Frozen

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Lita buried her face in her hands, tears still on her cheeks as she absorbed everything that had just happened - and that she'd learned. And what *could* have happened.

Chrisitan had been using her... He'd never been her friend or cared about her. All he'd wanted from her was a quick lay. God, she felt cheap... And how could she *not*, seeing as the bet Christian had made with Chris Jericho had been for a Canadian dollar?

She felt a presence right beside her again, and moving her hands, she saw Edge standing over her, an object in his hands. He was handing her the shirt she'd let his brother remove from her body. As she gratefully accepted the garment, she noted the concern in the the tall blond man's green eyes.

As she redressed in her tank top, Edge turned his back out of respect for her privacy. The redhead felt more tears threatening and sniffled at the mere gesture. He seemed to be so much the opposite of his brother.

"It's okay, Edge, you can turn around now..."

The Canadian did so, and his heart nearly broke at the extent of sadness in the expression on Lita's face. She looked really crushed. And why *shouldn't* she? His guess was that, after a few months of Christian having been so nice to her - regardless of the fact that it had all been a ploy - the redhead had started to fall for him. He knew his brother was fully capable of packing on the charm when he deemed it necessary - especially where the ladies were concerned.

His brother... The slimy little prick... Moments earlier, Edge had gotten through with beating the hell out of him, fists flying. He'd concluded that with a warning, telling Christian that he'd make him sorry he was ever born if he ever caught him near Lita again. The short-haired blond man, still so shocked his elder sibling was really there, hadn't even fought back. In the end, Christian had managed to escape out the door - and Edge had let him go. He'd done exactly what he'd come for, so that was enough.

"I can't... I can't believe it..." the redhead said sadly, her eyes briefly meeting his. She shook her head as though comprehension of what she'd learned was a foreign concept to her. "Why... *How* could he do that to me?"

She appeared to be on the verge of tears again, and the tall blond man nearly winced.

"He's not worth it, Lita..." He reached down with one hand, tipping her head up with his thumb hooked under her chin. He gazed deeply into her hazel eyes, which were shining with fresh tears. "I'm so sorry my idiot brother targeted you... but Lita, you are so much better than Christian. Don't waste your tears on him..."

"But it... it *hurts*," the diva said softly, her expression tragic.

"I know it does, sweetheart..." God, she looked so miserable. Edge just wanted to gather the redhead in his arms and hold her. He wanted to do *more* than that, but after what she'd just been through, she might think he was no better than his brother. And he wasn't willing to take that chance.

Lita shook her head, the blond man's thumb still hooked beneath her chin.

"I don't understand... I really thought he cared about me..."

Edge winced, his green eyes remaining fixed to her sad face. A single tears had finally managed to become free and trickle down her cheek.

"Now you listen to me, Lita..." he began, causing the redhead's tearful eyes to widen just a bit at the firmness of his words. "If any man can't see how warm and sweet, and... oh, yeah... beautiful and wonderful you are, well then... He's just a damn fool."

The diva's breath caught in her throat as her gaze remained fixed on his handsome face.

"You deserve someone who will treat you like a princess, sweetheart... Because you are a special person, Lita..."

Lita blinked and bit her lip, the emotions doing battle inside of her.

"Thank you, Edge..." she mouthed softly.

The tall blond man gathered her in his embrace, holding her tightly. They remained like that for a long time.






Part 11

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