This is the first one shot in a series of three, all featuring Raw Diva Lilian Garcia. This series is dedicated to PugNTurtle, Shout Diva and Live it Up; this first one shot is for PugNTurtle, the next will be for Shout Diva then Live it up etc..

This one shot is set sometime during the Brand Extension, hope you all enjoy.

I own nothing and no one as per usual .. Happy Holidays everyone, please read and review.

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"Let's get married!" He blurted impetuously.

"What??!" Her glass fell to the floor and smashed into a thousand pieces. As the fragments glinted in the morning sun that danced across the floor, she whirled to face him, questions in her eyes and surprise across her face. "What did you say?!"

"Marry me." He said softly.

Eyes wide, she stared at him incredulously before turning away in shock. "I .. marry you?"

The immediate silence following her question was deafening. When he cast his eyes away from her to resist contact, she spun away from him again and knelt to the floor, picking up the shards littered there.

Taking a deep breath, he sighed. Staring out the window he was taken back to a time when things were simpler. By no means had things been easy. It had just been ... about them.

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"We shouldn't be doing this," he breathed, caught up in the intoxicating aroma of her scent, his fingers lingering on her hips. Leaning back he moaned, enjoying the sensation of her lips traveling across his jaw. "Lil .."

She silenced him with a kiss that would have dropped jaws had they had an audience. Giving into temptation, he moved his hands to her shoulders, entangling his fingers in her hair. Wrapping her arms around his neck she leaned into him, molding her petite form against his muscular chest. Nuzzling his neck now, her arms encircled his waist and she rested her head on his shoulder. Sighing, she closed her eyes and began to speak. "I know, we shouldn't .. but I needed to see you. I hate having to pretend and keep up appearances! This charade is killing me! I just want ..."

"We can't." He spoke at a whisper, using one hand to gesture to the cramped space they were in. "I don't want you to lose your job over this. You know that we can't tell anyone just yet ..." He brushed a piece of hair off her forehead and cradled her closer to him.

"So we've resorted to fraternizing in a cleaning closet," she muttered bitterly.

"I don't like it anymore than you do," he chided gently. "I thought you knew that .."

"Just because I know doesn't mean I have to like it," Lilian retorted, biting her lower lip.

Turning her toward him, he dropped a featherweight kiss on the top of her head before kissing her softly on the lips.

"We'll get through this," he promised her, regretfully letting her go. Her shoulders drooped, realising that it was time for him to leave. He had a plane to catch back to Smackdown! following the show that night, and she had to return to Monday Night Raw. "I'll drop by on Wednesday , and see how you're doing okay?"

The small blond nodded and turned her head so he wouldn't see her tears fall. It was pointless, he knew this was killing her, her tears were testament to that. Smiling slightly he gathered her in his arms again and kissed her intensely before slipping back into the hall. As soon as he had appeared, he was gone again. Standing in the dark, she made no effort to conceal her pain. He loved her, she knew that. She loved him too, with all of her heart. All she wanted was for him to stay.

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Turning back to her, he swallowed. "I said, let's get married."

"Married." She echoed needlessly.

His eyes pleaded with her to listen to him, for her to hear him out, but her Latina temper was getting in the way. Kneeling down beside her, he cupped her cheek softly. "Uh huh. Married. You know, a ceremony, with a Priest, our families and all of our friends," he teased gently.

Closing her eyes, she allowed herself a moment to succumb to the pure pleasure she was experiencing simply being in his presence. She could feel his breath on her face, and in that instant she knew what she wanted her answer to be. But then again, she didn't always get what she wanted.

Coming back down from her daydream, she spoke quietly, her voice laced with sarcasm. "Well, wouldn't that be interesting," she retorted. "We can't even hold hands or touch in public and you want to get married?! No one even knows about us for crying out loud!! I can see it now, my mother would have a heart attack opening the invitation!! That is, if we can even invite her to the wedding," she smirked bitterly. "If we have to keep our relationship a secret I guess the marriage would have to be secret too, right? No, I can't marry you. It's not right."

"I .. I thought you would want this .." His head fell and he removed his hand from her face in defeat. In that very instant, all of the confidence he had came crashing down around him. If she didn't want him .. then .. he was nothing ..

"I would want this??" The small blonde exploded. "What I want is to be able to tell my sister Dahlia about the wonderful guy who makes me feel complete! What I want, is to be able to tell Trishabout you so she'll stop setting me up on these stupid blind dates with her sisters friends!!" Chest heaving she was standing now, hands shaking. He rose to his feet, reaching out a hand to her but she would have none of it. "What I want," she whispered brokenly. "Is to be able to see you at work, and not have to automatically duck into hiding ... to be able to smile at you without having to feel guilty, without having to turn away..."

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As they stood in the ring, he glanced at her before quickly averting his eyes. Feeling his gaze upon her, she turned to see him staring off into the crowd. Sighing sadly, she stepped between the ropes and walked unsteadily down the ring steps, almost slipping on the bottom one. Gratefully, she accepted Marc's hand as he guided her back to her seat. He saw the sadness in her eyes, but didn't understand why it lingered there. As the match finished, he had to shake her arm to alert her it was time to announce the winner. Lilian did so, but her usual enthusiasm and playful tone were missing. She was staring at the back of a man making his way up the ramp. The man in question turned, smiling briefly before he disappeared into the night. Careful not to draw attention to herself, she slipped into conversation with Jim Ross, ignoring the pain she was feeling. They're up to something, Marc surmised. But what?

Backstage, the timekeeper grabbed Lilian by the elbow and directed her into an empty hallway. "What's going on between you two?" He asked simply, not mincing words.

Focusing on her boots, she replied sullenly. "Nothing."

"It's not nothing Lilian .. I saw the way he looked at you, and I saw the way you tried to catch his attention without anyone noticing out there."

Guilty, she fished for an answer.

"He's my friend," she insisted. "We're just friends .. Since the roster split, I never get to see him anymore. These Pay Per Views are the only chance we have to catch up, I was just trying to get him to notice me so I could say hello.." She lied, desperately trying to find a way out of this situation.

"Lilian ..."

"Marc, that's all it is. Really."

"If Vince knew what you guys were up too .. you know he has this crazy policy regarding fraternization between employees at the moment ... I don't want either of you getting hurt by whatever you two have going ..."

Frustrated by the fact that Marc was even trying to have this talk with her, she blew a piece of hair out of her eyes and stared him down. "There is nothing going on," she responded coolly. "We are friends, that's it. He's on Smackdown! now, I'm on Raw, and there is nothing between us. Now if you excuse me, Marc, I have places to go."

As she stepped around him defiantly, he spoke quietly, his voice barely audible over the noise her boots made as she strode away from him. "If it's any consolation, he feels the same way. He doesn't like it anymore than you do."

Freezing momentarily, she turned back toward him but he was already gone. Forcing down the sobs that threatened to consume her, she leaned against the wall massaging her temples. God, what she wouldn't give to see him right now.

"Hey Lily," a familiar voice piped up beside her.

"Hey Trish .. nice work out there."

"What's wrong?" Trish asked, concerned for her friend. "Who do I have to hit now?" She joked quite seriously.

"No one."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, it's just been a long night."

Trish shrugged. If her friend wasn't going to tell her what was up she wasn't going to force her too. "Okay," she agreed looping her arm through Lilian's. "So, my sister knows this guy ..."

"Trish, not another blind date!"

Blinking, the reigning Women's Champ withdrew, feeling a little uneasy at the tone of the ring announcers voice. "I just want you to be happy Lily .."

I am, Lilian thought. Happily in love with the man of my dreams, the one whom I can't even dare let his name pass my lips. The one who I'll be ducking off to see when the shows cross over next, and the one you might not ever know about.

"I'm happy. Really, I am."

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"We've been through this," he said, wrapping his arms around her now. She tried to push him away, but he cradled her closer. "I want nothing more than to be able to hold you like this before the show, to be able to sit with you alone and just talk to you. But you know how Vince is Lil .. one day, he's fine with this sort of thing and the next he's not."

Tears falling still, she snuggled against him. "I know ... "

"I want you." He choked out honestly. "I need you to know that. I know this is hard for you, living a lie, always keeping secrets from Trish and your family."

"I want you too." She broke in. "More than anything. But I want to be able to tell people how I feel about you! I want to be able to turn to that one sleazy guy at a bar and say, 'hey, this is my boyfriend you jerk, stop trying to pick me up."

He laughed a little, knowing that there was nothing else he could do to take away her pain right now. The last thing he had wanted was to make her cry, now he just wanted to bring a smile to her face. "That's why I want you to marry me," he confessed. "I want to be able to say that Lilian Garcia is coming home with me, that she's the one I'm holding in my arms at night."

"We don't have to get married for you to be able to say that .." she said slowly.

"I know. But if you give me the honor of marrying you, I'll be able to say that to everyone, and let them know that missed their chance. I want everyone to know about us, I want to marry you."

"Then why? Why now, why like this?" She almost demanded. "We can't tell anyone, not if we both want to keep our jobs. You've been with the company for over a decade, I can't ask you to give that up!"

"Lil." Searching her eyes for the devotion he knew was there, he realised what he had to do."I'm willing to give it up. For you. For us."

Eyes wide in amazement, she struggled to find the words she was looking for."No, you can't do that! The company is your life, this isn't even a option."

"The company is a big part of my life. It has given me a lot, but most of all it's given me you. As long as I have you ..." His voice drifted off slowly leaving Lilian to draw her own conclusion."Even if you won't marry me now, please, Lil, say you'll wear my ring." Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a small jewelery box, opening it up for her to see.

"It's beautiful." She breathed, gazing at the exquisite diamond band. "But .. I don't need a ring to know how much you love me," she whispered truthfully. "I don't need any of it .. I just want to know that we'll make it through this."

"Lil, this isn't just a ring. It's a symbol of what we have, and what I don't want to have to live with out. It's my promise to you Lilian, my way of saying that no one, not even Vince can't stand in the way of me loving you."

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"Lilian, it has come to my attention that there is a possibility you've been dating a fellow employee."

"Mr McMahon, it's not how to looks."

"You know my policy Lilian. It's just not allowed." The Chairman frowned slightly as he took in Lilian's appearance, her dishevelled hair and wrinkled attire. "I'm sorry, but if these allegations are true, it's your love life or your job."

"But .."

"I'm sorry. That's just how it is."

Forlorn, she left her bosses office and turned the corner to her dressing room where he was waiting.

"How did it go?" He asked anxiously. Piercing green eyes met his across the room. They spoke volumes, and this particular story didn't have a happy ending.

"It's you or my job," she sobbed. "We're done for."

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His eyes pleading with her, she looked down at the ring and traced its shape. Vince or no Vince, job or no job, he was sure she realised."You're serious."

"I wouldn't be asking if I wasn't,' he replied dryly. Gathering her toward him once more he began to stroke her hair softly. "I realise that this isn't ideal Lil, but I want to marry you. To me, marriage is more than just a certificate with our names on it saying that we're together. It's a symbol of my commitment to you, and right now, I can't think if any other way to show you how I feel. If it means me saying goodbye to the business, then I can do that, I will do that. Just tell me you want this."

Her eyes meeting his, she released her arms from where they were pinned around his chest to loop them around his neck. Breathing in deeply, she recalled every moment they'd shared over the past two years. Their time on Raw, to their troubles during the current brand extension ... the way she felt secure in his embrace, the way he always managed to do the right thing without her even asking. Right then, she knew what she wanted to tell him. "I ... I want to tell people. I want to at least tell my family, and Trish,"

He nodded gravely, knowing that this whole situation was a little intense to have sprung on her in the middle of his kitchen floor, but hey, someone said there was no time like the present. It wasn't how he'd planned this, but at the very least it would be memorable. "I know," he said reassuringly, rubbing her back. "I wouldn't have it any other way. I'm sorry that we've had to go through this for so long, you deserve so much better."

"Do you .. are you sure?" Her face examined his searchingly, as if this was all apart of some giant prank. "I have to know .. this is a big step .. when you think about it, we've never even had a real first date."

He chuckled, despite the gravity of the situation. "If taking you on a date is what it take to get you to say yes, then count me in."

Smiling, Lilian giggled. "Then I guess we should probably ring Vince and give him an update as well."

"Really?" Now he was skeptical. His heart had suddenly jumped into his throat, his palms were sweating and his face was pale, a stark contrast to her healthy pink glow. "You'll marry me??!!" He stood with her in his arms, spinning her around the room, his feet crushing the glass below.

She nodded, rubbing her nose against his ever so slightly. "Yes."

"Mike Chioda, I will marry you."