CHAPTER 12 – Priscilla's test

Fresia didn't eat much, her stomach closed in a grip of sadness. Luckily her friends involved her in the conversation, that was about Paul Levesque at the moment. During the show, at the end of HHH's match, Stephanie climbed in the ring to hug and kiss her "husband", as scripted. Only this time she didn't act. Taking the courage in her hands, she had grabbed his blond mane making him lower his head and had kissed him passionately in front of the entire world. He had stiffened but didn't stop her to not ruin the storyline. He had tried to keep his lips closed, but she had bit his lower lip a little, forcing him to open his mouth and then had pushed her tongue in search of his, in an ancient duel. The fans were cheering madly and she had felt alive and happy, a real woman.

Once in the backstage Paul had looked at her furiously, hissing "you'll pay for this".

But she had silenced him "Now I have something more important to do. Bye" running away to reach her friends.

"Steph your performance was spectacular. If I hadn't been so worried about Fresia, I would have laughed till death" Jessie began, biting into a stuffed mushroom.

"That's right, and what can I say about your match Nora? It was really funny – said Laura – I bet you had a lot of fun slapping the dumb Stacy around".

"Oh yeah, absolutely. The blond will remember it for a long time, believe me. She will think twice before calling me names again".

Dinner was ending, the waiters were serving dessert when Vince got on the stage doing his usual speech, thanking everyone for the love and care they put on their job, taking the WWF to the top of the world.

"A toast to us – he said lifting his goblet – so that this bunch of people could carry on having a lot of success and bringing an incredible amount of money in my pockets".

A general laugh filled the room, while everybody lifted their glasses answering Vince's toast. The waiters cleaned the tables and the band increased the volume of the music, so the dances could begin. Vince stood up and went to the girls table to invite her daughter to dance. Soon other couples joined them and the dance floor filled up with dancers.

Jessie was kidnapped by Glen, who despite his size proved to be an excellent dancer and didn't let go of her even for a minute. He didn't want other men to touch her. Kevin sat down with the girls, monopolizing Nora attention. Dwayne invited Cindy to dance and she practically threw herself in his arms, happy.

As for Fresia, she didn't have a moment's rest. Everybody knew what was happening as soon as Calaway arrived with the red bomb at his arm. Then they had seen Fresia walking in with her friends, beautiful but sad, trying to keep her dignity high but her eyes was glued to the floor, like she was afraid of something. They saw the way Mark kept looking at her and realized that the little girl had captured his heart. Everybody knew it, but him. What a stubborn man! Well, he might not want her, but she would not have spent the evening looking downwards!

So they competed all night long to invite her on the dance floor, doing their best to make her spend enjoyable hours. They succeeded. Her cheerful spirit had the upper hand after two pirouettes, wisely conducted by Eddie Guerrero, the best dancer in WWF. They threw themselves in salsa and merengue with enthusiasm and when the first notes of a tango played in the room, Eddie whispered:

"Don't stop now chica, show them who you are"

"I'm not good with tango Eddie, you'll have to help me" said Fresia giggling.

"Trust in your Latino heat chica, and everything will be ok".

She did just that and let herself go to the music and Eddie's arms. At the end, people around them started to applaud and Eddie and Fresia bowed theatrically, laughing.

Mark observed her dance, captured. She swayed to the music with the grace of a cat, the face finally relaxed. His escort tried to involve him in a conversation, but he didn't hear a word and Priscilla was losing his patient. Yes, she liked Mark Calaway a lot, but not to the point of letting him ignore her all night long. Why the hell did he invite her? Following his furtive looks she had the palpable sensation that he was more interested in the little hairdresser in white and started to work out a theory. People could think that a beautiful woman had to be necessarily stupid, but she wasn't. Not at all. There was something going on between those two, something that Mark was desperately trying to hide; he was in plain denial. Of course she could be wrong so she decided to put him to the test, her special "sex test" to be correct. That one never failed.

In the meanwhile she could try to have fun on her own. She saw Chris Irvine walk toward Fresia, asking her to dance, a slow and sensual song was diffusing around the salon. That blond devil was driving her crazy but she hadn't met him properly yet, since he came in WWF a few months ago. An idea popped in her mind, she turned toward Mark and put a hand on his arm.

"I like this song so much, Mark. Can we dance, please?" She asked him batting her eyelids.

Mark didn't feel up to dancing, but he was ignoring the redhead too much and didn't want to ruin his "cover". Besides Fresia was on the dance floor with that bastard Irvine and he wanted to take him under control, he was a man-whore and women found him irresistible. Who knows why? So he stood up, took Priscilla's hand and guided her in the middle of the dance floor.

Chris Irvine, alias Jericho, had an ego bigger than the Mediterranean Sea. Generally he was interested only in himself and tried always to monopolize everybody attention on him, thanks to his impudence, his infectious smile and beautiful blue eyes. He could be sharp tongued and surely he was a smart ass. Fresia had the opportunity to talk to him a few times, 'cause he stopped often in her department to take care of his flowing mane: he knew it was a significant part in his character. During their conversations Chris habitually made fun of her devotion for the Dead Man and she answered back with a beautiful smile, practically recommending him to mind his own business. Chris liked that girl, she had wit, gut, she was strong willing and always managed to make him feel stimulating and respected, even if she disagree with him all the time. He had learnt to respect her, and it didn't happen often especially with a female.

That evening, when he saw Fresia enter the room, he felt a strong wave of antipathy for Calaway. He tried a few times to approach her but it wasn't easy, because almost every man in the salon had had the same idea. He was pleased of it and accepted to wait his turn. Now they were dancing together and he was flirting shameless to make her feel sexy and wanted. Besides he noticed that the Dead Man was glaring at him and smirked inwardly; that asshole deserved to suffer a little. Chris tighten his hold on Fresia, moving his mouth close to her ear

"Finally I have you Val. You're the most requested woman of the night"

Fresia smiled, he always used her second name, declaring that the first was unpronounceable.

"A sexy beast like you shouldn't have problems to find company, Chris. I think I saw Stacy glance at you more than once" replied Fresia joking.

"Oh no, not that airhead, I would be bored in half an hour… Just the time to finish" he replied, wiggling his eyebrows and Fresia couldn't help but laugh. She liked Chris a lot; he was broad-minded and sincere, even if very arrogant. Surely she would have never picked him as a boyfriend, he had an awful opinion of women that always managed to irritate her. They ended up often having an argument and he seemed to like it a lot. He enjoyed making her angry!

While they were chatting kindly, Chris noticed Mark and Priscilla dancing beside them. The redhead glanced seductively at him, from under her long eyelashes and Chris decided to accept the obvious invitation for two reasons: one, the girl was breathtaking; two, he wanted to oblige Mark to dance with Fresia. Maybe it would not have been enough to wake his dead ass up, but Chris had to do something to make him reflect…. Or to convince Fresia that Mark wasn't worth it. So he took Fresia's hand and turned around the other couple, asking to the ladies if they wanted to exchange their partners. Priscilla jumped at the chance and immediately left Mark's arm to take the hand Chris was offering.

Fresia froze, annoyed. Damn, she was having so much fun, why ruin her good mood facing the source of her troubles again? At that point however she couldn't help but smile at Chris and turn to Mark, waiting for his next move. Mark pretended to be indifferent, but he was eager to snatch Fresia away from that blond bastard. So he took her in his arms wordlessly, starting to move at the slow rhythm of the music. The scent of her surrounded him, her long hair tickled his arm, going down to caress her breasts, well underlined by the round neckline of her dress. She looked like an angel.

Fresia was silent, a little rigid in his arms, her eyes lowered, like she was embarrassed.

"Good evening Squirrel – said Mark to break that disturbing silence – You're very pretty tonight". He felt a little stupid, like a teenager at his first ball.

She murmured a "thank you" with a little smile, but didn't look at him yet.

Mark didn't like to be ignored, so he teased her a little.

"I didn't see you in the backstage after the show… Am I your preferred wrestler, still or have you decided to move your attention on Jericho?"

He was Jealous like a dog, but would have never admitted it, never.

Fresia was stupefied. Was he mocking her? And he was having a lot of fun, that asshole. First he made her clearly understand that she wasn't good enough for him, then he asked why she wasn't in the backstage to welcome him? What a jerk!

She glanced at him, her look amazed and sad and Mark saw it. He looked in her eyes and saw all the pain he had caused her; he read the hurt, the humiliation, the mortification. She had raised her little face toward him as to ask him "why?". Mark felt a sting at his stomach… remorse. He didn't mean to hurt her so much, just stop her chase of him. He had to talk to her, he had to explain…

"I already told you Mark, I got the message and then I was pretty tired. I suppose your beautiful friend could have replaced me worthily" she said, a hint of jealousy in her voice.

"You haven't a good opinion of yourself Squirrel if you think that anyone could take your place, including Lucilla".

"Oh no Mark, you're wrong. It's just because I have respect for myself that I didn't come in the backstage to see you – replied Fresia angry – and I won't come anymore. Besides, her name is Priscilla…. And mine is Fresia. You can't even remember the name of people who cares about you. You know what? YOU are not good enough for me, not the other way around"

She pushed him away with force and went at her table, leaving him in the lurch in the middle of the dance floor . Luckily the music ended just in that moment, sparing him the complete defeat. The couples started to go back slowly to their tables. Nobody missed a word of the "exchange of views" between Mark and Fresia and now they were gossiping quietly, looking at him.

Mark was angry with himself. He had always been master of the situation and had never regretted having made a decision, but tonight ... Tonight he had the unpleasant feeling of having it all wrong, a strange sensation that he did not like. But there was also something else ... He could not grasp what it was, but had never felt so attracted to a simple girl. And the thought of hurting her infuriated him. He realized that if someone else would have put such pain in the eyes of Fresia, he would have strangled him with bare hands.

He walked over to his table, followed by the frowning eyes of those present. They were all against him, he thought angrily ... Priscilla also was looking at him, concerned. What was going on between those two? Surely there was something, she felt it with her skin, she knew the reactions of men and recognize the one of Mark too. But then why had he asked her out in front of the woman who seemed to interest him so much? She was intrigued and curious and decided to get answers, in her own way. It was time for the famous "sex test".

When he arrived at the table, Priscilla said she was tired and asked him if he could walk her back to her room. He immediately agreed, not wanting to stay in the middle of all those people who seemed to judge him. Besides Fresia was leaving too ... accompanied by Chris Irvine. Still that lazy good-for-nothing. His determination to have a talk with his Squirrel increased and became urgency. He took the redhead by an arm and conducted her out of the room, toward the elevators.

Fresia was furious and confused. In short, she did not have much experience with men, but damn this was an enigma, a puzzle game. Mark clearly said that she was not attractive enough to go out in public with him, then asked why she wasn't in the backstage waiting for him. What was him, stupid? Didn't he understand that she was bleeding in her heart? That she was hurt? It was insensitivity or stupidity? She decided that the evening had gone too far and once at her table, she took the pochette of beads and looked around in search of her friends. She couldn't find anyone, they had vanished, together with some of the men ... Lucky them, they were able to reach their goal! She turned to leave, sided by Irvine.

"Are you going away?" he asked

"Yes, I'm really tired and there's nothing left here for me to do"

"I'll walk you to your room" he offered

"It doesn't matter Chris, I just had to take the elevator"

"Elevators are very dangerous places, don't you know? You'll never know what you can find inside them…. Or what could come down from the roof. It's better to have someone reliable ready to defend you" he replied looking damn serious.

She laughed. Luckily there was someone who was behaving normally. She took his arm and together they left the hall, followed by the looks of their colleagues and friends. Some were happy to see Fresia with another man, though Irvine was not the best companion in the world. Others were a bit worried that he would behave in an inappropriate manner with the girl. Including Paul Wight, which they crossed as they left the room. He glanced warningly at Chris in a way that would have frozen an erupting volcano. Chris rolled his eyes in exasperation, but he understood the concern of his big co-worker. So he gave him a reassuring nod with his head, which Paul was quick to grasp: Chris was just doing a "salvage" and the giant let them go, returning to the party.

They called the elevator and when it arrived, Chris conducted himself in the exaggerated act to inspect it to must, in search of some imaginary danger. Then he turned to Fresia, signaling that she could enter. She laughed, pushing the button of her floor. That man was a clown! Then she leaned to the wall of the elevator and sighed deeply.

"You're ok?" asked Irvine.

"No Chris, I'm so confused. Men disoriented me" she replied opening her eyes and looking at him. "Why can't you answer honestly to a direct question? If someone is bothering you, why do you men find so difficult to tell them the truth face to face? Why do you like hypocrisy?"

"Our men in general, eh? Aren't you rather referring to an only man? Someone tall, tattooed…"

Fresia sighed again. "Forget it, Chris, maybe I'm the wrong one. I always believed in sincerity, you know? I always thought that if you are sincere, with yourself and other people, you can manage to do whatever you want. But it seemed that the only important thing here is how fine-looking your ass is".

Chris burst out laughing: "Little one, you have a fine-looking ass… - he said nodding his head enthusiastically in front of her skepticism – If the Ayatollah of sex thinks so, you have to believe it".

She smiled, while the door opened on her floor.

"If you want I can show you… Let me in and tomorrow morning you will feel like Venus in person" he joked.

She didn't take him seriously, but felt a lot better. "I'm not ready to have a beast in my bed – she replied to the joke – You could make it all dirty, you animal".

They reached Fresia's room laughing like children. "Thank you Chris for cheering me up. You really are the King of the world".

"I know, the world says it every morning" he replied. Then he took her hands and kissed it, like a real gentlemen.

"Goodnight Val, dream about me tonight 'cause definitely I am a loooooooooooooot better of that egomaniac".

"Yeah, look who is speaking" she laughed. "Goodnight Jericho, you're really cool".

She entered her room, closing the door behind her.

Mark and Priscilla too were arriving at her room. The redhead turned to Mark and asked him if he wanted to come in. He didn't have time to waste with her, he wanted to have a talk with Fresia, but decided he owed and explanation to Priscilla. After all he had asked her out and then had ignored her the entire evening.

Once in the room, she hit on him immediately. She put a hand on his strong chest, unbuttoning the shirt to touch his warm skin. Then she leaned on him, replacing the hand with her breasts barely covered by the fine material of her dress. Her hand went down, caressing him, till she reached her goal. She took his testicles in her hand and massaged them sensually. Then she went back up to look for his erection, evident under his linen trousers. She lifted her face offering her mouth to him. But Mark stopped her hand, turning his back to the girl.

"Priscilla – he started – forget it, I didn't invite you out for this".

She looked at him quietly, frowning.

"I wanted to prove something and I used you for my purpose. Tell me how much I owe you for your time and then I'll go".

"Oh, but I don't want anything Mark, It's been a very instructive evening" she said pleased. Her "sex test" had worked one more time.

"It doesn't happen often to see Mark Calaway at the mercy of himself" she said, purring like a cat.

"Care to explain?" he said scowling.

"You know, there are only two reasons if a man refuses to make love: one, he had already do it; two, he is in love – she answered in triumph – and seeing that we spent the last hours together, I know for sure that you didn't make love already".

He approached her, aggressive. "Mind what you're saying, little viper".

"Don't worry Mark. It's not my business and I have no need to tell someone… But maybe you do" concluded the redhead.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm waiting for someone and he should arrive within moments". With that she opened the door practically throwing him out.