Michaela. She was here. She was standing in front of him. Jeff couldn't believe his eyes. His mouth was dry. That didn't matter. His brain had froze once he saw her face. He'd almost forgotten how beautiful she was. Michaela simply grinned at Jeff, knowing how she made him weak. Despite himself, he just wanted to kiss her. But, Jeff was going to be strong. He couldn't have Michaela back in his life.

"Why are you here?" Jeff asked.

"I told you. I wanted to see you," Michaela answered.

"You…you can't be here."

"Why not?"

"I don't want you here."

"Jeff, I missed you."

"Get out, Michaela."

Jeff couldn't look at her any longer. If he did, he'd end up doing something he'd regret. Like kissing her. Oh, but he did want to kiss her. Matt heard the tone of Jeff's voice and knew that it was Michaela. How dare she show her face again? Especially after what she did to Jeff. If she wasn't a woman, Matt would've hit her. Hell, he was tempted to hit her now. He motioned for his brother just to shut the door. Jeff was about to do so when Michaela stopped the door.

"I had a baby, Jeff," she said.

"You what?" Jeff asked.

"When you came to see me that last time and we slept together," she paused. "I got pregnant after that."

"Don't listen to her, Jeff," Matt interjected.

"I wouldn't lie to you," Michaela said.

"You already have," Jeff snapped.

"You really think I'd lie about this?"

"Why not? You lie about everything else."

Part of Jeff actually did believe Michaela. He knew he shouldn't have slept with her that night. He knew he should've just taken his stuff and left. Did he? No. He wasn't able to resist Michaela then. He still wasn't. It took all Jeff had not to reach out and pull Michaela into his arms. Was he too forgiving? Probably. That would've explained why he always got hurt. Was Michaela telling the truth for once? Neither Hardy boy knew.

"I would never lie about something this serious," Michaela said.

"Come in," Jeff replied.

Matt stared at his younger brother in shock. Was Jeff really going to believe Michaela's words just like that? He had a feeling that Michaela was lying to Jeff. Something didn't fit. What was it? Matt didn't know. Yet. But, he'd find out soon enough. The tension in the air was pretty thick. Matt saw the looks Michaela was giving Jeff. She was acting as if nothing had happened. As if she'd never slept with Hawkins and Ryder. Matt couldn't take it anymore. He stormed out of the room, muttering under his breath. Jeff wanted to go after him. He didn't want to be alone with Michaela. He never trusted himself around her. He'd never been good at resisting her charm and she knew it.

"Am I the father?" Jeff managed.

"You know I wouldn't have bothered you if you weren't," Michaela replied.

"You sure it wasn't Hawkins? Or Ryder?"

"That was just a one night stand."

"You hurt me so bad."

"That was never my intention."

"You sound like Amy when she broke Matt's heart."

"Don't compare me to her. It's not like that."

Jeff frowned as he looked away. He felt Michaela move closer to him, sitting in his lap. He felt her skin touching his. He couldn't help the feeling. Jeff had almost forgotten how soft her skin was. No! He couldn't. He wouldn't. Jeff was in love with Hope and that was it. Michelle was just lust and sex. He couldn't have anything with Michaela. It would only leave him heartbroken. Again. They both knew it.

"Is it a boy or girl?" Jeff asked, his voice a whisper.

"Girl. Her name is Jessica," Michaela answered.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"You said you never wanted to see me again."

"I say a lot of things I don't mean."

"You meant it then and you mean it now."

"We have a daughter, Mickey."

"That doesn't change how you feel about me."

"I know."

"I'm trying to fix this, Jeff."

Matt couldn't believe that Michaela had the audacity to show up again. It made him sick how Jeff pretty much jumped right back into her arms. When it came to Michaela, Jeff was too forgiving. What about Michelle? What about Hope? Matt was still in awe of the fact that Jeff got Michaela pregnant. He'd told Jeff not to go see Michaela that last time. He knew wouldn't end well. He'd been right all along. Matt saw Hope heading down the hallway and quickened his pace to catch up with her. He wrapped his arms around Hope's waist, resting his head on her shoulder.

"I hear you slept with my brother," Matt said.

"You heard right," Hope frowned.

"What's with the sad face?"

"I hate feeling torn like this."

"Is it that hard to choose?"

"I know that I want Jeff but I can't trust him."

"He never meant to hurt you. That kiss meant nothing."

"Then why is he with Michelle?"

"To get his mind off you."

"That's not true."

"You know I'd never lie to you."

Hope didn't say anything. She just pulled away from Matt, looking deep into his eyes. She wanted to believe that he was lying, that Jeff didn't care about her. But, that wasn't going to happen. Hope knew Matt was telling the truth and she knew Jeff was in love with her. This pretty much sucked no matter how you looked at it. Hope just wanted to forget it all. She knew Punk would find out that she slept with Jeff. All hell was going to break loose. It was inevitable. She never should've slept with him. It was wrong and she knew it.

"Are you gonna tell Punk?" Matt asked.

"I don't know," Hope answered.

"He deserves to know."

"He'll murder Jeff and you know it."

"Jeff has bigger things on his mind."

"What? Like Michelle?"

"Don't get pissy. You should've made a move."

"Oh, bite me, Matt."

"I'd love to."

"You're an ass, you know that?"

"But, I made you smile."

Hope knew he was right. No matter what, Matt could always make her smile or laugh even if she was feeling crappy. That's just how he was. Hope just hated to admit that Matt was right. She gave Matt a quick kiss on the cheek before heading towards Punk's room. She knew she had to tell him the truth. Matt was glad he'd run into Hope. He'd totally forgotten about how badly he'd wanted to strangle Michaela. Well, he'd forgotten for the moment at least.

CM Punk was just on his way out when he ran into Hope. He grinned, pulling his fiancée into a sensual kiss. For the strangest reason, Hope pulled away. Punk eyed her up and down, giving her this curious look. Why was she acting this way? Punk ignored those thoughts and attempted to kiss Hope again. But, she still pushed him away. For a split second, Punk thought he saw tears in Hope's eyes. No, he was right. There were tears in Hope's eyes. Why? What'd happened? That's what he wanted to know.

"Hope, what's wrong?" Punk asked.

"I slept with Jeff," Hope whispered.

"I can't hear you if you're whispering."

"I slept with Jeff."

"WHAT?!"

"Please don't be mad. I didn't wanna hurt you, I just…"

Punk wasn't mad. He was absolutely furious. Until he saw Hope's reaction. She was shaking because her tears were so violent. Punk could tell how guilty she felt. He pulled Hope into a hug, letting her sob into his chest. Hope did her best to calm herself. She wiped at her eyes, looking up at Punk.

"I'm so sorry," Hope said.

"It never happened," Punk replied.

She was gone. For now at least. Jeff sat with his face buried in his hands, trying to get Michaela out of his mind. She'd kissed him. Right before Michaela had left, she'd pushed Jeff onto the bed shoved her lips onto his. The rainbow-haired warrior was still reeling from that kiss. He'd enjoyed it more than he should have. This was more than Jeff could handle. It was bad enough that Hope turned him into mush, he didn't need Michaela to make things worse. They couldn't meet. Hope and Michaela could never meet. The outcome would be absolutely horrid. Hope was a sweet girl but if you screwed with her friends, she'd kill you. Jeff already knew how she felt about Michaela.

His thoughts were interrupted by the door opening. It was Michelle. Jeff turned away from her, his mind still on Michaela. He didn't realize how much he'd missed her. He'd missed the softness of her skin, the smell of her vanilla shampoo. But, most of all the taste of her cherry chapstick. Yeah, he was still into her. That was part of the reason why he couldn't look Michelle in the eye. The other reason was because he'd slept with Hope and felt horrible about it. Jeff watched as Michelle sat across from him, gazing deep into his eyes. Their whole relationship was based on lust and sex. Nothing else.

"I tried calling you before," Michelle said.

"I was taking care of something," Jeff replied.

"Something? Don't you mean Hope?"

"We had coffee, Michelle. It's not a sin."

"Then why couldn't you answer your phone?"

"Michaela came back. You know, my ex."

"The bitch you told me about? The one that fucked the Edgeheads?"

"The one and only."

"What did that skank want?"

"She wanted to tell me that she had a baby."

"What does that have to…No."

"Yes. I knew I shouldn't have went back to see her."

"You're a father?"

"Apparently so."

Michelle was still trying to comprehend what Jeff had told. She'd only met Michaela once and she'd seemed like a nice person. Michelle never understood why she'd cheated on Jeff. Especially with Hawkins and Ryder. It was just…horrid. But, a father? Michelle didn't want to believe it. She suddenly felt guilty about putting Jeff through hell about Hope. He was already stressed out and Michaela's presence was going to make it worse. Michelle sat behind Jeff and started to massage his neck and shoulders.

"Oh, I needed that," Jeff smiled.

"I could tell. You're way too tense, babe," Michelle replied.

"It's Michaela. She does this to me."

"Then tell her to leave you alone."

"I wanna know my own daughter."

"Always the good guy. Same old Jeff."

"Yeah, it's my curse."

Hope was surprised at how well Punk had taken the news. He was so calm about it. She'd cheated on him, less than an hour after he proposed, and he just shrugged it off. Maybe this was love. That's what love meant. Forgiving each other's mistakes. Hope smiled down at the diamond-studded ring on her finger. Yeah, this was love. But, the sex with Jeff. As amazing as it was, it couldn't happen again. They both wanted it to happen again, that much was certain. It just couldn't be. Why was Punk so forgiving? Did he have something else planned? Another devious trick?

He wouldn't dare…

No. Punk swore the trickery was off. He didn't want to hurt anyone and Hope was happy about that. Right now, the young brunette just wanted to fall asleep in her hotel bed. This was their last day in New York and she was going to miss home. The superstars were jetting out to St. Louis, Missouri the next day. No wonder why Randy had been so cocky lately. They'd be in his hometown. Hope searched her pockets for her room key and unlocked the door. When she opened the door, she saw John in bed with a half naked chick. Hope recognized her as Kellie, the barmaid from Coyote Ugly.

"John! What the hell!" Hope nearly shouted.

John and Kellie let their lips linger close together before actually pulling apart. It was like they didn't even notice Hope's existence. Well, until John looked up and saw his best friend, a somewhat disgusted look on her face. Kellie quickly pulled on her shirt, not meeting Hope's eyes. John did his best to keep from laughing. Though he couldn't hide the grin for long.

"Hope, I can explain," John started.

"Don't. I don't even wanna know," Hope replied.

"Are you sure? I have a really good explanation."

"The barmaid John? Really?"

"This isn't what it looks like.""No?"

"Okay, this is exactly what it looks like."

"Forget it. You stay here, I'm leaving."

"Are you sure? Randy locked me out of our room."

"You're impossible."

Matt finally decided to head back to his room, hoping Michaela was gone. He couldn't help but notice CM Punk. He looked a bit pissed but not on a war path. Did Hope tell him about Jeff? There was no way. Punk looked way too at ease. Punk saw Matt staring at him and headed over. He was sure Matt knew about Jeff and Hope's affair. He was one of Hope's closest friends after all. Punk was still trying to figure out why he wasn't pissed off. Okay, he was pissed off but he wasn't on a war path. What'd change? Why did all of sudden not want to rip Jeff to pieces? Hope had chosen him. She could sleep with fifty other men but she was still engaged to him. That was love and it was all that mattered.

"You know?" Matt asked.

"Hope just told me," Punk replied.

"On your way to kill my brother?"

"No. Surprisingly, I have no interest in doing so."

"You really love her that much?"

"Yeah. I really do."

"You better treat her right."

"You sound like John."

"There's a difference between me and John."

"And what's that?"

"John will kill you if you hurt Hope. I'll just beat the shit out you."

"Good to know."

Punk couldn't help but laugh. He knew both John and Matt were completely serious. Not that it mattered. He was being careful not to hurt Hope. Punk hated seeing her upset. It was even worse if he was the one causing her to be upset. But, that was all before he realized how in love he was. It was such an amazing feeling. Well, for him. He knew Hope was still torn, though she tried to hide it. Was he being a total dick by ignoring her problems? Probably. That didn't mean he was just going to let her go off with Jeff. No, no. She'd chosen. He didn't force her to say yes.

Matt was still shocked that Punk didn't want to kick the crap out of Jeff. He remembered wanting to rip Edge limb from limb when he'd slept with Lita. Then again, Matt didn't expect to see Jeff and Punk being all 'buddy-buddy' with each other. Though for Hope's sake, he really wished they'd try. Matt knew the chances of that were slim and nil. He probably had a better chance of getting back with Lita.

The two superstars parted ways at Matt's floor. As soon as Matt got out of the elevator, he bumped into Michaela. She smiled sweetly at him, as if nothing had happened. He glared an icy glare, folding his arms across his chest. She couldn't hide whatever she was hiding for long. Matt was determined to find out what it was. Somehow, he suspected Michaela already knew that. Of course she did. She wasn't stupid.

"I shouldn't have to apologize to you," Michaela said.

"Your apology is shit to me," Matt snapped.

"I made a mistake and I'm paying for it."

"Jeff will realize that you're a conniving bitch."

"Conniving. Nice word, Jughead."

"Stay away from Jeff. He doesn't need you complicating things."

"Cut the big brother shit. You're jealous."

"Jealous? Oh, don't flatter yourself. I'm done dating sluts."

Michaela slapped Matt across the face. She'd just had the sudden urge to slap him. How dare he call her a slut? Yeah, it was true and all but he had no right. Michaela returned the eldest Hardy boy's icy glare. Matt ran his tongue along his bottom lip, tasting blood. He snickered a bit as he wiped the blood with his thumb. He turned to face Michaela, his glare about a hundred times worse. He grabbed Michaela by the hair, shoving her up against the wall. Michaela winced in pain.

"You touch me again, Michaela and it will be the last thing you ever do," Matt snapped.

"Fuckin' prick," Michaela shot back.

"Goddamn slut."

Michaela flipped him off before storming into the elevator. Matt could say all he wanted. She had a plan up her sleeves and he had no knowledge of it. Yet. Michaela knew Matt was going to be watching her like a hawk. She'd have to get him to trust her somehow. Michaela wasn't going to let Matt ruin her chances of getting Jeff back. She wanted him. No. She needed him. This time she actually meant it. Now all she had to was find Hawkins and Ryder. Maybe even Edge. Yeah, she was on her way to find Edge.

Edge never expected to see Michaela when he opened the door. He stared at her in shock. Was this real? Was he dreaming? Edge reached out and held Michaela's face in his hands. She smiled up at him. Edge couldn't get over the shock. Michaela was really here, she was really right in front of him. She grabbed him by the collar and pulled him into a kiss. The two grinned at each other before Michaela pushed Edge into the room, locking the door.

Hope decided to spend the night in Maria and Ashley's room. They didn't mind at all. As long as Hope told them more about her engagement to Punk. Hope didn't mind at all. Maria and Ashley were her two best friends. They were the two who she could tell anything to. And she did. But, right now Hope didn't feel like gushing about her ultra-complicated love life. If she did, she'd start thinking about Jeff. That would lead to her wanting him and that couldn't happen.

"What's wrong Hopey?" Maria asked.

"You know I hate when you call me that," Hope replied.

"You didn't answer my question."

"I've been thinking about Jeff."

"What about him?" Ashley asked.

"Everything."

"He is a great guy, isn't he?" Maria grinned.

"That's the problem," Hope sighed. "He's perfect."

"Nobody's perfect," Ashley replied.

Before either Hope or Maria could reply, the three girls heard knocking on the door. The knocking was followed by Michelle McCool's voice, asking if she could talk to Hope. Maria and Ashley glanced at Hope, who simply shrugged her shoulders. Ashley yelled that the door was open and Michelle walked in seconds later. She stopped in front of Hope who had been sitting on Maria's bed. Hope didn't bother to look at Michelle. She felt that if she did she'd ending up scratching out Michelle's eyes.

"I need to talk to you," Michelle said.

"So I heard," Hope replied, unenthusiastically.

"Look, Hope. I'm sorry, okay?"

"For what? Being a conniving bitch? Putting me through hell?"

"If you had any feelings for Jeff why didn't you say something?"

"Michelle, I was only trying to make you jealous."

"You don't have feelings for Jeff?"

"Him and Matt are like my brothers. Nothing more, nothing less."

Michelle didn't say anything further. She simply waved and headed out. Maria and Ashley both stared at Hope in shock. Did she really just say what they thought she said. No. it had to be a joke. Hope didn't turn around to face her friends. She couldn't. She didn't want them to see her tears. Maria could tell that Hope was crying and rushed over to her friend, pulling her into a hug. She motioned for Ashley to come over as well. They both knew how hard it was for Hope to lie and say that she didn't love Jeff.

Jeff, with Matt's help, had made up his mind about Michaela. He was going to tell her to leave and that he didn't want to see or hear from her again. This time he sure as hell meant it. Michaela couldn't be in his life. She was a poison to him and she destroyed his confidence. She'd destroyed him. It didn't matter how she was in bed, he couldn't have her around. Did he want her around? Yes. No. Maybe. Jeff headed to where the concierge said Michaela's room was. On his way there, he'd bumped into someone. He looked up to see Kellie, the barmaid John had just slept with. The two locked eyes and stood in awkward silence for a minute or two before Kellie quickly hurried off. Jeff remained in the hallway, staring after her in shock.

"God, I've missed you," Edge moaned.

Michaela grinned as she let her lips wander along his neck, her fingers tracing the waistband of his pants. The redhead stared deep into Edge's eyes, a grin dancing on her lips. Edge grinned back at her, running his fingers through his blonde hair. He couldn't express how happy he was now that Michaela was back. But, for how long? She wouldn't give him an answer. He knew that meant she didn't come back for him. Then who did she come back for if it wasn't him? Edge laced his fingers with Michaela's, kissing her softly.

"I missed you," Michaela said.

"Why'd you come back, Mickey?" Edge asked.

"Don't, Adam. I don't wanna talk about it."

"You came back for Jeff didn't you?"

"No. I came to fix things."

"Why?"

"I don't like being the bad guy."

"Yeah. Neither do I."

"Maybe you should change. Someone will give you a second chance."

"Second chances don't matter. People never change."

Hawkins and Ryder were crawling through the vent system, doing Edge's bidding. Like that was anything new. The two of them were dimwitted at times and did whatever Edge wanted. Like, sleep with Michaela for instance. No, bad example. They'd enjoyed doing that. What they didn't enjoy was crawling around in a vent. However, there was a plus side. They'd heard Michaela was back. Maybe they'd accidentally-on-purpose spy on her. Ryder tried crawling in front of Hawkins, only to elbowed in the face.

"What the hell, Curt!" Ryder snapped.

"Stop trying to crawl on top of me. I don't go that way," Hawkins shot back.

"I just wanna get out of these damn vents."

Hawkins rolled his eyes and kept crawling. He spotted an opening vent and crawled closer. His mouth fell open at what his eyes beheld. It was Hope. In the shower. Hawkins nearly died. Finally, doing Edge's bidding had paid off. What superstar wouldn't give their life to see a Diva showering? Hawkins watched as Hope stepped into the shower, letting the water grace her skin. Behind him, Ryder let out an annoyed groan.

"Zack, you've got to see this," Hawkins said.

"See what?" Ryder asked.

"Hope. In the shower."

"In the shower?"

"Oh yeah."

"Move."

"Keep dreaming."

Ryder tried shoving Hawkins out of the way. He caught a glimpse of Hope before Hawkins punched him. The two men kept hitting and shoving each other out of the way in desperate attempts to see the young diva shower. They kept fighting each other, both men wanting to get the better view. The Edgeheads continued to fight until they heard a crack. There was a few more cracks and then the ceiling gave way, Hawkins and Ryder yelling as they fell from the vents.