Chapter 1

It was the same typical night.

Some things never changed.

She sat in his dressing room, going over his schedule for the month that she revised and sighed heavily, wondering how she even came to have this job.  That’s right, it was Emmy’s fault!  Her best friend worked for the World Wrestling Entertainment as the hair lady and had pulled some strings for her to have a meeting with Vince.  The man hired her on the spot and assigned her to one of the most cocky, arrogant men on the WWE roster today.  He was known as the Doctor of Thuganomics, but his real name was Jonathan Felix-Anthony Cena and she loathed him.

The man didn’t know how to respect anyone or anything around him, always full of himself, and it made her wonder if he’d ever get his head out of his ass.  Someone needed to knock him out or put his ass out of action for a while, but that was wishful thinking on her part.  What sucked about this job most was the fact that John treated her like garbage, but that was an even nicer term than what she could come up with.  Pond scum, dirt, lower than dirt, she couldn’t quite put her finger on it and really didn’t want to, not having the energy these days.  The man was gorgeous, she wasn’t denying that, at least in her mind’s eye, but when it came to his cocky attitude, she wanted to smack him a good one.

This night would be no different.

John was busy preening in the mirror, adjusting the thick, metal chain around his neck so it hung just right, smirking to himself.  He thought he was God’s gift to women and had his fill of pussy, but who he really wanted was sitting not even ten feet from him.  Jalise was beautiful, possibly the most beautiful woman he’d ever laid his eyes on.

She had long, silky soft black hair that always flowed down her back in waves and John just wanted to run his fingers through it at times.  What intrigued him the most about her was her eyes.  Midnight blue orbs filled with so much mystery and hatred for him, which John just shrugged off, not letting much bother him since he was on top of the world.

“So baby cakes, how’s it looking over there?” He asked, glancing at his personal assistant through the mirror, and grinned broadly when he seen the frustration expression that adorned her face.  Getting under her skin was one of his favorite things to do.

Rolling her eyes at him, Jalise didn’t respond, knowing she’d only give him what he wanted and didn’t look up at him.  This was the same game he always played with her and it was getting rather old in her eyes as she sighed. “It’s coming along, Cena.” She replied gruffly, her voice low, and cleared her throat while crossing her legs.  Her outfit she’d chosen to wear that evening consisted of a short, gray skirt that went with her gray cardigan and had a white blouse on underneath it.

He snorted, walking over to stand behind her, leaning down so he could look at the schedule, blue eyes scanning it. “You’re going to have to cancel half those public appearances…” He jabbed a finger at some of the autograph signings that she’d scheduled him for. “I got other things to do this month.” His mouth was right by her ear, breathing his hot breath on it, and grinned when he seen her getting perturbed fast.

This was how it went every night.  John would walk over after she was finished with his schedule and always find something wrong with it. “Tough shit, Cena.  Vince gives me the appearances and I work them into your schedule the best I can.  You don’t like it?  Go talk to someone who gives a fuck.” She stated sweetly back at him, smiling serenely, and pulled her ear away from his mouth, not wanting to feel is foul breath on her ear.

Hearing the attitude in her voice, John’s eyes narrowed and retorted angrily, “Listen here baby cakes, It’s your JOB to give a fuck so why don’t you do your secretary thing and shut up.  When I want lip from you, I’ll rattle my zipper.” He snorted, walking over to the cooler that was in his dressing room, and pulled one out.

Glaring back at him and crossing her arms in front of her chest, Jalise abruptly stood up from the table and pushed him against the wall, snarling with anger. “Let’s get ONE thing straight, prick, I’m not here for your PERSONAL reasons.  I’m here for your professional use and professional alone.  You don’t like me?  Get someone else or shut your damned mouth and do the schedule I give you!” She then turned around and walked away from him, sitting on the couch, trying to calm herself down.  He knew just what to say to push her buttons and it unnerved her!

John frowned, glaring back at her, not believing what she just said to him. “Personal assistant Jalise, remember that.  As for the professional part, you need to start acting it more and keep your hands to yourself.” He informed her, his patented cocky grin now crossing his features. “At least until we’re somewhere else.” When he seen her begin to tremble with anger from his words, John laughed as he stepped out of the room, going to get his script for the night and knew he’d won again.

“Asshole.” She mumbled under her breath and sat back on the couch, crossing her ankles and sighed heavily, deciding she needed something to drink.

John was going to be the death of her, she knew it, which is why she’d already planned her funeral ahead of time.  She shoved the papers away and walked out of the room, immediately smiling upon seeing Steve Williams walking around the halls, and couldn’t believe he was there.  For being bald, Steve definitely had it going on as far as the looks were concerned and Jalise suddenly felt herself adjusting what she was wearing for him.  She smoothed out her skirt and hair before walking past him toward the cafeteria, a smile on her face, allowing her strawberry scent to linger in the air.

Steve halted to watch the woman walk past him, arching a curious eyebrow, and groaned as soon as her scent filled his nostrils.  He rubbed his chin thoughtfully for a moment before deciding he needed something to drink.  Being on the road again with the boys was taking its toll on his body, but Steve could handle it and adjusted nicely.

He’d recently finished making a movie called The Condemned, starring in it, and it was set to come out right after WrestleMania that year.  Vince always tried getting him to come to all the WrestleMania’s, since he was such a huge fan favorite and what not, and Steve honestly didn’t mind.  He loved his gimmick and played it to a T, which is why he’d been the most popular wrestler in his day.

Walking into the cafeteria, Jalise smiled as she said hello to a few of the boys, winking over at Jeff Hardy, who was one of her best friends.  She laughed at what he talking about, not believing how cruel Jeff could be to his older brother Matt.  Not that she minded hearing stories of the famous prankster Hardy Boys because she did.

Her best friend, Genevieve, was dating the boy wonder in Matt and sometimes Jalise wondered what she saw in him.  She shrugged it off as being temporarily insane, but was happy for them nonetheless, especially after what Amy and Adam did to him.  Amy’s on-screen name was Lita, but she’d recently retired and Adam was known around the locker room as Edge or the Rated R Superstar.

“I swear, one of these days, Jeffrey…” She trailed off, laughing when he explained exactly what he’d done to his brother, and walked over to the water machine while still talking with him.  The table was right by the machine as she stuck her dollar in and turned around, grinning from ear to ear upon seeing her client staring back at her, but ignored his presence.  If he was going to treat her like she was a piece of trash then she would reciprocate the feelings.

John watched her long and hard, not believing how well her and Jeff got along, but knew there was no sexual chemistry between them.  He would’ve put a stop to that immediately if he even thought there was, which made him smirk.  His blue eyes suddenly narrowed as he watched Steve Williams walked into the room, and headed straight in Jalise’s direction.  His fists clenched tightly, almost to the point of turning his knuckles white, and couldn’t believe the bald bastard had struck up a conversation with her.  Nobody did that and John was prepared to put a stop to it immediately as he waited, bidding his time for the right moment to intervene.

Steve laughed softly when the woman who’d past him in the hallway earlier dropped her water when she turned around, quickly catching it in his hand, and held it out to her. “Here ya go, honey.” He said, smiling down at her, intrigued instantly by how beautiful she was. “I’m Steve, I don’t think we’ve met.”

Smiling softly back at the Texas Rattlesnake, the infamous Stone Cold Steve Austin, Jalise tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and graciously accepted the water from him. “Thank you, Steve.” She replied, shaking his hand, and introduced herself. “I’m Jalise, nice catch ya had there.” She winked at him and gestured toward the bottled water he’d caught for her when she dropped it.

Chuckling softly, Steve shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly, and stared into her eyes while his sky blue ones twinkled down at her. “Not a problem. I didn’t mean to startle ya, sorry bout that.”

“You didn’t startle me, Steve.” She assured him in a sweet voice, holding the bottled water in her hand and ran a hand through her long, black hair while her midnight blue eyes sparkled back at him.  Oh but if the man didn’t look delicious enough to eat in his tight blue jean shorts with a What? t-shirt on, his newest catchphrase with the audience.

John was barely listening to whatever it was his buddy was telling him, eyes still narrowed. ‘That bitch acts like I’m scum of the Earth, but hoes herself out for Steve?’ He thought angrily, not liking her ice queen act with him she played, but then melted and was kind to everyone else.  He stood up and started towards her, knowing this had to be stopped before it went further than he would’ve liked to see.

Steve started to say something back to her, but hesitated when a punk kid who he found out to be named John Cena appeared before them, standing next to Jalise. “Hello.” He greeted evenly, his tone quiet, and wondered what was going on with these two.

He nodded his head, placing a hand on Jalise’s shoulder, and stated, “Hey.  J, we got to go. Almost time for my match.” John started ushering her towards the door, keeping his grip on her shoulder firm, and growled silently when she pulled away from him.

She immediately stepped away from her client, raising an eyebrow up at him, and crossed her arms in front of her chest before replying, “I don’t go down to the ring with you, Cena.  You can do it yourself.  I’m on a break.” She informed and flipped her hair behind her back as she turned around, smiling back at Steve apologetically. “Sorry about that.  I’m his personal assistant unfortunately.” Jalise grumbled, hating to even say those words, but knew it was true.

Waving her words aside, Steve wasn’t interested in hearing about that. “Not a problem, honey. Though he seems like a pill.” He commented, his eyes narrowing when he seen the look John was shooting at her. “He always this friendly?” He asked quietly, not liking the icy blue daggers the boy was spitting at her, and knew he needed to have his ass handed to him.  He’d gladly take the job, especially for this beautiful woman standing before him, and watched as John stormed out of the cafeteria a moment later.

Rolling her eyes and waving Steve off this time, Jalise replied exasperatedly, “You have no idea what kind of pill he is. I swear, I can’t even go to the bathroom without him hovering over my shoulder.  It’s really quite sad, but I do have a personal life outside of being his PA so he’ll just have to deal with it.” She sounded as if she could give two shits about the job at the moment, which is exactly what she was feeling, and never wiped that smile from her face.

Steve gestured towards an empty table nearby, smiling when she sat down across from him, and still couldn’t believe how attractive this woman was.  She could definitely be one of the WWE Divas, but then again, most of them were whores to begin with. “He’s just a cocky kid, he’ll get knocked down a peg or two someday, honey.” He assured her with a smile. “Personal life outside of being a PA? Seems like bein’ an assistant to a wrestler would take up most of yer time.  What do ya do on yer time off?”

“Relax and try to stay away from him for the entire day.” She replied with a soft laugh, only half joking about it, which was the sad part. “I get one day a week off from the job and I try to keep as far away from him as humanly possible.  Sometimes, I even change hotels just so he can’t find me for that one day.  It’s sad that he can’t even allow me to have my own life, that I have to sneak around, but this is strictly business between us and he needs to realize that.”

“Yeah, that is sad.” Steve agreed, wondering what the hell the boy was thinking, especially since he hadn’t made a move on his beautiful assistant.  He knew if Jalise was HIS, he’d treat her right and make sure she performed her personal duties to the fullest, with her consent of course. “Sounds like he’s wantin’ to be the center of attention, but enough about him.  When’s yer next day off?” He asked, smiling at her, and took a sip of his bottled water he’d gotten prior to introducing himself.

Raising a curious brow up at him with a small smirk on her lips, Jalise took a swig of her water and ran a hand through her hair as she quietly asked, “Why do you ask?” Her voice and tone was playful, yet serious at the same time, flirtatious in a way.

Steve chuckled, stroking his goatee thoughtfully back at her. “I was just wonderin’ if maybe you’d like to go out with me.  Dinner and a show or somethin’?” He was being nonchalant about it, acting like he didn’t mind if she took him up on his offer or not, though he hoped she would.

Tapping her chin in thought for a moment, pretending to think it over, a huge smile spread across her lips as Jalise replied, “Yeah that sounds like fun.” Her midnight blue orbs sparkled back at him, not believing he actually asked her out, and realized everything she’d heard about this man was false. “My next day off is Saturday and you can get a hold of me at this number.” She gave him the card that she pulled from her bra, winking, and stood up from the table. “Call me, Rattlesnake.” She giggled and walked out of the cafeteria, scent lingering behind her once more and went back to John, more importantly, back to hell.

Chapter 2

After doing his match, John was not in a good mood when he returned to his dressing room.  One was because of how Jalise flaunted herself so openly in front of Steve.  Second reason being he’d wound up messing up drastically in his match because he wasn’t concentrating, his mind on Jalise, and now was suffering the consequences.

His opponent had dropkicked him right in the knee when John didn’t move out of the way in time and now it was killing him.  He’d managed to walk down the hallway with a slight limp, growling at anyone who made a crack, and sighed heavily.  Nobody could be blamed for this, but himself, even though John was going to try everything within him to make sure to put the blame on his personal assistant.

Jalise was sitting on the couch, looking over the rest of the papers, and didn’t even look up when he stumbled through the dressing room door.  She was whistling happily to herself, a smile adorned on her face, and her legs were crossed again.  Showing off those long, tanned legs of hers that had two inch heels on her feet, Jalise stood at five foot, ten instead of eight.

Her mind was on Steve and how sexy the Texan was, not able to wait until Saturday to see him.  The way he carried himself in and out of the ring fascinated her.  Jalise had always been a fan of his, always cheering him on, and now she was going on a date with him!

“What are you so damn happy about?” John snapped, seeing the dreamy look on her face and dropped down in a nearby chair, groaning as he felt his knee.  It was throbbing with pain as John tried to block it out and hoped it wasn’t sprained or anything.

“That’s none of your business, Cena.” She snapped back at him cheerfully, flipping through the papers, and nodded before stapling them together.  Tossing them at his direction, Jalise stood up from the couch, and honestly wished she didn’t have as big of a heart as she did.  She knew he was in pain with his knee and felt the sorrow fill her eyes, even though she masked it expertly.  After the way he’d treated her that night, Jalise could care less if he fell off a cliff to his death, though that would never happen.  Again, wishful thinking on her part. “I’m leaving for the night.”

“No, you’re not.  You’re going with me to get my knee checked.  That’s part of your job, the paperwork end.” John informed her, his tone snotty, and smirked when he seen her boiling with rage again.  He didn’t care at the moment, his knee throbbing too badly, and needed take his anger out on someone. “So cancel your damn date and get around.” He carefully got to his feet, cursing when his knee almost gave out on him, and knew it was sprained.  John knew injuries well and this was definitely one of them, especially when he did it at his parent’s house whenever he went home for the family barbeques.

Sighing heavily, Jalise rolled her eyes as she gathered her things and left the papers on the dressing room floor. “You are not my problem when it comes to injuries, asshole.  I don’t have a date.  I just want to get the fuck away from you.  You sicken me, Cena.  Go get your own damned knee checked and go to hell!” She shouted, storming past him and out of the dressing room, and out of the arena.  A pissed off look adorned her face, replacing the dreamy smile she’d had, and growled under her breath angrily. ‘I hope he ends up fuckin’ crippled.’ She thought, throwing her bag in her car, and sped out of the parking lot, taking her anger out on her rental car.

“THAT BITCH!” John cursed, not believing the audacity of her to leave him in the physical state he was in at the time.

He ignored the paperwork that was scattered on the dressing room floor and grabbed his bag, slowly limping out the arena.  He didn’t know why he liked to annoy her other than the fact that she took it oh so well and it only seemed to egg him on further.  He groaned, slipping into his rental car, skipping going to see the trainer and pulled out of the parking space, just wanting to get to his room and sleep.

Walking inside the hotel about twenty minutes later, Jalise stood in line at the receptionist desk.  It sickened her to watch as the woman flirted with the wrestlers, growling under her breath, and wanted to ring the bitch’s neck for not doing her job properly.  When it was finally her turn, Jalise quickly retrieved her key card, not even telling the woman to have a good night, and wheeled her luggage behind her toward the elevator.  She stepped on, pushing the number two button, and waited impatiently for the doors to open.  When it dinged on the second floor, Jalise walked off, heading to her room, wanting to soak in a nice, hot bubble bath.

Steve was standing at the vending machine, staring at the selections in disgust, and grunted something about how the hotel needed a better variety.  He turned around when he heard the elevator, grinning as he seen the beautiful woman named Jalise step off. “You look beat, honey.” He said by way of greeting, hooking his thumbs through the belt loops of his cut off jean shorts, barefoot and not wearing shirt, obviously ready to relax.

“Oh hey stranger.” She greeted back playfully, heading in his direction, and had to tear her gaze away from his bare chest.  Maybe she’d be taking a COLD bath instead of a hot one, especially seeing his muscles rippling with every movement he made.  The man was already driving her mad, even though he didn’t attract her as much as John, but that didn’t take anything away from Steve.  He was a sexy redneck Texan as she flashed him a smile and ran a hand through her hair, sighing heavily. “Yes, I’m completely exhausted.  I just wanna soak in a nice, hot bubble bath and have a glass of wine to simmer down.” John really struck her nerves tonight and it really sucked that the man had drove her to drink almost every night.

Steve nodded, running a hand over his smooth bald head, smiling understandingly back at her. “Sounds like an idea. Go on gal, ya look ready to drop.” He stated, smiling playfully back at her, and stroked his goatee as he added teasingly, “I wouldn’t want ya passin’ out on me Saturday from exhaustion.”

Raising a brow back up at him, Jalise walked over, her midnight blue eyes lowering just a little and softly replied, “You know, we don’t have to wait until Saturday, Steve.” Her voice had dropped as she ran her finger down his muscular chest, her fingernail barely grazing his skin, and ran it back up again. “I do have a Jacuzzi in my room and it’s so lonely using it by myself.” The innocence dripped in her tone mixed with obvious seduction as she smiled softly back at him.  Just one look in his eyes and Jalise knew she was driving him as mad as he had her by not wearing a shirt.

He was tempted.  Damned if he wasn’t tempted to take her up on that offer and knew it showed.  He shook his head back at her regretfully and said in a very reluctant voice, “As much as I’d love to, Jalise we just met and…Well honey, I’d like to get to know ya in a situation that’s not gonna distract me if ya catch my meanin’.” His eyes were filled with such regret and sorrow, wanting nothing more than to join her, but knew they had to take this slow.  He’d been through three failed marriages and knew women well, not wanting her to be just another fling and notch on his belt. “If that offends ya, honey, I’m sorry.”

Smiling widely back at him and nodding in understanding, Jalise stroked his face with her hand and whispered, “It doesn’t offend me, Steve.  It shows me what kind of man you really are.” Her voice was low and soft as she kissed his cheek and winked at him. “See ya Saturday, sweets.” She then walked off toward her room and could feel his blue eyes burning a hole through her, causing a grin to spread across her lips.

Touching his cheek with his hand, Steve couldn’t believe how hot his cheek grew with just one brush of her lips against it.  He groaned and proceeded to fill a bucket with ice, planning on going and cooling himself down.  That woman was too attractive for her own damn good as he walked off toward his room.

Once inside, he set his bucket of ice down on the nightstand and walked over to the mini fridge, pulling a beer out, his favorite beverage.  He pressed it to the back of his neck, groaning in comfort, though it didn’t stop the erection from pressing against his jean shorts that she’d caused to form.  Saturday couldn’t come quick enough in Steve’s eyes as he downed the first beer before grabbing another, needing to calm down before he ended up going to her room and taking her up on her offer.

Walking into her hotel room, Jalise quickly locked the connecting door before stripping her clothes off, smirking when she seen the bottle of wine in her midst.  She’d ordered a bottle to be waiting for her in every hotel room she stayed in while on the road with John and grabbed it up from the bucket of ice, sighing in contentment.  She walked into the kitchen, grabbing a wine glass, and ventured into the bathroom, setting them both down and leaned forward, turning the faucet of the bathtub on.  Grabbing a bottle of strawberry scented bubble bath, Jalise poured it in the hot water, swishing it around with her hand, and groaned in satisfaction.  The water wasn’t hot enough to scorch her, but it would help her relax and get her mind off of her client.

She stepped inside the water, grabbing up her glass and wine and slowly sank down into the hot water, pouring herself a glass of wine and leaned back against the tub.  This was one of the few luxuries she enjoyed, especially after how much trouble John had put her through tonight.  Seeing she didn’t have enough ice for her glass, Jalise resignedly stepped out of the tub, pinning her long black hair up, and wrapped a towel around her body.  She tucked it in between her breasts so it wouldn’t fall off of her and grabbed the ice bucket on her way out of her room.  A groan of reluctance escaped her lips when she seen John standing at the ice machine and raked a hand through her hair.

‘He’s not going to intimidate me.’ Reluctantly, she walked over to the other ice machine, since there were two and began filling her bucket up in silence.

John arrived at the hotel after checking his knee out with the physician of the WWE.  Vince had ordered it to happen, threatening John a suspension if he didn’t come back to the arena, and John had no choice but to do so.  He limped to his room, tossing his bag aside, and pulled off his jersey.  His muscles rippled with every movement as he moved his head from side to side, groaning when it cracked, and sighed.  No longer angry, just tired as hell, John stepped back out into the hallway, needing some ice for his knee before he went to sleep.

He straightened up, laying down the small shovel upon seeing Jalise walking up to him.  His eyebrows drew together in a frown at the look he’d seen on her face.  She looked almost as tired as he was, which he couldn’t blame her, especially after all the shit he’d put her through lately.

“Are you alright?” He asked gruffly, trying to sound like he didn’t care, even though he really did.

Jalise cocked an eyebrow over at him and shrugged her shoulders, digging further into the ice, and shoveled more inside her bucket.  A white towel was wrapped around her body and nothing more while rubbing the back of her neck. “I’m as good as can be expected, Cena.” She finally answered.

John watched her rub her neck, knowing it had to be from stress, and the concern etched on his features against his will. “Hurt?” He asked softly, not looking anywhere but her face, not in the mood to get bitch slapped for looking elsewhere.

“No, just tense.  You do that to me.” She replied softly, meaning what she said and finished shoveling the ice in her bucket as she cracked her neck, shutting the lid of the ice machine.  It was true; she wasn’t going to lie to him and sugarcoat anything.  He didn’t deserve to be treated with respect because he never gave it back, though Jalise was a kind hearted woman who believed there was good in everyone.

“I’m sorry, Jalise.” John replied solemnly, regret dripping his voice and sighed heavily as he shook his head, not believing how much stress he’d caused her.  He ran a hand through his hair, looking at her apologetically, and hoped she at least accepted it without being the ice bitch to him.

Jalise looked shocked, truly shocked by his apology, and raised an eyebrow curiously over in his direction. “Wow, I don’t believe I’ve ever heard you apologize to me before.” She commented, touching his forehead with her hand out of instinct. “Are you sick or something, Cena?” She asked, her voice filled and dripping with sarcasm, though she was extremely skeptical.

Not able to fight back a smile that crossed his lips, John chuckled softly as he shot back teasingly, “I don’t know.  Am I running a fever, doc?”

Smirking back at him and shaking her head, Jalise replied playfully, “Surprisingly no, and I thought YOU were the doctor?”

She winked at him, holding the bucket of ice in her arms, and couldn’t believe they were actually having a civil conversation.  She’d worked for John for the past year and in all that time, this was the first time they’d actually talked to each other instead of bitched and argued.  It felt nice.

John shook his head, trying not to laugh at her, but it was impossible at this point. “Not the kind you’d want, J, unless of course you’re interested in taking a crash course on Basic Thuganomics.” He joked, grinning, and couldn’t believe they were actually being communal to one another.

“You only wish I would.” She replied in a low, seductive voice, winking back at him and ran a hand through her hair, realizing what was happening between them. “Well, you better go rest that knee. See you tomorrow.”

He nodded, hardly believing she was almost flirting with him and raked a hand through his hair, coughing. “Yeah…Uh, see you tomorrow.  Do you need a ride or…?” John asked, feeling awkward all of a sudden and shuffled his feet, being careful of his knee.

Shaking her head back at him, Jalise smiled as she replied, “No, I got my rental, but I’ll meet you at the arena around noon.  Have a good night, John.” Her voice was soft and calm as she walked away from him, the scent of strawberries lingering in the air, and held her bucket of ice in her arms.  She couldn’t believe she’d actually just flirted with her client, the man who treated her like common trash, and despised most in this world. ‘What is wrong with me?’ She thought, walking into her hotel room, and mentally shook herself, wanting to get back to her tub before to lapsed into temporary insanity.

John watched her walk away in nothing but that towel, finally heading back to his own room, and shook his head. ‘What is wrong with her?’ He wondered, knowing that was not the typical Jalise behavior.  Then again, being nice to her wasn’t normal either and it actually felt nice to not be at each other’s throats for once.  With that thought in mind, John walked to his bed, wrapping his knee in the ice and collapsed on top of it, instantly falling asleep.

Chapter 3

Walking into the arena the following day, Jalise was all smiles as she wore a pair of suede pants with a jacket and a white tank top that had lace on the edges.  The suede was light brown and her hair was up in a bun, looking professional, and walked into John’s locker room.  She immediately quieted down when she realized he was going over his raps and walked over to the table in silence.

When it came to John and his raps, Jalise had learned the hard way not to disturb his concentration.  She shuddered at the memory of the first and last time she’d done it, raking a hand through her hair, and sighed.  In all her years of living, Jalise had never seen an individual get ticked off as fast as John had and she made a vow to never let it happen again.

John didn’t even notice her walk in, finally stopping when he got the right rhythm down, satisfied and turned around, blinking when he seen her. “Hey, didn’t hear you come in.” He softly said, hating the fact that she was so timid around him, but it was for good reason.

Laughing softly back at him, Jalise waved him off as she sat down at the table and replied, “Don’t worry about it, John.  I snuck in cause I know you hate being interrupted during your rap practice.” Her voice didn’t hold any sarcasm, just thoughtfulness and consideration, a sweet caress as she started going over the documents for his schedule.

Another look of surprise washed over his features as John stared her, wondering if maybe she’d been drugged and the effects were permanent.  He didn’t want to ruin it, but felt compelled to ask, “Are you…feeling okay?  You seem a bit…different.” He smiled at her, showing he meant no offense, but his curiosity was getting the better of him now.

“No, I’m just tired of us fighting all the time and want to try to make this work.” She wasn’t being smart with him or anything, just telling the truth, being real with him.  Jalise was sick of them bickering, sick of the verbal abuse they inflicted on each other, and wanted to try at least to make this work with him. “You were nice to me last night.” She pointed out simply, shrugging her shoulders. “Why wouldn’t I reciprocate the feeling?”

Dropping down on the couch, John smiled at her words and rhetorical question, pulling his duffel bag on his lap. “I’m tired of us fighting too.” He admitted, pulling out a roll of ace bandage, and setting it aside before pushing the bag away. “I’m trying not to treat you like you’re…Well like you’re my slave or something.  I’m a jackass, I know.” He laughed at himself, beginning to wrap the bandage around his knee, and winced a little at the pain that radiated from it.

Nodding in agreement with him and laughing softly, Jalise shook her head and started going over the documents again. “Yes, you are a jackass at times, but I can be a bitch too so it’s not all your fault.  I just think that we both need to quit butting heads about your schedule and stop being so damned stubborn about it.  I do try my best to make you happy with it, John.” That last part was in a quiet tone of voice as she watched him wrap his knee, seeing he was doing it wrong.

John groaned, wincing as he pinned the bandage in place, finally looking up at her. “I know you do, J.  I just get frustrated and take it out on you when it’s not your fault.” He said softly, admitting his faults and stood up to test his knee out with the bandage, putting his weight on it a little.

“Is your knee okay?” She asked softly, truly concerned about her client, and felt her eyebrows furrow together in worry.  She couldn’t help it, even though they almost never got along, besides now, Jalise still hated seeing him hurt and hoped he could wrestle with that knee.  It wasn’t her fault she had a heart of gold and blamed it on her deceased parents.

John looked at her, his expression one of mild surprise, still getting used to this whole friendliness factor from her. “Yeah, it’s fine.” He grinned, jumping on his bad leg to show her he was alright, and ignoring the slight pain it gave him. “Nothing to worry about, J.  So, how’s the paperwork looking?” He asked, changing the subject, wanting to talk about something else other than his throbbing knee.

She shrugged again. “It’s almost finished actually.  I’m ahead for once.” She laughed softly and ran a hand through her hair, her thoughts suddenly turning to Steve.  

Those kind blue eyes and the way he carried himself.  She only just met him, but he was the sexiest bald man she’d laid her eyes on.  She started looking through the papers, her eyes taking on a dreamy look, and sighed, going into her own little world.  Oh how she wanted Saturday to come, but knew it would be ridiculously slow in arriving.

Walking into the bathroom, John changed for his match that night in his normal wear.  He came out ten minutes later, freshly showered and in blue jeans with no shirt.  He halted when he seen the look on her face, a faraway, dreamy gaze in her eyes, and walked over to stand beside her, bending down and waving his hand in front of her face.

“Earth to J, come back!” John chuckled, not surprised when she didn’t respond to him right away.  Usually, she’d swat his hand away and call him an asshole or something, but John had a feeling on this day, she would just laugh with him.

His hand waving in her face caused Jalise to jolt out of her thoughts and daydream about Steve and smiled up at John, looking at him apologetically. “I’m sorry, did you ask me something?” She asked, staring down at the paperwork, and seen she was only a few lines shy of being done with his schedule for the month.  She didn’t even remember doing it.  Though, Steve still haunted her mind, which she didn’t mind and allowed that dreamy smiled to form on her lips again.

“You’re, like, not here.  What’s on your mind, kid?” He asked curiously, sitting on the edge of the table, and crossed his massive arms in front of his chest.  

For a rookie, John had bigger arms than Mark Callaway, who was known to the wrestling fans as the Undertaker, which was saying a lot.  He was definitely going to etch his name in history once he got past the cocky attitude and his arrogance.  On camera, however, John was known as a soldier to the crowd and a sweetheart, someone the girls drooled over.  They didn’t know the real John Cena, not the way Jalise knew him though she had to admit, he was getting better.

Deciding to let it slide with him calling her a kid, Jalise stood up from the table and folded her arms in front of her chest. “It’s J or Jalise.” She reminded softly. “And I just have a lot on my mind right now.  Sorry if it’s bothering you.” Steve needed to get out of her head before she had serious problems on her hands, including not able to do her job.

“Sorry J, just kinda slipped out.” John apologized, looking at her. “You’re not bothering me.  I was just wondering if you were alright.  Anything you wanna talk about?” He asked gently, showing her he was there for her if she ever needed someone to talk to.  Though, he knew she’d probably go to Jeff, Genevieve or Ember for those types of talks.

Sighing heavily, Jalise shook her head as she walked over and sat on the couch, done with the paperwork, and crossed her ankles as she stared at the floor. “It’s nothing, John.  You have bigger things to worry about on your mind, but thank you for offering.” She replied, not looking up at him, and felt Steve enter her mind once again.  It was the strangest thing.  At first, she couldn’t get John off of her mind, but now it was reversing to Steve and Jalise was truly wondering what was going on inside her heart and mind.

“Right, well listen, I’m going to go talk to the trainer about getting some ointment or something for my knee…” John said, sounding awkward as his words trailed off, and raked a hand through his short brown hair. “I’ll see you in a bit.” He coughed, walking out of the room, leaving the door open behind him.

Jalise could only wave at him as he walked out, too engrossed in her own thoughts about Steve.  She still hadn’t told John about her date Saturday and decided what she did with her days off was none of his business.  A soft smile played on her lips as Steve entered her mind again and sighed, not able to wait until Saturday to see him.  She’d had the most wonderful dream about him the night before, those strong hands, his soft blue eyes peering into hers as he made passionate love to her.  Just the recollection of the dream caused Jalise to do a full body shiver as she smiled, feeling her cheeks begin to grow hot at the thought.

Steve was walking down the hallway when he seen her, taking a step back as he looked in the dressing room, not believing how beautiful she looked. “Hey there honey.” He greeted, leaning in the doorway, and folded his arms over his chest.

His voice jolted her out of her thoughts again as Jalise looked up at him, midnight blue eyes sparkling and stood up as she walked over to him. “Hey sexy, what’s up?” She asked, winking back at him, and hoped the nickname didn’t offend him any as she leaned against the door.

Steve shrugged, his own eyes crinkling at the corners at the nickname, not minding it.  It was different, but he didn’t mind it, especially coming from her sweet mouth. “Not much, how bout you, sexy?” He shot back at her, looking playful as his lips curved into a small smirk.

Giggling softly at his playfulness, Jalise leaned her head against the door and folded her own arms in front of her chest. “Sorry, don’t know what to call you besides Steve.” She was being honest, though his blue eyes entranced her in ways she’d never thought possible. “Nothing much, just thinking about Saturday.”

“Call me anythin’ ya want, just please don’t call me Stevie.” He requested with a smile, though his tone was dead serious. “I’d even prefer Stone Cold over that.” He stared down at her, eyebrows drawing together at her words. “What about Saturday?  Did ya change yer mind, honey?”

“No, no of course not!” She quickly assured him with a smile, touching his arm with her hand, and allowed her lips to curl into a smirk. “So, sexy isn’t ruled out then?” She asked playfully with a wink and giggled again, loving how playful they were with each other.

Steve took her hand in his, raising it to his lips, and gently kissed her fingertips. “No honey, you can call me sexy if ya want.” He assured her with a shrug, tongue sweeping gently over her fingertips as his voice dropped to a huskier tone. “Though I think the name suits ya better.”

Jalise had to bite her bottom lip to keep from moaning out, loving the feeling of his lips brushing against her fingertips, and stared into his blue eyes. “You are such a tease.” She whispered, eyes fixated on what he was doing with her hand and smiled, leaning further against the door.  She blushed at his compliment. “Thanks, Steve.” She softly said, just a notch above a whisper.

“Anytime Jalise.” He whispered back, reluctantly letting her hand go.  This woman intrigued him to no end, that and she was astonishingly beautiful. “I gotta go, meetin’ with the head honchos.” He sighed tiredly, sounding regretful, and asked hopefully, “See ya around?”

Sadness entered her eyes as she nodded, searching his own, and pressed her hand over her racing heart. “Saturday definitely.” She purred back, winking at him, and ran a hand through her hair, wishing she could go with him, wishing they could have their date now.  Saturday seemed like ages away and Jalise wasn’t sure if she could wait that long to see him again.

Steve seen the look in her eyes and smiled, deciding Saturday was also too far off for them. “Maybe we could grab some coffee after the show?” He asked, voice and tone full of hope and prayed she agreed with him, not wanting to wait until Saturday either.

Her eyes lit up instantly, a smile curving her lips, and nodded in agreement. “Alright, I’d love to do that.” She softly replied, knowing he couldn’t wait until Saturday to see her either.  Even though it was Wednesday, it still seemed like a lifetime away. “Call me whenever you’re ready and I’ll meet you outside of the arena.”

Nodding, Steve had her number in his wallet, which was in his back pocket. “Alright then, see ya tonight.” He took her hand and squeezed it gently before walking away, nodding when John passed him. “Cena.”

Waving back at him, Jalise walked away from the door and back to the table, staring down at the finished documents, keeping her eyes focused on them even though they were finished.  The last thing she wanted was to hear John call her a whore or a bitch just because she was trying to have a life outside of being his personal assistant.  John hadn’t heard their conversation though he had seen Steve at the door. 

He walked in, closing the door behind him and walked over to get a water out of the cooler, asking nonchalantly, “What’d Austin want?”

“Just to talk.” She simply replied, pretending to write something down, refusing to look up at John and nodded as she rubbed the back of her neck.  

She suddenly wished she’d gone with Steve to his meeting, hating the tension that had built up in the room, and sighed.  It was no wonder she needed a bubble bath with a glass of wine ever night she worked with John.  He unnerved her to no avail and made her more tense than any job she’d ever had before this one.

John nodded, not buying it, but not saying anything either, surprised by the jealousy that suddenly coursed through his body. “Oh…” He glanced at the clock and sighed heavily. “My match is in ten minutes.” He announced softly, beginning to warm up for it as he jumped back and forth on his feet, his normal routine.

Slowly standing from the table, Jalise smiled back at him and handed him the papers. “Your schedule for the next few weeks is finished.  If there’s something you need changed, I’ll try to fix it, but I don’t promise anything.  Good luck on your match tonight, by the way.” She replied, rubbing the back of her neck again, and patted his arm before walking back to sit on the couch.

Nodding, John stopped his bouncing from foot to foot to walk over and study the schedule.  He groaned when he seen how few days he had off, but forced it aside, knowing there was nothing he or Jalise could do about it. “Thanks, J.”

Simply nodding back at him, Jalise stared down at the floor again, thoughts of Steve flowing through her mind, and knew they would probably end up in her hotel room tonight since she hated coffee.  John remained silent until it was time for his match.  He glanced back at her once before going out and did well mostly, until he was dropkicked in the knee again.  

Jalise had actually watched the match and cringed, not believing the audacity of his opponent to do that, even though she knew it was scripted.  Just as John walked back into the dressing room, Jalise was packing up her things for the evening, her back to him.  Her hair was over one side of her shoulder, not hearing him walk in, her mind focused on other things at the moment.

John had to support himself on the wall as he walked into the dressing room, his knee just not holding him right now.  He ignored her, more intent on making it to the chair without dropping, hissing as he sat down.  Jalise heard the hiss and turned around, frowning when she seen the pain contorting his features, and slowly walked over.

“John, are you alright?” She asked softly, knowing she had to leave to meet Steve soon, and smiled when her cell phone rang as if on cue. He went to say something to her, but when he heard her cell ring, he waved her off, letting her know he could take care of himself.

Steve grinned when Jalise answered on the second ring and greeted softly, “Hey honey, it’s me.  Ya done fer the night?”

Grinning from ear to ear, John slipping from her mind, Jalise nodded and replied, “Yup, I’m just heading out now.  Meet you outside?” She asked, eyes sparkling, and could already feel her body tingling at the possibilities that could happen between them.

“Yeah, I’ll be by the doors.  See you soon.” He whispered in a husky chuckle before hanging up, not believing how excited he felt to be seeing her again.

John gathered she was going out and had a fairly good idea who it was.  He bit back a frown and stood up, supporting his weight on his good knee, limping over to get his bag, and didn’t say a single word to her.  Snapping the lid of her cell phone shut, Jalise turned around to face John, concern in her eyes for him, and sighed when he gave her the cold shoulder.

“I’ll see you tomorrow.” She stated heatedly before walking out, shaking her head, and carried her bag over her shoulder.  The way he treated her was uncalled for sometimes and it really hurt her because she felt bad for having a life outside of him. “Fuck him.” She decided, walking outside and was thankful with the outfit she’d chosen that evening since it’d grown incredibly cold out, waiting for Steve to show.

The second Jalise had walked out, John finally collapsed, knee giving out. “Fuck!” He exclaimed, holding it, and buried his face in the crook of his arm, wishing she was there with him at the moment.  Because of his stupidity and jealousy, he’d pushed her away yet again and he had nobody to blame but himself.

Chapter 4

Steve stepped out of the shadows, where’d he been leaning against a wall, waiting for Jalise to arrive. “Ya look upset, honey.” He commented, his way of greeting her, concern etched in his rugged, yet handsome features.

Sighing heavily, Jalise nodded, not about to hide it from him, and blinked back the tears of hurt that formed in her eyes. “I’m okay, I just want to get out of here.” She whispered softly, sniffling a little, and wiped away a stray tear hastily that’d fallen down her cheek.

He frowned, reaching out to caress the side of her face with his strong hand, hating to see her upset. “If tonight’s not a good night fer ya, Jalise, I understand.” He said quietly, not liking to see her cry.  Matter of fact, he wanted to kill John for making her cry. “What happened?”

She couldn’t take it anymore and burst out in tears, causing Steve to pull her in his arms, and shook her head.  All the emotions flowed through her body as she clung to him, not believing she was actually breaking down in his arms, but couldn’t help it either. “I don’t want to be alone tonight, Steve.  I refuse to allow him to run my personal life.” She stated, both hatred and sorrow evident in her voice, wiping away her tears hastily again. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to do that.” Jalise apologized, referring to the breaking down, and cracked a smile at him teary eyed.

Steve rubbed her back soothingly with his hand, trying to get her to calm down a little more. “It’s alright, Jalise, I don’t mind.” He replied honestly, hating to see her in this much emotional pain due to that dickhead. “Yer entitled to a life of yer own and if he can’t deal with that, then maybe ya oughta see bout workin’ for someone else.” He guided her towards his black truck that had the smoking skull on the hood and pulled a bandana out of his back pocket, holding it out to her.

“Thanks.” She whispered, wiping away her excess tears and slid in the passenger seat of his truck, deciding she’d just ride with someone else to the arena in the morning.  She buckled up, making sure not to smear her makeup and grinned back at him, trying to get in a cheerful mood now that’s he was away from John.  Handing his bandana back to him, Jalise softly sighed and resignedly said, “I hate to say this, but I hate coffee and I have a feeling you feel the same way.”

He chuckled at her observation, turning down the radio when he started the truck, and nodded in agreement. “I do.” He admitted openly. “I just didn’t know if ya were a coffee person or not.  I’m more of a beer guy m’self.” He pulled out of the parking lot of the arena, shooting her a sidelong glance.

Smiling softly back at him, Jalise tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and looked back at him, eyes slowly going back to normal. “I usually drink wine or Tequila Rose.” She admitted, hating the taste of beer, but she had a feeling tasting it in Steve’s mouth wouldn’t be all that bad. “If you want, we could just go to the hotel and spend some time together there?” She suggested, hoping she didn’t sound pushy, but all she wanted to do was be alone with him, not out in public.

Steve arched an eyebrow at her, nodding.  He made a quick stop at a liquor store on the way to the hotel, picking up some beer for him and a bottle of Tequila Rose for her.  Then, he headed to the hotel, parking in the back and got out of his truck, the sack in one arm.

“Comin’ honey?” He asked, extending his hand to her after opening her door for her.

“Of course.” She replied softly, slipping her hand into his, and allowed him to guide her into the hotel.  They decided going to hers as they walked up the back staircase and walked down to her hotel room.  She slid the key card in, opening the door, and ushered him in, closing the door behind her and peeled her jacket off instantly. “Make yourself comfortable, Steve.” She let her hair down from the clip, allowing it to cascade in waves down her back, and kicked off her heels as she sighed.  This was what she wanted, just to relax and be in the company of this fine looking Texas before her.

Steve watched her, loving how her hair rippled down her back in waves, catching the lamplight and reflecting it.  He set the bag down on the table before removing his boots, setting them by the door, and stuffed his hands into the front pockets of his jean shorts. “Yer hair is gorgeous.” He complimented softly, aching to run his fingers through it.

Turning around and smiling at him, Jalise walked over toward him. “Thanks.” She whispered softly, blushing a bit at his comment and walked into the mini bar to get a glass for her, knowing Steve drank his beer straight from the can.

Cracking open a beer, Steve took a long swallow from it, carrying the bottle of Tequila Rose to her, and set it in front of her vision.  His arm brushed hers as he leaned down, whispering in her ear with his hot breath, “Yer red, honey.”

The blush grew deeper as he heard his Texan drawl in her ear, causing shivers to flow down her spine and turned around to face him, licking her dried lips. “You’re quite the observer.” She softly replied and cracked open the bottle of Tequila Rose, pouring herself a much needed glass of it.

Steve nodded, stepping back and leaned against the wall, blue eyes studying her thoughtfully for a few minutes. “Are ya uncomfortable with me here?” He finally asked, needing to know the answer since the question had been brewing in his mind.

“No, I’m glad you’re here, Steve.” She replied instantly, shaking her head to emphasize her answer, and walked over to him.  Jalise ran her hand down his face, tracing his jaw line with her finger, loving how rough his face felt, yet it was smooth at the same time. “Are you uncomfortable being here with me?” She asked softly, biting her bottom lip, and hoped his answer was no.

Catching her hand in his, Steve set his beer down on a nearby stand and kissed the palm of it gently. “No.” He simply whispered against her soft skin, loving how soft her skin was against his lips and tongue.

A shiver shot down her spine this time as she smiled up at him and immediately grabbed her glass of Tequila Rose, taking a sip of it, eyes never leaving his.  She took his hand in her free one, leading him out to the bedroom part of her suite, and sat down on the bed. “Good, I’m glad to hear that.” She whispered back, feeling him sit down beside her, and trailed her finger against the edge of the glass with her thumb.

Steve stared down at her for a moment, before moving so he was sitting behind her, legs on either side of her.  He began to massage her shoulders with his strong hands, feeling the knots and tension, and sighed with a shake of his head.  No woman should be this tense in his mind and Steve wanted to kill John for causing her to feel this much.

“Yer tense, honey. Wanna talk bout tonight?” He asked softly, never stopping his administrations.

A soft moan escaped her lips as she melted into his hands, eyes drifting shut, and smiled softly as she shook her head. “Mmm that feels good…” She moaned out softly.  It’d been so long since she had a massage as she began to gently caress his jean covered thighs and bare knees with her hands, sighing heavily. “John is a jackass, that’s all there is to it.  He hates me trying to have a life without him.  He’s an egomaniac, but I’m not allowing him to run my personal life.”

He started working on her back, slipping his hands under her tank top when it bunched under his hands. “Maybe ya should switch someone new.” He suggested again, knowing he’d said that earlier, and hadn’t gotten a response out of her. “If he’s that much of a pain…”

Nodding in agreement with him, Jalise let out a groan of pleasure, not believing how wonderful this man’s hands felt on her body.  She pulled her tank top up and over her head, tossing it to the floor, not wanting anything to stop him from massaging her. “I know I should, but I know him really well.  I know how his schedule is and to tell you the truth, if I quit being his personal assistant, he would win and that’s not about to happen.” Jalise had a fiery attitude and wasn’t about to let John scare her away from her job, no matter how much of a prick he was.

Steve chuckled softly, skimming his hands down her sides lightly, and smirked when he felt goose bumps erupt on her skin. “Feisty, aren’t ya?” He murmured in her ear, bending down to lightly kiss her back, unable to resist any longer.

“You have no idea…” She murmured back, melting further into his hands, and moved her hair so it pooled down her right shoulder and out of his way.  Her hands moved further up his thighs as she scooted further on the bed, against his chest, and felt him massage her sides.  She took a drink of her Tequila Rose as she moaned again when he hit another spot and whispered out breathlessly, “This feels so nice…”

“Good, yer so tense, Jalise.  Maybe I should go and let ya take a hot bath or somethin’, honey.” He said reluctantly, not wanting to go, but he didn’t want her feeling tired or sore either.  Steve finally stopped and wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his chin lightly on her shoulder. “That any better?”

“Mmm much…” She mumbled softly, leaning further against him, enjoying this closeness as she kissed his cheek.  Jalise caressed his face with her hand as a smile adorned her lips and shook her head at his suggestion. “I don’t want you to leave, Steve.  If you want, we could get into the Jacuzzi together, since you’re so worried about how tense I am.” She smirked, wondering if he would take her up on the offer this time around.

Steve groaned, burying his face in the crook of her neck, not believing she’d asked him a second time. “Woman, yer killin’ me!” He whispered, accent suddenly going into high gear.  Finally, he pulled away and smirked at her. “I don’t think I should.  Not tryin’ to offend ya, but I don’t have anythin’ on underneath these jeans.”

She giggled as he groaned against her neck, smirking wickedly when she heard that, and shrugged her shoulders as she slowly slid from his arms. “Does it look like I give a rat’s ass if you have anything on underneath those jeans?” She retorted smugly and unhooked her bra from behind as she sauntered over to the Jacuzzi, winking back at him, and carried her glass of Tequila Rose with her.

He stood up, walking over to drain his beer, and shook his head. “Yer somethin’ else, Jalise.” He commented, making it sound like a compliment.  He watched her for a moment before pulling his shirt over his head, walking over to stand by her, eyes searching her own.  God did he want her, join her, but he wanted to make absolutely sure she wanted it as well.

She smiled back at him as she leaned forward, her bra laying on the floor now, and poured some oils in the water that would soothe their aching bodies in it.  Turning around, Jalise slid her pants and panties off, hair flowing down her back, and winked back at him over her shoulder before slowly stepping into the Jacuzzi.  The hot water engulfed her, causing her to groan in sheer contentment, and stared over at Steve with a sexy smirk on her face.

“Gonna join me, sexy?” She purred, running the water up her arms.

The answer to her question was the unfastening of his jean shorts as Steve slowly slid them down and stepped out, kicking them to the side.  He stepped into the Jacuzzi along with her, sitting down opposite, a fresh beer sitting behind him he’d retrieved on the ledge. “This does feel heavenly.” He admitted, not realizing how tense he too had been though his tension wasn’t from stress.  It was from the beautiful, naked woman in front of him as he groaned, melting into the hot water.

“Told ya.” She playfully chastised, leaning further into the jets, and groaned at how wonderful they felt against her body.  Taking a swig of her drink before setting it down on the ledge, Jalise looked over at the hunk that was sitting opposite of her. “I guess you were tense too.” She commented softly, all thought of John and what happened earlier that night leaving her mind.

Steve smirked at her, shaking his head before lightly splashing water on her. “Maybe.” He teased, trying to get her to smile.  She had a breathtaking smile and he wanted it on her because she looked even more beautiful, if that was possible, with it.  Jalise giggled and lightly splashed him back, scooting further against him and leaned her head against his side, a smile on her face.  She found it astounding how fast Steve could put a smile on her face and it warmed her heart, something she hadn’t felt in a long time.  Steve pulled her against him so her head was laying on his shoulder, wrapping an arm around her. “That’s better.” He sighed, tracing a finger along her jaw. “You’ve got a beautiful smile, Jalise.” He whispered, staring down at her, blue eyes darkening with desire slightly.

She could already feel her cheeks growing hot and nudged him playfully as she shook her head. “If you keep up with these compliments, you’re going to light me on fire.” She murmured, blushing even more when she realized what she’d said, and looked up into his eyes.  Jalise was suddenly entranced by how dark they’d gotten along with hers, which were near black now.

Not able to take it anymore, Steve bent down to lightly kiss her lips. “Would ya be offended if I said you’ve already got me burnin’ up?” He whispered against her lips, loving how soft and luscious they were against his own.

“No…” She whispered against his lips before kissing him softly back, moaning against his soft red lips, and pulled back as she stared into his eyes.  Without a word, she swam over to straddle his lap, cradling his handsome face in her hands and kissed him again, this time deeper. “I’ve been burning up since I met you…” She admitted in a murmur, lips vibrating against his.

“Glad to know it wasn’t just me.” Steve whispered back, wrapping his arms around her body.  He kissed her again, coaxing her lips apart with his own, and groaned the moment he tasted her.  Oh how wonderful she felt and tasted, sweeter than honey and knew she could feel his erection pressing against her pussy, wondering how she’d react to that.

“Steve…” She moaned out breathlessly in a whisper, running her hands over his bald head to his broad shoulders and down his arms, gasping when she felt his cock press against her.  Jalise wanted this man to take her, just take her and make her his, and deepened the kiss even more.  Their tongues entwined together and wrapped her arms around his neck, brushing against him on purpose under the water, and moaned softly in his mouth.

Steve trailed his kisses from her lips down her throat, his hands now cupping her nicely rounded ass in his hands.  He raised her up then froze, pulling back to look at her, desire for her very present in his eyes. “Honey, are ya on anythin’ or do we need protection?” He asked softly, breathless from the kiss and ran a finger down her cheek.  He’d been around the block a few times and had two daughters.  He didn’t need anymore kids and he had a feeling Jalise didn’t want them either, which was fine in his book.

Smiling softly back at him, Jalise wasn’t offended that he asked that question and shook her head. “I’m on the pill.” She answered, running the pad of her thumb across his lips, and grinded further against him. “I have a condom if you feel more comfortable using one.” She offered, pressing her forehead to his, and felt her eyes darkening and clouding over with sheer desire for this man.

Rubbing his erection against her pussy, Steve watched her face as it contorted with passion and felt his eyes fill with lust for him. “That’s up to ya, honey, it’s whatever ya feel comfortable with.” He whispered, his tone husky and cupped her breasts in his massive hands, one in each, bending down to draw a nipple into his mouth.

“It doesn’t matter to me.  I’m on the pill so it doesn’t matter.” She moaned out breathlessly, not believing how wonderful and fast this man was lighting her on fire.  Her hands ran up and down the back of his head to his neck, arching her body into his mouth and tongue and moaned out, “Oh Steve that feels so good…”

Steve raised her up again, arching his hips at an angle and slid inside of her, gritting his teeth by how tight she was. “Damn, you feel so tight!” He hissed, holding her still, trying not to move.  If he did, he was afraid he’d cum right then and there if she even twitched, her muscles almost feeling like they were suffocating his hardened cock.

Jalise cried out at the contact, not having had sex in so long and wrapped her arms around his neck tightly, trying not to move.  Her walls were clenching him furiously, feeling how hard and huge he was, and hoped he didn’t break her in half.  Her breathing became ragged as she kissed down his neck to his ear, inching herself a little at a time on him as he slid further inside of her, moaning and hissing uncontrollably, “Oh fuck…”

He gave her a few moments, before finally sheathing himself fully inside of her, giving her another minute to adjust to his incredible size. “Ya alright, honey?” He asked, voice gruff and low with desire.  At her nod, he began to thrust into her slowly, at a steady pace, groaning at how hot and tight she was around him. “Jalise, ya feel incredible, honey.” He moaned out, gripping her hips with his huge hands, and loved how their bodies molded together as one.

Nodding back at him, Jalise arched her body against him, rolling her hips in a circular motion as her hair trickle down her back and shoulders, while running her hands down his chest.  She loved how his muscles rippled against her fingertips and smiled, moaning against his lips as she kissed him. “So do you, Steve…” She moaned out, beginning to meet him for every single thrust he produced inside her body while she rode him.

Grunting, Steve was too busy trying to make her feel as exquisite as she was making him feel.  He tilted her upper body back so he could kiss across her collarbone, beginning to move faster and harder inside of her. “Do ya like that?” He asked in between kisses, grunting as his face contorted in passion and intensity.

“Yes…God yes…” She moaned out, feeling him increase the pace of this sexual encounter between them, and had her eyes closed.  Her face was contorted in passion and determination, feeling her orgasm building rapidly within her, and knew this was going to end all too soon. “Close…So close…” She groaned out, breathing erratic and ran her hands up and down his chest, never stopping the rolling of her hips on top of him.

Steve bucked when he felt her pussy walls clamp down around him. “Fuck! I’m bout to-” He groaned out loud, unable to stop himself when he felt her walls contract even more, and exploded his seed deep inside of her.  He never stopped his powerful thrusts, letting her milk him completely dry, and felt the beads of sweat begin to form on his forehead. “Fuck…”

Her entire body shuddered against him, gripping his shoulders tightly in her hands, and screamed out his name in her release from being so intense.  She buried her face in the crook of his neck, breathing so heavy, she couldn’t talk at the moment.  Her heart was pounding a furious tattoo against her chest, ready to jump out in front of her at any moment.  Jalise tried to breathe normally, though it was close to impossible at this point, even when taking deep, shaky breaths.  That definitely had been the best sex she’d ever experienced in her life and felt completely one hundred percent satisfied, not believing how wonderful Steve felt.

Steve was breathing pretty raggedly himself, feeling both great and upset at the same time.  Upset that he had came so damn soon, wanting it to last longer. “Sorry bout that, honey…” He said softly when he was finally able to speak. “Couldn’t stop m’self.”

“It’s…alright…” She rasped out, her chest rising and falling rapidly, slowly pulling her head up from his neck, smiling from ear to ear. “It was great while it lasted, sexy.” She winked back at him and kissed his lips softly, still feeling him limp inside of her and buried her face in his neck again, trying to calm down her body. “That was incredible…”

“I’ll second that.” Steve agreed, standing up with her still in his arms.  He stepped out of the Jacuzzi and set her down on the bed, fetching a towel and began to dry her off, taking his time, bending down to kiss her calves.  He worked his way up to her thighs, loving her soft skin against him, and whispered while looking up at her, “Yer beautiful.”

Jalise smiled down at him, not believing how wonderful he was treating her, and ran her hands over his bald head as she replied softly, “You’re amazing…”

Steve just shook his head, now toweling off her upper body. “Nah, honey I just like ya a lot.” He winked at her, moving up to kiss her lips lightly. “A whole lot.”

She giggled softly as he tapped his nose with her finger and kissed him back softly. “Good because I like you just as much, if not more.” She truly meant it as she ran her hands down his shoulders and wrapped her arms around his neck for a gentle hug, kissing him again. “Stay with me tonight?” She asked hopefully, not wanting him to go anywhere.

Glancing at the clock, Steve nodded and moved so he was lying on the bed, pulling her down with him and snuggled against her. “Yeah, definitely.  We gotta be on the road in a few hours though.  What time do ya want me to wake ya?”

“Whenever you get up.” She replied in a soft voice, yawning, and snuggled further against him as he pulled the comforter over their bodies. “I want to ride to the next arena with you.” She requested and closed her eyes, feeling relaxed for the first time in months, and smiled when Steve obliged her.

They ended up falling asleep in each other’s arms, both content with what just happened, and neither regretted it.

Chapter 5

Steve was up before Jalise the next morning, letting her catch a few extra minutes of sleep before finally waking her.  He walked over to the bed, leaning against it, and softly whispered in her ear while shaking her shoulders gently, “Jalise, come on, honey.” Freshly showered, Steve had nothing but a towel, wrapped around his waist as he sat on the bed, sighing when she started fighting him.

Groaning softly in her sleep and swatting his hand away, Jalise buried her head underneath the pillow and mumbled out, “Five more minutes…”

He chuckled, wishing he could give her that, but they were already running late as it was. “Honey, five more minutes and you’ll have to skip a shower.” Steve sat on the edge of the bed, pulling back the blanket from her nude form, bending down to kiss her spine. “Come on now, get up Jalise.” He whispered, moving his kisses up higher, trailing them right on her spine.

Jalise mumbled something about Steve paying later for disturbing her rest and slowly pulled her head from beneath the pillow, slowly turning on her back.  Her eyes fluttered open and smiled up on seeing those blue eyes of Steve’s staring back at her, yawning loudly, and whispered, “Time to get up already?”

Steve nodded, pointing at the clock nearby, and started to stay something, but was interrupted by a knock on the door. “Who the hell?”

Slowly pulling herself out of bed and kissing his lips softly, Jalise murmured something about it being John and wrapped a sheet around her body before walking over to answer it.  She wasn’t wrong as she stared back at him through half lidded eyes, hair tousled and looking like she’d been thoroughly ravaged as she softly asked, “What is it, Cena?” She was still pissed at him for the way he’d treated her the previous night and, at the moment, she didn’t appreciate him disturbing her so early in the morning.

John just stared back at her, blue eyes widened in shock, and blinked several times to register her appearance. “I uh…wanted to see if you needed a ride.” He finally said, taking in her appearance once more, more thoroughly this time, frowning when he heard someone else in the room.

Shaking her head, Jalise ran a hand through her tousled hair and smiled dreamily. “Nope, I already got a ride, but I’ll see you at the arena.” She stated simply, holding the sheet tighter to her body.  It was none of his business who was in her room or what she’d done the previous night so she wasn’t going to justify her actions to him.  It was her life and decision, not his, and if he couldn’t accept that, then that was tough shit.

“I see that.  I hope you’re as good at being a whore as you are a PA.” He spat angrily back at her, nostrils flaring, and blue eyes shooting icicles before turning and limping off.  Jealous rage coursed through his body as he went on the elevator and ended up decking the wall of it, not believing what she’d done and WHO she’d done it with!

“Fuck you, Cena!” She shouted, slamming the door behind her harshly, and hit the wall with her fist as she hard as she could, tears already stinging her eyes.  Why did he have to be so cruel to her? Why couldn’t she have a boyfriend or a personal life outside of her job without getting berated for it?  It didn’t make any damned sense to her and Jalise was tired of fighting with him.  She walked back into the suite, seeing Steve was staring intently at her, and raked a hand through her hair before whispering, “I’ll be in the shower…”

Steve watched her disappear into the bathroom before shaking his head, thinking he might have to take John down a peg or two himself.  He didn’t like the fact that the man called Jalise a whore, whore or any of those other insulting names.  He dressed in a pair of blue jeans and a long sleeved white shirt, which looked like it was going to bust off of him due to his muscles.  

Steve had retrieved his bag when he first woke up from his hotel room that morning, not able to sleep for more than a couple of hours.  After he finished dressing and tying his boots, Steve sat on the bed and waited for her, hoping she didn’t take too long.  They had to be getting on the road soon or else they’d be late for the house show that day.

After taking a quick shower and having a small cry, Jalise walked out of the bathroom in a towel, her hair wrapped up in another, cracking a small smile in his direction.  She then ventured over to retrieve some clothes, sighing heavily to herself, and couldn’t believe what John had called her.  Then again, she could in a way.  

She’d decided on a pair of black dress pants with a baby blue blouse that was long sleeved.  The sleeves were sheer and it was V shaped for the neckline.  She quickly changed, slipping on a pair of baby blue panties and matching bra along with the outfit, and brushed her hair out.  She slipped her dress boots on and turned to face Steve as she smiled.

“I’m ready.” Jalise would do her makeup on the ride to the arena.

Nodding, Steve stood up and picked up both of their bags, leaning down to kiss her softly. “You look wonderful, honey.” He whispered in a compliment, knowing she was upset.  He honestly didn’t know what to say to her about it and knew he could only be there for her for support. “You can walk away from him, Jalise.  Don’t let’em run ya, honey.”

“I know.” She whispered softly in reply, running a hand through her hair, and sighed deeply. “I’m seriously contemplating it.” Jalise admitted, not believing how John had reacted, and felt the tears sting her eyes again as she hugged Steve close. “Before we leave, I need to ask you something.” When he nodded for her to continue, Jalise took a deep breath and sighed as she asked bluntly, “What are we exactly now, Steve?”

“More than friends I hope.” He replied softly, caressing her cheek with the back of his hand tenderly. “If ya want that I mean…”

Leaning into his soft touch, Jalise looked up into his beautiful blue eyes and nodded. “I want to be more than just your friend, Steve.” She murmured softly before standing on her tiptoes and pressed her lips softly to his. “Come on, we gotta hit the road.” She grabbed his hand and laughed when he mumbled something about her being a tease as they walked out of the hotel together.

~*~*~*~*~*~

John was not happy, and when he wasn’t happy, he made sure no one around him was either.  He was sitting on the couch of his dressing room, waiting for his personal assistant to show up, not sure what he would do or say when he saw her.  Just knowing for good or bad, something was definitely going to happen on this night.  He was sick of her treating him like he was worthless, even though they’d been nice to each other a few times during that week.  John didn’t understand what this hold was she had over him or why every time he seen her with Steve, he wanted to gauge the man’s eyeballs out with two pitchforks.

Walking inside the arena later on that day, Jalise smiled as she kissed Steve’s lips lingeringly, promising to meet up with him that night after the show.  She walked down the hallway to find John’s dressing room, not looking forward to this, but knew it had to be done.  The nerves were building rapidly in her stomach as she took a few deep, shaky breaths, knowing a war was going down tonight.  

If he wasn’t going to treat her with respect and allow her to have a life outside this job, she was going to tell him to shove it up his ass.  It was as simple as that as she seen the dressing room marked with his name and took one last deep breath.  Pushing it open, Jalise walked inside, seeing him sitting on the couch with his eyes glued to the floor, and felt the door close behind her ominously.

Looking up, John just stared at her, unable to keep the hurt out of his eyes. “Why?” He asked softly, not knowing where it came from, but feeling like she had betrayed him somehow by sleeping with Steve.

“Why what?” She shot back, glaring at him as she walked over to the table, and sat her briefcase down before turning to face him.  Her arms were crossed in front of her chest and no matter how hard she tried, Jalise couldn’t keep the hurt and hatred out of her own eyes as she stared at him hardening.  He had a lot of nerve; she’d give him credit for that much.

“Why him? Why so damn fast?” He whispered, stung by the hatred he seen swirling through her eyes, but couldn’t look away.

“Why not?” She retorted, raising a brow up at him in question, not understanding where this was coming from. “He’s a man, I’m a woman.  We’re both single and happen to like each other.  Why the fuck not?” Jalise was literally boiling with anger on the inside, clenching and unclenching her fists at her sides, and gritted her teeth while her eyes remained narrowed back at him.  The audacity of him to even question what she did outside of being his personal assistant was enough to send her over the edge in rage, but she held it in surprisingly.

John stood up from the couch and walked over to her, pulling her roughly towards him by her upper arms. “Stop hating me.” He whispered pleadingly, blue eyes searching hers for any sign that she really didn’t hate him. “I’m not trying to fight with you, damn it!”

Jalise was taken aback by the intense amount of emotion swimming through his eyes and actually cried out in pain when he gripped her arms tightly in his hands. “You’re hurting me…” She whispered out, eyes never leaving his, and began to tremble against him when he began to yell at her. “Stop yelling at me!  I’m just trying to have a life!” Her voice shouted back, fear in her tone as her bottom lip quivered, and wondered if John had officially gone off the deep end of insanity.

Releasing her, John instantly shut his mouth, not meaning to be so forceful with her. “I didn’t mean to hurt you, Jalise.” He said quietly, stepping back from her, the regret and sorrow swirling through his crystalline colored eyes. “I just…You seemed to hate guys so much when you started working with me and now…Now it’s like…I don’t know.” Raking a hand through his hair in frustration, John was stumbling over his words, trying to find the right ones to say. “I just wanted you to maybe…Let me in, I guess.”

Rubbing her upper arms, Jalise raised an eyebrow up at him as she shook her head in disbelief. “What do you mean let you in?  John, you’ve been nothing but mean and cruel to me over the past year that I’ve been your PA!  Calling me a whore every time I go out with a guy or whatever.  And you wonder why I won’t let you in?” She laughed incredulously at him with narrowed eyes and shook her head once again. “How could I let you in when you always seem to push me away from you?  Why are we even having this damn discussion?!”

“You act like I’m scum, even when I’m not treating you like shit.” He protested, having to drop down on the couch because his knee couldn’t hold his weight any further. “Only recently have we started really getting along and now…” He trailed off and shook his head in disappointment. “I had thought maybe you’d see I wasn’t as bad as I seem.”

Sighing heavily, Jalise slowly walked over to him and sat down, keeping her distance from him, seeing how much pain he was in with his knee. “I didn’t even know you thought about me that way, John.  You called me a whore this morning when you found out Steve slept in my room last night.  Do you know how badly that hurt me?  It made me actually contemplate quitting this job and finding someone else to be a PA to in this company.  You really hurt me this morning and last night, like you have for the past year, and yet, I’m supposed to see you as the good guy, right?” That last part was sarcastic as she blinked back the unshed tears that’d formed in her eyes.

“This morning was uncalled for.” John admitted, not up to telling her his pain pills had seriously loosened his tongue.  Once he’d gotten to his room, he had called her a lot more than a whore, but decided to keep that to himself. “So was the rest, I had no right to treat you the way I did.  I’m not asking you to see me as a good guy, J.  I’m asking you to just see me.  You’ve always kind of looked right through me, like I wasn’t there. I know I’m just a job to you, but I wish you’d see me as more.  Just like I should see you as more then something to yell at when life doesn’t go my way.” He was being completely one hundred percent honest with her, not sugarcoating a word, wanting her to see how much he was willing to change and make this work between them.

For the first time in a year, since she’d been assigned to John, Jalise couldn’t believe he was pouring his heart and soul out to her this way.  She sighed heavily, running a hand through her hair, and nodded in agreement. “I only looked past you because you disrespected me over and over again.  To earn respect, you have to give respect in return, John, and you haven’t done that with me until recently.  You are my job, I don’t deny that, but I would like to try to be your friend as well.  As far as my personal life goes, if you ever, and I do mean EVER, call me what you did this morning, I will kick you square in the walls and I’m serious about that.  What I do with my personal life is none of your business.  In return, I will try to stop looking past you and start treating you like a human being instead of an asshole unless you disrespect me.” Jalise explained, willing to compromise with him, but meant every word that came out of her mouth.

John could only nod, lowering his head in shame, and softly replied, “Gotcha, J.” He finally stood to his feet, picking up his duffel bag and limped into the bathroom, the pain in his knee nothing compared to the pain in his heart.  Shutting the door behind him, John leaned against it and tried to get rid of the pain in both places.  He’d been nursing a sort of crush on her and instead of showing it, he’d reacted to it by treating like trash. “I blew it.” He muttered and sighed, deciding he would do everything in his power from here on out to prove to Jalise that he wasn’t a monster.  That he really cared about her and hopefully in time, win her heart and trust away from Steve.

After the bathroom door closed, Jalise finally allowed the unshed tears that filled her eyes to slide down her cheeks, not believing what just happened between them.  She wiped them away, but they just kept flowing, no matter how hard she tried to stop them.  Jalise had no idea how John felt because the man treated her so horribly, causing her to just look at him like he was a piece of shit.

Sighing deeply, Jalise started to wonder if maybe this relationship with Steve would work out or not and decided to give it a shot.  She wasn’t about to call it off just because John was putting a guilt trip on her, even if hadn’t meant to.  Getting herself in check along with her emotions, Jalise quickly sat down at the table and started looking over the documents, working harder than she’d ever remembered.

Chapter 6

John emerged from the bathroom after a quick shower, trying to recollect his thoughts and changed into his normal shorts and jersey, a chain around his neck.  He dropped the bag against the wall and slowly walked over to her, standing a few feet away. “How’s it looking, J?” He asked quietly, dropping to one knee and wrapped a bandage around his injured knee, smiling slightly since it was starting to feel a little better.

“It’s going fine.” She replied in a soft voice, looking down at him to meet his eyes, and sighed heavily as she set her pen down before taking control.  She took his hand and guided him over to the couch.  Bending down without a word, Jalise took the tape from his hand and started wrapping his knee the right way, knowing that’s probably why it hadn’t healed faster.  When she was finished, Jalise put the brace on before standing up and threw the empty roll of ace bandage away, wiping her hands on her pants. “There, now it’ll be more sturdy for you in the ring.” She quietly stated and ran a hand through her hair.

Smiling up at her appreciatively, John softly chuckled as he confessed, “I got my ass handed to me last night.  Guy dropkicked me then went after my knee for the rest of the match.” He sighed, standing up, and patted her shoulder gently in a way of showing his gratitude for what she’d done. “Thanks.”

“Damn, that doesn’t sound pleasant.” She stated, sounding concerned as it etched her features, and plopped down beside him as she patted his leg with her hand in a friendly gesture. “Maybe you should go see the new masseuse and see if she can work out some of those kinks.  You have a signing tomorrow morning at eight, by the way.” Jalise informed him, biting back a smile when he groaned.

“Oh you mean Ember?” John asked, chuckling softly at the look on Jalise’s face. “Maybe I should.  Why don’t you come with me?  I’m sure she’d appreciate the company.  She says I annoy her.”

Jalise smirked back at him and crossed her arms in front of her chest, knowing John didn’t realize her and Ember were best friends, and rolled her eyes. “GEE, I wonder where she got THAT idea from.” She retorted playfully, laughing softly as a smile spread across her lips, and nodded before standing up to join him. “Come on, big baby.  Let’s go get your knee looked at and see if she can work out the kinks in it.”

“She got that idea because I like to spin my raps on her.” John replied, chuckling more, and lead the way out into the hallway. “You haven’t met Em, have you?” He grinned broadly when she shook her head, obviously lying through her teeth. “She’s a sweetheart, too damn nice for her own good though.” He lead the way, frowning when he heard a lot of noise coming from David Batista’s locker room, and wondered what had set the big man off. “Dirtball is on a rampage again.” He muttered, moving behind him protectively.

Jalise didn’t mind him moving her as she smiled, listening to what he was saying to her and nodded, acknowledging him as she ran a hand through her hair. “No, I haven’t met Ember, but I’ve heard nothing but great things about her.” She lied, laughing softly, and couldn’t believe John was falling for it.  Ember had recently changed over to the new masseuse of the WWE, being she had a degree in the field and what not. “You like to spin those lame raps on her?” She laughed harder at the look on John’s face and knew she’d hit a sore spot, but it was all in good fun.

“Well, I got to keep my mind off them magic hands of hers.” John stated in defense, sounding only half serious.  Truth be told, Ember had caused him to grow wood on more than one occasion, but John wasn’t the only one. “Just wait, she’ll see you and find something wrong with you, then you’ll know what I mean.” As they walked in, both stopped at what they saw before them, causing John’s eyebrows to furrow together in question, wondering if they had walked in on something between Ember and Mark Callaway. “Em?”

Ember nearly jumped off Mark’s lap, not expecting anyone to walk in her office. “John!  You startled me!” She gasped, holding her chest, and turned to wipe her face before gesturing him in. “Come to recite some more of those…” She trailed off when she seen a woman with him and hid the smirk that was dying to cross her lips. “You must be Jalise.”

Jalise bit her bottom lip, wondering if she was in the middle of something and hated to intrude, best friend or not.  She looked down the hallway, seeing a lot of wrestlers and Divas had shown up early, and smiled a little when she heard Ember’s voice. “And you must be the famous sweetheart of the WWE, Ember.” She replied, nodding her head in acknowledgement to being called by her name.

John looked back and forth between Mark and Ember, wondering what the hell happened, and asked softly, “Everything alright?”

Mark raised an eyebrow, wondering what John was doing there, and knew the boy was no trouble.  There was no way he was leaving Ember now, not with David lurking in the shadows and simply stood back, allowing her to do her job.  When John asked them that, Mark decided to keep his mouth shut, just standing there, looking more intimidating than ever.  It wasn’t enough that David had been pursuing Ember for the past year that she’d been with the WWE, but now things were escalating to danger heights.  They were opponents at WrestleMania of this year and Mark couldn’t wait to rip his ass apart after what he pulled with Ember prior to John and Jalise walking in.

“Famous sweetheart?” Ember echoed, looking genuinely amused, and decided to keep her friendship with Jalise a secret from John for now. “Hardly” She glanced at John, spotting his knee, and ordered, “On the table.” Studying Jalise thoughtfully, Ember hid the smirk well as she gestured for a chair nearby and began looking over John’s knee. “I’ve heard a lot about-” She stopped speaking when John cleared his throat, smiling sweetly at him, amused by the pink tinge that formed in his cheeks.

“No, no please, go on.  What have you heard about me?” Jalise pried, smirking at the pink tinge in John’s cheeks and crossed her arms in front of her chest with a raised eyebrow, her eyes sparkling with amusement. “You’re a popular woman, Ember dear.” She replied sweetly, referring to everyone calling her a sweetheart, including John.

“Don’t be fooled.  She is a sweetheart.” Mark argued, smirking down at her and then nodded his head to Jalise, having seen her a few times around the arenas.

John shot Ember a pleading look, sighing with relief when she just nodded. “Thank god…” He murmured, laying back to let her do her thing, raising his head to look at Mark. “She’s a saint.” He chuckled when he seen Ember blush and knew he’d gotten her again.

Removing his brace, Ember winced, seeing how bruised his knee was. “That must hurt.” She was quiet as she worked on his knee, massaging as many of the kinks out of it as possible without hurting John.  Finally, she just wrapped a warm cloth around his knee with ointment in it. “Hold still for ten minutes.  I need a water.” She glanced at Mark then Jalise, not wanting to go alone, especially with David lurking in the shadows.

The mere thought of John talking about her unnerved Jalise to no avail, and she didn’t understand why.  Maybe it was the fact that she was taken by the Texas Rattlesnake and actually liked him.  Then again, she’d always had a huge crush on John, but he’d hurt her so many times that she never thought she had a chance.  Now that she was with someone else, his true feelings were coming out, and this was confusing Jalise.

“I’ll go with you, sweetie. We can ‘talk’. She stated, smirking at the look John’s face held, and looped her arm through Ember’s before leading them out of the room and down the hallway.

John shot up from the table. “No…” He groaned when they disappeared rather quickly out of the room and sighed, shooting Mark a glare. “You couldn’t of stopped them?” He frowned, seeing the expression on Mark’s face, and knew something serious had went down prior to him and Jalise arriving. “What happened man?”

Mark couldn’t help but start chuckling when John’s face paled, knowing Jalise was going to pry information about what John had told Ember.  He shook his head while his arms remained crossed in front of his chest and commented swiftly, “She sure is a pistol, boy.” Mark frowned as he sighed heavily at John’s question, raking a hand through his black hair. “You done bein’ that cocky prick yer famous fer, boy?”

“Yeah, Mark I am, and if it concerns Em, you know I don’t pull any punches.” John answered sincerely, sighing, having always treated her like a little sister and needed something to get his mind off of Jalise and what she was probably learning.

Nodding, Mark pulled up a chair and proceeded to tell John what happened between her and David. “I walked in here as that fucker was…assaulting her…” His anger was flowing through his body as he clenched and unclenched his fists tightly. “He’s gonna pay fer touchin’ her.  He’s going to pay for layin’ his hands on her.” Mark promised darkly, emerald green eyes flaring up in hidden rage. “So, what’s with you and the pistol?”

John blinked, absorbing all that information, and muttered darkly to himself, even though Mark heard it, “That explains the fit…” He trailed off and turned his attention to Mark’s question as he answered, “J?  Nothing man.  I did wrong by her, seriously wrong.” He sighed heavily, raking a hand through his hair, and felt the bitterness on his tongue with the next words that came from his mouth. “She’s with…Steve now.” When Mark raised a questioning brow up at the kid, John went into explanation on what he’d done to Jalise over the past year.  How he treated her as well as poured out his heart, for the second time that night.

“Damn.” Mark stated, blinking rapidly as he started at this kid who was becoming a fast uprising star in the WWE. “How could ya treat a woman like that, boy?” He demanded, furrowing his eyebrows together, and sighed heavily. His eyes widened when he heard the last part and who Jalise was with now. “Steve?? As in, Steve Austin??” There was only one Steve Mark knew well and he’d recently come back to the WWE for WrestleMania and to promote his new movie.

Not even bothering to defend himself, John went on, “I treated her like that cause I’m a scumbag.  And yes, Steve Austin, why does that surprise you?”

“Damn, I didn’t know he’d actually try.” Mark wondered out loud, blinking repeatedly, and ran a hand through his hair. “I mean, he’s been married three times, beat on his third wife, but he’s changed considerably since then.  I heard he was sleepin’ around with different women, but that’s just speculation.” Mark admitted and shook his head in disbelief. “Wow that just blows my mind.”

John played with the wrapping around his knee, not wanting to even think about Steve and his legendary temper.  Though, he had also heard it had cooled down a lot. “I don’t know.  It shocked me too.  What the Hell is in this do you think?” He suddenly reversed the conversation to his wrapping, poking it and sniffed, growling at the foul stench.

“I haven’t the slightest blue…” Mark replied and trailed off, sighing heavily, and stared at the wall. “David’s been pursuin’ Ember for quite some time now.  Have ya heard anythin’ bout what he’s been plannin’, John?” He only called the boy by his name when the situation called for it and this time, it did.

John shook his head, wishing he knew the information Mark wanted to hear, and felt helpless at the moment as he replied, “Not a word, I try not to talk to him.  He’s worse then I am if you can believe it.  I could ask around if you want.” He offered, raking a hand through his short brown hair, and knew Mark had a fight on his hands at WrestleMania with David.

“Have you ever forced yerself on a woman before?” Mark asked bluntly, cracking his knuckles.

Offended, John shouted back, “HELL NO!”

Mark stood up and nodded, liking his answer and reaction as he replied simply, “Then believe me, boy, yer nothin’ like that bastard.”

John frowned, shaking his head, and knew he was referring to Batista. “Shouldn’t they be back by now?” He asked suddenly, glancing at the door, and knew it’d been more than ten minutes since the girls left. “If David’s gone on one of his little sprees…” John trailed off as he hopped off the table, ripping away the wrapping, not about to stand by and let David get away with hurting Ember again or Jalise for that matter. “I’m not letting anything happen to either of them.  We shouldn’t have even let them go…”

The door opened at that moment, causing Mark to sigh with relief upon seeing Ember and immediately walked over to her, taking her in his arms.  He frowned when he didn’t see Jalise and looked down at Ember with worried eyes as he asked, “Where’s Jalise?”

“With Steve.” Ember whispered, burying her face in his chest, not even concerned about John’s knee and tried to stop trembling. “David was there.” She revealed, trembling even more, and this caused Mark’s blood to boil instantly as he held her tighter to him.  At least he knew Jalise was safe with Steve, her boyfriend, but now he had to figure out a way to stop David and his stupid games.

“I’m gonna kill that motherfucker, I swear to God.” Mark vowed in a dark voice, almost going into his Undertaker tone, and growled as he held her tighter to him. “Ya need to calm down, darlin’.” He cooed in her ear, knowing he was scaring her, but also knew she didn’t blame him for being this fired up.

John was already out the door upon hearing Ember tell him that Jalise was with Steve and felt somewhat relieved.  At least David wasn’t bothering her, that’s all John really cared about, but now that he knew what the man was capable of, he had to warn Jalise.  He quickly made his way down the hallway, raking a hand through his hair, ignoring the pain in his knee.  He stopped when he seen them talking in the hallway, somewhat intimately from the looks of it, and sighed with regret.

‘Why can’t that be me?’ He thought miserably before heading over to them, needing to tell them what he’d found out from Mark.

Chapter 7

Ember smiled at Jalise, though her eyes were scanning the halls, and knew they could talk like they’d known each other practically their entire lives. “John likes you.” She said quietly, already knowing what her best friend wanted to know. “He talks about you a lot.”

“Is that right?” Jalise replied thoughtfully, running a hand through her hair, and cleared her throat as she started feeling the guilt tear her apart inside. “What does he say about me?” She asked softly, not knowing if she wanted to know, especially since she was dating Steve now.

Stepping inside the cafeteria, Ember ignored the looks Rebecca shot her.  Rebecca was a Diva in the WWE on the ECW brand and she was dating David currently.  She lead the way to get a water, standing at the table, and replied, “He says he doesn’t understand why you seen to hate guys.   He’s a jerk a lot. He’ll even admit it, but I got the impression he was more than a jerk towards you.” Even though they were best friend, Ember and Jalise hardly made time to hang out, both too busy with their jobs, so when they got opportunities like these, they immediately took them.

“That’s an understatement.” She mumbled, but it was clear enough for Ember to hear and sighed heavily. “He’s constantly taking his anger out on me, but he’s never laid an abusive finger on me.  It’s all been verbal, but it still hurts nonetheless.  He’s just NOW coming out of his shell and it’s too late because I’m dating someone else now…” Her voice was low and quiet, not wanting anyone else to overhear their conversation.

Ember stared at Jalise sympathetically, understanding why her best friend felt the way she did. “You have to do what’s best for you.  If John really cares about you as much as he says he does, he’ll start thinking about what’s best for you.” She stated, opening her water, and took a long swig from it. “Don’t be too harsh on him.  When it comes right down to it, he’s a scared little boy trying to deal with fame as well as come to grips that he’s attracted to a woman with a mind of her own.  He just needs a foot in his ass every now and then, sis.”

Jalise smiled, always loving how smart her best friend was, and wondered why she didn’t come to Ember with her problems. “Thanks for the advice, Em. We agreed to try to be friends, but with his temper, he seriously, SERIOUSLSY needs to check it because it can be downright cruel at times.” They retrieved their water and started back down the hallway. “What about you and the Deadman?” She switched gears, pointing the conversation at her, and smiled at her best friend. Ember had a crush on Mark Callaway for years, but would never admit it to anyone, except her.

Ember shrugged absentmindedly and smiled awkwardly at her best friend. “We’re um…I don’t know actually.  He wants to be more, but I have this rule about mixing business with pleasure…as you very well know.” She sighed, eyes widening when she looked behind Jalise. “Damn…”

Steve was walking down the hallway, talking with none other than David Batista, having just met the guy.  Yeah, David seemed a little strange, but so far, he was alright.  Steve grinned when he seen Jalise and lead the way over to her, spotting the woman behind her.

“Hey honey.” He greeted, bending down to kiss her lips.

Jalise smiled softly as she kissed him back, loving the feel of his soft lips against hers, and pulled back as she grinned before turning around to face Ember. “This is Steve, my boyfriend, if you didn’t recognize him already.” She giggled at her joke, paying no attention to the man standing beside Steve.  Even though Jalise had worked for the WWE a year, she’d never met David Batista, until now.

David cracked his knuckles, his brown eyes peering down at Ember with a look of things to come, and licked his lips hungrily before winking down at her obscenely. “Hello again, Emmy.” His voice dripped with danger, serious danger, but also kindness, hiding it well.

Swallowing hard, Ember nodded at her best friend, though her eyes were locked on David.  She finally forced herself to look at Steve and said politely while shaking his extended hand, “Hello, I’m Ember. David…” She murmured in a greeting, staring up at him with wide eyes.

“See ya around, man.” David stated, clapping the man on the back and walked away, but not before shooting Ember another warning look on his way down the hall.

Steve wrapped his arm around Jalise, looking at Ember, then back at David, wondering what was going on. “What was that all about?” He whispered in his girlfriend’s ear, curiosity peeking greatly.

“I have no idea.” She whispered back, lying partially because she had a feeling that’s who disturbed and scared Ember earlier.  Jalise snuggled against his arms, ignoring the knowing feeling she felt in the pit of her stomach, and sighed.

Ember had to lean against the wall to keep from falling on her ass, a hand on her heart. “I uh…I have to go.” She whispered, heading for the doors.

Kissing her temple, Steve watched the strange woman walk away. “She alright, honey?” He asked, shaking his head. “I swear, the people just get stranger and stranger here.  Not includin’ you of course.”

Jalise nodded back at Ember, before turning around to face her boyfriend, a troubled look brewing in her eyes. “I don’t know. She was really shaken up when John and I walked into her office and Mark was there with her.  I have a feeling something bad happened, but she didn’t want to talk about it.” She smiled, caressing his face with the back of her hand. “How is my favorite person in the world?”

“Mark?  ‘Taker?” Steve grinned broadly as he questioned in disbelief. “Well…That sumbitch is still kickin’ around, huh?” He shook his head, catching her hand and kissing it softly. “I’m just great, honey.  How bout you?  Cena treatin’ ya any better or should I go pound some manners into him?”

Giggling at his playful over protectiveness, Jalise smiled as she shook her head and replied, “We talked it over and decided to try to be friends.  He was brutally honest with me about how he felt and so was I.  I never realized how much we were hurting each other until now, but I told him if he ever calls me what he did this morning or disrespects me like that again, I’m kickin’ him in the balls.” She meant what she said and her eyes said the same thing, causing Steve to chuckle at his spitfire of a woman.

“Good for ya, honey.  How the hell were ya hurtin’ him though?” Steve asked curiously, once again, his curiosity peeking his interest.

“By looking past him like he was nothing.  I was only doing it because of how he treated me though.” She quickly explained, leaving it at that, and entwined their fingers together before kissing his lips. “I have a feeling things will be a lot more peaceful now.”

“Peaceful maybe.” John said, walking up to them, having heard that last bit. “J, can I talk to you?  It’s about Em.” He asked softly, telling her what it was about, and didn’t even look in Steve’s direction.

Jalise raised her eyebrow at John, not believing he was actually blowing off her boyfriend and cleared her throat, standing in front of Steve. “What about her?” She asked, not afraid to speak in front of her boyfriend as she felt Steve’s hands caress her arms gently with his fingertips.  Whatever John had to say he could say it in front of Steve and her or he didn’t have to say it at all.

John decided Steve might as well hear it too. “Remember how Em was crying in the locker room?” He waited, continuing when she nodded. “It was because of something David did to her.” He clenched his fists at the mere thought of the bastard laying a finger on someone he considered his little sister. “I would feel a lot better if you kinda steered clear of him.”

“David did something to her??” Jalise questioned in disbelief, running a hand through her hair, and suddenly felt horrible for her best friend. “Oh god, he was here!  Steve and him were…talking…” Her words trailed off, closing her eyes, and rubbed the back of her neck as she tried to regain her composure. “Is she okay??  God, I let her go off by herself!” She felt really stupid and guilty now, not believing she’d actually allowed Ember’s life to be put in danger.

Steve pulled her into his arms, trying to soothe her, knowing there was nothing she could do about it since neither of them knew to begin with. “Calm down, honey.” He looked at John and bluntly asked, “What did he do to her?”

“She’s fine. Mark’s with her now.” John answered, eyeing Steve skeptically for a moment. “Man, I don’t exactly feel like going into detail right now, especially since we’re sort of surrounded by people.  Let’s just say he wasn’t happy she refused to go out with him.” John left it at that, not wanting to really talk to Steve to begin with, especially since still felt the urge to want to poke his eyes out with pitchforks.

Sighing with relief upon hearing that, Jalise still felt horrible that she allowed Ember to venture off by herself. “Steve, do you know who David is?” She asked softly, burying her face in his chest as his arms wrapped around her comfortingly, knowing Jalise needed it.  She felt horrible for her best friend right now and couldn’t believe Ember hadn’t come to her sooner with this David situation.  Then again, that wasn’t who Ember was. “That poor girl…” She murmured against his chest, sniffling a little.

“No, I just met him.  He seemed like an okay guy, a little strange, but…” Steve answered and frowned, trailing his words off as he heard what John said and shook his head in disgust. “Man, that’s fucked up.”

“Fucked up isn’t the word.” John said quietly and turned his attention back to Jalise, who was obviously distraught over this situation. “J, do you want to go see her?  Or you could call her if it’d make you feel better?  You didn’t know what’d happened otherwise you wouldn’t have let her go alone.” He assured soothingly, knowing she was probably feeling horrible, and the look in her eyes told him he was right.

Shaking her head, Jalise was still too shocked by this sudden turn of events and felt sick to her stomach. “I’m going back to the hotel.  I’m sure she’s fine with Mark and everything.  Your papers are on the desk and they’re ready for you.  I’ll see you tomorrow, John.” She then walked away from both of them, after informing John of where his schedule was, her mind swirling and knew Steve was following her. Once outside, Jalise turned around to face him and asked with a frown “Can we get outta here?”

Steve nodded, wrapping a protective arm around her waist, and replied, “Yeah, come on, honey.” He lead her over to his truck, opening the door for her, and helped her inside before getting in the driver’s side. “You gonna be alright?”

“Yeah, I just want to get out of here right now.” She whispered softly back at him, head spinning with the information she’d found out about Batista tonight.  She made a mental note to steer clear of David as Steve put the truck in reverse and pulled out, heading for the hotel.

“I don’t blame ya, I do too.” Steve replied, taking her hand in his, and gave it a gentle squeeze. “That’s messed up.” He shook his bald head and turned on the radio before bringing her hand up to his lips, kissing it gently, and knew she was scared to death right now.  He would protect her at all costs from Batista, if the guy ever came near her.

Jalise smiled over at Steve before staring out the window, not believing a co-worker could be so cruel to her best friend, and hoped she was alright.  She hadn’t meant to let her go off by herself, but she didn’t know what David had pulled.  Jalise did a full body shiver of dread, hoping the man didn’t target her ever, and squeezed Steve’s hand a little more as they drove to the hotel in silence.  She was damn lucky to have this man by her side and leaned back against the seat, pressing her free hand to her stomach.  It was still feeling sick and Jalise hoped the feeling passed before she ended up hurling in Steve’s truck.

~*~*~*~

John remained at the arena, waiting patiently for his match to come up.  He was in the hallway stretching, his knee hardly giving him any pain.  Whatever Em did to it had helped considerably and he was grateful to her for it.  John snarled when he seen David walk by looking angry.

“Takes a big man to harass a defenseless woman.” For once, his mind was on something other than Jalise.

David heard that comment and immediately screeched to a halt before turning around and walking into John’s dressing room.  His brown eyes were blazing with rage as he walked up to the man and demanded angrily, “What was that, Cena?”

“You heard me.” John said coldly, not backing down, especially to the likes of him. “How’d it feel forcing yourself on a defenseless woman?  Make you feel like a man?” His eyes were seething with rage, spitting icy blue daggers back into David’s dangerous, cold brown orbs. “So, who else you looking to rape since you can’t get Em?  Maria?  Ashley?  Mickie?”

“Watch your tongue, Cena.  What I do is no business of yours.” David growled back at him heatedly, cracking his knuckles, and glared back into the man’s eyes, not believing he wasn’t backing down from him. “Ember had it comin’, especially after picking that rotten Deadman over this…” He trailed off, running his hands down his abs and body to prove his point.

John arched an eyebrow, clearly not impressed, and shot back, “No David, Ember just instantly recognized you for what you are: A piece of shit.”

“Fuck you, Cena!” David spat and brought his fist back, decking him in the face as the man went down like a sack of potatoes. “Mind your own business or you’ll regret it.” He promised darkly.

Groaning, John brought his hand to his face and slowly, but shakily rose to his feet. “Stay away from Ember or YOU’LL regret it.” He advised, eyes never straying from David’s. “Stay away from all the women, period.”

“And what if I don’t?” David contradicted, amusement clearly shining in his brown eyes, and smirked when blood started trickling from John’s lip. “What are YOU gonna do about it, boy?” He taunted, laughing evilly, and shook his head.  He barely had time to notice John had tackled him to the nearest wall until his head slammed hard against the concrete.  David groaned as John tackled him and immediately shoved him off, punching him in the mouth again before kneeing him in the stomach. “You done yet, Cena?  Or do I need to take the champ COMPLETELY out?”

John had promised Mark he’d look out for Ember as well as try to gather up some information.  This probably wasn’t going to help any, getting his ass handed to him.  He rolled onto his side, holding his stomach for a moment before determinedly getting to his feet, stumbling a bit.

“Leave her alone, man, it’s not just me you’ll be worrying about.  You really want ‘Taker after your ass some more?”

“He can bring it.  I’ll beat his ass and then take her from him.  She belongs to me!  Not him!” David growled angrily, smirking when he seen how much pain he’d inflicted on John, and loved it. “I’m not afraid of him or anyone on this entire roster!”

“You’re sick man.” John spat disgustingly, wiping the blood from his mouth, courtesy of David’s not so friendly fist.

Shrugging his shoulders, David punched John one more time for good measure and bent down, lifting him up by his hair. “Next time you see Mark, give him one of those from me.” He then slammed John’s face down on the concrete flooring and stormed out of his dressing room.  A sick smirk plastered on his lips when he seen Rebecca headed his way and went to join her, needing a good fuck from her tonight after what just happened.  He could’ve cared less as John quickly slipped into the darkness of unconsciousness, more concerned about having his dick sucked by Rebecca’s mouth.

Chapter 8

Sighing when they reached the hotel, Steve grabbed their bags and opened the door for her once again. “You look tired, honey.” He commented softly, walking besides her into the building, and ran a hand over his bald head.

“I am.” She admitted openly, sighing heavily, and raked a hand through her hair as they walked inside the hotel.  

They waited in line for five minutes before the woman finally gave they their key card and Jalise honestly wanted to smack her.  However, she just murmured a good night before walking away toward the elevator, too exhausted to take the stairs.  The ride up was silent and a few minutes later, they arrived at their suite.  Once inside, Jalise instantly kicked off her shoes, allowing her hair down again, and slid her jacket off, placing it on the seat.  She walked over to the bed and slowly began rubbing her foot, groaning softly at the pleasure.

After setting their bags down in a corner, Steve kneeled before her, taking over the duty, strong hands soothing her weary feet.  His blue eyes fastened on her face, concern in them, and asked softly, “What’s on yer mind?”

“You can read me well.” She commented softly, allowing him to massage her feet, and sighed heavily.  No matter what she did, she couldn’t help, but feel like dirt for leaving her best friend as bait for that monster who was after her. “I know I should’ve feel bad because I didn’t know what Batista did to her, but I can’t help it.  She could’ve gotten seriously injured had Mark not showed up and it just makes me wonder if he’s eyeballing anyone else…” Her words trailed off and did a full body shiver of dread at the mere mention of the possibility.

Steve had been wondering the same thing, but didn’t mention it to her. “I don’t know, honey. We’ll just have to wait and see.” He bent down, kissing the arch of her foot, wanting to get her mind on something else besides what happened at the arena.

She smiled as he did that and bit her bottom lip, blue eyes staring into hers now, and Jalise felt her breath catch in her throat.  He had beautiful, sky blue eyes, but when they darkened to a darker blue, it literally made her breathless. “You’re so wonderful to me…” She whispered softly, caressing his bald head with her hand, that smile never leaving her face.

Chuckling softly, Steve took her other foot in his hands, massaging it tenderly, blue eyes never leaving hers and replied huskily, “I’m tryin’ to be. I really like ya, honey.” He admitted, not afraid to tell her, and hoped she felt the same as him.

“I really like you too, Steve.” She whispered back softly, meaning what she said, and allowed a soft moan to escape her lips when he began messaging her other foot.  It felt too good not to moan out, especially with his strong hands, and let out a contented sigh.  Her hair trickled over her shoulders and down her back, pooling on the bed, and groaned when he hit a sore spot that needed to be massaged out.

Steve ran his hands up her legs, feeling how tense her muscles were, and began rubbing her calves through her pants. “Ya want a hot bath, Jalise?  Relax yerself some, then I’ll give ya a rub down, work out some of these knots.” He suggested, hating to see her this stressed and tensed.  In all his years of living, Steve had never met a woman who had such a tense, strained body, though it was beautiful as well.

“That sounds heavenly…” She softly responded in a moan, her eyes drifting closed, and smiled when he pulled her up from the bed.  They walked inside the bathroom as she bent over, turning the faucet on, and poured some of her favorite scents in the tub.  It was strawberry, the same scent that lingered on her, and Steve groaned as it entered his nostrils.  Jalise turned around after swishing the water around with the bubble bath and asked hopefully, “Join me?”

“You don’t have to ask me twice.” Steve stated, smiling at her.  

He slowly removed her clothing first, taking his time, loving how soft her skin was against his rough, yet gentle hands and enjoyed the view of her beautiful body.  After she was fully naked, Steve shed himself of his own clothing, kicking the pile to the side and stepped inside the water first.  Pulling her down so she was resting between his legs, Steve pressed her back to his chest, and sighed in contentment.  This was definitely relaxing and he enjoyed spending every second with this woman who intrigued him to no end.

Jalise smiled as she leaned against his chest, the tub filling up rapidly because of his added weight, and turned the faucet off before running water up her arms to her neck.  A sigh of sheer contentment flowed from her mouth as she closed her eyes, enjoying this peaceful relaxing moment with her boyfriend.  It was so nice having someone to share a bath with who actually cared about her as she snuggled against him.

“I was wrong, THIS is heaven.” She giggled softly, correcting herself, and continued running the water up her arms and chest.

“I second that.” Steve agreed fully, bending down to nuzzle her neck, his hands stroking her stomach up and down gently.  He groaned, murmuring something incoherent against her neck as he trailed fire ridden kisses down her shoulders, loving how she instantly melted against him.  

Jalise was in pure heaven as she sat up a little, allowing him better access to her neck since his lips were trailing up her shoulders, and moved her hair over her right shoulder.  A soft moan escaped her lips when she felt his hands caressing her stomach and her body instantly lit on fire for him.  His touch caused her to melt against him and began to run her fingertips up and down his muscular arms, loving how strong and powerful they were, yet held such comfort.  

Steve sighed contentedly, loving how she made him feel, her hands on him sending tremors down his spine. “Ya feel and taste delicious.” He purred in her ear huskily, one hand moving down her stomach farther, cupping her sex in it beneath the water and began stroking her throbbing clitoris.

A gasp of surprise escaped her lips as she leaned further against him, arching her hips into his hand, and nodded as she licked her dried lips moist. “Mmm Steve…That feels so good…” She moaned out in ecstasy, running her hands up and down his arms before trailing her arms up, wrapping them around his neck.  Her back still pressed against his chest, allowing him to have complete control of this situation.

“Does it?” He murmured in her ear, one large finger sliding inside of her wet sex.  He cupped her breast with his free hand, occupying his mouth by tasting her neck, nibbling on the tender flesh, causing her to feel three different, incredible sensations at the same time.

“Oh Steve…” She cried out softly, arching her body further as she felt his huge finger slide inside of her.  Her walls instantly contracted around it while she rubbed the back of his neck, loving the feel of his lips on the soft flesh of her neck and his hand massaging her breast. “Faster, please…” She breathed out pleadingly, wanting to cum for so bad at this point.  He more than obliged her and slid another one of huge fingers inside of her, making a come here motion with them, and searched for that one spot that ended her every time.

With that arch of his fingers, Jalise instantly felt her body respond to him, her walls spasming around his huge fingers, and felt her orgasm rip throughout her body.  Her cries of passion echoed off the bathroom walls as she came, squeezing her eyes shut, and felt him hit that spot that made her fall apart in his arms.  Steve continued until she went limp in his arms, chuckling softly, and brought his fingers to his lips from beneath the water, sucking them clean of her juices.

“How’re feelin’ now?” He whispered huskily, that southern accent going into overdrive.

“Amazing…” She whispered out, blinking several times, and tried to get her breathing under control.

She slowly turned around, the tub being big enough or both of them to move around comfortably, and straddled him.  Her head dipped low, latching onto his neck this time, kissing and nipping his skin gently, teasingly, breathing heavily while her heart pounded against her chest.  She wanted to make him feel what he just caused her and began running her hands down his muscular body while exploring his neck with her lips and tongue.

Steve groaned, leaning back against the tub and arched his hips up, rubbing his erection up and down her slit before sliding inside of her at an angle.  His hands gripped the sides of the tub, not believing how incredibly tight she was, and grunted out in a murmur, “You feel so damn good, Jalise!” He honestly didn’t understand how her pussy could be this tight, but loved the tension it brought forth.  It made their sexual bouts that much more intense and pleasing for both.

Her hands ran down his rock hard chest, feeling his muscles rippling beneath her touch, and moaned softly while she continued her assault on his neck.  The feeling of him sliding inside of her caused Jalise’s world to spin out of control as she started rolling her hips, moaning against his neck, and finally parted ways with it.  The feeling of him inside of her was too exquisite as her hands ran up his chest, his shoulders, and down his arms while her eyes locked with his.  Slowly, methodically, she began rolling her hips on top of him, causing his cock to slid in and out of her, and moaned at how incredible it felt.  Her hair trickled down her back and shoulders, grazing the water beneath, but that didn’t bother her as she ran her hands through it, face having a look of sheer ecstasy on it.

Leaning forward, Steve captured her mouth in a demanding kiss, thrusting his hips up to meet her, finally growling in frustration at the limited space they had in the tub.  He gently pushed her away before getting to his feet, lifting her up by her waist and pressed her firmly against the wall.  He smiled when she wrapped her legs around his waist more than willingly, her arms around his neck, and slid back inside of her.  His hands trailed down the length of her body, groaning at how soft it was to the touch, and began to slide in and out of her in deep, methodical strokes.  Those same hands traveled lower, cupping her ass as he snapped his hips forward, sighing at how wonderful she felt wrapping around him.

Jalise leaned her head back against the wall, feeling his hips snapping and thrusting hard and fast inside of her, but it wasn’t to the point where he was hurting her.  She rubbed the back of his neck while her hands caressed his chest, meeting him for every thrust, and moaned out his name repeatedly as her eyes drifted shut.  Her hair trickled over her shoulders and bunched up on the top of her head this time.

“Oh Steve…Steve please…I can’t take it…” She moaned out breathlessly.

“Can’t take what, sweetheart?” He cooed in her ear, never slowing down but not moving any faster either, just maintaining the same steady pace.  He loved how she looked right now, all tousled, wet and writhing in ecstasy for him, eyes shining with passion and darkened over, reflecting his own.  Steve honestly didn’t know if he’d ever found her more beautiful than she was to him at that moment.

Her head was spinning as she held onto him for dear life, loving the feeling of him sliding in and out of her, and opened her eyes to meet his own.  What she saw took her breath away as she rolled her hips against him, wanting him to go faster, to pound her, and ran her hands up the wall.  Jalise arched her body against him.

“I’m close…So close…” She moaned out louder, moving in time with each thrust.

That’s what he wanted to hear.  Steve began thrusting in her harder, faster, her ragged breaths and moans telling him he was doing his job well. “Cum for me, Jalise…” He whispered huskily, pressing his forehead to hers. “Come on, baby…” His own breathing was becoming erratic, not believing the kind of effect this woman had on him.

Jalise couldn’t stop herself from cumming even if her life depended on it as she completely crumbled in his arms, walls caving in around his cock, milking him dryly.  She screamed out his name in her release as it tore throughout her body intensely, “Steeeeeve!!!” Her chest was rising and falling rapidly as she leaned against the wall, needing support.  Her entire body was trembling from how much desire he’d caused her body to feel at that moment.

Steve groaned, burying his face in the crook of her neck, snapping his hips forward one last time before sinking his cock all the way inside of her as deep as he could.  His seed exploded, splashing against her back wall intensely, gasping at how damn good she felt around him.  Afterwards, when he finally stopped cumming inside of her, Steve just stood there, the wall and his hands supporting her, just feeling her body against him causing him to love it.

“Yer incredible…” He whispered, a sentiment he found himself using quite often when it came to this beautiful woman.

“So are you…” She breathed out in return and wrapped her legs around him tighter, her arms wrapping around his neck, and smiled as she nuzzled his neck.  Steve was the first man Jalise had been with in a long time and couldn’t believe how wonderful he was.  She was almost afraid of what he was causing her heart to feel, not wanting to get hurt again, and hoped the bubble didn’t burst between them.  She smiled as he stepped out of the tub and proceeded to dry her off once more, like he did the previous night, before sweeping her up in his arms and laid her down gently on the bed.  She rested her head on his chest as he spooned up beside her while he stroked her back and snuggled, her finger trailing up and down his chest and whispered softly, “Night Steve.”

Smiling softly down at her, Steve kissed the top of her head gently and murmured, “Good night, Jalise.” He trailed his fingers lazily up her spine, knowing he was already falling in love with her, and smiled to himself.  How could he not?  She was beautiful, intelligent, incredibly sweet though she had a fiery side that he positively adored. “Mmm…” He sighed, kissing her head once more before drifting off himself, whispering in her ear, “Sleep tight, honey.”

Chapter 9

~One Month Later~

John was working out, having a few hours before he had to go to the arena, having spent his time playing dodge Jalise.  For one, he didn’t want to fly off the handle if he seen her with Steve.  Two, he didn’t want her seeing his face from the damage David had inflicted on him.

He was normally wearing a hat with a wide brim until he could reach the make up people to get the slight bruise covered.  Jalise seemed to like running in and out of his thoughts though, driving him nearly insane, especially at night when he lay in bed.  How he longed to feel her touch, her body against his, and knew the time would come.  

He just had to be patient.

Smiling softly, Jalise was all smiles as she sat in John’s dressing room, seeing he’d gone off to probably work out, and sat down at the desk.  Her mind drifted off to Steve and how wonderful he was, how he made her feel, making her heart pound furiously in her chest every time she laid her eyes on him.  Jalise knew she was falling in love with him, it was inevitable, and hoped he felt the same way as her.  Sighing in contentment, Jalise went over the documents of John’s schedule and got to work.  She couldn’t wait until the night finally ended so she could see Steve again and be in his arms.

Finally stopping, John’s body was covered in a fine sheen of sweat.  He made his way back to his dressing room, not expecting Jalise to be there so early and pulled off his shirt, halting when he seen her at the table. “Hey.” He greeted softly, using his shirt to wipe the remaining sweat off his chest.

Jalise looked up at him, eyes instantly straying over his slick body, and immediate tore her eyes from him as she looked down at the documents again. “Hey.” She greeted softly, pretending like she was focusing on her work, and kept berating herself for even staring at his body.  She tried picturing Steve in her mind the way John looked right now, but it wasn’t happening, causing her to groan inwardly and ran a hand through her hair.

John walked over to stand beside her, hard rock abs practically in her face, and looked down at the paperwork. “Anything interesting on the agenda?” He asked casually, a hand on the table inches from hers as he read the papers in front of her, nodding in approval.

Finding it hard to breathe suddenly and shaking herself mentally, Jalise swallowed past the lump that had formed in her throat, keeping her eyes focused solely on the papers. “J-Just a signing.” She managed to croak out in a soft voice, trying to stop her body from trembling.  Though being this close to John and looking the way he did wasn’t doing anything for her at the moment. ‘Steve.  Think of Steve, wonderful Steve…’ She coached herself mentally and smiled as she went on to the next thing on his schedule.

John wasn’t even aware of her reaction to him, now more focused on just staring at her, taking in her gorgeous hair and the beautiful smile on her face. “How are you?” He asked softly, dropping down to crouch beside her so he could look up at her, blue eyes studying her face thoughtfully.

“I’m fine.” She softly replied, finally turning her head to stare into his eyes, and sucked in a silent breath as it lodged in her throat.  Crystalline colored blue eyes stared into her midnight blue orbs, somewhat entranced by his eyes, and snaked her tongue out to lick her dried lips obliviously. “How about you?” Jalise asked softly in return, running a hand shaky hand through her long black tresses as they flowed down her shoulders and back, bunching up where the chair ended.

John’s eyes narrowed in on her mouth, breath quickening when he seen her lick her lips.  He cleared his throat, trying to think a straight thought. “I’m, uh, fine.” He said, nodding his head as if trying to reassure himself he was. “So, just a signing?” He joked, trying not to think of how good she smelled or wonder what it’d be like to shift her hair through his fingers.

Giggling softly back at him, Jalise shook her head as she stood up from the table, wearing a short black skirt that went two inches above the knee along with a blue blouse.  It was long sleeved and started pacing back and forth in front of him.  Not only was it helping her get her mind focused on the documents, but the way John smelled and looked was causing her senses to reel.  She didn’t understand it, she’d seen him slicked down before, but it never affected her this much, until now.

“Nope, just the same old shit, unless you’d prefer more.” She winked at him, letting him now she was joking.

Chuckling, John watched her pace, somewhat amused by it, and replied, “No, I’m good.” He finally walked over to catch her arms, making her stop, and stared down into her eyes once more. “You alright?  You seem edgy tonight?  That and you’re pacing is making me nervous.” He said good naturedly, fingers stroking her arms, not even realizing he was doing so.

Jalise looked back at him and smiled nervously as she nodded, replying in a shaky tone, “Y-Yeah, I’m fine.  Just tryin’ to finish this so I don’t get behind again.” Her voice was soft as she swallowed hard and apologized before sitting back down at the desk, tapping the pen furiously against the table.  Where he touched her on her arms was now scorching and she didn’t understand why. ‘God, get a grip!’ She thought angrily, trying to think of Steve, but having a hard time doing so with John in her presence.

John shrugged, not sure what her damage was, just knowing she was having a serious effect on him right now. “I’m going to take a shower.” He announced finally, raking a hand through his hair before venturing inside the bathroom.  

Turning the sprays on hot, John let them relax him, feeling the tension slowly leave his body, his thoughts all about her.  Finally, he stepped out, wrapping a towel around his hips and frowned. He’d forgotten his duffel bag, which was sitting beside her desk.  Shaking his head, John stepped out of the bathroom to retrieve it.

Moving from the table to the couch, Jalise finished up his schedule and was not relaxing, eyes solely glued to the floor.  She looked up when he walked out and literally felt her eyes bug out of her head upon seeing him in a towel.  Little water droplets slowly slid down his rock hard body as her eyes followed one.  It was only for a second as she quickly put her eyes back on the floor, hoping he hadn’t noticed her gawking.  Jalise licked her lips hungrily while her head was lowered, not able to believe the kind of effect John was having on her at the moment.

“Forgot my bag.” John stated, smiling sheepishly over at her and crossed the room to pick it up, frowning when he realized he was missing something and turned to stare at her.  He walked over to tower over her, face at his waist now, and softly said, “Um…I think my chain is underneath you, J.” His voice was husky and low, something Jalise wasn’t used to hearing from him, which was probably why he was lighting her on fire right now.

Jalise slowly lifted her head up to meet his eyes, immediately scooting over on the couch, not believing how close he was to her.  In a towel with nothing underneath it and John standing right in front of her, Jalise had to put some space between them before she either melted in a puddle or ravaged him. ‘Good God almighty…’ She thought, clearing her throat, and raked a hand through her hair as she waited for him to get his chain, not realizing her skirt had rode up her thighs when she’d moved.

Bending down, John reached under the cushion for the chain, frowning when he didn’t find it.  He leaned over her once again, reaching behind her and under the cushion, his eyes lowered and spotted her skirt.  Now he was licking his lips at the sight of her creamy thighs and finally found what he was looking for.

“Here it is…” He whispered, face inches away from hers, the chain dangling in his fingers right beside her head.

Licking her lips in return, Jalise wasn’t able to stop herself from doing so.  The man was making her completely breathless and actually felt a drop of water land on her thigh from his hair.  Her eyes locked on his as she leaned back against the couch, foot tucked beneath her thigh, and scooted a little more.  She never blinked once and could feel her heart beating rapidly in her chest.  Jalise just hoped he couldn’t hear it as the chain dangled in his fingers, though that object was the furthest from her mind at the moment.

John inhaled sharply before passionately kissing her, unable to stop himself, and was mildly surprised when she kissed him back, only to push him away a few moments later. “I’m sorry Jalise.” He apologized softly, her lips still burning on his, eyes riveted on her parted lips. “Hell…No I’m not.” He murmured, pulling her into his arms and kissed her again, knowing she’d probably shove him away or knee him.  Probably both, but he just had to taste her sweet mouth again.

Jalise pressed her hands against his chest as his lips descended on hers again, ready to push him away at any moment.  Instead, her arms snaked up around his neck, holding him tightly to her, and deepened the kiss.  Her lips parted, allowing his tongue to slide inside her mouth, and Jalise let out a soft moan as she pressed her body closer to him, not believing this was happening.  

Her mind was swirling with so many thoughts, so many emotions, and began running her fingers through his soft, damp brown hair, moving her head from side to side.  Their tongues swirled around in a dance of seduction.  It wasn’t rough or anything, but deep enough to become enchantingly passionate.

He deepened the kiss, strong hands on her back, holding her against him.  One hand slid up to her neck before entangling itself in her soft hair, something he’d wanted to do for so long.  He actually lifted her off her feet, caressing her tongue with his, exploring the creases and her lips.  The feel of her against him was almost too much for John to take as her hands entangled themselves in his hair, making him physically tremble.  It was truly the most passionate, soul searing kiss he’d ever shared with a woman and John never wanted it to end.

His rock hard body pressed against her chest caused Jalise to become breathless as she let out another moan, not breaking the kiss, and felt her resolve fly out the window.  Steve had completely left her mind as she caressed the back of his neck with her hand before trailing them down his neck, shoulders, and huge, muscular arms.  She gripped them again, trying to hold herself up, and honestly didn’t care about anything else at the moment.  She felt his arms snake around her waist and could only hold on for dear life, her mind spiraling with desire.  As the kiss deepened even more between them, the height of passion exploded along with Jalise’s heart, or so it felt like.

John moved his kisses from her mouth, finally breaking the kiss, and down across her jaw line, then her throat, nipping and sucking alternately.  He dropped onto the couch and laid her down on it so her legs hung off his lap, not able to stand on his spaghetti legs anymore.  John resumed kissing her, groaning at how sweet her swollen lips tasted.  He ran a hand up and down her creamy thigh, fingers skimming just under the hum of her skirt.  She felt like heaven but dripped with beautiful sin, something John had never seen in a woman before, and wanted her now.

The alarm bells suddenly began ringing in her head when she felt his fingers skim the hem of her skirt and shook her head. “I can’t do this…” She whispered breathlessly and when John didn’t listen, she planted her foot against his chest and pushed him away as she forcefully repeated, “I cannot do this!!” Her body jolted up on the couch, breathing ragged, chest rising and falling rapidly.  Jalise could already feel the tears burning her eyes from what just transpired between them and couldn’t believe it just happened.

Honestly not hearing her the first time, John could hear the beating of his own heart at the moment.  He seen the look in her eyes, the unshed tears, and instantly felt contrite. “Jalise, I’m so sorry.” He apologized, taking a few steps back to give her some space. “I should’ve of…”

“You’re right, you shouldn’t have.” She agreed, echoing his words somewhat, and pressed her hand against her chest.  Her heart was beating furiously in her chest, breathing extremely ragged, and finally felt a few tears spill down her face, knowing she’d just hurt Steve.  Standing up from the couch, Jalise quickly gathered her things, not able to be in the same room with John right now. “I have to go…” Her voice was a rush of words and cracked, dropping a few papers and sank to her knees to retrieve them, shaking from head to toe.

John dropped down to help her, not believing how shaken up she was. “Please, J, don’t cry.” He begged, holding them out to her, sighing when she wouldn’t take them. “I’m sorry, Jalise, I really am.  I didn’t mean to…scare you or anything.” His voice was low, full of regret, but he didn’t feel sorry for what just happened between them.

Jalise couldn’t speak as she snatched the papers from his hand before standing up, her legs feeling like jelly, and made sure she had everything before walking toward the door.  She dropped everything on the floor as she pressed her hand to the wall, dropping to her knees, and started to cry her heart out.  She wrapped her arm around her abdomen and coughed out a little, trying to breathe properly.  

She’d just done the ONE thing she’d promised herself never to do.  She kissed John and hurt Steve, even though he didn’t even know it yet.  That made her physically sick to her stomach as she managed to stand up and leaned against the wall to try balancing herself, though it wasn’t working out very well in her favor.

Darting forward when he seen her shaking, her balance clearly off, John caught her before she collapsed again in his arms. “Calm down, J.” He soothed, strong arms supporting her, tone full of nothing but care and worry. “Calm down before you leave or else you’re going to drop.”

“Don’t touch me!!” She cried out, pushing him away from her, and stumbled to her feet as she backed away from him.

The tears kept pouring down her face, shaking her head repeatedly, and wondered what she was going to do now.  Without another word, Jalise ran out of the room past him, not caring about her things, and past everyone in her way.  She plowed through the exit doors and felt the rain pouring down on her since they were in the middle of a hard down pour.  The rain mixed with her salty tears as she ran toward her car, unlocking it, and started the ignition, soaking wet, and didn’t care about anything at the moment.  She only thing she cared about was getting as far away from John Cena as possible and felt the tears pour even harder.

John stuck his head out into the hallway, frowning when he seen her dart through the doors, and sighed heavily. “Shit!” He cursed, quickly going to put on clothes and follow her, needing to find her and fix whatever damage he’d done.  He was halted though when he was shouted at, being told his match was in two minutes, and groaned. “Damn!”

After arriving at the hotel, Jalise ran through it, already having her key card with her, and ran up to her room.  She slammed the door shut behind her with authority, the tears still cascading down her cheeks, and immediately shed herself of clothing.  She was trembling from head to toe, her mind swirling with emotions and thoughts, wondering what she was going to do now.  Steve would never forgive her for this and that just broke her heart.  

She turned the shower on and began scrubbing her body from head to toe, wanting his touch off of her, and sobbed violently through the entire process.  After taking an hour shower, Jalise finally stepped out, feeling exhausted from both crying and sobbing her heart out.  She sighed heavily and wrapped a towel around her body, walking over to the bed, and collapsed on it out of sheer exhaustion.  Her hair splayed out on the pillow as the tears fell from her eyes before allowing unsettling sleep to succumb her.

“I’m sorry, Steve…”

Chapter 10

Pacing the hallway like a caged animal, Steve was worried sick about Jalise as he continued walking a hole in the floor just outside Cena’s dressing room.  Cena was out doing his match and Steve hadn’t been able to find Jalise.  He’d tried calling her cell phone, but she wasn’t answering her phone.  

He felt sweat beading on his bald head, praying she was alright.  Even though David wasn’t lurking around anymore, ever since Mark destroyed him in a Hell In A Cell match at WrestleMania, which happened a week ago prior to this moment.  John came back from his match weary, his mind not on it, instead his thoughts on Jalise.  He was worried sick about her and halted when he seen Steve waiting for him outside his dressing room.

“Where is she?” Steve demanded, skipping past the bullshit, and glared at the man before him.

Sighing, John raked a hand through his hair and answered honestly, “I don’t know.  She just took off.  Try her hotel room.” He didn’t feel like telling Steve what had happened, not in the mood to have his tired ass handed to him on a silver platter.

Steve just nodded, turning around and walking off, going to find his girlfriend.  He wasted no time in arriving at the hotel, breaking speed limits left and right, and screeched to a halt in the parking lot.  He practically flew up to Jalise’s hotel room, ignoring all the stares he’d received, and knocked on the door.

“Jalise?  Baby, are you in there?” He called out, rapping a little harder when she didn’t answer him. “Jalise?”

Letting a groan escape her lips, Jalise slowly fluttered her eyes open and sighed heavily upon hearing the rapping on her hotel door.  Her head was pounding in her ears as she slid off the bed, running a hand through her damp hair, and stumbled over to the door through half lidded eyes.  They instantly widened upon seeing Steve and instantly adverted her gaze to the floor, trembling, and tried to keep her composure.  It wasn’t happening.  Nope, not in this lifetime could she maintain her composure in front of the man she thought she was falling in love with.

Steve pulled her into his arms, relief coursing through him, and held her tightly to him. “Baby, what happened?” He whispered, ushering her inside and shut the door behind them. “John said ya just took off.  What’s wrong?”

Jalise couldn’t do it.  She couldn’t break his heart this way as she started crying harder than ever, and walked over to the bed before plopping down on it.  How could she kiss another man as passionately as she had John when she had a great guy like Steve?  It didn’t make sense to her as she cried harder, curling up in a tight ball, and shook her head repeatedly.  The tears poured down her cheeks like two rapid streaming rivers, not likely to stop until she was unconscious again.

Kneeling down before her, Steve took her hands in his, genuine concern swimming in his blue eyes. “Honey, what happened?  Did someone hurt you?  Jalise, please, trust me enough to tell me.” He pleaded, worried sick about her state of mind right now and how she was reacting to seeing him.

Staring into his eyes and seeing how much concern was swimming through them, Jalise cried harder, shaking her head and pulled her hands from his.  She slowly sat up on the bed, just allowing the tears to flow down her cheeks, and looked back at him with guilt ridden eyes. “Just leave me, Steve…” She whispered heartbrokenly. “I don’t deserve you.  I’m scum of the earth and I don’t deserve a great guy like you…” Sobs racked throughout her body as she spoke and coughed out, leaning over the side of the bed, wrapping her arms around her midsection tightly.

Steve frowned, suddenly standing up to his feet, and demanded softly, “What happened, Jalise?”

Knowing she had to tell him and would probably lose him, Jalise started to cry harder as she sat up on the bed, refusing to meet his eyes and wrapped her arms around herself. “John and I…kissed…” She revealed in a regretful whisper, body trembling from head to toe. “I don’t now why.  It was wrong and there’s no excuse.  There’s no excuse for what happened.  I’m so sorry, Steve…I’m sorry…” She couldn’t look him in the eye, not able to bring herself to do it, and didn’t realize she was wearing the towel around her body she’d fell asleep in earlier.

“You kissed him?” Steve asked, wanting to clarify what she just said, expression completely neutral as he stared down at her.  She could only nod and bit her bottom lip, feeling it quiver beneath her teeth, and closed her eyes tightly shut.  Jalise couldn’t look into his eyes and see the rage coursing through them or the rejection.  It would break her heart even more than what it was already doing. “Tell me what happened, everything.” Steve ordered, tone still oddly neutral, refusing to comfort her at the moment.

“I was sitting on the couch and he asked me to move because his chain was in the cushions on the couch.  When I did, he realized that where I’d moved is where his chain was and he…he kissed me.  I shoved him away and then he kissed me again…” She started crying harder, heaving a little, still not believing it happened as she replayed the memory in her mind and shook her head.  She tightened the towel around her body more, feeling sicker than ever to her stomach at the moment. “I’m sorry, Steve…”

Steve clenched and unclenched his fists angrily, not believing what he just heard, and growled out, “So he forced himself on you?”

“The second time, I kissed him back…” She confessed in a whisper, tears spilling down her face, and started sobbing uncontrollably. “He apologized for the first time, but then kissed me again after he said he wasn’t sorry for doing it.  I wanted to push him away, I wanted to run away, I wanted to get as far away from him as possible…” She cried even harder as more sobs tore throughout her body like a sharpened knife.

Steve just stared down at her.  She’d kissed him back, but head wanted to run from him, which sounded like fear to him.  He pulled her into his arms, stroking her back, mentally plotting John’s demise in his mind and crooned soothing words in her ear. “H-He didn’t hurt me…” She whispered out, trembling in his arms, knowing what he must’ve been thinking. “After I pushed him away from me for the second time, I told him I couldn’t do this and…” She took a deep, shaky breath, pausing for a moment. “He apologized and I broke down and bolted…” She threw her face in her hands and started to sob harder, feeling her body tensing with every one that tore throughout her.

His eyebrows drew together as Steve stared down at her and bluntly asked softly, “Jalise, do ya have any feelings for him?”

“No…” She whispered out immediately, even though she knew she was lying, but there was no way her and John could work.  It just wasn’t possible as she adverted her gaze to the floor and slid off of his lap, keeping the towel around her body. “I don’t feel for him what I feel for you, Steve.” She was truthful in saying that, even though she couldn’t get that heated kiss out of her head that her and John shared earlier. “I honestly don’t know what I feel for him to be quite honest, but I know I love you.” Tears poured down her face as she pressed her forehead to the glass, staring out at the pouring rain, and felt more confused than ever.

Steve had been around the block too many times, and as much as it hurt him, especially after hearing her say she loved him, he knew she needed to be left alone to sort out her thoughts. “Honey, I’m gonna sleep in a different room tonight.” He announced softly. “I do love ya, Jalise, but ya need to figure out what ya want.  We’ll talk in the mornin’ alright?”

Jalise could only nod, silent tears spilling down her cheeks and ran a hand through her hair, sighing heavily, and kept her back to him. “I understand.” She whispered sadly and wrapped her arms around herself, not sure what she was feeling right now or why. “I’m sorry.” She whispered out again before dropping her head forward and her eyes closed tightly shut, allowing the tears to keep flowing.

Steve sighed heavily, kissing the top of her head and walked out, the door closing softly behind him.  As soon as the door closed, Jalise dropped to her knees on the floor and started crying her heart and soul out.  She covered her face with her hands and curled up in a tight ball, silent sobs racking throughout her body, and ended up falling asleep again on the carpeted floor in her towel.

~*~*~*~*~*~

John stared at her hotel door, not sure if he should knock or not.  He had come to the hotel, showered, and dressed in a pair of baggy jeans with a white beater.  The look in Jalise’s eyes right before she had ran away haunted him and he wanted to fix things desperately.  Finally, he raised his hand and knocked, hoping she was alright.  

Jalise groaned again, her body feeling like a Mack truck ran her over, and slowly lifted her head from the carpeted floor to stare at the door.  It was night time now, the rain pouring outside in buckets and slowly stumbled to her feet, feeling like her head was going to explode from the pounding headache that had formed.  That’s what she got for crying herself into a restless sleep twice in one night.  Slowly standing up to her feet, Jalise stumbled to the door, the towel still wrapped around her body and opened it, staring back into those crystalline blue eyes of John’s.

He stared down at her, worry evident in his eyes and facial features, and sighed heavily as he shoved his hands in the front pockets of his jean shorts, whispering, “Jalise, what happened back there?  What did I do to scare you so bad?”

Her eyes were bloodshot and swollen as she looked back at him, leaning against the wall, and tightened the towel around her body as she glared at him. “You kissed me, John.” She whispered, the tears already pooling in her eyes. “You kissed me and forced me to like it when you KNOW I’m dating Steve.” She started crying at the thought of Steve and what had happened earlier, shaking her head, not wanting to deal with it anymore, walking away from the door.

“Yes, I kissed you.” John admitted, raking a hand through his hair and followed her inside, shutting the door behind him with his foot. “But I didn’t force you to like anything, Jalise.  You kissed me back because you WANTED to.  You felt something there, just like I did.”

“No I didn’t…” She whispered back in denial, shaking her head repeatedly and immediately sat down on the bed on her knees, burying her face in her hands as she started crying harder. “I love Steve.  Why did you have to kiss me, John?” She knew it wasn’t entirely his fault, but at the time, it was comforting her to blame him.

John stared at her with an incredulous look on his face. “If you haven’t noticed lately, Jalise, I have feelings for you.” He said softly, moving so he was standing in front of her. “I kissed you…because I wanted to.  I wanted to know if your lips were as soft as they looked…” His voice dropped to a low, husky whisper and felt his words trail off.

Jalise felt the shivers course throughout her body as she bolted off the bed, shaking her head back and forth, and stated, “I-I need to change.” She grabbed her bag and ran into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her and locked it, feeling her heart racing rapidly in her chest.  She looked in the mirror, gripping the sink with her hands and felt the tears sliding down her cheeks freely.  Though, John’s husky voice had caused her body to react in a way she didn’t like. “Goddamn it…” She whispered harshly, more confused than ever now.

Waiting patiently for her to come out, John stood at the balcony doors and stared outside, watching the rain fall down, followed by a bolt of lightening.  Finally, he glanced back at the bathroom, wondering what was taking her so long, guessing she was hiding from him and sighed, not budging.  After getting herself under control, Jalise changed into a pair of black pajama pants with a matching tank top and walked out, hair brushed out as it flowed down her back and over her shoulders, and walked over to her other bag.  She seen John hadn’t left yet and sighed heavily, wishing he was Steve and ran a hand through her hair as she walked over to the bar, needing a drink to calm her nerves.  She didn’t say a word to him as she poured herself a glass of Tequila Rose, tears burning her eyes and downed it before walking away, sitting on the bed, folding her hands in her lap.

John turned to face her, studying her for a moment and finally asked quietly, “Why did you run from me, Jalise?”

“You scared the shit out of me, John.  I didn’t expect you to do what you did tonight.” She answered honestly, raking a hand through her hair and stared down at the floor, feeling the tears sting her eyes again. “I didn’t want anything further to happen and I knew if I stayed, we would’ve ended up doing something that we’d regret later on.” Her voice remained quiet and low, refusing to raise it, and sniffled a little.

Moving so he was sitting before her, those piercing blue eyes taking everything about her in, John’s facial expression was posture to her body as he shook his head finally. “I didn’t mean to scare you, Jalise, but would you really regret being with me?  I don’t think you would and I know I wouldn’t regret it.  The only thing I regret about this is the fact that I scared you.”

Jalise’s eyebrows furrowed together as she stared at him with widened eyes, not believing what he just said, and felt her heart begin to pound furiously in her chest. “John, I’m with Steve.  Did you not hear me?” Her voice had an incredulous tone to it as she raked a hand through her hair and stood up, needing another shot of liquor.  She gripped the kitchen counter as her body trembled.  Why was he affecting her THIS strongly?  Not even Steve affected her this way as she downed the second shot and put her face in her hands, leaning her elbows on the counter, and sighed heavily. “We’ve been at each other’s throats for the past year, John, and all of a sudden, you want to be with me?” She was more baffled than ever before now, not understanding where all these feelings were coming from.

John walked over to the bar, setting the bottle of Tequila Rose aside out of her reach. “As crazy as it sounds, Jalise, yes, I want to be with you.  And I think on some level you want to be with me too.  You’re just trying to ignore it.” He stated softly, studying her once more, her beauty taking his breath away as always.

Shaking her head, Jalise looked up at him with those big, midnight blue eyes of hers, disbelief swimming through them, and walked past him.  She gasped when he reached out, grabbing her arm and spun her around, causing her chest to slam against his.  She stared up into his crystal clear blue eyes, suddenly entranced by them again, falling under the same spell she did at the arena.  John stared down into her eyes for a moment before gently kissing her.  His lips tender and soft, not demanding anything of her, instead almost pleading with her to care.

“Tell me you don’t want this, Jalise, and I’ll go.” He whispered against her lips, his hot breath brushing against them.

She wanted to.  She wanted to push him away, but something inside of her exploded as she shook her head slowly back at him. “Don’t go…” She whispered back against his lips in a trance and kissed him back this time, wrapping her arms around his thick, muscled up neck, and moaned in his mouth.  

The feeling of his soft red lips against hers caused her mind to swirl out of control and she wasn’t thinking clearly at the moment.  He pulled her against him, deepening the kiss, and coaxed her lips open with his own again.  He moaned hungrily, sucking on the tip of her tongue before raking his teeth gently down her lower lip.  John slid one hand down to her ass, pressing her hips against his, letting her feel how much he desired her.

Shaking her head upon feeling his erection pressing against her, Jalise pressed her hands against his chest and shoved him away, breathing heavily and felt her body tremble.  Tears filled her eyes, not believing she just kissed this man back, and shook her head as she walked over to the bed, needing to sit down.  Her legs were jelly again as she plopped down on it, and looked at the floor, raking her hands through her hair, and didn’t know what to do anymore.

“You need to leave, John.” She finally said, wanting some time alone to think things through.  Steve had been so wonderful to her while John was a complete dickhead and, all of a sudden, she was supposed to choose him over Steve?

John wasn’t going anywhere just yet, refusing to back down, especially after she just told him not to go. “What is it, Jalise?” He demanded breathlessly. “I know you want me.  Why are you pushing me away?”

“I don’t know what I want, John.  How can I break Steve’s heart when he’s been nothing but sweet to me?  How can I pick someone who’s treated me like shit over the past year over a sweetheart and someone I thought I fell in love with?” It was so confusing as those questions left her mouth and Jalise started crying again for the umpteenth time that night, burying her face in her knees. “Just leave.” She whispered, wanting to be left alone to think about this, to think about what happened, and why her world was spinning out of control.

“I know I’ve treated you wrong, Jalise, but I know I can make it up to you if you’d give me a chance.” John said softly, his heart quickening when he heard her say someone she thought she fell in love with.  Thought being the key word in that sentence. “I’ll see you tomorrow, J.” He whispered before heading for the door, knowing if he pushed her any further, they were going to end up fighting.

Jalise didn’t stop him as she stayed there on the bed, seemingly glued to it, lips still swollen from their heated kiss and felt the tears slide down her face like two rapid streams.  When the door shut, she immediately keeled over on her side, curling up in a tight ball, and began to sob violently to the silence.  How could she drop Steve?  How could she break his heart and be with someone who treated her so badly?  Jalise ended up falling asleep in a heartbreaking slumber, not knowing what the hell was going to happen the next night, and honesty didn’t want to find out.

Chapter 11

John was waiting impatiently on Jalise the following night at the arena, wondering if she was even going to show up.  He sighed, raking a hand through his hair, and glanced at the clock every few seconds.  He’d driven straight here from her hotel room last night, not even bothering to sleep, too wired, hurt and confused about this entire situation.

“Damn…” He cursed, looking towards the open door and hoped he hadn’t scared her off for good.  That hadn’t been his intention.

Opening the arena door, Jalise walked in, wearing a pair of blue jeans with a long sleeved red shirt, her hair up in a messy ponytail, and she had on black sunglasses over her eyes.  She looked like a Mack truck ran her over going one hundred miles an hour and felt like it as she sighed heavily, knowing she couldn’t avoid or deny facing John.  Taking a deep breath, Jalise walked inside his dressing room and toward the table, setting her things down, and put her head in her hands, her pounding headache refusing to go away.  

Jalise hadn’t gotten any sleep, waking up every few hours to cry her heart out about this situation, and felt like putting a gun to her head and pulling the damned trigger.  She still didn’t understand where all this was coming from with John all of a sudden and honestly didn’t want to know.  She made the decision to try and forget what happened between them the previous night.

John stared at her, guilt coursing through his body at the thought that he was causing her emotional distress, and sighed. “J?” He asked, taking a hesitant step toward her, hoping they could talk about what happened the night before.

“Just let me get my work done, Cena.” She stated in a monotone voice, not looking up at him, and slid her sunglasses up on top of her head from her eyes so she could see the documents.

What happened between them the night before was history.  Ancient history as far as she was concerned.  She’d decided to talk to Steve that night after leaving the arena and see if he still wanted to be with her.  If he did, she was choosing him because she knew what temper John had on him and the man had treated her like shit over the past year since she’d became his personal assistant.

Stepping away from her and raking a frustrated hand through his hair, John watched as she started perusing the papers before her. “What’s on the menu tonight, J?” He finally asked, trying to steer them onto neutral ground when all he really wanted to do was gather her into his arms, hoping she didn’t look at him.  He knew she’d find that sentiment in his eyes, no matter how hard he tried to hide it, and did a horrible job of doing so.  John didn’t want to alienate her further from him and wished he knew what to do.

“You have a photo shoot at seven.” She answered in that same tone of voice and continued doing the schedule, running a hand through her hair, and shook her head at little before continuing.  She just wanted to finish as quick as possible and get away from John, not wanting a repeat of last night between them.

John frowned, pulling his shirt over his head, his back to her and tossed it aside, preparing to take a shower and get ready for the night. “Can we at least talk about last night?” He finally asked softly, not looking back at her.

“No.” Was her only answer as she continued the paperwork, sighing to herself, and leaned back against the chair as she started to read over the schedule.  She knew he wasn’t going to be happy with doing three autograph sessions in a row, but at this point, she honestly didn’t care as she wrote it down.  Anything to keep the man away from her as much as possible was Jalise’s goal.

John didn’t bother with putting on a fresh shirt, just walked over to lean over her shoulder, trying not to think about how good she smelled.  His eyes scanned the schedule and groaned. “Three in a row?” His fingers cramped at the thought of all those fans and writing. “Any way out of that?”

“No.” She replied, swallowing hard with him being this close to her, and continued reading over the schedule before adding another signing two weeks after those three.  

She was only doing what Vince ordered her to do and, honestly, didn’t care if he got mad at her or not.  At this point, the only thing Jalise cared about and had her mind on was the talk with Steve.  She just hoped he could find it in his heart to forgive her, give her another chance to prove she truly did love him, even though there were doubts in the back of her mind.

Sighing, John ran a hand through his hair, knowing this wasn’t her fault and that there was nothing she could do about it. “Alright, just thought I’d ask.” He placed a hand on either side of the table, effectively blocking her there, still leaning over her. “I really think we should talk about what happened, Jalise.  I can’t stand you being this cold towards me.” He whispered, the emotion evident in his voice along with the heartache, meaning every word he said.

“I’m busy doing my work right now, Cena. I don’t have time to talk to you.” She stated in an even tone, not looking up at him, and ran a hand through her hair, not caring if she messed up her ponytail or not.

The man was being overbearing and she was finding it hard to breathe again, but she refused to look up at him.  Jalise knew if she did, she would be hypnotized by his eyes and that wasn’t going to be happen again.  She refused to be taken advantage of, especially after what transpired between them the previous night.

“Jalise, we both know you’re not going to talk to outside of this room so we’ll talk now.” He stated quietly, moving away to lock the door, bound and determined to get things between them sorted.  No matter what the costs.  He crossed back over to her, pulling her up from the chair by her arms, and ordered gently, “Jalise, look at me.  Please?”

Tears instantly welled up in her eyes as she yanked her arms out of his hands and turned around, running her hands up and down her arms, trying to rid the goose bumps that’d formed. “John, just please let it go.” Her voice was filled with both hurt and pleading as she felt the tears spill down her cheeks once again, not believing she was crying.  She thought she’d been dried out after all the crying she’d done the previous night, but obviously, she was mistaken. “This is over between us.  I want Steve, not you.” She knew if she was looking into John’s eyes at that moment, she wouldn’t be able to tell him that, but this way, he knew what she wanted.  Or did she?

John frowned, placing his hands gently on her shoulders. “I don’t believe you.” He stated bluntly in a soft but firm tone of voice. “Turn around, look into my eyes and tell me that, Jalise.  Don’t look away from me.” He needed to see the truth in her eyes, only then would he believe her words, even though just hearing them had shattered his heart into pieces.

Slowly turning around to face him, staring up into his eyes, Jalise felt the tears spill down her cheeks as she took a step back away from him, and knew she couldn’t tell him what she just said. “I don’t have to repeat myself.” She whispered harshly, wiping away her tears, and wrapped her arms around herself.  It was a shitty excuse, but at the time, it was all she could come up with. “Just leave me alone, John, or I will find someone else to work for.”

Sighing, John already reached that decision himself and was actually glad she brought up the subject first. “I think you’re going to have to.” He whispered regretfully, bending down to brush his lips against hers, rolling his cheek against hers briefly, feeling her tears before kissing her once more. “This isn’t fair to you, Jalise…” He said softly, staring down into her eyes, after pulling away from the tender kiss he’d given her. “I want something you can’t give me…”

“Stop it!!” She shouted at him, emotions raging out of control, and shoved him away from her. “Stop kissing me!!” More tears fell down her cheeks as she stared at him, her heart breaking in two, and knew she’d have to find someone else to work for.  She wanted to make this thing with Steve work, she wanted it more than anything, but John was interfering and making her feel things she couldn’t understand. “You really want me to find someone else to work for?” She asked finally. “There’s no way we can go back to the way things used to be and make this strictly professional?”

“No, I don’t really want you to work for someone else, but I agree with you.  Things will never go back to being strictly professional between us.” John answered honestly, not about to sugarcoat anything with her and stared at her mournfully, sighing. “Work with me, J.  I’ll…keep things level, alright?” He waited for her response, chest about ready to burst from all the things he wanted to say to her but refrained, knowing it wouldn’t do any good.

After a few moments of silence between them, Jalise finally sighed as she nodded reluctantly, deciding to give him one more chance. “Fine, but no more kissing, touching, nothing of the sort, understand?” She stated, naming off just a few of the things she didn’t want him doing to her.  Then again, she longed to feel the touch of John’s lips on hers, which confused her even more, and a fresh batch of tears stung her eyes.

John nodded, picking up his duffel bag, and slung it over his shoulder. “Gotcha, J.” He said, looking away from her tears, knowing if he stared into them, he would instantly crumble and pull her into his arms. “I’m going to take a shower…” He mumbled, walking past her into the bathroom, feeling the shattered pieces of his heart lying in a pile of rubble in his chest.

Jalise heard the bathroom door shut and squeezed her eyes tightly shut before walking over and sitting down at the table.  She managed to get the schedule finished up for the next week before standing up, deciding a nap was in order.  Just a small fifteen minute break and she’d be back to work. She walked over to the couch and laid down on it, looking at the floor, somewhat in a trance.  

The tears had stopped, but the confusion was still there, knowing at her insides like a plague and Jalise was feeling her heart tearing in two different directions.  One part leading to the bathroom where John was showering currently and the other to the wonderful, sweetheart in Steve.  It sucked to say the least and Jalise honestly didn’t know what to do about it.

He stayed under the sprays for a long while, mind rapidly spinning from the confrontation he’d just had with Jalise, and sighed heavily.  He didn’t care when the water turned cold, not minding it one bit, his mind too engrossed in Jalise and how she’d just broken his heart.  Finally, he reluctantly stepped out of the shower, dried off and dressed, taking his time.  There were so many thoughts swirling around in his mind, thoughts he couldn’t even begin to put in order.  Finally, he had to admit, there was nothing left for him to do in here and stepped out of the bathroom, halting when he seen her on the couch sleeping, like an angel.

Sheer exhaustion had taken over Jalise’s body as her eyes closed the moment she laid down on the couch, deciding just a few minutes of sleep wouldn’t bother her, and ended up falling asleep.  Her dreams consisted of Steve and John, both standing on either side of her, both wanting an answer, and Jalise felt like pulling her hair out.  Even in her dreams she couldn’t get one ounce of peace!  Steve’s intense, yet soft blue eyes and John’s crystalline colored orbs, the possibilities were endless with either man.  She didn’t know which one to choose, which one she wanted, and tears began sliding down her cheeks from her closed eyelids, still very much in the dream.

John watched her cry in her sleep, his heart breaking, hating himself for being part of the reason she was crying.  Sighing, he picked up a box of tissues and gently placed it on her stomach, more then tempted to wash the tears away himself.  He knew that’d only serve to push her further away though, which is the last thing he wanted to do.  Sighing, he jotted down a quick note for her before heading out to do his photo shoot that was scheduled followed by his match.  He was actually kind of glad he’d have his mind on something other than Jalise for the time being, though he knew he’d be thinking about her the entire time.

Slowly opening her eyes an hour later, Jalise groaned, feeling her headache pounding even harder and felt something on her stomach.  She looked down and seen the tissues, sighing, and pluck a few from the box, trying to get used to her surroundings again.  Her cheeks were tear streaked as she wiped them away and slowly sat up from the couch, blowing her nose, and stood up slowly.  

She looked down at the scribbled note John had left her, seeing he’d left to do his photo shoot and match warm up, along with everything else and decided to call it a night.  She packed up her things, knowing his schedules were finished and walked out of his locker room, out of the arena and toward her rental car.  She started the ignition and gripped the steering wheel, making a quick call to Steve, and left a voicemail on his cell phone, letting him know it was urgent that they spoke tonight.

Turning on a song from one of her favorite CDs, Jalise cried the whole way there, gripping the steering wheel, and wished she knew what to do about this situation as she headed back to the hotel.  She could only hope and pray Steve had a big enough heart to forgive him and grant her a second chance to prove that he’s the one she really wanted.  Then again, Jalise’s heart was torn in two and apart of it wanted her to turn around and go back to the arena to jump in John’s arms.

Why did life have to be so damned confusing sometimes?

Why did fate have to be such a bitch?

Chapter 12

Steve was sitting outside of Jalise’s hotel room door, his back to the wall, knees up in the air.  He was staring across the hallway, studying the wallpaper, mind racing.  He’d been waiting there for over an hour, not knowing when she’d be back, just needing to talk to her.  

He hadn’t bothered checking his cell phone, having shut it off, not really wanting to talk to anyone unless it was her at the moment.  Last night had been Hell for him, sleeping without her in his arms, which would explain why his eyes looked bloodshot.  No sleep.

Jalise walked off the elevator as she wiped her tears away, carrying her bag over her shoulder, and walked down the hallway.  Steve was going through her mind, along with John, more important, the dream she’d had.  Who was she supposed to choose?  

Her mind and half her heart were screaming Steve, but her heart was screaming John and Steve, which confused her even more.  She stopped when she seen Steve sitting outside of her hotel room and felt the tears swell in her eyes.  He’d gotten her voicemail more than likely and bit her bottom lip, not sure what to do anymore with this situation.

Looking up when he heard the elevator ding, Steve quickly got to his feet.  He seen the tears in her eyes and frowned, walking over to her. “Jalise, did somethin’ happen?” He asked softly, concern for her overriding everything he was feeling at the moment.

“I’m okay.” She whispered softly, looking up into his eyes, and wiped her tears away that fell down her face.  She walked over to the door of her hotel room, past him and unlocked it, allowing him inside.  Knowing they needed to talk, Jalise closed the door behind her.  Jalise kicked her shoes off, looking like hell, and honestly didn’t care as she took her jacket off and tossed it in the corner with her things.  Jalise then walked into the kitchen and poured herself a shot of Tequila Rose, downing it in one gulp and tossed Steve a beer, knowing that’s what he wanted to drink.  She walked over and sat on the bed, her eyes adverted to the floor, and finally decided to break the silence between them. “What are you doing here?” She softly asked, sounding like she was going to cry again.

Steve caught the beer, staring down at it, before setting it firmly on the stand. “I’m here to see ya.” He said quietly. “I told ya I wanted to talk with ya.  Have ya…thought about any of it since last night?”

Nodding, Jalise downed her second shot before setting the glass on the nightstand, and sighed heavily. “It’s all I’ve been thinking about.  I told John tonight that I want it to be strictly professional between us or else I’m finding someone else to work for.” She blinked her tears back, voice hoarse from crying so much and stood up as she walked over to the balcony window, staring out into the night. “I’ll admit this, I do feel something for him, Steve, but it’s nothing compared to what I feel for you.  I love you, not him, and I want to try to make it work between us.  If you don’t want to try, I’ll understand, but I’m not going to lie to you about how I’m feeling inside.” Her voice remained quiet and low, but loud enough to where he could hear every word that came from her mouth. “I refuse to choose a guy who treated me like shit for the past year over one who’s treated me like gold.”

“Jalise, I told you last night how I feel, but I’m too old to be playin’ out a high school drama, honey.” He replied, sighing and sunk down onto the couch, rubbing his head with his hands in frustration.

“A high school drama?” She echoed, suddenly feeling anger well up inside her body, and slowly turned around to face him with narrowed eyes. “That’s not what this is, Steve.  I’ve told you what I decided.  I choose you.  You don’t want me?  Then that’s fine, but I’m telling you right now there’s nothing more of me and Cena.  I don’t want him.” She sounded so sure of herself, but yet, deep down inside, she still felt that hesitation and knowing feeling in the depths of her heart and soul.

Steve shook his head, staring at her, not sure what to think or believe anymore. “Jalise, you already said you feel somethin’ for him, don’t tell me one thing then try to tell me another.” He slowly stood up, blue eyes narrowing just slightly at her. “You say you choose me, but yer not really sure, are you?”

“Yes I’m sure, Steve.” Jalise stated without hesitation, staring back into his blue eyes, and crossed her arms in front of her chest.  She was starting to spark that fire in her eyes again, that attitude, and refused to back down from him.  She was done with crying and thinking about what happened, pushing John out of her mind for the time being, and focused solely on Steve. “Those feelings for Cena are nothing compared to what I feel for you, Steve.  They’re meaningless when it comes to Cena.  If you don’t want to at least try to work this out because you’re too ‘old’ then you’re wasting my time and yours.” She did the finger quotes around the word old as she walked past him and into the kitchen, pouring herself another shot and downed it, no tears falling this time.

Walking over, Steve took the glass from her hands and turned her in his arms, roughly kissing her, pulling her against his body, whispering gruffly against her lips, “Am I still wastin’ yer time?”

The feeling of his lips against hers caused Jalise’s body to light on fire as she looked into his eyes, their lips barely touching, and shook her head. “No, now you’re not.” She whispered in reply against his lips and passionately kissed him again, wrapping her arms his neck, and felt her heart explode with passion and love for him.  Though, deep in the back of her mind, Jalise wondered if she’d truly made the right decision.

Only time would tell.

Steve pushed her back against the wall, hands deftly pulling off her shirt, stooping down to kiss between her breasts, hands unfastening her pants, sliding them down her legs.  He needed her.  He needed her now more than he’d ever needed any woman in his entire life.  He growled hungrily, nipping and licking his way down her stomach, almost on his knees, but not quite.  Before he took her, he had to taste her, needing to familiarize himself with her body.

Something wasn’t right.  Something definitely wasn’t right.  This wasn’t the Steve she knew and was falling in love with.  What she felt on her skin wasn’t caresses because they were hard kisses that would surely leave bruises.  She immediately started pulling away from him and stumbled, falling on the floor, and felt him crawl on top of her.

“Steve no…” She whispered out, tears swelling in her eyes, filled with fear now. “Stop it, this isn’t you…”

“What do ya mean honey?” He whispered, biting her earlobe, hands moving down to unfasten his own jeans, pulling his hardened cock out and pushed it against her pussy, which had dried up.

Jalise gasped upon feeling him and shook her head as she brought her foot up, pressing it against his chest, and pushed him off of her as he landed on his back with a thud.  She scrambled up, trembling from head to toe, and had to grip the counter with her hand to keep from crumbling.  Tears were already sliding down her cheeks as the bite on her earlobe throbbed, and hastily put her clothes back on, shaking her head in disappointment at him.

“This isn’t you. This isn’t the Steve I know.” Her words were shaky but firm and ran a hand through her hair, not believing how rough he’d been with her.

Steve stood up, staring at her, obviously confused by her words. “Jalise, what’re ya talkin’ bout?” He asked, taking a step toward her, zipping his jeans up. “Honey…”

Shaking her head, Jalise trembled in fear, still not able to believe how rough he’d been with her.  His soft kisses were rough, bruising her delicate skin and the way he felt her wasn’t tender, it was hard, like he was rushing it for some reason.  Steve was never like that as Jalise slipped her shirt over her head and coughed a little since she was holding in her suppressed sobs.

“That wasn’t you.” She repeated a few times and felt her earlobe, feeling the sticky substance coming from it, and trembled more when she seen blood on her fingers.  He’d bitten her so hard on her ear that he drew blood.

He stared at her, eyes narrowing in on her bloody finger, and immediately felt remorse overtake his body. “Honey, I didn’t mean to be so rough on ya.” He said, moving to stand in front of her, trying to apologize for what he did. “I’m sorry, Jalise, really.”

Jalise was scared now.  She was truly terrified and wanted him to leave. “Please leave, Steve.” She whispered out fearfully, holding her ear as more blood leaked from the bite wound, along with tears that fell down her face. “Just go.” She whispered, cringing away from him and trembled from pure fear, not believing how drastic his mood changed.  She knew she pissed him off with what she said and knew if she didn’t push him off of her, he would’ve taken her regardless if she wanted it or not.

Steve frowned, shaking his head again, and growled out in a demand, “What is goin’ on, Jalise?  Enough of this ‘that wasn’t you’ shit, what is wrong?!”

“It wasn’t you, Steve.  You were rough and cruel.” She replied in a heartbreaking tone of voice and walked past him, raking a hand through her hair and laid down on the bed, curled up in a ball.  His rough kisses, his bite causing her ear to bleed, everything about it scared her to death as she began trembling violently.

“I wasn’t meanin’ to be, Jalise.” Steve tried to reason with her, walking over to stand in front of her. “I’m sorry, honey.” He whispered regretfully and bent down to examine her punctured ear.

She slowly sat up on the bed, allowing him to examine what he’d done to her ear, and sniffled a little. “Why were you so rough?  Did I anger you or something?” She asked softly, voice cracking slightly, and folded her hands in her lap.  Her eyes adverted to the floor, hissing when he touched her ear, which was still throbbing.

“No!  I didn’t realize I was bein’ rough, Jalise.  Honestly, I didn’t.” Steve pulled her up to her feet and guided her into the bathroom where he then cleaned the wound out, studying it more thoroughly. “There, it stopped bleedin’.” He informed, making it seem like it wasn’t that big of a deal, that what he did to her wasn’t wrong.

“Thanks…” She whispered back and looked at her ear in the mirror, sighing heavily, and slid off the bathroom counter.  She walked away from him again and back out into the living room/bedroom area of her hotel suite.  So many things had happened in the past few days and it was starting to affect Jalise tremendously, especially with her lack of sleep.  Her eyes had huge circles beneath them and were bloodshot from crying so much.  She knew she looked like hell and wished John would’ve never kissed her because now she was starting to have second thoughts about Steve. ‘Damn it!’ Jalise angrily thought and sat down on the couch, wincing at her ear.

Steve sighed, slowly following her out of the bathroom, and studied her thoughtfully for a moment. “Honey, ya need to get some sleep.” He said finally. “Why don’t ya crawl into bed and tomorrow mornin’ we’ll talk over breakfast, how’s that sound?”

“I’m not tired.” She replied gruffly, running a hand through her hair and leaned against the arm of the couch, sighing deeply.

What did her heart want?  Was it John or Steve?  She couldn’t have both no matter how much she wanted to, which sucked even more.  Maybe she should say fuck it to both of them and go far away.  The thought made a fresh batch of tears spill down her cheeks, which was nothing new and curled up against the arm, staring out into the night.

Shaking his head, this thing with where she didn’t answer him completely was driving Steve nuts, but knew he couldn’t force it out of her. “I’ll see ya in the mornin’, honey.  Ya might not be tired, but ya need to rest anyway.” He said softly, walking over to kiss the top of her head, and Jalise physically cringed away from him.

“Don’t count on it.” She stated and stood up from the couch, wrapping her arms around herself, and suddenly felt the anger well up inside her body.  

She refused to stare back at him, in his eyes, especially after what just transpired between them, and took a deep breath.  Maybe Steve wasn’t the one for her, maybe she did belong with John.  She couldn’t for the life of her get him out of her mind or that passionate kiss they’d shared, feeling more confused than ever.

“Don’t count on what?” Steve demanded, seeing the new change in her body posture. “Jalise, what is goin’ on with you?  Let me in, honey.”

“I don’t know, Steve.  I thought this could work between us, I thought I was in love with you, I thought so many things, but then I saw something in you that scared the shit out of me.  I’m scared of you now and I hate feeling like that.  It happened to me once and it won’t happen again.  Just leave.” She ordered, walking away from the window and into the kitchen, staring down at the floor.  A spot of blood was on it from her ear and Jalise sighed as she started cleaning it up with a rag that came with the kitchen part of her suite.

Steve couldn’t believe this! “One mistake and it’s over?” He demanded, his own legendary temper on the rise. “That’s bullshit, Jalise!!”

“One mistake is all it takes with me, Steve.” She stated simply, standing back up from the floor, and turned around to face him after rinsing the rag out.  

Her past relationship before coming to work for the WWE was not a pretty one and it started out like this.  He was a sweetheart, an absolutely prince charming, but he quickly turned into the devil after one mistake.  He raped her while he was drunk off his ass and Jalise forgave him.  

Biggest mistake of her life and it wouldn’t happen again, especially with Steve’s drinking habit he had.  It hadn’t bothered her until now and it wasn’t even about John at the moment.  It was about her past and the monster Steve turned into when they were about to have sex earlier.

“Yer a cold hearted bitch, Jalise, you know that?” He walked over to grab her arms in an grip iron, and glared down at her as his blue eyes turned to ice. “Why don’t ya just come out and say it?  Ya wish it was that fuckin’ moron Cena ya were fuckin’ instead of me!!”

“That’s not true!!” Jalise cried out, his iron grip on her arm causing more tears to slide down her cheeks. “This has nothing to do with him!!” She shouted, no hesitation in her voice because it was the truth.  It was about her past relationship and what just transpired between her and Steve just a few minutes prior to this explosion in Steve. “Let me go.  You’re hurting me!” She stated, biting her bottom lip and tried not to cry out in pain, trying to pry his vise grip off of her.

“Bullshit!  You said yer damn self that ya were hot for him!” Steve shouted, pushing her away from him.  Then out of nowhere, he slapped her across the face and growled out, “That’s fer lyin’ to me, you bitch!”

Jalise went down like a ton of bricks when she felt him slap her across the face, feeling like her cheek was about to explode, and shrieked out in pain.  She crawled away from him, holding it with her hand, and felt the tears sliding freely down her cheeks while her heart pounded furiously in her chest. “Fuck you!!” She shouted, glaring up at him through narrowed, slit eyes. “I didn’t lie to you!!  I don’t fuckin’ want him or you!!  You both are assholes!!  GET OUT NOW!! “ She screamed, scooting further away from him, cheek throbbing harshly as she cradled it in her hand.

Steve just stared down at her, clenching and unclenching his fists angrily, blue eyes remaining ice cold.  Finally, he just nodded and stormed out, slamming the door behind him so hard, pictures fell off the wall.  Jalise sat there for a long while, crying her heart and soul out, and held her face with her hand.

She knew now that she’d made the right decision, that what happened between her and Steve wasn’t her paranoia kicking in.  He was rough with her and now he showed her his true colors, his true self, his true temper.  Why did men have to be such assholes?  She slowly rose to her feet, groaning in pain and stumbled into the bathroom, crying harder at the black and blue bruise that was already covering her cheek.

Again, why did men have to be such assholes?

Chapter 13

John was doing warm-ups in the hallway of the arena, waiting patiently on Jalise to arrive, worried about her.  His blue eyes narrowed when he seen Steve stalk by, an ugly scowl on his face, and muttered under his breath, “Great…Who pissed in his Wheaties?”

Jalise walked inside the arena, the night crisp and clear, and winced at he pain in her face.  She’d taken a few days off to recollect her thoughts and to try to see if the bruise would go away.  She never wore makeup and seen it was slowly disappearing, but still visible to the naked eye.  She sighed when she seen John doing warm-ups in the hallway, not even acknowledging him, and simply walked past him into the dressing room.  Sitting down at the table, Jalise kept her head lowered, her hair over her bruised cheek, covering it speculatively and started getting to work.

Frowning, John followed her inside his dressing room, feeling like something wasn’t right with her.  He hadn’t seen her in a few days, knowing she needed time and space to think things through, and figured the scowl on Steve’s face he’d seen earlier was the reasoning behind her attitude. “J, what’s wrong?” He asked, knowing something was up.  He arched an eyebrow at her hair, seeing it was covering one side of her face.  Normally she wore it pulled back away from her face and bent down to brush it back.

“Don’t.” She whispered out softly, pulling away from him, and knew he’d probably caught a glimpse of her face.  Jalise didn’t care though as she started going over the documents, needing to catch up from the past few days, and sighed heavily.  Whipping out her cell phone, Jalise started making his hotel and plane reservations, which was another part of her job as his personal assistant.

John ignored her, dropping down and pushed her hair from her face again, not believing what he saw. “Jalise, who did this to you?” He whispered out in disbelief, staring at the ugly bruise that marred her beautiful face. “What happened?”

“It’s none of your business, Cena.” She stated heatedly, puling away from him again, and stood up from the table. “Are you going to allow me to do my fuckin’ job or do I have to go elsewhere to get it done?” Jalise snapped, eyes holding fire and hatred, running a hand through her hair and pulled her hair back from her face, not caring about it anymore.  He’d seen it and there was no changing or denying the fact.

John didn’t pay attention to her tone, eyes moving to her ear, which was also healing, though there was a clear bite mark on it. “Whether you like it or not, J, I care about what happens to you.” He frowned, inhaling sharply, and knew he’d probably get his ass chewed for asking this next question. “Was it Steve?”

“What part of it’s none of your business do you not understand?” She retorted, blowing off his question and crossed her arms in front of her chest, feeling the tears stinging her eyes already. “This is all your fault!  If you would’ve kept your lips to your fuckin’ self…” She trailed off and shook her head, squaring her shoulders, and walked back over to sit down. “Just get to work, Cena, and allow me to do my job.  This is strictly professional between us.  Got it?  Good.”

“My fault?” John whispered in an echo, looking as if she’d physically struck him, before guilt washed over him like a tidal wave. “J, I’m sorry, I didn’t…” He stood up, backing away from her, the realization sinking in. “Christ…”

“Sorry you forced me and Steve to break up?  Sorry that you got what you wanted?  Whatever, Cena.” She spat hatefully back at him and started writing so hard, she’d actually put a hole in the paper before slamming her fist down hard on the table.  So many emotions were running through her body as she began to tremble, and raked a furious hand through her hair, before going back to doing her job.

Not saying a single word, John just walked out of the locker room in a daze.  He felt horrible that he’d ended her relationship with Steve.  Even more so that Steve had put his hands on her in a violent way.  

But then…Steve was known for his fierce temper.  One day something would’ve eventually brought it out.  John grunted in pain as he was ripped from his thoughts and slammed against a cinder block wall.

Steve stared down at the younger man angrily, blue eyes ice cold and calculating. “Satisfied, Cena?” He hissed before planting a boot in John’s stomach.

John growled, straightening up, and stated in a low tone of voice, “You hit her.”

“Well it’s not my fault she was thinkin’ bout fuckin’ ya when she was with me!” Steve spat, ducking a blow John aimed at him, before grabbing John by the arm and swung him around.  When Steve let go, John flew backwards, stumbling through his dressing room door and did a backwards somersault, groaning when his head hit the edge of the couch.

Jalise couldn’t stop the angry tears from sliding down her cheeks even if her life depended on it, but she knew she had a job to do.  She quickly made the phone calls, used to doing it, and then finished up with the schedule for this week.  She was going to do the schedules weekly now instead of monthly, hoping John liked her new system better than the previous one.  

Jalise’s head shot up as her eyes bugged out of her head, not believing what she was seeing as the dressing room door crashed open.  Steve was stalking toward John and John was leaning against the couch, holding his head.  Jalise shot up from her chair, knowing they would eventually move the fight to that area, and gripped her hair in her hands with pure frustration.

“Stop it!! STOP IT BOTH OF YOU RIGHT NOW!!” She screamed, not getting in the way because she didn’t want to be caught in the line of fire or hit again, and winced at her cheek as it throbbed.

“Shut up!” Steve snapped at her, blue eyes narrowing when John went to move towards her, looking concerned. “Mind yer own business, Cena!” He snarled, bringing another heavy boot down on John’s back, hoping it snapped in half.

John groaned, raising his head up to look at her. “Get out of here!” He ordered, rolling when Steve went to stomp him again.

Jalise backed away from Steve, seeing the murderous intentions, and shook her head back at John. “Steve, just stop it please!!” She pleaded with him, tears spilling down her face, and looked down at John. “And don’t tell me what the fuck to do, Cena!!  You started this whole thing!!” She shouted at him, heart tearing in two once more and ran a hand through her hair, her black and blue bruised cheek in Steve’s vision.

When Steve went to grab Jalise, John shoved him away from her, getting a punch in his jaw for his effort.  He spun around, cursing only to go flying across the room headfirst when Steve kicked him from behind. “Now,” Steve began, turning his attention on the bitch that broke his heart.  With John out of action for a moment, Steve decided to take this opportunity to talk to her. “What was it ya were sayin’ honey?”

“I said stop it!  You both are acting like children!” She shouted back at him, anger overcoming her fear momentarily and stared back into Steve’s icy blue eyes, crossing her arms in front of her chest. “What are you going to do, Steve?  Hit me again?  You feel like a real big man when you hit a woman?” Jalise spat angrily, her back pressed against the wall, and unshed tears were glistening in her eyes.

Steve didn’t take kindly to her tone and slapped her again, the same spot he’d gotten previously. “You’d best realize who the hell yer talkin’ to woman!” He shouted, pinning her against the wall, seeing she was momentarily dazed from the blow he just gave her.

Jalise shrieked out in pain when he slapped her in the face again, the same spot he’d done the previous night, and shoved him away from her harshly. “I HATE YOU!  We’re OVER!  Get it through your head, you no good son of a bitch!!” She screamed at him, lashing out at him verbally, and actually pushed John away in the process before sinking down in the corner.  Her body slid down the wall and curled up in a tight ball as she screamed at both of them, “LEAVE ME ALONE!!”

John had got to his feet again, shaking cobwebs form his brain, and felt sick when he seen Steve slap Jalise again across the face. “Leave her alone!” He ordered, moving to pry Steve off of Jalise without hurting her further.

Glaring down at her through narrowed eyes, Steve nodded, deciding to leave her alone for now. “I’ll see ya around, Jalise” He promised coldly, now staring at John, and growled out before storming out of the dressing room, “This ain’t over, Cena.  Yer ass is mine!”

Ignoring the pain coursing through him, John moved to kneel before her and whispered out pleadingly, not moving to touch her yet, “J, come on, let me see your face.”

“I said leave me alone!!” She cried out at him before slowly standing up to her feet, still somewhat dazed from the slap Steve gave her.  Her cheek was throbbing painfully against the palm of her hand as she backed away from him and quickly gathered her things. “I’m leaving, see you tomorrow, Cena.” She announced and, before he could stop her, she was already out the door, running down the hallway.  She plowed through the exit back doors of the arena and ran to her rental car, wanting to get as far away from both John and Steve as possible.  Her entire body was trembling from head to toe as she shakily got into her car and drove back to the hotel, ignoring the pain in her cheek for the time being.

John groaned, just laying on the floor for a few minutes.  Finally, he managed to pull himself up to his feet and stumbled into the bathroom, frowning when he seen himself.  It looked like he’d had the shit knocked out of him.  He made a quick call, securing himself the night out though he knew it was going to cost him before leaving, heading back to the hotel.  That wasn’t on his mind right now though, Jalise was, and he was going to make sure she was alright.

After arriving at the hotel and taking an hour long shower, Jalise finally decided not to let the men bother her for one night.  She got her bottle of Tequila Rose and started the fireplace up in the corner of her hotel room.  Her body was encased in a silky, mid-thigh high blue robe with just her bra and panties underneath, and laid in the bed, sipping her drink, and watched a movie.  Her cheek was now black, purple, and blue mixed into one, covering almost her entire cheek.  Sighing heavily, Jalise curled up on the bed, hair pooled down her back and over her shoulders, and downed a shot.

Making his weary ass back to the hotel, John went straight to the shower once he reached his room, wincing when he felt his jaw.  He groaned, slipping on a pair of loose blue shorts and stepped out of his room, looking around for the ice machine in the hotel.  

Deciding she needed more ice, Jalise walked out of her hotel room, wearing that robe, and kept it closed as she carried the bucket with her.  She found the ice machine and bent over, the robe riding up just a little on her thighs and started scooping the ice into the bucket, wincing a little at her cheek, but it was nothing she couldn’t handle.  

John sighed when he seen Jalise at the ice machine, feeling déjà vu and walked up beside her, not saying anything.  He was afraid she’d take his head off as he scooped into his own bucket, wincing at the pain in his abdomen from Steve’s heavy boots.  

Feeling him beside her, Jalise whipped her hair back over her shoulder, bruised cheek in his vision and continued scooping ice into the bucket, not saying a word either.  What could she say after everything that had happened between them?  She quickly finished and seen he was having a difficult time with the shovel.  Handing him hers, Jalise turned around and started walking back to her room, sighing when his voice stopped her.

“J?” John called out, clearing his throat hesitantly.

Stopping and turning around, Jalise stared back into John’s eyes with her emotionless ones and asked quietly, “Yeah?” She sounded tired and defeated, running a hand through her hair, and just wanted to go back to her room and relax.

John didn’t even realize he too was raking a hand through his own short hair. “I’m sorry about tonight…” He stared at her face regretfully as he apologized. “I’m sorry I wasn’t able to stop him.” His blue eyes were racked with guilt, wishing he could take away the pain he’d caused her.

“It’s not your job to protect me, John.” She quietly stated, crossing her arms in front of her chest with the bucket pressed against her chest. “Don’t worry about it, sleep with a clear conscience.  I’ll deal with Steve on my own.  I’m a big girl, I can handle it.”

“Can you?” Came Steve’s drawl, sauntering up to them, reeking of booze.  He eyed her, taking in her night clothes and trailed his eyes up and down her body appreciatively. “So now that yer outta my bed, yer just divin’ into his, huh?”

“It’s not like that, Steve, leave her alone.” John growled, once again defending her, and moved to stand in between them.

Growling under her breath and rolling her eyes, Jalise pushed John away from her. “Stop it now, Cena!  This isn’t your concern.  Go back to your room now.” She ordered, pointing down the hallway and raked a hand through her hair as she turned back to face Steve. “I have my OWN room with my OWN bed.  I’m not sleeping with him or anyone else, Williams.” She informed, her tone even, refusing to get angry, and held the bucket of ice tightly in her arms.

“Williams?  Since when are we on a last name basis, honey?” Steve leered, eyes glazed from drinking. “Just the other night I was god to ya, especially when I was fuckin’ ya senseless.”

“We came to a last name basis when you decided to be a dickhead and struck me.” She stated coolly, refusing to back down from him, and could smell the foul stench of alcohol on his breath. “You need to go lay down before you hurt yourself.” Jalise advised in that same tone of voice before walking away from him and down the hall toward her room.

John stepped in Steve’s path when he went to follow her. “Go sleep it off, man.” He ordered quietly, refusing to allow him to go taunt Jalise anymore.

“Get the hell outta my way, boy!  How many times do I have to beat yer damn ass?” Steve snarled, eyes ice cold as he glared at the young punk that’d stopped him from going after Jalise.

“Leave her alone.” John ordered firmly, ducking when Steve went to swing at him, and shoved the man back so he hit the ice machine.  

Steve tried to move, but wound up on his ass, cursing incoherently, causing John to shake his head before returning to his own room.  He was fairly certain Steve would be too disoriented to do anything else.  He was wrong.

Jalise heard them arguing from behind her and shook her head, walking back to her room, and shut the door behind her.  She pressed her back against the door, touching her cheek with her hand, and felt the tears sting her eyes.  Walking into the kitchen, Jalise set the bucket of ice down and walked over to her bed.  She curled up in a tight ball and trembled, knowing Steve wouldn’t leave her alone, and wished she’d never laid eyes on him in the first place.

Chapter 14

Steve did get up though, an accomplished drinker, almost an expert. He made his way to Jalise’s door and started knocking, pleading through it while running his fingers down it, “Honey, just talk to me, ya know I didn’t mean to hurt ya.”

Jalise heard his voice and shook her head, walking over to the door from her bed, and wiped the tears that had fallen down her cheeks away. “Go away, Steve.  I don’t want to see you or anyone else.” She meant it and wrapped her arms around herself.

“You don’t mean that, Jalise!” Steve shouted, rapping harder on her door. “Now open the damn door!”

“No, go away, Williams.” She stated defiantly, crossing her arms in front of her chest, and stared at the door, sighing heavily. “You have an anger problem and you’re drunk.  Just go away and get some sleep.”

“I don’t want to sleep!  I want to fuckin’ talk to ya!” Steve shouted, now kicking at the door, heavy hard kicks. “Open the damn door, Jalise!  NOW!”

“You’re insane, Steve.  Go to fuckin’ bed before I call security!” Jalise stated harshly, raising her voice a little, and jumped with every kick that landed on her door.  It wouldn’t bust through though because the hotel had strong doors, thankfully, and Jalise felt the tears sting her eyes as she started crying softly. “Just leave me alone.”

“Call security?  On me?  Have ya lost yer mind?” He started laughing, sounding psychotic, and thought she was messing with him. “Woman, get yer ass out here and face me.” He ordered amusedly, knowing she’d cave in.

“No!  Go away, you’re scaring me.” She replied, hearing him laugh, and shook her head, flat out refusing to open that door.  If she did, she might not come out alive as she stood there, a few feet from it, and slid down the wall when he started kicking the door harder. “Go away, Williams!!”

“Ya can’t hide from me forever, honey, just remember that!” Steve spat, sounding dangerous, his tone full of nothing but vicious intentions. “And if yer snivelin’ friend tries to step in again, I’m gonna fuck him up worse!”

“Why are you doing this, Steve?” She shouted suddenly, pressing her forehead to the door, and started crying harder. “What do you want?” Her fingertips ran down the door and gasped when he kicked it again. “I don’t want to get hurt worse from you.  Just go away and leave me alone.  Find someone else.”

“I want you, Jalise.  I want us to go back to how we were!  NOW OPEN THE DAMN DOOR!” He bellowed, tossing his entire bodyweight into it, grinning when it quivered on its hinges. “If I have to break this door down…” He trailed off threateningly, trying to put the fear of god into her.

“STOP IT!!” She shouted back at him, feeling him try to bust her door down, and immediately flipped open her cell phone. “Don’t make me call security, Steve!  I’ll call them and then you’ll be thrown out of here!” Jalise threatened back at him, knowing he couldn’t bust the door down, and jumped when he started kicking it harder. “I don’t want you!!  I don’t want any man!!  GO AWAY!!” Suddenly, the kicking stopped and silence was her only, abrupt response.  Jalise heard the silence and sighed with relief, knowing he’d probably stumbled off to his own room, walking away from the door.

Sitting down on her bed, Jalise fell over, curling upon it, trembling from head to toe and allowed the silent tears to slide down her cheeks.  She clutched a pillow tightly to her chest and buried her face in it, the sobs tearing throughout her body. “What have I gotten myself into?” She whispered and closed her eyes tightly shut.  

After crying for hours on end, Jalise finally fell into unconsciousness, her face tear streaked.  Her hair was splayed out over her face, but her bruised cheek could clearly be seen as the fireplace still roared.  The flames were giving the room a golden glow while her body was curled in a tight ball, refusing to move from that position.

After retrieving a key card from the receptionist of the hotel, turning on the charm, Steve promised to take her out to dinner, even though he wasn’t going to keep his word.  Steve walked inside Jalise’s hotel room and stared down at her.  He loved how her beautiful hair reflected the firelight, entranced by her beauty.  He crawled on the bed with her, running a tender hand up her thigh before pulling away the pillow she was holding.  Leaning down, his lips softly brushed against her shoulder, loving how soft her skin was, and missed her so much.

Jalise’s arms fell loose after he pulled the pillow from her arms, still sleeping deeply, and didn’t feel his kiss on her shoulder.  Her body was so exhausted from hardly sleeping and crying.  She probably wouldn’t wake if a hurricane hit Houston at this point.  Her black, blue and purple bruised cheek could clearly be seen in his vision, while her hair remained splayed over her shoulders and the bed.  Her face was tear streaked, still wearing the midnight blue silk robe.

Steve didn’t pay any attention to her bruised face.  Instead, he was slowly working her night clothes off, planting kisses on every inch of skin he exposed.  He chuckled darkly, her body responding in her sleep.  He rolled her onto he back, staring down at her, admiring her for a moment and stepped off the bed.  Unzipping his jeans and pushing them down his long, muscular legs, Steve rejoined her on the bed and spread her thighs apart with his hands. His eyes roamed over her body, her beautiful nude form, and positioned himself at her entrance, slowly sliding his cock inside of her.

A soft whimper escaped her lips as she felt something slide inside of her and was too exhausted to fight it off.  She just laid there, eyes still closed, head spinning.  Her arms were over her head, laying prone, allowing whoever it was to take her.  It was Steve, she knew it, but she was just too tired to fight him off or care at the moment, but whimpered out at the feeling.  She was awake, but refused to open her eyes, refused to stare into his cold eyes as he raped her, and willed the tears to stay behind her closed lids.

He made love to her still form, uncaring about anything but the feel of her underneath him.  He massaged her breasts with his hands, rolling her nipples between his fingers.  Bending down to kiss her collarbone, Steve ran his tongue slowly up her neck while he thrusted inside of her at a slow, steady pace, wanting to make it last.  The woman had the tendency to cause him to cum before he wanted too and he wanted her to feel what she’d caused him.  Her soft, smooth skin against his tongue and teeth was almost enough to make him cum inside of her right now, but he held it back, nipping her skin roughly, leaving his mark on her.

Her breathing started to become ragged as she lay there, feeling his tongue and lips trail up her neck.  She didn’t reach out to touch him in return, refusing to do it, and hoped this ended soon.  She didn’t have the strength or desire to do so, already knowing who it was, and simply kept her eyes closed.  Jalise whimpered out a little more, feeling her body trembling beneath him, and knew her orgasm was building against her will.  She was fighting it back, not wanting to give him the pleasure, but knew she wouldn’t be able to hold back.

Steve felt her tremble and smirked, never ceasing his gentle administrations.  He almost cursed when he felt himself start to cum, snapping his hips forward violently, almost hating her for making him release so soon. “Fuck!” He hissed, grabbing her arms and pulling her up against him, moving in her harder, deeper and faster.

Jalise’s arms fell limply on his shoulders while his arms wrapped around her body.  Steve pulled her legs around his waist and felt him thrusting harder inside of her, the tip of his cock brushing against her back wall.  She could feel him cumming inside of her as she leaned her head back.  Her hair cascaded over her shoulders and back while her breathing went from heavy to erratic.  Even though he felt heavenly inside of her, the way he did it caused her heart to break, not believing he’d actually taken her without her consent.

“Christ!” Steve groaned out, spilling the last of his seed in her, before collapsing on top of her body. “Mmm I love yer sweet pussy, honey…” He murmured, burying his face in the crook of her neck, holding her tight to his sweaty body.

Silent tears spilled down her cheeks as she felt him nuzzle her neck and finally managed to open her eyes.  She couldn’t believe what had happened, what she’d allowed to happen, and felt violated.  She wondered how he’d gotten into her hotel room as she rolled away from him instantly.  Her body curled up in a tight ball, trying to cover herself up, and began trembling violently from head to toe.  He just raped her and Jalise couldn’t get over the initial shock of the cruel reality that crashed over her.

Steve frowned, uncurling her and pulled her against him, spooning against her. “Calm down, honey…” He growled, stroking her side as he felt her sobs. “Calm down...” He repeated over and over until finally passing out from both drinking too much and having sex with Jalise.

Even though Jalise wanted to run as far away from him as possible, she couldn’t even bring herself to move because of how much exhaustion she was feeling.  She just peeled his arms from around him somehow and curled up in a tight ball, covering herself up with the comforter, and cried herself to sleep.  Images of what happened between them flowed through her mind as she shook her head, knowing she’d have nightmares from it for weeks.

~*~*~*~

Waking up with a massive hangover the following morning, Steve slowly opened his eyes, trying to adjust them to his surroundings.  He groaned, sitting up, and frowned when he felt someone beside him.  He looked down to find Jalise’s body curled up in a tight ball.  Steve groaned again, suddenly remembering what he’d done the previous night and reached out, gently stroking her back.

“Jalise, honey?” He whispered softly.”

Slowly opening her eyes, Jalise groaned instantly, feeling her head pounding from crying herself to sleep yet again.  She felt someone stroking her back and slowly stretched her body out from the tight ball she’d curled into.  Suddenly, everything from the previous night came rushing back to her, causing tears to prick her eyes.  She knew who was touching her as she cringed physically away from him, tightening the comforter around her body even more.  Jalise wanted him to leave, never wanting to lay her eyes on the evil and vile Steve Williams again.

Steve pulled the comforter away from her, moving so he was laying right next to her. “Jalise, come on, honey.  Ya know I didn’t mean for that to happen.” He soothed, massaging her shoulders gently since her back was to him. “Honey, come on, talk to me.”

“Don’t touch me!” She whispered harshly and shot up off the bed, grabbing her robe and pulled it on, tying it around her waist.  She wrapped her arms around herself as she raked a hand through her hair.  Jalise still couldn’t believe he’d actually raped her and felt the tears sting her eyes. “Y-You need to leave before I call security and I’m dead serious this time, Williams.” Her voice was low, quiet but full of seriousness and felt her legs trembling.

Steve just stared at her, blue eyes slowly turning to ice once again. “You got it.” He said in a low, threatening voice.  Slowly standing up, Steve pulled his clothes back on, eyes never leaving hers. “This isn’t over, Jalise.” He said finally, walking towards the door, and halted to pick up the key card he’d persuaded the receptionist to give him the previous night. “I think I’ll just return this…” He winked at her obscenely, his words trailing off before stepping out, the door closing gently behind him.

As soon as the door closed behind him, Jalise dropped to her knees and wrapped her arms around herself.  She felt dirty and violated, not believing what transpired the previous night, and suddenly felt her stomach rumble.  Barely making it to the bathroom, Jalise emptied the contents of her stomach in the porcelain toilet bowl.  She held her hair back the best she could and started crying harshly, sobs racking throughout her body violently.  How could Steve rape her the way he had the previous night?  Though, Jalise was thankful he hadn’t been too rough with her.

Not seeing Steve walk out of her hotel room, John walked up to it a few minutes after the man’s exit and knocked hesitantly on Jalise’s door.  He wondered how she was after the little incident with him and Steve the previous night. “J, it’s me.” He called through the door.

Jalise slowly made he way out of the bathroom, looking pale from throwing up so much, and wiped her mouth off with a towel.  She heard John’s voice through the door and sighed, knowing he was worried, opening the door reluctantly. “What do you want, Cena?  I’m not feeling up to company right now.” Her eyes were bloodshot, swollen and red.  There were little bite marks all over her neck from what Steve did the previous night, but she hadn’t noticed them yet.

John’s eyes widened and put his foot out, blocking her from shutting it in his face, and couldn’t believe what he was seeing. “Jalise, what happened to you?” He demanded, staring at her neck, before looking into her eyes. “Who did this?” Having a feeling he already knew who it was, John wanted her to tell him so he could clarify his suspicion.

“Just stop, John.  Stop worrying about me and pretending like you fuckin’ care.  Just stop this!” She shouted at him, turning her back on him, and walked into her hotel room.  

The bed was completely messed up as she felt the tears sting her eyes again.  How could she allow Steve to have his way with her last night?  She didn’t even fight him and it made her physically sick to her stomach as she pressed her hand to it.

Following her, John didn’t get too close though, not knowing what she’d do at this point. “I DO care though, Jalise!  I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t.  Did Steve do this to you?” He asked bluntly, stuffing his hands in his jean pockets. “Just…let me help you.”

“No!  I don’t need yours or anyone else’s help!” She shouted back at him, raking a hand through her hair and started to feel the tears slide down her cheeks, walking over to the bed.  

She refused to tell him that it was Steve, knowing he probably already knew and started ripping the sheets and comforter from the bed.  The first thing she was going to do was change her room and make sure to put it under a false name.  Then, she was going to get that stupid receptionist fired for giving him a key card to HER hotel room without HER consent first!

“J, you obviously need somebody’s help…even if it’s not mine.” John said quietly, moving to take the blankets from her hands, tossing them in a corner. “Why can’t you let down that wall for once?  I’m not trying to hurt you, I’m just trying to be…to be your friend.”

“I don’t need a friend right now and we both know we can’t be friends with each other, John.  You proved that the night you decided to kiss me.  There’s too much…sexual tension between us.” Jalise stated, making sure to get every single sheet and speck from the bed before sitting down on the mattress and dialed room service.  

After spitting orders out to them left and right, she finally spoke to the manager of the hotel, telling him what his receptionist did the previous night.  She threatened to sue the hotel for every penny it was worth unless the bitch was fired.  The manager immediately obliged her request and promised not to let it happen again before Jalise hung up the phone.  Not speaking a word about Steve, Jalise just said someone broke into her room the previous night.

“Forget the sexual intensity, Jalise why can’t you see I’m trying to help you?  Does it look like I’m trying to get in your pants at the moment?” John demanded, sounding frustrated beyond belief.  He arched an eyebrow, listening to her on the phone, and sighed. “Why don’t you call the police and report the break in?” He asked softly, trying not to challenge her, but at the same time, he was.

Jalise didn’t have time to argue with him as she gathered all of her things, knowing the manager was going to give her another room for the night.  She raked a hand through her hair and spat back in a retort to him, “Why can’t you mind your own damned business?” Her eyes were filled with rage and hurt from what Steve did to her the previous night and vowed to never let it happen again. “This is not your problem, Cena.”

“And why can’t you just let someone help you, Jalise?” He shot right back, not about to let her back him down. “I know it’s not my problem, but if…if Steve is hurting you, then you need to let someone help.  Don’t you see that?”

“It wasn’t Steve, alright?!” She shouted back at him in defense, voice shaky just at the mention of the man, and mentally shook herself as she began to dress in front of him.  She’d already had on her bra and panties as she slipped on a pair of jeans with a white baby t-shirt and brushed her hair out. “I don’t need you to be my Knight In Shining Armor, John.  I can take care of myself.”

John just nodded, jaw tightening slightly. “Fine J, you sure as hell seem to be doing a damn good job of taking care of yourself now…” He gestured to her bruised neck. “I’ll just leave you to it, shall I?” He walked out, shutting the door quietly behind him.  He groaned as he leaned against it, not believing he’d actually lost his temper with her like that. “Damn.”

After he left, Jalise finally allowed the tears to spill down her cheeks as she finished packing up her things.  She walked down to the receptionist desk, changing her key card in for a new one.  Jalise made sure to have them check the room number and call her before giving out any key cards to that specific room.  Putting her identity under the name Kasey, Jalise nodded once after everything was settled before heading up to her new room.  As soon as the door shut behind her, Jalise walked over to her new bed and laid down on it, the silent tears falling once more.

Chapter 15

John had spent his day pumping iron, hating the fact that Jalise wouldn’t even give him the benefit of the doubt.  Apparently, she thought all he saw when he looked at her was tits and ass.  Honestly, he did see that, but he also seen a whole hell of a lot more, like her intelligence for one.  

Her sharp, dry sense of humor.  He chuckled at the thought, thinking if anyone’s tongue could kill, it would be hers.  Finally, he showered and headed upstairs to his hotel room, wishing she would just talk to him for two seconds.

~*~*~*~

Waking up later on that day, which was her only day off, Jalise walked into the mini kitchen of her suite and decided to make herself a sandwich.  There was a mini fridge in the kitchen that had lunchmeat, mayonnaise and bread, knowing her stomach couldn’t handle much more than that.  She closed her eyes tightly shut and dropped the butter knife when Steve entered her mind again.  What had transpired the night before, how he’d taken her without her consent, still not believing she hadn’t fought him off.

~*~*~*~

Speaking of Steve, he’d been a busy man that day.  He’d pulled some strings, used his seniority in the WWE to change the course of Jalise’s career.  Not that she would find out until she went back to work that following night.  He was celebrating at the bar, drinking down a pitcher of beer, and flirting with a local ring rat.  She wasn’t Jalise, but would suffice for now until he had that little bitch in his grasp once and for all.

~*~*~*~

The following night, Jalise walked inside the arena, and headed straight for John’s dressing room.  She just hoped she didn’t run into Steve on this night, just wanting to do her work and go back to the hotel.  Once she’d found the room, Jalise walked inside and glanced over at John briefly.  His knee was still taped up, but it was getting better as she sat down at the table.  Not a word was spoken as she got straight to work, not in the mood to get into a fight with him.

Staring over at her for a moment, John slowly stood up from the couch. “How’s things looking?” He asked softly, walking over to her, wearing a shirt tonight since his ribs had taken a slight beating the night before in his match.  He didn’t care for anyone to see the slight bruise he’d obtained and sighed.

“It’s going fine.” She replied in a gentle voice, raking a hand through her hair, and wished she could tell John what had happened with Steve. “You have an autograph signing tomorrow night at seven since it’s only a house show.” Jalise informed him before getting back to work.  It was their normal everyday routine and questionnaire.

“Thanks.” John nodded and went to say something else, but hesitated when there was a knock on the door. Following that knock, the door slammed open, hitting the wall and Steve walked in, a grin on his face. “What the hell do you want?” He demanded, staring intensely at the Texas Rattlesnake, and could already tell this wasn’t a social visit.

Steve was feeling pretty cocky when he arrived at the arena that following day, a duffel bag with some interesting papers in it slung over his shoulder.  He was actually smirking as he made his way to the dressing room hallways, blue eyes searching out Cena’s.  He wanted to be the first one to announce to Jalise what he’d done the previous day, after having a meeting with Vince.  Just the thought of what her face looked like caused Steve’s smirk to turn into a grin.  A few minutes later, he arrived outside of John’s dressing room, knowing he was about to break Jalise’s heart, just like she’d done to his.

After hearing John’s question and barging into the dressing room, Steve smirked as he simply answered, “I’m here to see MY new personal assistant.”

Jalise felt her jaw drop and eyes widen as she slowly stood up from the table, crossing her arms in front of her chest, and leaned against the wall to keep herself balanced.  The breath had left her body as she stared at Steve, calculating blue eyes staring back at her, and shook her head. “I have a contract with Vince.  I’m the only one who can change it at any time or else I leave the WWE.” She looked over at John, the fear suddenly building in her eyes, and wondered what the hell Steve did.

“What the hell are…” John froze when Steve handed him some papers, words trailing off, and swallowed hard.  His blue eyes nearly popped out of his skull as he turned to face Jalise, after reading the fine print on the documents. “J…” He walked over to her, holding them out, evident hidden rage in his eyes.

Steve snorted, not seeing a problem with this situation, and simply replied as if it was no big deal, “Vince and I had a nice chat yesterday.  That contract was changed, honey.”

Taking the papers shakily from John’s hand, Jalise looked them over and glared up at him hatefully after reading what they said. “You son of a bitch!” She spat hatefully, throwing the papers on the floor as they scattered and picked up the chair she was sitting in, hurling it at him. “RAPING ME WASN’T ENOUGH, YOU BASTARD?!” Tears were pouring down her cheeks now as her eyes lit on fire, not believing the audacity of him to do such a thing.

Steve dodged the chair, slowly approaching her, and frowned when John blocked him again. “Mind yer own business, Cena. This ain’t any of yer damn business.” He snarled, moving to punch John, but was blocked.

“Her contract with me isn’t up according to your paperwork until tomorrow night Steve, so get the hell out of here.” John ordered, forcing himself to sound calm.  He waited until Steve vacated the dressing room before growling out threats.  Turning to find Jalise kneeling on the floor, John sighed heavily, knowing she was floored by what she just found out.  He crouched down in front of her and stated confidently, “J, we’ll figure something out…”

“I’m quitting.” She whispered, trembling from head to toe and slowly rose to her feet, raking a hand through her hair. “I need to go talk to Vince.” She decided, pushing John away from her and walked out of the dressing room, carrying the papers with her.  A few minutes later, Jalise stood outside the boss’s door and knocked, not even waiting for him to give the okay to walk in.  She barged in, slamming the door shut behind her and thrusted the papers on the desk, stating, “Change it back or I’m quitting, McMahon.” Her voice was low, deadly, and full of seriousness. “You broke our agreement by changing my contract WITHOUT my consent!”

Vince stared up at her, blinking behind his glasses, expression going hard at the tone of voice she was using. “First off, Jalise, your contract belongs to me for another two years.  Second, I can do whatever I please with it until then, including changing your clients. Read the fine print on the bottom of page two.  Third, if you quit, I’ll have you in court so fast, your head will spin.” He threatened, folding his hands together, and just stared up at her as if nothing happened.

“How could you do this to me? We had an agreement, Vince!” She started pacing back and forth in front of him, and glared over in his direction as she shook her head. “I hope you realize what you’ve done.” Jalise whispered before walking out, tears pouring down her cheeks and ran out of the arena, driving back to the hotel.

She couldn’t stick around, not after finding out she was Steve’s new personal assistant, and felt sick to her stomach. Gripping the steering wheel, Jalise shook her head repeatedly, and had to pull over on the way back to the hotel. Her vision was too blurry from her tears and it was pouring rain outside. Steve raping her and breaking into her hotel room hadn’t been enough apparently and she hated him for it.

Unbeknownst to Jalise, John had overheard the short conversation that transpired between her and Vince, finally stepping inside his office.  He wanted to have his own private conversation with the boss, giving him his idea, and it took nearly two hours to finally come to an agreement.  Finally he emerged, looking grim but satisfied.  He went to find Steve to relay his own news.  

When Steve found out about what Vince had agreed to with John, he wasn’t a happy camper and immediately left.  He planned on finding the bitch that was causing him so much trouble and beating her into submission.  

John groaned when he found Steve had left, knowing he had a match so he wasn’t cleared to go just yet.  Then again, Jalise would probably just scream at him some more if he showed up, playing the ‘Knight In Shining Armor’ so instead, he settled on calling her.

Locking the door behind her, Jalise sighed heavily as she walked into the bathroom, taking a shower.  She pulled on a pair of black pajama pants with a white tank top and brushed her hair and teeth.  Ordering a movie and some room service, Jalise was starving since she hadn’t ate hardly anything the previous night and decided this was her night to relax.  

When her cell phone blared, Jalise sighed as she flipped it open and quietly answered, “Hello?”

“J, it’s John. Steve left here pretty pissed off.  Are you going to be alright?” He asked softly, raking a hand through his hair and was pacing the floor, wearing a hole in it.

“I’ll be fine, John.” She assured, running a hand through her damp hair, and sighed deeply. “I’m under a false identity in this hotel and they won’t give him any information without my consent first.  I’ve already warned security about him and everything.  I’ll be just fine.” Her voice remained soft and low as she looked outside at the city and closed her eyes, tears spilling down her cheeks. “Is there anything else you needed?” She asked quietly, trying to remain professional, though her voice was cracking under pressure.

John sighed, hearing the strain in her voice. “I went and talked to Vince, J.  He set up a match between me and Steve at the next pay-per-view, which is under four weeks from now.  Your contract is on the line, but…” He sighed again, hating this part. “But for now, you’ll have to work for Steve.  I’m sorry, I tried J…”

Hearing that and squeezing her eyes tightly shut, Jalise nodded, knowing she had no alternative. “That’s fine, John. Thank you for trying.” She raked a hand through her hair, knowing she’d end up probably being raped and beaten, but if John won the match, she could go back to the way things used to be. “I’ll talk to you later.” She then snapped the lid of her cell phone shut and felt the tears sliding down her cheeks, scorching them, sighing heavily. “Four weeks…One month…Seems like forever.”

John leaned against the wall, wishing there was more that he could’ve done, and closed the lid of his cell phone.  What he failed to mention was that if he lost, he’d be subject to Steve’s whims and probably be given a lengthy leave of absence.  A nice way of saying he’d be fired.

“I can’t lose this…” He murmured, knowing there was more then his career at stake now.

Finally walking away from the window, Jalise laid down on the bed and curled in a tight ball, and proceeded to cry her heart out.  Why was Steve doing this to her?  Why was he being such a monster when all she ever did was love him?  It wasn’t her fault that John had kissed her and it wasn’t her fault how she felt.

“Please stop…” She whispered pleadingly to the silence, knowing Steve wouldn’t until he made her pay.

Steve wasn’t happy when he couldn’t find Jalise listed at the hotel.  Not at all.  Even more so when he received suspicious looks fro the staff.  Cursing, he strolled into the bar, ignoring the knowing looks he received from a few co-workers and took his cell out, dialing her number.  He was bound and determined to put the fear of god into her before she went through with what John told him at the arena.

Hearing her cell phone ring, Jalise groaned as she slowly woke up and reached for it, not even looking at the number on the caller ID, and sighed heavily. “Whoever this is, I’m going to kill you for waking me up.” She threatened, voice gruff with sleep and slowly sat up on the bed, raking a hand down her face.  Her entire body was killing her from hardly sleeping lately.

“Yer gonna kill me?” Steve hissed, hand tightening around his beer bottle. “I don’t think so.  I’m gonna kill you, honey, after I kill that little bitch boy toy of yers.  That man has some steel balls pulling what he did tonight.” He still couldn’t believe John actually had the nerve to go into Vince’s office and made that deal with the boss.  It took big balls to do something like that, especially involving the toughest son of a bitch in the WWE.

“What do you want, Williams?” She asked exhaustingly, standing up and stared out into the horizon, wrapping an arm around her body. “Haven’t you caused me enough torment lately?” Jalise smirked upon hearing that about John and sighed exasperatedly. “At least he has steel balls unlike you.” She retorted, meaning every word that came from her mouth, and actually felt proud of John for what he’d done.

“I’m fixin’ to drag ya through hell and back, honey.” Steve growled in a promise. “That boy will be lucky to have any balls left after I get through with’em.  I hope ya enjoy yer last night with him.  Yer mine for the next month and then after this damn match, he’ll be gone and out of yer life.” He laughed cruelly, before hanging up, leaving her with that thought and took a long swig of his beer.

Jalise snapped her cell phone shut, the tears shining in her eyes, and decided she wasn’t going to see Steve.  Just because she was his personal assistant didn’t’ mean she had to spend every waking moment with him.  She’d done it with John and she’d do it again.

“Bring it on, Rattlesnake.” She whispered harshly under her breath before throwing her cell phone on the bed, continuing to stare out into the night.

If he wanted a war, he was going to damn sure get one because from now on, Jalise was going to play hard ball with Steve.

Chapter 16

Stumbling up to his hotel room, John was fairly certain he was going to die.  He started coughing, glancing down at his hand to see blood, and groaned. “That’s not good.” He grunted, but that’s what happened when he was jumped twice in one night.  He’d been jumped by David on his way out the door of the arena and then when he’d walked into the hotel.  Steve was the second attacker as he slammed John into the stair railings and disappeared just as quickly as he’d shown up.  John grunted in pain and slumped against a hotel door, not caring if he woke up the room’s occupants right now.

After downing a few shots of Tequila Rose to get her mind settled a little, Jalise finally turned on another movie and curled up on the bed.  She closed her eyes and slowly fell asleep.  Tomorrow was going to end up being the first day of hell so she needed her rest in order to get through it.  She smirked, knowing that what Steve did only ignited her fire of rage for him even more.  She’d decided she was going to treat him like she’d treated John when she first became his personal assistant: An asshole and a nobody.

John sighed, pushing himself away from the door only for a wave of dizziness to crash over him.  The last thing he remembered was seeing the ceiling before falling back against the door again.  This time cracking his head as the blow was loud.  Blood seeped from his mouth, which meant he had internal injuries.  Steve had decked him in the face with his fist so his right eye was cut just below the eyebrow and John was trying not to get blood in it.

Jalise heard the bang on her door and shot her eyes open, instantly standing up from her bed.  She immediately grabbed a bat she’d bought and slowly inched her way toward the door, holding it tightly in her grasp.  Mentally counting to three, Jalise opened the door, ready to strike whoever it was.

“John?!” She whispered frantically, seeing the condition he was in, and immediately pulled him into her arms. She groaned at how heavy he was as he slumped against her and somehow managed to drag him into her room. “What the hell happened?!” Jalise shut the door behind he by kicking it and managed to drag him over to the bed, plopping his big ass down on it.

Groaning, John didn’t open his eyes, not wanting the blood to seep in his eye because it would sting like a bitch. “Christ.” He muttered, gingerly reaching back to feel his head.  Finally, he looked up, his eyes filmed over with pain. “J?” He whispered, seeing her and covered his mouth when he started hacking again, pain flaring throughout his ribs. “Damn!”

Fear entered her eyes when she seen him coughing up blood and ran her hand down his face, concern evident in her voice as she spoke, “John?  John, are you alright?” Her voice was shaky as she ran a hand through her hair, wondering what to do now. “You need to go to the hospital.” She stated and reached for her cell phone.

John grabbed her hand, shaking his head as he stopped her. “No, no hospital.” He said softly, managing to sit up, and smiled shakily at her. “See?  I’m fine.” He lied, wiping the blood off his mouth with the back of his hand. “Don’t worry about me.” He murmured, moving to get off the bed. “Sorry about this, J…” Looking away from her, John tried hiding the pain in his eyes.

Jalise instantly pulled him back down on the bed, concern filling her eyes, and caressed his face with the back of her hand again.  She seen the emotional mixed with physical pain in his eyes and sighed heavily. “Stay here.” She ordered, standing up, and walked into the bathroom to get a first aid kit.  She walked out, along with a cold washcloth, and wiped the blood from his mouth. “You could have internal injuries, John.  You need to go get checked out.  What happened?”

“Just give me something to wrap my ribs with, J.  It’ll be fine.” He hissed, pulling his head away when she felt the bump on the back of his head. “Steve happened.” He said, not bothering to go into the details. “He doesn’t like me much these days…” John half joked and closed his eyes, willing away the throbbing pain in his head. “Thanks, J…”

“No need to thank me.” She whispered softly and pulled his shirt off his body, breath catching in her throat at his muscular physique and tried to slow her racing heart. She wrapped his ribs up in the tape, wincing every time he hissed in pain, and felt the tears sting her eyes as she looked up at him. “Steve hurt you badly.” She stated matter-of-factly and shook her head, hating that he was getting hurt because of her. “Why did you make that match, John?” She asked quietly while finishing wrapping his ribs. “You’re going to get hurt.”

John just stared at her, his blue eyes searching her own, and quietly answered, “I asked for the match because I care about you, Jalise.  I know I’ve done wrong by you for a long, long time, but I’m trying to make up for it.  That, and nobody deserves to go through what Steve’s doing to you.” He cracked an awkward smile when she finished with his ribs. “Thanks, doc.”

Tears spilled down her cheeks as she sat on the bed on her knees and carefully started wiping more blood from his mouth while sniffling. “I care about you too, John.” Jalise finally admitted softly, continuing to bandage him up. “I’ve just been too stubborn to admit it.  You’re going to end up getting hurt in the ring, especially with your ribs possibly broken now.” She wiped her tears away, but never stopped wiping his mouth or eyebrow off of the blood, staring into his beautiful blue eyes. “Thank you though.”

Just nodding at her, John reached out to gently wipe away her tears, not having the heart to tell her the other conditions to the match with Steve. “I’ll be fine, J…” He assured her. “I’ve got time to heal and we’ll figure out something to keep you away from him as much as possible.” Reaching over for a handful of tissues, John brought them to his mouth, not wanting her to see the blood anymore. He sighed with relief when he seen he wasn’t coughing up as much now.

Jalise could see something else in his eyes, something she couldn’t quite put her finger on, but also knew it had to do with the match coming up.  John was strong and young, unlike Steve, but the Rattlesnake was a fighter and when he wanted something, he went for it regardless.  She continued wiping the blood from his mouth and leaned her face in his hand, loving the feel of his touch against her cheek, and raked a hand through her hair as she continued.  She bandaged his head since it was cut from collapsing against her door, wrapping the bandage around his forehead.

“There’s no way to stay away from him, John.  I’m just going to show him the same gratitude as I did you when we first met.” She stated simply, smirking, midnight blue eyes gleaming wickedly, the fire back in her eyes.

John couldn’t help but chuckle, wincing when he did it. “Oh man, just don’t piss him off, J.  I don’t want to see you hurt anymore.” He studied her thoughtfully and wished he could take away all the pain he’d caused her over the past year. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you last night.” He whispered, pain and guilt swimming in his eyes and body. “I’d thought he’d gone back to his room otherwise I never would’ve left…”

“He did come to my room, but I refused to open the door.  He got a key card from the receptionist and took advantage of me when I was too exhausted physically and mentally to fight him off.” She explained solemnly, shame in her eyes as she looked away from him and stood up from the bed, wrapping her arms around herself. “I will be fine.  I’ve dealt with worse in my life.  If he lays a finger on me, I’m going straight to Linda McMahon since Vince is an asshole.”

Slowly rising to his feet, John ignored the pain that racked his body and turned her around, hugging her gently, whispering in her ear, “It’s not fine.  He had no right to lay a hand on you.”

Jalise wrapped her arms around his body, burying her face in the crook of his neck and sniffled a little, needing the comfort right now. “I know he didn’t.” She whispered softly and looked up into John’s concerned filled blue eyes, sighing heavily, and guided him back to the bed. “You need to lay down. You’re in a lot of pain right now.” Her voice was soft and soothing as she walked into the kitchen to get some ice, putting some in a towel, and handed it to him. “Lay down and put this over your forehead.”

John did as instructed, though he propped himself up on his elbow to stare at her. “I don’t want to be a bother to you, Jalise.” He whispered, not really wanting to leave, but not wanting to burden her with his ass either. “Give me a second so this dizzy spell passes and I’ll go to my room.” He didn’t want her to feel uncomfortable or put her out and it was clearly plain in his tone of voice.

Holding her hand up and pushing him back on the bed, Jalise shook her head and replied, “You’re staying here so I can keep an eye on you.  If you get worse, you’re going to the damned hospital and don’t even argue with me, John.” Her voice was defiant and final, running a hand through her hair and placed her hands on her hips, daring him to fight her on this.

Not having the strength to fight or argue with her, even if he wanted to, John simply lay on the bed.  He was tired of fighting her.  He just rested his head back, closing his eyes. “Yes doc.” He murmured again, trying not to smile. “And no hospital either.”

“Fine, but you’re staying here for the night so I can make sure you don’t fall into unconsciousness.” She replied in agreement and walked over to him, sitting on the edge of the bed, scooting back to sit beside him on the bed.  Guilt washed over her as she watched how much pain he was in and shook her head, knowing she’d have to talk to Steve about this, and maybe strike a deal of her own.

“Hmmm the concussion bit.” He groaned, realizing she wasn’t going to let him sleep, though that was all he wanted to do.  He moved himself so he was leaning back against the headboard and just stared at her. “What’s going through your mind?” John asked softly.

“This whole situation between us and Steve.” Jalise answered honestly with a sigh and raked a hand through her hair. “I really hate it, John.  Steve was so sweet and kind to me, but then as soon as that kiss happened between us and I told him about it, he snapped.  I just don’t know what to do anymore.” Tears swelled in her eyes as she looked up at him, the condition he was in, and stroked his arm with her hand gently. “You’re hurt because of me too, which sucks even more.”

John took her hand in his, gently running his thumb across her palm. “I’m hurt because Steve has some serious anger issues.  It’s not your fault.” He assured her softly, turning his head so he could look at her, heart breaking at the pain in her eyes. “Well figure something out, J together, alright?”

“No, I’ll deal with this.  You just focus on healing and beating his ass in that match in a month.” She stated, patting his hand reassuringly, and sighed before tearing her eyes away from his.  She wished there was something else they could do, but also knew, they’d have to bide their time.

Sighing, John lost himself in thought, trying to stay awake, but it wasn’t happening. “Maybe I can talk to Vince…” He started rambling. “If I lose, I lose my job…” He murmured thoughtfully, staring off into space. “Maybe if I just forfeit now, Vince will revoke that contract and turn you loose…” He yawned, eyes starting to droop, and finally fell asleep.

Jalise felt her eyes widen at John’s words and when he fell asleep, she immediately stood up from the bed.  She whipped her cell phone open, dialing Steve’s number.  There was no way she was going to put John’s career on the line, allow him to do it for her, and felt the tears sting her eyes.  Jalise couldn’t believe what she was about to do, but also knew, there was no other choice.

“Answer fucker…” She muttered under her breath as it rang a third time, and stepped outside on the balcony since it’d stopped raining.

“WHAT?!?!” Came Steve’s sober but obviously very angry voice as he answered his cell.

“Hello Stevie baby, did I wake you?” She asked in an annoying baby voice, walking out to stand on her veranda, and laughed when he started cursing at her over the phone. “Wow temper, temper and here I thought you actually WANTED to hear from me.” She rolled her eyes, feeling like tearing the man’s heart out of his chest.

“I don’t want to HEAR ya, honey.  I’m wantin’ somethin’ else.” He shot back, sitting up on his hotel bed, and scrubbed his face with his hand. “So, what’re ya callin’ for, Jalise?  Not for just a little chitchat.” He knew better.

“You know me well, Stevie.” She replied, knowing he HATED being called that, and was planning on calling him that from now on just to piss him off. “I know about the stipulations that John went to Vince about and I want to put my own spin on it.  Instead of putting John’s career on the line, why don’t we raise the stakes even more?”

Steve growled, wondering what she was getting at, and slowly stood from the bed. “Really, honey?  Now what kinda stakes are we talkin’ here, hmm?  I kind of like things the way they’re set up now.  It’s pretty much a win-win deal fer me. I get ya fer a month regardless.” He reminded her, a cocky grin on his face.

“I’m sure you’ll like this stipulation A LOT more, Stevie.” She smirked when he started growling in her ear and started to laugh. “I’m sorry, does that offend you, Stevie?” Jalise asked innocently, raking a hand through her hair, and leaned further against the balcony railing.

“Woman, ya got three seconds to interest me before I hang up.” Steve threatened, voice low and gruff with sleep and Jalise grinned, knowing she’d disturbed his rest.  That wasn’t the only thing she planned on disturbing either. “And if that happens, I’m going to be VERY ill tempered tomorrow when I see ya.”

“Let me put it to you this way, Stevie.  You lay ONE finger on me and I’m going STRAIGHT to Linda McMahon and we BOTH know she can change her hubby’s mind in a split second, hmmm?” When Steve calmed down considerably over the phone, Jalise smirked as she looked at her nails, waving her fingers in the air. “Now then, as for my proposal, I will put MYSELF on the line in exchange for John’s career.  That means, whoever wins that match gets me.  The WHOLE package.  My body, my mind, my soul and heart.” Her voice dropped to a low, seductive tone as she said that last sentence. “Which we both know that’s what you want, correct?”

Steve frowned, walking over to the mini fridge to get himself a beer, buying himself some time.  He popped the top on it and took a long swallow, not believing what guts this woman had. “That’s pretty ballsy of ya, Jalise.” He finally said, voice cold and calculating. “Care that much for yer boy toy, do ya?”

“He’s not my boy toy, Stevie.  We haven’t slept together, but I do care enough about him not to allow his career to be ruined because of me.” Her voice was low and quiet, running her fingers along the railing of the veranda, and sighed. “I’m willing to put my faith and trust in him that he’ll kick your ass from here back to Texas where you fuckin’ belong or wherever the hell you live now.  You beat him, you get me.  The choice is yours, Stevie.” She laid the cards out on the table, put the ball in his court.  It was his decision on whether he gambled and ran with it.

He felt like punching this cocky bitch, but just chuckled instead. “I’ll think on it, Jalise.” He said after a few moments of silence, staring down at the palm of his hand, not surprised to find it bleeding from where he’d dug his fingernails in. “You’ll have my answer tomorrow night.”

“Good, I look forward to hearing it, Stevie, and just remember this, you lay ONE finger on me and I’m going straight to Linda.  You want to lay a finger on me?  You’ll take me up on this new deal.  If you really want me that badly, then you’ll beat John’s ass.” She made it sound so simple, along with her voice, though she felt the fear swelling inside of her body as she stared at her nails. “Oh and one more thing, I refuse to share a hotel room with you.”

Chuckling darkly once more, Steve shrugged his shoulders, not surprised by that comment. “Enjoy yer last night of freedom, Jalise.  Tomorrow, yer own personal hell starts.” With that said in a low chilling tone, Steve hung up, causing Jalise to tremble violently.

Snapping the lid of her cell phone shut, Jalise finally allowed the tears to fall down her face as she turned around and peered into the window.  John was out cold, sleeping on her bed, and knew he needed to rest. “This is the only way to protect him.” She whispered softly and walked back inside, deciding to sleep on the couch since she knew she’d be getting little to no sleep.  Steve’s words flowed through her mind over and over again, causing her to sigh as she tried not to let them phase him. “I’m not the only one who will be going through Hell.” Jalise whispered before turning on a movie and ended up falling into a restless slumber.

Chapter 17

John woke up near dawn, his head spinning and his ribs killing him.  He groaned softly and sat up, blinking back sleep as he looked around his surroundings, trying to adjust his eyesight.  He seen Jalise sleeping fitfully on the couch and slowly slid out of bed, walking over to her.  Wincing, he gently lifted her in his arms and carried her over to the bed, laying her down, pulling the blankets over her.  He sank back down, suddenly exhausted from just that one simple act, and allowed the sleep to succumb him once more.

Jalise sighed heavily as she slowly opened her eyes. John moving her had disturbed her rest and seen how exhausted he was just from lifting her up. “Lay back down, John.  I’m going to call Linda and have her give you the month off to heal.” She whispered and did just that, smiling when Vince’s wife more than obliged her request, especially after finding out the heinous assault Steve had inflicted on him.  The clock struck six A.M. and the cold harsh reality crashed on her, knowing that was the final act of personal assistant duty she’d be doing for John.  Sighing heavily, Jalise snuggled back down in bed, her arm draped over his stomach and tried to get a few more hours of sleep.

Wrapping an arm around her, John sighed contentedly, the pain the last thing on his mind right now.  He just enjoyed feeling her laying on top of him this way. “I love you, J…” He murmured before falling asleep fully, never letting her go.

Hearing those words, Jalise opened her eyes and stared over at him, pressing her forehead lightly against his, silently letting tears spilled down her cheeks.  She stroked the side of his face, wishing she’d never laid eyes on Steve, and hoped John won the match with Steve.  She wasn’t going to tell him the stipulation, not yet anyway, and snuggled closer to him as she whispered back, “I love you too, John.” Sleep engulfed her body as she held him close to her, hoping she made the right decision.

~*~*~*~

Steve was waiting outside for Jalise, his poker face on, waiting in the shadows under a ledge.  His blue eyes narrowed when he seen her park, smirking when he seen no trace of John with her. “Smart move.” He muttered under his breath and decided to make his presence known.

Slowly stepping out of her car, Jalise was wearing a pair of black dress pants with a red turtleneck shirt that was long sleeved.  Not showing off any amount of skin to Steve unless she absolutely had to, Jalise sighed heavily.  She pulled out her briefcase from the backseat of her car and turned around, running a hand through her hair, and headed inside.  John was off for a full month, unbeknownst to Steve, so he could fully heal for their match.  Jalise wondered if he’d thought over her new stipulation and hoped he took it since she’d already drawn up the contract with Linda earlier in the day.

Stepping out of the shadows, like a thief in the night, Steve blocked her way from entering. “Where’s the boyfriend?” He demanded, eyes taking in her outfit, smirking slightly. “Love the look, honey.  It makes the imagination work overtime.”

Sighing exasperatedly, Jalise rolled her eyes as she crossed her arms in front of her chest. “He’s not my boyfriend, Stevie, and it’s none of your business where he is.  You won’t see him until the night of your match either, thanks to Linda McMahon.” She smirked as the fire of rage built in his blue eyes and sighed in boredom.

“So ya got’em a month off, huh?  Bet he LOVED that.” Steve held the door open for her, secretly wanting to ring her neck for getting John a month off to heal. “Shall we then, honey?  I know you must be…desperate to jump on it.  Yer work I mean.” He added with a cocky smirk.

Glaring back at him, Jalise walked past him and down the hallway of the arena, sighing, and finally arrived in his dressing room.  She walked in, seeing the table, and couch, and sat down at the table as she started getting to work.  She completely ignored him as she raked a hand through her hair, spilling down her shoulders and back, and shined against the lighting above. ‘I’m going to make him so busy, he won’t have the energy to fuck with me.’ She thought with a smirk of her own and got started with his schedule.

Steve walked over to peer behind her shoulder, inhaling her intoxicating scent, and breathed in deeply. “Mmm you smell good, honey.” He purred, not caring that he was pissing her off. “I love it when you pretty yerself up.” He smirked, watching her fingers tighten around the pen she was holding.

Taking a few deep breaths to calm down, Jalise smirked as she shrugged her shoulders absentmindedly and replied as if she’d never heard him, “You have three signings tomorrow.  One at one, another at three, and the last one is at five.  Each are two hours apart so you don’t have any breaks.” Jalise continued working, though the hair was standing up on the back of her neck, trying not to let him see how much he was ticking her off.

Shrugging, Steve moved his head so their cheeks were almost touching but not quite, and drawled suggestively, “That’s fine, honey.  Ya goin’ to be there afterwards to help me work the kinks out?”

“No.” She simply replied, standing up from the table and stapled the papers together before handing them to him, a smile on her lips, though hatred was tearing through her eyes. “Here, your first week’s schedule is finished and you can work the kinks out yourself.  I’m not here for your PERSONAL needs, so get your head on the right track, Stevie.” Jalise crossed her arms in front of her chest and raked a hand through her hair, sighing. “If you have a problem with it, go to Vince.  It’s not my problem.  I only make the schedule.  Nothing more, nothing less.”

“Wrong honey.  Yer here fer more then just the paperwork.  You’ll hold my fuckin’ jockstrap if I want ya too.  Got it?” His nostrils flared, blue eyes growing cold instantly. “As fer Vince, you’d best remember he’s the one who handed yer scrawny ass over to me.”

Smirking back at him, Jalise raised an eyebrow up at him as she sighed, looking bored. “Stevie, you seem to forget that I don’t give a damn what YOU want.  Vince hired me and Vince can fire me, not you.  So why don’t you stop with this macho shit and grow the fuck up?” She then walked away from him and over to the couch, sitting down on it and crossed her arms in front of her chest with an attitude, staring defiantly up at him.

Steve shook his head, grinning, seeming unperturbed by her fiery attitude. “Just remember, honey, there’s more than one way to skin a cat.” He winked at her before stepping out of the room, locking the door behind him in the process.

As soon as he left, Jalise allowed the tears to spill down her cheeks, not believing how drastic her life had changed and wished she was in John’s arms.  She sighed heavily, wiping her tears away, and walked into the bathroom.  The first thing she did was wash her make up off and then tousled her hair, making herself as less attractive as possible.  She then walked back out to sit down, making sure no reminiscence of crying was shown.

“Fuckin’ asshole.” She muttered under her breath.

Steve came back with two bottles of water, not wanting her to go thirsty, though in his eyes, he was being too considerate. “Can’t have ya runnin’ off.” He winked at her as he entered, tossing her a bottle. “Nice hair, honey.  Have a quickie with yerself while I was gone?  I would’ve lent a hand, Jalise.” He smirked, dropping down onto the couch.

“I get more pleasure by doing it by myself, Stevie.” She retorted swiftly and stood up from the couch, walking over, sitting back down at the table.  She took the bottled water he’d thrown at her and tossed it against the wall. “I’ll get my OWN water if I want one, not the one you give me.  I’m not someone you can keep against your will, Stevie, remember that too.  When my work is done, I leave, whether you like it or not.” Looking down at the paper work, Jalise continued, wanting to finish.

Grinning, Steve walked over to his duffel bag and pulled out a stack of paperwork, placing it on the table. “That should keep ya busy for awhile, honey.” That cocky smirk was on his lips at the expression that’d came over her face. “Best get busy, Jalise.  I don’t like lazy PA’s.”

It took nearly three hours before she finally finished, stapling it altogether and left it on the table as she stood up, stretching her sore limbs.  It was time for her to leave finally and she couldn’t wait.  She walked toward the door, but stopped and turned around, crossing her arms in front of her chest, walking back over to stand above him.

“Have you made a decision about my proposition, Stevie?” She asked cockily and tapped her foot impatiently on the ground while holding her briefcase in her hand. “I would like to know before I leave for the night.”

Steve was changing his clothes, having done nothing more than a promo.  He just liked tormenting her by keeping her there with him. “I’ve thought about it some.” He answered casually, stroking his goatee in thought. “Why?  Ya eager fer an answer?”

“You told me you’d give me an answer tonight.  It’s arrived and I’m getting ready to leave, Stevie.” She sighed exasperatedly as she ran a hand down her face and shook her head, wanting to be back in John’s arms at that moment. “Isn’t that what this is all about?  You having control over me?  You can have that…if you beat John in the match.  I won’t fight you ever again if you win that match.” She shrugged as if it didn’t bother her a bit. “Then again, maybe you’re not MAN enough to handle a woman like me.”

Smirking, Steve allowed his eyes to roam over her body blatantly. “Honey, I’ve already proven I’m man enough to handle ya…several times in fact.” He licked his lips hungrily, already feeling his body light on fire for her. “As fer beatin’ Cena, that’s not a problem.” He stroked his chin for a minute longer, eyeing her shrewdly, and knew he had nothing to lose. “Fine, ya got yerself a deal.”

Not saying a word to him, Jalise drew out some papers from her briefcase and walked over to the table, handing him a pen. “I want it in writing.  This is a contract, read it over, I’ll wait.” She ordered, crossing her arms in front of her chest once more, staring at him with narrowed eyes, and watched as his blue eyes scanned the words briefly.  That’s exactly what she wanted and knew he’d be dumb enough not to read it entirely. “It says what I stated last night.  Instead of John’s career on the line, it’s me.  Whoever wins, gets me.  John already knows about it and he’s going to sign tonight.” She lied partially, knowing Steve wouldn’t second guess it.  Truth be told, she hadn’t told John about this yet and had the contract drawn up with Linda before going to the arena that night.  Besides, Steve was too full of himself to actually think on it anyway.

Steve finally scrawled his name on the dotted line and tossed it back at her. “Tell yer boy toy I’ll see his ass in the ring. He’d better hope he’s back to par because if he ain’t…” He trailed off, shrugged before walking over to the door and opening it, leaving her with her thoughts. “Yer temporary freedom awaits, Jalise.”

Smirking back at him as she held the contract against her chest, Jalise blew a kiss at him. “Don’t worry, he will be ready and he’ll make you pay for what you’ve done to me.” She promised darkly, eyes shooting fire of hatred back at him. “Have a horrible evening, STEVIE.” Jalise emphasized his name before walking down the hallway, hoping John didn’t hate her after it was all said and done.

Watching her walk away, Steve shook his head, chuckling darkly to himself. “This is far from over, honey.” He sneered, following her at a slower pace.

Getting in her car, Jalise gripped the steering wheel tightly in her hands, before driving back to the hotel.  She took the back staircase once she arrived, not sure if Steve was following her.  She’d took a few extra trips to make sure she’d lost him if he was.  Stepping inside her hotel room, Jalise sighed when she seen John sleeping on the bed and walked over to him.  Sitting down, Jalise stroked his face with the back of her hand, and felt the tears prick her eyes before walking away from him and into the bathroom.

John’s eyes opened upon feeling her touch after she pulled her hand away.  He slid out of bed and padded his way over to the bathroom, knocking lightly on the door. “J, you alright?” He called out through it quietly, not wanting to startle her.

Not hearing him, Jalise took a shower, wanting to get Steve’s touch off of her and scrubbed her cheek to the point where a few layers of skin came off.  She sighed and finally stepped out an hour later, walking over to retrieve her towel.  Wrapping it around her body, tucking in between her breasts, Jalise brushed her teeth before walking out, seeing John sitting on the couch.  

She smiled at him softly and asked, “Hey, how are you feeling?” She didn’t wait for him to answer and ventured over to her bag, pulling out a nightgown with a pair of bra and panties to change into.

“Better.” John said, his voice just as soft as hers. “How’d tonight go?” He tried not to stare at her beautiful body.  Instead, he adverted his gaze to the floor and rubbed his hands together nervously. “Did he give you any problems?”

“Yeah, but nothing I couldn’t handle.” She replied nonchalantly, knowing she’d have to tell him about the stipulation, and sighed heavily as she walked over to sit next to him. “We need to talk.” Jalise whispered softly, raking a hand through her hair and stared up into his crystalline colored eyes, tears shining in her own.

Nodding, John took her hand in his, entwining their fingers together and asked with concern in his eyes, “What’s wrong, J?” A sick, sinking feeling became to form in his stomach, but John maintained his composure and waited for her to continue.

Chapter 18

“I gave Steve a new proposition.” She softly started, running a hand through her hair with her free hand, and squeezed his other one.  Jalise paused, clearing her throat, and allowed that to sink into his mind.

John arched an eyebrow at her, staring into her eyes, and squeezed her hand back gently.” What’s the new proposition, J?” He asked, almost afraid to hear the answer, and knew it wasn’t going to be something he liked or approved of.

Standing up from the couch and walking over to the sliding glass door, Jalise rubbed the back of her neck and took a deep, shaky breath. “I told him that instead of putting your career on the line in the match that the winner would…get me.” She whispered out those last two words and dropped her head forward, clutching the towel against her body tighter.

His jaw literally hit the floor as John stared at her in shock, not believing what he just heard.  He got up and made his way to her quicker then he should’ve. “What?  Why Jalise?  Why would you do that?” He demanded, sounding both frantic and upset at the same time.  John wanted to ring her neck and take her in his arms to comfort her for what she’d done.

Whipping around with tears burning in her eyes, Jalise brought her hand up and caressed his face with the back of her hand. “I’m not going to allow you to ruin your career because of me, John.  This way, if you win, I’m set free for life and you get me.  I know you’ll allow me to make my own decisions, to live my own life, but if you lose, this way, at least you get to keep one thing in this business and that’s your career.  I’d rather give myself to Steve then have you lose the job you love.”

“Jalise, either way, I would’ve won.” John explained, heart breaking at her words. “If Steve won, I’d lose my job.  Oh well, but he WOULDN’T have gotten your contract. If I won, I would’ve retained it.” He hung his head, sighing. “Is this new one already set in motion?”

“Yes.” She whispered out softly and walked over, pulling out the contract, handing it to him. “I need your signature on it to make it official. If you don’t sign this, John, I’ll never forgive you for it.” She threatened, voice low and serious as she clicked the pen out and handed it to him. “Sign it or I’ll go to Steve willingly so you don’t have to have this match at all.  I’ll do it, don’t think I won’t, John.”

“Jalise, no.” John whispered, staring at her in disbelief, letting her see she was breaking his heart by forcing him to go along with this. “Trust in me, J.  I’m not going to let him do this, to either of us.  I can’t sign that.”

“Then I’m going to him willingly.” Jalise informed him and turned around, slipping the towel from her body, before putting the undergarments and nightgown on along with a robe. “I’ll call him and let him know the match is off and that he has my full contract and me, period.” She added, her own heart breaking, and walked over to the bed as she flipped open her cell phone.

John walked over to her, taking the cell from her hand, and closed it.  Sighing, he went back to the table and picked up the pen.  Without bothering to read the contract, he signed his name regretfully.  Afterwards, he sank down on the couch, burying his face in his hands, and knew he’d just made a huge mistake.  Why couldn’t she allow him to protect her just this once?

Jalise walked over to the table, picking up the contract, and nodded when she seen his signature. She walked over and placed it in her bag before sitting on the couch beside him. “Thank you.” She softly whispered, barely audible and touched his arm, sighing when he pulled it away from her.  She didn’t blame him, but this was the only way to protect him and his career.

John couldn’t even look at her.  He was too disgusted with the whole situation.  Finally, he stood up, gazing down at her.

“No…don’t thank me, J.” He said finally. “What kind of man am I?  You don’t even trust me to take care of you.” He shook his head, walking over to stare out the glass door, his posture showing his defeat and hurt.

“It’s not your responsibility to protect me!” She shouted at him in frustration, her own emotions overflowing, and raked a hand through her hair.  How many times do I have to tell you that, John?  It’s not YOUR responsibility to protect me and I refuse to allow you to give up your dream job because of me!!  I can handle myself, I’m an adult, a grown woman!  Do you understand me?”

Turning around, John’s eyes strayed to her bag where the contract lay, and stated while they bored into her own orbs intensely, “Yeah J, I understand you.  And it’s not YOUR responsibility to protect me.  What happens to my career, whether I lose it or not, is MY decision.  You forced my hand tonight…” He accused heartbrokenly.

Crossing her arms defiantly in front of her chest, Jalise glared back at him as her eyes lit up with rage. “You bastard!  I can’t believe you!  You made this stupid match because of ME in the first place, which was you trying to protect me AGAIN!  I changed it.  Deal with it or don’t do the match.  I can handle Steve, I’ve handled him pretty well so far, and I’m sure I can continue to do it.  Just STOP protecting me goddamn it!  I can take care of MYSELF!”

“You handled him well so far?  You count getting RAPED as handling him well?” John shot back angrily, his own Italian temper flaring. “I made the match because I don’t want to see you hurt, J!  Damn woman, are you that stubborn?  Say what you want, Steve isn’t going to play by the damn rules and we both know it!”

“I know he’s not!  I’m not that stupid, John!  I know he’s going to try every trick in the book, but this way, if you lose, it comes back on me, where it should be, not on you.  You’ll still have your career no matter what and that’s all I care about right now!  He raped me, but I allowed it to happen!  I fuckin’ allowed it to happen because I was too exhausted emotionally and physically to fight him off!” Jalise yelled, voice cracking in several places, close to the breaking point as the tears blurred her vision.

“Exhausted emotionally and physically, J, he fucking took advantage of you and if you tried to fight him, he probably would’ve done worse!” John crossed the room to her, taking her arms in his hands, not believing how stubborn she was. “Why can’t you ever let me do what I feel is right?” He whispered, staring down at her intensely. “We really gotta decide who’s wearing the pants…”

“Wearing the pants??” She echoed, raising an eyebrow up at him in confusion. “Wow, I didn’t know we were together.  Did I miss the memo or something?” It was her sarcastic nature coming out as she shook her head, not believing how he was reacting to this. “Bottom line is this, I refuse to allow you to put YOUR career on the line for me.  I can handle myself, which is why I have faith that you’ll win.”

“Whether you like it or not, J, we both have a relationship.  At least a professional one.” John said softly, the anger no longer in his eyes. “I’m learning not to argue with you, happy?  You’re too damned stubborn.” He sighed heavily, shaking his head back at her, and stepped away.

“Good, then you won’t be mad at me for making this PROFESSIONAL decision.” She responded simply and walked away from him toward the bar.  After the night she had from both Steve and John, Jalise desperately needed a drink and downed her first shot in one gulp.  She groaned when her cell phone rang and sighed, walking over to answer it.  Steve Williams flashed across her caller ID as she pressed her finger to her lips in a gesture to silence John from speaking. “Hello?” She answered, sounding both mentally and physically exhausted.

“Hello honey, how’re ya enjoyin’ yer night?” Came Steve’s cold voice.

“Just fine, Stevie, and you?” She replied sarcastically, downing another shot of Tequila Rose and sighed heavily, rolling her eyes. “What do you want, Williams?  I’m trying to RELAX and forget your existence if you don’t mind.” Her voice was filled with agitation.

“Keep on dreamin’, honey.  You’ll never forget about me and we both know it.” Steve stated confidently, chuckling darkly in her ear. “So…are ya enjoyin’ yer quality time alone or do ya have…company?” His tone grew dangerous with that last word.

“Jealousy is an ugly thing, Stevie, but I’ll humor you. I have company and what a shocker, it’s NOT you!” She exclaimed, sounding almost amused as she winked over at John, before walking over and sitting on the bed. “Makes you crazy to know you can’t find me, don’t it?” Jalise taunted, twirling her hair around her finger, sighing in mock distraught.  

John just shook his head back at her, knowing she was playing a dangerous game.

“I’ve already had it, several times.” Steve replied. “And you just loved it…That beautiful pussy of yers was always soakin’ wet before I even got too far.  Yer a little slut aren’t ya, baby?  Tell me, does John fuck that cunt of yers the way I do Jalise, hmmm?  I bet not…I bet that little snot hasn’t even made it past kissing those beautiful cock suckin’ lips of yours.” He loved taunting her, loved causing her emotional pain.

“How many times must I tell you, Stevie.  I’m not fucking John, though now that you mentioned it…” Her words trailed off, suddenly sounding intrigued, and cried out in mock pleasure as an idea swept over her that was too good to ignore.  Jalise was making it sound like John was actually screwing her while she was on the phone with him. “Mmm he does feel MUCH bigger than you.”

John felt his eyes widen as he sank down on the bed, shaking his head, and tried not to grin or laugh.

She sure was a ball of fire.

“I bet he does.” Steve replied through gritted teeth, sounding angry. “Enjoy it, Jalise.  I’m plannin’ on beatin’ that little boy down so bad, he’ll never be able to fuckin’ wrestle again and it’ll be all on that pretty little head of yers.  How’s that sound?”

Running her fingers through her hair, Jalise sounded bored as she stared down at her nails, moaning a little over the phone for added effect. “John can hold his own, BELIEVE ME, Stevie.  He’ll win and then I’ll be ALL his.  Mind, heart, soul and BODY.  He’ll get to fuck me any day of the week, any time he chooses.  I will be his permanently.  How does THAT sound, baby cakes?” She taunted him right back, emphasizing a few words while speaking to him.  If he wanted to play that game, she was all for it.

“He can hold his own, huh?  Then how it is I keep beatin’ his ass every time we run into each other?” Steve retorted, smirking, and cracked open a beer. “I know ya got him the rest of the month off too, honey.  Hope he enjoys that.  Ten to one the knowledge that ya think he can’t beat me, that ya had to step in and offer yerself as bait is drivin’ him nuts.  Most men don’t appreciate a woman steppin’ in and makin’ them lose face.”

Smirking wickedly as she peered over at John, Jalise put the speaker phone on her cell as she cleared her throat. “Mmm Johnny baby?  Do you mind me putting myself on the line in the match up between you and this cocksucker on the phone?” She moaned for more effect and winked over at him, hoping he’d play along, a wicked gleam in her midnight blue eyes. “Tell Stevie exactly WHAT you…” Her words trailed off as she moaned out John’s name before continuing. “Plan on doing to him…” She paused again, moaning even louder than before. “In that match…”

John shook his head, getting up and walking over to wrap his arms around her, his own eyes twinkling even though he knew this was probably going to bite them in the ass. “Baby, why waste time describing…” He trailed off and growled from low in the back of his throat. “Fuck yes!  Mmm J you feel awesome…” John smirked as he kissed her neck before continuing this game. “Why waste time describing his beat down?  He knows he-Just like that, J, fuck you’re tight-he’s going to get his ass handed to him and we have more…” He moaned as he trailed off again, his blue eyes never leaving hers. “Important things to do right now, like changing positions…”

“YOU FUCKING COCK SUCKING LITTLE WHORE!” Steve exploded, crushing the beer can in his hand, not caring if it spilled all over him.

Jalise couldn’t help, but start giggling as they quickly faded to soft moans, making it sound like she was truly getting fucked from behind. “Oh John! Oh yes right there! Steve could NEVER hit that spot!” She cried out and started jumping up and down on the bed for added effect since the phone was on speaker, letting him hear every single thing that as happening, or wasn’t. “Mmm Stevie, do you mind if I call ya back? I’m kinda in the middle of somethin’ here with this new position…” Her voice grew husky and seductive, watching John’s face as it turned beat red, and knew he was trying so hard not to laugh.

Steve hung up, not able to listen anymore, and shouted out a string of threats and curses. “FUCKING BITCH!”

As soon as Jalise snapped the lid of her cell phone shut, John burst out laughing, laughing so hard tears streamed down his face. “You’re out of your mind, J!” He gasped, touching his forehead to his knees, trying to stop laughing because it was killing his ribs. “Oh my God…I’d PAY to see the expression on his face right now…”

Jalise was grinning from ear to ear as she flipped the lid of her cell phone shut and set it on the night stand.  She honestly could care less what Steve thought right now, knowing he was going to believe what he wanted and that was it.  She smirked as she watched John laughing his ass off, proud of her handy work, and placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Thanks for helping me out with that. It’s about time he got a taste of his own medicine for once.”

Chapter 19

Jalise was all smiles as she stepped out of her rental car, wearing a pair of black dress pants with a baby blue short sleeved dress shirt that was V shaped in the neckline.  She reached into the back, retrieving her briefcase and headed inside the arena, her two inch heels clicking against the concrete flooring of the building.  Even though it was only a house show, Jalise needed to be there as she walked down the hallway, her long, black hair flowing down her back in bouncing curls.  She decided if she was going to drive Steve to the point of insanity, she’d might as well do it right as she stepped inside his dressing room.

Steve was wrapping up his knees as Jalise grinned and greeted him in a cheerful voice, “Honey, I’m home!”

Steve didn’t even look up at her, too focused on what he was doing at the moment. “Well honey, good for ya.  Why are ya here?” He asked, sounding suspicious, and knew she’d most likely avoid him whenever possible.

“I AM your PA, Stevie.  I have to be here for house shows, RAW and pay-per-views, silly.” She was annoyingly cheerful as she walked over to the table and sat down, whistling happily and opened her briefcase, pulling out the paperwork she had to get done that night.

Grunting, trying to figure out what sort of game she was playing, Steve finally stood and adjusted his black trunks before asking in a double meaning, “So Jalise, what’s on the agenda?”

“Let’s see…” She picked up the paper and skimmed it briefly, smirking as she smiled up at him, her midnight blue eyes gleaming wickedly. “You have three autograph sessions tomorrow and a match obviously tonight.  Ummmm…” Pausing again, Jalise knew she was annoying the shit out of him and loved every second of it. “After tomorrow, you have another three autograph sessions, right in a row, and then you have a day off.” She was acting as if all was right with the world as she ran a hand through her black hair and crossed her legs, going over more of the paperwork.

“Another three autograph sessions?  You gotta be fuckin’ with me!  I had three earlier!” Steve shouted, scattering papers everywhere as he swiped them off her desk. “Change it!”

“I’m sorry, Stevie, but that’s not my call.” Jalise replied sweetly back at him, batting her eyelashes, and crossed her arms in front of her chest. “If you have a problem with it, go see Vince, your best buddy.” She still had that same sweet, annoying tone to her voice and sighed, looking down at the mess he made. “See, now look what you’ve done.” She chastised and shook her head before bending down to pick them up.

Steve smirked, tilting his head to enjoy the view she was giving him at the moment. “J, honey, why don’t ya bend down just a little bit further?” He suggested in his own syrupy, sweet tone, blue eyes lighting up wickedly.

“You’d like that wouldn’t you?” She replied in a seductive tone of hers, knowing if he laid one finger on her that the contract was void and the match stipulations were thrown.  Basically, he’d be forfeiting the match if laid one finger on her.  She slowly stood up and sat back down at the table, going over the papers again and put them in her briefcase, only bringing one out at a time. “So yeah, six autograph sessions, I hope your fingers fall off.” Jalise stated sweetly, a smile plastered on her lips, and sighed in contentment.  This was too easy and Jalise was actually enjoying annoying the Texas Rattlesnake.

“My fingers aren’t gonna fall off, honey.  Don’t worry yer sweet little head bout that.” Steve shot back, refusing to let her goad or contradict him. “They’ll be just fine and dandy.  Ready to stroke that sweet spot…” He looked down at her pointedly, an obvious reference to their tryst in the bathtub, the last time they were together consensually.

“Speaking of that sweet spot, I have to tell you, last night was AMAZING.” She crowed, running a hand through her hair and felt herself do a full body shiver.  Her and John shared a sweet, delicious kiss after making Steve believe they were screwing each other’s brains out, but nothing more.  Steve didn’t have to know that little factor though as she smiled innocently up at him. “I’m TRULY sorry I had to end our phone conversation so…suddenly last night, Stevie, but I had more…IMPORTANT things to do at the moment.” Sighing dreamily and thinking about John, Jalise wondered what it would really be like to make love to the man.

Steve just shrugged, though the tic in his jaw suggested he was really close to decking her at this point. “I’m gonna go get a bottle of water.” He announced with a grunt, storming out of his locker room abruptly.  As soon as the door shut, he began wailing on the first man who walked by, cursing loudly, loud enough for her to hear it.

Jalise couldn’t help but start laughing, feeling sorry for the poor soul who got in Steve’s way, and shook her head.  She licked her thumb and started going through the paperwork, happy that she’d gotten underneath Steve’s skin so easily and knew he was close to losing that temper of it.  She wanted it.  

She was BEGGING for it and hoped it happened before the match came up between him and John.  He didn’t even lock the door to the dressing room she’d observed.  Must’ve trusted her a little, but Jalise didn’t care as she giggled softly to herself, knowing she was winning with war with the Texas Rattlesnake.

Steve took his time getting his water after beating the snot out of the poor person, knowing he needed to calm down before he did something stupid, like knock Jalise down a peg or two.  Finally, he walked back into the locker room, his body covered in a fine sheen of sweat.  Though, he was now reasonably calm.  He watched her sitting at the table, doing the paperwork, and couldn’t believe she’d actually had the balls to talk about what happened between her and John.  The girl had guts and a fiery attitude, he’d give her that, but after the match, he was going to make sure he put that fire out of her for good.

“Did you have a nice time?” She asked cheerfully, that serene smile on her lips, and her midnight blue eyes gleamed up at him mischievously.  She tapped the tip of the pen on the table, sighing and looked up at the clock, taking a break from doing the rest of his schedule.  To be honest, she was having fun tormenting Steve this way and knew if she got under his skin enough, he’d end up making a mistake.  A few mistakes in the match between him and John was all she needed to ensure victory.

“It was fuckin’ great.” He muttered in response, beginning to warm up, and stared straight ahead of him. “I just imagined it was Cena’s scrawny ass I was beatin’…” He smirked viciously, knowing that would get under her skin.

Jalise simply laughed at that as she ran a hand through her hair, acting nonchalant, and stood up as she placed her hands on her hips. “I can’t wait to see John beat the living shit out of you and end your career.” Her voice dripped with serious, yet wicked intentions at the same time, never allowing that serene smile to leave her lips. “I mean, after all, he IS a young stud muffin.” She crowed, giggling, and leaned against the wall. “I’m sure an old man like you, with your neck problems and what not, won’t stand a chance against the champ.”

Steve just looked at her, his smile broadening. “I’m not the one with the injuries right now, honey…It’s Cena.” He pointed out and started laughing, sounding thoroughly evil as a brilliant idea came to mind. “Yer a gem, Jalise.” He complimented, winking at her, and suddenly looked cheerful instead of brooding.

“And you’re a prick, but we already knew that.” She replied sweetly, crossing her arms in front of her chest, and stared at her nails. “He’s not as injured as you may think.  I mean after all, if he was REALLY injured, he wouldn’t have satisfied all my needs last night, Stevie.” Her voice dropped to that seductive tone once more and ran her hands down her body in a sexual fashion for emphasis. “Every.  Single.  One.”

Glancing up at the clock, Steve’s grin never left his face as he headed for the door of his dressing room. “Well honey, I sincerely hope ya enjoyed it ‘cause somethin’ tells me…he’s not gonna be in such obvious great shape for too much longer.” He retorted, chuckling again before walking out, the door shutting ominously behind him.

Hearing that, Jalise sighed heavily, knowing he was just trying to scare her.  She instantly packed up her things, making sure the hotel put her under a false name, grinning as she walked out of his dressing room.  They were in Phoenix, Arizona, having driven there that morning, her and John of course.  He’d decided to stay on the road with her, but promised to stay in the hotel room, knowing if Steve caught a glimpse of him, there would be hell to pay.  Jalise headed for her car and suddenly that same wicked, evil voice sounded behind her.

She turned around, plastered that serene smile on her lips again, and commented, “Wow, so now you’re a stalker?  Very impressive, Stevie.”

“Don’t ya wish.” He replied in a retort, wearing a pair of tight blue jean shorts with a black beater that had a smoking skull on the back and the word What? on the front. “My match was cancelled.  Apparently, my opponent was the same guy I sent packin’ to the hospital.” He shrugged, not bothered by what he’d done to the guy who’d gotten in his way. “Need a ride, honey?” He leered, offering more then just a car ride, though he didn’t say it.

“Nope, I got my own ride, see?” Jalise replied, gesturing toward her rental car, and crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Besides, I wouldn’t take a car ride from you if you were the last person on earth.  I’d walk.” She smiled at him, holding her briefcase, and placed her hands on her hips. “So, should I expect another threatening phone call tonight?” Her eyes rolled, no fear shining in them, and actually sounded bored with the question.

“Nope.  YOU shouldn’t expect anythin’ from me.” Steve winked at her, before slinging his own bag over his shoulder and walked off toward his own truck, whistling cheerfully.

Sliding inside her car, Jalise drove back to the hotel, knowing Steve was following her, and decided to take a different approach with this.  She took the back roads, making it seem like she was staying at a different hotel, making Steve believe she was going to be alone.  She’d rented one prior to going to the arena, already having this planned and as soon as she saw Steve walk into the hotel, Jalise walked out the back door of it and took off in her awaiting rental car.  By the time Steve realized she’d tricked him, she’d already be at the hotel her and John were staying at, which caused her to smile widely.  After parking her car, Jalise quickly headed inside, arriving in her room a few minutes later, and smiled when she seen John sleeping peacefully.  Locking the door behind her, walking over, Jalise laid on the bed and ran her hand up and down his muscular chest.

“Hey blue eyes.” She whispered softly in his ear, happy that she was finally back with him again.

John slowly opened his eyes, doing a slow sweep of her as if taking inventory, wanting to make sure no harm was done and smiled when he found nothing. “Hey gorgeous.” He whispered, pulling her down to rest her head on his chest. “How’d it go tonight?”

Giggling softly, Jalise couldn’t answer as her cell phone began blaring, as if on cue and flipped it open, moaning out softly, “Mmm hello?” Her tone was a soft purr as she licked her lips and had to bite back laughter when she heard Steve’s angry voice on the other line.

“Think yer slick don’t ya, Jalise?” He demanded angrily, not believing the bitch had actually tricked him into thinking she was staying at the hotel he was at. “I know yer not fuckin’ stayin’ here, ya little bitch!  Are ya THAT scared of me, Jalise?”

“No, but I also know if you found out where my hotel room was, you’d find someway to break in and rape me.” She answered pointedly, sounding bored, and sighed exasperatedly. “This is getting so old, Stevie.  It really is.  Haven’t you decided to grow up yet or do you need me to change your damn diaper?”

Steve didn’t sound amused in the least. “Ya can’t rape the willin’, Jalise, ya should know that.  Hell, when I came in the other night, ya didn’t even fight.  Ya just laid there like the bitch ya are.” He smirked, knowing what he was saying was killing her inside, and loved how he could cause her emotional pain without even touching her physically. “Poor Jalise…” He mocked distraught. “All tired and exhausted, unable to defend herself that’s how tired she was.  Bullshit.  Make up some more excuses ‘cause ya know ya loved it, honey.”

Standing up from the bed, Jalise held the phone tightly in her hand and spat back dangerously, “Listen to me and listen good, Williams, it WON’T happen again.  Do you understand me?  I didn’t fight because I knew you would’ve made me regret it if I did.  I just laid there and let you take it because that’s the only thing I could come up with at the time, but let me tell you this: NOBODY has EVER made me cum as HARD or FAST as Johnny boy over here.  You THINK about that while you stew in your psychotic dream world and mind.”

“I think yer lyin’.” Steve shot back in a dangerous, almost sing song voice. “I think yer lyin’ through yer teeth and do ya know what happens to liars?  THEY GET THEIR LYIN’ TONGUES RIPPED OUT!”

“Oooo I’m so scared!  Someone save me from the Texas Rattlesnake!” She shouted mockingly in a damsel in distress voice and began to laugh out loud, staring at her nails again, and plopped down on the bed right beside John. “Oh my dear, Stevie, you have so much growing up to do.” She raised her eyebrow as he contradicted her, calling her a liar, challenging her and put him on speaking phone again. “Blue eyes, why don’t you tell Stevie exactly…What…We…Did…Last night?” She was raining kisses down his chest, pausing in between words, an evil grin on her face as she snuggled against him, moaning softly.

John shook his head, not believing she was doing this two nights in a row, but honestly didn’t mind. “I don’t know baby…” He inhaled sharply, deeply, smirking when Steve began to curse. “It might give his ancient ass a heart attack or something, you know-A little lower J, there you go, gorgeous-how old people are. Though, I will tell you Steve,” He paused, groaning out loud, sounding like he was having the most erotic moment in his life. “Jalise is…mind BLOWING.”

“Mmm you like that, baby?” She cooed up at him in a sultry purr, making it sound like she was giving John a blow job, and slowly pulled away as she put her mouth to the phone. “So, do ya still think I’m lying, Stevie?  I mean, you can think what you want, but I just had my protein shake for the night.”

Steve was literally seething with rage, his hotel room shambles since he’d ripped it to shreds.  Though, he’d managed to mostly not make TOO much noise over their little escapade he’d overheard. “I’M GONNA RIP YER FUCKIN’ HEART OUT, JALISE!” He finally bellowed into the phone, hands trembling with rage, already on his sixth beer, having been slamming them since he got inside the room. “YER A DEAD BITCH, YOU HEAR ME?  DEAD!”

“Temper, temper.” She cooed back at him, shaking her head in disappointment, and sighed softly. “My goodness, old man, you’d better lay down before you have a damn heart attack.” She advised, amusement obvious in her voice, and smirked wickedly. “Oh trust me when I say this, Stevie, you lay ONE finger on me and it’s over.  You’re such a dumbass, you know that?” Jalise laughed as she left him on speaker phone, loving to hear his rants and raves about how he was going to make her suffer and kill her.

Steve’s rants finally ended with an operator message that came over Jalise’s speaker phone, “We’re sorry, but the customer you’re trying to reach is…” The man had shattered his phone by hurling it against the nearest wall out of pure rage from what Jalise just did.

John stared up at her and shook his head as he whispered, “You’re something else.” His heart was racing, knowing all of this was only adding fuel to the fire of Steve’s anger, but in a way, he understood why Jalise was doing it.

“You should’ve seen me at the arena.” She retorted, giggling softly, and was proud of her handiwork. Jalise knew Steve had smashed his phone and shook her head, laughing harder and walked into the kitchen, pouring herself a shot.  She downed it before walking back into the bedroom part of the suite, shedding herself of her clothing, and let her hair cascade down her back and shoulders.  Climbing in the bed with John, Jalise was clad in only her blood red bra and panties as she purred against John’s ear, “Mmm I missed you…”

Chapter 20

The moment of truth finally arrived as John walked into the arena with Jalise, even though she was technically still Steve’s personal assistant, but he didn’t care honestly.  He held her hand firmly, face hardened, and was ready to tear this man’s head off for all he’d caused them.  John was in perfect condition again and had been bouncing off the walls for the entire week.  Trying to improve himself, trying to do whatever it took to get back into shape, not wanting to let her down.  He’d even went as far as requesting old wrestling tapes of Steve’s matches and watched them throughout the month he was off, familiarizing himself with the man’s in ring repertoire.

Jalise was a bundle of nerves as she looked down the hallway, on edge, and gripped John’s hand tighter.  Tonight was the night as she sighed, not believing over the past month, she hadn’t been able to trick Steve into striking her once.  It was almost as if he knew exactly what the contract held, even though he hadn’t read it.  Emotions were on high along with nerves as John lead her into his dressing room, which Jalise didn’t mind, though she knew she had to go to Steve’s.

“I’ll be back, handsome. I promise.” She whispered, kissing his lips softly, and cradled his face in her gentle hands.

John nodded, blue eyes hardening, not wanting to let her go.  He pulled her back when she started walking away and kissed her again, pouring all of his love into it, wishing she could stay with him. “I love you.” He whispered against her lips, staring into her beautiful eyes. “Be careful.” They both knew Steve had just been biding his time and was waiting to strike when the time was right and in his favor.  

Typical Rattlesnake.

Nodding and caressing his face with her hand, Jalise smiled as she kissed him one last time. “See you there.” She whispered before disappearing out of his dressing room, closing the door behind her, and headed down to Steve’s.  Jalise was wearing a blue jean skirt that went an inch and a half above the knee along with a halter tope she’d had made for this night.  The words ‘Word Life’ were splayed across it as it tied around her neck, leaving her shoulders bare, and wrapped around her body perfectly.  She wanted to support her man in this match and knew it was do or die now.  Taking a deep breath, Jalise walked in Steve’s dressing room, not carrying the briefcase and stood before him.

Steve looked up from what he was doing, staring at her for a moment, and took her outfit in with a scowl. “Nice look.  Advertising fer yer pimp?” He asked conversationally, moving behind her, blue eyes ice cold.

Smirking back at him, Jalise nodded with a smile on her face that was oozing with confidence. “You damn right.  You didn’t actually think I’d be rooting for your dumbass, did you?” She rhetorically asked in a sweet tone, walking over to the table, and crossed her arms in front of her chest.

Glancing at the clock, a slow smirk began spreading across Steve’s face as he licked his lips. “Nope…” He locked the door of the dressing room before turning on the monitor, catching Jalise’s attention. “Come look, honey.  Somethin’ should be comin’ on now any minute…”

Jalise sighed heavily as she walked over to the monitor and smirked when she seen John come on.  He was beating the hell out of some lackey, who’d tried jumping him from behind, and had busted open. “Wow, nice game plan, moron.” She scoffed and knew her man was on his game, ready to beat the living shit out of Steve, and that made her nerves settle a little.

Steve’s jaw dropped in shock, not believing what he was seeing. “THAT SUMBITCH!” He shouted, shoving the monitor off its stand, ignoring the sparks that flew from it as it crashed to the floor.  He then turned his attention on her, eyes wild with rage, not believing his plan had backfired.

Jalise didn’t move as she smirked at the shattered monitor, jumping a little when he picked it up and smashed it further into the ground, and stepped up to him. “Hit me, I dare ya.” She taunted, blue eyes flashing dangerously back at him, and knew John was going to win tonight.

Steve looked like he was having a seriously hard time not lunging for Jalise’s throat.  He raised a shaking hand, tempted to just smack the hell out of her.  Instead, he turned and punched the nearby wall, putting his fist straight through it and bellowed, “FUCK!”

“Temper, temper.” She chastised playfully, giggling mischievously, and couldn’t wait to be away from this psycho for good. “So, are you ready to get your ass handed to you by the Doctor of Thuganomics?” Jalise asked nonchalantly, staring at her nails, and tried to swallow down her nervousness.

“When this is over, Jalise, “Steve said slowly, turning to face her with those cold, calculating blue eyes of his. “What I did to that wall won’t be shit compared to what I’m gonna do to you.” He promised, meaning every word that came from his mouth.

“Oooo promises, promises…” She taunted, placing her hands on her hips and yawned, pretending to sound bored.  She was fully confident in her man that he would prevail the winner on this night as she smiled serenely back at Steve. “And when this is all over, Stevie, you’ll NEVER come near or touch me again.” She promised back, not able to wait in be back in John’s arms, but never let her guard down for a second.

Steve had to step away, feeling his temper boiling into overdrive.  He knew if she didn’t shut the hell up, he was going to beat the shit out of her, contract or not. “If ya like breathin’,” He growled, narrowing his eyes on her. “I’d shut the fuck up.” He then walked over to the cooler to pick up a bottled water, opening it and poured it over his head, hoping it would calm him down somewhat.  He’d put up with this attitude and games for the past month, but after tonight, he would finally get his ultimate revenge.

“Wow and here I thought you actually LOVED me.” She sneered at him, walking over to stand right in front of him, refusing to back down for an instant, not touching him. “If you want this match to even transpire tonight, you won’t lay ONE finger on me because if you do, this deal is broken, Stevie.” She reminded him coolly, that serene smile still on her lips.  Jalise was doing this to hide her apprehension she felt inside, mixed with fear, and hoped John won this match against Steve.

After all, SHE was on the line!

“And you’d just love that wouldn’t ya, honey?” Steve looked her up and down shrewdly, drinking her in and knew her body would be his at the end of the night. “If I touch ya, you’d be free without havin’ to worry bout pretty boy Cena gettin’ his skull bashed in.” He smirked wickedly at the mere thought, cracking his knuckles for emphasis. “I’ll just wait until AFTER the match to knock ya down a peg or two, how’s that hmmm?”

“Sounds wonderful because the only person who’s going to be knocked down a peg or three is you.” She retorted swiftly, running her finger up and down his chest, but didn’t touch him.  Her eyes gleamed wickedly as she ran her hands up, stretching, her stomach showing, and sighed. “So, until the match, what do you wanna do, Stevie?  This threatening thing of yours is getting old you know.  We could always be friends.” Jalise suggested, then laughed as she shook her head. “Oh wait, I forgot, DTA right?  Don’t.  Trust.  Anyone?”

“Especially not whores like ya.” He smirked when he seen her eyes narrow for just a second, before walking over to the couch, dropping down on it. “That’s what ya are now ya know.  First it was me, then Cena.  How many other guys did ya offer yer…services too, honey?”

“Nobody else, but like you would believe me, right?” She retorted, walking over, and sitting down right next to him, but not enough to where they were touching.  Her skirt was inching up her thighs as she crossed her leg over the other, sighing, and stared at her nails while moving her foot back and forth. “Na na na na, na na na na, hey, hey, hey, goodbye…” She started humming that tune, a brilliant smile on her face.  Her long black hair flowed down her back and over her shoulders, which made her even more beautiful at the moment.

Shaking his head and moving to where they were barely touching, maybe an inch between them, Steve said, while studying her legs, with frank interest, “Ya got such a sexy voice.  Must come with the slut territory.”

“A voice you’ll never hear again after tonight.” She replied confidently as if reminding him of what he was about to lose and flipped her hair over her shoulder.  She didn’t move, whistling the tune again, though she wasn’t singing it now. “Oh what a glorious night it is!” Jalise exclaimed, moving her head from side to side and completely ignored him, not adjusting herself.

Steve leaned back against the couch, draping an arm over the couch, not touching her.  Though, he did lean towards her, smirking slightly. “Very nice night…” He murmured, licking his lips hungrily, and couldn’t wait to be back at the hotel alone with her that night.  He was going to tear her ass up limb from limb for all the shit she’d put him through in the past month.

She just smirked right back at him and moved her finger around his lips, face, not touching him, and grinned when she seen he was getting pissed. “What’s the matter, Stevie?  Wanna take a swing at me?” She asked nonchalantly, her midnight blue eyes twinkling, and started whistling the same tune again while bouncing her foot to the beat.

Steve inhaled sharply at her words, tempted to do so, but also knew if he did, he’d automatically forfeit this match. “No, I don’t wanna take a swing at ya; I’d rather do somethin’ else to ya.” He murmured, inclining his head so his mouth was hovering right over her ear. “Though by now, yer probably so loose…” He snorted and shook his head. “Whores like you…”

“On the contrary, I’m tighter than a Latex glove, according to what John told me last night.” Jalise stated in a seductive tone of voice, giggling wickedly and ran a hand through her hair, smirking. “Trust me, the man has tried stretching me to the limits, but…” Her words trailed off as she snapped her fingers, pausing briefly. “Damn it, he can’t get it done…yet.”

Shooting to his feet, Steve glared down at her hatefully, shouting at the top of his lungs. “Are you TRYIN’ to provoke me, Jalise?  If ya are, let me know now and I’ll just send yer scrawny ass to the hospital if that’s what ya want!” He picked up a lamp and hurled it at the wall, just over her head, BARELY missing hitting her.

Jalise felt her eyes widen as she felt the pieces of lamp drop on her, but quickly regained her composure as she shook her head back at him.  Slowly standing to her feet, Jalise shrugged the glass off of her and started into his cold blue eyes.  She crossed her arms in front of her chest and stated cruelly, “I can’t wait until this is over with so I can go fuck John’s brains out until we both practically go blind!”

He couldn’t take it anymore and walked over to the door, unlocking it, and practically tore the door off its hinges as he roared, “GET THE FUCK OUT!” He threw his thumb at the door, telling her he didn’t want to see her right now or else he’d snap her in two. “I’m not gonna let ya fuckin’ provoke me, ya bitch!  Yer ass is mine tonight!  You’d best fuckin’ remember that!”

She started laughing at him, not believing how short his temper was, and sighed as she shook her head in disgust. “No, the only thing you’ll be seeing of me is these three fingers waving bye to your sorry ass.” She corrected him, waving them for emphasis, and grinned as she sat down at the table. “I can’t leave, I’m still YOUR PA, or did you forget that little detail, Stevie?”

Steve growled, glancing at the clock again, and knew this match couldn’t come soon enough. “Enjoy what time ya have left.” He spat, storming out into the hallway, knowing he was about to snap her neck any second and he didn’t want that…yet.

As soon as Steve closed the door, Jalise finally burst out in tears as her body shook with fear.  The lamp being thrown at her caused her heart to leap in her throat, and knew that would’ve done it had the lamp hit her head on.  She sighed heavily, standing up on shaky legs, and walked into the bathroom.  Cleaning up a little and staring back at her reflection, Jalise gripped the sink, trying to will the tears to stop.

“Either I live or die on this night.” She whispered and closed her eyes, saying a quick prayer to the man upstairs for her and John’s safety.

~*~*~*~*~*~

John was pacing his own dressing room like a caged panther, looking at the clock every other second, hoping and praying Jalise was alright.  He knew she’d been provoking Steve and probably was at that moment.  He sighed, running a hand through his short brown hair and resumed pacing as he prayed over and over again.

“Please be safe.”

~*~*~*~*~*~

After regaining her composure, Jalise walked out into the locker room and sat on the couch, not believing it’d come down to this.  She remembered meeting Steve, how sweet he’d been toward her, but all that changed in one motion.  John had kissed her and ignited her heart in a way Steve never could and the man couldn’t accept it.  

She wrapped her arms around herself, knowing she’d have to stay in the back and watch as the two men fought for her.  What made this even more scarier was the fact that if Steve won, her life was over and done with.  Jalise would probably be dead in the morning from all the provoking she’d done to him over the past month and that just unnerved her.

Finally coming back in when it was almost time for the match, Steve adjusted his knee brace, not looking up at her. “Ya ready for this?” He demanded in a low, harsh tone, not able to wait to get his hands around John’s neck.

“Yes.” She replied, not sarcasm in her voice, and stood up from the couch, smoothing out her blue jeans she’d changed into and stared at the floor.  Her nerves were finally getting the better of her as she began to tremble, but she couldn’t back out of this now. “I’ve been ready for a month.” She added, surprising herself as she blinked several times and didn’t dare look into his cold, unforgiving blue eyes.

This was it.

It was do or die now.

Chapter 21

Oh

Yeah, yeah

Oh

I gave you my heart

I gave you my soul

I gave everything that I had

But ya left me in the cold

Standing up after adjusting his knee braces, his face oddly neutral, not giving anything away, Steve looked over at her and asked, “Ya comin’ out there?” He had a feeling if she did, this match wasn’t going in his favor and THAT just couldn’t be allowed.

“I’m not going out there.” She answered and stormed past him out of the door and down the hallway toward gorilla position.  When she seen John there, she instantly ran into his arms, hugging him close, and looked up into his eyes as hers filled with tears. “Tell me you love me.” She whispered tearfully at him, trembling from head to toe, and buried her face in the crook of his neck.  She’d never been this scared in her entire life.

But still I have faith

Somehow I believe

That if I keep love in my heart

It will find its way to me

John wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly, not wanting to ever let her go. “I love you, Jalise.” He said fiercely, pulling her back so he could kiss her, pouring everything he had into it.  Every emotion, every ounce of love, wanting her to truly believe he loved her unconditionally. “I’m coming back and it’ll be as the winner.” He promised, running his finger down her cheek lovingly. “Trust in me, J.”

“I’ve never stopped trusting in you.” She replied softly, running her hand down his face, caressing it, and closed her eyes when his music hit. “Go kick his ass.” She added, kissing him one last time and watched as he walked out into the arena.  Tears were already spilling down her cheeks from pure fear as Steve walked past her, but she ignored him, her eyes glued to the nearby monitor.  She didn’t care if anyone saw her tears anymore because she was scared right now and her insides were twisting and turning.

I could fight

Seek revenge

But that’s not who I am

No I’m not giving in

I will rise above

~*~*~*~

John was all business as he waited on Steve, not even letting Steve get into the ring, diving under the ropes, and running to meet him.  They tossed punches back and forth at each other, working their way to the ring, neither getting the upper hand.  Each intent on killing the other and it was all for Jalise.  

Steve growled when Cena shoved him away, preventing him from doing his stunner early on.  He turned around, snarling at the just bring it look Cena’s eyes gave off, and started circling him.  His blue eyes searched out a weakness, becoming infuriated when he couldn’t find a single one.

~*~*~*~

She had to smile through her tears when she seen the look in John’s eyes, the predatory look, the ‘I don’t give a fuck’ look, and knew he was going to the living hell out of Steve.  The man had raped and struck her.  He deserved to be wheeled out of the arena on a stretcher and sent to the ICU.

“Come on, John!” She cheered, jumping whenever he knocked Steve down to the mat.

I’m gonna keep walking

Though it may seem far

I’m gonna keep preaching

Even when life seems hard

Not gonna let you bring me down

I’ll take the high road

~*~*~*~

John revolved on the spot, never taking his eyes off his enemy.  He darted to the side when Steve lunged, then again.  He whirled around, trying to keep up the quick pace, wondering what kind of cat and mouse Steve was playing.  Then, he dropped to one knee, the other having been suddenly kicked out from underneath him, and groaned in pain.  He instantly held it, trying to get the blood to flow back into it, and groaned again when he felt Steve’s fists of fury pounding on him.  

Steve had a sadistic smirk on his face, quickly capitalizing and darting forward.  He grabbed John by the head and raised him to his feet.  Catapulting John into a corner, Steve leapt onto the ropes like a cat and started throwing heavier punches at John’s head, knowing Jalise was watching this.  Her little boy toy was getting his ass handed to him at the hands of Stone Cold Steve Austin.

~*~*~*~

Jalise covered her mouth with her hand, tears instantly sliding down her cheeks, and had to grip the table in front of her that the monitor rested on.  It was also keeping her from falling over as she whispered out, “Come on, John please!” Feeling faint all of a sudden, Jalise pressed a hand to her forehead, and mentally shook herself.  After regaining her composure, Jalise could only watch, her eyes glued to the monitor, and kept herself steady by gripping the table.  She sucked in a sharp breath as she tried calming her racing heart beat and knew she had to just trust John. “Just trust him.” She whispered encouragingly to herself and nodded, calming down, even though Steve had the upper hand right now.

I’m gonna keep climbing

Till I see the top

I’m gonna keep driving

Though I may get lost

Not gonna let you bring me down

I’ll take the high road

~*~*~*~

John groggily shook his head, wincing at the blows and brought his own hands up, shoving Steve away.  He shook his head again, trying to clear out the cobwebs.  He knew he didn’t have time so he ducked when Steve tried to clothesline him, turning the balls of his feet, and ducked again.  This time, he sent Steve straight up and over.  He almost grinned when he heard Steve land outside of the ring with a loud, sickening thud.

Steve felt the air being driven from his lungs when John dropped an elbow on him, rolling away, holding his chest. “Damn that hurt!” He growled out and felt the kid grab him from behind, pulling his body up, and promptly buried his knee in John’s lower extremities.

~*~*~*~

I’m gonna get by on the high road

Yes I will

I’m gonna get by on the high road

Sighing heavily when she felt a pair of hands on her shoulders, Jalise didn’t even need to turn around.  It was her best friend Ember as she had her hands clasped together, the tears rolling freely down her cheeks now. “That bastard just low-blowed him!!” She cried out, pointing to the replay, and started feeling her anger boiling over control.  Without thinking about it, Jalise ran through gorilla position, grabbing a chair on her way, and quickly ran down to ringside.  

Steve wasn’t going to win unless it was over her dead body.

~*~*~*~

John groaned, feeling Steve’s leg connect with his family jewels, and teetered away, pressing his legs together.  He cursed under his breath, flipping Steve over the top rope when the Rattlesnake charged him, buying himself a little more time to recover.  Steve landed on his feet and promptly grabbed John’s ankles, pulling him out of the ring, and back to the floor.  His fists of fury flew once more, connecting repeatedly with John’s head, and grinned in sick satisfaction, a crazy look in his blue eyes.

“JR, Who is THAT?!” Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler screeched, followed by his famous puppy chant, and started getting excited.

“I have no unearthly clue, King.  No idea.” JR replied, trying to make it believable, even though he knew that was Jalise, the woman these two men were fighting over.  The fans didn’t know that though.

Tossing his hands out, making sure his face didn’t smack the canvas when he landed, and groaned.  He rolled over, kicking Steve in the face.  He slid out of the ring and grabbed his enemy by the back of his neck, walking him into the ring post, and rammed his head first into the metal.  Steve was leaning over the guardrail now, holding his now bleeding forehead, and gritted his teeth in pain.

“Fuckin’…”

She stopped when she seen what John had done and dropped the chair near King and JR, watching with anticipating eyes.  Jalise smiled grimly when she seen Steve was busted open and wanted him to bleed like a stuffed pig.  Not one ounce of remorse filled her body as she watched John take advantage, clapping for him, and jumped up and down.  She didn’t care if she was supposed to be out there or not.

“Come on, baby…”

This pain that I feel

I will overcome

I know somewhere deep down inside

It’s the pain that makes us strong

I could curse

I could shout

Take the easy way out

I forgive you

Somehow, I will rise above

John spotted her outside and smiled briefly, tossing Steve back into the ring.  He wasted no time in picking the older man up, hooking his hand in Steve’s trucks and suplexed him to the mat.  After that, John brushed his shoulder off, pointing back at her, and delivered the Five Knuckle Shuffle, landing his fist right in Steve’s bleeding forehead.  He then started putting the boots to him, giving him a Samoan drop when Steve got his feet and went for the pin.  He growled in frustration when the man kicked out and immediately started sensing the ending coming.

Steve kicked out when John went for the pin, growling as rage coursed through him.  He wasn’t about to let some snot nosed little punk beat his ass, not when something he REALLY wanted was on the line. “Fuck you, Cena!” He snarled, getting to his feet and tossed fists at John’s head, smirking when a punch hit John’s eyes.

Jalise didn’t like the murderous intentions that flowed through Steve’s blue eyes and knew she had to do something.  She looked over at the chair she’d brought out with her, biting her bottom lip and suddenly grabbed it, sneaking around the ring apron so Steve didn’t spot her.  When his back was turned to her in the ring, Jalise slid underneath the top rope with the chair in hand and walked over to Steve.  The crowd was going absolutely insanely crazy, but all Jalise was focused on was making sure Steve didn’t win this match.  John was on the mat, bleeding from the cut above his eye, and Steve went for the kill when he felt a tap on his shoulder.

I’m gonna keep walking

Though it may seem far

I’m gonna keep preaching

When life gets to hard

Not gonna let you bring me down

I’ll take the high road

As soon as the Texas Rattlesnake turned around, Jalise clocked him one good time with the chair, causing the crowd to explode in applause and screams and watched as her worst enemy crumbled to the mat below. “PIN HIM!” She shouted in an order to John, who was slowly crawling to his feet, and slid out of the ring with the chair.  The referee couldn’t disqualify John for her blatant interference because the match was No Holds Barred, which meant anything could be done without repercussions.

John shook the cobwebs out of his head before dropping down, covering Steve and hooked the leg.  He held his breath while the referee counted, seeming to take forever.  He blinked when he heard the bell ring and rolled away, not sure if he was breathing yet, even as the referee raised his hand in victory.  He’d done it.  He’d actually beat Steve in the match and now Jalise was his along with her personal assistant contract.

Tears of elation flowed down her cheeks as Jalise immediately slid in the ring and went to John’s side, seeing Steve was lying prone on the mat, staring up at the lights above.  She didn’t care about him as she helped John to his feet, raising his arm in victory, and was all smiles as the tears flowed from her eyes.  She finally looked into his beautiful blue eyes, stroking his face with her hands.

“I love you, John…”

I’m gonna keep climbing

Till I see the top

I’m gonna keep driving

Though I may get lost

Not gonna let you bring me down

I’ll take the high road

He smiled down at her, pulling her up against him, not caring about the audience that surrounded them at the moment or the ring officials.  It was just him and her. “I love you too.” His soft voice whispered back before bending down and passionately kissed her on national television.

Jalise’s arms instantly snaked around his neck, squeezing him tightly to her, and jumped in his arms as her legs wrapped around his waist.  Their lips passionately crashed together as he spun them around, causing her to giggle against his lips, and knew it was over.  She finally slid out of John’s arms and walked over to Steve, lifting the chair up, and bent down near him, whispering in his ear, “If you EVER come near me again, what I did tonight will be NOTHING compared to what I do next time. Goodbye, Steve.” She then stood up, still holding the chair, and just as John came to hold her, the unthinkable happened.

I get by

To be real

I can’t keep it inside

I may fall sometimes

But I will survive

The chair swung, cracking John over the head with it as hard as she could muster up, and the sound of steel of skull echoed sickeningly throughout the arena.  Jalise watched as his body crumbled to the mat below and threw the chair down, an evil smirk spreading across her lips.  She glared down at John, then at Steve, before finally stating, “Neither of you were worth it.” With that said, she then slid out of the ring and walked up the ramp way, never looking back, and headed to the back.

Steve groaned, placing a hand on his forehead and stared at the blood that covered his hand, blinking back the pain.  When he could finally sit up, he was mildly surprised to find John laid out on the canvas, bleeding from his forehead.  He looked like he’d just had his heart ripped out of his chest and that made Steve grin.  Steve slowly rolled out of the ring, laughing, unable to help himself, and called for a few beers to be tossed to him.  Even though his head was killing him, he couldn’t stop laughing at the poor kid.

I’m gonna keep reaching

I’m gonna keep climbing

I’m gonna keep trying

He couldn’t believe it.  He still couldn’t believe what happened.  John didn’t move, not even when the cameras stopped rolling and the audience started shuffling for the exits of the arena.  He just stared up into the rafters, up into the lights, blinking when blood began trickling into his eyes.  He couldn’t believe what’d just happened.  After the past month, after everything they’d been through together, for her to betray him like that…John closed his eyes, exhaling shakily, and finally felt the tears slide down his cheeks.

I’m gonna keep walking

Though it may seem far

I’m gonna keep preaching

When life gets too hard

Not gonna let you bring me down

I’ll take the high road

Jalise was already out of the arena and on the road toward wherever life took her next.  The contract that she’d had both John and Steve sign stated that if John won, she could quit her job with the World Wrestling Entertainment if she chose to.  Granted, she did love John, but he’d been the sole reason why she’d gotten involved with Steve in the first place.  She was placing the blame on him for everything, the rape, what she’d gone through in the past month, everything.  Jalise couldn’t be with someone like that, no matter how much it hurt her, especially after John had been nothing but mean and vicious to her for the past year before she even met Steve.

Tonight had been her ultimate revenge, the final stake in the coffin, the last chapter in her life with the WWE.  With John.  With Steve.  Sometimes in life, a woman has to make a decision on what she wants and what Jalise wanted was stability, something John and Steve could never give her.  Love her or hate her, Jalise didn’t care because she did what she had to do in this world.  

The high road awaited her for new adventures and she was hitting it full throttle, no regrets, and would never look back on this night as long as she lived.

I’m gonna get by on the high road

I’m gonna get by on the high road

I’m gonna get by on the high road

I’m gonna get by on the high road

I’m gonna get by on the high road

The End.