A/N: As always, I can't thank you all enough for the reviews. You guys truly are my inspiration for writing this story.

Part 11
"I saw your girl last night."

Dave almost didn't look up. When he did, he faced Ric Flair, who was grinning wildly at him. Raising a curious eyebrow, Dave rose from his seat on the couch in Evolution's locker room.

"I wasn't aware I had one," he replied nonchalantly, approaching the older man.

Ric laughed and shook his head, grin still plastered on his face. Dave was so modest and softspoken when it came to his women.

"Oh, come on," he teased, his eyes gleaming. "You and the redhead looked pretty happy together when you left Sunday night."

Dave's stomach fell. Ric was usually too preoccupied with whatever woman he was with to care about who he was hanging around. Did he have to start taking notice now, of all times... of all people?

"That was a one time deal," he said matter-of-factly. It killed him to be so nonchalant about this, but Hunter and Ric expected nothing less. "She knows that."

"I don't know about that," Flair replied. "She came looking for you last night."

A loud groan escaped Dave's lips as he fought the urge to smack himself in the forehead. This was exactly what he didn't want to happen. This was why he didn't want to make a habit out of sleeping with random women.

"Well, isn't this just wonderful?" Dave muttered, half under his breath.

Ric picked up on the sarcasm of his snide remark, and he gave him an assuring pat on the back. He had been in Dave's situation many times before. It was nothing more than a temporary nuisance.

"No worries, Big Man," he said with confidence. "This won't even become an issue - Hunter already told her you were probably with someone else."

Ric noticed the definite wariness in Dave's eyes when he alluded to who he was with the night before. His own eyes gleamed as his expression grew inquisitive.

"Who were you with last night?" he asked. "By the time we got back from our match, you were already gone from the building."

Dave did not immediately respond, instead throwing Ric a disbelieving stare. Anytime he didn't go out with the, they assumed he was with a woman. Maybe a new partner every night was okay for them, but that just wasn't his style. In fact, despite what they thought, before Christy it had been months since he even had sex.

"I wasn't with anyone. After the show I grabbed a bite to eat and then went back to my room alone. I was tired," Dave told him.

So it wasn't entirely true... it was in the context of what Ric was looking for.

"Of course you did," Ric replied playfully. "I can take a hint, Tista. No more questions."

Sighing with relief, Dave nodded. He rose from the couch, pacing somewhat nervously back and forth. Ric watched the younger man silently, and a look of almost genuine concern filled his eyes.

"Don't stress yourself out over this," he warned. "Like I said, it's not even as issue."

Dave nodded weakly, returning his gaze to his mentor.

"Just to be safe, keep this to yourself," Dave requested. "If I gets back to management that I slept with a Diva Search girl, I could be in deep shit."

"This gets no further than Evolution," Ric gave his solemn promise.

A relieved sigh again left Dave's lips, only this one was much less convincing than the first. His face had begun to grow pale, and the sweat clung to his forehead. Though he had told Ric to keep his mouth shut so he could avoid trouble with the company, he was even more concerned with Trish finding out. Since last night he had been trying to decipher the strange feelings he was getting around her. So far, he had nothing. Maybe he really was getting sick.

He started towards the door, discovering walking in a straight line to be an impossible task.

"Besides," Ric called after him, "it's not like it would even matter if word got out. You're going to Smackdown to fight JBL anyway..."

The flicker of anger that flashed through Dave's eyes went unnoticed by Flair. He just had to sneak the comment in. Both Ric and Triple H had been not-so-subtly hinting that he should go to Smackdown, for the 'benefit of Evolution'. He knew their excuse was a crock. Yet another issue he was not looking forward to dealing with.

Dave grunted with displeasure, throwing the door open in a huff.

"Sure, Ric... whatever you say."


Someone was following her. Stacy would be damned to let anyone tell her otherwise. Even though each nervous glance she tossed over her shoulder was met with nothing, she knew someone was there. It wasn't paranoia, she just had a keen sense for this sort of thing. Test, Scott Steiner, and the Dudley Boys all deserved credit for the development of her acute senses... thanks to them, she could always sense someone lurking behind her.

She knew the feeling of cold eyes burning a hole through her back all too well. Though the situation did make her nervous, Stacy remained calm. She was on her way to see Randy anyway. Once she got to him, whomever was so intrigued with her would go away.

She began to hum quietly to herself, acting as though she had no clue what was going on. When the swift, darting motions behind her stopped, Stacy figured she was in the clear. So when a crate full of ring equipment tipped over, its contents crashing to the floor, she couldn't contain a shocked scream.

She couldn't ignore it anymore. The leggy blonde turned slowly, her heart sinking as she locked eyes with Triple H. She should have known...

"What do you want?" she said with a sigh.

Hunter had already beaten the hell out of her boyfriend... wasn't that enough? The World Champion wore his perfected maniacal grin as he slowly approached. With each step Stacy took in retreat, he took two in her direction. It wasn't long before he sealed off any measureable distance between them.

"I just need to you send a message from me, to your boyfriend," he said calmly.

Stacy rolled her eyes emphatically, making sure her annoyed groan was audible to him. Hunter fed off the fear of others, and planned on doing everything in her power not to supply him that.

"Can't you deliver your own messages?" she asked, sending the champion a derogatory look.

The eerie laugh she received in response was enough to weaken her confidence, but Stacy's gaze remained strong even when Hunter pressed up against her.

"I've already given him a concussion," he proudly reminded her. "Do you really want me to deliver the message myself?"

Her hard gaze faltered as she began to feel more threatened by the much larger man's presence. Backing down to Triple H was the last thing she wanted to do, but her pride wasn't worth jeopardizing Randy's safety. With a disheartened sigh, she gave in to his request with a nod.

"What do you want me to tell him?" she asked, crossing her arms in front of her.

"Just let him know that this thing between him and I, it's done. I've beaten him down plenty of times now, and to be honest he's becoming a bit of a nuisance. Let's just bury this before it gets taken any further," he suggested.

Stacy raised an eyebrow at him. She knew Randy well enough to know that letting go was far out of his reach. He wouldn't bury the issue until he could say he went out on top.

"I don't know if that's going to happen, Hunter," she admitted. "I don't forsee Randy letting things die between you two until he gets back at you for what you did to him."

The slightest hint of a frown touched the lips of Triple H. His disapproval almost made Stacy smile, till she noticed his expression slowly turning to one of fury. His breathing grew rough and heavy as he stared bullets through her. He leaned in closer, and the blonde woman wrinkled her nose in disgust as she felt his hot breath on her face.

"Well then, maybe I should really give him a reason to want to get back at me," he threatened dangerously.

Stacy's eyes widened slightly, as she suddenly had a flashback to a few weeks earlier, when Hunter had her trapped in the ring. Should he decide to get physical with her, things were much different then they had been then. She wasn't in the ring, and Randy had no clue she was even in danger. The chances of him rescuing her from Triple H this time around were slim to none.

"Hunter, come on," she said, her eyes pleading.

The pitiful tone in which she spoke was sad enough to make even the most sadistic of men to consider having mercy. But the moment he saw the fear dance through her brown eyes, he capitalized, just like a shark that picked up the scent of fresh blood. He grinned wildly, grabbing a hold of her tiny wrist. He bent it swiftly, causing a sharp pain to shoot up her arm.

"Ow!" Stacy cried as she tried to fight him off. "Hunter, please, just leave me alone."

"Not a chance, honey," he growled, pushing her into the wall. The cry that escaped her lips as her back hit the wall only made him laugh.

Stacy squeezed her eyes shut tightly as she dreadfully imagined what was heading her way. Her heart was slowly dropping - along with her stomach - as she concluded that she was trapped. No one even knew she was missing. Taking a deep, quick breath, she prepared herself for what was to come.

As if by a miracle, once again, it didn't.

"Hey! Let her go!"

Almost immediately after hearing the angry yell, Triple H released his grip on Stacy. Both individuals shot their glance in the direction of the comment. Both were equally shocked to see who it was.

"Excuse me?" Triple H said with a snort, finding it hard to contain his laughter. "Do you have any idea who you're talking to, sweetheart?"

Stacy's brown eyes continued to widen when, as if unfazed by the burly man's remark, Trish Stratus marched up to him. She boldly wedged herself in between the two, actually mustering up the power to shove the unguarded champion back a few steps. She stared up at him, fire in her dark eyes.

"I'm talking to a man who's going to be real sorry he just called me sweetheart," she snapped, her gaze unwavering. "Now, just leave Stacy be, and we'll pretend this little incident never happened."

As the two stared each other down, Stacy slipped away from the wall. She got to a safe distance from the two, and watched in silence, waiting for the silence to break.

"Since when did you care about her?" Triple H retorted, pointing his finger in Stacy's direction. His sudden movement made Stacy jump. "And since when did I take orders from a woman, especially one like you? I'm the damn champion."

Trish stared at the champion in disgust. He thought being the World Champion gave him the right to push everyone around, including the divas. Well, she was one diva who refused to take his crap. She had taken beatings from men before, and getting one from Triple H was a fine price to pay if she got a shot at him as well.

"Unlike you, Hunter, I actually care about my friends," she said, without missing a beat. She didn't see the grin that spread on Stacy's lips at her comment. "And I think it'd be real smart for you to just leave like I asked."

Amused, Triple H crossed his arms over his chest. "Or what?"

It took Trish a moment to come up with a response, but then a satisfied smirk crossed her features. She had just the thing...

"Ever gotten a Chick Kick to the balls?" she asked, smiling sweetly at him.

Triple H shook his head, "You wouldn't dare."

Without hesitating, Trish drew her leg back and then threw it forward, making good on her threat. A pained groan emenated from Hunter as he bent down, the pain jolting from his groin to the rest of his body. She smiled, proud and satisfied with her actions.

Trish took advantage of his handicapped state, grabbing Stacy by the arm and making a run for it.