CHAPTER THREE

River looked up when Shawn walked in, taking in the stormy expression on his face and flicked off the TV; her cell phone beside her. "Hope called." She told him softly, their ten year old daughter spending her summer vacation with his parents. "Your mom and dad are taking her out horseback riding this afternoon and she wanted to let us know, in case we tried calling." Why was he raking his hands through his hair? "Shawn?"

"What?" He shouted, feeling bad when she jumped. Heavily sighing; he sank down onto the bed, gripping his hair in his fists. "River, come here." He ordered, feeling her hand almost instantly in his own. "You love me right? No matter what?" He looked up, seeing the confusion in her baby blues and slowly stood, pulling her into a crushing embrace. "Tell me," He whispered gruffly, beginning to kiss her. "Tell me you love me unconditionally."

Again, her eyes locked with his, the confusion plainly on her face. "Of course I do, Shawn." She said softly, reaching out to gently push his hair from his face; her lips slightly swollen from his kiss. "I'll always love you, unconditionally and no matter what, you know that." River had no idea where this was coming from but knew he needed reassurance. "Honey, what's wrong?" Her arms wrapped around his neck, hugging him tightly. "Tell me, what's upset you and maybe I can help."

"I'm just… I'm sorry." He whispered, meaning those two words more than he could ever say. He never wanted to lose River, he genuinely loved her -he always had- and would do anything to make sure she remained by him until the day he died. "I'm just… I'm nervous about you being on the road." He admitted quietly, pulling away to press his forehead to hers. "I don't want you to find some stud and run off with him."

At the expression on shock on her face, Shawn chuckled. Reaching out, he cupped her face in both hands, passionately kissing her. A moment later he was removing her shirt. He needed to make sure she still loved him, he needed to know. He had to show her how much he loved her, that she was his one and only.

What on earth was he sorry for? Making her happy? Loving her? River couldn't fathom it and tried her best to soothe his mind; not understanding where this had come from. All she knew was he needed her and she always needed him. As he guided her down onto the bed, she caressed the side of his face, whispering: "I love you." She raised her hips when he tugged down her skirt, blue eyes darkening as she watched him. Sitting up, River pulled his shirt off of him, tossing it to the floor with her own clothes; hooking her fingers into the waist of his workout shorts to remove those as well.

"Mine…" Shawn whispered, hovering over her; his lips grazing hers. "All mine."

***

Afterwards, they lay snuggled against each other, River's face resting against his chest. Whatever had brought that on she was thankful for because it had been intense. "I love you, Shawn." She whispered, smiling when he practically purred, looking up at him. "You're so full of yourself sometimes." She teased, kissing his jaw line.

Chuckling softly, all Shawn could do was shrug. He knew they had a few hours to kill and released her long enough to pull the sheet over them. "Is Hope having fun?" He asked, laying back down beside her, arms automatically opening for her to lay against him, smiling when she nodded. "We should bring her on the road when she gets back." He suggested, seeing River's eyes widen. "I want her with us, we're a family."

River's face had lit up with her smile, hugging him tightly. "You mean it?" She asked excitedly, grinning when he nodded. "Oh Shawn, that would be great! But we need to let her finish out her two weeks with mom and dad." She had taken to his parents like they were her own, especially his mother. Her mind was already racing, pure joy and happiness in her heart.

Throughout their entire marriage which was approaching the eleven year mark, they'd spent as much time as possible together but his job had kept him on the road so much. Now they were truly going to be a family all the time instead of part.

"Anything to keep that beautiful smile on your face. Besides, I think it's high time I start acting like a real father." A flash of guilt shot through his hazel eyes. It was moments like these, them laying together, that lit Shawn's heart on fire. River was his wife, the love of his life, his absolute everything. No force of nature or act of God would ever part them.

Not even realizing something had been briefly wrong, River just smiled; entwining her fingers with his and squeezing gently. They dozed on and off during the next few hours, then she woke him for another round, then back to dozing.

When it was time to get ready to go, they both reluctantly left the bed; showering and dressing. She was all smiles when they finally reached the arena, wearing one of his shirts over a pair of jeans. "Well, you should be limber enough for the night." She teased, kissing him as they neared her work area, smirking when he growled.

"I'll never be limber enough when it comes to you." Shawn muttered, kissing her hungrily. "I love you, Riv." He whispered against her lips.

River stared dreamily at his as he walked away before getting to work, waving when Alex called to her.

"I'm sending some of the guys to you, and the girls. They're all asking for massages." He winked at her. "Apparently they feel more comfortable with a lady."

"Oh, okay." She blinked, shaking her head when he chuckled. "Okay, out."

"Breaking my heart." He snorted, laughing as River actually pushed him into the hallway. "Alright, I'm going, I'm going."

***

"Not now, Paul."

"I'm telling Stephanie."

"No!" Shawn whipped round angrily. "Do you realize what'll happen if you do that?"

"I'm not losing my marriage over this, Shawn!" Paul growled, beginning to walk away only for Shawn to stop him.

"Just… tell her something, anything. Just anything but that." Shawn was begging, he couldn't lose his wife. "Tell her River feels uncomfortable around him… it's somewhat the truth."

"You're going to burn in hell for this, you know that right?"

"If it means I don't lose her, then I'll burn gladly."

***

River spent the better part of an hour and a half with Melina, who was surprisingly nice. Afterwards, she waved the other woman out, arching a brow as Alex approached. "I didn't do it?" She said, sounding confused as he held out a large manila envelope.

"Look, review the x-rays in here and tell me what you think." He said, not telling who's x-rays they were, not wanting his ass handed to him but he needed a second opinion to give the operating doctor. "You can go take a break in the caf, sit at a table; eat something or what while you look. Okay?"

"Um, okay." River was now curious, slipping out the door.

***

Mark watched as she walked into the cafeteria, instantly taking in the man's shirt she wore. It was white and clung to her gently, the overly long sleeves rolled up over her wrists. No doubt her dear husband's. Her eyes were familiar, he knew it was her. It had to be. There couldn't be that many women out there named River who also had startling blue eyes and that hair.

Where the hell had she been all this time? Why had she left without letting anyone know? He hadn't even known she had started dating Shawn… that wasn't a line of thought he wanted to continue, it made him angry. Very, very angry.

River settled down at a table with a bottle of water and an apple, munching on it as she pulled out the x-rays. Frowning, she held it up into the light, blue eyes narrowing. Sly, Alex, very sly. A note that had apparently fallen from the envelope caught her attention. "What's your opinion on treatment until surgery?" She murmured, rolling her eyes.

She automatically knew who this x-ray belonged too, this had to be Mark's knee. The amount of scar tissue was rather scary. She knew that deep tissue massage could probably lessen the tissue along with the pain but it would still be a temporary fix.

"Hey River."

She looked up to find Stephanie standing over her, slowly stuffing the x-ray back into the envelope. "Hi."

Stephanie sat down across from her. "Everything okay?" She seen the nervousness in the other woman's eyes and reached across the table to grab her hand. "If this is about Shawn's overreaction, don't worry about it, alright? You can treat Mark if you want. He's not a bad guy, he's actually really nice, once you get past his overbearing attitude." She seen River's eyes widen. "I know Shawn warned you away from him, so I'm going to ask you. Do you have any idea who Mark is?"

Slowly, River shook her head no. "I've never met him until last night." She said quietly, sipping her water, blue eyes puzzled. "Shawn asked me to stay away form him and I'll respect his wishes, he's my husband." The only way she'd go against him was if she had no choice. "I gather he and Mark don't see eye to eye?"

"Oh honey, that's an understatement. Some drama from before my time officially joining the company." Stephanie shook her head, remembering some old stories. "There has to be some reason though. You're absolutely sure you've never met Mark before?"

"Now Princess, I'd think she'd remember knowing me." Mark said from behind, smirking when both women gasped. He slowly pulled away him sunglasses, locking eyes with River and extended a hand to her. "We were never properly introduced. Mark Callaway." He watched her intently, seeing no signs of recognition in those orbs and inwardly sighed.

Hesitantly, she took his hand; seeing his practically swallowed hers. No, she'd definitely remember is she had met him before.

"Alex told me you had my x-rays. So what's the verdict, doc?"

"Um, I'm not a doctor." She corrected softly, glancing back down at the envelope before her. "Alex needs to start you on intense deep tissue massage. It'll lessen the scar tissue in your knee as well the pain, plus it'll help with that inflammation."

A genuine smile crossed his face. "Thank you, River."

"What does Shawn have against you?" Stephanie asked, stopping him from walking away.

"Nothing, so far as I know, why?'

Stephanie knew she was probably crossing a line but she couldn't keep quiet. "Shawn has asked me to keep you away form his wife for some reason. I just wanted to know if you knew something. I can't have everyone going just to Alex or his team, River is here to help lessen the load."

"Hmm…" Mark stroked his goatee, glancing at the now red faced River. "Darlin', do you have a problem with me? Cause if you do, I'm sure we can come to some sort of understanding."

River could only stare at the table, shaking her head nervously. "No, I don't- I don't have a problem with you." She whispered, not having any idea what the hell was going on. She was aware Shawn wanted her to stay away from Mark, but why?

"If Mark comes to you, River, you treat him." Stephanie said after a long pause. She walked away, knowing she would have to deal with Shawn's temper but she'd handle that when the time came.

Shawn was going to flip. River mentally groaned, standing up. "My break is over, I need to go."

"Darlin', I know it's a lot to ask but it sounds like you know a lot about that massage." Mark began, rubbing the back of his neck. "Would you mind doing it? I'd go to Alex but that's not really his thing and the rest of the staff isn't trained in any type of physical therapy."

Her reluctance was obvious. Why the hell didn't she recognize him? It was River, he knew who she was, but she was staring at him like she didn't have a clue. What was going on?"

"Sure, I can, no problem." She said, trying to sound casual, knowing this wasn't going to wind up good. Inhaling, River managed a smile, hoping it didn't look too forced. "Just… come to me when you're ready, okay?" She quickly high tailed it out of the caf. Why the hell was everyone out to confuse her?

***

"Hey Michaels!"

"Not now, Dead Man, I'm busy."

Growling, Mark clamped a hand on Shawn's shoulder, whipping the smaller man around. "What's the big deal, trying to make me out to be a bad guy with your wife?" He demanded.

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't give me that shit. Stephanie told us both you ordered her to keep me away from your woman. I want to know why."

Paul's jaw dropped.

Shawn had gone deathly pale under his tan. "I don't want her around you because of the feud."

Even Paul felt that one was lame.

Apparently Mark did too because his eyes were on fire. "Man, I've been here damn near twenty years! I can separate real life from script, jackass!"

Paul watched Mark shove past Shawn, shaking his head. This wasn't going to end well. "You just fucking had to-"

"Shut the fuck up. I'm going to kill your wife by the way. Painfully."

***

"Stephanie told me you're to work on Mark if he needs it." Alex said the minute River was back, having just spoken to the GM. "And… I'm going to refer him to you simply because you have more experience in massage then I do. How many timers a week does he need?"

"A minimum of three, but Alex, I-"

"Good. Have fun with that honey, I know you'll do a great job."

***

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TRYING TO PULL?"

Stephanie calmly sipped her coffee, sitting on her couch and studied Shawn intently. "Lower your voice and I'll tell you." Her tone was grave.

Shawn was fuming, hands on his hips. "I asked ONE simply thing-"

"You didn't ASK anything, Shawn. You DEMANDED." Stephanie interrupted. "You demanded I keep Mark away from your wife. Guess what? They were just fine together in the cafeteria and the only reason River is scared of him is because of you. Now get out of my office before I suspend you and find him a replacement for Mania."

Deflating, Shawn stormed out.

***

Somehow, River wasn't surprised when Mark showed up, wondering where Shawn was. She smiled awkwardly, patting the table. "You're going to need to lie down for this, it's going to hurt." She said, studying his tights. "And your pant leg up." Clearing her throat, she pulled her hair back.

Nodding, Mark simply sat down on the edge of the table, kicking off his unlaced boots before rolling up the leg of his tights. "Do your worst, darlin', I can handle it." He half joked, laying down. He still couldn't believe she was acting like she didn't even know him.

***

"What happened?" Paul sighed, watching as Shawn appeared around the corner. He blinked, a fist coming his way and then groaned when it connected with his mouth. "WHAT THE HELL?"

"Since I don't hit women, I had to resort to you." Shawn was livid, face red with fury.

"Try using WORDS next time, asshole!" Paul growled, a hand over her mouth. "What the hell happened?"

"She's ALLOWING my WIFE to work on Mark!"

"She's not changing her mind, is she?"

Shawn punched him again.