~~~~~~~Chapter 9~~~~~~~

Jenna's nervously fidgeted with her shirt as she sat in the front seat of Krista's car, stuck in traffic on the way to the airport. "Kris, I don't know if this is such a good idea. I mean, what if Ma.." She was quickly cut off by her friend. "Jenna, sweetie, you can't hide forever. Your boys need you there." She hung my head and nodded, knowing I was being selfish, but she couldn't bring myself to face him. Especially after the way she had just taken off. Over the last several weeks she had done a lot of thinking and realized that she had more than likely over reacted and should have at least calmly accepted the rejection like a mature adult instead of storming off like a hormonal teenager. Just thinking about that night sent her emotions into a whirlwind of shame, arousal and regret. She hated the fact that she had so easily fell into his arms and allowed him to wound her so deeply. She could still remember the way he looked at her, his eyes swirling with hunger, the way he held her in tightly in his strong tattooed arms as if he never wanted to let her go. One solitary tear slid down her cheek and she made a silent vow to herself that it would be the last tear to fall from her eyes because of Mark Calaway. "You know what, Kris. You're right. I'm going to go, and I'm going to have a great time with my sons and my friends, and to hell with Mark fucking Calaway!" I said forcefully, a genuine smile gracing my face for the first time in almost a month.

As the plane landed in Miami she slowly stood and stretched. The flight had been nerve wrecking. She had always hated flying and then she ended up stuck between Chatty Cathy and Smelly Melvin the entire flight. Her nerves were officially on edge as she got off the plane and walked towards the baggage claim. As she bent over to pick up her bags she heard a low whistle behind her, "Damn, that's a sight for sore eyes." She heard a deep Texas drawl and a broad smile immediately found its way onto her face. "Steve! For a minute I was almost afraid Shawn had sent Mark to pick me up." She said with relief. Steve took her bags from her and led her out to his rental truck. "Nah, Honey. I wouldn't have let him do that. He wanted to though. He's determined that it was all a misunderstanding." She felt the sorrow prick at the back of my mind again at the thought of Mark and how much she missed him until she felt a strong arm wrap around my shoulder and looked into Steve's crystal blue eyes. "Now come on, Honey! No tears and sad faces on my watch. Let's go see those brats of yours. They've been waiting for ya." He said with a laugh as they both got into the truck and headed to the hotel where everyone was staying.

As they walked toward the front entrance of the hotel my stomach grumbled loudly causing a deep laugh to come from Steve. "Damn girl! How about I take your bags up to your room and you go get something to eat in the restaurant? I'll be down there in a little bit." She laughed with him and nodded, knowing that I was indeed overdue to eat. She hadn't eaten anything since the night before because my nerves were so high that she couldn't stomach to eat anything. She made my way to the restaurant trying not to look like the starstruck fan that she was at that moment as she passed several wrestlers that she had watched over the years. Finding an empty table she sat down looked over the menu, letting out a sigh of relief that she'd managed to avoid Mark or Michelle so far. She wasn't sure if her fragile nerves could handle seeing either of them. A shy young waitress came by to take her order and she smiled at her and ordered a chef salad and sweet tea, not wanting to eat anything too heavy. As the waitress walked away Jenna pulled out her phone and sent Shawn a text letting him know that she was down in the restaurant. She had just hit send when a voice right behind her froze her where she sat. "Jen?" She would recognize that voice anywhere. It was the voice that had haunted her dreams and memories for damn near a month. The voice that she could have gone her entire life without hearing again. Slowly she turned to meet dark green eyes, filled with what she almost thought was sadness, but then quickly dismissed it. "Hi Mark". She said softly before turning back to face away from him and focus on her phone, hoping he would take the hint and go away. She wasn't that lucky though. Even with her head lowered she could still see the large man pull out the chair next to her and sit down, scooting it close enough to her that their knees almost touched. "Darlin', Where ya been? Why'd ya take off like that?" She looked up into his eyes, seeing the hurt and confusion swimming in them and her temper flared. She quickly stood up and threw a twenty dollar bill onto the table, no longer hungry. She locked eyes with him, trying to convey all the hurt and anger she felt. "You know what Mark! You have no right to come to me acting like You were the victim. You know what? Kiss my ass, Mark Calaway!" She bit out as she slapped him hard in the face, pain radiation through her hand and up her arm as it connected with his cheek. Biting back her yelp of pain, she quickly grabbed my purse and made my way out of the restaurant and to the elevator, wanting nothing more than the silence of her hotel room.

Mark stood frozen in place, shocked at what had just happened. He expected her to be upset, hell he probably deserved it, but he had never expected her to react that way. His face burned from the intensity of the slap she'd given him, but it was nothing compared to the pain and guilt he felt in his heart. He had fallen hard for that tiny little hellraiser, and he wasn't going to give her up. Deciding he'd bide his time and let her cool off, he calmly walked outside to his motorcycle to go for a ride and think, his mind full of nothing but thoughts of Jenna and the look of pure heartbreak and outrage that she had given him. He didn't know how, but he was determined to make it up to her. He wasn't going to let her go without a fight.

Authors Note-

I just want to say thank you to all of you that are still following this story and I want to sincerely apologize the neglect I've shown this. I've been having some personal struggles, but I'm back! I plan on updating this regularly if you'll just stick with me. Thank you all again for your wonderful reviews and support of this story.