Chapter 11

Hearing the music downstairs, Tressa shut her door to drown it out and leaned her head back against the headboard, reaching for the remote on the nightstand to turn the television on. It was a good thing there was a television in here or else she'd be bored out of her mind, even though she could've taken her laptop out. Now that the passion haze from her mind was gone, Tressa was thinking clearly again, mostly, and wondered if being sexual with Jon was the right thing to do.

They were best friends – the last thing she wanted to do was destroy their friendship with sex. Maybe she would find someone else, someone who didn't mean much to her, to have her sexual escapades when she needed the release. She didn't feel guilty over being sexual with another man, but with Jon…there was a legitimate fear of ruining their friendship. Losing Joseph and her unborn child was enough, Tressa couldn't handle losing anyone else in her life.

Not bothering to turn off the music, Jon was back up in her room soon enough, glancing at the TV. He had a TV in every room, though he used them more often for background noise than anything. Very rarely did he find something he wanted to watch, and he was usually on the road so games he wanted to catch had to be DVR'd or something.

"Here." He set the now warm bowl of broth down on the bedside stand, right by the vodka. She could mix the two and he'd call that a win. "Just a little bit, Tres. Please." He flashed her what most would consider a boyish, charming grin.

"No…"

Tressa was not hungry. What didn't he understand about that? However, those deep pale blues begging, pleading, with her to at least sip a little bit of the broth…she couldn't say no to him. Not really. Jon had a way of getting her to do what she didn't want to do. Sighing heavily, she grabbed the broth, swapping the Vodka for it, and gave him a sour look.

"Just a few sips." She didn't know if she'd be able to keep anything else down and took one sip of it from the spoon. The warmth sliding down her throat actually felt good and Jon sat with her, having his sandwich in his lap on a plate. "How do you do it?" She asked, once she finished the entire bowl of broth and set it on the nightstand, feeling a lot better than she did before. "How do you flash those damn blue eyes at me, and I do whatever you ask me to do? It's not fair, you have some kind of witchcraft going on, Daddy."

"It's cause I'm lucky," He teased, pointing at his favorite hat. Jon had spotted it on the downstairs bathroom counter and snatched it up, sitting a bit crooked, but…favorite, lucky hat. "Proof." He gestured to her bowl, smirking slightly. "Though, if you throw up on me, I'm going to be a bit peeved, darlin'." He popped the last bite of his sandwich into his mouth, eyes straying to the TV before back to her. "What the hell are you watching? That's not that Kardashian show, is it?" His eyes narrowed at her, though his lips quirked into a slight smirk.

"Are you kidding me? I wouldn't be caught DEAD watching that trash!" Tressa shook her finger at him, not reaching for her Vodka, and patted the bed beside her for him to join. "This show is amazing, by the way. It's the Big Bang Theory."

She draped her arm over his chest and curled up against him, his arms wrapping around her. Why did she get the feeling Jon wouldn't be leaving her alone very often? Maybe bringing up what happened between them wasn't the best idea. She just wouldn't be sexual towards him going forward and if he tried kissing her or something, then Tressa would tell him it couldn't happen again.

"Mmm, the one with the nerds?" Following a TV series was pretty much impossible in their line of work. Jon wondered, and was it morbid or obsessive to wonder, if this was something she had watched with Joe? "Can I watch it with you, doll?"

He had a pint of tequila in the pocket of his shorts, it had even short of weighed that side of the garment down, but he saw no reason to break it out. This was the first time since coming back on the road that Jon had seen Tressa showing even a hint of something resembling the woman he had known. He wasn't about to break out the alcohol or ruin this seemingly good mood. When she nodded, he dropped a kiss on the top of her head and folded his other arm behind his head.

This was one of the many shows she had watched with Joseph prior to his death. They had a slew of shows they DVR'd and would watch whenever they were home together. That was something Tressa wouldn't divulge to anyone, not even Jon, and she wouldn't stop watching their shows just because Joseph was gone. She loved the shows and knew Joseph would want her to keep watching them in honor of him. Laughing at the episode, Tressa let out a soft yawn against Jon's chest and felt him chuckle as well, the low rumble vibrating his chest. His warmth combined with a full belly not full of alcohol, Tressa felt her eyes drift shut and soon, she was out like a light. Jon didn't immediately realize Tressa had fallen asleep on him; he had actually gotten interested in the show. It was after another full episode had passed that he realized she was out. Carefully, he shifted, trying to scoot her beneath the sheet, and frowned when she gripped at him tighter.

"Shhh, I got you, darlin'." He whispered soothingly, bringing a hand up to gently caress the side of her face. A proper sleep, without alcohol to knock her out, he would bet his life she hadn't had one of those in a long time. He pulled a face when he heard her ragged whisper of 'Joe', feeling his heart twinging for her. "I'm here." He rumbled, pulling her a little closer and letting his head rest against hers.

The moment she heard those words, her body sagged and she relaxed, an almost relieved smile crossing her sleeping face. She would fall asleep on Joseph whenever they were home together just like this, wrapped in his strong arms. "I love you, baby." She whispered in her sleep, never calling a man that nickname besides her husband.

Joseph was her baby and always would be, no matter what. His arms tightened around her and Tressa continued to sleep like the dead, no more talking, just gentle, even breathing. This was indeed the first night in almost four months since she'd gone to sleep without being in an alcohol-induced coma. She was finally getting a proper, full night's sleep.

Eventually, when he went out with his Joe and Colby, and he got buzzed enough to tell them about this -years from now-, they were going to tell him what he already knew. He was a fucking sap, an idiot who carried a torch for the wrong woman. Jon had been that way since day one and now – now he was willing to pretend to be a dead man just so she could sleep.

Nice one, Good. He mentally chided himself, hoping when Tressa woke up, she didn't panic or have a spaz attack on him.

Shutting his eyes, Jon inhaled her scent before letting that lull him off, pushing all those negative thoughts out of his mind.

Back to work after 2 days in Vegas fresh air was exactly what Tressa needed.

She had called Clementine earlier that morning and told her what her decision was. She was going to fight. Those assholes weren't getting a damn thing, not unless it was over her own dead body! Joseph's family had pushed her over the limit and, thanks to Jon, she had stopped drinking Vodka for two days straight to clean herself out. Or start the process, at least. Staying with Jon was the best decision she could have made for herself. It was good for her to be around someone who cared about her and wanted to help her, who was there for her.

No other sexuality happened between Jon and Tressa, and he didn't push for anything more. It made her wonder if maybe Jon had regretted what happened between them, which would make sense. Nevertheless, it was time to get back to work and leave all the personal crap at the door. They parted ways as soon as they walked inside the arena, promising to meet up later that night in the parking lot. Jon made it abundantly clear he didn't want Tressa being alone right now and, honestly, she didn't want to be either.

"You look like…shit," Colby remarked when he spotted the big man coming, raising a brown eyebrow at the grimace that crossed Jon's face. "What's your damage?"

"I'm on my period." Jon quipped, then regretted it when Joe, who was married, whacked him upside his head. "You dick…"

"Don't be sexist, asshole."

Grunting, he reached back to rub the spot, blue eyes narrowing. Tressa hadn't drank once since that first time and he had even managed to get her to eat some proper solid food. Not much, but if she had been starving herself -even unintentionally- her appetite would eventually correspond to what her body considered to be the new normal. He was patient, this was a process, and he just hoped that this progress continued now that they were back on the road.

"We know you know what's going on with Tres, bro." Joe accused, folding his massive arms in front of his chest and eyeballing his brother in arms. "There's no way you invited her back to your place in Vegas, your sanctuary, without a reason."

"It's nobody's fucking business and I'm not saying what it is. It's not my place, man." Jon snapped, not in the mood to deal with the nagging from his best friends. "Look, Tres is going through something…bad. And no, I'm not saying what it is. Just know I'm handling it and leave it at that. I gotta go tape up."

Colby and Joe watched him walk away, sharing looks with each other and wondering if Jon realized the absolute sour look he had on his face. "Think something happened between them?"

"Man, Tres is married. I don't think she's the type to cheat and Jon wouldn't fuck that up." Joe stated confidently, shaking his head. "No, something bad happened…and I think if we're going to get answers, we need to go straight to the source."

"You mean corner Tressa? Think that's a good idea, big man?"

Joe wasn't sure, stroking his goatee thoughtfully. "Let me think on it."

No, that wasn't a good idea and Colby shook his head. "No, don't bother her. If she wanted us to know, she would have told us."

Considering they had been on the road all this time, while Jon hadn't until recently. Even though they were all friends, it was undeniable that Jon and Tressa were the closest out of the bunch, they had naturally gravitated toward each other. If not for her being married, Colby bet that their natural course would have been to hook up.

"And… he'll fucking rip both our heads off if we upset her, including yours, big man." Joe might've had some muscles on Jon, but if Jon went off his rocker, as he was occasionally wont to do, there just wasn't any stopping him.

He was a formidable force.

"Mmm… yeah, you're probably right." Joe sounded doubtful though, shaking his head. "I just wish she'd open up to us, at least give us something… so we're not worrying about her all the time…"

"Hey, lass…"

Tressa tensed at the sound of that Scottish accented voice behind her and slowly turned her head to look up at none other than Andrew Galloway. The WWE Universe and fans knew him as Drew McIntyre, 'The Scottish Psychopath'. She personally thought his gimmick was lame, just like him, but was smart not to voice it out loud.

"What can I do for you, Andrew?" She asked reluctantly, blinking when he tossed his tights down on her table and, thankfully, they were washed.

"Need these fixed, why else would I be here?"

"Okay…" Tressa lifted them to survey the damage, tilting her head at the tiny hole right in the crotch area, and inwardly groaned. Great. "I can patch it at best because of the area the problem is in. Would that work for you?" Hopefully, the man had more than one pair of trunks to wear for the house show tonight.

Andrew smirked, bending down to be eye-level with her, and placed a hand on her knee. "Sure, lass. As long as the job is done properly." He squeezed a little too hard, giving her a blatant warning not to screw up.

Tressa narrowed her eyes at him and shoved his hand off her knee, abruptly turning to face her table with her back to him. "It will be."

Tressa was a fine-looking woman, or at least she had been.

She was so…withdrawn lately, even he had noticed it and he was usually pretty wrapped up in his own world. But when there was a lead seamstress, most of the boys -and of course the ladies of the WWE- dealt with her at one point or another, eventually, people started noticing things. There were the usual rumors of course, that she was a junkie, an alcoholic…problems at home. Then she had disappeared with Jon Good almost as soon as the man came back and gossip was definitely flying. One could not travel and work with people the majority of the year, spend most of their waking hours with people, and not eventually start poking around and getting curious. It was just human nature.

"Aye, it will." He smirked, stroking his chin before walking away, his mind turning over the slight attitude she had given him. Well, that was different, she had been so monotone and blank for months.

Andrew did love a spirited lass.

Narrowing her eyes at his retreating form, Tressa shook her head and tossed his tights to the side, deciding she would get to them LAST. She did not appreciate when wrestlers, who thought they were too big for their britches and hadn't even paid their dues in the business, came up to her demanding their attire to be fixed or done. Nope. She had worked for this company for nearly a decade and had gained the respect of every single person, whether she liked them or not and vice versa.