"Excuse me is this seat taken?"

Lilly knows who is standing on the other side of the table without even looking—it's Mark. Now that he is here, she isn't so sure that she wants to talk to him. What if he yells at her again? What if she yells at him? That would be fun, play out the whole drama in front of a crowded restaurant. Wait a minute, there's an idea! Put the big dog in his place in front of a restaurant full of people. "No it is not, but I was hoping someone friendly would be sitting there."

"Well I am friendly." Mark says quickly sitting down.

'Oh, so that's how the jackass wants to play it! He's going to pretend that nothing happened and just hope that I fall into his arms! Pig!' Mark gives Lilly the typical male smirk and reaches for the menu. 'Well if that's how he wants to play it then he's on.' Lilly looks at Mark rolling her eyes, and turns back to the conversation at hand.

Samantha and Dave both see Mark smirk and sit down in front of Lilly. Both are instantly concerned with what might happen. Samantha catches Lilly's eye and gives her a questioning look 'are you ok?' For his part, Dave may be the new kid on the block so to speak but if Mark so much as makes Lilly look upset he would not hesitate to kick Mark into next week.

Dinner went off without incident. Lilly ignored the big Neanderthal as best as she could. Even though she did not look in his direction, she could feel Mark looking at her from time to time.

Lilly spent a lot of time talking to Stephanie McMahon during dinner. She was pleasantly surprised that Stephanie was nothing like her onscreen character. As a matter of fact, Stephanie was so down to earth, that Lilly found herself telling Stephanie her life story over dinner. Lilly even told Stephanie that she wanted to make a career change, but confessed that she was not sure of what that change would be.

"Lilly, I don't know if this would be what you had in mind, but I'm looking for a 'right hand woman' so to speak. Someone to help me keep everything organized and running smoothly. It would be more than just a secretary though. This person would also have their own projects to oversee among other things. Are you interested?"

"I don't know Stephanie. Wouldn't someone with more experience in the entertainment field be more suited for the position?"

"It's not a position that would require you to write for the shows. You would manage all of the projects, and people. You would also put together various reports, proposals and policies. It would be a lot like your other position in that respect. Also, your HR background and people managing skills would be a huge asset."

Stephanie could see that she nearly had Lilly reeled in so she gave what she hoped was the closer for the deal.

"Lilly from talking to you tonight. I can tell that you are smart, capable and determined. I can also tell from talking to you about wrestling and the WWE that you do love the sport. So you may not know anything about producing a show or the entertainment business, you do know wrestling and you know people. You are also not afraid of putting one of these guys in their place if need be, I have seen that first hand. Please say that you will think about it before you say no. Also, just so you know, if you do take the position you will be well compensated and I'm sure that you would never get bored."

Lilly was intrigued. She did love wrestling, and she did say that she wanted to break out of her boundaries. Lilly also knew a golden opportunity when it was slapping her in the face. Still Lilly was afraid of saying yes right away. Snap decisions are never good.

"Steph, what you are offering is an awesome opportunity and you do make a wonderful case of why I should not say no. Tell you what, can I think about this for a little while and sit down with you tomorrow sometime? I promise you I will have an answer for you then."

"Fair enough." Stephanie agreed nodding her head. "I can understand that this is a big decision to make. Tell you what, meet me in catering at lunchtime tomorrow and we will sit down and talk about it then."

Mark had overheard Stephanie mention something about a job to Lilly as he was pretending to ignore Lilly and pay attention to what Randy was saying next to him. Once Mark realized that Stephanie was trying to talk Lilly into taking a job with the WWE, he definitely became more interested in their conversation. He found himself silently praying that Lilly would take the job. Not only because it would keep her around and hopefully allow Mark an opportunity to redeem himself, but because he knew that Lilly deserved this for herself.

Dinner was over quickly, and everyone gathered to head back to the hotel as a group. Tomorrow was a travel day, and everyone was heading up coast pretty early. In all of the commotion, Mark never got a chance to talk directly to Lilly again. Hopefully tomorrow he would be able to get her alone and convince her to give him another chance.

Lilly's brain was in overdrive on the way back to the hotel. So much had happened in a short period of time, and she was having a little difficulty sorting it all out. Lilly could not believe that Stephanie had made her the wonderful job offer, and she knew now that she had every intention of saying yes. It was just too wonderful of an opportunity to pass up. Then there was the whole issue of Mark.

Lilly had purposefully ignored him at the restaurant and from all appearances he had ignored her too. Looking back on their arguments, Lilly realized that she was somewhat in the wrong each time. She realized that she was so intent on not being anyone's doormat anymore, that she had let her temper get the best of her. What was she going to do to get herself out of this hole with him? That was the million-dollar question.

Once they had gotten back to the hotel, Lilly knew that there was no way that she would be able to go upstairs and relax with everything that was on her mind. She decided to go sit on the beach in front of the hotel, and stare at the ocean for a little while. Lilly quickly told Samantha where she was going so that the other woman would not worry then turned in the direction of the beach.

Mark saw Lilly turn and head down to the beach. 'It's awfully late for her to head down to the beach by herself' Mark thought to himself as he watched her walk away. On impulse, Mark turned toward the beach, and decided to follow Lilly at a distance to make sure that she was safe.

AN: Thanks to everyone for the wonderful reviews. Sorry that it has taken me so long to update. I am still battling writer's block. I hope that you enjoy this chapter, and hope to update soon.

Sharnhorst—Thanks for the wonderful reviews. I hope no one starved while you were enjoying the story.

I still own nothing. Although I would love to own Undertaker or Batista.