A/N: This one's for all the Smoochy Dreamers out there! This is my second foray into the Smoochy world, so I hope I did okay. Please R&R—any and all comments/constructive criticism is appreciated. Oh, and be sure to enjoy!
I have absolutely no idea where this came from, LOL.
If Stephanie McMahon had to pinpoint the exact moment when her life had began to slowly go downhill and become out of control, it would be around the time she'd met the Ayatollah of Rock and Rolla himself, Chris Jericho. Now, she was stuck in the middle of a situation she'd never intended to get caught up in with the blonde Canadian, albeit a situation that she had no intention of doing anything about. Ironically, it was a situation that Hunter had joked about with her, never thinking that it would actually come to fruition.
From the moment Stephanie and Chris locked eyes, it was obvious to any and everyone around them that these two had chemistry. Vince knew it better than anyone, but simply chose to ignore it. He wasn't about to get in the middle of Stephanie and Hunter's personal life. Hunter himself even knew it, Stephanie figured. While her husband was a lot of things, oblivious wasn't one of them. Stephanie spent many nights crying herself to sleep, wondering why she even married Hunter in the first place—he certainly didn't love her. She'd even been told by a few of the Divas that Hunter referred to her as his "little cash cow" around the boys in the back.
Why, then, didn't she just walk out, just end her marriage right there, and leave Hunter to find another way to further his career? Because, as much as it hurt, being with Hunter was something that she found safe. For so long, he'd been like her safety net, and if she cut that net, she'd be forced to make it on her own. There was no question that she could, of course—being the daughter of Vince McMahon, the ruler of the wrestling world, ensured that she'd be financially set for the rest of her life, and her career would not suffer one little bit from a divorce—but Stephanie was more concerned with Hunter. She knew that he'd try to bring her down with him, make this public and try to run her name through the mud, even though he wouldn't succeed at doing so. Besides that, she really did love him. The Billion Dollar Princess just happened to love another man as well.
Of everyone on the RAW roster, Stephanie never imagined that Chris Jericho would be the one to ignite so many different feelings in her. The very first time they'd met, Stephanie could just tell that he was one of those types of guys that she could not stand—you know, the cocky, arrogant, slightly sarcastic type that thought he was God's gift to women. Chris Jericho was hot, and he knew it. He totally rubbed Stephanie the wrong way, and if anyone had told her that just a short time later, they'd be tangled up in a sordid weave of passion, she would have laughed. Little did she know that they were right.
How had it started? Stephanie still wasn't sure. One thing was certain though—the man knew exactly how to push her buttons, knew exactly what to say to get her blood boiling. The Canadian fed off of her reactions, too. Stephanie sometimes wondered if it was Chris Jericho's personal mission to make her life a living hell. The storyline they'd decided to work together in started off innocently enough—they'd meet up during the week to go over the script, sometimes acting it out in either his hotel room or her parents' home in Greenwich. But somewhere between being business partners and wrecking havoc on Hunter's life, a spark ignited, and out of that spark grew what Stephanie had to say was the most insane, crazy, passionate, intense relationship (if it could be called that) she'd ever been in. For the first time, she felt like someone actually understood her, actually cared about her needs and her problems. She didn't get that from her parents or Shane, and she sure didn't get it at home, with Hunter. Stephanie and Chris were good for each other in that way. Even though what they were doing was wrong, it made them both happy, happier than they'd been in a long time. What was so wrong with that?
It didn't take long for Stephanie to realize that if she wanted to be with Chris and not get caught, she was going to have to use her brain and think of ways that they could cover their tracks. Most of the time, she would call Chris in her office before a taping, so that they could go over the script one last time and "rehearse." Stephanie knew that no one would think twice about it, since she and Chris were working closely together in a storyline anyway. She wasn't worried about Hunter finding out, because he never paid enough attention to her anyway at the time. He was too focused on advancing his career, not caring about who he had to mow over to get to the top. Their marriage was one of convenience; everyone knew that.
As each day grew, the two of them began to talk about their spouses and whether or not they should tell them what was going on. Chris felt more horrible about it than Stephanie—he and Jessica had always been very close, and he constantly beat himself up about what he was doing, and yet he'd fallen in love with another woman, something that he couldn't blame himself for. It had just happened. But that didn't mean he felt any better about it.
"You don't understand," he'd tell Stephanie. "Even though Jess and I have been having problems, I love her. I hate that I'm hurting her this way."
The two of them had a constant craving for one another; a craving that Stephanie never wanted to be filled. She cherished every single time that they made love, and treated it as if it would be the last time. The Canadian nor Stephanie took advantage of each stolen moment that they had together. They couldn't afford to.
As much as Chris and Stephanie wanted it, they both knew that this would never be permanent. Chris loved Jessica too much to divorce her, and Stephanie didn't expect him to. She knew she'd never divorce Hunter either, no matter how horrible he treated her. The Connecticut native knew that in order to be happy, be truly happy, she would have to accept the fact that she was cheating on her husband, and decide whether or not she wanted to continue having the affair with Chris. He made her feel like she was sixteen years old again, and she was sure that she brought out a playful, funny, sweet side of himself. It was truly more than just a physical relationship. They really cared for one another.
No matter the outcome of her dalliance with Jericho, Stephanie would always have respect and a special place in her heart for him. After all, he'd saved her and breathed new life into her, made her feel alive again. Business partners or not, it didn't matter. The constant craving would never go away.
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