Chapter 18
Britain, John and Dave sat at the table in the Kraft's Services area of the arena. With only two hours before she had to get to the airport, she figured she would spend it with Dave and his stupid friends. Her best friend, X, was coming to Tampa to help her finish moving into Dave's house and some of X's photos were being featured in a new art gallery just outside of Tampa.
She had just finished her chips before taking Dave's plate of grapes, when Randy walked over to them. "Guess who made it to number 24 on Maxim's 100 hottest women's list?" He sang holding up the magazine that was opened to her picture.
She put her head in her hands. "Please don't read that." She said as Dave snatched the book from Randy.
Dave looked at her photos and then at her. With a raised eyebrow he smiled. There were two pictures of her; one was of her in a shower, showing the side of her body. It could have been more tastefully done, but this was Maxim. The next one had her lying on a motorcycle wearing chaps, a thong and a leather vest, nothing else. She hated that picture the most. "That's the bike I wanted." Dave said pointing at the picture. That comment resulted in her popping him in the back of the head. Only he would pay more attention to that stupid bike then her on it. "Oh look...there's an article that goes with it."
John peered over his shoulder and then looked at Britain. "Are you boobs real?"
She should've been angry, but she was convinced that John had been dropped on the head as a baby. Why in the hell would he ask her something like that, in front of all of them, no less?
"What?" Was all she could say. She looked at him like a dog would look at a sound that it didn't understand. He must have thought that she didn't hear him, so he repeated himself.
"I wanna know." He turned to Dave. "GQ, are they real?" He was damn serious, he needed to know. There are just some things that should never be asked; he just didn't think this was one of them.
Dave held up his hands and laughed. He was leaving that all up to her. If she slapped him so be it, if she answered that was fine too.
"Yes they're real you asshole. Don't you think if I had fake boobs, they would be bigger?" She rolled her eyes at John.
He thought about it for a moment. "Nah, if they were bigger, you'd probably fall over..."
Dave started to read aloud, mainly to shut John up. He knew that in a few minutes the main event would be Britain and Cena; he'd be willing to lay his money on Britain.
The beginning of the article was fine, the basics, where she was in her career, what she had accomplished. The closer he got to the question and answer portion the more she tried to take the book from him. He snatched it back and read: "Age: 28, Height: 5'8", Weight: 120lbs., Ethnicity: Black, Mexican and German, Resides in: Florida and San Diego. Single or Married: Single, but dating someone..." So far so good. Maybe they didn't put that part in the article after all. "Favorite sport: Football and wrestling, Favorite team: Baltimore Ravens and New England Patriots, Favorite Wrestler: Kevin Nash... Kevin Nash?" He looked over at her and she was covering her face again. "What the hell is this Kevin Nash shit?"
She shook her head and squeezed her eyes shut; she knew the article was only going to get worse.
John took the magazine and finished reading the questions. "Boxers or briefs: Commando. Favorite part of your body: My hair, Favorite part of your boyfriend's body: His smile. Have you ever done it with a woman: No, but I kissed one once. Secret fantasy: Well, my boyfriend's a wrestler and I want to do him in the middle of the ring with everyone watching us. I want everyone to know just how good he is. The way he..."
She couldn't snatch the book away from John fast enough. "...Ok, that's enough show and tell." She walked to the trash can and dropped the magazine inside. When she came back to the table, Dave was giving her that shit eating grin that she hated. "After the photo shoot, we went out, I got drunk and I didn't know I was on record." She tried to defend herself through Randy's laughter. "My agent's already yelled at me and my dad's called me four times."
He pulled her to his lap and laughed. "I'm that good baby?" He made his voice extra deep, deep enough to piss her off. God, he could be so conceited sometimes and she fed right into that big ass ego of his.
"No. I just didn't want hurt your feelings with that Kevin Nash comment." She rolled her eyes and gave Randy shot her eyes at Randy; he immediately stopped laughing.
"What was that about?" He asked her.
While she was searching for something to say, she noticed Jeff walking into the room. "I'll be right back." She said getting up.
He watched her walk past Jeff and he could have sworn he saw a smile or something between them. What the fuck was that? His brain said it loud enough for those words to actually come out of his mouth. Hunter walked over and sat down. "Did you just see that?" Hunter turned to Dave. Dave turned around and watched Britain walk out of the room and Jeff followed a few moments later.
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"I just wanted to say again that I'm really sorry for busting in you and Chase." She couldn't help her grin from coming back. She noticed how Jeff stood uncomfortably looking at her. "You really like her, huh?" It was an honest question.
His blush was a dead give away. "We had the best time this weekend." He leaned up against the wall and told Britain about how much fun Chase was. He told her that he was going to see her on Sunday when he got to California, and how he wished they could have more time together besides the few days here and there that they were able to sneak away.
"Well, she has an open ticket to Europe for a week. Why don't you see if you can get some time off and maybe go with her." She was good at match making. She had successfully helped all of her friends hook up with guys and now she felt like Jeff and Chase's secret love affair was her new hobby. "That way you two can spend some time together and you don't have to worry about Dave or that asshole..." She watched Hunter and Randy walk out into the hallway.
Hunter leaned up against the wall next to Jeff. "Rainbow, Rainbow, Rainbow. Just can't leave the women in Dave's life alone, can you?" He put his thick arm around Jeff's shoulder. "Now, he's too much of gentleman to ask what the fuck is so important that you couldn't talk to his girl in front of him. But I'm not..."
Britain looked at Randy who shook his head. This is not what he had in mind. He was just going out in the hallway to make sure that Hunter didn't do anything to Jeff, not to confront him. "Hunt, leave him alone." He looked at Jeff, who wasn't backing down.
"You know what? You really get on my fucking nerves!" Britain shot out. "You don't have anything better to do, do you? Now that Chase's not here, you just want to fuck with me right?"
Hunter turned is smile back to Jeff. "Looks like your new girlfriend's got more balls you do." He whispered in Jeff's ear.
"And what the fuck are you Randy...backup? I expected this kind of high school bullshit from him, but you? I'm disappointed." She turned and walked away from them all.
Hunter put his hand on the wall, just above Jeff's head. "I told you before Rainbow, that you were going to have problems. Get ready..." He said slapping the side of Jeff's face to pep him up. Jeff and Randy watched as Hunter walked away laughing.
Jeff turned his gaze back to Randy. "Dude, I don't know what the fuck he's up to, but he's got it in for you." Randy wanted to ask Jeff about his relationship with Chase, but now might not have been a good idea. "Just watch your back."
"I don't know what I did to him. I don't remember him bein' so much of a fuckin' punk before." He turned to Randy and sighed. "Who would've thought that me taken out Dave's daughter would piss him off so much."
Randy shuffled his feet. "I know it's not my business, but are you still seeing her?" He looked at Jeff and then down at the floor. Who was he, Jeff's dad? Why was it any of his concern?
Jeff looked at Randy seriously. "And if I am? You gonna run and tell Dave or Hunter?"
"Personally I don't see what's so bad about it. I thought about hitting that once or twice myself...I mean...Look, if you want to see her, I don't really give a fuck. But just know that you're giving Hunter ammo to feed to Dave which is going to lead to World War fucking Three. Dave's a cool guy, but when he's mad..." Randy shook his head and walked away.
Jeff sighed and reached into his pocket for his phone. He knew Chase was in class, but he left her a message anyway. "Hey, I just wanted to tell you, I love you." He said before he hung up the phone.
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Britain watched Dave's return to Raw from the airplane. His big return was successful and she was so proud. She smiled when she saw him come down the ramp with his Dolce glasses on, his white Armani suit, which she had picked out was tailored to perfection. He looked so good standing with Randy, Ric and oh yeah Hunter. The crowd ate it up, when they all came out playing Evolution's theme music. No one knew about his big switch to Raw or that Evolution was back together. She could tell by the look on his face, that he was back; just like old times.
She watched him stand by the side of the ring as Randy and Jeff went at it. She even cringed, when Hunter bounced the rope to foil Jeff's Swanton on Randy. All though it was planned, Hunter was shaking it a little too hard. Luckily Jeff landed on his shoulder and not his neck. She could tell by the look on Ric's face that Hunter was being careless and taking things too far. But even through all of that, her man looked good. He was professional at work, he even removed his jacket before he and the rest of the group got in the ring to "finish" Jeff off.
As soon as she walked in the door to Dave's house, her cell rang. She smiled, it had to be Dave. He always called after his matches. "You looked great." She answered the phone with a smile.
"Well thanks." She heard a voice giggle on the other end.
"Hey girl, where are you?" She asked X. Finally, she was making the trip around the world, as she called it, to help her settle into Dave's house. They were going to do it up for a few days, before they would travel back to California for Raw and her mom's birthday. After that, she was staying put for two whole weeks. Two weeks of doing nothing; no traveling, just walking around the house in t-shirts, boxers and bunny slippers; it was almost too good to be true.
"I'm outside. You wanna help me with my bags?" Britain laughed. Only she would call from outside to get help with the bags instead of coming to the door first.
She met her friend with a warm hug and a sigh when she saw how many bags she had with her. If she didn't know any better, she would have thought that X was moving in with them. They got the stuff in the house barely and sat on the couch to catch up. Britain tried to concentrate on the conversation, but she kept looking at her phone. Dave still hadn't called yet; he always called.
"Let me see the ring." X said grabbing her hand. She cooed at the site. It was truly beautiful. "You bitch. Why can't I find a fine man with good taste in jewelry?" She pouted.
Britain walked over to the house phone and checked the voice messages there too; nothing. "You think I should call him?" Britain asked putting her hand on her hip. "He always calls me after his matches. Something's wrong." She couldn't shake the feeling.
X walked to her friend and put her arms around her. "He probably just went out with his boys." Hell, that's what she planned on doing after the match next week. "Does he still talk to that guy John? He's hot." Britain laughed. John wasn't hot, he was John. Ok so maybe he was a little cute and had a great body, he wasn't fine. He was dog.
"He said the same thing about you."
X's eyes got as big as her smile. "Really? I'd like to break off a piece of that." Britain laughed harder. That is almost the same thing he had said about her. They could be cute together, but they both needed to know the rules. John was as big of a dog as Christina was. As long they didn't expect it to be anything more than hot, sweaty, monkey sex they would get along fine.
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Jeff exited the shower with his towel around his waist. He walked over to the bench and opened his locker. As he turned toward the other row of lockers, he noticed Randy's eyes about to pop out of his head. "You ok?" He asked with a light hearted temperament. Although he didn't know if he could trust Randy or John for that matter, they had both took the time to warn him about Hunter, so they weren't completely on the bad guy list anymore.
"Are you trying to get yourself killed?" Randy asked. He was surprised that Jeff didn't seem to know what he was talking about. Randy pointed to Jeff's stomach and he looked down. The Henna tattoo, I completely forgot about it. He was now mentally kicking himself. They were supposed to be "sneaking around" and here he was fucking advertising.
Jeff went through his bag and got out his clothes. "Shit." He said quietly and started to get dressed. Apparently, he wasn't fast enough because he noticed Dave come up to Randy. Jeff quickly turned to face his locker, only to have Hunter standing in front of it.
"What do we have here? A new tattoo..." Hunter said loud enough for Dave to hear him. "And it's really good. You should show Dave… he likes tattoos." Jeff tried to pull his shirt over his head, but Hunter snatched it off. Randy advanced toward Jeff in a feeble attempt to protect him, which in turn made Dave turn toward him.
The tattoo was an innocent joke. Just as Chase had given him the freedom to do whatever he wanted on her back, he had done the same for her. It was meant for them, a private joke between lovers. Dave found it anything but amusing.
Dave's jaws clinched and he balled his fist at the sight. The tattoo was done in her hand writing; complete with the little smiley faces that she always put in her A's. It read, Chase was here, followed by that damn arrow that pointed toward his groin.
Dave stepped over the bench and was mere inches from Jeff's face. Randy called out for John, who was one row of lockers away from them. He knew he couldn't stop Dave by himself. "What the fuck is this shit?" Dave said a little too calmly. "Did you think I was fucking playing with you?" He pushed Jeff against the locker.
Jeff immediately pushed back. "I'm a grown ass man. I'll do whatever the fuck I want." Frankly, he was getting sick of hiding his relationship from Dave. Who the fuck was he anyway?
Before Jeff could say anything else, he felt Dave's hand make contact with his jaw. All he could do was rush him, but felt himself being pulled off and kneed in the groin by Hunter. Jeff laid on the floor doubled over, as Dave came running toward him. Luckily, Randy and John pulled him back, but not before Dave had a chance to kick Jeff in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him.
"Stay away from my fucking daughter!" He yelled at him. "This shit ain't over, bitch! Believe me!" He yelled before being dragged out into the hallway.
"You trying to get fucking fired, bro?" Randy yelled at him.
"You need to mind your own fucking business. This shit is between me and him." Dave said snatching his arm away.
"Nah dude. This is between him and her. You ain't got nothin' to do with it." John said firmly, but backed down when he saw Dave's glare.
He turned to John and snarled. "Tell your boy, his ass is mine." He said before walking away.
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"So let me see your man in action." X said motioning to the TV. She knew that Dave was the arrogant type that would tape himself every time he was on. She pushed several buttons on the remote, which turned on every other electrical gadget in the house but the Tivo. "How do you work this thing?"
Britain was in the kitchen. "Just hit it twice and it'll come on." She said before adding more Vodka to the daiquiri mix. Just as her finger was about to hit the start button on the blender, she heard panting and very familiar pillow talk. She almost ran from the kitchen into the living room, her face turned a thousands shades of red.
"I said I wanted to see him in action...not exactly what I had in mind, but this'll do." X sat back on the couch and turned to Britain. "Making movies now?"
Britain smiled at her friend. It's not like in her younger wilder days that she and X hadn't been through almost everything together. "Um, Dave got me...um...a camcorder for my birthday." The grin on her face was almost as big as X's. She knew Christina would not let this go, nor would she turn it off. X was a proud card carrying member of the voyeur's club.
X turned back to the big screen TV. "Excellent picture quality."
Britain nodded, still watching herself on screen. She had to admit, they looked hot together.
"And...is that an automatic zoom lens? That's a pretty expensive camera."
Britain laughed. Only X would make this private home movie into an episode of Syskle and Ebert.
"Do you always speak Spanish during sex?" X asked with her eyes still glued to the screen.
Britain sat next to her. "No, but he likes it." She thought about it; it's not like German was a sexy language or anything. She watched as X laughed when Dave started talking to her. At the time Britain didn't see anything wrong with it. Dave was telling her these off the wall things, like how he wanted to take her away from all of this and he would take care of her, they would make love all day and never have to worry about anything again. What was he talking about? Britain was pretty, rich and successful; it definitely didn't suck to be her. X turned to Britain and looked at her for an explanation. "You know...he was a sailor, only on leave for one day. I was the poor girl from the Barrio, that didn't speak English." Was Christina that out of practice?
X just shook her head. "Role playing? You guys are so gay."
Suddenly X turned up the volume and doubled over laughing. "De quién amplias rayas y estrellas brillantes, con la lucha peligrosa" 'Whose broad stripes and bright stars, through the perilous fight' "The Star Spangled Banner, Brit?"
She had forgotten all about that. Britain tossed back her head and laughed too. "Well, I couldn't think of anything to say...and the TV was on and they were playing that song when the station went off." Britain found herself pouting at X who wouldn't stop laughing. "Anyway, he doesn't know. He doesn't even speak Spanish."
Thank goodness the phone rang. She wasn't sure how much more of X's comments she could take, nor did she care to humiliate herself any further.
"Hey. What you two doing?" She heard Dave's somber voice. She was ready to rip him a new one.
"Well, Christina and I are watching the movie of you and me that we made on my birthday, which you left in the DVD player. You look really hot in it I might add." She heard him sigh. That wasn't like him at all. No smart assed conceited comments, no back pedaling out of why he was watching the video without her or why he left it in the DVD player and not the safe. Britain walked into the kitchen with the cordless phone. "What's wrong baby?" She asked before sitting down on the bar stool. Judging from how he looked on TV, he should be on cloud nine.
"I don't want to talk about it. I don't feel like arguing." He sighed again. He didn't like getting angry, it made him feel out of control. Right now Britain was the only person who could bring back his sanity.
She ferried her brow, this was so unlike him. "Davey, you can talk to me about anything. I may not agree with you, but you know you can talk to me." She quickly thought over the events of the past few days, she couldn't think of anything that he should be upset about. "Is it your girls, work... me? Tell me."
"No, it's nothing like that. I just gotta take care of something." He had to talk to Chase, even if that meant getting on a plane and showing up at her apartment in the middle of the night, he was going to do it. "I'll talk to you tomorrow. I love you."
Britain stared at the phone; he had just hung up on her. She knew that was not a good sign.
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Jeff had called Chase when he got back to his hotel. Her phone had beeped about fifty times while they were talking. She knew without looking at the caller ID that it was her father. "Jeff, he's gonna kill you. And then he's going to kill me and hide the body." Jeff laughed, but she was dead serious.
She had only known to him to be like that once before. When she was 10, her biological father came back. He demanded that Chase live with him and accused Dave of intimidating him into signing away his parental rights. Although he really had no intention of taking care of Chase, Dave was not going to take that chance.
She remembered being at her dad's house when this strange guy came around drunk, saying all this horrible stuff to them and about her mom. She could still hear the anger in Dave's voice. Although she was supposed to be in her room, she peeked out only to see Dave beat the living crap out of the man, who claimed to be her father. She hadn't ever seen him before, and though she knew that Dave wasn't her "real" father, he was still her daddy.
She had never seen him so angry, his eyes were pitch black, and his face was twisted in a snarl. He didn't even look like her daddy anymore. She didn't know what she was more afraid of, the strange guy or him. He only stopped hitting him when she ran to him crying. "Daddy, please. Don't hurt him anymore, daddy." Her small face covered in tears. "We don't fight remember? That's not the way to handle our problems." Dave turned to her and picked her up to carry her back into her room. She could still him crying while he apologized to her.
That was the first and last time she'd ever seen him loose it, and again it was because of her. She was afraid for herself, for Jeff… for her dad. "Jeff, I can't see you anymore."
