Chapter 3- It started out with a kiss:
The storyline progressed just as it was supposed to. She wasn't exactly sure why she was having such a hard time adjusting to it but with each passing day she seems to get more comfortable with all of it. Granted she still had her reservations but it wasn't that bad. It was only a few days a week that she had to pretend that she was miserable in a marriage that she never wanted in the first place. That was until her father came to her with the storyline that sent her nerves shaking. "Stephanie most married couples kiss. And yes I know that you guys aren't supposed to be happy and in love like most married couple but this is going to work. Hunter is just going to pretty much force a kiss on you, a kiss that will take place after a fight or you telling him you want a divorce. That will draw the storyline out, advance it and in the end kind of tie everything together. Stephanie, you know how this business is. It's all about advancing things. I talked to Paul and he is fine with it. It will be just one kiss. No more. No less. They always say it starts out with a kiss." She remembered him saying that, pushing the issue until she finally agreed. It was one thing to pretend you were married to someone but kissing them, especially when they were involved in a relationship, that was a whole other story. It was just acting and she knew it but deep down inside those butterflies started hitting again. This wasn't going to be a simple kiss, a kiss that could have easily been explained. It wasn't going to be one of those quick pecks and its over; it was going to be something so much more. Even though it should not have affected her the way that it was, it did. She knew that they were acting but still deep down inside she knew he was with someone and it just didn't seem right to her. She sighed to herself as she wished she never said yes to this entire thing in the first place. All the progress of being okay with the storyline, with the simple word kiss, went right down the drain.
Standing backstage she paced a bit, bit her nails and slowly ran though the lines in her head. It was a just a storyline and pretty soon it would be over. Actually her father had no idea where he was going with this entire thing. There was going to be a match at some point and time but he had yet to work out all the details. That was the thing with her father. He always made plans but never solidified then before they were started. Her heart was racing as she made her way down to the ring. Her heart was beating faster than she even imagined it could. She was never like this in front of the fans and she couldn't really explain it. She got in the ring and said her spiel. His music played and there he was on the stage with roses. She couldn't help but smile even though she made sure the fans weren't looking. It wasn't right for her to smile, she wasn't happy about it and it was the last thing that she wanted to portray. But there was just something about him as he carried those flowers and got into that ring, something that she never saw before. As he gave her the flowers she threw them into the audience. Her hands were shaking a bit when she he walked around her looking her over. It was almost time and she was not sure what she was going to do. "This one little kiss wasn't going to change the world. It's just one little kiss, a simple kiss between actors." It was swirling in her thought throughout her head as he bowed her over and kissed her deeply.
She made her way back to the back her hands shaking. She was scared this was going to happen. For the first time since she was told she was going to be in a storyline with him she realized why she was having a hard time with this. She kissed him back, something that was not supposed to be done. She let herself give into the kiss and got caught up in the moment. She liked it and all those feelings that she was trying to push aside for him came flooding back with that one kiss. She couldn't believe that she let herself get caught up in it. She took a deep breath and sighed softly as she saw him standing there.
"Good Show tonight. I am pretty sure we accomplished what we set out to do with this thing. Hopefully the fans are enjoying it. It seems like they are." He laughed a little. He was tongued and wasn't really sure why.
"We will be at the Parkland bar and grill. in about an hour or so." Hunter said as she walked away. He couldn't help but watch her. There was something about her. Something that was so different from Joanie. He couldn't pin point it yet but there was something. He was going to do whatever it took to find out what that was. "It started all with a kiss." He spoke softly as he ran his fingers over his lips.
"Huh?" She questioned her mind drifting off a bit. "Oh yeah sorry. We did. Yeah. Good show." She smiled softly not seeming to find any of the words that she needed to at the right time..
"You okay there Stephanie?" He watched her a bit and noticed how much her facial expressions had changed. He was starting to worry about how much this might be actually taking a toll on her. His hand brushed across her face moving a piece of hair from in front of her eyes.
"I'm fine just a little tired." She jumped back a bit mainly from the touch and simply nodded. "I should probably get back." She continued speaking softly.
"Look there is a few of us getting together, maybe some food, maybe a bar. I am not real sure yet. I figured since we really don't know each other all that well maybe you might want to come along. Just to talk and stuff seeing that we are in this storyline together. It might make things a little bit easier..." He wasn't sure why he was inviting her but his need to know her better was something that was starting to get the best of him.
"I'm not sure. I am really tired and I have an early flight in the morning." Stephanie answered. "Umm maybe, we will see what happens." She answered honestly.