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Jeff opened his eyes, recoiling at the sunlight filtering in through the blinds on the windows. The light wasn't what had awakened him. The phone beside him was ringing. As he reached over for the receiver, he felt Ashley stir beside him, one of her small hands pressed against his bare chest.
"Hello?" he managed to sleepily croak out.
No one answered on the other end. There was a palpable pause for a moment, and then the person finally spoke.
"Jeff... Where's Ashley?"
It was Matt... And the younger Hardy found himself on the verge of a groan. He glanced down at the beauty who lay beside him, still asleep. She looked so peaceful, while when she was awake, had been so full of stress. No, there was no way he was waking her up when she was so calm in her slumber.
"She's right here," the young man replied in a whisper, "but she's asleep. Is there a message you'd like me to pass onto her? 'Cause I'm not gonna disturb her right now." He didn't add what else was on the tip of his tongue. She had a rough night, thanks to you.
"Uh, no... not really," Matt said. Traces of anger came into his voice. "So, it's true... you are screwin' my girl!"
Although he knew he should have expected it, Jeff was slightly shocked by his brother's outburst. He rolled his eyes and sighed before answering.
"Matt, stop it. When are you gonna wake up and realize that she's your ex - I repeat - ex-girlfriend?" He made a conscious effort to keep his voice low so as to not awaken Ashley.
"You probably always wanted her!" Matt yelled, causing the younger man to flinch and slightly move the receiver away from his ear. "You've always been like that, Jeff, and you've always wanted everything I've ever had!"
"What the hell are you talkin' about, man?"
"Like I have to spell it out for you, you ungrateful little prick!" The dark-haired man's voice kept rising in volume as well as pitch.
Jeff had had just about enough. He wasn't going to sit by and allow this to continue. Why should he have to deal with the stress, much less the migraine he would surely develop if he were to stay on the line while his brother screamed at him? To make matters worse, he felt Ashley stirring at his side, then sit up. Her blue eyes stayed on him, and she frowned when she realized what was going on.
"Grow up, Matt," he ordered. "It's too early in the mornin' for this bullshit. I would recommend you get yourself some psychiatric help so you can deal with somethin' the rest of us call 'reality.'"
Matt continued to shout at him on the other end, but the younger man was done. Without another word, he calmly replaced the receiver on its cradle, hanging up on his sibling. He knew his brother would be even more pissed, but that was just too damn bad.
He sat there angrily for a beat, stewing over what had just transpired. Then, his features softened as he moved his gaze to the beautiful sleepy blonde beside him. He reached out and placed a hand on her hair, tousling it affectionately.
"What was that all about?" Ashley asked, though she knew she didn't have to.
"Nothin'," he replied calmly. "Absolutely nothin'." He brought her closer, holding her tightly against him. She clung to him and shuddered a little as she felt him kiss her hair.
They stayed that way for several serene minutes, neither of them speaking. Jeff was perfectly content to just listen to the diva's breathing and heartbeat. But he knew it was inevitable that one of them would broach the subject again.
"I can't believe you told him to get psychiatric help!" Ashley said after awhile.
"Yeah, well... He obviously has problems letting things go." He shook his head, recalling in his mind how his brother had acted when Amy had cheated on him and then later left him for Adam. The way Matt was acting right now about him and Ashley, one would think it was the exact same situation. But it wasn't. He and Ashley had broken up a long time ago, and she'd even had another boyfriend between both Hardys... So, Jeff couldn't comprehend why there was a problem. He decided he wanted to put it out of his mind, at least for now.
"How 'bout I make us some breakfast?"
The pretty blonde smiled at him.
"Sounds good."