Adam grinned with excitement and anticipation as he and Jay were preparing for their upcoming match.  They would be in a four corners contest against the current tag team champions, Too Cool, Trish Stratus' T&A (otherwise known as Test and Albert) and the Hardys.  He was especially pleased about that last team, as Amy (also known as Lita) was now with them.  It would be the second time she would be working with him, but it would be even better than the first time - because that last time, it had been a short match on SmackDown pitting Christian against Essa Rios for the Light Heavyweight title.  This time around, Amy would be getting into the mix physically - with Adam.

Earlier that night, Adam had joked to Amy about being on the receiving end of one of her hurricanranas.  She'd merely laughed and told him to just be ready for it.

And he was.  He was excited at the prospect of working with her again.  And he actually felt honored that he was going to be the recipient of one of her trademark moves.

Earlier that month, Adam had again been reminded of just how wrong he'd been about Amy's in-ring ability when she'd competed on SmackDown.  The match had been a battle royal with five other divas, but it had been Amy's first match since being pummeled by powerhouse Chyna a month earlier in an angle in which she and Essa feuded against the Ninth Wonder of the World and Eddy Guerrero.  While Amy hadn't gotten any "spots" working against Chyna, she'd positively sparkled in the battle royal.  A high-flyer, Lita had managed to overcome the strength of Jacqueline and Ivory, and she'd outwrestled both women.  After eliminating Jackie, it had come down to just her and Ivory.  Adam had nearly lost his breath as he'd watched her perform a beautiful, perfectly executed moonsault from the top rope.  Lita was declared the victor by Tori, the special referee.  Afterward, Lita had gestured for Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley, the current women's champion, as the match had been to determine the number one contender for the belt.

Although it had all been written into the script, Adam had winced and felt angry for Lita as she'd been blindsided by the Green Goddess.  Tori, ever the Stephanie asskisser, then counted 1-2-3 as the boss' daughter pinned the redhead.  What a joke.

Immediately after, as he'd watched Amy being interviewed by Kevin Kelly, Adam had smiled as he heard her words.  Lita had vowed revenge on Stephanie, claiming that things weren't over between them.  What a spitfire she was.  He scanned his friend's shapely body with appreciation.  She had recently taken to wearing her pants low, her thong showing.  His grin grew as he recalled how this fashion statement had come to be.

"Okay, I'm coming out now," Amy called from behind a dressing screen in her locker room.

Adam, sitting on a chair on the other side of the small room, nodded.  "Okay..."

As Amy stepped out from behind the screen, he had been unable to tear his eyes away from her.  She was wearing a hot pink top that exposed her midriff and a pair of black cargo pants decorated with pink drawstring.  The pants were slung quite low on her hips, and her pink thong showed over the top of them.

"Well, what do you think?" Amy asked as she spun around, arms spread out.

Adam was initially speechless.  She looked absolutely, breathtakingly sexy.  "Naughty" thoughts quickly soared through his brain as he continued to ogle her, his emerald eyes slowly scanning her from head to toe.  God, but she was beautiful...

"You look awesome, Ames...I love that look.  That's a nice touch, your thong showing," he finally spoke.

Amy's expression transformed to one that looked to be a cross between disappointment and impatience.  "Forget the thong - the pants???"

"Oh, those look cool, too...I totally like 'em.  You look great."

Amy turned around, her back to him as she looked over her shoulder and down at the pants.  "You really think the thong sticking out looks good?"

"Oh, yeah," Adam said, still appreciating her form to no end.  He raised his eyes to meet hers as she spoke again.

"Okay...thanks...This is my new look for the WWF."  Her full lips stretched into a broad grin, causing Adam to smile as well.

"Hey, ready to go out there?" Jay asked, breaking through Adam's reverie.  "We're next."

"Yeah, sure...I'm all ready," Adam replied as he buckled his trenchcoat.  Underneath, he was wearing a New York Yankees jersey.  Edge and Christian were supposed to poke fun at the Red Sox tonight, since they were in Boston - just another one of their silly 5-second poses.  He was enjoying this current angle and he and Jay being allowed to act like a couple of goofy jackasses.  Of course, these current Edge and Christian personas were a lot more like their real selves than the Brood had ever been.

Several minutes later, they were in the ring awaiting their three pairs of opponents.  They stood there calmly, but inside, Adam was nearly bursting with excitement as the Hardy Boyz's music suddenly blared throughout the arena.

And then he saw Amy...

Walking out between the two brothers, the redhead was wearing a fuzzy hot pink tie-on top that revealed her belly and a good portion of back, her dark gray parachute pants slung low as per her new trademark, her thong clearly showing.  Adam could not take his eyes off her.

"Wow..." he uttered, mesmerized.  He suddenly felt Jay elbow him in the side and looked at his best friend questioningly.  Jay didn't say anything and just smirked at him.

*

The match was going well.  It was non-stop action, the two women getting involved as well.  Amy had attacked Trish, knocking her down with a clothesline from behind, after the petite blonde Canadian tried to distract Matt.  This had taken place in Adam and Jay's corner.  Afterward, Adam noticed that she'd opted to stand there for a few minutes.  In a way, he considered that a good thing, but on the other hand, he also thought it was a bad thing - because he could no longer look at her easily from this vantage point.

At this point, she was up on the apron, almost right next to him as she complained to the referee about more interference.  Test, better known out of the squared circle as Andrew Martin, came over and grabbed her.  Lita squealed and slapped the big man across the face, running for cover as he dropped her.  Adam was amused.  She could obviously hold her own - in or out of the ring.

T&A were the first to be eliminated in the match after Albert failed to squash Jeff, who had moved away from the corner just in time.  The rainbow-haired man then executed a Swanton bomb to the fallen Test, who was pinned.

Adam and Jay finally saw some action soon after, when Scotty 2 Hotty did a moonwalk into their corner.  Christian, ever an opportunist, blind-tagged his way in, and Edge followed a moment later to help his brother.

Adam knew exactly when his favorite spot in the match was coming.  Melee had ensued between Edge and Christian and the Hardys.  While Jay was out on the arena floor battling both North Carolinians, Adam stood and stumbled near the far corner.  He had to play oblivious and pretend not to notice Amy perched on the top turnbuckle.  Seconds later, her legs were wrapped around his neck as she took him down with a hurricanrana.  Because she did it so extremely gently, as if afraid he would break like a fragile piece of china, Adam added a couple of his own extra tumbles to sell the move.  He had to bite his tongue to keep back the grin that was threatening to come to his face.  What a rush that had been.

Not much later, he was sorry to see the Hardys go - actually, he was sorry to see Amy go - when the Boyz were eliminated.  As they were departing, the redhead even pointed back at Adam and mouthed something to him.  He couldn't be completely sure, but he thought she'd said, "See you later."

*

After the match, Adam and Jay made their way through the hall with the tag team belts in hand.  It was their second tag team win but no less sweet than their first reign had been.

"Oh, man - I can't believe Brian knocked your pants off!" Jay crowed.

"Very funny, Jay.  Laugh it up," Adam said with a smirk.

"Sorry," the shorter blond said, "but that was just too funny!"

During the match, after it had come down to just them and Too Cool, Adam's tights had been pulled down, exposing his ass to the world, when Grand Master Sexay had him up for a powerbomb.  Although this had happened by accident, Adam hadn't enjoyed it when the gay Brian Lawler had gotten an eyeful.  He also hadn't liked the fact that, at that moment, he had to continue the physicalities with him.  Adam had nothing against Brian and was in fact friends with him - but the "incident" had been mortifying nonetheless.

"Hey, that was some match," a voice quipped, and Adam turned his head to see a recently showered Amy Dumas, already in her street clothes, her hair slightly damp.  She approached them and appraisingly eyed the gold they were holding for a moment.  "Cool belts...too bad they won't be yours for long," she teased, running a hand through each of the blonds' hair and ruffling it playfully.  Over the past four months since he'd gotten to know Amy, Adam knew that was a favorite habit of hers when she was being teasingly friendly.

He grinned at her.  She was so cute.  "Oh, yeah?" he shot back.  "And who's gonna take 'em away from us?  Your precious Boyz?  Huh?"

Amy and Jay laughed, and Adam couldn't help but follow suit.

"On a serious note, Adam..." Amy began as she met his eyes gravely, "...That was some eyeful you gave everyone tonight!"  She burst out laughing before even finishing the sentence, and Jay cackled as well.  It seemed like laughter was contagious between those two.

"Hey, that wasn't my fault!" Adam cried, placing both hands out in a retreating gesture.  "Do you honestly think I wanted that to happen?"

"Aww, poor Adam," Amy muttered, a mock pout on her lovely face.  "You're not the exhibitionist type at all, are you?"

"Not in front of Brian Lawler, he's not," Jay offered.

Amy turned to him and swatted him on the shoulder, unable to contain her laughter.

"In front of you, Amy..." he continued, glancing mischievously from her to Adam, "...Well, that's a different story."

The redhead stared at Jay for a beat, then turned to Adam, who was suddenly blushing.  She smiled as she felt her own cheeks suddenly burning.  Suddenly shy and feeling a bit awkward, she pushed a lock of hair behind one ear.  Changing the subject, she asked, "So, do you guys want to go out on the town tonight?  A club, maybe?"

"Yeah, sure," Jay replied.  "Just give us awhile to hit the showers and change, and we'll be good to go."

"Great."

"Well, I've been sweaty long enough," he said with a laugh.  "Catch you later, Ames."  With that, Jay trotted to the door of the locker room he and Adam were sharing for the night.

While Jay disappeared behind the door, Adam lingered a bit, and he and Amy gazed at one other for a long, silent moment.  Amy gave him a tiny smile.  "I'll just let you shower now..."  She reached out with her right hand and patted him on the upper arm.

Adam inhaled deeply upon her touch.  Why was it that this woman always had such a profound effect on him?

"Okay," he said softly.  "I'll see you later."

*

RAW, August 28, 2000

"Oh, this is just too much," Matt Hardy muttered.

Amy just laughed, and Jeff, standing on her other side, grinned.

They were glued to a TV monitor backstage, watching as Edge and Christian unleashed their brand new "37-second pose."

"Oh, come on!  That doesn't even look like me!" Matt complained.

Jeff started to snicker.  "God, get a sense of humor, bro...this stuff is hilarious!"

"That little Buh Buh Ray is so adorable!" Amy said between giggles.

The elder Hardy brother turned to glance from Jeff to Amy as if they were both crazy, then he looked back at the TV screen.  He too suddenly began to laugh as Adam and Jay held the tag team belts way over the heads of the four little people who were impersonating him, Jeff and the Dudleys.

"Hey, there's your cue, guys," Amy said.  "Remember what I told you - try not to hurt Adam and Jay, and don't hurt yourselves, either!"  She pointed a gesturing finger at them.

"We won't, Mom!" Jeff replied with a grin and a wink.

"I mean it!  Especially you, Jeff...Don't try anything crazy!" the redhead called as Jeff followed his brother out toward the curtain leading to the arena.

When they were gone, Amy winced and rubbed a crick in the back of her neck.  It was the night after SummerSlam, and although she hadn't had a match at the pay-per-view, she was tired.  The only physical action Lita had seen was when she'd run out to the ring to help the Hardys during their TLC match against Edge and Christian and the Dudley Boyz.  She had overturned the ladder the blond Canadians were on, preventing them from reaching the tag team belts, which were hanging high above the ring.  She'd stayed ringside, and later on, had taken a spear from Edge on the arena floor.  Although he'd been more than gentle and tried to cushion her, she'd hit her head on a fallen ladder that just so happened to be nearby.

Afterward, Amy had seen stars as she'd wended her way back to the locker room.  She hadn't seen any of the guys for the rest of the night because she'd felt too tired to socialize.  Instead, she had taken a cool shower and then hit the hay.

Tonight, she had a match defending the Women's title against Jackie.  Even though she was tired and a little worse for wear after SummerSlam, she was excited about her first title defense.

The match went smoothly, and Jackie was experienced enough and gracious enough to be gentle when she delivered kicks to Amy's midsection.  The tough diva was such a pro, and Amy respected her tremendously.  She admired the way Jackie had made the kicks look really painfully when, in reality, they didn't hurt one bit.

Still, Amy feigned feeling pain, wincing every so often.  Actually, that one spot on her head did still feel a little tender.  When they were locked up in the corner, Jackie asked, "Am I hurting you, hon?"

"No," Amy replied, "not a bit..."

Jackie smiled briefly, appreciating the redhead's selling of her moves.  "Thanks, girl..."

The match soon came to an end when Amy delivered a Twist of Fate, followed by her moonsault.  The referee raised her arm in victory as Lillian Garcia announced Lita as the winner and still Women's Champion.

Amy was just leaving the ring and had just taken a couple of steps when she noticed two familiar forms approaching.

Adam and Jay, still clad in the street clothes they'd worn during their special pose and ridiculing of their "inferior" opponents, were waving at her.  She felt like laughing when both men smiled at her - especially Adam - but she held it back for the sake of the storyline.

However, while she played surprised and a little scared, she realized that her heart began to quicken as Adam neared.  Over the last several months, they'd grown pretty close, and she couldn't deny there was an attraction there.

She gave a little yelp of surprise as she felt her hair suddenly being yanked by Jackie, who pulled her back into the ring and whipped her into the ropes.  As the veteran diva went for a clothesline, Lita ducked, only to be speared hard to the canvas by Edge, who had quickly slipped into the ring.

Adam seemed to linger over her for several seconds that felt long to Amy.  As she had the previous night, she momentarily saw stars behind her eyelids.  She tried to shake off the cobwebs, but Jackie and Christian, who had also rushed into the ring, began kicking her as Edge stood by and laughed.  Evidently, he was very proud of himself for taking Lita down with the spear two nights in a row - as if that were some kind of feat.

The three suddenly ran from the ring as Matt and Jeff Hardy rushed out and into the ring to Lita's aid.  Amy lay there on the canvas, clutching her ribs and head while Matt checked on her.  Outside the ring, heading up the ramp, Edge looked back, a huge grin across his handsome face.  He seemed too happy.

The last glimpse Amy got of Adam before he disappeared backstage with Jay and Jackie, he was mocking the Hardys' gun signs.  She would have laughed if her head didn't hurt.  She felt like she had quite a wallup.

*

"Are you okay?" Matt asked seriously when they were all backstage.  He'd noticed that Amy was holding her head and knew that she'd gotten a bit of a bump the night before at SummerSlam.

"I don't know," she replied.  "Ohhh...Damn it!"  She winced as she rubbed the sore spot.  "Just a minute," guys, she said as she turned toward a locker room.  Without knocking, she pushed the door open and waltzed right in.

"Hey, Ames," a grinning Adam said cheerfully as he looked up to see her.  "Was that cool, or-"

"You jerk!!!" she shouted, punching him in the arm with all her strength.  Her beautiful face was a mask of fury.

"What??"  Adam was taken shocked by this display of anger and violence that was so boldly directed at him.  What had just happened was all part of the script, so why was she so upset?

"That spear!" Amy yelled, gesturing wildly with both arms.  "Why did you have to be so rough?  I am a girl, you know!"

"I know..."  Adam didn't need her to tell him for him to be aware of such a fact.  He was more than aware of the fact that she was female.  "...I'm sorry," he said humbly.  "I didn't mean to be rough.  Actually, I tried to be very gentle with you."

"Damn it, Adam!  I hit my head on a ladder when you speared me last night!"

Frowning, Adam stood up and reached out to her tentatively, wanting to touch her, but he hesitated.  "I'm really sorry.  I didn't even realize you got hurt last night, let alone tonight."  He felt awful.  He didn't want to hurt anyone, but she was the last person he would want to hurt.

"Just...take it easy next time, okay?!" Amy demanded as she glared up at him, hands on her hips.  "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to take a shower and get out of here."

Adam nodded wordlessly.  He felt really bad.  After a few more seconds of Amy staring daggers into him, the redhead turned and briskly walked out.

"What was that all about?" Jay asked as he stepped out of the small bathroom and into the main locker room area.  "I heard Amy yelling at you, but I couldn't make out everything she said.  She sounded pissed!"

"She was," Adam said bitterly as he sat down on the small black leather couch against the wall.  He raked both hands through his long blond hair.  "I hurt her when I did that spear, Jay...She hit her head last night, and apparently, hit it again tonight.  Shit, I can't believe I hurt her, Jay!"