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Jay woke up the next morning feeling groggy after the long talk he'd had with Nora the night before.  To his surprise, the blonde had stayed in his room for at least a good two hours.  When he'd noticed it was nearly three AM, he'd offered to let her stay in the other bed the remainder of the night, but she'd declined.  Nora had been terrified of what might happen if her boyfriend returned to their room to find her gone.

His fists clenched involuntarily as he recalled everything the small diva had told him.  The things that bastard had subjected her to.

"I...I don't know why I decided to take you up on your offer to talk," Nora said.  That was a lie, for she did know.  She needed to speak to someone, and Jay had been so kind and concerned.

"It's okay, Nora," he said as he perched on the edge of his bed.  "I want to help."

She sat there silently for a moment, wringing her small hands in her lap, her brow creased with a frown.

"You were right when you guessed that he did this to me," she blurted, holding out her arm and exposing the purple bruise.  "Not to...make up excuses for him, but..."  She took a deep breath, closing her eyes and exhaling before plunging on.  "...he never hurt me physically until last night."

Jay's blue eyes hardened as he listened to her confessions.  He had to bite his tongue against letting some curses slip between his lips.  He was afraid that if he verbalized exactly how he felt just yet, Nora might up and bolt.  And he wanted her to continue to trust him.

"He...he got mad at me when I asked him where he was.  He's always disappearing somewhere at all hours..."

The blond man nodded in understanding, recalling how the diva had explained that she was alone in her hotel room - which was why she'd even delved up the courage to leave to come speak to him.  If he'd been there - forget about it.

"...He refused to tell me where he was, and when I pushed him, he yelled at me and said it was...none of my business."  Nora took a breath, clenching her hands into fists as she became as annoyed as she'd been then.  "And then I threatened to leave.  I was going to storm right out of our room right then and there, but..."  She bit her lip, her face falling.  "...but he grabbed me.  He hit me a few times until I stopped trying to fight him...and then...he raped me," she cried, her voice nearly breaking.  Tears came to her blue eyes, and she leaned over in the desk chair in which she sat, burying her face in her hands.

"Oh, my God..." Jay breathed.  He instantly came closer to her, kneeling in front of the young woman and placing one hand gently on hers.

As Nora's sobs increased, he straightened up and pulled her gently to him.  To his surprise and almost relief, she didn't pull away but threw her arms around him and held him tightly.  The blonde clung to Jay as if for dear life, pressing her face into his chest, her tears wetting the front of the T-shirt he'd worn to bed.

He gently stroked her long curls, rocking her ever so slightly.  He felt as though he could kill the son of a bitch for putting her through such horror and abuse.

"Shh...I'm going to protect you, Nora," he crooned, moving his lips to her forehead, pressing a kiss there.  "I promise you this...I'm going to protect you."

Jay was furious and felt a vein throbbing in his temple as he reflected on everything Nora had confided to him the previous night.  He wanted to smash the man's face in - beyond recognition.  How dare he raise his hand to a woman and take advantage of her?!  Nora was a full foot shorter than him and was an entire woman's weight less.  But he remembered what Adam had said when he'd warned him last night about taking action - this man could beat him to a bloody pulp.

He snatched up some clothing into which to change for the day, then marched himself into the bathroom for a quick shower.  He was going to be on the lookout for the petite blonde later on.  If she was alone, as he suspected she would be, he would insist on her spending the day with him.  And hell, even if that creep boyfriend was by her side, Jay thought he might just do that anyway.

*

Amy opened her eyes to the morning light, then became acutely aware that she was naked and locked in a pair of solid arms, the body beside her warm.  She turned around onto her other side and gazed at the man lying beside her.

Adam was still asleep, his blond hair slightly messy and lips slightly parted as his breathing came deep and regular.  Beyond his ever-present goatee, his face was dusted with a light coating of stubble, and the redhead smiled as she lifted a hand to gently caress his cheek.  As he continued to sleep, she moved her face slightly closer and kissed him softly on the lips.  Before she pulled back, the tall Canadian was kissing her back, his lips soft and tender on hers.

"Hi," she said softly when she finally pulled her head back.

"Hey, you," Adam replied with a sweet smile.  His green eyes seemed to dance merrily with a happy light Amy had not previously noticed.

She leaned in close again to place a soft kiss on the tip of the blond's nose, smiling at him as she surveyed his face.

"Mmm...last night was incredible, angel..."

Amy bit her lip, reaching out to caress his long hair.  "Yes, that it most certainly was..."  She almost had trouble believing it had really happened.  It all felt like a terrific dream from which she might awaken at any moment.  But now, here she was, awake to the morning light in Adam's arms, with him smiling at her.

"We have today off," the blond man said softly.  "How, oh how are we ever going to celebrate it?"  His face broke into a mischievous grin.

"Oh, I can think of a few ways," the redhead replied, her smile broadening.  She laughed as Adam grabbed her by the waist, flipping them both over so that he was on top of her.  He covered her with kisses that she eagerly returned, her laughter continuing but muffled when his lips were on hers.

*

The man grinned to himself as he made his way back to his hotel room after his long, restless night with Torrie Wilson.  He'd left the tall blonde more than satisfied, feeling a sense of pride that he'd taken her three different times over the course of the evening.  God, that woman was insatiable - but then, so was he.

Now, as he pushed his way into his hotel room, he surveyed the room, glad that Nora was sound asleep in the bed.  For some reason unknown to him, he'd suspected she wouldn't be there.  He stared at her for a few minutes, noticing how her shoulder shook slightly and her lovely brow furrowed in her sleep - apparently, she was dreaming, and it wasn't all pleasant.

He didn't care.  As long as she didn't disturb him with one of her ridiculous nightmares, he didn't give a damn what she did in her sleep.  He had important business to attend to, anyway.  He'd promised Vince McMahon he'd get something done, and he was not about to go back on his word.

The man sauntered to the bathroom and took a hot shower, washing all traces of Torrie Wilson off him - not that it mattered.  As he lathered up, he plotted a few new possible ways he could get to Adam Copeland.

*

"We really should go down to breakfast," Amy said as she gazed into Adam's eyes.  They had been in bed for a full hour after waking up, and their lovemaking had been even more intense than it had been the night before.

"Do we really have to?" Adam asked with a smile, running his forefinger gently up and down her bare arm.  He felt as though he just couldn't get enough of her.

"God, you're a horny devil, aren't you?" the diva quipped with a giggle, playfully swatting at the blond man with the back of her hand.

"Oh, yeah...but I can't help it," the Canadian replied, his eyes locked on hers.  "You bring out the beast in me..."

Amy laughed as she tackled him, tickling him on his sides before she finally gave up and stood up.  "Come on, seriously, Adam...we should shower and go down to breakfast.  I'm sure Jay is waiting for us."

Adam gazed longingly at her, his emerald eyes scanning her beautiful nude body appreciatively as she stood before him.  Didn't she know what she was doing to him, standing there like that?  "Okay...but on one condition," he said, a serious expression on his face.

"What's that?"

"We take that shower together."  He rose from the bed and chased her into the bathroom, the redhead laughing hysterically as she ran.

*

Later on, the man stood hidden from view as he spied on Copeland and the meddling Dumas bitch, who sat at a table in the hotel's restaurant with Jay Reso.  He frowned, wondering if they were all up to something.  He didn't think he was the paranoid type at all, but he could swear they looked like they were in a deep discussion - planning something.

Actually, he didn't give a damn what they were talking about.  It was probably all match strategy stuff anyway.  He knew from Vince that Stephanie was now the head writer of the company, and although it hadn't been her idea to split up Edge and Christian, she had already written a pretty detailed storyline of their impending breakup.

As he continued watching the trio, he focused his eyes exclusively on Amy.  His gaze lingered on her luscious, full breasts, and the way her tight baby tee stretched across them.  He longed to get his hands on her, on them.  He sensed that she would be an absolute wildcat in bed, although he suspected that Copeland had already discovered this personally.

He scowled.  Not that he thought the blond Canadian an ass for that, but he could have had both Dumas and Stephanie McMahon.  Somehow, he could imagine that both women might have gone for the idea of a threesome with the man - they both seemed crazy about him.  And even a nice, sweet girl like Steph would have probably done such a thing, if for no other reason, to keep her man happy.

The man gave a slight start as, as if on cue with his thoughts, Stephanie McMahon suddenly drifted right past him.  She noticed his presence seemingly at the last moment, then turned and came back over so that she was standing before him.  She stared at him quizzically, and he stepped away from his hiding place - which was actually only a hiding place from the people whom he was spying on in the restaurant - not from anyone who happened to walk by.

"What are you doing?"

He actually found himself stumbling on the brunette's question, but quickly saved himself.  There was a menu nailed to the wall, just in front of him, slightly to his left.  "I'm looking at the menu," he said, forcing a smile for the woman's benefit.  He pointed at it as if to prove his point.

"Really?" Stephanie asked suspiciously.  "Because it looked like you were eavesdropping on them."  She pointed to the two Canadian blonds and the redheaded diva inside the room.

"Don't be silly, Steph...of course I wasn't eavesdropping," he stated.  He didn't like the look of mistrust she had in her large blue eyes.  Without another word, he turned and walked away, leaving a confused and suspicious Stephanie staring after him.

As he continued on his way, the man's smile disappeared, only to be replaced by a deep frown.  Although he was madly in love with the wealthy young woman, he didn't like her butting into his business - no, not one bit did he enjoy it.  He would just have to wait until later - and then he would strike.