The next chapter will be rated 'R', though I'm not changing the main rating of the story. I think it's time for Hunter and Amy to get their freak on, don't you think? But, before they can make love, she has some things to tell him, things that will test their newfound relationship. And who wants to see Randy and Christa hook up, huh? I know I would love to see it!

BTW, this has been the best news I have ever heard: Chris Jericho is coming back, baby! It's been so long since we've seen him. We need his sense of humor! We need him, period! I'm counting down the days until he comes back!

But, I got some really bad news as well: Cena's out due to an injury. We won't see him again until 2008! WTF?!

With that in mind, enjoy and happy reading!

Lots of love, hugs and kisses from your resident writer and friend, Nina!

X

12/31/06

New Year's eve

Atlanta, Georgia

Dumas residence

The last week has been so wonderful to Amy. She now has a great group of friends and she has a boyfriend who simply adores her. As if things couldn't get any better, she was happy to learn that Randy and Christa are now talking to each other. Amy knows it's time for Christa to get out of that funk she got herself into and start dating and loving again.

2007 was fast approaching and she couldn't wait to start the new year off right. Her friends all went home and decided to ring in the new year with each other, which turned out to be a blessing for her. She wanted to be alone with Hunter tonight and vice versa. She couldn't imagine her life without him.

And she was happy to know that Matt and Adam hasn't bothered her lately. Maybe because they were too busy with their own lives to even think about her. That was okay because she hadn't given them much thought, either. She was finally moving on with her life and she was extremely happy.

Snuggling on the couch and watching television, Amy was waiting anxiously for Hunter to come back from whatever he was doing. He promised her an evening she'll never forget. She was so excited that she could barely keep still.

"Baby, I'm home!" Hunter called out as he walked inside, carrying several bags of groceries.

"I missed you," she said as she ran towards him.

"I just went to the store, beautiful. You knew I was coming back, no matter what," he replied as he leaned over and kissed her sweetly.

"I know. It's just..."

"You're a little anxious, aren't you?" he grinned at her.

"And you know me so well," she giggled.

"In due time, my dear, in due time. Right now, I need to go into the kitchen and get started cooking. In the meantime, you just sit on the sofa and relax," he said as he leaned over and kissed her lightly, then he went into the kitchen to get started.

20 minutes later, the smell of lasagna overwhelmed Amy's senses. She couldn't wait to eat because she's been hungry all day. Hunter padded into the living room a moment later, extending his arm for her to take.

"Dinner is served, Madame," he said in a fake French accent.

She giggled as she got up from the sofa, grabbed his arm and allowed him to escort her to the dining room. When they got there, she was shocked to see the work he had done. Several candles were lit and the table was set up with fine chinaware.

"Hunter, what is this?" she whispered as he pulled out a chair for her to sit in.

"This is all for you. You deserve this, Bella. You deserve all of this," he replied as he took a seat right across from her. The candlelight sparkled the maple marble table as they looked at each other intently.

"This is beautiful, Hunter, thank you," she whispered, smiling at him.

"All for you, beautiful. I wanted to show you how much you mean to me and I thought a romantic candlelight dinner would be the perfect start."

"You're beginning to spoil me, but I love it," she giggled.

Throughout dinner, the talked a lot, mostly flirting with each other. In the heat of the moment, he leaned over across the table and planted a searing kiss on her tender lips. It was a sweet gesture, but it was enough to send her over the edge. She'd always wanted to be treated like a queen and now that it has happened, she vows that she won't screw it up.

After dinner, which was about an hour later, they got up from the table and went back into the living room, nursing glasses of white wine. They opted to clean up the mess they made in dining room another day because this was the time to celebrate.

"Thank you for dinner. I never knew you can cook," Amy quipped as they sat down on the sofa.

"All credit goes to my mother. She made the best lasagna I ever tasted in my life. I just followed the recipe, that's all," Hunter admitted.

"It was delicious, I must say. Your mother did good," she laughed.

"You little tart!" he squealed before he pinned her down on the sofa and began tickling her. She laughed and laughed, trying to squirm out of his grasp, but found herself enjoying this interaction.

"I give! I give!" she giggled.

"Are you sure?" he taunted playfully.

"Yes, I'm sure! Now, will you please stop tickling me?!" she laughed louder.

He stopped tickling her long enough when he leaned down and started kissing her passionately. She opened her mouth and allowed his tongue to tangle with hers. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down on top of her. His lips moved from her lips to the column of her neck; biting down on her skin lightly.

"Don't give me a hickey," Amy moaned as he kept sucking on her neck gently.

"Why not? I wanna brand you," Hunter whined.

"That's what Matt said," she revealed, ruining the mood.

He lifted his head up and looked at her. "Where did he brand you at?"

She lifted her shirt up. A noticeable bruise rested right about her right hip. He traced his finger over it and sighed. It looked more like a bite mark than a hickey.

"When did he do this?" he whispered.

"Shortly before he dumped me," she answered, tears threatening to fall from her eyes.

He wiped them away with his thumb. "Honey, tell me the truth. Has Matt ever been rough with you?"

She looked away from him and sighed. She sat up on the sofa and buried her face in her hands. He rubbed her back with his large hand and felt her shiver.

"Yes," she finally answered.

"When?" he asked softly. Anger was boiling in his veins at the thought of Matthew Moore Hard getting rough with her.

"August 2004. During our storyline with Kane, we were going through some major problems in our relationship. I told him we needed to be separated for a while, but he couldn't handle it. He got angry and started beating me up. I couldn't work for a week. He left a bite mark just above my hip to brand me his. Up until he dumped me last year, he made sure that mark stayed," she explained.

"God, Ames. Why didn't you leave him, baby?" he asked sternly.

"Because he was all I had. I needed him. He took care of me when no one else would. You see, I came from an abusive home. My father beat me, my brother and my mother up all the time. I wanted to run away from home so many times, but my father threatened to kill my mother and Billy if I left. He instilled so much fear in me. I would hide in my room for weeks because I didn't wanna deal with him."

"I didn't know, baby. I'm so sorry," he soothed as he took her in his strong arms.

"One night, my whole world shattered. I had enough of my father beating me so I packed up my things. I was about to leave when I heard him yelling and screaming at my mother. Then, I heard gunshots. My father kept his gun in his office. I ran downstairs as fast as my feet would let me go. By the time I got into the living room, I wanted to curl up and die. My mother and Billy were both laying in the pool of their own blood. He killed them. My father killed them," she sobbed.

"Oh, my God. Ames, I can't believe he would do such a thing," he whispered in her ear.

"I heard another gunshot. I went into the kitchen and saw my father laying on the floor. He took his own life. He wanted me to remember the actions I had caused. He blamed me for everything."

"You're not to blame for anything. Your father was a fucking fool. He took the lives of two innocent people who didn't do anything wrong. If anything, you didn't know what he was gonna do."

Amy raised her head up and looked at Hunter, tears falling from her eyes. It was like he knew her all his life.

"I was a mess since that night. I had nowhere to go and no one to turn to for help. I was so alone. If it weren't for Matt saving me, I'd be dead by now. But, had I know how he would turn out to be a whole lot sooner, I would've walked away from him. But, I couldn't do that because I loved him. In the end, though, he walked away from me."

"Adam did the same thing," he reminded her.

"Don't remind me," she moaned in annoyance.

"But, I'm not. You can rest assure that I'll always be here, no matter what life throws at us. I love you and you love me," he declared.

She leaned over and planted a soft kiss on his lips, then she laid her head against his chest and sighed deeply.

"I love you, too," she whispered.

It was only a matter of time before something big will about to jump off; and they won't even be prepared for it, either.

But, they couldn't think about that now. As the countdown to the new year began, Hunter and Amy held each other tight and realized that they don't need anyone else but each other. Especially in this world.

X

1/1/07

New Year's day

Tampa, Florida

Copeland residence

"She's with him now?! How?!" Adam barked over the phone.

I overheard Melina and Nathan talking. Nate said that he saw Hunter and Amy kissing under the mistletoe. He was shocked, Matt replied, huffing on the other line.

"I can't believe this! She was supposed to be alone! That was our plan!"

Don't blame me. He's always with her, making sure she wasn't alone. I can't believe she got with his ass. It's an total insult!

"Tell me about it. So, what are we gonna do?"

We'll just have to break them up somehow. Amy needs to be alone. I'm thinking about bringing someone from her past to help us ruin her.

"Like who?" Adam snorted.

Matt smiled. Like Christa.

"Christa?! I don't think so. Besides, she wants nothing to do with us!"

That's gonna change. I have something on her, too. She won't know what's gonna hit her when we get done messing with her.

"I don't know, man. Christa...she's still bitter at us for what we did to her. She won't even talk to us."

She's gonna have to once we got her in our clutches. Listen, just make sure she accepted my phone call when you get in touch with her. I have three-way on my phone. I'll handle the rest.

"Fine," Adam said before he hung up the phone. He couldn't believe this was happening. Holding his face in his hands, he was beginning to wonder if making Amy's life miserable was worth it. He didn't know whether he should go through with it or not. But, he knew Matt would have his ass if he didn't go through with the plan.

Taking a deep breath and running his fingers through his short blond hair, Adam got up and went into the kitchen. He decided not to dwell on it too much because a certain blonde was waiting for him. He pushed the thought of Amy in the back of his mind. As far as he's concerned, she doesn't exist.

More drama in the next chapter, along with the smut! Stay tuned!

Please review!