The initial disappointment of him not being in her bed when she awoke that morning was replaced by hope that he would get in touch somehow. He was correct when he said she would still feel him when he was gone, every part of her being ached for him and from his touch. She looked in the mirror at the mark he'd left on her décolletage, tracing it with her finger has he had done the night before and trembled with the remembrance of him giving it to her. She giggled with her housemates over breakfast as they talked through her night excitedly. Screaming with raucous laughter, teasing her, both delighted that their friend had got some serious action with a sex god, as one of them called him. They googled him and all stared open mouthed at the photos and articles that came up.
"This guy is like totally famous Autumn," said Becca, her brown eyes wide, running her hand over her fluffy Afro hair.
"Yeah, I think he is," she agreed. "We were practically mobbed by kids coming out of the arena."
"Look how fucking gorgeous he is and who are those two guys with him? One for each of us. Lol!" added Becca.
"They make up some group called the Shield, no hang on, it's called a faction or something. Anyway you're both taken already remember," Autumn giggled.
"I'm ringing my little brother," said Jessica, her other housemate. "He's mad about wrestling, he's bound to know who he is."
The reaction from the other end of Jessica's phone had them all in stitches again. Jessica's brother confirmed how much of a big deal this guy was to millions of fans.
Jessica put her hand over her phone, "Did you get his autograph my brother says?"
No she hadn't got his autograph. As the day went on she thought back on their every moment together and realised with building foreboding that they had never swapped numbers, he didn't use Twitter or Facebook, she remembered vaguely him saying to that he hated social media and the internet. He'd never promised anything further than that one night either, never spoke about what might happen afterwards so in that respect he had been honest with her. It's just that they had such a good time, it felt more than a one night stand. It was a connection, they shot sparks off each other, she was sure of it but then doubt surfaced, he couldn't feel the same way otherwise he would have been in touch, she must be kidding herself.
It was easy to keep up to date with the wrestling world, for some time after she researched the business, became a geek, followed it online, catching snippets of gossip on Twitter, watching it on TV. Seeing the Shield break up, she knew that must be a big deal for him and watched his star rise. It was when she came across the term 'Ring Rat', the girls who hang around shows with the aim of ensnaring a wrestler for one night, that she accepted that she wouldn't hear from him again. Clearly, that was all she had been to him, a ring rat and she felt devastated.
As the days passed into weeks and the weeks into months she sank back into normality and decided to stop to torturing herself. It had been a great night but no more than that. Her two friends no longer asked if he'd been in touch, she now flicked over the channel if wrestling came on. It was too painful to see him in all his gorgeousness, striding about all over her television screen and not in her bedroom...
... "Last stop Tottenham Court Road" the computerised voice on the bus announced, snapping Autumn abruptly out of her thoughts and she was back in the real world again, late for work on a cold rainy November morning in London.
A bitter wind blasted the fallen leaves of the plane trees, swirling them up into the air as she stepped off the bus, pulling her coat more tightly around her, hurrying along the wet streets. It was 09.53, that's very late in anyone's book and Autumn wondered how she was going to get inside the building without being caught. Edging along the street to the glass fronted office, she was just about to step inside when her boss, her fucking boss of all people, strode out on to the pavement (sidewalk for all my lovely American readers), hand raised to hail a taxi. Edward Daliant, short, middle aged, dark and balding with beady eyes, clearly had a thing for Autumn. The look of horror on Autumn's face was priceless as she scuttled, head down through the revolving doors into the reception area.
"Autumn!" he shouted, calling her back outside. "How many more times is to going to happen? It's nearly ten o clock. What's the excuse this time? Did your cat get lost? Your auntie's cousin came to visit? The car window wouldn't shut?"
"Just traffic," she huffed, refusing to to be intimidated.
"Well, I'm at the end of my tether Autumn. You are leaving me with no option," he had started to bluster now and she felt like whacking him so turned away from his face and his stinky breath, not wanting to look at it as he berated her some more.
It was at this point when she realised with a gasp of shock and recognition that standing not twelve feet away, leaning casually against the wall watching the scene with amusement, looking like a fucking movie star in dark jeans, leather jacket and dark glasses (in the rain!) stood her one night stand, the tormentor of her dreams, the one and only Dean fucking Ambrose.
He grinned at her, flicked his cigarette into the road and held his hand up, tapping his fingers on to his thumb, blah, blah, blah, mimicking her boss. Autumn let out a laugh.
"Did you not hear what I just said?! I hardly think that this is a laughing matter Autumn!" her boss shouted, getting closer to her face. Lowering his voice he tried another tack "Of course, we could always discuss your future over a drink to smooth this all over and you know..."
"What?" she said turning back to him, realising what he was getting at. "Absolutely no chance, in fact, you know what? I quit, I fucking quit! Bollocks to you and your shitty firm!"
Mr Daliant had turned puce. "You won't get a reference my girl, you've blown that," he screamed, pointing, flecks of spittle flying out of his mouth and moving even closer to poor Autumn.
Suddenly, Edward Daliant found himself being lifted sharply in the air by the lapels of his beige trench coat and slammed against the brick wall of the building.
"Listen pal," Dean breathed menacingly at him. "That's no way to speak to a lady, especially one who belongs to me. Understand?"
Mr Daliant nodded meekly.
"Good, I'm the meanest, nastiest, dirtiest, most rotten sone of a gun walking this planet and if you don't give her that reference, I'm gonna come and find you and make you write it in your own blood. Got that?"
Mr Daliant nodded again.
"Now I think you owe Autumn here an apology. Don't you?" Dean demanded, his eyes shining with amusement.
Mr Dalient nodded again and spoke. "I'm terribly... s s sorry Autumn and wish you w w well for the f f future...
"Let's put you in your taxi, Mr?..." Dean said enjoying himself.
"D d Daliant," Mr Daliant stuttered.
With that Dean, still holding on to the trench coat, dragged Edward Daliant out to the side of the road, hailed one down and bundled Autumn's terrified ex-boss in to a black London taxi and sent him on his way.
Autumn in absolute fits of giggles then said sternly to him, "Did you just cut a promo on my boss?!" Then burst in to laughter again, still giddy on adrenaline, before throwing her arms around him, breathing in his intoxicating scent of health, leather, aftershave and cigarette.
"How do you know what a promo is?" he laughed, his arms encircling her tightly. "You don't even like wrestling?"
"I um, did a bit of research after we met," she mumbled in to his chest.
"You did did you? Stalker!" he joked
"You're the stalker hanging outside my workplace!" she retorted.
"It's not your workplace anymore babe. Well done by the way. That took guts. What are you gonna do now?"
"Well, I've been writing quite a lot."
"You have? That's sick. What sorta stuff?"
"Blogs, and a couple of articles that have been published on the net and I'm writing a book."
"I'm impressed," he said genuinely pleased for her. "I'm kinda at a loose end today so thought you might like to hang out? Especially since you're not at work anymore? We're at Wembley tomorrow, moving on the day after."
Autumn was so torn, on the one hand this was a dream come true. Who wouldn't want to spend the day (and hopefully the night) with Dean Ambrose when he had sought her out especially and remembered where she worked and come to her rescue by helpfully roughing up her sleazy boss. On the other hand a little voice told her that he was probably just using her again, only to be discarded when he was done with her.
Looking up at him she said falteringly, "I don't know Dean. I don't want to sound like Fatal Attraction or anything but I've never had a one night stand before and I kind of took it a bit hard when I didn't hear from you again. I'm not sure that I want to go through that again and anyway..." she continued quickly, "I was just a ring rat to you wasn't I?"
Inside her head, she had quoted the lines from one if her favourite songs a thousand times preparing herself for such a moment, 'If lose the highs, at least I'm spared the lows'.
The ring rat line cut him. He knew she would be the sort of girl that would take it badly but what fucking choice did he have that night. He never told her any lies. They were both adults, they both had a great time and for fuck sake, he'd flown across the fucking pond a day early to seek her out and that had took some negotiation with the Authority!
The rain had started to fall harder but neither of them noticed, "Hey," he said softly taking her face in his hands, "Get this inside that pretty head of yours. You were never, never a ring rat to me, you'll never be one. Why the fuck do you think I've flown here a day early and waited outside your office, hmmm? I travel all over the world, my schedule is nuts. There's no time for someone regular, it wouldn't be fair on them, on you... but I'm here now. So what do you say?"
Hello all, thanks for all the follows, favourites and especially the reviews, they really help keep me motivated to write more. This chapter actually inspired the whole story but there is a little way to go yet I hope. Much love.
PS let's hope Dean kicks Seth's butt tomorrow inside Hell in a Cell.