Pressured into accepting a job from her first cousin once removed, writer Kiri Johnson (Pen name Andrea Mackenzie) finds herself in a world she had never dreamed of. Caught between two rival factions, she struggles to reconcile her feelings and her family. Forced to choose between relationships, in the end she has to do what is right for her.

I have no affiliation with the WWE and make no claims that I own anything or anyone you may recognise here. This story is written purely for entertainment my own and others and I make no claims that it in any way reflects reality.

One choice can change your life

Chapter one

Moving

Moving to a city had seemed like a very good idea. After everything that had happened to her where she lived before, the chance to make a fresh start, to begin again, was almost irresistible for her. Moving to another state seemed like an even better idea, somewhere no one knew her, a chance to start with a clean slate. A chance to strike out on her own, to leave behind the pain of her past, so she took a leap into the unknown doing just that, wanting to leave parts of her old life behind her forever, to be herself and begin again.

Of course her Father and Mother didn't see it quite like that. They thought she was wasting her life, concentrating on her little hobby, instead of getting a proper job, if they only knew. In the end they had typically, as they always did, gone against her wishes contacting her Mother's cousin, asking if he could find her a little job in the company he worked for. It was the last thing she wanted, or needed, so when she was informed of what they had done, she had hoped with all her heart that he would say no. However that was not to be, and he had found a little something for her, basically she was going to be a gopher. She knew what that meant, go for this, go for that, even worse her title would be assistant to his wife, she would be the one who would have to cheerfully deal with all the crap, probably being expected to have a smile on her face, and to be thankful for the crumbs she was being given. Still, she figured she could stick it out for a couple of weeks, before saying it wasn't for her, or maybe she could pick up a few facts or ideas for another book. However it worked out, her family didn't know where she lived, and if she had to she would change her cell phone. Striking out on her own seemed like the best idea in the world, it was time to make her life her own.

Her little hobby as her Mother condescendingly called it; brought in more money that her parents would believe. Thank goodness for pen names, wigs, dark glasses and hats. Her alter ego, was the one who did book tours and readings, while she stayed the same shy little thing she had always been, and did the writing of the books.

Being a shy and quiet child she had been an easy target for bullies, especially when she had been cursed with an early development, so that while her class-mates remained flat-chested she had had curves. Even though many of her fellows caught up with, and surpassed her, the teasing and tormenting continued, prompting her to adopt the style both she and her alter ego wore to this day, baggy shapeless clothes that hid her figure, and didn't cause people to take a second look. As a child she had found her friends in books and her love of them prompted her to try her hand at writing, to her amazement, the young woman who was constantly told she would never amount to anything, became an overnight and enduring success.

She had moved into her new house a couple of days ago and had been caught up in a frenzy of unpacking and sorting out her life. Her office looked out over her back yard, a yard she intended to sculpt with flowers and plants, making it over to be even more hers than it was right now. She had all her important things around her in there, including a bookcase that held her first editions of all her books. Her imagination creating lovers who were larger than life, the men, kind and tender, the women, gentle and caring but at the same time filled with an inner strength not visible on the surface. The villains evil and cruel, who succumbed to the justice meted out in her worlds, and ultimately paid for their crimes in one way or another. Her hero's romancing her heroines with an intensity she had never known in her life. The physical side of their relationships came from her imagination, and reading the work of others.

Her own relationships had been far less than the stuff of romantic fiction, in fact they had been more the romancing of her by the villain, that the hero, and less than satisfying. The last 'villain' was the cause of her deciding to move. He was also the reason her parents decided to butt into her life once more. They thought she was renting her property, having no idea she owned it outright, and that her then boyfriend was helping her with the rent and basically keeping her, while in fact it had been the other way around and she had been the one to give him money. When they split her parents worried she had no clue how to keep herself, she had hidden her writing from them, after her Father had expressed his views on her short stories, written whilst still at school. He had not been impressed with the idea of trying to make a living as a writer, and told her so to her face in less than complimentary language. He was always a harsh critic, somehow unable to believe that the shy little wallflower was his daughter. It never seemed as if she was good enough for her parents. She wasn't cleaver enough, she wasn't popular enough, she wasn't pretty enough, the list went on and on, of everything she wasn't, that they wanted her to be.

She never told them her first novel had been snapped up by a publisher, and that she had been given a contract for five more books, with more money than her parents would have believed possible. She had kept it to herself, not wanting to be ridiculed anymore, or told that it was just a lucky one off. Writing under a pen name, meant they had no idea that the book her Mother had actually gushed about and read with her book club, had been written by her own daughter, and that's the way she wanted it to stay.

When she had voiced her decision to move to them, they had opposed it venomously, saying it would be better if she moved back home where they could keep a proper eye on her, and make sure she did not mess her life up any more than she already had. When she refused their generous offer, they had sprung the job on her. Not knowing that at twenty five she had twelve published books to her name with notes and ideas for several more. She had, had her work on the best sellers list and done several promotional tours and meet and greets. Her bank account was more than healthy, in fact she had more money than she needed right now. In her world she was a success, not the failure her parents deemed her to be, and she intended to go on indulging her passion for writing, and continue to make her not unsubstantial living that way.

So here she was, new state, new city, new house, she could spread herself out and work to her heart's content. Well apart from the unwanted job. However knowing she did not need it and would not have to stay long if she hated it, made even that somehow easier to bare. This was a new chapter in the story of her life and she intended to make the most of it.

Finally, even though she had not yet finished unpacking, the warm sunshine proved an impossible lure to resist, and it drew her outside. On impulse, she decided to explore the neighbourhood a little. It turned out not to be the best idea, as before she had got too far the weather changed. When the rain struck out of the previously sunny, though slightly cloudy sky it came down in an almost vertical torrent. The big drops soaking everything, and everyone who was out in it, making it hard to believe that just moments before there had been bright warm sunshine. Sighing softly to herself, as she felt the rain soaking into her light top and skirt, causing them to cling tightly to her body, showing off the figure that she tried to hide with too big and baggy clothes, she turned to head back home. Her skirt wrapped itself tightly and wetly around her legs, while her top clung to her upper body. She just wanted to get out of the rain, and half walked, half ran back the way she had come. Her hair was quickly plastered to her head, and with the natural curl taken out by the weight of the water, it showed its true length, reaching almost to the middle of her back instead of hanging just past her shoulders. The water also ran off it, and into her eyes, smearing the small amount of make-up she wore, so that the shadow and mascara ended up streaking down from her eyes. Sighing, and pushing her hair out of her face, she wondered what she had gotten herself into moving here. She tried to avoid the larger puddles that had formed quickly in places, the rain too heavy and hard for the ground to successfully soak up so that it lay on the surface, filled depressions in the ground, or just flowed along seeking out the low lying places, so that it ran down the driveways in small streams, and down the road like a river.

She was almost to her house when a passing car, sped through a deep puddle forcing the water up, covering her in a solid wave, adding further to her misery, and making sure she was well and truly soaked to the skin. Stopping for a moment, she glared at the offending vehicle, before heading on down the street, feeling the water running from her body and onto the ground. As she made her way towards her house, the car pulled into the driveway of the adjacent property, parking close to the neighbouring house.

"Welcome to the neighbourhood." She muttered to herself, as she made her way up her sloping driveway, paddling through the water that was running down it in a steady stream, all she wanted to do was get in out of the rain. She was far too shy to think of gesturing, or yelling at the people in the now parked car, who knew what that, might lead to.

Hearing laughter, she glanced at the neighbouring driveway. Three men had gotten out of the car, shielding their heads with their bags; she wondered if they were laughing at what they had done to her? Looking away before they could catch her watching them, she headed for the door, wanting nothing more than to get out of the rain, and into a warm shower. Her hands searching for, and finding her keys in her purse, she held them tight as she continued walking.

"Hey who's the drowned rat?" The harsh voice reached her ears, so that she flushed, ducking her head down, allowing her wet hair to fall forward, hiding her face as she headed for the house.

"Maybe she is just that, a rat, hanging around here, we could make her day." A gravelly voice joined in the first, before laughing again.

Hurriedly she fumbled with her keys, trying for the lock and missing, terrified the men were coming over. She had no idea why they were likening her to a rat; however she had a feeling their idea of making her day, would not be hers. Her hands shook, as she finally got the key in the lock turning it quickly, before almost tumbling through the door, which she slammed and locked behind her. Leaning up against the back of it, her heart thundering in her chest, her ears strained to catch any sound of them following her. She thought she could hear the sounds of distant laughter, but no sounds of pursuit, chancing a glance out of the window by the door; she heaved a sigh of relief to see no sign of them on her driveway.

Sighing, when she saw the puddle in her hallway, she pulled off her wet top and skirt letting them fall to the floor, no point in extending the puddle any further, her sandals followed so that she stood there in her bra and panties, her wet hair now sticking to her back, she hung up her purse, before heading up the stairs, for her much longed for shower.

By the time she was washed and dried, the rain had stopped as quickly as it had started, and the warm sun was shining once more.

Picking up her wet clothing and cleaning up the mess they had made, took a while. Once she was done, the fear she had felt seemed like a distant thing, and she almost laughed at herself. Hopefully the men were just visiting, and she would see them infrequently, if at all. Her wet clothes went into the machine on a quick wash, and all seemed right in her world once more. She was dressed in dry comfortable clothes, the rain water was drying up, and the three men were far away from her. She was safe back in her own little world again.

Once the wash was done, she set it to dry, then began the task of emptying the last of the boxes from her move. Loosing herself to unpacking the last of her possessions and putting them away, she did not notice that the day was slipping away, till a knock on her door drew her from her self assigned task.

Sighing softly before glancing out of the window, she was surprised to see the day so far gone. She was a little surprised to find that she felt quite hungry, she would have to see about getting something to eat she supposed. Rising to her feet, she made her way to the door and opened it, shocked to find a tall, dark haired, handsome stranger standing there with a bag in his hand.

"Can I help you?" She asked a little suspiciously looking up at him; his eyes were covered by a pair of glasses, whose dark frames contrasted well with his skin. His dark hair was pulled back from his face and if she had to guess she would say it was quite long, she could not help but notice the patch of blond hair on the right hand side of his head. His beard was the same colour as the majority of his hair, cut fairly close to the skin. She assessed his height at over six feet, so that she felt he towered about her own five feet five inches. Despite the friendly smile on his face she felt a little intimidated. The thought of the three men from earlier flashed though her mind, and she could not help the little shiver that ran through her.

He licked his lips as he looked at her, and her eyes seemed to fix themselves on the tip of his tongue that was visible as he did so, making him smile once more. This time she was not sure if he was smiling at her, or he found it funny that she was watching his tongue.

"Hi I'm your neighbour." He pointed to the house she had seen the three men at earlier, and was confused to see her take a step back, her hand going to the door as if she was about to slam it closed in his face. "I knew the house had sold, I just didn't know anyone had moved in yet, but then I spend a lot of my time away working." He knew his speech was speeding up, as he saw her start to close the door. Wanting to stop her, he stepped forward making her squeak a little in fear, and take another step back. He frowned resting his hand on the door to prevent her closing it on him and held up the bag with the other. "I brought you dinner."

"I'm not hungry." The timber of her voice gave away her fear and shock, while the rumble her stomach chose that moment to give, made a lie of her words.

Moving his hand from the door he rubbed the back of his head. "Really?" He wasn't about to call her on her obvious lie, he didn't want to upset her any further that she obviously was." I figured this would be a nice way to welcome you to the neighbourhood." He gave her a little half smile.

"I don't need that kind of welcome thank you." The fact that he had not made another move towards her gave her a little courage,, however her words made him frown slightly and wonder what she was talking about, then suddenly it was as if a light bulb had gone off and he smiled down at her once more.

So I decided to make a stab at writting again, I just don't seem to have had the time, or if I have I start and don't get past the first chapter.

I hope you like this and if you would give me your thoughts on it, they would be appreciated.