****Another chapter! Yay! Hope you enjoy!****

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Chapter thirty-nine

Lenny took the time to telephone her brother after breakfast, and he was full of good news. "Why do you sound so cheerful?" she asked him, smiling.

"I've got some good news for you, Charlene," Sam said, and she could practically hear him grinning.

"You have? What? I've won the state lottery?" she joked, laughing at his impatient sigh.

"Actually, no, but that would be useful. It's about Jack Penn," he said, pausing for the name to sink in. It didn't take long.

"Jack Penn?" she gasped out, and Kevin turned to look at her sharply, frowning. "Wh..what about him?"

"They caught him last night."

"He's been caught? Is he in prison?" she asked, relaxing against Kevin as he sat next to her and put his arm around her shoulders.

"Better. He's dead," Sam said, sounding pleased.

"Dead? He's dead? How...but..." she stammered, and then Kevin took the phone out of her hand.

"Hey Sam. How did he die?" Kevin asked.

"Remember Mark's cousin Mike? The cop? He got him in town...and then Jack managed to get away and he gave chase. To cut a long story short, Jack ran into the road in front of a truck. There wasn't an awful lot left to scrape off the road, to hear Mike talk about it," Sam continued, chuckling as if it was nothing. "I have to admit I'm relieved he's gone."

"Me too," Kevin said, smiling softly at Lenny. "I can't help but wish I'd got hold of him though."

"I know how you feel, but this is far better than giving him a mere beating, don't you think?"

"Yeah, you're dead right about that," Kevin murmured, grinning now. He finished the conversation and let Lenny say goodbye before clicking the phone off and drawing her closer to him again. "Well, that's all over now, isn't it?"

She nodded. "I'm glad he's dead, but I have to confess I haven't thought much about him over the last month."

"You haven't?" he asked her, raising an eyebrow and giving her his sexy grin.

"Nope. I've been thinking about a certain gigantic blond I know."

"Oooh, which bits of him are gigantic, sweetheart?" he asked, widening his eyes and then frowning when she slapped his arm.

"His head and his mouth," she shot back, giggling when he started tickling her.

"Just for that baby, you're gonna endure tickle torture until you cry!"

"No! No! Kevin....stop....Kevin!" she squealed, trying to wiggle away from his hands. "I give in! Stop!"

He paused and narrowed his eyes. "If I stop, what do I get in return?"

"A kiss?" she asked, breathing hard from laughing.

"That's all?"

"A long kiss? Maybe.....Oooh, how about I wake you up in the morning?" she said, giving him a wicked look that had him arching his eyebrows.

"Well, it was gonna be my turn to wake you up....but hell, I ain't gonna say no to that sort of alarm call, baby!" he ran his hands around her back and pulled her against him so he could give her a kiss.

********

Later that morning Lenny was sitting with Amy chatting about her pregnancy while Mark and Kevin were talking about their upcoming matches that night. When the door opened and Scott poked his head around it, Kevin grinned. "So? How did it go?"

"Not bad," the darker man said, walking into the room and grinning at Mark, who shook his hand and punched him on the shoulder in greeting. "How ya doing, Mark?"

"Pretty damn good, if you want to know," Mark replied, smiling as he introduced Scott to Amy.

"Okay, enough of the niceties....what did Vince say?" Kevin interrupted, looking impatient.

"I got the six month contract, with stipulations about alcohol and stuff like that," Scott said, shrugging. "Pretty much what I expected, although maybe a little easier than I thought. So, I'm officially back and I'll be getting in the ring in a couple of days."

"You're in pretty bad shape, you think you're ready for the ring?" Kevin asked, giving him a shit eating grin.

"You maybe want me to show how bad a shape I'm in, chico?" he drawled, arching an eyebrow.

"Nah. Save it for when you go up against Benoit or that other shithead, Holly," Kevin replied, watching Scott's reaction.

"Geez, Bob Holly is still here?" he asked incredulously. "And they waited this long to bring me back?"

"I know, you're worth two of Holly any day. Still, maybe you'll get a match with him. Wouldn't that be fun?"

"Only if your idea of fun is a blood bath," Mark cut in, frowning and then chuckling. "If Vince has any sense then he'll keep you two apart."

Scott grinned. "If he wants his ratings to go up, he'll put us together."

"He does want his ratings to go up," Mark told him, "so maybe you'll get lucky. Just remember to put in a kick for me, will ya?"

"No problem, man," Scott replied with a grin, watching Mark disappear out of the room, dragging his wife with him. He turned back to Kevin and Lenny. "So, what are you two doing this afternoon?"

"Gotta go get some ring practice," Kevin replied, tilting his head to one side. "You think you're up to partnering me?"

"You think you're up to taking a beating?"

"I think I'd like to see you try," Kevin said, chuckling. The day looked like it was going to be a lot of fun.

*******

Lenny excused herself a few hours later, having watched the two men throw themselves around endlessly. She had laughed until her ribs hurt, and now she had a strange craving for a glass of milk. Not wanting to drag Kevin away from his practice, she decided to just go off to the restaurant on her own. After all, it wasn't like she'd be going too far and she was finally learning that most arena's were much the same behind the scenes.

Walking down one of the many corridors, she didn't take any notice when she heard footsteps behind her, keeping her eyes fixed firmly ahead. Paul Wight came out of one of the doors, his head almost touching the top of the door frame. His eyes lit up when he saw her and he grinned. "Hey Lenny, what's up?"

"Just going to get a drink," she replied, smiling at him. If ever the term gentle giant fit someone, it was him.

"I've got a promo to shoot," he told her, indicating his ring attire. "But maybe I'll see you tonight at the show?"

"Probably, yeah," she told him.

"See ya later then." He smiled again and walked off, leaving her to continue her progress along the endless corridor.

She had nearly got to the corner when someone grabbed her shoulder and pushed her into the wall none too gently. After the initial shock, she glanced up to find Chris Benoit grinning down at her, the smile not very nice.

"Hello....Lenny, I think I heard Paul say?" he said, leaning too close to her and making her cringe away from him, her eyes darting up and down the corridor for signs of anyone to help. "Don't bother looking, there isn't anyone around. Now, you're Kevin's latest piece of ass, I believe?"When she didn't reply, he grabbed her shoulder again and shook her. "Are you with Kevin or not?"

"Y..yes, I am," she answered in a small voice, wondering why he was doing this. She had seen him in passing a few times, but she had never spoken to him before.

"Well, his tastes have sure changed," he sneered, looking her up and down dismissively. "No matter, it's not like I want you. What I do want, is for you to persuade that big asshole that he should retire."

"What?" she asked in a hushed whisper, thinking maybe she hadn't heard him correctly.

"You heard me, so don't act like a dumb bitch," he snapped. "He's been here too long, and he's taking too much of the time in the ring. He isn't even any good anymore, it's about time he went."

Lenny swallowed, and straightened up a little. "He's good at what he does, and the fans like him..."

Chris stopped her words by putting his hand around her throat, giving a slight squeeze that stopped her dead. "He's a fucking waste of space, and he knows it. You will persuade him to leave."

"I won't."

"If you care about him, you will. You think he's got problems with his legs now? Wait until I bust his knees with a sledgehammer, then see how useful he'll be at anything in the future. Like walking, for instance."

"You...can't..."

"I can, and I plan to if he isn't gone within a month. And just for the hell of it, I might have you as well. Why not? If you're good enough for him, then maybe you're worth a fuck?" He leaned even closer, his face only inches away from hers, and she cringed away. "One more thing, sweetheart. Don't tell him about this little encounter, or I'll make both of you very sorry. Understand?" His hand squeezed her neck a little harder and she nodded, her eyes wide. He pushed her against the wall even further and then released her, walking away with a smile on his face.

Lenny stared after him and then slowly straightened up, her hands going to her throat to try and rub away the feel of his hand on her skin. The attack had been so unexpected that she felt dazed, and she turned in the direction of the restaurant again. She couldn't go back and see Kevin right away, she thought, because he'd notice straight off that something was wrong. A sudden wave of nausea washed over her and she took a shaky breath, trying to control it, but it was no good. Looking frantically around, she vaguely remembered where the bathroom was and ran off in search of it, making it into a cubicle just in time before she lost the breakfast she had eaten that morning. She leaned on the sink when she came out, staring at her pale face before splashing water over it and rinsing her mouth. The way Chris Benoit had acted had brought back memories of Jack Penn, and they weren't any that she cared to dwell on. A hysterical giggle bubbled up in her throat. Just when one psycho was out of her hair, she managed to get another one. She wondered if it was some sort of world record. Now she had to concentrate on pulling herself together before Kevin got a good look at her. She wasn't up to answering any questions and besides, what if Benoit had been serious about his threat? The last thing she wanted was to be responsible for getting Kevin hurt.

She made her way towards the restaurant once more, satisfied she looked vaguely human now, and ordered herself a glass of milk to drink. After sitting down, she stared out of the window and wondered what on earth she was going to do. She couldn't very well persuade Kevin to leave, even if she'd wanted to, and she couldn't tell him about Chris. It made her sick again to think that someone would threaten her or Kevin, especially another wrestler.

She sipped slowly at the milk and gave a sigh as she finally started calming down, still feeling emotionally strung out.

"Hey Lenny," Amy said as she sat down next to her with a cup of tea, her brows drawing down when she looked at the other girl's face. "What's wrong?"

Lenny shook her head and forced a small smile. "Nothing, I just felt a bit ill that's all. I came and got some milk and it's helping."

"Does Kevin know?"

"No, I didn't want to bother him. He's got a match tonight and he needs to concentrate on that," she said, shrugging.

Amy frowned again. "Still, he'd want to know if you weren't well," she persisted.

"I guess so, but I'll wait until later. Anyway," Lenny said, relaxing a little more, "I feel much better already. It's probably that breakfast I ate, it was a little greasy."

"Ugh, don't mention grease," Amy said, putting a hand to her throat and laughing. "I've only just gotten over today's morning sickness. That's why tea without milk....calms my system down."

"Can't you drink milk?"

"Not a lot of it, no. And I love tea with milk in it, but it makes me so queasy lately," the other girl explained, shaking her head ruefully.

"I bet it's worth it though, isn't it?" Lenny asked her, gesturing to the slight swell of Amy's stomach.

"You bet it is," Amy replied, running a hand over her stomach. "I can't wait for it to be born. Only another five months to go. You know, I could have sworn I read somewhere that morning sickness ends after the first three months, but mine hasn't."

"I guess everyone's different. Some people probably don't get it at all," Lenny said, studying the other girl. "You look good though."

"Thanks. I think being pregnant agrees with me....apart from the sickness. I'll just have to make sure I have plenty more, as long as Mark doesn't mind."

"Mark doesn't mind what?" he said as he threw himself down in a chair opposite his wife and grinned at her. "You ladies talking about me?"

"Yes, but nothing bad, don't panic," Amy told him, taking his hand when he held it out. "Just saying how I'll have to have lots of babies."

"That's fine with me darlin', as long as you don't keep getting sick all the time," he murmured, looking worried.

"That's just normal, and the end result will be worth it," she said, smiling happily.

"It certainly will, especially if it's a little girl," Mark said, a huge grin on his face and his eyes softening as he thought about it.

Lenny watched them both and smiled, wishing that Kevin would look at her in that way, like his whole world depended on her. She finished her drink and stood up, smiling at the couple. "I'd better go find Kevin. See you guys later."

"Yeah, see you. Take care," Amy called after her, a frown on her face as she watched her go. She had gotten a bad feeling for some reason, but she shook it off and turned to talk to Mark again.

*****

Lenny sat backstage watching as Kevin had his match later that night, and Scott had come to watch with her, keeping her company. She winced when Kevin got thrown out of the ring and landed on his knees. "It doesn't matter how many times he tells me it doesn't, I still think that's got to hurt."

Scott chuckled. "It can hurt, but if you land right it doesn't. Well, not much anyway. Kev's in good shape," he said, watching the match with a professional eye.

"Yeah he is," she said, not realising how dreamy she sounded.

Scott rolled his eyes and chuckled again, keeping his attention fixed on the moves the guys were making. The sound of someone clearing their throat made him turn around in his chair, and he glanced up at a casually dressed blonde woman, raising one eyebrow. "Can I help you?" he asked, his eyes raking her figure before going back to her face. Not bad, he thought, looking at her with masculine appreciation. Long curly blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail, brown eyes framed by dark lashes and full lips. Shame about the scar that ran down one side of her face, he thought. But it didn't detract from the overall appearance of her, and he found his interest piqued.

Kristina swallowed as his eyes ran over her, feeling acutely uncomfortable. But she shrugged off such feelings and straightened her back. "Mr Hall? I've been trying to find you all afternoon. My name's Kristina Jones, I'm your Talent Liaison."

Scott's dark eyebrows shot up and he gave a slow grin. "You're my Talent Liaison? Well, well. And here I thought they'd try and stick me with someone far less...attractive."

Kristina found herself blushing under that intense gaze and she shifted uncomfortably. "I need to talk to you about your schedule, arrange some promos and training sessions," she said, quickly, clutching the clipboard close to her chest.

"I don't have any problem discussing a session with you, honey," Scott drawled, trying not to laugh when her eyes widened and she blushed even more. "But right now, I'm watching my best friend fighting. So why don't you just sit down right here, and I'll be with you soon, okay?" he asked, patting the chair next to him.

Kristina glanced at the darkly handsome man and then at the way he was patting the chair, and she shook her head. "Er...no, I have other things to do right now. Maybe we can arrange to meet in the morning?"

"Okay."

"Well, how about here at 10.30?" she asked, glancing at her clipboard and jotting something down on it.

"That's fine, honey. See you in the morning," he drawled, smiling broadly when she almost ran down the corridor in her haste to get away from him.

"You're so bad," Lenny murmured, turning to smile at him.

"I know, I couldn't help myself. Did you see the colour of her face?" he chuckled, his eyes returning to the match again. "I have a feeling tomorrow will be fun."

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****There, another one in the bag. Like I said before...sorry to any Chris Benoit fans!****