A/N: Before y'all get to reading, I just wanted to thank everyone who faithfully reads/reviews this story. Your reviews, favorites, and follows keep me going. I really appreciate it. But anyway, enough of this...

Happy reading :)

She had a match. It was a direct consequence of her interference in Dean's match and she was really regretting it right now. Rollins and Reigns however, had a tag match against Roman's cousins, the Usos. She was okay with that, but she hated that she had to compete when she didn't even cause that much of a raucous in his match. And to top it all off, Dean had to accompany her. But apparently, it was in the contract she signed. She and Dean still haven't had a conversation since she told him to leave her hotel room the night before, and if there was ever a time for that chat, then would have been the time. But she didn't even know where he was.

She sat by herself in the corner of the locker room they found, head in her hands, rubbing her temples. She was battling her inner turmoil. She wasn't ready to say it out loud, but she missed talking to him. She missed everything about him actually. The stupid tone of his voice – the drawl that made her want to melt – his sarcasm, his mannerisms, his ability to make her forget everyone else and just be free, she missed all of that, but she needed to just forget about him. She was trying, she really was. Every day for the past 7 months, she had been trying to push him out of her mind. But she was failing miserably, and she wanted to hate him for it. And working with him wasn't helping. After seeing him for the first time after all those months, the feeling of love she had repressed had resurfaced.

It was problematic because she so desperately wanted to hate him.

When he left for his spot for his spot on the main roster she felt abandoned. He promised to always be for her and she needed that to be a promise that he always kept but he jumped at the opportunity to leave. Not to sound selfish, she was genuinely proud of him and she was happy that he was successful…She just wanted him to be successful in Florida. Not New York, not California, or any other state that he traveled to without her.

Maybe she was unrightfully bitter, but what girlfriend wouldn't have been upset that their one love was leaving her? And she could go with him – just like her parents had done with her the year before – she let him go on his own.

Of course at first, he was confused, hurt, and angry, but he understood. He understood the reasoning behind what she had made up. She gave him some half-assed excuse that anyone in their right mind wouldn't have believed. She told him that she was afraid he would cheat on her with some trollop backstage while he was on the road, so to prevent her own heart ache, they couldn't be together anymore. She laughed at the memory and rubbed her face. She couldn't believe how little she had thought that through.

Even though she was the one who ended it, she still harbored resentment toward him. Dean had made no attempts to fight it, he just let it happen. And to top it off, he didn't keep in touch. But from what he told her during their argument – she concluded that it wasn't on purpose – he couldn't be friends with her. She understood and appreciated the honesty, but hell, a phone call would have been nice. That wasn't too much to ask for was it? She didn't think so. Then again, even it was asking too much, she still wouldn't have thought so.

She groaned and pressed her back against the wall. Their match was coming up and she knew that he would be wondering where she was.

She hoped and prayed that she wouldn't get caught up I anything tonight and she could just go out there tonight and prove that she deserved a shot at the Diva's Champion, AJ. She figured that by winning the match, she would make everyone stop and pay attention. She may have been a Shield member, but she wanted to prove that she didn't need them. After all, it's not like they could fight her battles for her. Not with WWE going PG and all that foolishness.

She got up from her corner in their locker room and adjusted her tights and wiggled her feet deeper into her boots. She rolled her neck and shoulders as she whispered in her thick British accent, "Into the lion's den I go."

Dean was freaking out. Yeah, Dean Ambrose – United States Champion – was freaking out. He was nervous and he knew exactly why. He didn't want Paige to get hurt. He knew full well that she was capable of taking care of herself – especially against Alicia Fox – but that didn't mean that freak accidents couldn't happen. He knew that it was very important to her, but he couldn't get his head in the game. Ever since taking to her the night before – or early morning, whatever you want to refer to it as – he had been out of it. He couldn't focus. Even Roman and Seth had called him out on it, but he simply brushed off their concerns and politely told them to fuck off.

Where is she? He hadn't seen his "charge" – as he had so kindly dubbed her, much to her chagrin – since they had gotten to the arena and that fact was making him even more anxious. His normal, cool, calm, collected, and diabolical demeanor was gone. He thought that it maybe he shouldn't have said what he had back at the iHop. His subtle admittance – still unapproached by his other teammates – he hadn't said anything else to her since then. He knew that his "Me too" was still echoing through her mind. Stupid. Fucking stupid. He cursed himself.

By then, he was pacing back and forth. So he hadn't seen that Paige was standing behind him, leaning against the wall. He was startled when he heard her clear her throat. Quickly pulling himself together, he glared at her, "You're late."

"Whatever." Maybe it's because you didn't tell me that we would taking the ramp down to the ring, she hid a scowl behind her hair, "Let's just get on with it then, gramps."

They stood just behind the curtain as they waited for the opening cue of their entrance music. He threw his title over his shoulder and smirked at her, "Are you implying that I'm old, love?" He used a fake, horrendous British accent, adding annunciation the word love. His smirk grew deeper when he noticed her slight reaction to the term of endearment.

Much to his vexation, she didn't respond to it the way he wanted her to. She simply rolled her eyes and said, "I don't say a lot of things to your face." It sounded a bit malicious, but it was the truth. She hadn't said a lot of the words she needed to when it came to him. That he knew. "Now, shut it so we can do this."

Just as her last sentence flowed from her tongue, their music hit. Mockingly, he bowed and gestured her ahead, "After you, love."

Their music blared through the Tyson Events Center in Sioux City, along with a chorus of mixed response. She assumed it was because the fans didn't know how to respond to her yet. She knew one thing though, they weren't gonna like her after this match. Against her better judgment and the irritation she harbored at Dean, she hooked her left arm in his right, and they confidently strode down to the ring.

She smirked as she climbed up on to the apron and let out her guttural, primal scream. She stripped off her leather jacket that was designed to resemble the S.W.A.T-like attired the boys wore. She tossed it to the side, in Dean's direction, but not at him. She watched as he scowled and played up the crowd, waving off their rowdy jeering and booing. She rolled her eyes at the people as she stretched in the ring and waited for her red-headed opponent to get her tall ass to the ring.

Dean paid close attention as the two Diva's spilled out of the ring. He watched as Paige overpowered Alicia, pushing her to the hard mat. He winced as Paige picked up her visibly hurt opponent by the hair and swung her into the barricade and repeatedly banged the woman's head against it. The referee began the ten count.

To say that he was impressed with her relentless punishment on her opponent would have been a massive understatement. Apparently, Paige's original plan to win the match was no more. He knew she was using her viciousness as a scare tactic.

He walked around the ring, toward the ramp and watched as she dragged Alicia's limp body into the ring, immediately setting her up for the Paige-Turner.

And just like that, the match was over.

Paige pretended to dust off her hands and kick dirt into her fallen adversary's face, "Done." She rolled out of the ring and joined Dean on the ramp. They began the trek up the ramp. Without thinking much of it, he slung his arm around her shoulder. The sudden skin to skin contact sent a shiver up her spine. Involuntarily, she wrapped her arm around his waist and laid the opposite over the hand on her shoulder. What am I doing?

She didn't know.

A dark, silent, eeriness filled the hallway of her choice. And the chill feeling of the space was almost supernatural. Evil, cruel intent occupied her mind. She had one goal, stay at the top of the food chain. She had connections and motivation. But she needed the one person she felt could provide the muscle to back her up. He needed to be on board.

"Think about it. She's in the way… they're in the way." She tried her hardest to sound pleading, but she knew that so far, he saw right through her.

"No" he shook his head and crossed his arms, "Do you know how much trouble I would get into if we got caught?" he wouldn't just lose his job, he'd be the one that took the brunt of it. She would get off Scott free.

She scoffed and rolled her eyes. But she knew that he was right to have his doubt but she had to stick to her plan. She buried the rest of her pesky conscience in the back of her mind as she squared her shoulders and looked the muscular man in the eye, "We won't get caught. There's no need to worry." She flipped her long hair over her shoulder, "We're irreplaceable."

He gave her an incredulous, "Says who?"

"Me." She sighed, her irritation level reaching its peak, "Look, I don't have time for this. So are you in or are you too scared to get your hands dirty?"

"I'll think about it."

A/N: So how'd I do?...Paige is confusing, isn't she...And what about Dean? Sheesh, they are so complicated. And what's with the creeps lurking in the shadows?

Until next time,

Liz