Author's notes: Right I'm back now after my little Harry Potter break. I'll be trying to update as often as possible now, but am experiencing a bit of writer's block at the moment, so if I am a little slow in updating please bear with me. I really appreciate all the comments and reviews, so thank you and I'm glad you're all enjoying it.

Chapter eight: First kisses and life changes.

Wanda was totally stunned to see Batista. Knowing the wrestlers were moving on to a new town, she expected that he'd have already left. Nevertheless, she was very pleased to see him again, as they'd had such a good time the previous night.

"Errrm, yeah join me if you wanna, but I'm not really in the best of moods," she answered him.

"How come? Bad news at the fire department?" Batista inquired, sounding concerned.

"Yeah, they think the fire may have been deliberate and me and Emily have just had a huge row--she's leaving." Wanda tried to focus more on the argument with Emily as she didn't want to speak about Max.

"She's leaving? What happened? Was the argument really that bad?"

"Well, she told me how she's decided to leave University and go on the road with Randy . I was really angry with her 'cos she's so irresponsible, so I laid into her. She got annoyed about it and started to be really offensive about my personal life, then left," she informed Batista with a raised eyebrow.

"So she's really going to take off with Randy then? What are you going to do? I know which town the next show is in, so you could go after her. I'll come with you if you want and have a word with Randy."

"Thanks but I think I'll leave her to it. I'll call her parents and let them know what she's doing, but to be honest I really can't be bothered with her. She's not my responsibility. Anyway, how come you're still in town? I'd have thought you'd have left already."

"Nah, I was due some time off, so I decided to stay in New Orleans. My sister lives not far from here and she's due to give birth soon, so I decided to stick around," smiled the dark-haired man.

Wanda smiled--she was so glad Batista was still going to be in town, even if it was only for a few weeks.

"That's great, so when is she due? Does she know the baby's sex yet?"

"She's due in about 3 weeks, but she doesn't know its sex yet. She wants it to be a surprise."

"Ah, right, so are you excited about becoming an uncle?"

"Yeah, totally, me and Marie are really close and I adore children, so it's going to be great. Have you got any siblings?" Batista continued, prying for more information about her.

"Nah, it's only me. My mom had some problems conceiving me and, after I was born, the doctors told her she wouldn't be able to have any more kids. I'm thankful though. If Emily is anything to go by, having a sister would be hell," she laughed.

"So, when can you move back into your apartment?"

"I'm not totally sure. I think the police department still need some time in there and then it's got to be totally refurbished. So I guess I'm going to be sticking around here for a while."

"Well, at least, you'll have me to keep you company," Dave replied with a cheeky grin.

"Yeah, if you can put up with me looking like a tramp. All my clothes were ruined in the fire," Wanda laughed. After four neat drinks, every thing was starting to seem a little better.

"Well, do you want to come shopping with me at the weekend? I wanted to get some things for Marie and the baby and you could show me the sights."

"Yeah, that'd be fun. I could do with something to take my mind off all this stress."

"I bet. So, why does the fire department think the fire might have been deliberate?" he asked, his tone sounding serious again.

"Errrm, I'm not sure really. They just said a neighbour spotted someone hanging around at about the same time they think the fire started," Wanda remarked, trying to downplay the situation to avoid awkward questions.

"Ahh, right. So you're still pretty much in the dark then?" he replied, trying to move off the subject as he'd noticed Wanda's unease over it.

"Yeah, pretty much. So what things are you getting for Marie and the baby?"

"Pretty much everything. Marie's been quite unwell with the pregnancy, so she hasn't got anything yet. Her husband is with the army, and wont be back until a month after the baby is due, so I'm all she's got. I've got a great big list of things I need to get for her, like a crib, clothes, a wash basin, that sort of stuff."

"You're going to be pretty busy then this weekend? Are you sure I won't be in your way?" she questioned, hoping that he'd reassure her that he'd like her to come along.

"Oh god no! I'd be glad of the company, plus you've already said you'd show me the sights. Whether you look like a tramp or not!" he laughed, hoping that Wanda wasn't secretly trying to get out of their shopping trip.

"Well, it's a date then and I'll even buy you dinner--to repay your kindness last night," she smiled.

"Great, a day with a good looking woman and a free meal. What more could a guy want?" Dave smiled, proudly sticking out his chest.

The pair moved over to a small table by the window with fresh new drinks. The view was amazing as it overlooked the river and there was a gentle breeze coming through the open window. The stresses of half an hour ago had seemed to pass Wanda by. Her thoughts were no longer on Emily or the fire but on the gorgeous man sitting next to her and their planned shopping trip. Dave also seemed in a world of his own, just quietly listening to the breeze and babbling river. Five minutes passed whilst neither spoke and they just took in the atmosphere. Dave's arm subtly slipped round Wanda's shoulder and she gave a small sigh at the thought that, to everyone else, they looked like a happy couple.

"So, what have you got planned whilst you're stopping here?" Dave asked, breaking the silence.

"I'm not totally sure. Obviously, I'll have to go back to work soon, I can't really take any more time off. But apart from that, I'm at a bit of a loss what to do now Emily has gone. Ohhh, I forgot to tell you--today hasn't been all bad. When I rang my boss to let him know what had happened with the fire department, he told me that I'll be doing all the work for the films with the WWE and that I'll be dealing directly with the wrestlers and workers. I'm so pleased, I've been waiting for years to do something this big," she grinned.

"Wow, that's fantastic! I'm so pleased for you, congratulations. It's a shame I've got some time off 'cause I could have looked after you. But you're going to have a great time working with everyone. They're a great bunch."

"I'm sure they are, even if Hunter's beard is a little scary."

They both laughed whilst Dave mimicked Hunter. He pranced about with his chest stuck out, pretending to flick long hair. Wanda went to get them both another drink and, when she did, the waitress at the bar commented that Wanda had a very good looking boyfriend. She dared not correct her otherwise in case the attractive blonde, with rather large breasts, got any ideas. As Wanda returned to the table, Dave gave her a peck on the lips, and, much to Wanda's amusement, she saw the blonde waitress giving her the evil eye. Wanda felt rather smug with herself. She had issues in high school with blonde bimbo cheerleader-types and this was like sticking 2 fingers up at all those bitches from school. The pair continued chatting about everything from their very different childhoods to best holidays they'd had. All the while, the buxom blonde waitress prowled backwards and forwards, pouting and glaring at Wanda.

"Ha, have you seen that waitress that keeps looking over at us? I think she's a little jealous," Dave remarked.

"Yeah, but she is very pretty, don't you think?"

"She's nothing special. I see women like her every day at work. I like women with a bit of fire in them," smiled the dark haired man, looking into Wanda's deep brown eyes.

Wanda desperately wanted to kiss him now but was too scared after their near miss due to the fire. Taking her completely by surprise, Dave leaned across and slowly but very passionately kissed Wanda. Her heart fluttered as his hand caressed her cheek and his tongue slipped into her mouth. It seemed like a blissful eternity before they stopped.

"Wow," Wanda sighed and Dave let out a small school boy like giggle.

With his arm still around her, Wanda leaned in against Dave's chest, feeling his deep breaths go in and out. They sat like this for the remainder of the night, stroking each other's hair or caressing the other's hand. When the now very annoyed looking waitress called out that the bar was closing, the pair rose hand in hand and made their way out. Wanda quickly stopped at the reception and booked herself into a room that was just 2 doors down from Dave's.

"So, how about joining me for a nightcap?" Dave asked.

Despite the lust in other parts of Wanda telling her to go for it, her heart said not to ruin a wonderful night by jumping in too fast . So, she declined, stating what she really needed was a goodnight's sleep. The pair parted with another long and passionate kiss outside Wanda's hotel room door.

"Night."

"Yeah, sweet dreams," replied Dave and he walked off to his apartment .

Wanda went into her room, undressed and settled into bed. Turning on the T.V., she found an old black and white film about an elderly couple who had been sweethearts since they were teenagers. She began to reminisce about her own life and, how at the age of 30, she hadn't yet been lucky enough to find true love. The harsh remarks from her row with Emily came flooding back to her. Trying to take her mind off her cousin's hurtful words, she thought about the evening with Dave. Her heart fluttered at the thought of Dave and the two of them falling in love, like the old couple from the film. She decided from now on she wasn't going to discard her own feelings due to fear and work commitments or jump blindly head first into something for the sake of it. Wanda was sick of the solitude of single life and thought she'd found someone very special in Dave Batista . Falling into a dreamy romantic sleep, she thought it was high time she made some changes in her life.

Morning came and all thoughts of Emily and Max had been firmly banished from Wanda's head. She ordered room service and was shocked when the busty blonde waitress from last night brought it to her room.

"Not with your boyfriend?" quizzed the blonde.

"Errrm no, and we aren't actually together yet, but fingers crossed, hey," smiled the black haired woman, no longer with a feeling of smugness about getting one over on something she knew she'd never be but with happiness of what could be.

Wanda called Emily's parents and informed them of Emily's plans, much to their shock. She reassured them that Emily would be fine on her own and that she'd check on Emily in a few days to make sure she was ok. She then called Mr.Rodriguez and informed him that she'd be back to work this Monday with all the preparation for the WWE films ready. She then decided she'd use the remainder of the week making some changes. She was sick to death of how she looked and always wearing black and felt she needed more in her life than just her job and her pet dog. She came to the decision that, however the WWE films went, she was going to get her novel finished and find a publisher.

After breakfast, Wanda bought a few new items of clothing ,all uncharacteristically not black, and spent the remainder of the day in the hotel spa relaxing, where she had her hair cut about 4 inches shorter and the white streaks at the front dyed black too. The following day, she visited Mrs.Walker and Poochie. Her small dog was very pleased to see her. She spent most of the morning there and helped Mrs.Walker with some household chores. In the afternoon on her way back to the hotel, she popped into work and picked up a few discs with information about the WWE films on and her novel on the other. After buying a new laptop computer, Wanda spent the afternoon preparing all she needed for the meeting with the WWE that Mr.Rodriguez had informed her would be on the afternoon of the day she returned to work. All of Friday was taken up by Wanda re-writing what she'd done of her novel and research for the remainder of it. On Friday night, there was a phone call to her hotel room. Not knowing who would know she was staying here, she hesitantly answered.

"Hey, Wanda, it's Dave. Just checking to see if we're still on for tomorrow ?"

"Hey, yeah, of course, we are. What time did you want to get going?"

"Is about half ten alright?"

"Yeah that's cool."

"So what have been up to? Haven't seen you around the hotel."

"Not much really, just working on things and writing my novel. Have you done anything interesting?"

"Nah, just been at the gym."

"Ahh right, working on those already huge muscles?"

"Ha, yeah something like that. Anyways I'm off to have a shower now, but I'll see you in the morning."

"Yeah, I'll see you tomorrow. Night, night."

"Yeah, good night and sweet dreams."

"You too."

With the arrangements made and Wanda happy with a new look, she retired to bed, very excited about the following day.

To be continued….