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"You did a great job," Matt said, his dark eyes meeting her blue. "Well done."
Torrie couldn't help but blush at the gaze. His brown orbs were so intense, unwavering as they fixed on her. If he only knew the effect he was currently having on her, and had on her in general. And then, at the same time, she felt uneasy and strange about what she'd been doing. Spying on Adam and Amy was one thing, but going so far as to actually interfere in their relationship was another.
It was on the tip of her tongue to thank Matt, but then she changed directions.
"Matt, I... I don't feel right about what we're doing," she admitted.
He stared at her, surprised. The platinum blonde looked almost shy as she regarded him.
"Why? I know he's got evil intentions - does that make it better?"
"No... Yes... I don't know!" Torrie cried, hating the conflicting emotions inside of her. Her head was telling her one thing, while her heart was screaming something completely different. She saw nothing wrong between Amy Dumas and Adam Copeland. Despite everything Matt insisted on, she didn't believe that Adam was using Amy, or that the blond man was bad for her. As far as she had seen for herself, those two loved each other. Why was Matt so intent on splitting them apart?
"It's just that I don't understand," Torrie explained. "They appear to be so in love. Why do you want to do this?"
Matt smirked, but then a malicious expression came over his countenance.
"Torrie, what you have to understand is this - things are not always as they appear."
She bit her lip, her gaze dropping to the floor. Why was she suddenly experiencing such a sickening feeling in the pit of her stomach? She knew... She knew, and it bothered her. Then, she verbalized it.
"Are you in love with her? Is that it, you want to break them up because you want her for yourself?"
The darker Hardy gave her an odd look.
"No, of *course* not! Torrie, Amy is like a sister to me - nothing more, nothing less. And I won't let that son of a bitch hurt her. I know him, Torrie... I know what he's capable of." Matt's expression grew darker, more angry. "He hurt her once before, he'll do it again." He shook his head. "But I won't *let* it happen again," he insisted. "And *that's* why we're doing this."
The blonde winced at the intensity of his speech. This was all just too much. In her heart of hearts, Torrie knew that Matt was wrong... At the same time, she couldn't bring herself to say no to him. She just didn't have the heart to.
She nodded.
"I see."
Matt's mood suddenly changed as he inched closer to her, closing the distance between them. All this time, as they'd been talking in his hotel room, she'd been standing near the window. He'd invited her to sit, but she'd opted to stand instead.
"Thank you," he said softly, his gaze on her different than any other time she could recall. "Thank you for helping me with this."
To Torrie's vast shock, the dark-haired man wrapped his arms around her, drawing her against him. She stiffened for the briefest moment, full of shock over the physical contact, but quickly recovered and returned the hug. Her eyes closed at the feeling of his embrace, and she inhaled the scent of his cologne.
Shocking the tall blonde even further, Matt suddenly gazed into her face, and his lips drew near to hers.