Lexi watched with interest as Roman stripped down to his boxers, threw back the covers and crawled into bed. The man had the body of an Adonis and that Samoan tattoo on the shoulder was sexy as hell. How in the world had she been the one to catch his eye?

He took a moment to settle then she rolled toward him, rested her head against his shoulder and placed a hand on his chest. "This is nice."

He pressed a soft kiss to the top of her head. "It is."

"I'm still mad at Hunter for how he's handling the storyline, but I guess I have to give him some credit. If it wasn't for this stupid storyline I wouldn't be laying in this big bed with you right now."

"I would have eventually gotten you here," Roman quipped.

"I would like to think so," she considered. "But after what happened before I've done a really good job of locking my heart way. I know this sounds ridiculous, but if Seth hadn't kicked Kane the other night, I'm not sure I would have found the courage to try again."

He rolled onto his side to face her. "What happened, Lexi?"

The bluntness of his question gave her a jolt. She knew what he was asking, but did she really want to re-live that trauma yet again? "It doesn't really matter," she replied, hoping he'd let the subject drop.

A frown claimed his face and for the first time she felt the urge to shrink from him. "Lexi," He propped up on one elbow. "If we're going to have a shot at a real relationship, then you need to tell me what happened."

"Why?" She rolled away from him to face the window. "It's over and done. At this point what will it accomplish except to hurt me again?"

"My goal isn't to hurt you, sweetheart." He stroked a hand along her shoulder. "But I need to know what happened."

"Why? It had nothing to do with you?"

"Oh but that's where you're wrong. You see the moment I realized that you were my soul mate it suddenly had everything to do with me." With a gentle hand he pressed her down so she lay on her back facing the ceiling. "I can't help you to heal your wounds if I don't know what they are."

In an instant, tears welled in her eyes. For so long she'd carried the weight of what happened squarely on her shoulders. "Okay, I tell you." She sucked in a ragged breath. "Five years ago I'd thought Edge was my Mr. Right. Everybody said we made such a cute couple."

"Edge? I always thought he and Lita was a couple."

She swiped a knuckle at the corner of her eye. "Most people did. That was the storyline. On camera she was his girlfriend. Off camera I was. Or so I thought."

"What happened?"

"Nothing at first. At least nothing I knew about anyway. Turns out he was cheating on me with Lita." She sniffled. "I had no idea until two years ago when I discovered I was pregnant. I was so happy." She let out a long suffering sigh. "I had this grand plan to tell him at the Christmas party. Only when I went to look for him to share the good news, I found him screwing Lita in a storage room."

Tears trickled down her face and disappeared into her hair. "I'm sorry." She shook her head. "I swear to you that I'm not crying because I still have feelings for the bastard."

"I know, baby." Roman whispered as he stroked a knuckle along her cheek. "You're crying because he hurt you. "

She nodded and sucked in a breath. "The worst part is that he laughed when he saw me. Then she laughed. I was so crushed, that I bolted from the party."

"And that's when the accident happened?"

"Yeah," she reached for a tissue from the box on the nightstand. "I had no business driving. They had me so upset that I wasn't paying attention to what I was doing. The road was icy and I took a curve too fast. When I came to in the hospital, I was in the intensive care unit and the baby was gone." She barely managed to finish her sentence before she broke down and sobbed.

Roman wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. He didn't say a word and simply held her as she cried. After a few minutes her tears subsided and her ragged breathing began to level. She covered his hand with hers. "Thank you for understanding."

"You're welcome. I'm sorry he did that do you. Nobody deserves to be cheated on. I'm also sorry you had to relive it right now, but I have a feeling you haven't really faced it until now, have you?"

She shook her head. "It was easier to bury the pain than deal with it."

"Well, now you don't have to deal with it alone, anymore."

She turned in his arms and placed a hand on his chest. The steady beat of his heart beneath her palm gave her the strength she needed to finish her tale. "There is one more thing."

He stroked a hand through her hair. "Tell me."

"I didn't just lose the baby. I hemorrhaged. The surgeons managed to save my uterus, but it's severely scarred." She paused as she struggled not to cry again. "I can't get pregnant."

The hand he'd been stroking through her hair froze and fear slithered up her spine as she waited for his response. What if he wanted children? Would her being infertile be a deal breaker? Being rejected now would destroy her.

For several long, torturous seconds she waited for his response, all the while he appeared to study her without saying a word. Finally he broke the silence. "If we ever decide to have children we can adopt and if you have your heart set on an infant we could always look for a surrogate."

In an instant, it felt as if the weight of the world lifted off her shoulders and she nodded as the tears returned a second time.

"Oh no," he pressed a soft kiss to her forehead, then one eye and the other before dipping lower to brush a gentle kiss over her lips. "No more tears, sweetheart."

She gave him a watery smile. "You are absolutely amazing and I totally don't deserve you."

"Actually I could say that about you, but the fact is we're stuck with each other. How do you feel about that?"

"I'd feel much better better if my head didn't hurt," she sighed.

He pulled her close and tucked her against him. "These past forty-eight hours have been stressful on you. How about we get some sleep and we'll start fresh tomorrow?"

The feel of his strong arms wrapped around her, protecting her, helped Lexi chase away her demons. She snuggled as close as she could get to him. "Sounds like a plan."

Freshly showered and eager to get back to the hotel to check on Lexi, Roman gathered up his belongings, tossed them in his bag, and zipped it closed. "You guys ready?"

Dean nodded as he slid his gym bag on his shoulder. "Ready whenever you are."

"Just a sec." Seth slipped his feet into his sneakers. "I don't know about you guys, but after that match tonight, I'm more sore than usual."

Roman frowned. "Yeah, me too. I swear if I didn't know better, I'd think those guys were really out for our blood."

"I'm beginning to think they are." Dean raked a hand through is still-wet hair. "It occurs to me that the longer management continues this kidnapping ruse, the angrier some of Lexi's closest friends seem to be getting."

"I know." Roman sighed. Working in this industry, moving from city to city every other night, sleeping in strange beds, was tiring enough. Add in the fact that they seemed to now have a giant target on their backs, and his stress level was off the charts. When he'd suggested perpetuating this kidnapping storyline, he hadn't expected management's push to make it appear as authentic as possible by keeping his coworkers out of the loop. All he'd been thinking about was a way to keep Lexi here with him. Now he'd wished he'd let her go with her dad. Not because he didn't want to see her, but because of the effect this situation was having on his partners. Dean and Seth were both suffering because of his suggestion.

"Okay." Seth grabbed his bag and motioned to Roman. "Let's get out of here."

Roman pulled open the locker room door, stepped out in the hall, and immediately felt pain explode along the side of his face. He lifted his hands in defense, but it wasn't enough. Overpowered, someone, slammed his head against the concrete wall. Stars appeared behind his eyelids as instant anger flared through him. Adrenaline coursed through his veins, and he growled.

The sounds of fists and feet, combined with shouts of pain creating a cacophony of sounds as Roman, Seth, and Dean fought back against their attackers. Several men moved in at once, overtaking him. They grabbed him by the arm and pinned him against the wall.

Lexi's longtime friend Chris moved in close and sneered at Roman. "Where is she?"

Feeling like a wiseass, Roman arched a brow. "Where's who?"

His smart-mouth reply earned him a punch to the gut, causing pain to bloom through his solar plexus as he huffed out a breath.

Chris snared Roman by the hair. "Now I'm going to ask the question again, and you're going to give me the answer I'm looking for."

"Or what?"

Chris smiled. "I had a feeling you'd ask that." He turned his attention to where several of the wrestlers held Dean and Seth, both men now resting on their knees. "Show Roman here what an 'or what' answer will get him."

One of the midcard wrestlers Chris had recruited served a swift kick to the side of Dean's face. Dean's head snapped back, and he went limp. Fear and anger washed through Roman as the scene played out in front of him. He couldn't tell and risk the wrath of management, but he also couldn't allow them to continue beating on his partners.

"Now," Chris nearly whispered. "Unless you want both your buddies to end up in the hospital, I suggest you tell me what you've done with Lexi."

Roman glanced at Seth, who shook his head, then glanced over to where Dean was slowly recovering from the kick he'd received. "We didn't do anything with or to Lexi," Roman replied.

"Bullshit." Chris curled his fingers in Roman's T-shirt. "We saw you carry her from ringside. We watched the videos of you taking her from the hospital."

"Yes, I carried her from ringside," Roman confirmed. "She was injured, and I was worried."

Chris narrowed his gaze. "Why?"

"Because I care about her." Roman struggled against the men holding him back. "I can promise you that she's safe and being well taken care of."

"What in the hell is going on here?" Hunter's voice boomed through the hall.

Relief flooded through Roman, washing away some of the stress. Maybe now Chris and his crew would stop beating on them.

At the sound of Hunter's voice, the men holding Roman and his partners released their grip and took several steps back. Chris turned to face Hunter, who appeared to be flanked by security. "They kidnapped Lexi, and by God, I want to know where she is." Chris demanded.

"What's going on with Lexi is none of your concern," Hunter snapped.

"Like hell it's not," Chris argued. "And it should be your concern too. Just how are you explaining her kidnapping to Bret?"

Hunter pointed a finger at Chris. "I'm warning you, Chris. Back off, or I'll suspend you and everyone involved in this little beat down."

Hunter turned his attention to Roman. "Grab Dean and Seth and go on." He nodded toward the exit. "Make sure Dean is checked out by a trainer first; then security will make sure you leave without further incident."

Roman dared a quick glance at Chris, who appeared to be fuming over Hunter's decision. Then Roman nodded, scooped up his bag, and helped Dean to his feet. Not wasting any time he, Dean, and Seth made their way out of the arena to their waiting rental car.