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Paul stepped through the door to his apartment and headed into the living room sitting down his suitcases. He was actually glad to be home for once. All he wanted to do was sit and relax for a few minutes before he headed over to Stephanie's house to spend some time with Aiden. He just hoped things weren't weird between him and Stephanie while he was there. For some reason since that night he thought about kissing her she had been acting quiet and distant towards him. It had been two days ago since the incident almost occurred and it wasn't like she knew he wanted to kiss her, right? Maybe she had caught on to it and was trying to get him to take the hint that she didn't want that. That could be it since she hadn't even come to him to take her to get her car the next morning. Oh well, maybe it was for the best. He could imagine how Vince would react to wanting to date Stephanie and he wasn't even sure if Stephanie could ever trust him again. Right now his main priority was trying to be a dad even though his son didn't know him as his dad yet.

Paul walked over to the couch and sit down and ran his hand through his hair. It was great to be home and away from people he didn't want to be bothered by. Actually a specific person he didn't want to be bothered by. He had been trying to avoid her at all cost since she showed up at his hotel room. Joanie really didn't know how to take a fucking hint and it was getting frustrating. They hadn't even talked since Armageddon and he hadn't been expecting her to show up at his hotel room that morning. He had been expecting Stephanie so when he opened the door it was kind of a shock but then that turned into anger once she pushed her way into his room. The nerve of that woman, no amount of apologizing for cheating on him was going to make him want her back. It had taken him forever just to get her back out of his room and he had really tried being civil towards her even though she didn't deserve it. Then she had taken him by surprise and fucking kissed him but after he broke the kiss he done the only thing he could think of to hopefully get it through her head that he was done. He told her he didn't love her anymore and he had feelings for someone else. Joanie had looked completely crushed before she started accusing him of being with Stephanie and then he just slammed the door in her face. Probably not the smartest thing to do since Joanie would probably going around telling everyone that would listen that he had feelings for Stephanie. Hopefully they would just ignore her, they seemed to have lately anyway. He just hoped if Joanie said anything to Stephanie that she would ignore her too.

Paul reached over and grabbed the remote off the table and started flipping through the channels on the television when his cellphone started vibrating against his leg. Reaching in his pocket Paul pulled his phone out and looked at the caller ID before answering it.

"Hey"

"Hey. How is everything?" Shawn asked as Paul let out a sigh and tossed the remote to the tv beside of him on the couch.

"It's okay I guess"

"That doesn't sound very convincing" Shawn laughed "are you hanging out with Aiden right now?"

"No. I'm actually waiting on Steph to tell me when they have made it home. When I talked to her last they were at her parents' house"

"You seem stressed"

"That's because I am"

"Uh oh. Is Stephanie giving you a hard time?"

"She was at first but I don't know it felt like something had changed between us the night of Smackdown. I took her to dinner and for once we didn't fight about Aiden or what happened in the past"

"Wait. You took her on a date?"

"No it wasn't a date" Paul replied shaking his head and rolled his eyes as Shawn started laughing. "I wanted to talk to her more about Aiden"

"Okay. Well you said it felt like something had changed. Is she back to giving you a hard time now or something?"

"Actually she just seems more quiet and distant from me. When I've called to check on Aiden it seems like she is in a hurry to get off the phone with me, I don't get it"

"Did something happen at dinner?"

"Not really. She had some alcohol and well she ended up tripping right into me. Then I uh almost... kissed her" Paul replied and then Shawn busted out laughing. If he had been there Paul would have probably smacked the shit out of him. How did he find this funny? "You can stop laughing now. It really isn't that funny"

"I'm sorry but one minute you love her and the next your pissed at her. Now you love her again? I can't keep up with your emotions"

"Yeah well I can't either. It's complicated since I found out about Aiden. I want to be pissed and I do still get pissed when I think about her keeping him from me but then I still find myself wanting to do things like kiss her. I'm pretty sure she knows I was about to and I think that's why she's putting distance between us because she doesn't feel the same way"

"Well the only way to know is just tell her how you feel and find out if she feels the same. Or you could just actually kiss her"

"It's not that easy. Even if she did feel the same way she's still the boss's daughter- "

"Who you already have a child with from your brief time together years ago. Which one do you think Vince would fire your ass for?" Shawn asked with a laugh "No matter what Vince is going to be pissed. So that can't be your reason anymore"

"I still have Aiden to think about, he comes first. If I tried to date Stephanie again and things didn't work out, then it would make our situation with Aiden even harder. I don't want that"

"You only have two options really. Risk it and tell her how you feel or move on but you do realize at some point Stephanie will find someone else to be with, right?" Shawn asked as that Jake guy came to mind. He had no idea how serious it was with him and Stephanie but he knew he hated the thought of them together. Shawn was right. He had only two options but he didn't know if he could take the risk of telling her especially when one minute he was pissed off at her and the next minute all he wanted to do was be with her.

"Yeah I know"

"Steph- "

"I don't want to talk about it" Stephanie called walking into her bedroom and shutting the door behind her. She had just got back from her parents' house to find Kelsi waiting for her. The first thing out of her mouth was of course about Paul and that was the last person she wanted to talk about. Him and Joanie kissing was still fresh in her mind. All she wanted to do was forget it because every time she thought about it she just wanted to cry and she didn't want to cry over those two again. She cried enough over them years ago and she had to actually witness them getting back together this time which somehow hurt even more.

"Just talk to me" came Kelsi's muffled voice through the bedroom door. Stephanie shook her head and walked over to her closet to search for a new shirt. She had spilled iced tea down the front of the one she was wearing and she needed out of it quick. Plus, it gave her a few minutes to keep avoiding talking to Kelsi because she knew she would just break down again and that was not something she could do. Paul would be here soon to see Aiden and she didn't want him seeing her cry. She had text him letting him know they were home and even though she didn't want to see him, she had no choice really. It wasn't like he was going to try being around her anyway so she could try to keep her distance. After she finished changing Stephanie went over to the bedroom door and opened it to see Kelsi standing there.

"I don't want to talk about it. Paul will be here soon" Stephanie said trying to move past her but Kelsi blocked her way.

"Admit it" Kelsi replied crossing her arms and staring her in the eyes.

"Admit what?" Stephanie asked shrugging her shoulders trying to brush her off.

"That you have feelings for him Steph. It's obvious and it has been for a while, no matter how much you denied it. That's why you are so hurt about seeing him and Joanie kiss" Kelsi replied but Stephanie just scoffed and tried to move past to her again but Kelsi wasn't backing down.

"Please move"

"Where is my best friend that tells me everything?" Kelsi asked with a pained look in her eye. "I know your stubborn Steph but are you really still denying it to yourself or just to me? You know that I'm not going to say I told you so"

"Please don't make me say it" Stephanie pleaded feeling tears start stinging her eyes. She didn't want to say it out loud, hell she didn't even want to have feelings for him again. She had told herself time and time again that she didn't have feelings for him to the point she believed it. Then seeing him and Joanie kiss made her realize that she really did have feelings for him and now it was happening all over again. He was back with Joanie while she was left hurting because he didn't feel the same way about her.

"So your finally done denying it?" Kelsi asked and Stephanie nodded her head before the tears spilled down her face. Then Kelsi came towards her and wrapped her arms around her.

"Mommy what's wrong?" Stephanie opened her eyes to see Aiden standing and staring at them.

"Nothing sweetheart. I was just a feeling a little sad but I'm better now" Stephanie replied as her and Kelsi broke from their hug. She wiped away her tears and gave Aiden a smile to reassure him.

"You should eat ice cream. Ice cream always makes me feel better" Aiden said nodding his head.

"Is that your way of asking for ice cream?" Stephanie asked with a small laugh and Aiden nodded his head "okay you have a one bowl of ice cream"

"Are you okay?" Kelsi asked as Aiden ran off to the kitchen excited about getting ice cream.

"I'll be fine. I got through this before" Stephanie replied forcing a smile even though all she wanted to do was cry but she had to be strong especially in front of Aiden.

Stephanie and Kelsi headed to the kitchen to get Aiden some ice cream before he became impatient and tried getting it himself. It happened once before and he hadn't had a good grip on it and the ice cream box went smashing to the floor getting it everywhere. That was not fun to clean up. Once they were in the kitchen Stephanie went over to the cabinet getting out some bowls when there was a knock on the door.

"You get that and I'll get the ice cream" Kelsi said as Stephanie placed the bowls on the counter and took a breath. She already knew who it was. Wiping at her eyes one last time to make sure it wasn't evident she had been crying, Stephanie made her way to the door and opened it.

"Hey" Paul greeted with her a smile but it quickly faded into a look of concern. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah everything is fine" Stephanie replied forcing a smile.

"You look like you have been crying" Paul said lifting his hand to her face and taking his thumb and wiping gently underneath her eye. Her heart started to speed up at his touch and she swallowed before stepping back away from him.

"I just got something in my eye earlier and it made my eyes water. Everything is fine, really" Stephanie lied hoping he would believe her and not push her about it. He didn't say anything though as he walked into the house so either he believed her or he just wasn't going to say anything else about it.

"Paul!" Aiden shouted excitedly as Stephanie shut the door and turned to see Aiden sitting at the table smiling at Paul.

"Hey. What are you doing?" Paul asked going over to him and ruffling his hair before sitting down in the chair beside of him.

"Eating ice cream! I told mommy it would make her feel better cause she was sad" Aiden replied before shoving a spoonful of ice cream into his mouth. Well now Paul definitely knew she was lying.

"Really?" Paul asked looking over at her and she turned and walked into the kitchen to avoid him. Why did Aiden have to tell Paul she had been sad? She just hoped he didn't question her about it because she wasn't about to tell him the reason why.

"Your ice cream is right there Steph" Kelsi said pointing to the bowl on the counter.

"Thanks" Stephanie replied picking up the bowl and leaning against the counter. It didn't take long before she heard footsteps heading their way and she knew it was Paul.

"I'm just going to go sit at the table" Kelsi said as Paul entered the kitchen. Kelsi didn't even give her a chance to respond as she made her way out of the kitchen quickly. She couldn't believe Kelsi would just leave her alone with the guy she had been crying over just moments ago. What a great friend she was!

"So it looks like our kid ratted you out" Paul said with a laugh coming over beside of her and leaning against the counter. "Did that Jake guy do something?"

"No. It had nothing to do with him" Stephanie replied before taking a bite of her ice cream.

"Are you going to tell me why you were crying then?"

"I don't want to talk about it Paul. I'll just start crying all over again"

"Okay but if it was something serious you would tell me, right?" Paul asked and she nodded her head before taking another bite of ice cream. "How about we talk about why you have been acting so weird around me lately then"

"I haven't been acting weird"

"Yeah you have. You've been quiet around me and that's not something you ever are around me" Paul chuckled and she shot a dirty look at him before returning her attention back to her ice cream.

"I've just been under some stress"

"You and me both" Paul replied crossing his arms and letting out a sigh. "I've been trying to avoid Joanie for the last two days. She showed up to my room that morning you were supposed to come up and meet me to get your car. I thought it was you and when I opened the door she came barging in. All she kept doing was apologizing for cheating and asking for a second chance. It took me forever to get her out of my room and when I finally did she stood there telling me how much she still loved me. Even went as far to say I still loved her before she took me by surprise and kissed me"

"Do you still love her?" Stephanie asked feeling her heart pounding against her chest. Did she really want to know this? It could crush her even further but the way he said he was avoiding her gave her some hope.

"No and when I told her that she didn't seem too happy. She then accused me of being with you before I slammed the door in her face but I think she finally understands that we are never getting back together. If not, well that's why I've been trying to avoid her" Stephanie couldn't help but smile at his admission. This whole time she had been crying over a situation that she had completely misread. The smile soon faded though as she realized that just because he was over Joanie didn't mean that he would ever have feelings for her either. Everything was complicated between them. They had a rocky past and now they were trying to get along to take care of their son together. Would there even be a chance for something more between them? Great this is what admitting her feelings to herself for him did, it just brought more problems.

Paul laid Aiden down gently in his bed and pulled the blanket over him. They had been watching some of Aiden's favorite movies and before he knew it Aiden had fallen asleep. So after the last movie had finished he had carried him to bed. He smiled down at Aiden before quietly walking to the light switch and turned the light off.

"Goodnight buddy" Paul whispered before leaving the room and headed back to the living room where he found Stephanie putting in another movie.

"I thought I would put something on that was more for us adults" Stephanie said turning around to look at him.

"You know you loved Aiden's movies. I saw you mouthing the words to some of the songs in them" Paul replied with a chuckle before flopping down on the couch.

"I've just watched them so many times I know them by heart. I didn't even realize I was mouthing the words" Stephanie said making her way over to the couch and sitting down beside of him. "You will too before long. He will have you watching them a lot."

"I guess then you will tease me about it, huh?" Paul asked bringing his arm up and resting it on the back of the couch as she nodded her head before she turned her attention to the movie. "So what is this? Some cheesy chick flick?"

"It is not cheesy"

"But it is a chick flick?"

"I guess if you consider romance movies that then yes" Stephanie replied looking back over at him for a second before returning her attention back to the tv. "You used to watch them and you never complained."

"That's because we never really ended up watching them. You just put them on for noise so Kelsi couldn't hear you moaning- "

"Paul!" He couldn't help but laugh as a blush rose to her cheeks and she smacked him lightly on the chest.

"What? It's true. The walls in that apartment were pretty thin" Paul replied through his laughter. He remembered when they found that out. The first night Stephanie and Kelsi moved into the apartment he had spent the night with her and the next morning Kelsi had no problem telling them exactly how much she had heard. Stephanie was so embarrassed that her face turned completely red. The next time he came to the apartment he found that she had got a small television to put in her room. She claimed it was so they could watch movies in her room alone but it was probably also used to help drown out the sound of them having sex.

"I hated that apartment" Stephanie said shaking her head "I'm surprised you remember that"

"How could I not? You were so embarrassed the next morning we found out how thin the walls were. I thought you were going to die from embarrassment"

"Kelsi wouldn't let me live that one down for a while" Stephanie replied with a small chuckle as she leaned back on the couch and let her head rest against his arm.

"So we're really going to watch this?" Paul asked turning his attention to the movie.

"Well you're more than welcome to go home if you don't want to" She was right and he really should probably leave. Since he had been coming to see Aiden he usually did leave right after he fell asleep and after his conversation with Shawn earlier he had made the decision to try and move on. He just couldn't risk telling her how he felt about her but after spending the day with her and Aiden that decision seemed harder.

"I guess if you want me to leave…"

"I didn't say that" Stephanie replied turning her head slightly to look at him "I said if you didn't want to watch the movie then you could go home."

"One chick flick isn't going to kill me, or at least I hope not" Paul chuckled and she rolled her eyes before turning back to the movie once again.

The next thing Paul knew was there an annoying vibrating sound coming from somewhere close by. He opened his eyes and squinted as they adjusted to the light that filled the room. He groaned slightly as he turned his head to the find the vibrating noise and that was when he realized he wasn't at home. Apparently somewhere throughout the movie he had fallen asleep but he wasn't the only one. Stephanie was sleeping peacefully away on top of him with his arm around her and he wasn't even sure how they had ended up in this position. But he didn't even have time to think about it or try to move before he heard her front door open and shut. In a matter of seconds, he heard footsteps coming their way and then suddenly Shane appeared.

"What the fuck is this?"