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Edge was more agitated than anything else as he was ushered into the trainer's room. All he wanted was to go back to a private room so he and Lita could talk, but the officials who had run out to tend to him had insisted.
"Damn it..." he muttered, stubbornly shoving his tall frame off of the trainer's table. "I'm fine!" He moved away from the intrusive hands, inching his way over to the redhead, who stood a ways away, an uncertain look on her face. She appeared to be concerned - for herself, or for him? Maybe it was a combination of both.
The blond man was mindful of his broken hand as he maneuvered the rest of the way to Lita. She gazed up into his face imploringly as he put an arm around her waist and ushered her out of the office.
"Are you sure...?" The redhead's voice sounded small, even to her, as she eyed her savior questioningly.
"I'm fine," Edge assured her, his green gaze softening as he looked her over. "Come on, let's just get out of here." He walked her to his locker room, where he held the door open for her to enter first. Before stepping in behind the diva, the Canadian examined either end of the hall, gladly noting no sign of Kane. Only then did he enter the room and close the door behind him.
He turned around to see Lita standing right before him, her arms crossed over her chest. If Edge didn't know better, he could swear she was shaking ever so slightly. The poor thing... She looked absolutely terrified. And why *wouldn't* she? Kane was a humongous monster, and definitely unbalanced. Who knew what he would have done to her had he not intervened. And that God damned Matt Hardy... He'd stood by and merely watched rather than moving a muscle to help his former girlfriend. Edge definitely had his suspicions that Mister Version 1 had everything to do with Kane's actions tonight. He wondered if she had even a slight inkling of that.
As he gazed down at her, the tall blond man's heart softened. She really did look so small and scared and alone. It hurt his heart that no one else had tried going to her rescue. Thank goodness he'd been watching the action on the television monitor back here.
He cocked his head slightly as he continued to eye her. Her chin seemed to be quivering just a bit, and Edge couldn't stand it any longer.
"It's okay, Lita," he spoke softly, his voice soothing in tone. He reached out and placed a hand to her chin, tipping her head up so that she had no choice but to meet his eyes squarely. "Listen to me, sweetheart... You're safe."
The redhead seemed to wince for a beat, then an expression of relief crossed her pretty features. She allowed Edge to envelop her in his embrace, his strong, muscled arms holding her tightly against his body. Lita pressed her face against his chest, her arms tightly wrapped around his narrow waist. She clung to him as though her life depended on it.
The blond man held onto the diva for long moments, silently stroking her long red hair as he rocked her back and forth slightly. His eyes closed as he gently rested his chin on the top of her head. The fact that she felt so good in his arms - as though she *belonged* there - was not lost on him.
Suddenly, he realized the redhead was speaking, and she stirred a bit in his embrace.
"What, honey?" he asked, his uninjured hand still stroking tenderly at her long tresses.
"Thank you, Edge... for saving me out there." She winced, her face crumpling with emotion. "If it hadn't been for you-"
"Lita, sweetie..." Edge interrupted, silencing her as he gently brushed the taped-up fingers of his broken hand against her lips. "... don't even think about it. And I went out there to save you because it was the right thing to do." He cocked his head again as he gazed intensely down into her shining hazel eyes. He couldn't allow Kane - or anyone, for that matter - to destroy this beautiful, precious woman. And since that worthless Matt Hardy hadn't lifted a finger to do a damn thing to help her, he would rather have been damned than not go out there and help.
He was startled as he realized a single tear had trickled down the diva's right cheek. Their
gazes still locked, he raised his good hand to gently, tenderly brush it away. Without another
word, he pulled Lita back into his embrace, and she held fast to him.