Chapter 1

I rolled over as my eyes adjusted to the light that was coming through my windows. Stretching I climbed out of bed and smiled at what an awesome night of sleep that I had just gotten. As I stood up my body ached in places that only I knew existed and groaned softly at the exertion that I had to put up with just to go into the bathroom and pee. Sometimes you would swear that I was 49 instead of 29 but my body aches came because of a path in life that I had chosen to taken and I never regretted doing it. As I walked into the kitchen I yawned as I put the coffee pot on and began took a pan out to make some eggs.

As I began to cook I heard the unmistakable sound of someone groaning from my living room. I wasn't surprised. My doors were never locked which I know one day it might kick me in the ass but I owned a bar in town. It was a really small town and if someone needed a place to crash they knew they could always come here. Walking towards the living room, I looked at the man standing before me. He wasn't any of our normal town folk but as he turned to face me I recognized him immediately. I leaned against the door frame and smiled.

"Good morning."

"Morning," he mumbled as he looked me up and down.

"I wasn't expecting company," I said knowing I was only wearing a long t-shirt. "Would you like some breakfast?"

"I'd love some," He said following my lead into the kitchen and sat down at the table.

"So, what brings you to my home?"

"I am not sure but I have a killer headache I must've drank way to much last night," he said squinting his eyes closed and rubbing his temple.

I made my way to the cabinet, pulled out a bottle of Aleve, dumped two into my palm than poured him some orange juice and placed them in front of him. "Here this will make you feel a bit better." I said turning back to my eggs.

"You're that girl, aren't you?"

"I'm no girl I haven't been for some years now," I said not turning around and popped some bread into the toaster.

"You know what I mean. You own that bar but you're her, the girl that ran away from the business."

I placed the toast onto his plate and put his scrambled eggs next to it and turned to hand him his plate. "Yes, I am both of those things." I said turning back around and putting bread in the toaster for myself.

"I knew it. I recognized your picture in the bar than talked to some of the local folks and I don't rightly remember how I wound up here though."

I smiled to myself as I took my toast out and put it on my plate with my eggs, poured myself some coffee and than sat down across from him at the table. "I'd imagine that someone brought you here. If you don't remember you were probably to drunk to drive yourself back to where ever you came from. It was probably Alan the bartender; he brings anyone who can't drive here to spend the night. How are the eggs Mike?"

He had just put some eggs in his mouth and stopped chewing to look at me. "You know my name?"

I laughed as I took a sip of my coffee. "Of course I know your name. Just because I am not wrestling doesn't mean that I don't know what is going on."

"So, you do still watch WWE?"

"Of course I do. I love wrestling, Mike I don't want to ever let go of that just because I stopped doing it myself."

"Why did you stop?"

I pushed my eggs around on my plate and than looked up at him. "My father died. My father was my best friend and I don't know part of me died with him. He was my biggest support in wrestling and without him there it just didn't seem right."

"But wouldn't he want you to continue doing what the both of you loved?"

"Maybe he would have but I can't take it back though. It was two years ago."

"Juli," it was the first time he said my name, my real name. "You can still do it. Retiring in the wrestling business is just like a vacation."

I smirked. "Who sent you here?"

"Nobody I came on my own but I didn't know I would meet you. All of this is just a big coincidence."

"Coincidence? You called me by my real name; no one ever calls me that."

"Two years ago everybody knew your name. No one could believe that WWE wasn't calling on you to have a tryout. You were the biggest thing in the independents. Everyone knew your real name."

"Maybe only people that cared to know everything about me." I said smiling. "When I quit wrestling I cut a lot of ties that I had in the business. I'm not sure that I could ever go back."

"Well I could help you work off some of the ring rust." He said nicely as he bit his toast.

I grinned, "Mike I don't have any ring rust, I've never stopped training. I have a ring out back in the warehouse. I've trained some people around here and we work out everyday."

"Than why not come back?" he asked confused.

"I'll think about it," I said sipping my coffee.

"Can I have some coffee?" he asked.

"Help yourself." I said watching him get out of the chair and walk over to the coffee pot grabbing a mug off the back of the counter. "I still think someone sent you."

He turned around and looked at me. "I came on my own accord to find you. I didn't think that I would end up in your living room."

"You are a very good liar Mr. Mizanin but I can see right through you. You can't work a worker dear."

He sat down and smiled. "Fine, the truth?" I nodded. "Your name came up with a few of the guys in the locker room the other day and I set out on a mission."

"Who and do they know you were coming?"

"I may have mentioned that I was going to come. It was Jericho, DiBiase, Rhodes, Ryder and Swagger."

I groaned. "And who did you mention to that you were coming here?"

"Cody. Why?"

I groaned louder.

"What am I missing?"

"If you don't know than I am not telling you."

"Was there something going on between you and Cody?" he asked curiously.

I sighed. "There was but that is old news."

"Did it not end well?"

I looked at him wondering why he cared. "Why do you care?"

He shrugged. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

I shook my head and began my story, "Cody broke my heart. I was nothing but supportive to him and none of that mattered to him. We were together for two years. I thought him and I would be together forever that we were perfect, little did I know how blind I was. A week after he broke up with me was when my father died."

"Wait. So after two years he breaks up with you, than your dad dies and he didn't even call or come see you?"

"Nope nothing and I called him because I needed him even if it was just as a friend but he never returned my calls," I said thinking back and my eyes filling with tears.

"I'm sorry." He said.

I smiled at him fighting the urge to cry. "Thank you, that means a lot to me," I said reaching across the table and putting my hand on his.

"I know Cody can be a douche from time to time but what guy can't? I can be a huge douche at times but I would never ever do that to anyone especially when they needed me."

"Good," I said still smiling. I stood up. "I'm going to get ready to work out with the guys. Would you like to come?"

"Absolutely," He said jumping to his feet, "but I'm going to wash the dishes while you get ready."

"Are you sure?" I asked him.

"Positive," he said beginning to gather the dishes.