Part 1

It had been one night they'd spent together. One night. Nothing more than a few hours of sloppy kisses, sweat-slicked skin, and roaming hands. At the time, it had made perfect sense to her. It was all perfectly justifiable.

Her week had gone from bad to worse with one visit to her doctor. He had run the standard tests he did with each visit, but much to her dismay, his answer was the same it had been last time she saw him. He was sorry, he told her though she didn't think he meant it, but it was going to be even longer than they had originally guessed. Her neck was taking longer than any of his other patients had, and at that point, there was no way that he would clear her to return to the ring. Or to even begin regular training. The dangers were too high, the risks too big. By the time she'd be allowed back, she would have missed a year and a half. A year and a half of her life. Gone.

She still didn't know why she chose him that night. He wasn't the type of guy she was normally attracted to. She had been heard before saying that he was almost too muscular for her taste. She preferred men a little on the smaller side, lean and cut, but still managing to somehow be soft. His ego did nothing to help his cause. He was cocky, arrogant, known for his short-fused temper, not unlike the character he played each week. So why did she sleep with him?

Because he was there.

She wanted nothing more than to be wanted for a night, to be wrapped in the arms of a man again, to feel surrounded by him and enjoy being there. To connect, even if that meant only on a physical level, she was ok with that. That night, at least. She didn't want to remember that her real life was still on hold. And at that time, she couldn't think of any other way to forget.

She arrived back at the hotel after her appoint with Dr. Youngblood and did nothing but cry. Though she was proud that she held it in until she was safe and alone. Over an hour later, she decided she had cried her last tear. She raised her chin defiantly into the air when she studied her reflection. This wasn't who she was now, was it? She was supposed to be the tough one. The one that didn't crack. That was the reputation she had built, what she believed herself, and she wasn't going to let this damn surgery break her. She made it this far, she wasn't going to stop now.

All that would've been fine if she could stop thinking about it. Even for an hour. It was what she prayed for.

Cleaning the smeared makeup from her face, she prettied herself up, as much as she did that whole girly thing. There was a bar downstairs, she had seen the sign in the lobby when she came in. Surely there would be someone there that would do. Anyone that looked clean and willing would have done, that's what she told herself in the elevator on the way down a short time later. She didn't want to wait too long, didn't want to lose her nerve. So what if she had never done anything like this before? People had one night stands all the time and most didn't seem to regret it. Why should she be any different? She could do this, it was just sex after all. She wasn't stupid, she spent enough time around the men at work to know how most of them thought about women. They usually weren't too picky about their selection. And she had breasts and a pulse so she probably qualified.

She didn't plan for it to be a guy from the company.

She saw him in the lobby, signing autographs and taking pictures, laughing with fans that had managed to track them down. Normally she would've covered her face and hightailed it out of there, not in the mood to play Mary Sunshine and be cordial to the fans. Other times, she loved that interaction. But not tonight. Not tonight. She tucked herself into a corner, hoping that it was enough to keep her hidden till the majority of the crowd filtered out. Luckily for her, it was.

She had to give him credit, he surprised her by making sure that everyone that was waiting got their time with him. Their brush with fame for the night. She didn't picture him to be like that, assuming that he would have rushed through the crowd, too good to be bothered with them. When there was only a couple young kids left, she stepped out from her hiding place.

He must've noticed the movement and from across the room, he lifted his eyes to meet with hers. He nodded an acknowledgment to her before turning back to the kids, kneeling down between them to take a picture. The smile on his face looked almost genuine if she didn't know better. Watching the interaction, she saw him rub the hair of one of the small boys before he winked at him and overheard his saying, "You're right, you probably could beat me up. You look pretty tough."

If someone were to ask her now, she wouldn't be able to say why she didn't keep walking. Why she didn't go into that bar and find some stranger. It would have been easier. It would've made things a lot less complicated.

"Hey." Her voice sounded so small when she approached him with a slight lift of her hand that he assumed was a lazy wave when the last of the strangers filtered away from him.

He didn't try to hide the surprise on his face when he turned toward her, pulling the strap of his bag higher onto his shoulder. "Hi." He was surprised to see her hanging around the lobby earlier, even more so that she actually approached him. He knew the unfortunate reputation he had amongst the divas, one of being the arrogant asshole. Having her come up to him like this was certainly out of the ordinary, and definitely unexpected.

"You know what," she waved her hands in front of her in what he took as a dismissal. "Forget it. Nevermind."

He furrowed his brows when she quickly turned on her heel and headed in the opposite direction, toward the elevators. "Wait," he took a few large steps, his long legs easily catching up with her. Reaching out, he grabbed her arm turning her to face him. Something flashed in her eyes and she yanked her arm out of his loose grasp. Inwardly he frowned when he realized that she looked a little afraid of him. Taking a step back, he put a little more distance between them, not wanting her to feel scared of him in any way. Why, he didn't know. "Relax, I'm not gonna hurt ya."

She crossed her arms loosely in front of her, looking down to study her feet. "I know."

"What were going to say?"

"It's nothing, really. It was stupid."

"Lita," she looked up at her name falling from his lips, softer than she thought his voice could be. "You had something on your mind. What is it?"

The redhead pulled her bottom lip between her teeth, her left hand unconsciously coming up to massage the muscles in her neck. Her neck� Still not good enough, still not allowing her to get back to her life, still not healing properly. She felt the anger rise inside her again at the thought. She was mad. At life, herself, that damn tv show that was so not even close to being worth what she's lost already. With the familiar feelings washing over her, she remembered just why it was that she had set out to do this in the first place. "This uh," she paused, silently telling herself she could do this. "It's gonna sound crazy and I probably shouldn't be asking you this of all people but uh�"

He studied her face as she spoke, not able to decipher just what it was he was seeing in her hazel pools. "What Lita?"

She closed her eyes, forcing the words to come fast and rushed when the moved past her lips. "Would you maybe come up to me room�with me."

With a small disbelieving scoff, his eyebrows rose, a small grin touching his lips. She was joking. Right? Lita, of all people, certainly wouldn't be proposing�that.

Her eyes shot to his face at what sounded like a laugh and her jaw set tight. "Forget it." She turned away from him, willing her legs to carry her as fast as they could without actually running away. She heard him call out her name but didn't stop. He had laughed at her, she couldn't face him again.

A gasp escaped her lips when his hand once again grabbed her arm, turning her towards him. She didn't think that he would've even wanted to catch up with her, much less have done so that quickly.

Her red hair whipped over her shoulder when he spun her around. He searched her face for any sign of laughter, any hint that she was joking, that inside she was laughing at him for buying into it even this much. There wasn't even a trace of a smile. "You're serious?" He exhaled, truly in shock. He didn't know the redhead at all, but he knew of her, having worked in the same company as long as they have. And from what he heard, unlike the majority of the divas, she didn't do this type of thing.

"What's it matter to you if I am?" She challenged, "You made it clear how feel about it so I'll be going now."

His grip tightened slightly on her arm, just enough to keep her place. He was sure not to come anywhere close to hurting her. "What's going on with you?" His eyes were earnest and he looked concerned, that was enough to shock Lita in itself. "This isn't like you."

"You don't know me." She quickly shot at him.

"Damn," he breathed, realizing just how serious she was about this whole thing. She cast her eyes away from him. He knew she must've had her reasons for doing this, for asking him that, for wanting to actually go through with it. And he was smart enough to know that they had probably had nothing to do with him. Judging from her demeanor, anyone would've done. He just happened to be there. He knew he should say no, tell her she was crazy, that she was above this. A part of him was afraid that if did that, if he turned her down, it would only mean her going off and finding someone else. Something inside him twisted at that thought. Lord only knew what kind of trouble she could get into that way. He couldn't let that happen. Motioning for the desk clerk, he made sure his bags would get to his room before turning back to Lita, her arm still in his graps. "At least let me buy you a drink first. Give you a chance to change your mind."

She met his eyes again, shock registering on her face. He was going along with it. She swallowed, remember her reasons for wanting this in the first place. Nodding, she fell into step next to him, flicking a quick glance his way.

Hunter would have to do.

Part 2

He had thought it odd when he spotted her in the corner of the lobby, almost hiding behind some large green plant tucked away in the corner. Most of his fellow wrestlers preferred to head straight up to their rooms, weary of the way a crowd can quickly grow from a few fans to a mass of people in no time. So to see her hanging around, seemingly for no reason, certainly stuck out in his mind.

The small group that had gathered didn't dissipate as quickly as he would've hoped, but he stayed there until the last person got their autograph from him. He could've easily told them all no. It was late, he was tired, fresh in from the show after a long flight that morning. The excuses could have been easily made. But that wasn't him. Everytime he walked past some kid staring at him in disbelief, Hunter couldn't help but put himself in that kid's position. What if it was him, nine or ten years old, watching Ric Flair or someone walk by in a hotel lobby? He knew that was something he would've never forgotten, so who was he to take away a memory like that before it even happened? At the most it meant watching only one old rerun instead of two before he fell asleep in his hotel room. Scrawling his name on a paper and taking a few pictures didn't seem all that bad when he thought of it that way.

He thought for sure by the time he finished she would be gone, sneaking out the way she had come in. Quiet. Hidden. Inconspicuous. He was surprised to when he heard her voice approaching him, and did little to hide the look on his face. Most of the women he worked with steered clear of him, he knew his reputation wasn't the best.

It seemed just as quickly as she approached, she was turning to leave, quick to dismiss whatever reasoning she had for wanting to talk with him. After a little coaxing, he got it out of her. Her reason for coming to him. She said it would sound crazy, and in untrusting disbelief, he had laughed. Surely a woman like Lita was asking him to�to�no. She wasn't the type of woman for a one-night stand. That much he knew. He saw the mix of emotion flash through her hazel eyes before she turned and headed away from him again. Damn it. He really needed to learn to think before reacting. He didn't mean to laugh at her, but he just didn't believe it. It was some sort of joke they were pulling on him. Whoever they were. His immediate thought that had been a sure one, someone was trying to pull a fast one on him and had sucked Lita into help them. But the look on her face�the hurt�

She wasn't joking.

He called after her but she kept on, almost jogging to the elevator before he caught up with her. She whipped around when he grabbed her arm to stop her, and Hunter did his best not to step back. She was angry, certainly not in a joking mood, and if he guessed right, hurt.

Then she told him. That she was serious. That he was right. He hadn't misconstrued her intentions. He could've told her no, walked away, forgetting the whole thing ever happened. But that left way too big of a chance for her to go into some bar and find someone else. There was no telling where that could lead. He knew she would do that, too, go off and find some stranger to fill her bed if he turned and walked away. He wouldn't have been able to live with himself if something happened to her because he suddenly had a conscience.

The whole night had been�unexpected, to say the very least. From Lita approaching him, to her slamming back drinks in the bar as if she did it all the time. Hunter, not one to be outdone by a woman, made sure to keep up and before he knew it, he was well on his way to being quite inebriated. He was a big guy, that was obvious to anyone who looked at him, and he knew if he was already feeling pretty drunk, the small redhead across the table had to be plastered out of her mind.

He only had the intentions of helping her up to her room, not that he would be much help in his altered state. He couldn't help but smile at her constant barrage of giggles that escaped her body on their way to the elevator. "Woah there," he wrapped a strong arm around her waist when she stumbled into the elevator, pulling her against his frame. He reached around her, forcing his eyes to focus on the panel of numbers. "What floor are you on?"

"Hunter," she spoke his name loudly in the way people only do when they're drinking. "Do you really think I remember?"

He frowned down at the redheaded diva still pressed against his body. He had a feeling that if she wasn't, she probably wouldn't have been able to stand on her own for too long. He studied the button for the twenty-second floor. While not as belligerent as Lita, he still had done his fair share of drinking. He blinked, trying to get his senses about him. Floor twenty-two, that sounded about right. Pressing the button, he looked back to Lita, surprised to see her staring at his face. "What?" he asked, suddenly uncomfortable under her gaze.

She furrowed her brows, the look on her face said that she was really thinking about something. "You have flecks of gold in your eyes," she stated, matter-of-factly.

"Yeah," Triple H nodded, looking into her hazel eyes once more. "You do too."

"See!" She seemed excited by something, what it was he didn't know. "We do have something in common!"

The rest of the evening was a blur to him, remembering only bits and pieces of the night after leaving the bar. He remembered telling her no when she sided up against him, leaning against him in all the right spots, in the bed they foolishly decided they could share for the night. She had jerked her hand off his bare back and within seconds he heard her sniffle. He sat up and flicked the lamp on next to the bed, turning his head he found Lita sitting against the headboard, he knees pulled to her chest, tears streaking over her cheeks. She pushed his hand away when he reached out to her, her red hair hiding most of her face when she ducked her head. "Wha---"

She snapped her head up at his breath, the look of fury and disappointment on her face was something he could never forget � sober, drunk, drugged�as long as he was conscious he wouldn't forget that look in her eyes. "Don't bother Hun-Ter," she spat at him, stressing each syllable. "I get it ok. I'm not pretty enough for the big bad Game. I'm not sexy enough to be with the champion. I'm never good enough," she gave a sarcastic laugh. "I should be used to it by now, I don't know why I thought tonight would be any different."

"Lita," he pulled himself into a sitting position, turning to face the redhead. "You're good enough, believe me. More than good enough, more than I deserve that's for sure." He saw the confusion in her eyes.

"Then why�"

"'Cause we just closed the bar in the lobby of a hotel, for starters. I'm trying to think as straight as possible. Trust me, if you weren't as drunk as you are, and me as I am�we wouldn't be talking right now�we'd be too busy to talk."

He saw her bring a hand up to her neck, massaging the muscles there. "But I don't want to talk," she met his eyes. "I want to forget about everything else that's fucked up in my life right now." She shifted until she was kneeling on the bed, her eyes even with the man she shared a bed with. "Please Hunter," her voice sounded like a sad plea. "Please let me forget."

What little bit of resolve he had maintained through their drunken evening crumbled at the sound of her pleading for him. He would have been able to say no, he was sure of it, if she hadn't said his name. There was something in the way it fell from her lips that he just couldn't turn down. He leaned forward, not taking the time to be gentle, and pressed his lips to Lita's. Immediately he felt her fingers rush to his hair, his own made their way to her tiny waist. His hands easily wrapped around her sides and he lifted with her ease, drawing her in front of him and into his lap.

The rest of the night was shoddy as far as Hunter's memory was concerned, but one thing was for certain. He slept with Lita.

Part 3

It had been weeks since she shared his bed and no matter how often he may have tried, he still hadn�t talked to her. Just when he thought he had her somewhere private enough that they could talk without prying eyes, she would skirt away from him, leaving him to watch her retreating form, red hair bouncing around her shoulders. He�d gone to her on several occasions and each time had been the same. She would see him coming and before he could get within ten feet of her she would be gone, hightailing out of there to avoid any contact with him whatsoever.

He shouldn�t care and frankly didn�t understand why he did. She certainly wasn�t the first woman he�d slept with when he was drunk so he just couldn�t figure out why she was different. Why was it that he lied in bed each night since then, replaying what he remembered of their time together? Why was it that he couldn�t get past this?

Why was it that she was standing there looking at him like that? Now, after weeks of avoiding him, she was trying to catch his eye. It wasn�t a come-hither stare or anything like that, not that she was that type of girl anyway. No, this look was more nervous or worried. The way she was chewing on her bottom lip like that did little to make him think otherwise.

�Hey Champ, you paying attention here?�

Triple H tore his eyes away from Lita on the opposite side of the expansive hallway, forcing himself to focus on Ric Flair�s words with a slight shake of his head, forcing the cobwebs away. �Yeah, sorry man.�

�No problem. Randy and I were thinking...�

Hunter made sure his eyes stayed locked with the older man�s as he rested against the large black case but his attention was anywhere but where it should�ve been. He could still see red from the corner of his eye, she was still standing there and he wondered if she really was waiting for him or it was just his imagination.

Ric, ever flamboyant in his ramblings, turned to the youngest member of Evolution, focusing his attention on Randy Orton. It was the opportunity that Hunter had been waiting for and he immediately turned his attention back to the redhead across the large expanse. He caught her eye and made a small motion to himself, asking without words if it was indeed him that she was seeking out. He watched as she glanced left and then right before back at him, nodding quickly, crossing her arms in front of her body, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth. He snuck a glance at Ric and Randy, making sure they were both still preoccupied before pointing to his dressing room door not far down the hall and fanning his fingers out, mouthing the words �five minutes.� She responded with a quick sharp nod before glancing around once again and heading down the hall.

He watched her go, not realizing that his lips had formed a hard tight line or that he had started bouncing his knee. It was nervous habit he�d had since he was a teenager and something that he thought he had shaken a long time ago. Maybe he just hadn�t been nervous in quite some time. He forced himself to listen to Ric�s ramblings again making sure he was missing anything important. Realizing that Ric was now trying to talk Randy into the idea of Evolution coordinating their ring gear for that night, he tuned out once again. He glanced in the direction Lita had headed and then stood, patting Ric on the shoulder, effectively making the older man pause his speech. �You girls figure out who�s wearing what high heels tonight and I�ll be in my locker room actually doing something productive?�

Both men shot Hunter a sour look before Flair said, �Fine. We�ll be there in a couple minutes.�

�Actually I�d rather be alone for awhile.�

�But Champ,� the Nature Boy did his best not to sound anything but calm, �Our stuff�s in there too.�

Triple H shot his childhood hero a look that would make most others shake in their boots. �You gotta match tonight?� he asked, seeming more irritated than necessary. He knew it was the only way to keep them away long enough to have a talk with Lita. �What about you?� he turned to Randy after Flair shook his head no, Orton gave the same response.

�That�s what I thought. Now I�m going to prepare for my match. Alone,� he emphasized.

�I�m telling ya Randy, it�ll really sell us as a team...�

Hunter rolled his eyes as Ric went back to the topic at hand and turned to walk away, pausing outside his dressing room to check an area of the hall he hadn�t been able to see from where he�d been seated moments before. As he expected, he spotted Lita�s fiery red hair as she seemed to be peeking out from a corner. He held her eyes for a moment before switching his gaze to back to the two men at the other end and then back to Lita, hoping she got the message that they were still there. It was obvious that she didn�t want Randy and Ric to know she needed to talk to Hunter or she wouldn�t have stood nearby for ten minutes hoping to gain his attention without attracting the others�.

He ducked inside his locker room, closing the door behind him, stopping once inside. He ran his hand down the side of his pants, not sure why his palms were suddenly sweating. He knew he probably had a few minutes before Lita could make her way to the room. Glancing around, he frowned at his surroundings and began to quickly gather the clothes that had been haphazardly thrown around earlier that night. It definitely looked like a room shared by three men, that was for sure. He had a mound of clothes piled in his large arms before he knew it and he stood in the middle of the room, looking for a place to stash the items, certainly not having time to put them away where they belonged. Settling on the corner hidden behind an overstuffed black leather chair, he shoved the clothes into hiding and backed up, taking in the now clean room once again.

Wait a minute, was he cleaning up because a girl was going to be there any minute? He rolled his eyes, almost disgusted with himself. He wasn�t in high school anymore, and it had been a long time since he�d done anything to impress a woman. Or not scare one off, maybe that was more accurate. What did it matter if Lita thought the room was filthy anyhow? Why did he care if his belongings, along with Flair and Orton�s, littered every surface when she was there? He shouldn�t care. Didn�t care. Yeah, he convinced himself, it didn�t matter. She wouldn�t care anyway. He�d be surprised if she stayed longer than a minute or two, and he was almost positive she wouldn�t have noticed the mess if he hadn�t picked it up. God, he stopped his rambling thoughts, he was not acting like himself. Not at all. Who in the hell was he turning into?

A soft knock at the door interrupted his thoughts and he took a few long strides across the room to the door. He yanked it open, not surprised to find the redhead standing there. He motioned for her to come inside, taking a moment to glance into the hall, wondering if anyone had seen. It didn�t look like anyone had. He shut the door again, turning the lock just in case Ric or Randy decided not to heed his warning and come back to the room.

�Do you uh, want to sit down?� He motioned to the couch, not liking the look on the diva�s face when she shook her head no.

�No that-that�s ok.�

He took a deep breath, willing his nerves to relax. There was no reason to be nervous. Hell, he�d spent the last month thinking about this woman, wanting just one chance to talk to her again and he wasn�t able to do that. Now she was right in front of him and he had the opportunity. �W-What did you want to talk about?� he asked, cursing his voice for sounding so shaky. �I mean you looked like you wanted to talk about something. You wouldn�t be here if you didn�t I guess, right?�

She shifted her gaze from the carpet to him, ringing her hands together in hopes that he didn�t notice how bad they were shaking. �Yeah, we um...definitely need to talk.�

Hunter took a step towards her, surprising her when he placed a gentle hand on her upper arm. Most of his hand met the short sleeve of her top, but one or two fingers met her skin and Lita was sure his touch could burn right through her if she allowed it. Those hands...She didn�t want to admit it but they had felt really really good on her skin that night more than a month ago. That night. It was the reason she had finally forced herself to talk to him. Or at least try. It was rare that he was alone for even a minute without the other guys around. But she was here now. She had no choice but to go ahead with it.

�What is it Lita?� he asked softly, surprising her by the tenderness in his voice.

There was nothing but sincere concern in his chestnut eyes, his brows slightly furrowed as he looked down at her. She held his gaze for a long moment before casting her eyes away. �Nevermind,� she took a fast step around him, wanting to get out of there as fast as possible. She couldn�t do it. �Forget it,� she mumbled under her breath. �You probably wouldn�t care anyway.�

�Wait.� Her hand was on the knob and she jerked it when it didn�t immediately open. She felt his hand on her arm again, this time holding her in place, trying to stop her from leaving. If that damn lock hadn�t been on she�d be gone already but the distraction was just enough time for him to reach out for her. �You said I wouldn�t care and you don�t even tell me about what. Why don�t you give me a chance and find out?� She was more than hesitant, he could tell that much, but took it as a good sign when she let her hand slide from the doorknob. �Let�s sit down and you can tell me whatever it was that you came here to tell me.�

She allowed Hunter to lead her to the couch, scooting a few inches away from him as they sat. She couldn�t be too close to him. The heat from his body did things to her she never imagined.

�What�s wrong Lita?� He sounded worried now, the diva noticed. Not that she could blame him, she was acting like a total nutcase. She could only imagine what was running through his mind. �What do you have to tell me?�

She took a deep breath, gathering every ounce of courage she had within her, knowing she would need every last bit of it to get the words out. �Let�s see�� she began, her voice shaky. �A month and a half ago we got really REALLY drunk and had sex. I haven�t wrestled in three weeks and won�t be doing so for quite some time. I can�t even be at ringside. And I�ve been getting sick everytime I turn around since that night.� She forced herself to bring her hazel eyes to his, holding them for a moment, letting her words sink in. �That explain it?� It wasn�t the graceful explanation she had practiced in her head but she got the words out, that was the important thing.

He furrowed his brows, confused for a moment before the color seemed to drain from his face at the realization of what exactly it was that she was saying. �Y-you�you mean you�re�� He could barely find his voice.

She nodded, looking away, not wanting to see the look on his face when she confirmed his thoughts. �Yeah...I...I�m pregnant.�