Chaka1967 , Farina, Margaux, Jeri252 and everyone else I forgot, Thank you for reading this story and supporting my crazy ideas.

Please feel free to say whatever is on your mind. Criticism is part of the creative journey and I appreciate it.

God bless the creator of Hunter Hearst Helmsley. Thank you, Vince ;)

I do NOT own Triple H's character, Although I would've liked to :)) I do However own every piece of crazy idea in this story.

Special thanks to Coreys Kitten for the great tips, her time and her patience.

Also a big thank you to my dear twin who encouraged me to follow my imagination.

In case you were wondering the answer is yes. it's still all about The GAME and how you play it.

Love Works in Mysterious Ways

Chapter 25

After getting what she wanted for the second time that night, Renee laid in Hunter's arms and smiled to herself. Having him hold her and treat her body so delicately with his touch felt more right than anything she had ever experienced before. No woman could ever match him. This man cared about her needs more than most of the women she had been with, if not all.

Feeling her soft lips on his chest, Hunter smiled as he kept caressing her hand with his thumb. "I thought you were asleep."

"Do you think this is for real?"

"What is?"

"Us…"

"Are you going to have a meltdown?"

"I'm serious, Hunter. This was a very big step for me."

"It was a big step for me too, Renee. I wouldn't have taken this step if this wasn't real from me."

"So what, are you my boyfriend now?"

"Oh my God, you are such a baby."

"Is that a no?"

"It's a stop defining everything and go to sleep before I get a headache."

"Pig." She muttered as she closed her eyes.

The morning came and Renee opened her eyes when she felt Hunter shift in his sleep. His big palm rested on her lower stomach, his leg entwined with hers. As she brought her hand to his, she bit her lip thinking of how good it felt to be curled up in his big arms.

Suddenly she heard voices in the house. No way! Did Shawn bring Rory home without calling Hunter? Very carefully she moved Hunter's hand and got out of bed. Looking out the window, she saw Shawn, Rory, Cameron and Cheyenne in the back yard playing ball. She quickly locked the door and closed the curtains. "Hunter, wake up!" She whispered and gave him a little nudge.

"Renee, it's Sunday…"

"Shawn's here with the kids." She gave him another nudge.

Jumping up, he looked around and tried to listen. "Lock the door."

"Already did that, genius. Any other ideas?"

Getting out of bed, Hunter scattered the room in search for his clothes. "Stay here, I'm going to go downstairs and see what's going on."

"And what then, genius, hide here all day?"

"Not all day." He tried to calm her down. "Just until I get them out of the house so you can go downstairs. I'll take them out for breakfast or something."

"I want to come to breakfast too." She pouted. "Why do I have to stay here while you all have breakfast together?"

"Stop that!" He pointed a finger towards her mouth. "What did I tell you about pouting?"

"That it only works for Rory?"

"Right. Just stay here and wait for my text."

"I swear!" The blond's attitude changed suddenly, when she realized he was about to leave the room. "If you're going out for breakfast without me…" She threatened. "No Renee for you for a week!"

"Like you could restrain yourself for a week." Hunter teased as he opened the door quietly.

"Pig."

"Just wait for my text."

Walking downstairs, Hunter found everyone outside in the back yard.

Texting really quickly, he told Renee to go to her room and make it fast. Going outside and closing the sliding door, Rory ran towards him and jumped right into his arms. "Daddy, Good morning. Did we wake you?"

"It's okay, baby, I missed you. Did you have fun at Shawn's?"

"Yes, Daddy, we had lots of fun."

"Hey, buddy." Shawn came from behind him.

"Hey, Shawn. What's up?"

"The kids want to go to town. I was thinking late breakfast and maybe take them to the arcade later?"

"Sure, sounds great. Let me just go change."

"What about Reni, daddy?" Rory asked as he started walking to the house.

"I don't know if she's awake yet, baby."

"I'm going to check." The girl said and ran into the house before he had a chance to stop her. In his mind, he was hoping Renee had made it back to her room.

Hunter was talking to Shawn when Renee and Rory came outside and his heart missed a bit when he saw how beautiful she looked. She was wearing black jeans, a leather jacket and a beanie hat. He tried not to smile, when he noticed his daughter was wearing almost the same clothes as her nanny, but Rory looked too cute.

"Daddy, Renee and I look the same."

"I can see that, baby."

"Alright everyone to Uncle H's big car." Shawn grinned as he started running towards the house.

Rolling his eyes to his juvenile friend's behavior, Hunter followed everyone inside and tried not to stare at the woman he made love to just a few hours ago.

Time to play the game, Hunter, he thought as he grabbed the keys and walked to the car. Just act normal, she works for you, you're nothing more than friends.

Watching Renee bite her lip as he opened the car door for her, made it clear to him. Acting normal wasn't an easy task when it came to her. The attraction he already felt for the gorgeous blond just grew after last night. The feelings he had for her got stronger when he made love to her and when their eyes met through the rearview mirror, he knew she felt the same.

After they had a quiet brunch, they all went to the arcade and while Hunter and Shawn had coffee, Renee played with the kids.

"So…" Shawn opened his mouth to speak, but Hunter pointed a finger at him.

"Don't start. I know what you're going to say and the answer is no."

"You don't know what I want to say." Shawn mocked him.

"I know what you're going to say. I'm not coming back."

Realizing his best friend really knew what he was thinking, Shawn smiled. It was moments like this when he recognized that spark in his eyes. The Game was always in there, trying to come back to life. "Why not?"

"Because I said so." Hunter answered in his deep husky voice.

"See, it has been too long!" Shawn tried to joke. "That's not even your gimmick."

"Shawn, I'm not going back. End of discussion."

"Will you just hear me out? Please?"

"Shawn, I can't do it. I'm not that guy anymore."

"You are Hunter Hurst Helmsley, are you not? Hunt, this is who you will always be. I know I'm not supposed to bring this up, but you can't keep eating yourself up like that. It wasn't your fault that he was insane. You need to move on."

"I don't have to do anything and I certainly don't have to listen to you and Vince. Have you moved on?" Hunter countered, trying not to raise his voice. "I heard about you showing Renee and Rory my impersonation of Vince. Did you watch the end of that segment? Right, of course you didn't, because Shane was there and you couldn't watch that. No one really moved on, Shawn, so don't be a hypocrite. Now if you'll excuse me, I'll just be outside."

Shawn watched his friend leave the table and knew he handled it wrong. Hunter was right, no one really moved on. Steph and Shane were gone and the bastard was still alive. Sometimes Shawn's mind would wander to that day he got the bad news. He remembered how it took two of the largest men he knew to hold Hunter after the funeral. He was broken and he didn't leave the house for a whole month.

Seeing how distracted Shawn was after Hunter left the table, Renee approached Shawn and sat across from him. "Are you alright, Shawn?"

"I'm fine." He forced a smile as he looked outside. "It's the big guy who's not that great right now."

"Where did he go?"

"He went outside. I swear that man is so stubborn and when he gets upset with that frown brow and the intense eyes, even I'm scared of him sometimes. I shouldn't have listened to Vince. That guy has crazy convincing skills and I really thought I could get Hunter to listen."

"Can I ask what were you trying to get him to listen to?"

"Vince wants him back on TV and maybe even in the ring."

"Maybe it's not my place, Shawn, but I've only been here for a few weeks and even I know how he gets about the past."

"I know…" Shawn sighed. "I just really want to see him happy again. I mean, he will always be my best friend and I will take a bullet for him, but is it too much to ask for the old Hunter to come back? I swear you would've liked that guy. This Hunter is all serious and grumpy, but back in the old days he was such a great guy to be around. Being around him was so much fun and when he was in the ring, he was just great. It's who he is and where he belongs."

"I think he is lucky to have you."

"I think he doesn't feel the same right now. He was pretty angry when he walked out."

"I'll go see if I can find him."

"Seriously, Renee, I like you. You're brave."

Walking outside, she found the angry man sitting on a bench, concentrated on his phone. "Make some room, will you?"

Hunter made room for the fearless woman and put the phone in his pocket. "So the wimp sent you?"

"He loves you, Hunter. He means well."

"Do me a favor and don't talk about things you know nothing about."

"Boy you can be a real jerk sometimes, you know that?"

"You're taking his side without even knowing the whole story and I'm being a jerk?"

"I know more than you think and I think that your friends just want you to move on and be happy again."

"Yeah well, they ask for too much."

"Really?" Renee asked, surprised by his crushing words. "So you don't plan on moving on?"

Realizing what he had just said and hearing the hurt in her voice, Hunter tried to grab her hand when she stood up. "Renee, I didn't…"

As he watched her walking inside, Hunter knew this was going to be a very long day.

After spending the entire afternoon with the kids, Hunter, Renee and Rory went to the market and then home. The silence in the car was deafening, as Rory looked tired and Renee pretended to be busy on her phone, never looking up even once, all the way home.

Entering the house, Hunter put all the groceries in the kitchen while Renee told Rory she wasn't feeling well and that she was going to rest.

"Baby, any requests for dinner?" He asked as he sat next to her on the couch.

"Can you make some soup for Renee, daddy? She went to rest because she's not feeling well."

"Oh?"

"Yes, she looked a little pale, daddy. I think soup would be good for her. You always say soup is good when I'm not feeling well."

"I'll make some soup for Renee."

"Thank you, daddy."

I'm such a jerk. I can't believe it. She asked me last night if it was real and I said it was. And now I just had to hurt her feelings, I couldn't just keep my mouth shut. It was that damn Shawn and his stupid monologue. I have to move on. Damn you Vince for not letting this rest. How am I going to explain to her that I was upset? God I'm such a jerk.

Later that evening, Rory asked Hunter if she should get Renee for dinner. Hunter told his little girl that Renee was probably resting and it was best if they didn't interrupt her.

"But what if she's hungry?"

"If she was hungry, she would've come and eat with us, baby, but she's probably resting. I'll go check on her after dinner."

"Can I bring her the soup, daddy."

"If you want to, sure."

The light knocking on her door woke her up and she got up and turned the music off. As she looked in the mirror, she saw how swollen her eyes was and hoped it was Rory at the door and not the jerk.

"Reni, wake up." She heard Rory's sweet voice. "I brought you soup."

A warm smile decorated her sad face as she opened the door. "Hi, sweetie."

"Reni, are you feeling any better? Daddy said you would probably feel better after you rest."

Sure that's what the jerk would say. All men are jerks. "I'll be fine, Rory, don't worry."

"Daddy made you some soup just like he makes me when I'm not feeling well."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome." Rory put it on her little coffee table. "You want me to stay with you?"

"That's okay, Sweetie, you need to get ready for bed soon."

"I know. I wish I could stay. I don't want you to be alone when you're sick."

"Don't worry, Rory, I'll be fine. I just need to rest."

"Okay." Rory smiled and walked to the door. "I'll see you tomorrow, Reni. Feel better."

After saying good night to Rory and taking a shower, Hunter made his way to Renee's room and hoped she would speak to him. When Renee didn't answer the door, he opened it quietly and saw that she was sleeping. How beautiful could she be? Damn it, you jerk. Look at her hugging the pillow and listening to these damn love songs. She didn't even eat the soup.

As he sat on the bed and looked at her, he noticed the Kleenex near the bed and cursed himself for making her cry. Removing a group of hair from her beautiful face, he brushed his thumb on her cheek and she moaned softly. Hunter smiled. She was cute when she was asleep.

Opening her eyes slowly, she pouted when she saw him. Closing her eyes she tightened her hug on the pillow and turned her back to him.

"I'm sorry." He whispered.

"I don't care."

"Come on, Renee."

"You've made your point, okay, I get it. You don't want to move on, you lied to me last night when you said it was real. You're just like the rest of them. You'll do anything and say anything to have sex."

"You're wrong. I was upset."

"It still doesn't change the fact that you don't want to move on."

"I'm trying to move on, Renee. It's not that easy for me."

"It was sure easy for you to sleep with me."

"Renee, please look at me."

"Go away!"

"I will go away, but not before you let me explain."

"Save it. It's my fault. I knew I shouldn't have trusted a man. You got what you wanted, you had sex, now leave me alone."

"Renee, please. I didn't mean what you think I meant. Can't you just listen to me for a minute?"

Renee was on the verge of tears when she turned to look at him. "You said you're not moving on. Did you or didn't you say that?"

"I didn't mean what you think."

"What could you possibly mean? Your friends want you to be who you were, they want you to be happy and they want you to move on. You don't want to move on, which means you used me and you lied to me."

Fighting the words about to leave his mouth, Hunter got angry because he knew that if he wanted her to understand he'd have to talk about it. Standing up, his hand turned into a fist and he was about to punch the wall. "My friends want Triple H back. They want me back in the ring. They want me to go back to being who I once was, but I can't, Renee, I'm not that guy anymore. That guy died with my wife and my brother in law. My friends want Triple H back. I can't go back, Renee, I just can't."

Hearing the pain in his voice, Renee stood up and put her hand on the small of his back. "This is who I am, Renee. I'm a full time dad that has a nine to five job."

Renee wrapped her arms around his waist and held him close. When he felt her head resting on his back, he took a deep breath and turned to face her. Wrapping his arms around her, he ran his fingers through her hair just the way she liked it and kissed the top of her head. "I moved on when I let you in and accepted how I felt for you. What I said today had nothing to do with you, I was upset and it came out wrong. Renee, you're probably the only good thing that happened to me after I lost my wife."

"You mean that?" She whispered.

The emotional man pulled back from her and reached for her hands. Sitting on her bed, he drew her closer and looked deeply into her teary eyes. "I want to move on. I want you in my life, not just for Rory, but for me. I know my daughter loves you and I know my friends are crazy about you, but for once in my life I want to be selfish. I know this is way too soon for me to feel this way, but I do. Renee, you made me feel things that I thought died in me 6 years ago. I never wanted to feel this way for another woman, but it happened with you and I realized I can't fight it. Don't let my scars affect what we have."

"Men don't talk like that, Hunter."

"I'm serious, Renee."

"Have I told you how much I love it when you say my name?"

"I'm sorry I made you cry today. I didn't mean to."

"This is very dangerous, Hunter."

"What is?"

"My feelings for you. It really scared me today."

"It shouldn't scare you, we're in this together. I feel the same way."

"So you're saying you don't want to go back to being Triple H, even though you were awesome."

"I can't go back. I made a choice. I chose Rory and a different life.

"Well, I'm sure you have thought of everything and I want you to know that I understand, but…"

"No buts!"

"But…" She ignored him and continued. "Shawn knows you better than me, I know he cares for you and I just want you to go easy on him. From what I understand, Vince has crazy convincing skills, it wasn't all Shawn."

"Yeah, I know. That crazy old man is lucky my daughter loves him."

"Oh stop it. You love him too, I can tell."

"I never said I didn't, but that doesn't mean I don't want to kick his ass sometimes."

Smiling, Renee kissed him lightly to his ear and whispered. "I think I know what Shawn was talking about now. I see it too sometimes."

"What are you talking about?" He looked confused.

"Never mind." The blond smiled as she took his hand. "Come on, let's go to bed, I missed you."

Lying in his arms that night, Renee thought about all the videos of him she watched on YouTube. The man he once was, was still there, hiding in the shadows of his tragedy. The man holding her now wasn't all that bad. It was who she was falling in love with. The man Shawn was talking about was in there somewhere, she saw it in his eyes sometimes.

Could she find that man and bring him back to life? Could she help resurrect the man everyone missed? She didn't know, but she was sure as hell going to try.

Thank you for reading.

I'd be more than happy to get a feedback, good or bad :))