One of my quicker chapters. *in Lil' Jon's voice* Yeahhh!

A few people mentioned that I dragged the Jasha drama on for too long. Loves, it's only been four chapters, it's not that long. At least compared to other stuff I've read. I had to leave one story I was reading on this site alone because the drama started halfway through the fic, right? And there's a sequel but the two primary characters still haven't reconciled, lol. Now that's dragging drama. I'm not a fan of it either. Drama is always needed in a story but it gets boring fast when it goes on for chapters on end. I prefer to keep it at a minimum and the same goes for this fic as well as my other ones. But it's really nice to know that you care enough for Joe and Sasha's relationship that you never want to see them fight, so I thank you. :)

High fives (or hugs if you'd prefer) to too much drama 1225, Bharm, WWEbabe2442, Tammy, Sasha, Alisi824, Olivia Reigns, ItsGbruhh, nikki1335, CFierce116, ItReignsJustice-619, LuxuriaVanitas, DeeMarie426, IRENELOVE83, ChelleLew, princessreigns, Shield316, benova13 and justkimmy for the feedback! Mwah!

Couldn't find a better song choice for this chapter than 'Nobody Wants to be Lonely' by Ricky Martin and Christina Aguilera. Amazing song. Enjoy!

Goddamn headache.

Sasha shuffled around the Grill, wishing she could just lie down and sleep for the rest of the day. Where the headache came from she didn't know but it needed to go. She needed to work and it was imperative that things went smoothly like it always did in Reggie's absence. So downing some aspirin with a cup of coffee, she ploughed on, attending to customers, telling Amber off, making sure Old Man Maurice was taken care of, plunging back into her usual rhythm until she felt some semblance of normality again.

"You've been damn cranky lately," Amber griped, shutting the cash register before facing the older woman. "What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing," Sasha answered a little too quickly.

"Something or someone's pissed you off. Is it T.K.? Lover Boy? Whose ass do you want me to kick?"

Sasha snorted. "Ha. You can't even kick a football right, let alone someone's ass."

"Hey, don't knock me, Sash. I may be all skin and bone but I step up when I need to."

"Right." Sasha flipped the notebook in her hand and swiftly changed the subject. "Reggie says the new guy is coming in next week. You and I need to plan out his orientation."

"Can't we get Oliver to do it? I mean he hardly does anything around here anyway," Amber complained. "I may sound like a total bitch for saying this but I really think-"

But Sasha had stopped listening. A chill had swept through her spine out of nowhere. The hair on the back of her neck stood up. Something pushed her to direct her gaze towards the entrance of the Grill, and she did.

Joe stood by the door. Staring right at her.

It took Sasha a couple of seconds to establish that she wasn't hallucinating. She stood frozen as his eyes trapped hers, slowly bleeding out her surroundings and everything else around her until it was just him, and her, and the pain and hurt from three weeks ago. It felt like a lifetime and a monumental effort before her inner defenses finally broke the hypnosis. Tearing her gaze away, she wordlessly handed Amber the notebook and made a beeline for the back room.

Amber tried to stop her. "Where are you going?" She glanced curiously at the entrance. "Are you running from him, Sash?"

"No," Sasha lied, not liking the way her heart was currently racing.

"Well, he's obviously here to see you," the brunette retorted, carefully observing her colleague. "But if you want I can hold him off."

"Thanks," she said gratefully. She ducked into the back room, which suddenly felt like the safest place in the Grill. She put her hands on the long table in the corner and took deep breaths. This was the first time she was laying eyes on him in three weeks. She tried not to speculate or figure out why he was here. It didn't matter. What he did was no longer her business. At least that was what she'd been telling herself for the past three weeks and she would keep drumming it into her head until she believed it.

The air in the room changed. Shifted. Charged with that familiar tension again.

"Sasha."

She should have known. Amber never stood a chance against the will, the force, of Joe Anoa'i. She was probably still lying in the puddle he'd reduced her to with that silky, sexy baritone voice that now haunted Sasha's dreams at night.

Against her better judgment, she turned around. The first thing she noticed was the dark circles clashing unpleasantly with his grey eyes, like he hadn't slept in a long time. His beard was close to rivalling Colby's. A large bouquet of yellow roses was in his grasp. Sasha glanced at it then turned away. Even in her desolate state of mind her heart still hardened at the sight of him, at the thought of how callously he'd treated her all those weeks ago. "Only authorized staff are allowed in here," she said coolly.

She heard him chuckle; a deep, throaty, teasing rasp that always made her knees weaken. "Ain't never stopped us before, sweetheart," he smirked, subtly reminding her of the steamy quickie they had a couple of months back on the very table she was resting her hands on. The memory caused her to snatch them away from the surface and cross them over her breasts. "What'chu want?" she demanded, still not looking at him.

Joe knew that gesture anywhere. Her guard was up. "To apologize."

She made a derisive sound. "You show up at my workplace with flowers and that's supposed to make everything better?"

"Not right away, but it could be a start," said Joe. "I learned that you give someone a yellow rose to show them how sorry you are. I uh, got about two dozen," he added hopefully.

"You called me selfish. You accused me of wanting another man. You acted like I didn't give a damn about our relationship and made me feel like shit." She shook her head angrily, blinking back the tears that sprang to her eyes. Don't you dare cry. Not again.

"I'm an asshole."

"Good, something we agree on."

In spite of the situation, he smiled at her quick retorts. He would always be enamored by her feistiness. "I'm the one who was selfish," he acknowledged. "You were only trying to show me I needed help and I was only thinking about myself. I'm sorry. For everything. The way I treated you, the things I said to you."

He sounded sincere and heartfelt, and as angry as she was, she was glad he had at least taken the time to view the situation from her perspective. She had done the same, from his own end. With a heavy sigh, she ran a nervous hand down her apron. "It must have seemed like I was abandoning you, especially after I told you what was going on with me and you didn't walk away. It was shitty to make you feel that way."

"I understand why you did what you did. You had my best interests at heart, like you always do." He looked down at her, noticing that she'd lost a bit of weight. The blue sundress she wore looked baggier than it was supposed to be. Guilt nudged at him. "All of this is new for you. You stepped out of your comfort zone to be with me and I didn't realize how hard it must be for you."

"I shouldn't have called you a child either," Sasha said in a soft voice. "You're not. You're a grown man and I respect you so much. What you do. What you've been through. You've gone through some things older men couldn't handle and you're still standing tall."

"You've helped me through them," said Joe, "You don't realize it but you have."

"Surely I can't take all the credit," she said, wincing as she massaged her temple.

"Headache?" he asked softly, a look of concern on his face as he moved into the room.

"Yeah," she groaned, her senses tingling as he stood right in front of her. Joe gently undid the band that was keeping her ponytail in place. "This thing can't be helping," he commented. "It's pulling your hair back really tight."

It did feel better once her hair fell loose. "You're probably right," she said, as Joe's fingers glided into her hair, loosening the shape of the ponytail. God, he smelled so good it was making her dizzy. With his chest at her eye level, she fought the urge to grab his face and kiss him as it rushed over her violently.

"I like your hair," Joe complimented, coiling a lock around his index finger. "The blonde streaks are very pretty."

The sweet talk definitely was not helping her resolve. "Thanks."

Joe looked at her, her eyes shut as he kept massaging her scalp. It was taking everything inside of him not to dip his face into the hollow of her neck, to hear her moan for him as he traced his lips along that certain weak spot of hers. "Better?" he said instead.

"Much. Thanks, Joe."

Her smile warmed his heart. Gosh, he missed seeing that smile, the way it lit up her eyes. He really could not let her slip away, not again. Picking out a single rose from the bouquet, he tucked it into her hair before letting his hand fall to her shoulder. He stared sadly at her, painfully aware of how she avoided his gaze. Tentatively, he touched her face, and was relieved when she didn't shy away.

"I hate that we're not talking, baby girl. I hate that we're fighting," he whispered. "The last three weeks have been hell, Sasha." He cupped her cheek in his palm. "I miss you."

Sasha looked up, her gaze soft and yearning as she searched his own and her feelings battled within her. She knew all along that she couldn't stay mad even if she wanted to. At last, she said, "I miss you too. I've been thinking about you and how things went down between us. I'm so sorry."

"It's okay," said Joe, as she rested her head on his chest and wrapped her arms around his waist. He held her close, all the tension in his body dissolving in a deep sigh as he breathed in her scent. He wasn't sure he would ever get to hold her like this again.

"We should talk," Sasha said, pulling back but not letting go of him. "I finish up in an hour. Let's go somewhere where it's just us."

Joe nodded, almost eagerly. This was all he wanted from her; another chance. "How about my place? We can order takeout or whatever you want and I'll take you home afterwards," he offered. "No funny business, I promise."

Sasha thought it over and nodded. That sounded good.

Together, they walked out of the room, pushing open the door and nearly knocking Amber over in the process. Sasha shook her head at her eavesdropping colleague. "Unbelievable."

"Sorry," Amber grinned, not looking sorry at all. Her expression softened as she turned to Sasha. "Go with him," she said. "Clock out for the day. I got you covered."

Joe smiled gratefully. "Thanks, Amber."

Sasha had always loved the view the balcony at Joe's massive Tampa home provided. It overlooked his swimming pool and the stretch of green grass fenced off from his deck below, which bordered a small lake, with a perfect scope of the skyline. The land was vast yet gave him privacy because no one could be seen for miles. He'd added a new piece of furniture to the balcony too: a wicker daybed, the shape of a pod, with soft, comfortable scatter cushions and big enough for both of them to sit in. They sat cross-legged facing one another, enjoying the outdoor ambience as they talked and ate Chinese takeout. Joe talked about the pressures of being an Anoa'i. His Hall of Fame father and uncle. Dwayne. Rikishi, Jonny and Josh's dad. Matt. Shoes that were almost too big to fill. Pain radiated in his eyes as he spoke about his cousins dying young. Rodney and Eki – Yokozuna and Umaga respectively, fellow family trailblazers. Eki's death in particular had devastated Joe because he, along with the twins, were close to him. His passing was the reason Joe had tried to stay away from wrestling. He'd known from the start that he couldn't, however. Wrestling was in his bloodstream. He couldn't walk away if he tried, and that was what scared him.

Andrea had been a shoulder to cry on during that trying time. "Sometimes I wonder when things changed between me and her," Joe commented sadly, "how we disintegrated so much. I was done with relationships after what she did. I trusted her so much and I couldn't let someone in only for them to destroy me like that again. So I went through women like underwear simply because it was easier that way. Too easy, really. But it didn't stop me from blaming myself for how it all went down between us. As much as she's responsible for what she did, I didn't help matters. I was hell-bent on making a name for myself and at the time it was all I truly cared about. There were whispers behind my back that I only got into FCW because of who I'm related to. Hell, the whispering hasn't stopped. I've been on the main roster for a year and fans are already calling me overrated. That I'm too green and I'm shit on the mic. The powers that be see me as a star but the fans don't and that's a problem for me. Nothing is more important than the fans' respect. They're the ones that keep your name and your legacy alive. So I started over-exerting myself; in the gym, in the ring. I had to show that I could take risks too. That I can stand out from the likes of Jon and Colby, who've been wrestling non-stop since they were fifteen years old. They already have a huge following from their indie days and can do no wrong in many people's eyes. I want that too. I want to be a star in my own right and by my own merit. But it looks like I've taken a chance too many and now I'm paying for it. I tried to steer clear from the demons that took Eki and Rodney but I walked right into them with the painkillers."

"It's not too late to get out of it," said Sasha. "Start by getting rid of them. You're too young to make yourself unhealthy."

"I realized that. I handed them over to Dr. Sampson. I've been talking with him in private too, him and Joey Mercury. You remember him from Gainesville, right? He knows a lot about what I'm going through because he's been there, been through worse. But I don't want to get that far. I don't want to be an addict. I'm better than that. But more importantly, whatever I have to do to get you back, I'll do it."

Sasha shook her head. "Don't do it for me. Do it for yourself."

"And for you," he repeated. He held his hands out, silently asking for hers and giving her a small smile when she obliged him. He stared down at their joined hands. "I'll never forget what I felt when I first saw you…when we locked eyes at that grocery store," he said, his voice low and pensive, "I told myself if I ever felt it again, I would go after it and never let go. We met again at the Grill and I knew it was fate. I promised to give you all the attention and all the time and all the space you needed. That's why I was so attentive to you and the kids. I didn't want to fuck this one up so I tried to shelve everything else away. I was scared you'd take off running in the other direction if you found out what was really going on with me."

Sasha just stared at him, taking in every word he said. "There's something I need to tell you," she blurted out. Meeting his questioning gaze, she took a deep breath. "My pregnancy with Mia was…complicated. She arrived on schedule but it was a difficult nine months for me. And then when I had her…let's just say I almost didn't make it."

His eyes grew wide, stunned. "You mean…" he trailed off, unable, or rather unwilling, to finish the thought.

She glanced down, swallowing. "After she was delivered I passed out. When I came to, it was the day after. I had undergone an emergency transfusion because I'd lost so much blood. The Doctor said it's not uncommon among women but basically my body isn't as tolerant as it's supposed to be, so getting pregnant and the pregnancy itself will always be difficult for me. I never bothered so much about it because I never thought about having more kids. I try not to think about it and frankly I've never known how to bring it up anyway. When your mother asked me about starting a family with you, I knew I made a mistake not telling you. She wants more grandkids and I know you want children, but I don't know if they can come from me." There. She'd said it. It was all up to him now. If this was enough to end things with her then she would accept it and they could both move on with their lives. It would take some time for her to recover but she would do it. It wouldn't be her first time picking herself up after life knocked her down.

She dared herself to look back at him, awaiting his reaction, and was surprised when he merely nodded his head. "Alright," said Joe. "If we ever get to it, we'll adopt."

She blinked. "But you want children of your own. Biological children."

"If it's going to put your health at risk then we have to find other options."

Sasha was shocked. "I can't let you do that! Why would you sacrifice something so important to you?"

"The only thing that's important to me right now is you. We'll figure out everything else when the time comes and we'll do it together."

Frustration welled up inside her. "I'm not Andrea, Joe. I don't want you to compromise your desires only for you to regret it in the end and hate me for it. It's bad enough that your mother thinks I'm with you for your money and your fame but I don't care about any of that. I want you and only you. I always have. But I got nothing to offer in return." Trailing off, she shook her head and lowered her gaze, her vision starting to sting and blur. Don't cry. Do not cry. "You are a good man, Joe. You're sweet and funny and kind and just a beautiful person, inside and out. You deserve to be with a woman that will give you everything you want. Me, I'm just a bartender-slash-waitress that lives in some shitty apartment, barely making ends meet to take care of my two kids. Ty and Mia are all I have. So if this casts doubts about you wanting to be with me then it's fine. You don't owe me anything. I can handle us being just friends." Okay, that part was a load of crap, but it was better than not having him in her life at all. That was how much he now meant to her.

Joe watched her intently for a long moment. "Baby girl, you and I both know that we're way past being just friends." He moved closer to her, lifting his hand to stroke her cheek. "Look at me."

She finally obeyed, gasping softly at the intensity that shone in his grey eyes.

"I don't care how old you are," said Joe, "I don't care if you have a hundred kids or you can't have any more. I don't care if you live in the damn sewers or you're wrinkled from head to toe. I don't care if no one thinks we should be together. We want to be together and that's all that should matter. Everything else in between, we'll work through them. Together. You're an amazing, amazing woman Sasha, and you have nothing to be ashamed of. I don't want anything else from you either. You're all that I need, baby. When I'm around you I feel like I can be myself. There's no bullshittin' with you and in the crazy-ass world I live in, I need that. I need you. I can't stop thinking about you. I can't imagine my life without you in it anymore and I don't want to. So if I have to fight the rest of the world – my own family included – to keep you by my side, I will. I will fight for you, always."

She just couldn't understand it. So many before him had walked. Her father. Tyson. Cliff. Trevor. None of them had thought she was worth fighting for. What was different this time? What did Joe see in her that no one else had seen in thirty-five years? "Why?"

Joe smiled softly. Once again, if he had to spell it out for her…he would. "Because a man fights for the woman he loves," he answered, looking deep into her eyes. "Sasha, I love you. I'm in love with you."

Silence. That was all that followed that statement because she was utterly speechless. Her vocal chords seemed to have lodged itself somewhere in her throat. She could only gape at him with widened eyes that quickly filled with tears.

Good tears or bad tears, Joe wasn't sure, and he tried not to panic as he watched them roll down her cheeks. "Fuck…Sash, I…Please don't cry. I'm sorry…I shouldn't have said anything." Man he was an idiot. They'd only just reconciled and he dropped the L bomb on her? Stupid, stupid move.

His heart sank when she shook her head and cried harder. Shit. He'd really fucked up now. It was only a matter of time before she told him she didn't feel the same way and ultimately broke up with him for good. Swallowing hard, he started to move from the daybed to give her space. "I'm sorry," he muttered, the burden of rejection crushing what was left of his fragile heart. "I'll just-"

"I love you too."

Joe stopped cold. "Say what?"

Sasha laughed through her tears at his dumbfounded countenance. "I love you, Joe. I've been in love with you for so long. I just…I didn't think you felt the same way. I mean, a man like you is never interested in someone like me. It just doesn't happen. You could have any woman you want in the world…" She sniffled, wiping her eyes. "And I'm scared. I'm scared you'll finally see that and then I'll lose you and I'll be alone again."

His eyes clouding over, Joe took her chin in his fingers. "Hey." His voice was soft and impassioned. "Forget about that. I love you. I want you. No woman has ever made me feel the way you do and I don't wanna let that go, not now that I know what I could lose. I ain't goin' nowhere, not without you," he vowed.

Sasha touched his black hair, gliding her fingers through the soft, silken texture. She framed his face in both her hands and gazed into his breathtaking grey eyes, searching for words and finding none. For there really was nothing else to say. "I love you," she whispered.

Filled with emotion, he leaned his forehead against hers. "Say it again."

"I love you, Leati. I love you so much." She kissed him softly; a trusting, sincere kiss that made the Samoan feel like his heart would burst with happiness.

"I love you too, beautiful." Their mouths met again and this time desire exploded between them. Joe sat up straighter as Sasha straddled him, winding her arms around his neck. They gripped and tugged each other in an effort to get closer and merge their mouths completely. Sasha whimpered as Joe's supernatural tongue worked wonders inside her mouth while his hands caressed all over her body, driving her need for him to fever pitch.

"I thought we said no funny business," she ground out against his lips, her voice breathless and thick with desire.

"We did," Joe murmured, kissing her neck with the vigor of a thirsty man who had found water. "We can stop if you want."

"Hell no. Come here." Her reply was ferocious as she guided his face back to hers. Weeks of pent-up sexual frustration were unleashed as they ravaged each other. Without breaking their kiss, Sasha unbuttoned Joe's shirt, parting the halves to caress his broad, smooth chest and torso. Joe reached behind her and unzipped her dress, unhooking her bra with a quick, impressive flex of his fingers. He pushed down the straps of her dress and bra then weaved his hand between their bodies, infiltrating her dress to tug her panties to the side. Sasha let out a gasp when two fingers slipped inside her, and a sudden possessiveness overtook Joe as evidence of her arousal promptly flooded his probing fingers.

"So responsive to me," he grunted, a hint of pride in his tone. His tongue flicked beneath her ear, lips touring the goosebumps that had sprouted on her bare skin. He fingered her steadily, high on the moans of pleasure that left her lips. "It's like your body knows it's mine. I love it."

"It's yours, baby. It's always been yours," Sasha ensured him. The kisses grew hotter, more passionate. She pulled off the band holding his ponytail and dug her fingers into his flowing long hair, tilting his head back so she could kiss him better. She brought his other hand up to her exposed breast, and he wasted no time grasping and plucking at the soft skin before ducking his head to suck on it. Her head fell back with a lustful sigh, resting her hand on the back of his head as sensation charged at her from various angles, setting her entire body alight.

Joe suddenly pulled back, breathless. "Shit, I'm out of condoms."

"It's fine," said Sasha, shifting away to discard the rest of her dress and underwear.

He locked eyes with her. "You sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. We've worked around it before, haven't we?" she all but growled, blinded by lust. She watched him shrug off his shirt and jeans and her eyes darkened when she saw he'd gone commando. "God you're so hot."

Joe grinned arrogantly at her starved expression. Getting on his knees, he swiped his hand between her parted legs and slathered her wetness over his erection. "You want this dick baby?" he asked, stroking himself slowly, moisture emerging from the tip of the hardened shaft. Sasha's mouth watered.

"Damn right I do," she hissed just as he grabbed the backs of her thighs and yanked her towards him, causing her to fall back against the cushions on the daybed. Draping her legs over his quads, he directed his cock slowly inside her, both moaning as he stretched her body. He gripped her waist, holding her still when she tried to move. Sasha moaned and clutched his forearms. "Baby, come on..."

Oh, how he'd missed that yearning, pleading tone of hers. He withdrew from her with the same tempo, leaving only the tip inside her. "You've missed this dick, haven't you?"

Sasha cried out, her back arching when all of a sudden he slammed into her. "Fuuuck! Yes!"

"Tell me." He pulled out again, excruciatingly slowly, then drove back in. Hard. Knocking all the breath out of her. Her mouth fell open in a silent scream. "Tell me how much you missed this dick inside your pussy."

"I missed it so fuckin' much, handsome," Sasha panted, not caring how desperate she sounded. "Put it on me, baby. Take me."

He had no plans to turn down that invitation. He took her legs and spread them far apart, and Sasha almost wept with relief when he began moving in earnest inside her. Joe was in Heaven. It had been too long. Holding onto her thighs, he thrust deeply, steadily, wanting to savor every second inside her, every gasp and moan he elicited from her. Running his tongue over his lips, he increased his pace, looking on with perverse glee as Sasha started stroking her clit in tandem with his dick sliding in and out of her, her breasts bouncing with each thrust. Sasha worked her fingers desperately, gasping with satisfaction as Joe's driving strokes filled her with sensation after amazing sensation – made even better with no barrier, physical or emotional, between them.

Joe drew her body up to meet his and sat back, their sounds of pleasure released into the open air as she sank deeper onto him. Her arms circled his neck, their mouths meeting with tender urgency as she grinded on his dick, her peaked nipples scraping his chest. The two moved at an easy rhythm, their lips in constant contact. They moaned and gasped and their breaths came in heavy pants but they said nothing, never took their gazes off each other. Joe wanted more. He needed to be deeper, further inside of her. He needed to be closer to her in every way possible. The story of his life lately seemed to be just that – needing, wanting Sasha Morgan. Wanting to give her everything he possessed. So he did. Rocking and thrusting and spiraling them both towards fulfilment. Even when she whined and writhed and her teeth sank into his shoulder, he didn't stop, didn't give into his ecstasy until after she surrendered to her own. He wanted her to never forget this moment they were sharing. He knew he wouldn't.

They remained in the embrace long after coming down from their high – breathing hard, their foreheads touching, their bodies still intimately connected. Sasha caressed Joe's sculpted cheek and swept her lips over his, once, twice, three times. She couldn't get enough of his touch, his kiss, the way he made her feel. She never could. "You're amazing," she whispered, her voice cracking with emotion. "I love you."

Joe returned every kiss, his fingertips traveling lazily along her back. "I love you too, Sasha." He continued to kiss her as he laid her down on the daybed, the light outdoor breeze drifting over their naked, satiated frames. They held onto each other possessively. Neither planned on letting the other go ever again.

Took them 31 chapters but they made it! They've declared their love to each other! *pops champagne*

I considered ending this story after this chapter but that felt lazy to me. I feel like there's still a ways to go story-wise, so I hope you don't mind if ITDE goes on for a little longer. :)

In the meantime, kindly review! Share your joy (or otherwise?) with me! :D