Author: Mercury32
E-mail: [email protected]
Category: WWE
Pairing: Stephanie/? (not Jericho)
Disclaimer: Don�t own them. Don�t own anything. Don�t sue, cause you�ll get nothing but a Stone Cold salute for your trouble.
Distribution: Anyone who wants it. Just lemme know.
Rating: G
Dedication: For falln. Cause totally insane phone calls RULE, but mainly cause she made me promise to do her a favour before telling me what it was. :P
Worth the Risk
I walk into my dark hotel room and collapse on my bed. Tonight was horrible. If Helmsley didn�t know already, then I�m certain he does now. The lights go on suddenly and I cry out in surprise, covering my eyes with my arm.
"Don�t be a wuss." A female voices laughs. I move my arm, wincing at the harsh light. Slowly my vision clears and to my surprise I see her standing at the end of my bed, hands on her hips. "Just tell the whole world why don�t you? Next time you may as well add �and since it worked so well for you, it�s my turn now� at the end of the sentence."
I stare at her in surprise. I had no idea she�d take my comment like that. "Stephanie, that�s not what I meant!"
"Wasn�t it?" I wince at the ice-cold tone of her voice and look in her eyes. "After all, being associated with me has worked for others before you. Test, Van Dam, Jericho, Booker� and let�s not forget Hunter. It worked so well for them, why shouldn�t you try your luck as well?"
Aw hell. "Steph, listen to me. Yes, I want to get to the top. Yes, I will do whatever is necessary - within reason. If I was using you to get to the top, why would I do it now, when Sharmelle has more influence with the company than you do?"
"Well when you put it like that, I wonder why you bother with me at all since I�m so damned useless." Stephanie snaps back. I get up off the bed and stand in front of her, placing my hands on her shoulders. "Because I love you."
I can almost feel the anger draining out of her body, so I continue. "I don�t want my love for you to be tainted by all the armchair experts and assholes backstage who will assume our relationship is the reason I�m doing so well, when we both know that right now, I�m more likely to get held down because of our relationship."
I feel the anger and tension drain out of her body as she kisses me on the cheek. "I�m sorry. You�re right of course, I�m just in �Irritable Mommy� mode."
"And how is my other little girl?" I ask, placing my hand on Stephanie�s still flat stomach. She laughs and covers my hand with hers. "It could be a boy."
"Nope. We�re gonna have a girl. My other princess." I sit on the edge of the bed, pulling her onto my lap. She rests her head on my shoulder and sighs. "I love being with you like this. I feel so� content. Shame it�s not going to last for long."
"You�re such an optimist." I laugh, kissing the top of her head. She looks up at me. "No, I�m a realist. How do you think the place is going to react when they find out I�m pregnant? How do you think Hunter�s going to react? Or my father?"
I bite my lip. None of that had occurred to me, not really. I�d thought about it of course, but the way a child thinks about marriage � you know it�s going to happen one day, but you just can�t ever picture it happening. "We�ll deal with that when it comes."
"Honey, you�re not even prepared for what�s likely to happen when people start finding out about us." She points out. "Which is likely to start happening soon after tonight�s events. Did Hunter say or do anything to indicate that he knows?"
I shake my head. "Have you seen or spoken to him tonight?"
"No. I thought it best to wait until the divorce goes through." She replies softly. "But I have a feeling that it�s going to become hard to avoid him soon. It won�t be much longer till I start to show."
"You be careful around him okay?" I say, a little more forcefully than I intended. She glares at me. "You think I�m gonna do anything that is likely to put our baby in danger? I�m not stupid."
"I know." I reassure her. "Call it �Protective Daddy� mode. I just don�t want to see anything happen to either of my girls."
"I swear to you, we�ll be careful." She promises a yawn escaping. "I should go. I need some sleep."
"Stay." It�s not a command, but it�s not a request either. Stephanie looks at me in surprise. "But �"
"No. No buts. No excuses. Stay with me tonight Steph. I want to hold you, to feel your body curled up next to mine."
"It�s risky." She reminds me. I shrug. "I don�t care. It�s worth the risk. Besides, people are gonna find out eventually right?"
I can tell she�s all for it, but that months of being careful and creeping around are a little hard for her to just throw away. Personally, I don�t care anymore. I�m tired of sneaking around. Eventually she nods. "I�ll stay."
Without speaking, we prepare for bed. It�s a comfortable silence, the sort of silence that exists between long term and well-established couples. We curl up together in the spoon position, her head laying on my arm. I inhale the scent of her hair and smile contentedly. "Good night baby. I love you."
"Sweet dreams." She murmurs back drowsily. "And I love you too Edge."
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