It was the fourth and final day of what had turned out to be both a relaxing and glorious vacation. In addition to the mini break for the Christmas holidays, that many days off at one time was a true rarity for the WWE Superstars. Randy had shocked Memphis when he had invited her to come back to Missouri with him. The first day had been the surprise romantic venture to Lake Saint Louis. There they had talked and once again Randy had really opened up to her, a fact that Memphis loved and cherished. Times like that brought them closer together and she knew she was one of the select few to ever see him so vulnerable.

Day two had been lazy and fun, nothing spectacular except lounging around the house and just doing what normal couples did on their day off. For Memphis, that was more than enough. Their time together had been as close to perfection as one could imagine but the utopia had been damaged by the end of the second night. Randy had been in the midst of a violent night terror, one so frightening that it had ended with his startled, hypervigilent response shoving a gun in her face. He had refused to speak about what had scared him so but by the next day, all had been forgotten. Memphis had found something else to worry about in the form of unexpectedly running into Randy's parents while he was out and she was half naked.

It wasn't the ideal way to meet the family and she had worried that the first impression would be a lasting one for all the wrong reasons. She and Randy were "together" but still it was awkward whenever the subject came up of taking the next step in their relationship. Randy had seemed unphased by the little impromptu meeting and within minutes, his father, Cowboy Bob Orton, had warmed up to his son's new lady friend as they chatted about professional wrestling, one of the great loves of the older gentleman's life. His wife Elaine hadn't been so welcoming and Memphis had been unsure that accepting an invitation to a family dinner was the wisest decision. But Randy had insisted they go, assuring her everything would be fine. A marathon sex session followed and as afternoon turned into evening, Memphis, after a shot of straight gin, felt relaxed enough to attend.

It had been a nice time. The Orton home was modest but nice, nestled cozily into a middle class neighborhood cul de sac. They had arrived about an hour early and Memphis had once again been both enthralled and entertained by Bob's tales of life on the road and inside the ring. She had also gotten to meet Randy's younger siblings, sister, Becky and brother, Nathan. They had been nice as well and did their best to make the visitor feel welcomed. Memphis had sat back and just enjoyed the comfortable chit chatter and joking banter among family members. When they were together, they were a tight little union and it was good for Memphis to see him at home with the group of people who had been there with him from the beginning, before the money, the bright lights, and the millions of people screaming, "RKO!"

With Randy lovingly rubbing her knee underneath the dining room table, Memphis felt more relaxed than ever. She loved his family and had managed to win them over as well. After dessert, Elaine Orton had quietly slipped back into the kitchen to do the dishes and clean up. Memphis had cautiously approached and nervously asked if she could help. The older woman had obliged and they had made small talk. It was awkward for both but Memphis was determined to make an effort. Though she didn't leave the home that evening with a new BFF, she had let her boyfriend's mother attempt to get to know the real her. At least it was a start and Elaine no longer had to be suspicious of some slut or money grubber trying to cozy up to her boy.

That night had turned out to be the best one so far. That night Memphis had run a hot bath and she and Randy had sat inside the tub for hours just talking until the water cooled to an unbearably uncomfortable temperature. She loved the feel of him sitting in between her legs, the sleek gams wrapped around his massively toned front. She had taken a wet wash rag and squeezed the water droplets onto his chest, kissing his neck as she rubbed circles on his core. They had dried off and climbed into bed naked where they cuddled then slept until the next day sans lovemaking. The sex was out of this world but Memphis didn't always want it to be about that. Just being held by Randy, really getting to know him as a person was what truly mattered.

The last day was busy making preparations for the upcoming road trip. Before they all knew it, Wrestlemania, the premiere event in sports entertainment would be just around the corner. Undoubtedly, Randy would have a big match on the card and Memphis, the most talked about referee in all of sports, would surely have a spot somewhere at the event. Both were looking forward to it. In the meantime, Memphis was content to play that domestic role, helping Randy pack, washing and ironing his clothes and such. Most of his luggage was in the closet in one of the spare bedrooms. Memphis dragged the largest bag back to the master bedroom where they were getting things together. As she plopped down on the floor, she noticed, she had brought the wrong bag. It was heavy and peeking out of the top was a pair of fatigues.

Memphis smiled. She pulled out the carefully folded shirt and ran her slender fingers over the name tag Orton. It was Randy's Marine Corp uniform. It was no secret that he had served in the Marines and it definitely was no secret how things had ended. He hadn't talked about it much but the more she got to know him, the real him, the more she suspected that the entire situation bothered him much more than he let on. He didn't like to fail at anything and so many had looked at the entire period of his life with harsh judgment. Memphis sighed. Randy didn't always have the answers. Beneath the Viper, the Apex Predator persona, and 6 foot 5 inches, 235 pounds of tattooed muscle was simply a man, sometimes defenseless, sometimes vulnerable.

Staring at the box, curiosity got the best of her. There were all kinds of goodies inside. Different uniforms and medals. There was also a smaller box filled with papers and a shoe box of random photographs from Randy's brief stint in the military. He was younger and he looked different. More innocent, if that was possible, she thought as she ran her fingers over his military picture ID card.

"What the hell are you doing?"

The deep voice standing near the doorway scared Memphis. She let out a little shriek as she floated back to reality, some of the contents of the box dropping from her fingers. She turned and saw a shirtless Randy, arms folded. A small smile crept to her lips as she placed her right hand over her heart and tried to regain a normal breathing pattern.

"Wow, babe. Geez, you scared the shit out of me. I'm sorry I didn't see you standing there."

Randy was not smiling.

"Memphis, what is all this? What are you doing? What the hell is going on? Where did you get that bag from?"

"Nothing. I was getting our things together for the road trip and I guess I grabbed the wrong bag. I was gonna put it back and then I saw what was in it and I couldn't help it. This…it's kind of cool. All your military stuff. I was just looking around, no big deal. I mean, I've never really heard you talk about that part of your life before. This stuff, the uniforms and the ribbons and all, it's kind of cool."

He stalked over and began shoving the belongings back into the bag.

"This is none of your goddamned business, Memphis."

She was taken aback at his tone, accompanied with a tense and hostile demeanor.

"Randy?"

Surely he had to be joking. His gaze refused to meet hers and when she grabbed his bare arm, a pair of icy blue eyes finally looked at her. It was enough to make her gasp. She hadn't seen one of those looks from him in months, not since the days that he had taken immense pleasure in humiliating her and making life backstage a living hell.

"I can't believe you," he huffed, roughly pulling away.

"Baby, what is the matter? I…"

"That's bullshit. You shouldn't be rifling through my things."

"What are you talking about? I, I wasn't rifling through your things. It was an accident."

"An accident?" he questioned, his steely glare almost boring a hole right through her.

"Yeah. I…"

"Are you fucking kidding me?"

"Baby…"

When the bag was packed, he turned on his heels to leave the bedroom. Memphis stood and followed him reaching up for his arm and again he pushed away.

"Get your hands off me."

"Are you being for real right now?"

"I'm fucking serious. Don't touch me, Memphis."

"Randy, why are you acting like this? God, I didn't mean anything by it. I swear I didn't mean to grab the wrong bag. And when I saw that it was the wrong thing I had every intention to put it back but I saw your Marine stuff and I guess I got curious. I wasn't trying to be disrespectful. I mean, it is a part of your life and I guess I was just interested."

The more she explained, the angrier he got. Storming off, he slung the large bag over his broad shoulder and walked downstairs. When he made it to the door that led to the garage, he opened it and tossed it roughly into the garage before slamming the door behind him in a huff.

"Look, I don't know what you think you're doing but this isn't your house."

"What? I, I can't believe you just said that to me. I can't believe you're being so mean. I know this isn't my house."

"Memphis, you are a guest here. If you're gonna be a nosy bitch, if I can't trust you…"

Tears pooled in her dark eyes.

"Then what?" she asked quietly.

Randy didn't miss a beat.

"Then don't come back. And whatever this is we're doing, maybe it's not working," he mouthed coldly.

She gasped at his comment, his anger that had turned to aloofness in 0.2 seconds.

"Whatever this is we're doing? Randy, how…how could you say that? Why are you overreacting? I, I'm sorry."

"Whatever."

"Can we, I don't know, can we talk about this?"

She was left stunned and alone. It really was innocent. She had meant nothing by it but her innocent curiosity had led to a dreadful misunderstanding that has spiraled dangerously out of control. Wrapping her arms around herself, Memphis struggled to gather her thoughts. Maybe he was embarrassed about how the whole military career had ended but he didn't have to be ashamed of anything in front of her and regardless, that gave him no right to treat her that way. One thing for sure was that Randy Orton was unpredictable. On one hand he could be super loving, attentive, calm and affectionate and in a flash, he could become enraged, hurtful, and distant. It wasn't just what he said, it was how he said it. The look in his eyes, the refusal to even discuss it further. Finally a single tear fell down her face. It had been a glorious vacation but that last night was a powerful reminder how every time they seemed to take one step forward, the always ended up ten steps back.