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Amy didn't know how she did it, but somehow, she managed to keep from falling to pieces after hearing that awful story from Lilian. It was after eleven, and the show had finally come to an end. For that, she was glad. She'd been looking forward to getting the hell out of the arena all evening and returning to the hotel.
After her conversation with Trish and then later with Lilian, she'd refused to stay in the women's locker room. She'd gone straight back there to retrieve all of her things and then went to Adam's. Fortunately for her, the tall blond man hadn't been there. She hadn't wanted him to see her looking so upset, because then he would surely have questioned her. And how in hell could she explain it to him? He would get angry, to say the least. How *else* would he react and feel with all these people telling disgusting lies about him?
Now, as the two of them made their way down the hallway to leave the arena, she was acutely aware of her surroundings. Her gaze narrowed as she spotted Dawn Marie several feet away down the hall. She didn't know who she was angrier with - the brunette for having told Lilian such a filthy lie about Adam, or the blonde ring announcer for having been the one to tell *her* the lie.
The tall blond man couldn't help but notice the way his new girlfriend was staring at a certain brunette diva in the hallway as they passed her. He swallowed hard as he averted his gaze from Dawn, his arm securely around Amy's shoulders as he hurried her along. The last thing he needed was for something to go down between the two women here. But then he wondered why he would think something *would* happen. Amy didn't know or suspect a single thing.
They made it out of the arena without incident, entering the parking lot in no time. He was relieved when she didn't say a word as they walked to the rental car. She sure had been staring strangely at Dawn Marie. He wondered why.
He unlocked the passenger's side door for the redhead, and without a word, she entered and buckled her seatbelt. He packed their bags in the trunk, his heart pounding quickly in his chest. He willed it to slow down to normal, but he couldn't shake the odd feeling. Something was happening, or had happened at the arena earlier that night, and Adam wondered if maybe it had something to do with the conversation Amy had had with Trish.
The diva was still silent as he entered through the driver's side and slammed the door. He gazed at her as he did his lapbelt, wondering exactly what was going through her mind as she sat there with her hands in her lap. She looked thoughtful but he couldn't detect her mood.
Finally, he made up his mind as he put the key in the ignition.
"Hey... You okay?"
The redhead looked up to face him. She seemed to force a tiny smile, then her gaze dropped somewhat.
"Yeah."
The tall blond man reached out and placed his hand palm-flat against her cheek. She was kind of cool to the touch. That sort of alarmed him.
"You sure?" he asked, his voice laced with concern.
She nodded, raising her left hand and touching his arm tenderly. Then, she moved it away after a beat and turned back to face foward.
"I'm just tired. I think I'd like a hot bath back at the hotel."
Adam considered her words, and a small smile slowly spread across his face as he turned the key in the ignition. A hot bath with her sounded so delicious. He wondered if she would invite him to join her and suddenly felt himself growing hard.
'Down, boy,' he mentally told himself. 'At least wait until you get back to the hotel.' He put the car in reverse and
backed out of the parking space.