at breakfast but apparently he was shuffled out of the hotel early this morning."

"As was Stephanie," Ivory added.

"You don’t suppose this is another McMahon plot to draw in the fan's do you?"

"I wouldn't put it passed Vince," Christian said, "That man would do anything for his company."

"As we all know," Rob agreed. 

"What we do know..." Christian continued, "...is last night was not the first time a female member of staff has been attacked."

"How do you know that?" Victoria asked forgetting about the butterflies in her stomach for the moment as she tipped her head up to stare up at Christian. He smiled down at her and the butterflies all came fluttering back. 

"Being friend's with the boss's son does have some perk's." he said reaching down to touch the tip of her nose with his finger.

"Well, until we find out what's going on, I think it would be best if you girl's stick with is." Bubba said, looking at each woman in turn, daring them to protest.

"I actually think that's a good idea, how bout you Victoria?" Trish scoffed practically bouncing in her chair, to Rob's delight. "You and Christian could actually smooch for real instead of just dreaming about it- Ow!" 

Victoria didn't bat an eyelash as all eye's turned to her, expect for Rob, who seemed to find it more appealing to watch Trish as she leaned forward to rub her now aching shin.

"Atta girl," Ivory beamed, winking at the raven haired diva and Victoria grinned, suddenly feeling on top of the world.

**

Part Ten

**

"Where the hell were you all night." The leader of Evolution barked as soon as Jericho had entered the locker room they'd be sharing that night.

Chris rolled his eye's, dropping his bag to the floor and seating himself on a bench before turning his gaze to the older man. "Gee, Hunter, didn't know you cared."

"Quit the crap, Jericho." Hunter said making his presence known in the room by towering over Jericho. "You were suppose to report in."

Chris shrugged. "There was nothing to report."

"Your sure?"

Chris thought he saw a momentarily look of concern flash through Hunter's eye's, but it had gone just as soon as it had appeared, leaving only the hard brittle mask of the man everybody knew as the Game. The most hated man in the WWE.

He nodded slowly, not use to seeing anything other then hostility shroud the man before him. Maybe he had been truly sincere when Hunter had first approached him. To be honest, Jericho had been floored when the other man had expressed his concern's for the diva side of the Raw roster, maybe he really did want to protect them, maybe he wasn't the bad guy everyone thought, maybe... he stopped himself then, that was the problem with this whole scenario. There was too many maybe's and not enough fact's. But Jericho had to admit ever since Stephanie had showed up, taking time out from Smack Down to visit with the Raw diva's, Hunter had become even more anxious in finding out who it was who'd been attacking the female member's of the WWE staff, hence why he was stalking the hotel hallway's at odd hour's of the night. Who would think of him looking out for Stephanie McMahon? No one, which is exactly why Hunter had approached him. And at first he wasn't too ashamed to admit that he had out right laughed in Hunter's face, but once he thought about it, he knew he wouldn't be able to sleep at night 
knowing that he could have prevented someone else getting hurt. Even the ex Mrs Helmsley. Maybe Christian had been right in saying Jericho had turned soft. Maybe that's why he was such an ass all the time. 'See,' he thought, throwing his hand's up in the air. 'Too many maybe's.'

The door opened and the other two member's of Evolution walked in and Chris noticed how easily Hunter fell into bad guy mode when his little ass kisser's were there to fawn all over him. He reckoned if Hunter told either one of them to bend down and kiss his ass they'd both be there ready and waiting with chap stick in hand.

"Assclown’s." Jericho mumbled turning his back on all three men while he prepared for his match.

**

"Ivory! Hey, Ivory! He's here! Trish and Vicky are with him now. Have you..." She paused to catch her breath as she came to a stop beside the older diva. "...have you spoken to Lilian yet?"

Ivory cringed. "Kinda," She hadn't seen hide nor hair of Lilian since this morning and she hadn't been able to think straight since Bubba had decided the girl's needed protecting. She and Victoria now had two hunky new room mates... end result, alot of awkward silences and clumsiness for all... not to mention the time it took for her and Victoria to get ready... a girl did have to look her best.

Molly frowned. "Kinda? What kind of an answer is that? You either did or you didn't."

Ivory cringed some more.

"Ivory!" Molly exclaimed, lighting punching her friend on the arm. "We cant very well have an initiation without the initiation girl."

"Will you keep your voice down." Ivory hissed, opening a door and pushing Molly through it.

"Ah, Ive..." Molly whispered, looking around the room. "I dont think we should be in here, this looks like someone's locker room."

"Well, they're not here now, so who the hell cares." Ivory replied shutting the door behind her. "Look, don’t worry about Lilian, okay. I'll make sure she's in the diva's locker room after the show. You and the other's just get Rocky there."

The spark was back in Molly's eye's as she nodded.

"Good," Ivory continued. "Tonight is the night Miss Lilian Garcia's eye's are going to be opened to the joy's of locker room sex. Now let's just carry on like this conversation didn't take place and quietly go about the next order of business." Both diva's grinned 
at each other before Ivory reached out to open the door.

"How to get all the gossip out of Lilian in the morning." Molly said, walking passed Ivory into the empty hallway.

"Oh, yeah," Ivory agreed pulling the door closed as she stepped out. "So, what's it like rooming with Rob and Test?" Ivory continued, neither aware of the door they had just exited opening again and a pair of smiling blue eye's watching as they walked away.

**

Part Eleven

**

“Divas locker room, divas locker room…”

The Rock stopped and looked down the hallway, then turned and looked back down the way he had come.

“Damn. It had to be around here somewhere.”

He’d been walking this hallway for a good twenty minutes looking for the divas blasted locker room.

“Lost you’re way there, junior?”

The Rock rolled his eyes before turning to face that all too familiar voice.

“What do you want Jericho.” He cocked a brow and looked down at the smaller man, his words sounding more like a threat then a question.

Jericho’s hand shot up in mock surrender. “Easy there big fella,” he said, his eyes dancing with mischief. “I was just walking, minding my own business when I happened to see you standing here looking a little lost.” Then he laughed adding. “Actually, you looked ‘a lot’ lost, but then again that’s nothing unusual for you, now is it jungle man.”

The Rocks eyes narrowed and his nostrils flared, two tell tale signs of the anger that seethed beneath his cool exterior.

“You want some of this fine American ass you little Canadian pop-corn fart!” he responded heatedly at Jericho’s obvious jibe at his new movie.

“That ass?” Jericho scoffed his eyes darting down to the taller man’s neither regions. “Every man’s dream I’m sure.”

“Did you want an autograph or something because I’m sure if you get in line behind all the millions and the millions of the Rocks fans, the Rock will promise not to kick your little white ass once it reaches the front, how about that?”

Jericho’s face took on a hurt look. “And here I thought you looked in need, cause face it man, you looked positively needy if I do say so myself and you know me, I love helping out the needy-“

“Get to the point Jericho.”

Jericho grinned, looked both ways down the corridor and then leaned in conspiratorially. “I know where the divas locker room is.” He said in hushed tones.

“Yeah right.” The rock said shaking his head at Jericho as he prepared to go on his way again. “Like I’d believe anything you’d say.”

“I’m serious man, I just came from there.”

“If you’re shitting me-“

“You can totally ‘try’ to kick my ass.” Jericho finished for him.

“’Try’ isn’t in my vocabulary.”

Jericho rolled his eyes and motioned for the other man to follow him, a small smile lighting his features as he started down the corridor. “It’s just down here…”

**

“What the hell are you doing here?”

Lilian frowned not sure how to respond to that.

“Ah…” she began. “I sleep here?”

Ivory and Victoria shared a look.

“We know you sleep here, Lil, but ‘what’ are you doing ‘here’… and ‘now’.” Ivory went on adding emphasis to her words by waving her arms about the room.

“Okay… are you two feeling alright?” Lilian asked flopping down on her bed, only then noticing the extra bags sitting in the corner. “Whose are those?”

“Christian and Bubba Ray’s, Miss Subject Changer,” Victoria said coming to sit beside her on the bed. “Aren’t you supposed to be back at the arena?”

Lilian sighed realising her act of ignorance was proving to be more then fruitless. Trust her to be friends with the only two divas on the Raw roster who didn’t know what ‘pleading the fifth’ meant.

She sighed again. “He didn’t show.” She lied hoping they wouldn’t see right through her dejected look. In truth she had avoided the divas locker room like the plague and had instead invited herself to join in a game of monopoly with Mike, Brian and Jack in the referee’s room.

How could she tell them she couldn’t go through with it when they had gone to so much trouble, she cringed inwardly, how could she tell them she didn’t want to go through with it with the Rock, that another man now invaded her thoughts.

“The next time I see him, I’m going to kick him in the balls!” Ivory stated as she began to beat a weary trail in front of them as she paced back and forth. “Yep,” she continued. “The next time I see him I’m going to kick him so hard in the balls he’s gonna have to catch a plane to China to retrieve them.”

“Ouch! Nasty lady…”

Three heads turned in the direction of the door to see Christian and Bubba Ray standing in the doorway… and by the expressions on their faces, they had heard every word.

“Good luck dude,” Christian continued, right away assuming Ivory had been talking about what she would do to Bubba Ray, then chuckled when his friend seemed almost hesitant to enter.

“Come on in, Bubba,” Lilian spoke up softly. “We’re not talking about your balls.”

Bubba let out a relieved sigh.

“Yet,” Victoria added sharing a look with Lilian before they both burst into giggles.

Ivory at this stage was beet red, her anger forgotten just as fast as the topic of conversation had changed.

Thankfully, Christian had other ideas.

“So, whose balls were you talking about?” he asked.

Lilian sat up straighter on the bed. “No, no one… in particular,” She replied rather hastily. “We… we were just letting off steam is all. Some meditate, we curse men’s privates.”

She couldn’t believe she had just said that and by the looks Ivory and Victoria were shooting her ‘they’ couldn’t believe she had said ‘that’ either!

“Okay,” Ivory said grabbing both Lilian’s hand as well as Victoria’s and pulled them up off the bed. “We need to pow wow.” She continued pulling them towards the bathroom, pausing in the doorway she turned back around to face the room, her arms extended and her hands resting on either side of the door jamb. “And where do you think you’re going?”

Christian looked taken aback. “You said we needed to pow wow.”

“’We’ Christian,” she said waving to the two women behind her. “’We’ need to pow wow. Why don’t you go make yourself comfortable on Victoria’s bed or something, it’s easy to find, her doona has a picture of a big fat moo cow.”

Victoria’s mouth fell open and they all caught the ‘now that’s not a bad idea’ smile that played over Christians features before the door shut.

“Now that that’s sorted,” Ivory said turning to pin Lilian with her stare. “What’s going on?”

“Shouldn’t I be asking you that? Since when do we share a room with
Christian and Bubba Ray?”

“Since this morning,” Ivory countered. “Now, what aren’t ‘you’ telling us?”

‘Sheesh, Ivory could be relentless when she wanted to be.’ She thought, her fingers twisting a knot in her shirt as she pondered over wether to tell them or not.

“Lil,” Ivory began again, leaning back on the closed door. “We’re your friend’s, you can tell us anything… if the Rock was a big ‘flop’…” she grinned as her choice of words. “… or even a ‘little’ one… we may giggle behind his back for a couple weeks, but hey, we’re only human.”

Lilian smiled in spite of the fact that she felt like an even bigger jackass then Jericho. Gee, she really needed to stop thinking about him so much.’

“Lil, helloooo…”

She hung her head in shame.

‘Ivory was right, she should be able to tell her friends everything…’ Her mind wondered back to Jericho. ‘Well… almost everything…’

“I don’t know if the Rock showed or not… I didn’t go.” She confessed.

Ivory through her hands up in the air. “Is that all? And here I was thinking it was something serious… or at least juicy…”

Victoria nodded joining in on the conversation for the first time since entering the bathroom. “It could have gone either way, personally I was hoping for the latter, but there’s always a next time-“

“No!” Lilian cut in wide eyed. “No! No! No! Definitely, ‘NO’ next time!”

Ivory put her arm around Lilian’s shoulders. “We can talk about it later.” She said sending Victoria a wink before pulling the door open to see Christian had indeed made good use of Victoria’s bed, his head nestled snugly in her comfy moo cow doona.

“Best to leave him as he is,” Bubba said from the couch. “He’s real grumpy if he doesn’t get his beauty sleep.”

“Hah! A match made in heaven.” Ivory scoffed stepping out of the way as Victoria took a swipe at her. “How about we call up room service for some provisions and give sleeping beauty a make over?”

Both Lilian and Bubba Ray joined in on Ivory’s laughter, but one look at Victoria’s death glare and they soon sobered, Bubba ray turning his attention back to the TV even though his smile remained.

Lilian looked down at her watch. “Sounds like fun, but I have a somewhere to be.”

“A somewhere?” Ivory cocked her brow. “What somewhere?”

But Lilian was already pulling the door closed.

**

“I’m sorry Mr Jericho, but its time to lock up now.”

“Okay,” he replied waving for the stage hand to leave. “Just give me a minute.”

“Yes sir, Mr Jericho.”

The door closed and Jericho sighed. He absently fingered the strap of his bag before lifting it up over his shoulder.

The door opened again. “Mr Jericho?”

“Coming,”

He paused in the now darkened hallway, the only light coming from the small spot lights that stayed on all night.

“Oh,” he said placing a hand on the stage hands shoulder. “The broom closet-“

“Don’t worry, Mr Jericho. I let ‘him’ out over an hour ago.”

The two men shared a knowing grin.

“Thanks.”

“No, thankyou, you don’t know how much the kid’s at the cancer clinic I volunteer at will appreciate a visit from the ‘King of Bling Bling’.”

“I’d gladly do it, you know that.”

“Yeah,” the young mans smile widened as he remembered other times Chris Jericho had taken time out to visit sick or under privileged kid’s. “I know that, Mr Jericho.”

“Call me Chris.” Jericho said motioning for the young man to precede him.

He turned allowing his eyes to once again go over the room he’d been sitting in for over an hour, he didn’t know wether to feel relieved or bummed at her not showing for her little tryst with the Frock. He shrugged, deciding for maybe a little of both as he pulled the door to the divas locker room closed.

**

Chapter Twelve

**

Lilian waited until the elevator had emptied of all it’s passengers before she pressed the floor number she knew to be Jericho’s.

Stepping back from the control panel she turned to face the mirrored back wall of the elevator and started running her fingers through her hair and checking to make sure she had no lipstick on her teeth. It took her a few minutes to realise what exactly she was doing.

“God, Lil, get it together.” She quietly admonished her reflection. “Your only going to his room because he said he would explain why he had been walking the hotel hallways when that girl had been attacked, nothing more.”

The elevator slowed down and then came to a complete stop before the doors slid open.

“Nothing more,” she repeated stepping out of the elevator and looking both ways before she headed in the direction of Jericho’s room.

**

“Jericho!”

Lilian paused at the end of the corridor and peeked around the corner to see the Rock pounding furiously on Jericho’s hotel room door.

“I know your in there you piece of Canadian crap!” he continued to knock not caring that another hotel patron came out of his room threatening to call management.

Lilian couldn’t believe the anger she saw in the Rocks gaze as he turned his anger on the other man and she lifted her hand to her mouth to still the scream that rose in her throat at the sight of the Rock literally picking the other man up by the throat and shoving him into the door, his back arching as it connected with the door jamb before the Rock himself stepped inside the mans room. The sound of a struggle and muffled cries of pain reaching her ears and then a few minutes later the Rock emerged wiping his knuckles with a handkerchief before pulling the door shut.

Lilian turned and blindly groped for the first door she saw as the Rock started to walk in her direction. Pulling it open she slipped through and shut it, her head went forward until she felt the smooth wood surface upon her forehead and her breathing stilled as she listened for his footsteps to pass, only then opening her eyes not even realising she had had them squeezed shut the whole time.

Did she really just see her ‘cool, calm and collected wouldn’t hurt a fly’ friend beat the living hell out of a perfect stranger?

“Lilian?”

Startled out of her wits at the sound of a gruff male voice behind her, she spun around her hands held up as if to protect herself.

“Whoa, I’m not gonna hurt you,” he said buttoning up his shirt, his hair wet and clinging to his shoulders. “But would you mind explaining why you’re in my room?”

Lilian could only stare.

“I… I’m sorry… I…”

Hunter turned away from her only long enough to discard his wet towel before focusing again on the confused woman standing in his hotel room.

His gaze clouded over with concern and she was surprised when he approached her, his hand gently pushing at the small of her back till he had guided and then seated her on the couch.

“Did something happen?”

His intense gaze bore into her and she didn’t think she could speak even if she had wanted too.

Hunter got up and left the room, returning a few moments later with a glass of water, which he placed on the small table in front of her before picking up his mobile phone.

“Where are you?” she heard him speak into the phone.

A pause.

“I think you better come to my room.”

Another pause.

“You’ll understand when you get here.”

And then he was flipping his phone shut and looking at her as if he cared.

Now she was really confused.

Had she stepped into doppelganger land or what? Since stepping off the elevator nothing in her world seemed to make sense.

She had seen and heard someone she considered a friend beat up a total stranger, hell he may even have been a fan and now the biggest asshole in the business was being nice to her and showing all kinds of concern.

‘Yep,’ she thought as her eyes darted around the room. ‘She had either stepped off the elevator and straight into an alternative universe or she had taken complete leave of her senses and totally lost the plot altogether!’

Her eyes went back to Hunters concerned expression and she cringed sinking back further into the couch.

‘Yep, definitely the latter.’

**

Part Thirteen

**

“Okay, I’m here, what’s the big emerg- Lilian!”

Jericho exclaimed her eyes darting across the room where Hunter stood by the window before returning to the couch where Lilian sat.

His brow furrowed as his eyes took in the way her fingers twisted the material of her shirt and the way her teeth worried her bottom lip. It didn’t take a scientist to determine that she looked more then a little scared, hell, she looked damn near petrified!

He turned to Hunter.

“There better be a good explanation.”

Hunter’s chest literally deflated as he exhaled before stepping forward a few paces.

“Ask your little girlfriend there,” he replied waving at Lilian and she had to wonder where the hell all his previous concern had gone. She raised her eyes to stare at him as if she were admonishing a small child.

“Something spooked her,” he continued although he had the decency to look contrite for how he had started off his reply to Jericho’s question.

Her eyes moved from Hunter to Jericho as the latter lowered him self down on the small coffee table in front of her and she had to force her self to stay seated where she was and not leap into his arms like she wanted to. She had been a parcel of nerves ever since she had stepped off the elevator and only since his arrival had her nerves settled somewhat and now a tingling of a different kind started to flutter up inside of her at his nearness.

“Lil,”

She felt his fingers brush the side of her face and she fought the urge she had to lean into his hand.

“I’m fine, nothing happened,” she was amazed at how calm her voice sounded.

Both men shared a look before turning back to her with raised brows.

“I just got a little disorientated that’s all… I’m fine now.” She continued forcing herself to stand even as Jericho’s blue gaze weaved figure eights inside her head. She jumped as the shrill ringing of Hunter’s mobile phone went off, Jericho’s arm immediately reaching out to steady her as Hunter excused himself to take the call.

“You can let go of me now,” she said softly wanting to break the silence that had enveloped them after Hunter had stepped out of the room.

He complied and took a few steps back expelling a rush of air as he did so.

“Are you sure nothing happened?”

Lilian nodded quickly before turning away from him pretending to take interest in a landscaped water colour that hung on the wall nearest her.

“Lilian-“

“That was Shane, there’s been another one,” Hunter cut in as he burst out of the bedroom. “Who ever he is, he’s getting sloppy-“ he paused in his tirade when his eyes fell on Lilian. “Oh… you’re still here.”

“Fine deduction there Sherlock you were only gone for a few minutes.” Jericho said rolling his eyes at the other man.

“There’s been another what?” Lilian asked an anxious look appearing on her face. “Not another rape,” she continued turning to Jericho. “That’s what he’s talking about right?”

Jericho nodded.

“Jericho-“

“She would’ve found out sooner or later,” he countered stopping Hunter’s protest. “Everyone will find out sooner or later.”

Hunter sighed.

“Like I said, he’s getting sloppy. Shane said Vince forked out quite a lot of money this time to keep this one silent.”

“Oh god, I have to get back to the room, Ivory and Victoria-“

“Are fine,” Hunter assured her before she could get to the door. “The victim wasn’t a woman this time.”

“A man!” Jericho exclaimed his eye brows shooting up. “What a sick son of a bitch.”

Hunter cringed at Jericho’s meaning.

“Don’t even go there,” he said with a shiver. “The guy was beat up pretty bad… and as far as I know that was all.”

“A man?” LIlian repeated her face turning pale as her mind took her back to what she had witnessed earlier.

Hunter nodded.

“Do… do you have any idea who’s doing this?” she asked.

“No,” he replied honestly. “What we do know is that it could be someone within the company as the attacks have been happening in every hotel the WWE stays at, but then again it could also be just a crazed fan getting his rocks off the only way he knows how.”

“And Vince has been covering it up?” was her next question.

He nodded again.

She started to pace her mind working over time as she went back to the night before she found out about the attacks when she had come upon Chris wondering in the hotel hallway. When she had heard about the attacks the next morning she had immediately pegged Jericho as the attacker, but what if she had read too much into that incident? She had also had a dinner date with the rock that night and… her face paled as she remembered the forced look behind his smile when she had cancelled. What if she had kept there dinner date and that girl hadn’t been attacked… what if she had been the one attacked?

“He has to be stopped,” she said more to herself then to the two men present.

“That’s our end goal,” Hunter agreed, but Lilian was passed listening to him. It was all coming together inside her head although something inside her was still not willing to believe all she had seen and just heard, but then again she had seen Rock’s anger with her own eyes.

‘What if you’re wrong?’ she asked herself. ‘What if she ruined an innocent mans life and more to the point… there friendship. And why the hell wasn’t she telling them what she had seen?’

She lifted her gaze and found both Jericho and Hunter staring back at her.

“So you guys are the good guys?” she asked for the sake of something to ask.

Hunter chuckled.

“In a manner of speaking,”

Lilian nodded and began to pace again oblivious to Jericho’s hooded gaze watching her every move.

“What’s going on in that pretty head of yours?”

She blushed at his words, her hands coming up to cup her cheeks.

“I…I’m just anxious to get back to Ivory and Victoria…” she said knowing it wasn’t an all out lie. She was indeed anxious to get back to her friends, but more then that she needed to find some answers to the questions that still circulated into her head.

He stared at her a moment longer before nodding.

“I’ll walk you back.”

She smiled, secretly pleased.

“Jericho,” Hunter whispered stilling the other mans attempt to follow Lilian to the door. “She’s hiding something.”

Jericho watched Lilian as she quietly waited by the door, he knew she had no real reason to trust either of them even after there mutual confession and sensed the truth the other mans world held.

“I know,” he replied simply meeting Hunter’s eyes for a fraction of a second before turning back to Lilian. She again had her bottom lip caught between her teeth and her gaze was concealed proving her mind was on anything but where she was or who she was with.

“I know.”

**

They arrived at the room Lilian shared with the others all too soon for her liking, there trip in the elevator had been a silent one and now as they stood in front of the door it seemed silence was all either of them could manage as they faced one another.

She had no idea what was going through that head of his and his eyes bore into hers as if he were trying to read her every thought and no matter how hard she tried she couldn’t turn her gaze away.

“I…I…”

“…better go inside.” He finished for her and she shoulders drooped when he took a step back allowing her full access to slip her key card in the slot provided.

“Yeah,” she said turning her key card over and over in her hand. “I guess I’ll see you at the arena.”

“I guess so…” he replied.

She faced the door readying the key card in her hand when a thought struck her and she spun on her heel to face him again.

“Why is Rock angry with you?”

Jericho’s eyes brightened and his face broke out in a grin.

“When is he never angry with me?”

Lilian stared at him a moment longer then sighed, she should be use to his round about way of answering only what he wanted answered, but she wasn’t. If anything it only made her more curious and if she was not going to get any straight answers from him that left only one other person.

Swiping her key card she pushed the door open and froze at the sight that greeted them.

Christian stood facing them as naked as the day he was born, bar the sofa cushion he quickly held up to cover his privates and Lilian had to lift a hand to her face to hide the smile she knew would erupt into giggles any minute now, which it did when a very flushed and equally naked Victoria poked her head up from behind the sofa.

“Well,” she heard Jericho whisper from directly behind her. “Now I’ve seen everything.” His playful chuckle halted when Lilian’s elbow hit him in the mid section and he cocked a brow at her when she folded her arms across her chest and turned to look at him.

‘She certainly looks picturesque.’ He thought as he allowed his eyes to wander down her length not even trying to disguise his obvious approval of what he saw.

“No, I take that back.” he said taking a step back so he could return her stare with a very lecherous one of his own. “I haven’t seen ‘everything’ at all.”

**

Part Fourteen

**

Her cheeks had never been as red as she knew they had to be now and judging by the colour staining Christian’s cheeks he had to be feeling the exact same thing she was experiencing – embarrassment in all sense of the word bordering in ‘ground open up and swallow me!’”

She didn’t know when Christian had moved only thankful that he had when she felt him drape his shirt around her shoulders.

“We… we’re together now-“ he began.

“It’s really none of our business,” Lilian cut in sending Victoria a smile. “You’re both adults just pretend we were never here.”

She started to back out of the doorway tugging a resistant Jericho with her.

“Why’d you go and do that for?” he complained once the door was closed.

“Because Victoria is my friend and I want her to be happy.” She replied over her shoulder, not waiting for him as she walked back towards the elevator.

“Well Christian is my friend and I wanted to stand there and laugh at him.” He said trailing after her. “Where you going, hey, wait up…”

“I dunno… the bar I guess,” she replied. “Why where are you going?” she added when he joined her at the elevator.

He grinned.

“I dunno… the bar I guess.”

**

“Stephanie?”

“Hunter.” She replied smoothly not waiting for an invite as she brushed passed him into his hotel room.

“Come right on in,” he said shutting the door.

She watched as he went back to the couch and turned the volume up on the TV.

“What can I do for you?” he said after humming along to the tune of the ‘Mentos’ commercial.

“I want to know everything about the attacks.”

He froze.

She wasn’t supposed to know about any of the attacks, Shane had assured him only the male gender of the all powerful McMahon family knew of the attacks and that’s how it was supposed to stay.

“Attack’s?”

“Don’t play dumb Hunter, I overheard Shane talking on the phone-“

“Meaning you were snooping outside his door,” he cut in and she rolled her eyes.

“Can I finish?”

“Please.”

“As I was saying, I overheard Shane talking on the phone, he seemed very upset and angry about something so I continued to listen.” She shrugged as if it had been her right to eavesdrop on her brother’s conversation.

“He mentioned a lot of things, things I should have been aware of because not only to I walk the corridors of the hotels and arena’s we frequent, but so do a lot of my friends, who I am guessing are as clueless about what’s going on as I was before I overheard Shane’s conversation!”

Hunter cringed as she screeched that last part.

“Why are you asking me?” he said his voice also rising in tone.

She stood in front of the TV monitor forcing him to look up at her.

“Because Mr Big Bad Ex Husband, when Shane left I went in, picked up the receiver and hit redial.” She said glaring down at him.

Okay, she had him there and he also knew if he told her what was going on she’d go postal at him, at Shane and then at her father. The latter of which wouldn’t be so bad he couldn’t help but muse, but as tempting as it was by doing so it would also alert the sicko, whoever he was, that they were on to him or worse, Stephanie may end up the ‘attackee’ and there was no way on gods green earth that he was going to let that happen.

He cast her a side long glance.

She was here now… and knowing how stubborn his ex wife was he knew she wasn’t about to leave anytime soon, at least not until she got what she had come for.

‘Wait for it… wait for it…’ he told himself and then as if on cue she uttered the words he’d been waiting for.

“I’m not leaving until I get some answers.” She declared and as if to prove her words she lowered herself down next to him on the couch.

Hunter shrugged.

“Fine.”

He picked up the remote again and started flipping through the channels, his crooked half smile peeking into view as Stephanie stewed next to him.

‘Too easy…’

**

Part Fifteen

**

“What’s this?” Stephanie asked as Hunter pushed a small cart in front of her.

“Dinner,” he replied seating himself beside her.

“You mean you’re not going out with your little band of Hunterettes?”

His look was deadpan.

“Believe it or not I don’t spend every minute of the day with Flair and the others.”

“You did while we were married.” She grumbled under her breath.

“Do you blame me?”

He regretted the words as soon as they had left his mouth, but there was no way to retract them now. He noticed she did what she always did when faced with this situation, she folded her arms across her chest, clamped her teeth shut and glared blue bloody murder!

“Look,” he said lifting the lids off the trays on the cart. “Let’s just eat okay?”

Her eyes widened as she looked down at the cart.

“Is this your way of telling me I’m too skinny?”

He quirked a brow and followed her gaze to the various dishes laid out before them. Pasta, steak, fish, steaming hot vegetables, soup and even four different types of dessert.

He lifted his gaze and grinned sheepishly at her.

“I… I kinda forgot what you liked.” He explained. “So I ordered everything on the menu.”

“Oh.” She responded simply and continued to stare at him.

He cleared his throat suddenly feeling very exposed.

“Yeah… ah… let’s eat and then we can go to bed.”

Her eyes widened again.

“Not together!” he quickly added. “I mean… you on the bed and me on the couch… you probably don’t have a room here so it makes sense for you to stay… right?”

Stephanie remained silent.

She thought about why she was here in the first place and the fact that since she had stepped over the threshold Hunter had given her zilch information in regards to the attacks.

“Right?” he pressed.

“Wrong.” She stated pushing the cart away so she could get to her feet. “I’m outta here.”

“Outta here? Where the hell you gonna go?”

She planted her hands on her hips.

“Well I’m not getting any answers here, am I? So maybe if I walk the hallways long enough I’ll…”

Hunters nostrils flared as anger over took his senses, he could see her mouth moving but the sounds she made were lost on him, all he could think about was the attacker laying his hands on ‘his’ wif- Stephanie.

‘There’s only one thing to do.’ He mused as she tried to push passed him. Slipping his arm around her waist he spun her around and crushed her lips with his.

**

“You are such a prick… has anyone ever told you that?”

Jericho burped, patted his chest with the palm of his hand and then burped again.

Lilian giggled.

“You,” she slurred poking him in the chest with her finger. “You’re funny.”

“And you’re drunk.” He stated reaching out to steady her when she nearly lost her seat on the stool.

“I’m not the only one,” she said in a sing song voice.

He chuckled and Lilian’s face sobered at the sound.

“No,” she said shaking her head. “You’re not a prick at all… you’re…” her face scrunched up in concentration as if she were trying to find the right word.

“You’re… nice.” She continued giggling again when his brows met in the middle. “Nice and cute and funny and all other good stuff a girl would want to take home to show mommy.”

He grinned.

“You forgot roguishly handsome.”

“Yep, I did.” She nodded. “But first…” she leaned closer to him. “Take me to your room.”

He choked on his beer.

“W… what?” he sputtered.

“I know you want too…” she whispered losing her balance and falling forward, right into his chest.

“Okay, time to go I think,” he said pulling some money out of his pocket and dropping it on to the bar before lifting up a drunk Lilian and hauling her over his shoulder.

“Jericho?” she mumbled as he made his way to the elevator.

“Hmmm?”

“You have a cute butt.”

**

The next morning…

A crowded table inside the hotel restaurant was alive with jolly wrestlers causing more then a few raised brows to be cast there way from other hotel patrons who cluttered the room all intent on starting there morning off on the right foot.

“Oh my god!” Ivory exclaimed wiping tears of laughter from her eyes.

“She had to physically pull Jericho out of the room!” Victoria screeched in between bouts of laughter.

“We can laugh about it now,” Christian added draping an arm around
Victoria’s shoulders. “But last night it was anything but laughable.”

“Hah!” Bubba Ray scoffed. “The CLB getting caught with his pants down is very laughable. Man, your butt is gonna be the talk of the town for a long time to come.”

Christian merely shrugged and leaned back in his chair, his cocky smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

“Well, if somebody’s gotta do it… it may as well be me.”

“And let’s not forget me.” Victoria added sending him a wink.

He leaned forward and kissed the tip of her nose.

“If anybody so much as mentions your fine ass in my presence then they better have ambulance insurance.”

She grinned and battered her eye lashes.

“My hero.”

“Gee, would you look at that,” Ivory exclaimed as all members of Evolution walked in with a scowling Stephanie McMahon on the heels of there prestigious leader.

“What’ll you think that’s all about?” Bubba asked quirking a brow.

“I have no idea…” Ivory replied with a shake of her head.

“Maybe Mr and Mrs Trip’s are planning on making a comeback.” Christian suggested glad the topic of conversation had been diverted from his and Victoria’s budding relationship.

“Forget them,” Victoria said nodding in the direction of the entrance. “I believe couple number two make a far more interesting combination.”

The group turned as one towards the entrance to see Jericho and Lilian pass through the doorway.

“Well, well, well,” Ivory said sharing a look with Victoria. “Cupid is working over time.”

“Yep,” Victoria agreed a smile coming to her face when Chris pulled Lilian’s chair out for her before seating himself. “And not all observers seem happy about it.” She added catching the dark glare the Rock sent the newly seated couple.

“Maybe they just met on the way down and decided to share a table.” Bubba Ray mused aloud.

“Highly unlikely.” His 3 companions all said in unison, the same silly little grin on all there faces as they continued to stare.

“Aw well,” he continued placing his elbow on the table so he could lean his chin on his hand and turned his gaze back to Jericho and Lilian. “If you cant beat ‘em, join ‘em.”

And he did just that.

**

Part Sixteen (a)

**

The night before…

She couldn’t see anything for a moment the quick transition from horizontal to vertical made her head swim as much as his kisses did.

His body half covered hers, his mouth preventing any protests, not that she had thought to make any. She was too dazed. It happened all too quickly and she wasn’t even sure why? His reluctance to answer her questions didn’t make any sense to her and the fact that he was kissing her didn’t either.

But damn did it feel good!

His hands were moving now her brain registered before his kiss consumed what was left of her senses, but when his palm covered her breast, the abnormal heat from it was the first clue that there was no longer a cloth barrier between them. Losing all feeling in her body other then where his hand touched was the second. ‘Yep’ her shirt had been unbuttoned and her camisole pushed askew.

Panic rose up in her at that point, but was soon over taken by modesty when she realised she was half naked on the floor of a hotel room. She managed to break the kiss for a moment and gasped out.

“What if someone comes in here?”

“Do you care? I don’t.” was his reply.

She had to think about that, yet how could she think when he was still caressing her breast? Actually, if he stopped right now – she’d probably cry.

No, she didn’t care either. If someone did show up, she’d worry about it then.

His mouth found hers again and his teeth nipped at her lips questioningly. She wrapped her arms around his neck, her silent answer. His kiss got more ravenous, his tongue exploring deeply and she lost all thought again.

His caresses became more bold, sweetly rough, his breathing as ragged as hers. She had a feeling he was caught up in his own passion and knowing that only heightened hers.

She felt his mouth move lower and suckle on her neck. It tickled and made her want to curl around him. Lower still his mouth travelled until his lips had surrounded her breast. She knew his mouth wasn’t that hot yet she felt scorched there and afraid that he was trying to fit the entire mound into his mouth. Impossible! Her breasts weren’t that small, even before the enlargements, yet it didn’t seem like he was gonna give up trying.

Vaguely she felt him fighting with her skirt and realised that he wanted it off and having no luck – so it was no surprise to her when he decided on a different route.

“There should be a law against women wearing clothes that don’t undo easily.” He growled just before he ripped her skirt right off her!

She felt like laughing and surprised herself by giving in to the urge, then teased him in a prim tone.

“Do you really want to get naked on the floor space in front of the TV?”

“I don’t remember there being a TV,” he teased back.

“Was that a yes?”

He laughed now, a great burst of laughter and rolled over pulling her with him. He positioned her so that she was sitting across his waist with her knees bent at his sides. His hands covered her breasts again, kneading them and her head dropped back with a moan she couldn’t contain.

He sat up then and somehow she found herself on her back with her legs in the air. His breath was hot on her belly, his chest warm against her thighs as his mouth worked it’s way down, his tongue working its magic in sending her so close to the edge she thought she might topple over without him, but then he started to kiss his way back up stopping only when there mouths met again.

He paused long enough to grin down at her, that boyish grin so handsome and she felt that familiar swirling sensation that only he could cause in her and he must have sensed what she was feeling because his expression turned so sensual… so loving…

She didn’t have long to dwell on her thoughts as his mouth found hers again, this time though his kiss was ardent and his intentions clear and even before she realised it her legs were parting and he had entered her. He was thrusting deeply into her again and again, and within moments it carried her right over the brink and into the most sublime ecstasy she had only ever known with him.

They were both still again, there breathing slowly returning to normal. He stared down at her for the longest moment and without thought of her actions she glared up at him, but before either of them could say anything a knock sounded on the door and Rick Flair’s voice carried through to them.

“Hunter, are you in there?”

“Damn.” Hunter whispered letting his head fall to her shoulder.

The knock came again and Randy Orton’s voice was heard this time.

“Hunter, come on man. The girls are waiting.”

That was all Stephanie needed to hear. Planting both her hands at his chest she shoved and squirmed until she had slipped out from under him and snatched up a throw rug that lay across the back of the sofa to cover her nakedness.

“Just give me a minute and I’ll get rid of them…” Hunter began, but he needn’t have bothered he saw as she disappeared into the bedroom, the door slamming shut behind her.

“Damn!” he cursed again staring at the closed door a moment before pulling on his jeans and getting up to cross the carpeted floor to the door.

He yanked the door open.

“What!” He barked.

Randy stood there and grinned.

“Hey man, we got the gold and we got the girls, you coming?”

“NO!” Hunter barked before slamming the door in his face.

Randy stood there with his mouth open, but it didn’t take long for his cocky smirk to appear back on his face.

“Cool,” he said his shoulders lifting in a careless shrug as he turned to face Flair. “More for me.”

**

Part Sixteen (b)

**

The night before…

Jericho balanced Lilian a top his shoulders as he fought with gravity to secure a hold on his hotel room key card in the back pocket of his jeans.

‘Why couldn’t you have put it in a front pocket?’ he asked himself, shaking his head in frustration when he nearly dropped his burden.

“You’re lucky you’re a feather weight,” he mumbled easily adjusting Lilian’s weight more securely over his shoulder. “Ah, success!” he exclaimed when he brought his hand up with his key card between his fingers and swiped it without a second thought. The door swung open easily and it only took him a few moments to reach the bed and lay LIlian gently on top of it.

He watched her for a couple moments more as in her slumber she shifted on to her side her hand moving up to cushion her cheek and listened for her breathing to slow to an even steady rhythm.

“Sleep sweet, Lilian…” he whispered leaning down to lightly kiss her cheek. “…and let me do all the rest.”

**

The next morning…

She lay on top of the bed as still and as stiff as a board, a position she had maintained since waking up this morning.

Her eyes darted to the side before snapping back up to the ceiling when again her gaze had met the rise and fall of a very male chest.

She cringed.

‘What had she done?’

He shifted next to her and she stiffened anew when his arm shot out to pull her back against him, spooning her body with his and an uncomfortable sigh escaped her lips when his chin brushed across her shoulder and his breath fanned her neck.

‘You have to get out of here…’ she told herself almost painfully. ‘…or at least away from the heat of his body...’ her eyes fluttered closed and she sighed again this time from the feeling his chin rubbing against the back of her neck caused and her eyes snapped open again ‘…while you still have your wits about you!’

The sight of her shirt draped over the chair arm gave her courage and she began to slide her leg out from under his.

Bad move.

He seemed to sense her need for escape and he merely flung his leg more firmly over the both of hers, hooking his foot around her ankle.

‘Great,’ she thought her eyes on the ceiling again. ‘Just great.’

**

When Lilian again opened her eyes she was alone in the bad. She didn’t remember dozing off, but since she was still here in only her underwear it was obvious she did.

The bathroom door was slightly ajar and although the sound of water bursting through the shower head was non existent, the tell tale sign of steam seeping through the gap proved that its occupant had just finished using it.

That suspicion was confirmed when Chris walked out of the bathroom still dripping wet with only a towel wrapped loosely around his hips… and he was whistling! And it wasn’t just any whistle. It was an ‘I just got laid – aren’t you proud?’ whistle!

She quickly shut her eyes again when he walked passed the bed to his bag which sat on a chair and started rifling through it. She opened her eyes again, peered over the covers and cleared her throat.

Nothing.

She was about to clear her throat again a little louder this time, but ended up choking on it when he dropped said towel!

He turned and grinned.

“Morning,” he said not attempting to hide his nakedness and then laughed outright when she pulled the bed covers back up over her head.

“Morning,” she squeaked from underneath the covers. “Um…” she continued pulling the covers down so only her eyes showed. “…did we… um…”

“OD on vitamin C?”

The covers went up again causing him to chuckle more before he took pity on her and retrieved his towel and secured it around his waist.

“No,” he said and when she again pulled the covers down he shook his head and pointed to the couch which had been fashioned into a makeshift bed.

She frowned.

“But I awoke before and you were in the bed… beside me…”

He laughed.

“I was?”

She nodded.

He turned away from her and started rifling through his bag again.

“Seems you had the better dream,” he said to her over his shoulder. “All I dreamed about was yellow corn growing in a field.”

“It wasn’t a dr-“ Her words got cut off as a mobile phone started ringing. ‘Her’ mobile phone. She saw him reach for it on the dresser, flip it open, answer and then just as quickly flip it shut again.

“Like what you see?” he teased when he caught her staring.

“W… was that my phone?” she hastily changed the subject.

He grinned again and Lilian groaned. If he kept that up she was gonna drown in a puddle of her own drool. God, did he know how sexy he looked right now?

“Whoever it was hung up,” he said tossing her phone to her and she just managed to snatch at it before it bounced off the bed and still hold the bed covers to her chest at the same time. When she looked up again she saw he was grinning again obviously he had been hoping she’d make a dive for the phone and forget about the covers.

With a roll of her eyes she flipped her phone open and pressed through the options to see who her last caller had been and she nearly dropped it again when she saw whose number it was.

“Anything important?” He asked the sound of his voice breaking into her thoughts.

“Ah… no… just the girls.” She managed to reply although she doubted he believed her, but wether he did or not was the furtherest thing from her mind right now.

The number and caller ID still fresh in her mind she hadn’t realised that she’d thrown the bed covers off of her and now stood in nothing but her underwear. He cocked a brow, but she paid him no heed as she grabbed her clothes and flounced into the bathroom emerging 10 minutes later all fresh and ready to face the world.

His look told her that he was more then surprised by her actions and with good reason she mused considering she had spent a good part of her waking state cowering beneath the covers.

“Let’s eat,” she said not waiting for his answer as she headed for the door.

“Gee,” she heard him mumble from behind her. “I’m so glad you’re not the shy pushy type.”

She actually blushed at his comment and hoped he didn’t see, she had to have some excuse to get out of his room and she had every intention of soon being out of his company.

She had someone else she needed to talk too, the same someone who had called her mobile this morning and then hung up when Chris had answered… and although she was starting to ‘like’ being in Chris’s company, she couldn’t do any of ‘that’ with him around.

**

Part Seventeen

**

“So what do you want to do today?”

The coffee cup that had been on route to her mouth stilled halfway to its destination and her eyes flickered up to meet his ‘still’ smiling blue ones. She swore his eyes hadn’t dropped there spark since they’d entered the hotel restaurant. What the hell did he have to be so ‘sparky’ about anyway? He didn’t get lucky last night, she herself had seen the state of the couch this morning all rumpled and disorderly like someone had spent a restless night there. At least that’s what she thought.

“I beg your pardon?” she managed to say in reply, her hand continuing on its journey.

“Today, I checked our schedules this morning and we’re both free so I thought we’d take in some of the sights or something.”

“Oh…” LIlian began setting her coffee cup back down on the table. “Rain check?”

His brows rose.

“Rain check?” he repeated the word as if it were a dirty thing. “I don’t think I’ve ever gotten one of those before.”

“I just have some stuff I need to do this morning,” she explained, then wondered why the hell she was explaining. He wasn’t her husband or anything major like that, she didn’t have to tell him squat. Then why was she?”

He shrugged and then smiled.

“I’ll tag along-“

“No!” she cut in a little too loudly, then blushed when she realised everyone in the restaurant had turned to look at her. “That is… the ‘stuff’ that I need to do today is…”

“Yes?” he prompted when her words trailed off.

“… is… is…” she spotted Ivory and Victoria sitting at a back table with Bubba and Christian. “…is girl stuff, you know facials, waxing, manicures, pedicures…” she sent him a grin very pleased with her answer. “believe me you’ll be bored to tears.”

He stared at her for a few minutes and she feared he had seen right through her lie, if he did or not he didn’t give anything away.

“I’m sure I wouldn’t be…” he replied then lifted his hand to silence her when she opened her mouth to protest. “…but I can take a hint.”

She smiled sweetly at him then her mind starting to come up with excuses for her to leave the table.

‘What am I doing?’ she asked herself when she realised she was doing it again. ‘You are your own person, there’s nothing stopping you from getting up and walking away, right?’

“Right,” she stated out loud.

“Right what?”

She blushed again she seemed to be doing that non stop ever since she opened her eyes this morning.

“Oh… nothing, just talking to myself.”

“Talking to yourself…” he repeated his tone telling her he knew there was more to it then that.

“Yeah, I do it a lot,” she explained again and gave herself a mental kick. ‘Stop doing that!’ She pushed her chair back and got up. She better leave before she started calling her ‘Mrs Jericho’.

“I should go,” she said not meeting his eyes. “…early appointments and all that…”

‘Wuss,’ a little voice inside her snickered.

“Well, bye.”

And then she was walking towards the door knowing too well that once Jericho saw Ivory and Victoria across the room he would know she had lied. How she made it out of there without falling flat on her face she had no idea. It wasn’t until she was inside the elevator watching the doors slide close that she suddenly remembered to breathe.

**

Women! They were all the same – Two faced sluts. Give a woman an inch and she’d take a mile. They’d be all smiled and nice like when you got something they want wether it be your money or your dick. Hell, he’d been with his share of wannabe divas, he paid them the attention they craved, gave them a little down time between the sheets and then moved on with a lot of empty promises thrown in just for fun. He knew what they expected from him and he never failed to give it to them, but he had expected different from her.

Okay, so technically he hadn’t bedded her yet, but hey, all good things come to those who wait, at least that’s what his mama always told him.

So he had waited. He became her friend instead and with each passing day that friendship grew more and more into something beautiful and he hadn’t needed all those other women. She kept him sane, until Jericho started to show an interest. A subtle interest at best, but am interest nonetheless. An interest that made him see red, made him have to do all those things to the others just to keep himself from doing it to her. He knew he could have had her at any time, but he had wanted more with her, had wanted her to want him as much as he wanted her.

And now that was never going to be. Why? Because she was just like ‘them’. A two faced slut who deserved the same attention he had bestowed on the others. And by god she would get it.

After witnessing Lilian and Jericho enter the hotel restaurant the Rock had returned to his room only to see them in his minds-eye, except in his mind they weren’t just having breakfast. They were naked, there bodies pulsating, thriving… melding as one. He began to pace then, long and powerful strides from one end of the room to the other.

How dare she!

His fists clenched.

She will pay! She will pay big time!

And then a knock sounded at his door…

**

Part Eighteen

**

Hunter’s shoulders shook from the quiet laughter that was going on inside of him at the picture Stephanie made as she stood with her back to him inside the elevator obviously making her displeasure at re-emerging out of the bathroom freshly showered to find she had nothing to change into – her clothes having been torn off her the previous evening still lay in a pile at the foot of the bed.

He coughed to mask his chuckles and could just imagine all the names she was currently cursing him with.

He had found her a pair of his sweat pants and an Evolution t-shirt that were miles too big for her and if accepting the clothes hadn’t been bad enough for her he hadn’t been able to stop the fully fledged laughter that escaped him as soon as she had appeared dressed in them. He hadn’t been able to help himself, it was just too comical – not to mention ironic, but what he hadn’t counted on was her reaction to his laughter – tears - big, fat crocodile tears that streamed down her cheeks and rolled off her chin.

He should have learnt from past mistakes, you’d think with him being ‘the Game’ and all that he’d recognise when he was being played, hell when they were married there was hardly an occasion when she’d be able to pull one over on him, but right at that moment it seemed all his good sense from there married years had flown the coop because he found his arms around her, heard his voice as he whispered comforting words in her ear… and then it all
stopped. He felt more then saw her hand reach up to dry away her tears and then he heard her voice as she accepted ‘his’ offer.

‘Offer? What offer?’ his mind asked, but his hand was already pulling his wallet forth and he watched as if in a daze as she extracted his gold card, smiled up at him and then fled once again into the bathroom.

He grinned again as the elevator doors slid open.

‘She sure was a piece of work.’ He mused with a smile. ‘Aw well, financing a little shopping spree was the least he could do after tearing her clothes to shreds. His smile got bigger and he quickened his step as they entered the hotel restaurant.

He was determined to have many more nights like last night and the good thing about sending Stephanie off to spend his money was that hopefully she’ll have so much fun she’d forget all about not having a room – ergo – she’d again have to share his.

**

“So what are you boys gonna get up to today?” Ivory peered over the rim of her coffee cup to ask the 2 men across from her and Victoria.

Bubba ray grinned lazily and leaned back in his chair meeting her gaze head on.

“What are ‘you’ doing?” he asked, answering her question with one of his own.

“Two words…” she began sitting forward and placing her cup back on the table, her eyes never leaving his. “Victoria’s secret.”

“Victoria has a secret?”

Three sets of eyes focused on Christian before Bubba came to his senses and slapped his buddy upside the head.

“Get with the program man, Victoria’s… you know…” he stressed bringing both his hands up to pull at his t-shirt forming 2 small cone shapes at the front. “…Secret.”

“Oh…” Christian’s reply was doubtful at first and then as the fog cleared, “Ohh…” and then, “OOOHHH!”

The girls laughter was infectious and soon everyone who had been privileged enough to over hear there conversation was joining in.

“Gee Vic, quite a catch you got there.”

Victoria’s brows met at the sound of a new voice entering there conversation and her eyes quickly darted to meet Ivory’s.

“Did Hunter Hurst Helmsley just address me?” she asked her tone incredulous.

Ivory nodded.

“Aha,” then added, “And he didn’t just address you – he addressed you as ‘Vic’.”

Hunter scowled and was just about to grunt out a reply better fitting his bad ass status when he remembered who was standing at his side.

“Gawd, Steph,” Ivory began still a bit bemused. “You’re making him all nice and stuff.”

He turned and was met with Stephanie’s patented grin.

“Don’t mind him and please don’t mind how I’m dressed – we are both having one of those days.” She said sending them both a wide smile as she held up her hand to show the small gold card between her fingers. “Shopping girls? Hunter’s shout.”

Hunter had never seen 2 women move as fast as Ivory and Victoria did and it wasn’t until the girls had bid there farewell’s and left amongst chatter of asking Lilian to join them that the full force of Stephanie’s words ‘Hunter’s shout’ registered in his mind.

Christian leaned over to Bubba Ray.

“Someone better get that guy a bucket, he looks a little green.”

**

Part Nineteen

**

Chris Jericho watched in fascination as Hunter Hurst Helmsley made nice with the group of wrestlers sitting at the table across the room. He maybe the most hated man in the WWE – a title he had earned and held on to for sometime – but it still amazed him how far that man would go to impress his ex wife. And ‘he’ had been the one who’d wanted the divorce in the first place! Chris shook his head and chuckled. Now if that wasn’t a prime example of pussy whipped he’d eat the props to his ‘Highlight Reel’ segment!

He looked towards the door that Lilian had exited through and then turned back to the group of wrestlers still sitting across the room. Now why had Lilian been in such a hurry to leave when Ivory and Victoria still sat there and by the look of them they certainly seemed in no rush for the day of beauty Lilian said they had planned. He turned towards the door again.

‘Just what are you up to Lilian?’ he thought and within seconds he found himself up on his feet and leaving the hotel restaurant with a purpose.

As he entered the elevator the craziest of thoughts entered his head and almost as if someone else had been guiding his hand he lifted it to press the number of the floor he knew The Rock’s room to be on.

‘She wouldn’t… would she?’ he kept asking himself as the elevator ascended and immediately had his answer when the elevator doors opened and he stepped out.

She had her back to him and had apparently been in the process of knocking, which she was he saw when her ting knuckles met the hard wood of the door.

He had little time to think, little time to do anything but react and react he did as he bolted down the hall way as fast as his legs would carry him.

The hotel room door directly across from The Rock’s opened. It’s occupants preparing to leave and it took a split second for him to wrap one arm around Lilian’s waist lifting her off her feet and the other around her mouth to silence any protest and then carted her through that open doorway surprising the occupants so much that all they could do was step back into the room and watch as Chris kicked the door shut.

Lilian’s expression was one of fury, but Chris didn’t have time to admire the fire in her eyes just yet, instead he held a finger to lips before putting his eye up to the peephole in the door just in time to see The Rock’s hotel room door open, the contorted image of The Rock as he stepped out into the hallway, look both ways and then scratch his head before retreating back inside.

Chris let forth a long breath and leaned his fore head against the door.

‘Okay,’ he thought taking a few more deep breaths before turning to face the irate woman behind him. ‘Now for the hard part.’ And it started as soon as he turned around.

“What. Are. You. Doing!” she shrieked poking her finger in his chest to emphasize her every word.

“Me?” he retaliated purposely causing her to take a step back as he stepped forward. “What the hell are ‘you’ doing lady!”

Lilian was a bit startled by his look more then his tone. He was absolutely livid and it was then she realised that he must have figured out that she’d lied royally about her plans for the day and though she tried not she couldn’t help but feel guilty for her little lie, little though it might seem a blush still started to creep up her neck.

“Yeah, I figured that’d be your reaction.” He said turning to face the other two people in the room.

“But I just-“ Her words stopped abruptly when he held up his hand palm forward to shush her before speaking in quiet tones to the two still shell shocked people.

Lilian blew a burst of air through her lips and stood watching as Jericho signed a couple of autographs of all things and then thanked there hosts. Reaching behind him he grabbed her arm and pulled her roughly out of the room.

**

Part Twenty

**

Jericho didn’t even think twice about where he was taking her as he kept a firm hold of her upper arm and pulled her along after him, didn’t even bother with the key card to open the door to his room and instead used his
booted foot to kick it open before proceeding to push her inside and slamming the door closed behind him. An action she was quite use to in regards to him.

“That’s hotel property you just destroyed.” She remarked from the sofa where she’d fallen.

He didn’t respond, his back was to her and his fore head rested on the now broken but closed hotel door. His shoulders were heavy and drooping and his hands were clenched at his sides.

Lilian blew a burst of air up and out of her mouth causing her fringe to fly up and then fan out on her fore head.

“I told you about your so called ‘friend’.” He said in a low and some what strained voice still with his back to her.

Lilian’s shoulders lifted and she sat back stubbornly on the sofa and crossed her arms under her breasts.

“I told you – No, ‘warned’ you about what’s been going on, hell you even saw an example of how ‘friendly’ that ass clown can get-“ he turned to her now his eyes burning with fury as he stared down at her. “-and yet as soon as you think ‘I’m out of the picture’ you go knocking on his door.”

“He’s my friend-“

“He’s a sick freak who loves to take out his frustrations on anyone weaker then him.” His tone didn’t lighten any as he added. “Especially women. What were you planning on doing? Knocking on his door and asking him nicely because he’s your ‘friend’?”

Sarcasm dripped off his words, but she still cringed knowing that that’s exactly what she had planned on doing.

“Let me tell you something, you would have entered that room on your own steam but on leaving you would have been carried out on a stretcher… or worse!”

Her gaze went out the window as the implications of his words hit home. He was right. What if she’d gone into Rocky’s hotel room only to find out what Chris and Hunter had been saying about him were true? What then? She asked herself.

“When I think of you going there and…” his words trailed off as he stared hard at her and then in a show of frustration he turned away from her and kicked out at a hard backed chair that sat a few feet away from him, the force of the blow not only toppling the chair but also snapping one of its legs in two.

“Look,” she said getting to her feet. “You’ve made your point-“

“No I haven’t,” he cut in spinning back around to look at her. “I haven’t even began to make my point.”

“Well too bad,” she said her own ire rising. “I won’t stay here any longer and allow you to yell at me!”

“Oh, as opposed to what your good ‘friend’ would have done?” he countered angrily. “Do you like it rough is that what you’re trying to convey here?”

He started walking towards her then and she again leaned back into the sofa.

“Stay away from me.” She said inching back more.

“I have been! If only you knew how I have been, but I’ve had enough of waiting for you to come to the realisation that I love you on your own.” He said leaning down to yank her up and into his arms, his declaration stunning her so much she didn’t think to protest, could only stare back at him as his with her eyes and mouth agape.

“Now,” he continued as one of his hands snaked around her waist. “We do things my way.” And then his mouth descended on hers.

At first his kiss was hard and demanding and she tasted a momentary trace of blood before his tongue swooped in to remove the taste and almost immediately his touch turned gentle and she felt more then heard the groan that rose up in his throat.

Luckily for her he still had his arm around her waist because at that moment she lost the use of her legs and had to cling to his shoulders for support as her tongue gave as good as it got.

She couldn’t believe she was actually kissing – No – she thought as again his tongue delved into the recesses of her mouth, this wasn’t just a kiss. This was ground breaking, earth shattering, beyond toe curling rapture! And she was loathed for it to stop.

She pushed her body closer to his and taking the hint he lifted her off her feet and walked towards what he hoped was the bed. It wasn’t he soon found out when they both tumbled over an armchair, there mouths losing contact for the fraction of a second before finding each other again. Hands groped, tongues tasted, groans of ecstasy flowed and making it to the bed long forgotten.

Lost in the sensations he was evoking in her she was unaware of the fact that her top was gone and her pants were slowly following until she felt the sudden coolness of the air conditioning on her bare skin, her only covering the small white triangle of her cotton briefs.

One of his hands pinned hers above her head as his mouth devoured her body and she couldn’t help but wonder what his other hand was doing until a few moments later she felt his warm skin rubbing against hers and she grinned. A playfully wonton grin. So that’s what his other hand had been doing, she mused.

His hand was between her legs now, not touching or caressing just lying there, but the weight and heat of it was enough to feed the fire that had been building since his lips first touched hers… maybe even before that and instinctively she arched into it and moaned loudly as his hand started to move against her until she couldn’t stand it any longer and she looked up at him her eyes pleading.

And when he moved to enter her it was like everything that was askew in her life righted itself and all she could hear in her mind was his whispered ‘I love you’ over and over again.

**

“Steph!” Hunter exclaimed fighting not to jump off the couch and wrap his arms around his ex wife like he wanted to. He had had the devil of a time trying to keep himself occupied until her return, had picked up the blasted phone a hundred times or more wanting to call her mobile just to hear her voice.

“Hey Hunter,” she beamed walking up to him and placing his gold card down on the small table in front of him and he inwardly chastised himself for thinking that she was leaning forward to greet him with a kiss. “Thanks, your generosity was much appreciated.”

He looked behind her expecting to see a porter or two following her with all she had brought today and his brows furrowed when no one followed.

“If your looking to see what I brought you needn’t bother, I’ve already had them sent on to ‘my’ room.”

“You… your room?”

She smiled.

“Yes, my room.” She repeated for his benefit. “You see I stopped off at reception on my way up.”

His eyes slanted to two blue slits.

“And whatya know…” she continued.

‘She didn’t…’

“…they had a spare room.”

‘She did!’

“Why Hunter… don’t flare those nostrils at me. You know how independent I’ve become since out split. Now…” she said opening her newly purchased Gucci bag and pulled out a piece of paper. “I kept a tally of everything I brought today,” she handed him the page. “This is your copy. I’ll pay you back asap. You have my word.” And then added with a grin. “For what that’s worth.” She started back towards the door. “Anyway my room numbers on the back so you needn’t worry about me anymore. Bye.”

And then she was gone in a swoosh of long flowing hair and clicking heels.

**

Part Twenty One

**

He walked from one side of the room to the other and then back again. He shook his head slowly form side to side as his mind for the umpteenth time went over her words.

“Stopped at reception,” he mimicked sarcastically as he did an about face and started across the room again. “They had a free room.”

If he had of been on his game he would have thought to go down to reception while she was on her little shopping spree to make sure they had ‘NO’ free rooms! If he had of been on his game she would be here with him now, he thought his gaze going to the empty bed. She would be ‘there’ with him, his mind added. He turned and started pacing the room again. He had remember to get rid of Ric, in fact it had been the first thing on his list telling the old man to make himself scarce because he wanted some alone time with his
ex. Ric had tried to talk him out of it of course, he had expected that. Of Evolutions three other members, Ric was the only one who knew how much power Stephanie McMahon had over him. He doubted very much Stephanie even knew herself, but Ric Flair was a very perceptive man and little passed his attention. Truth of the matter was he hadn’t expected her to do so well without him. Sure at first she had taken time off from the business and him to clear her head – 3 weeks to be exact – but damn to his way of thinking 3 weeks just seemed too short a time san for her to get over him. She came
back a new woman – No. A new ‘single’ woman. She had reverted back to her maiden name, stopped wearing her wedding ring and he found what got to him the most was she treated him like a friend.

‘A friend for fuck’s sake!’

He had walked around in a daze for weeks because he had expected her to be all ‘cry baby’ and ‘take me back-ish’, but she had been neither and that was the confusing thing. She had done a lot of growing in her time away and he found that while she had accepted there divorce and moved on, he on the other hand hadn’t moved an inch. In fact he had done the opposite ad moved back instead. This was a fine hole he had dug himself into, but damn it was about time he pulled himself out.

He stalked to the small table where Stephanie’s list of all her purchases sat and stared down at it solemnly. The neatly printed black text swam before his eyes until they came to rest on the number of her hotel room. He lifted one hand and with the other pulled the cuff back on his shirt to look at his watch. 11pm. She’d probably be in bed, he mused, but snatched up the slip of paper anyway and strode purposely to the door not bothering with a jacket, shoes, room card or even pausing to pull the door closed behind him. He just left.

**

The plush hotel carpet irritated the bare skin of her side, its rich soft fibres which felt so comforting beneath her feet now felt course as her body rubbed against it with every move she made. But the fact that a more intimate touch made by another body more then made up for the carpets coarseness wether it be his bare leg moving against hers, his warm palm moving in small circles at her lower back or his lips dropping sweet cherry kisses on the top of her head.

She smiled contentedly and snuggled more closely into his side, his arms immediately tightening there hold on her almost as if he thought she might disappear if he didn’t keep a tight hold.

“Don’t worry,” she whispered lifting her head and planting a light kiss on his chin. “I’m not going anywhere.” And then she settled back into the crook of his shoulder and closed her eyes.

**

The room was dark when her eyes opened again and instead of the coarse carpet beneath her she felt the smoothness of the bed sheet and the softness of the mattress beneath her, but what had her smiling from ear to ear was that the warm body she had been snuggled against was still there. She stretched lazily before lifting her head to look up at him and her smile widened when she found his blue gaze trained on her.

“Hey sweetness,” he said reaching forward to brush a lock of her hair back from her forehead.

She smiled and asked, “What time is it?”

He shrugged. “Five–ish… or there about.”

“Oh,” was all she said her brain turning to mush as he started to nibble at her neck. “W… when did we move to the bed?”

“Umm…” his hand started doing a little exploring of its own under the covers. “…about five-ish.” Was his reply.

“I… I really should get back to my room. Ivory and Victoria are probably frantic…”

His lips moved lower. “Probably,” he mumbled against her bare skin, but neither of them left the bed for a good while longer.

**

Part Twenty Two

**

Stephanie sat on a couch in her hotel room with her feet tucked beneath her and the latest edition of ‘Planet’ in her lap when the first knock sounded and grinned knowing instantly who it would be, yet did she break her neck trying to answer it? No. What she did do was go back to reading her magazine. She was in the process of deciding which one was better looking – a picture of a big orange orang tang or Undertaker’s newest promo shot when the second knock came. Still she ignored it and a few minutes later came the third knock louder and more intense then the first two proving her ex was
obviously losing his patience. With a sigh she closed her magazine and walked across the room to the door.

“Who is it?” She called out in all innocence.

“Hunter.” Cane the gruff reply.

“Hunter, it’s very late.”

“I… I know…” A pause. “I need to talk to you.”

“About what?” She asked examining her nails with a grin. She could do this all night.

“About…” Another pause. “…about that list you gave me.”

“What about it?”

“It’s… it’s, that is… the umm… the credit card number you got here. It’s not mine.”

“Whose is it?” She had to clamp her hand over her mouth to keep the sound of her giggles to a minimum as she pictured him rolling his eyes and flaring his nostrils in frustration.

“I don’t know!” He exclaimed from the other side of the door. “Will you open the door already, it’s freezing out here.”

She laughed then figuring she’d gotten as much fun out of him as she could muster without them coming to verbal blows or heaven forbid Hunter deciding to open the door all on his own – with his shoulder!

“Okay,” She said reaching for the door knob. “But only for a minute, it’s well past my bed time you know.”

She had known all along ‘why’ he was there, in fact she had expected him to show up at some stage during the night and she also knew Hunter standing on the other side of her door had nothing at all to do with the list she had given him.

She loved being right.

What she didn’t count on was him not waiting until she had opened the door fully, instead as soon as the click of the lock sounded she had to quickly step back before it met her nose up close and personal and then he was kissing her. No, she thought as she struggled for air. His kiss right now far surpassed all the other kisses he had given her. This kiss was intense and wild. So wild in fact that she thought he was trying to swallow her face! What he was doing though she knew was staking his claim on her – again.

Elation welled up inside her at the thought but the need for air reigned supreme and she tried to turn her head away only to have him follow and in the back of her mind she heard a loud thump, but it didn’t stay long in her mind as his lips gentled and his tongue caressed. His hands tugged her hips closer to his and her body purred at the familiar bulge she felt pressing against her stomach.

“I want you,” He groaned out his lips moving to her neck. “I want you now.”

He started to lower her to the carpet and she only just managed to breathe out the word “Door” before his mouth descended again.

“Already taken care of,” He said his hand already fumbling with the draw string of her pyjama bottoms and she giggled as he swore when he couldn’t undo the knot, which gave her time to look back at the door to see it was as he’d said ‘Already taken care of’ and she remembered the thump she had heard not so long ago and realised it had to be the sound of Hunter kicking it shut.

“Damn!” He cursed looking down at her pants which were still up over her hips – the one place he ‘didn’t’ want them to be. “That has to be the mother of all knots.” He said more to himself then to her. And then to her surprise and excitement he lowered his head and started gnawing at the draw string with his teeth.

Stephanie’s eyes closed and it wasn’t long before he realised she was more then enjoying his attempts to get into her pants. He ran his tongue up the inside of her thigh and felt her shiver through the thin cotton and that was all he needed to know. By the time he had finally gotten those damn pyjama bottoms off she had already orgasmed twice and he was more then ready to take her over the edge again, although this time he planned to join her.

**

“You know the idea of me coming back to my hotel room alone was so that I’d actually make it inside.”

He paused and lifted his head from her neck where his lips had been playing havoc with the pulse point that beat there. He arched a brow and queried, “You don’t like my kisses?” before his mouth went to the sensitive spot just below her ear. He grinned when her knee’s buckled. “You know you don’t have to go inside, we could just go back to my room.”

“We could,” Lilian said seriously considering doing just that. “But I’m here now so I may as well go in.” She leaned up and kissed him lightly on the lips when her words caused him to pout. “Besides I need a shower.”

The teasing sparkle flared back up in his eyes and he nodded adamantly and nudged her towards the door. “Good idea, let’s go.”

“Chris,” She chuckled planting her feet.

He grinned and kissed the tip of her nose. “Okay, okay I’ll stop.”

“Thank you.”

“See you at breakfast in… 15 minutes?”

“An hour.”

“20.”

“45.”

“30… look at me?” He said patting his belly. “After the night I had I need nourishing.”

Lilian rolled her eyes but she couldn’t keep the smile out of her
expression. “Okay fine. See you at breakfast in 30 minutes.”

“I bow to your wishes,” Chris said capturing her hand to place a gentlemanly kiss in her knuckles before he backed away, his eyes stayed on her until he reached the end of the hallway and then with a little wave he was gone.

The silly grin stayed on Lilian’s face as she swiped her key card and entered the hotel room she shared with Victoria and Ivory.

**

Back in the hallway another door opened and a man stepped out from where he had been watching the lovers. His fists clenched, unclenched and then clenched again before he embedded it into the hallway wall.

And then he turned and walked with a purpose in the direction Jericho had gone.

**

Part Twenty Three

**

The first thing Lilian’s eyes met with was the sight of Victoria draped all over Christian as they both slept on the couch and as she moved further into the room and her eyes started to adjust to the semi darkness of the early morning she saw two more figures – those being Bubba Ray sitting in one of two of the armchairs the hotel provided with a very contented looking Ivory snuggled peacefully in his lap. Now the first two hadn’t been that much of a
surprise and although seeing Bubba Ray and Ivory as they were had her head whipping around for a second look she realised it would have only been a matter of time before those two finally got there heads out of the butts and admitted what everyone else already knew.

Kinda like her and Chris she mused and then wasted no time in shaking her head. No, she told herself sternly. Everyone else had her pegged romantically with The Rock. That thought alone now made her cringe and she quickly conjured thoughts of Chris and his declaration of love for her and she smiled at how easily those thoughts pushed the ‘Brahma Bull’ from her mind. And with one more sweeping glance around the room at the still sleeping foursome she tiptoed quietly to the bathroom, the door closing without a sound behind her.

**

She emerged fifteen minutes later fresh as a daisy only to tip toe around the room again as she looked here and there for a piece of paper so she could leave a note. Just her luck Bubba Ray’s big feet were propped up on the coffee table therefore the only note pad that she could see rested between the table top and his monstrous feet.

Spying a few clean paper napkins on the wooden bench of the kitchenette she grabbed one and quickly scrawled a little message to let her friends know where she was and who’d she be with and then ended the note with a big smiley face.

With still five minutes to kill before her little breakfast rendezvous with Jericho she spent that time perfecting the minimal amount of make up she had chosen to wear in the wall mirror beside the door, not that she needed it, her face was positively glowing and she knew only one reason for that – Chris Jericho.

A dreamy smile still on her face she sang a few lines of ‘Don’t you wish you were me’ before leaving the room.

**

Once inside the dining room Lilian walked passed the breakfast buffet and the giant butter sculpture of a swan and allowed her eyes to scan the rest of the room for a certain cute Canadian.

“Isn’t that just like a man to keep a lady waiting.” She said shaking her head when her perusal of the room proved fruitless. With a sigh she moved across the room and took a seat at one of the tables making sure she sat facing the entrance way so she could watch for his arrival.

Ten minutes turned into twenty, yet still her eyes stayed on the door. ‘He’ll come, Lil’ she kept telling herself. ‘He’ll come’.

Twenty minutes turned into thirty and thirty into forty five and finally she couldn’t ignore the feeling of dread that had started to well up inside her, the feeling intensifying with each second that ticked by.

Something was wrong. Chris wouldn’t do this to her. Not after last night. She absolutely refused to think of herself as just one of the many one stands he was famous for. She couldn’t just be another notch in his belt. No, something was wrong, something was terribly wrong.

Getting up from the table she moved swiftly to the door and headed straight for reception.

“Could you put me through to Mr Jericho’s room please,” She said once she had gotten the clerks attention.

“Right away miss,” the clerk replied turning his back to make the call. Lilian tapped her finger nails anxiously on the counter as she waited.

“I’m sorry miss there’s no answer.” Came the clerk’s voice a few moments later. His words making Lilian’s bad feeling multiply by three.

She had to think, she had to figure out what to do next. Should she go to his room? Her mind screamed ‘YES’ but her heart screamed ‘NO’.

What if he were there? Yes, it would be a good thing. Yes, she would be happy to see that nothing other then bad time management had kept him from meeting her, but what if she found out that he had had no intention of meeting her again because she had already given him what he’d been after all along?

No, she inwardly told herself. He wouldn’t do that. Not to her. Not now.

Turning away from reception she walked purposely to the elevator. She would go to his room that’s what she would do and god help him if he’s there because god damn it she would strangle him herself! But if he’s not – god help whoever had him.

**

“Chris! Chris are you in there!”

“Damn. Where the hell are ‘they’?”

“If they had any sense they’d be doing what I was doing before being so rudely interrupted.”

Both Ric and Dave rolled there eyes at young Randy’s words. The latter having been dragged from a warm bed where he’d spent most of the night putting to good use with a cute little brunette he’d met out clubbing last night.

“Girls are a dime a dozen Randy.” Ric said stepping forward and lifting his hand to pat the younger man’s cheek. “Have I not taught you anything?”

Randy grinned. Ric certainly wasn’t wrong on that count. Being a member of Evolution sure had its perks and tonight he’d find himself two brunettes just to make up for the one he had left sleeping in his bed.

“Okay, now that Randy’s sex life is sorted,” Dave said turning to pound on Chris’s hotel room door again. “Can we get back to why both Hunter and Chris aren’t answering there doors?”

“Hunter’s not answering his door either?”

All three members of Evolution turned at the unexpected yet very familiar voice behind them.

“I think something bad has happened.” Lilian went on when Ric, Dave and Randy just continued to stare down at her. “Do you three even hear what I’m saying? Something bad has happened to Chris damn it! Now stop gawking and use your muscles to break that damn door down!”

**

Part Twenty Four

**

“Lil!” Ivory called as she spied the other woman standing at the end of the hallway. She and the others rushed over. “WE got your message. It sounded urgent. Are you okay?” She continued in a rush reaching to grab the other’s woman’s hands as she got closer only then noticing that Lilian wasn’t alone. She eyed the three men standing behind Lilian with weary eyes, planted both her hands on her hips and added, “And what the hell are you doing with these
three dorks?”

Lilian felt more then saw the three members of Evolution bristle behind her and lowered her head to hide the smile when Ivory merely crossed her arms under her breasts and raised an irritated brow.

“Why I ought a-“ Batista began.

“You ought a what?” Bubba Ray cut in moving to step in front of Ivory, which only caused Lilian’s smile to develop into a giggle when Ivory resisted his action. Trust Ivory to always have to wear the pants. Yet even with the obvious humour that surrounded those two Chris and the fact that he was missing was still first and foremost on her mind. And that thought alone wiped the smile off of her face quick smart.

“It’s Chris I think something’s happened to him.” She said.

Ivory and then Victoria looked at her as if she had just sprouted two heads.

“Chris who?” They both asked in unison.

“Chris… ah… Jericho.” She smiled sheepishly. “We’ve kinda become a little friendly of late.”

Ivory’s brow arched again. “Oh? How friendly?”

“Lil are you out of your mind?” Victoria added. “He’s bad news. Scum. Lower then scum. He’s the biggest man slut this business had to offer.”

“I admit I use to share the exact same sentiments, but I’ve changed. He’s changed. He’s my bad news, my bad scum, my lower then scum and my man slut. He… loves me.”

Victoria emitted a high pitched squeal and flung her arms around Lilian.

He loves you!” She shrieked only to pull back just as quickly to add, “Oh my god… ‘He’ loves you?”

“Did he say that? Did the words actually fall from his mouth?” Ivory asked still unconvinced.

Lilian nodded, her chin coming up defiantly.

“And you love him?”

“Yes.” She replied without hesitation.

Christian stepped forward and instinctively Victoria leaned back into him, his arms slipping around her waist in one fluid motion.

“Sounds like C-mans been dishing out some of that vitamin C he’s always raving about, thought I saw an extra bit of sparkle in your eyes as we came up the hallway.” He teased.

Lilian blushed.

Victoria giggled.

Bubba Ray shifted.

And Ivory sighed.

“Okay Lil,” She said reaching out to her friend again this time to give her hand a squeeze. “Why don’t you start at the beginning?”

“Can’t. No time.” Lilian said keeping hold of Ivory’s hand as she pushed through Ric, Dave and Randy to continue on there way. The others followed. “All I can tell you is Chris and I parted ways this morning with plans to meet for breakfast and he didn’t show.”

She ignored the pointed look Ivory shot her and continued on. I went to his room and found Ric, Dave and Randy outside his door and after Dave kicked the door down we found it empty and trashed.

“Hold on, hold on… what were you lot doing outside Jericho’s hotel room?” Christian asked turning to look at the three men in question.

“We were looking for Hunter.” Randy replied his eyes piercing.

“What… you mean he’s not in your pocket?” Christian mocked.

“Anytime old man.” Randy said looking down his nose at Christian.

“Look,” Lilian said stopping at the door to the girls hotel room. “We all have a similar problem here-“

“How could Jericho being missing be a problem? He’s probably out- argh!” He cried when Victoria’s elbow met his chest.

“Because,” Lilian began. “Chris isn’t the only one missing. Hunter is missing too.”

“Doesn’t make sense,” Bubba Ray said, “Now that Stephanie’s not a factor between them anymore, they really don’t have anything else in common.”

“Other then they love to beat the crap out of each other inside the ring.” Christian piped in.

“Well, there is that,” He agreed. “But I doubt that not really an issue in this sense.”

“I can think of one thing,” Ric said speaking for the first time.

Lilian nodded. “So can I.”

“And that would be?” Ivory pressed when both Lilian and Ric just stared knowingly at each other.

Lilian swiped her room card and bade the others to enter once the door opened.

“Rocky,” She replied following after them. “They have Rocky in common.”

**

Part Twenty Five

**

“You know it could just be Jericho up to his old tricks again.”

“The thought has crossed my mind,” Ivory answered in hushed tones.

“And...”

“I don’t know. Lilian seems so sure.”

“Well on that count we agree,” Victoria said her gaze going to the little blond where she sat on the couch. “What about Hunter?”

Ivory shrugged.

“What about him?” She replied her tone implying that she obviously didn’t give a shit.

“Well he is missing too.”

“So they say,”

“You don’t believe them?”

“Lilian – Yes. But since when have Evolution given us any reason to believe anything they say?”

Both Victoria’s brows rose and replied. “Never.”

Ivory nodded.

“Exactly.”

Victoria then sighed.

“God I wish I were on a beach right now with the sun warming my skin and Christian-“

“Cool,” The man of the hour cut in as he came up behind Victoria. His arms snaked around her waist to pull her back against him. “...I’m in a raunchy fantasy.”

“If you call peeling grapes at my side and then feeding them to me raunchy, then yeah.” She said craning her neck to grin back at him.

“Has anyone seen Stephanie today?” Lilian asked out of the blue. She stood to her feet and started to pace.

“Not since yesterday,” Ivory answered.

Randy smirked.

“Let me guess, you think she’s missing too?” He scoffed turning to Ric, but all the older man had for Hunter’s young protégé in the form of a response was a quick slap upside the younger man’s head.

“I’m going to her room,” Lilian said immediately moving to the door.

“We’ll come with you,” Ric said nodding to Dave before pushing Randy down in to a seat. “You stay here and behave.” He ordered the younger man before he and Dave followed Lilian.

“Wait for me,” Ivory said getting up from where she was perched on Bubba Ray’s lap.

“Guess that means I’m going too,” He said joining the group at the door.

Victoria watched Christian and Randy eye each other and sighed.

“And I guess I’ll stay here and make sure these two don’t kill each other.” She sent Christian a wink. “...Although I have to warn you,” She went on to address Randy. “...I’m awfully partial to Christian.”

**

Hunter smiled at the picture Stephanie made as she slept cradled in his arms.

Damn he missed this! The little things like bed hair and missing underwear after a night of passion. He missed the mornings where he’d eat burnt toast and drink bad coffee all because she had made it for him.

He grinned like a little boy as she continued to sleep on. And then scowled when the loudest frigging knock on the planet sounded at the door!

Stephanie’s weight shifted in his arms and even though her eyes stayed in his arms and even though her eyes stayed closed she began to push out of his arms to go answer the knock as if she were use to getting woken up in just this manner.

“Leave it,” He grumbled and pulled her back against him.

“It might be important,” She replied moving out of his arms again.

“And I’m not?”

Stephanie sat back then and eyed him with a raised brow.

“Hunter,” She began turning in his arms. “...Was that a sulk?”

“No.” He was quick to reply.

She moved closer to him and fingered his bottom lip.

“And...” She continued. “...Is this a pout?”

Seizing her finger between his lips he drew the digit inside his mouth and watched the play of emotions that flickered across her face.

“Is it working?” He asked releasing her finger only to lean just that tad bit closer to replace it with her ear lobe.

“I’ll let you know in a minute,” She breathed her eyes closing as her hands snaked up his back, but the racket at the door was still there and just as persistent as when it had begun and Stephanie got the feeling that if she didn’t open it whomever it was outside wouldn’t think twice about knocking it down.

“I better get it,” She said reluctantly disentangling herself from Hunter’s arms.

“Whoever it is get rid of them,” He growled swatting her on the backside as she rose from the bed. “And cover yourself woman, that body of yours is just too damn tempting.”

With a girly giggle Stephanie donned a robe and crossed the room to the door, pulling her long hair free from her robe as she did.

Hunter smiled.

That was another thing he missed. And then she spoke in that high pitched whiny squeal that he could have done without as the door opened and she exclaimed in disbelief, “That was ‘you’ making all that racket?”

He couldn’t hear what the person or person’s were saying on the other side of the door, but there seemed to be a lot of shuffling going on outside and then Stephanie started to chuckle.

“Hunter... Missing?”

He heard her say and then a more serious voice outside the door responded with, “This is no time for humour Stephanie.”

‘Shit!’ He knew that voice better then he knew his own.

He made a grab for his sweat pants, but misjudged the reach and ended up tumbling out of the bed – Sheets and all!

More shuffling came from the door and didn’t stop until a pair of extremely expensive shiny black Italian leather shoes halted right before his eyes.

Thankful that the street was covering all that needed covering he gingerly raised his eyes upwards passed the dark blue pin striped perfectly pressed pants leg, over the clean crisp white shirt front till they met the amusement shining in the eyes of his buddy Ric Flair.

Then his gaze went behind Ric to all who stood there and the sound of Stephanie’s chuckles again pierced the air only this time Hunter joined her and he lifted his hand in welcome.

“Hey guys.”

**

Part Twenty Six

**

A hammer.

That’s the first thing that registered in his mind as he tried unsuccessfully to open his eyes.

A hammer.

It was currently inside his head trying to hammer its way out from the inside.

He breathed in slowly and tasted the coppery tang of blood in the air. Probably his own. He tried to lift his hands and couldn’t. Tried to kick out his feet and couldn’t. He couldn’t even determine whether he was sitting up or lying down he was that disoriented.

What he could determine though was that he wasn’t alone. Somewhere, someone was moving around, there movements hurried and frantic going from one side of the room to the next.

Pacing. Whoever was in the room with him was pacing.

He strained his ears to listen and picked up the faint ramblings that accompanied the pacing, but the incessant hammering inside his head overrode what reached his ears, not that he needed to hear the voice of his captor to confirm who it was. He already knew.

And a moment later when the pacing stopped he uttered a gurgled, ‘Rock’.

**

Hunter must have uttered every curse in the book through out Lilian’s explanation of what she though had happened to Chris and watched as she scowled at Ric who seemed nonplussed about the situation now that there esteemed leader had been found. He gave Ivory and Bubba Ray a cursory look but other than that he had totally forgotten about them.

“Okay, here’s what we’ll do.” Hunter said as he idly went from one side of the room to the next in contemplation. “Me, Dave, Lilian and -” He surprised Ivory by looking straight at Bubba Ray. “-and ‘you’.” He continued. “Will go to Rock’s hotel room. Steph - you, Ivory and Ric call the authorities.”

“And my Father?” Stephanie queried.

He nodded a slight smile coming to his lips as he met Stephanie’s gaze.

“Yes,” He said. “And your Father.”

Hunter turned back to Dave then, but immediately turned back to Stephanie when she asked, “Why can’t I come with you?” Which started off an all too familiar verbal match between the two.

“Because it’s too dangerous.” He said.

“Lilian’s going.” She said.

“Lilian’s different.” He stated.

“How?” Was her reply.

Hunter’s nostril’s flared and it was plain to everyone in the room that he was nearing the end of his tether where his newly reconciled ex wife was concerned and all awaited the inevitable explosion on his part that usually followed when faced with this situation. But none followed. In fact he didn’t even tower over her as he would have done in the past.

Instead he pulled her over to the couch, sat her down and then kneeled down in front of her. His hands rose to cup her cheeks and he planted a quick kiss in her lips.

“I don’t want anything to happen to you-”

“And I don’t-” She began but Hunter moved his thumb over her lips silencing her protest.

“Please Steph,” His eyes bored into hers, all his fears for her summed up in that one look, appealing for her for once in her life to just listen. “Please.”

Shocked, all she could do was stare with her mouth agape. 

He leaned forward and kissed her again and this time when he pulled back her shoulders drooped as all the fight in her vanished.

“Okay.” He said getting to his feet and pulling her to hers at the same time. Stephanie smiled and gave his hand a squeeze before she went to stand beside Ivory and Ric. “Let’s do this.”

**

Part Twenty Seven

**

He was pacing again.

In his minds eye Chris could see the other man go from one side of the room to the other. He imagined the room being dark - Not due to the sky being dark outside - But more because of the thick curtains still being drawn. A more than worthy barricade for the suns rays.

He imagined the other man sweating like a pig. He could actually see the beaded drops surfacing on his dark brow and then leave there mark upon his face as they trailed down to join all the ones before them in forming a dark patch of moisture at his shirt front. More dark patches would have formed at his armpits proving that his head wasn’t the only place on his body releasing moisture. The stench too was unbearable, even in his mind, but it was either suck it up or die.

He sucked it up.

He wanted to laugh at himself. Here he was tied and blinded folded and all he could think about was how this situation would fit so well into one of ‘Rock’s’ Hollywood movies. Hell, he continued to muse. This situation very well might be!

Sounds of his captor mumbling inanely to himself as he continued to pace broke through the warped thoughts of his dilemma and he cocked his head trying to make sense of the other man’s words only to have his head snap back into place as the side of his cheek took on the full brunt of the other man’s fist. His mouth filled with blood and he leaned forward as far as his binds would allow to keep from swallowing it and let it seep through his lips to drip down his chin.

And even that made him want to laugh.

He jolted back in his seat as another blow landed.

“She’s going to be sorry.” He heard through the ringing in his ears. “They’re all going to be sorry.”

And then his head lolled forward and he heard no more.

**

“Maybe we should wait for the manager.”

Lilian rolled her eyes and planted her fists on her hips.

“Forget the manager crap. Kick the bloody door down!” She rallied. “If Vince can fork out the big bucks to keep Rocky’s ‘habits’ a secret then he can damn well pay for a busted door.”

When Dave still hesitated, Bubba Ray shouldered him out of the way and did the deed with a well aimed kick to the doors surface.

With the door still swinging on its hinges Lilian made to enter, but was pulled back and shoved to the end of the line as all three men entered first.

What they were met with was a squeaky clean five star hotel room void of it’s occupant and a minute later it was sweet delicate little Lilian who surprised them all when she said - “Fuck.”

**

“He has to have another room.” Lilian said as she paced in front of the broken door. “There’s no other explanation for it.”

“In that case reception would be our next stop.” Hunter said already moving to the door.

“Or not.” Lilian halted his steps by saying. Her brow furrowed in concentration. “Maybe all we need to do is think like Rocky.”

“Porviding Rock’s our man-”

“He’s our man.” Both Lilian and Hunter cut through Bubba Ray’s voice of reason.

“We all agreed he’s a but unstable, but-”

“He’s our man.” Hunter said again his eyes meeting those of the Dudley. “Trust me.”

“Yeah right. Like that’ll ever happen.” 

“Then trust me.” Lilian exclaimed causing Bubba Ray to look at her in askance. “He’s our man Bubba. Rocky is our man.”

Bubba Ray looked first to Lilian and then to Hunter and then back again before he slowly nodded.

“Okay.” He said.

“He has to be one sick mother f-” Dave stopped his eyes on Lilian. His gaze telling one and all that he was mentally flipping though his vocab for a word befitting a lady’s presence than ‘Fucker’ when she solved the problem for him.

“Fucker.” She said. “You can say it. I have heard it before.” Her gaze wandered to all three of the men present. “Fucker. Fucker. Fucker.”

Bubba ray chuckled.

Hunter raised a brow.

Dave blushed.

“Are we over the ‘Lilian’s a lady’ phase?” She asked.

Bubba ray chuckled more.

Hunter joined him.

Dave still blushed.

“I think you’re on to something.” Hunter said continuing on to the door and sticking his head out to check the hallway. “We do need to start thinking like the Rock. Like for starters he wouldn’t do anything to hurt his Hollywood image so of course any room registered under his name or any of his alias’s would be a no-go.”

“Well that’s just great. We may as well play ‘pick-a-name’.” Dave grunted as he leaned back against the wall.

“Or…” Lilian began as she started to pace again. “…he’s using a room he already knows is vacant because he was the cause of said occupants sudden departure.”  When her companions still failed to see the path she was guiding them down she added. “Like the man the other morning who had been attacked. His room is still empty.”

Hunter smiled.

“Regular Nancy Drew aren’t you?”

Lilian returned his smile.

“I do my best.”

**

Part Twenty Eight

**

“Why couldn’t she see it? She could have had it all if only she’d taken her place at my side. She was different. The light in my darkness. The line pulling through this sea of insanity… INSANITY!”

The latter sounded forced to Chris’s cloud infested brain. God he hurt. He hurt all over. When the blows had stopped coming he had no idea. He had to have blacked out and awakened to fee every ache, every blow as if it had just happened, but that did nothing to staunch the bile that rose up in his throat now as he listened to the other man’s insane mutterings. Here before him now was one sick fucking puppy!

“But everything will be alright now…”

The other man was still pacing, that much Chris could determine by the shadow that fell across his face every now and then, by the quick steps that his ears picked up despite being muffled by the hotel’s plush carpeting.

“…now that your out of the picture, she’s going to be mine again.”

‘That’s what you think, you jackass!’ Chris thought. The fact that his hands were tied behind his back in no way hindered them from closing into two tight balled fists. ‘When I get my hands on you-’

A loud crash sounded behind him and the next thing he knew he was again trying to get his bearings as the chair he was seated on and tied too toppled over. By the sounds that came from above and to the side of him a struggle was in progress and when the wicked crack of knuckles meeting bone sliced through the air he knew it for sure. What the fuck was going on? Had the Rock fucked him up so bad that he was now hallucinating? He chuckled hysterically. If this was an hallucination then his mind had just conjured up an image of Lilian removing his blindfold. He grinned. If he were to die right now he’d be dying a happy man.

Her lips were moving. He couldn’t hear what she was saying. God he wanted to hear her voice. 

The gag loosened from around his mouth and then was gone altogether. His lips and tongue worked over time to produce the saliva needed to moisten his parched lips. She began to cry then. Unleashed, uncaring her tears fell as her hands caressed his cheeks, his brow, his hair.

Don’t cry, he wanted to say. Don’t cry… and then her lips were on his and only then did he realise that she wasn’t just an image. She was real. And she was there.

“Lilian.” He whispered.

“Shh… I’m here… We found you.”

“H…how?”

“Shh… not now…”

“Rock…”

“He’s not going anywhere.” Lilian replied her eyes meeting Hunter’s where he held Rock face down on the carpet with his arm hiked up behind his back.

She’s still crying, he thought. He can’t look that bad can he?

“Smile for me Lil…”

“I can’t…”

He closed his eyes for the beat of a second, took a deep shaky breath and then when he opened them said. “I’m sorry.”

“For what?”

“I missed breakfast.”

Now she smiled.

**

Part Twenty Nine

**

“Say that again?”

Hunter stood with his back braced against the wall, his legs slightly apart to accommodate the presence of his ex-wife as he calmly, yet possessively pulled her between them and replied.

“It was your girl bro, she put herself in Rock’s shoes and saw what we were all missing - That Rock would never tarnish his on screen image by using his own room, which by the way was the first place we looked. All of the people who were attacked were on the hotel grounds except that last guy who was found in his room.”

“And since said room had been cordoned off by the authorities till further notice it posed as the perfect place to hold a hostage.” Stephanie finished for him.

Chris turned to the petite blond who sat on the hospital bed at his side. His arm snaked around her waist to edge her closer.

“I have a lot to thank you for.” He said leaning forward to brush his lips against her ear.

“I’m just glad your okay.” Lilian replied leaning into him. “And that Rocky is going to be getting the help he needs. I just can’t help feeling sorry for him.”

“He doesn’t deserve your compassion Lil.” Ivory stated from the other side of the bed where she and Bubba ray sat in the only two chairs the hospital room provided. “That could have been you we found tied to that chair all beat up.”

“It could have been any of us.” Stephanie added.

“Guess I was just lucky hey?” Chris tried to grin, but ended up wincing instead when that action pulled on the cut in his lip. A cut that was a long way from scabbing over.

Ivory shifted in her seat. “It’s no secret that the Rock wanted Lilian… and when you started paying more attention to her you didn’t just become lucky. You became a problem.” She said.

“What about all the other attacks?” Stephanie asked.

“Only Rock can answer that one I guess.” Chris said expelling a sigh that disturbed the tiny little hairs at the nape of Lilian’s neck.

“That’s one answer I don’t mind going without.” Lilian said and shivered. “Not that I’ll be visiting his padded cell any time in the near future to hear it.”

“Don’t worry babe, I reckon the authorities got enough on him to keep him locked up and out of our lives and the WWE for a long, long time.”

“Amen.” Came the collected reply from the others in the room.

“Now.” Chris said nuzzling his lips into Lilian’s hair. “What’s this initiation I’ve heard tell about?”

Lilian grinned.

“As soon as you’re up and about I’ll fill you in.”

Chris’s voice turned sensual and he said for her ears alone.

“Oh I’m up baby. I’m up.”

**

End

**

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