Author's notes: Thanks as always for the reviews. Glad to see that I'm keeping loyal readers but also attracting new ones. Hope you all enjoy the following chapter.

wrestlenascargirlglad you're enjoying it so far, I hope you continue to read it.

huntersgirlpleased that you like the growing relationships and hope you enjoy it as they progress.

coors1977I posted a review commenting on points you made in your review. I really appreciate the constructive criticism you give. As I've already commented on your points, I'll leave those out here. Glad you liked the drinking contest and arm wrestling, yeah it would have been silly to have Wanda beat Dave 'honestly'. I did have another arm wrestling contest, where she resorted to tickling him to win, but had to cut it, as the chapter was getting too long. Glad you liked Wanda's ability to handle large amounts of J.D. I drew from personal experience, because I can drink a fair bit of it with out getting too drunk and never get hung over from it. I couldn't resist the pop at Trip's beard, it's been bugging me for weeks! The whole of Emily's antics cracked me up to write and I'm glad you liked the reactions to it. Hope you enjoy the coming chapters.

bkerbunnyGlad you've started to read and you're enjoying it. Sorry to disappoint you that there was no 6th chapter. Thanks for the comment about the story line being original and new and I'm glad the cliff-hanger has got you interested. Hope you continue to enjoy it.

Disco Inferno1, glad you liked the chapter. Yeah, it's about time Wanda and Dave had some ALONE time, it won't be too long now. Well, even if you don't want to know, you'll soon find out what was burning, I think in the long run it'll be a good thing though. Glad you liked the drinking and arm wrestling part, the ice cube trick was the best way to beat him that I could think of, apart from tickling which I cut out. The Steph story is going to continue, I was going to have her reveal the reason to Wanda in the restroom, but left it out to use later. Thanks for pointing out the formatting problem and that I'd left your parentheses in. I re-edited it and posted it again, so it's ok now. I'll just have to be more aware in future.

shady-angel821yeah 'Poochie' will be fine, I haven't the heart to kill him off !

Here's chapter 6, enjoy all……………….

Chapter six : Bad news and blossoming friendships.

Wanda tore across the car park, heading for the front doors, and was greeted by a fire officer.

"Excuse me, Miss, do you live here?" asked the officer.

"Yeah I do, is everything alright? What's happened?"

"A fire broke out in one of the apartments. Fortunately, there's been no casualties, but the apartment in question is ruined. We've had to evacuate everyone for safety reasons, but it should be safe to return in about an hour."

"Would it be alright if I quickly popped in to my apartment and checked that everything is alright. I have a puppy inside and I want to know he's safe."

"Yes, if you're quick and please be careful."

Wanda rushed past him and up the stairs, Dave following her. When she got to her door, it was sectioned off with yellow fire line tape. Realizing hers was the apartment in question, she tore down the tape and opened her apartment door as fast as she could. The sight that met her was horrific, every room, item of furnishing, everything was burnt to a crisp.

"Oh my god, Poochie! Where's Poochie," she screamed rushing inside.

She ran around the apartment screaming frantically for her dog. Everything in sight was black, burnt and ruined. Wanda sat on the ashen bed and began to sob. Dave sat next to her, holding her tightly.

"Come on, you can stay with me tonight," he whispered soothingly.

"But Poochie," she wailed.

"Don't think about that now, let's just get you out of here."

He picked her up and walked a shaky Wanda back out of the apartment. As they were leaving, Wanda was greeted by the Sergeant dealing with the fire.

"Excuse me, are you Miss Ravenmoon?" asked a man of about 50, with balding hair and a greying moustache.

"Uh-huh."

"I'm Sergeant Phillips of the New Orleans police department. Would it be alright if had a little chat?"

"Errrm, could it wait for 5 minutes? I need to find my dog."

Without waiting for Sergeant Phillips answer, Wanda ran back downstairs and into the car park, looking for one of her neighbours. She spotted Mrs.Walker covered in a long green shawl holding a shivering bundle, which turned out to be one of her many cats.

"Oh Wanda honey, you're all right. I was the one who noticed the fire and called the fire department earlier. Poochie…"

"Poochie, he's ok? Where is he? I want to see him," screamed Wanda.

"Yes dear, he's fine. He's over there on the grass. Quite a dog you have there. If it hadn't been for him, the whole building might have gone up. I called the fire department, and they managed to stop the fire, sadly though it sounds as though your apartment's ruined."

"Yeah, I've seen it. Thank you for calling the fire department,"

She looked at Dave, standing by the still waiting cab. He looked so worried for her and she was so glad he was here.

"Mrs Walker, is it ok if you keep Poochie for tonight? I'm staying with a friend," asked Wanda.

"Of course it is, dear. He can stay how ever long you need," replied the greying woman.

Wanda thanked Mrs Walker and made her goodbye. Then she made her way back over to Sergeant Phillips and Dave walked over too to offer his support.

"Miss Ravenmoon, have you got somewhere you can stay tonight?"

Wanda looked to Dave, and he nodded that she could stay with him.

"Yeah," Wanda replied to Sergeant Phillips.

"Can I ask you when was the last time you were at your apartment?"

"Earlier this evening."

"Would you mind coming down to the station and answering a few questions?"

"Could it not wait until the morning? It's late and I've had a long day."

Sergeant Phillips agreed and took Wanda's mobile number. She and Dave then left and got back into the cab that had been waiting for about 30 minutes now, although the driver didn't really mind and was glad of the large fair. They drove to the hotel where Wanda had first met with Shane McMahon.

"I can get myself a room, I'll be fine," protested Wanda.

"Don't be so silly, I can't leave you alone at a time like this. Besides it's a huge penthouse apartment, so there's plenty of room," insisted Dave.

"Thank you, you're a good friend," she smiled. Even though they'd only know each other for a few hours, Wanda really needed Dave at the moment.

The apartment was huge and gorgeous with a lovely long white leather couch. The walls were a light blue and the carpet was a deep luxurious blue. With a roaring open fire, it looked very inviting.

"Would it be ok if I took a shower? I stink of smoke," asked Wanda.

"Anything you need, do you want to borrow a shirt or something to sleep in?"

"Yeah, that'd be good, thanks."

"Do you want anything to eat?"

"No thanks, I really don't think I could manage anything."

"You've go to eat some thing, I'll order room service anyway. Maybe after a shower you'll change your mind. You can sleep in the bed, I'll be fine on the couch."

Wanda suddenly remembered the argument with Emily. She obviously hadn't gone home, or she'd have been caught in the fire. But where was she? Wanda called Emily's mobile but it was turned off and she left a message. Dave then called Randy's mobile, in the hopes that they were together, but that too was switched off. Hoping that they were together and safe, Wanda resolved to leave it until the morning. Wanda didn't know what else to say except thank you. Before she went to take a shower, Dave went into the bedroom where she guessed he was tidying up his 'guy mess', but he returned with 2 fake fur blankets.

"I've left a shirt, dressing gown and towels on the bed for you."

After thanking Dave for the 100th time, Wanda headed for the bedroom with a small smile. It was a massive white room with a black bed that she thought was more than big enough for 2 people. The room looked very tidy and only a sports bag lay out. Unable to resist temptation, Wanda peeked into the closet where there were rows of suits and shirts hanging up along with a few T-shirts, joggers and one or two more casual items. She made her way to the bathroom, which was all white too with black marble fittings. There were bottles of products lined up on a shelf, and neat piles of lush black towels and a strange cartoon fish shower curtain, that didn't really match the decoration of the rest of the room.

Wanda undressed and got into the shower. The hot water was so relaxing and soothing. She felt a little weird since she and Dave had only known each other for a few hours, yet here she was taking a shower in his apartment. Yet at the same time, she felt safe and knew he wasn't going to jump into bed with her the first chance he got. She could tell he cared about her and she felt like that too. It amazed her that they'd known each other for less than 24 hours, yet they'd clicked. Wanda got out of the shower and put on the shirt Dave had left for her. It smelt of his cologne and made her think of how badly she wished they'd have kissed. Then she put on the warm, soft dressing gown, tied up her hair and returned to the living room. The fire was roaring away, so Wanda seated herself on the couch, soaking up its warmth.

Dave wasn't in the room, but ,moments later, he immerged with a hot bowl of tomato soup and a mug of hot chocolate and handed them to her. The smell of the soup instantly made Wanda hungry and she ate it quickly. The food and warmth of the fire made her perk up a little. Wanda lay on the couch, covered with a blanket, whilst she sipped her hot chocolate. Dave sat near her feet and she couldn't help looking at him, thinking he was so gorgeous and so caring. A few hours passed as they sat chatting about random things, like their families and childhoods. Dave still seemed mesmerized by her southern accent. Wanda was mesmerized by him in general. The heat of the fire was now making Wanda feel drowsy and, in a matter of minutes, she'd fallen asleep.

Realizing Wanda was out for the count, Dave lifted her off the couch, her head dropping back and her hair cascading down. He carried her to the bedroom, noticing her clothes neatly piled on the dresser. Dave placed Wanda into bed, resting her head on two plump pillows and covered her over. Then he kissed her forehead and whispered, "Sweet dreams."

Wanda woke early the next morning in a panic as she didn't realize where she was. Then it all came flooding back to her--the bar, the fire, Dave inviting her to stay. She quickly dressed and went to the living room. Dave was sitting in an arm chair, watching the morning news.

"Sleep well?" he asked, turning to her as she perched on the edge of the couch.

"Despite everything, yeah I did," she replied.

"Do you want any breakfast?"

"No thanks, I really should be going," she replied nervously.

"It's still quite early, stay and have some breakfast. You'll need it after how much you drank last night," the dark haired man said with a grin.

Wanda remembered their little drinking contest and their arm wrestling match and felt so embarrassed. "Oh god, I'm so sorry about last night. I'm not a raving alcoholic really."

"Don't worry about it, it was good to have some 'normal' time for once," Dave laughed.

Wanda thought he must have a very strange idea of what normal was, if he considered last night normal.

"So, breakfast," he suggested.

"Go on then, some toast and a coffee would be great thanks."

Dave grabbed the phone and called through the order for room service. Wanda yawned, thinking she really didn't know how she'd face work today. The room service arrived quickly even thought Dave had ordered a huge breakfast and large orange juice for himself. Wanda barely touched her toast but almost downed the coffee in one, desperately longing for another.

"Not too hungry, huh?" Dave asked.

"Not really. To be honest, I'd love to go back to bed," replied the black haired woman.

"You're very welcome to. I'm meeting Hunter in the gym soon, but you can stay here if you'd like. I won't be too long."

Wanda was very tempted by Dave's offer but felt too awkward around him to take him up on it.

"Thanks, but I really must get things sorted out."

"All right, but I'll give you my mobile number, in case you need anything."

Wanda was amazed--letting her stay last night was one thing, but giving her his mobile number. He hardly knew her.

"Thanks," she said, keying the digits into her phone.

"Anyway, I'm sorry to seem rude, but I really better be getting ready and go. Hunter will go mad if I keep him waiting."

"Yeah, I should be making tracks too. I've got to collect Poochie and speak with the fire department."

Wanda gathered her things and went to leave but Dave stopped her as she reached the door.

"Last night was good, we'll have to do it again soon, and remember if you need anything, you've got my number."

"Thanks… for everything. Yeah, we'll definitely have to do it again, sugah," she replied, planting a kiss on his cheek before leaving.

Dave was dumb struck--what was it about this crazy Southern gal that had him so entranced? When she called him 'sugah', it made him want to go insane. He was so tempted to call Hunter and cancel going to the gym so he could go after her.

Wanda ordered a cab in the hotel lobby and, as she waited for it, hoped Dave would be heading for the gym soon so that she could see him again. Part of her wanted to forget everything else and stop here. She got into the cab, feeling dejected, lost deep in thoughts about Dave.