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Matt could barely contain himself of the joy he felt. He actually felt giddy after learning of the breakup between Amy and Adam. It was almost too good to be true.
The news was good enough that it called for a celebration. The dark-haired man reached for his cell phone and flipped it open to dial a number. There was really only one person he could think of to call and with whom to celebrate. Well, he would have liked to take Amy out somewhere, but he knew she was hurting and now was not the time.
"Hey," he said when the person on the other end picked up. "I'd like to see you. Meet me down in the lobby in ten minutes?" After a pause, "Great."
Ten minutes later to the dot, Hardy was downstairs in the hotel lobby, his hands in the pockets of his light jacket as he stood in wait. It was semi-late, and he knew many of his fellow wrestlers were either already out or esconced in the rooms for the night.
Moments later, she appeared, looking quite scrumptious, if he did say so himself. She was wearing a pink tank top and snug black pants, a pair of comfortable, worn canvas sneakers on her feet.
"Hi," Torrie said as she neared him. "What is it, Matt? What's going on?" She couldn't help feeling surprised. Ever since she'd agreed to help him, he'd never had much to do with her in public.
To her shock, he swept her into a big hug, actually lifting her off her feet ever so briefly. A short but booming laugh escaped him and he placed her back down, a big grin on his face.
"You're really something, Miss Torrie Wilson," he said. "C'mon, let's get a drink." He gestured toward the nearby hotel lounge, and she stared at him in confusion. What exactly was going on? "Oh, I didn't..."
"Hey, it's no problem. It's on me tonight," he said.
She simply blinked and entered the bar with him. The truth was, she wasn't even sure about how she was going to finish her own sentence.
They sat down at a private booth rather than at the bar itself. It was toward the back of the place, which was just what Matt preferred. Though in truth, it didn't matter at this point if anyone saw the two of them together. After all, what was done was done.
A waitress came by to take their orders and then quickly moved on. Torrie eyed the dark-haired man with concern and confusion and posed the question again.
"What's going on?"
Matt grinned again and folded his hands together on the table. The truth was that all he really wanted to do right now was hug this woman again. After all, had it not been for her, none of it would have been possible.
"Torrie," he began, his southern drawl extra pronounced, "you know something? You're terrific."
The blonde stared at him. The corners of her mouth were starting to feel as though they were being pulled. She couldn't resist a smile when he praised her like that.
"Thank you," she said sheepishly.
"And it's all because of why I called you to meet me," he pressed on. "We did it!"
"Huh?" Now her expression went to being dumbfounded.
"Amy broke up with Adam!" he revealed in a loud whisper.
Torrie's face fell.
"What?"
"Yeah!" he said enthusiastically with a shake of his head. "It's exactly as it should be, Tor - she dumped him! Mission accomplished."
The blonde woman merely gaped at him, her mouth wide open with shock. She could form no words as she absorbed all of this. It was just simply... awful. Sure, she had agreed and gone along with Matt to cause trouble for the couple, but to actually have any involvement with the two breaking up just about made her sick. And what kind of person actually took glee in others' misery? This was terrible. She'd made a horrible mistake.
"Oh, Matt, I-" Just as Torrie had finally found her voice again, she was interrupted.
"Here you are," the waitress said cheerily as she placed their drinks down before them. "A Long Island ice tea for you, and a scotch on the rocks for you." She smiled at them before scurrying off.
Matt hastily snatched up his drink and clinked the glass with hers.
"Cheers!" he exclaimed. He tossed back the liquor, drinking nearly the entire glass in seemingly one big gulp.
Torrie eyed him with horror. How was it possible that he could be so happy over two people ending their relationship, and apparently, due to their ruse? She couldn't comprehend it. Quite frankly, it troubled her.
She pushed her drink aside and spoke.
"Matt, I don't think this is a good idea... I'm going to pass on the drink." She started to stand up and the man stopped her with a gesture of his hand.
"Oh, come on, you can't mean that! C'mon, woman - drink at least a few sips before you leave."
Celebrating was just about the last thing on Torrie's mind. However, the look on his face stopped her, and she
sat back down. Wordlessly, she raised her drink to her lips and took a few small sips.