_____________________________________________________
Stephanie was positively seething as she recalled the earlier scene in the courtroom.
The trial had been recessed for the day. She herself had not yet been called to the witness stand, but it had made her sick how her father's bitch lawyer had tried to destroy the credibility of Amy and Trish. She'd never liked Dana Finley, and, during the woman's cross-examination of the two divas, had had to swallow back the surge of rage she'd felt - the urge to jump the bitch along with it.
The group of them had gone for lunch together at a nearby diner, but everyone had dispersed. Trish had said she wanted to hit the nearest gym to do some training. Eddy and Stacy decided to go for a walk together. Adam and Amy went back to the hotel. The only one who'd stayed by her side was Jay.
Stephanie wanted nothing more than to lower her head on the table, to just cry it all out, but she held back.
She shook her head, her large blue eyes full of heartbreak as she met his.
"Did you see it?" she asked, her voice quavering and cracking ever so slightly.
"What?" the blond man asked, reaching across the table to take gentle grasp of her hand. He found the delicate appendage to be ice cold and frowned with concern.
"My father..." Stephanie replied. "Did you see the way he look at me when he left the courtroom? Like he wanted me... dead." Tears finally sprang to the brunette's eyes, and she sniffled weakly as she felt them brimming over.
Jay was dismayed to see the young woman *this* upset. It broke his heart to see it. He tightened his grasp on her hand, his blue gaze gentle. Quickly, he signaled to the waiter for the check, and the man came over and asked if everything was all right.
"It's fine," Stephanie managed, the brunette wiping at her nose with a napkin.
A moment later, they were leaving the restaurant, the bill taken care of. Jay wrapped an arm around Stephanie's slender form as they headed for the parking lot. That was where the brunette again broke down.
"Why does it have to be *so* hard?" the diva cried, shaking her head. She was referring not only to the situation of the trial, but of her strained relationship with her father in general as well. That, more than anything else, tore at her the most. It ate away at her heart every single day. "I don't know if I can go on, Jay..." she admitted, shaking her head as more tears filled her eyes and spilled forth. "I don't know if I'm strong enough..."
The blond man gathered her in his arms, holding her tightly against him. He rocked her back and forth, his hand gently stroking the soft, long brown hair, and he spoke soothingly to her.
"Shh... It's okay," he said. It'll all be okay, Steph."
"I don't know if I can go on," she cried, her tears wetting the collar of his shirt as she pressed her face to his chest.
The Canadian pulled away just enough to gaze into her face, and he tilted her head up so that she had no choice but to meet his warm blue eyes.
"Now you listen to me, Stephanie Marie McMahon," he said firmly, his hands gently against her cheeks. You've got to be, oh... just about the strongest woman I know. And you're *going* to get through this - *and* come out better for it. You're gonna succeed in *anything* you try. You can *never* give up."
Stephanie blinked as she gazed into his pools of blue, her heart skipping a beat as the emotion at his speech nearly choked her up. What would she ever do without this sweet, caring man?
"Thank you, Jay... Thank you."
He hugged her against him again, and her arms tightened around his waist as well. Then, she
actually felt a tiny smile touch her lips as, a moment later, he pressed a kiss to her forehead.