Chapter 37

"So the blue haired hottie I ran into last year at NXT…"

Jon had to fight the urge not to bash the iron weight bar into Seth's face, racking it and sat upright on the bench, beads of sweat all over his body. "Yeah, the hottie has a name and it's Keyla."

He didn't bother hiding the possessiveness in his voice and walked over to a nearby corner. There were extra weight bars in case one ended up damaged for whatever reason. Jon lifted one of them and pressed it into the corner, sliding a few 50 pound weights on the end. 200 pounds to be precise. Lowering it to the floor, Jon lifted it up until his arms were above his head before swinging to the side, moving it down and back up again. This was one of the training exercises he did in the Independents that his trainer Cody Hawke taught him. He always went back to the basics when training and working out at the gym, hating anything too fancy. The hotter the gym was, the better because he burned more calories and sweat profusely. Feeling like he was dying and killing himself just to achieve goals in his workout was a good day at the gym, at least in his mind.

"You must have it really bad for her, Ambrose." Seth crowed and felt a large hand on his shoulder, turning dark eyes onto the muscle of the Shield. "What? I'm just ribbing him a little."

"Don't. I'm not bailing you out if you piss him off and push him over the edge." Roman warned, already knowing Dean was on edge because of the situation with Keyla. "Just do your CrossFit and leave him be if you know what's good for you."

Seth snorted, rolling his eyes and walked away from Roman to continue his workout, wondering if it was time for the 3 of them to part ways in the company. The Shield was on top of the world and had beaten everyone in WWE. It was sad and almost boring facing off against the same opponents night in and night out, winning constantly. Maybe he would have a conversation with the bosses and creative to stir things up a bit. Of course, Dean and Roman didn't have to be part of the meeting because more than likely nothing would come of it.

"Dean, you alright man?" Roman asked, squatting down with a bottle of water in hand while watching his best friend continue his workout with the weight bar.

"Yeah." No he wasn't and his dick hated him too. Jon was doing what he felt best regarding Keyla, not wanting to do anything to screw up what they had. "How're things with you and Lennox?" The malice he once held for the honey blonde had evaporated after Keyla finally gave him another chance.

Roman smiled at the mention of the current woman in his life, rubbing the back of his neck. "We're good. Hashed out some shit in Pensacola and taking things slow…" He noticed the grimace Dean did, his words trailing off. "What? Something wrong with a little romance and slow build?"

Suddenly wanting to punch something, Jon set the bar down on the floor and put the 200 pounds of weights back, turning to eyeball the punching bag. "When you've been away from someone you love for the past 3 years, taking things slow sucks balls, bro."

Those words made Roman realize what was going on with Dean and he had a hard time keeping a straight face, feeling sorry for the man. "Sexual frustration is a bitch, but Lennox is special and she's been through a lot. I don't know about Keyla, but I'm not gonna push her to do something she's not ready for. I take it you feel the same about Keyla or else you wouldn't have a short fuse with anyone who mentions her name." Roman was a very observant man and knew Dean well, both of them coming up through the ranks in developmental together.

"Too many times I fucked it up with her." Jon admitted, pulling a sweatshirt on over his head and pulled on his personal boxing gloves, ready to beat the hell out of the punching bag with his fists. "It used to be all about what I wanted, never her. I was a selfish dick back when we fucked and there was no relationship. She let me have my way with her and I took advantage of her trust and feelings for me. I knew she felt something for me, but she never said what it was or how strong her feelings were…not until I had to pry it out of her these past 5 days in Philly. Now I'm scared if I make a move on her, she'll resent me and we'll end up fighting and I'll lose her. Can't let it happen again, man. I can't." Throughout the decree of his own viewpoint, Jon hammered the bag with hard punches, his eyes zeroed in on the bag while Roman held it steady so it didn't swing back and forth.

"You really do love her, don't you?"

Jon stopped punching to lock eyes with Roman, nodding affirmatively. "And I'm proving it one step at a time by putting her first." He didn't bother telling Roman about Keyla's advances toward him, doing everything in her power to try getting him to jump into bed with her. "She may not like how I'm doing it, but the relationship will survive and thrive this way."

"I hear you, bro. That's why I'm not jumping into anything with Lennox, not until she makes the first move. She'll have to be the one to initiate what happens between us. Maybe you should try that with Keyla." Roman suggested, not realizing it already happened and Dean turned her down every time, not without painful blue ball syndrome though.

"I just-" Jon was cut off by the ringing of his cell phone, not believing he forgot to shut it off. It was a must every time he worked out either with the boys or by himself. "Shit!" Ripping the Velcro off the glove, Jon slipped it off and pulled his cell out of his gym bag, the name flashing on his caller ID a true blast from the past. "I gotta take this." He answered on the 5th ring and held the phone up to his ear, stepping away from Roman. "Hey asshole, been meaning to call you."

Sami sighed at Jon's greeting, not surprised at the slight angry tone in his friend's voice. "I know you're pissed off at me and Drake…"

"No, not at all, dicks. Now what the fuck do you want?" Jon slid down the wall, keeping his voice down and removed the sweatshirt he had on since he was done working out for the day. "You better have a damn good reason for calling me and it better start with an explanation on why you kept Keyla from me."

"Jon…" Sami had no idea where to start with this situation and scrubbed a hand down his face, watching Gina cook from the kitchen oblivious to who he just called. "Look, I'm sorry about the Keyla thing…"

"The Keyla THING? She's a THING to you now?" Jon was 2 seconds away from flying to Tampa and punching Sami in the throat, clenching his fist. "She's not just a THING, Callihan…!"

This was not going the way Sami originally planned and he felt a headache coming on. "I didn't mean it like that. Kayleigh and I are good friends – she's actually one of my best friends. After you left, we got close and not in a sexual way either because she was hung up on your stupid ass." He also had a beautiful girlfriend, but Jon didn't need to know that. "I had to hold her countless nights while she cried and sobbed for you. It took a long time to even get her to smile again after you left and didn't bother calling to let her know you were still alive. She couldn't even watch WWE and left the room anytime I turned it on because it hurt her too damn much. So if you're done being an asshole to me, I'll tell you the reason I called you in the first place."

Hearing Keyla actually cried over him after he left settled Jon down instantly, the guilt slowly eating away at his insides for what he did to her. "What is it?" His voice was low and gruff, glancing over at Roman nodding his head to let the big man know he was alright.

"It's about Nick Gage. I got a call from DJ this morning and the fucker broke out of prison somehow. Nobody knows the details, but DJ wanted everyone from CZW, past and present, to know and be aware." Sami explained, keeping his voice down so Gina didn't overhear the conversation. He didn't want to upset or worry her. "I'm telling you this because of Kayleigh."

Now Jon was confused, sitting up a little with furrowed brows. "What does she have to do with Gage?"

Sami thought long and hard about this decision to tell Jon what happened between Kayleigh and Nick Gage all those years ago in the back of her old bar job. How he raped her and Sami stopped him from getting too far before taking Kayleigh back to the house to warm up. She'd been unconscious throughout most of the ordeal and didn't remember the incident until Sami confessed what happened to her. It was the talk that cemented their friendship and Kayleigh started trusting him from that point on, forgiving the past. Nick Gage ended up robbing a bank shortly before Jon left to pursue a career in WWE and was caught a day later, which was New Year's Eve 2010. With Gage locked up, Sami decided it was time to tell Kayleigh the truth and did so 2 months later. He thought Gage would've been in prison for the full 5 years he was sentenced, but it wasn't meant to be. Kayleigh's life was in danger with Nick Gage roaming the streets since she still lived in Philadelphia, so Sami had to make Jon aware of the situation…and reveal the reasoning behind his concern.

"I have to go." Jon pressed the end button on his cell phone after hearing Sami's confession and slowly rose to his feet.

"Dean, what happened? Who was that?" Roman asked once he saw Dean end the call and could see different emotions flashing across the man's face. "Dean?"

Shaking his head, Jon didn't say a word and stormed into the men's locker room to shower before dressing to go back to the hotel to talk to Keyla. He tried staying calm the entire drive, but traffic was bad and he hated it. Road rage ensued and he ended up pulled over, receiving a speeding ticket. Luckily, he hadn't gone 20 over the speed limit or Jon would've gotten a reckless driving violation and a second ticket. It took 2 hours before the cop released him back on the road, which ended up being a blessing in disguise. Jon managed to cool down while waiting for the officer to decide what to do with him and how much the ticket would be. In that time, Jon came the conclusion he couldn't confront Keyla about Gage's attack. Sami hadn't told her about it until right before he left to go to the WWE. Of course she wouldn't tell him anything about it because he left! He doubted Nick Gage would come after Keyla again, but Jon wouldn't take any chances and vowed to protect her at all costs. As soon as Jon stepped through the door of his hotel room, he was clobbered with a massive hug by Keyla and immediately wrapped his arms around her.

"I was about to call the damn cavalry to look for you." She mumbled against his chest, trembling a little.

Had Sami called her? "I'm fine, darlin'." Jon assured, stroking her back and kissed the top of her head, trying to soothe her anyway he could. "Just went for a drive."

"What happened? What's wrong?" Keyla pulled back to look up into his eyes, hers full of concern and worry. "Roman called and told Lennox you left the gym in a hurry. He was worried about you. Are you okay?"

It was Roman who had set the girls off, Jon thought, making a mental note to smack his best friend upside the head. "Nothing's wrong and nothing happened. I'm fine, Keyla." He walked past her to sit on the bed and patted the spot next to him, knowing he had to warn her about Nick Gage without giving too much away. "Just found out some news about someone we used to work with and I went for a drive to clear my head."

"Okay…so what is it?" Keyla pried, taking Jon's hand to hold it in her lap. "It's not Scotty…"

Jon shook his head, keeping his eyes locked on the floor and took a deep breath. "Dumb question, but do you remember Nick Gage? I wrestled him a couple times while I was the champ."

The man who raped me in the back of Nicky's bar, Keyla thought, remembering that night vividly after her talk with Sami. "What about him?" She asked quietly, feeling her insides tighten with both fear and anxiety. "He's locked up, from what I've heard…"

The distress in her voice both angered and bothered Jon far more than Sami's warning call. "Not anymore. He's out…and not because he was paroled either." Pale blues looked down at her as Jon cupped her face in his strong hand, wondering if she would ever come clean to him about what happened.

"Oh god…" Keyla whispered, lowering her own eyes to the floor and tried not to panic, releasing Jon's hand to wrap her arms around herself. "How did he get out then?" She already knew the answer and closed her eyes when Jon confirmed it. "Do they know who helped him escape?"

"No." Jon stood from the bed to walk over to the window, planting his forearm against it. "There a reason he scares you so much?"

It didn't take long for Keyla to realize who called Jon and she wasn't angry about it. "You already know, so I'm not explaining it. Sami called you, didn't he?" Flopping back on the bed to stare up at the ceiling, Keyla didn't bother hiding the truth from Jon. "He's worried Gage will come after me because he didn't get the job done the first time. And he called you to make sure you kept me safe since I'm not in NXT anymore."

Jon barked out a harsh laugh, forgetting briefly how perceptive Keyla could be. "He doesn't want anything happening to you…and neither do I. Philadelphia is off limits until the bastard is caught. You can stay with me in Vegas on our days off."

The subject wasn't up for debate and all Keyla did was nod, hoping this didn't put a wrench in their newfound relationship.