The next morning Cassie surveyed the mountain of boxes In front of her. For eight months she and Aubrey had accumulated a lot of things. She had some more things at the house she had shared with Travis and her furniture had all been delivered also. She was excited at the prospect of having her own place a sanctuary for her and Aubrey . The fact that she had a job that paid very well meant she picked her dream home not too far from Marla and Paul and close to Aubrey's school. " Excuse me Miss, are these the last boxes?'. Cassie broke her train of thought and smiled at the mover " Yes that's it , I will follow you in the car to the house". She took one last look around Paul and Marla's home with love , this had truly been a home for her and her daughter and she would always love this place. As she shut the door, she almost felt like a new chapter was starting for her. In the car on the way the phone rang and she could see it was Joe " Hey" he called cheerfully and she couldn't help but smile. " Hey yourself" she responded. " I am going to the new house , right?". She confirmed he was and that she would see him there. Aubrey was in school so they had a few hours to Try and make the place liveable .
When she pulled up she was happy to see the movers present and she directed them to place the boxes in the rooms as labelled. As she stood in the lawn admiring her three bedroom , modern new home she noticed a car pull up that she recognised. Travis. He didn't look pleased, just opened the car and started unloading things from the trunk . She approached him cautiously , he looked pissed. He looked her up and down , Cassies body had toned , she had learned so much about working out since joining WWE and it showed. " I could have organised this to be collected, thanks for bringing it" she said reasonably. " it's not a big deal, nice place you got here". She detected a note of wistfulness in his voice. She smiled at him and he returned it. " Thanks Trav" she said gently.
Joe didn't like what he was seeing. As he sat in his car , he felt irked by Cassie talking to Travis. They were smiling at each other and he felt jealousy flare up Damn. This whole let's be friends approach wasn't working. When he saw Travis moving in closer he got out of the truck. " Hey y'all" he called and they turned at the sound of his voice. Cassies face broke Into a smile and he felt his heart actually skip a beat. Dressed in tight leggings and a crop top she looked so sexy. Travis raised an eyebrow at him " Hey man" he said kindly to him. Joe shook his hand graciously and then pulled Cassie into a hug, his hand lingering on her waist for a moment . It didn't go unnoticed by Cassie who frowned a little again , which irked him . " So what can I do ?" he asked her . " Actually Travis has offered to help connect some of the electrical appliances given his background so I guess you can maybe help moving some furniture and boxes?". Joe nodded tightly it was clear she was sending him a message. Travis was hanging around a little so play nice. To be fair Cassie had always been very gracious to Galina and Joe didn't want to be involved with a woman who didn't fit in well with his own kids so he had to respect her and return the favour . He set about lifting some of the heavy boxes into the house , the ones he knew Travis wouldn't be able to manage , it gave him a small sense of satisfaction.
" So are y'all like going out now, you and Joe?". Travis asked Cassie , taking her by surprise as she unpacked some glasses in the kitchen while he connected up the appliances. " No it's not like that we work together , have gotten close but nothing like that". Travis raised his eyes at her skeptically " I thought with us done you and him were kind of inevitable , I got a feeling since the day you met him that something was changing'. Cassie took a deep breath she wasn't about to let Travis skate on this one but she also had slept with Joe when they were married so he wasn't totally off base. " I think looking for comfort outside the marriage is what happened to us Trav , we gave it a good go , right ? It just didn't work out". He sat and and gave her an understanding smile and she saw flashes of the man she fell in love with so long ago. She smiled back , sad at what had become of them but knowing for sure they were exactly where they were meant to be
Joe was mad , he didn't like how she was smiling at Travis and he was straining to hear what they were talking about. He had far too much pride to go over there and interject or see what was going on but what was becoming abundantly clear was that this thing between him and Cass was far from being resolved . He gave them another five minutes but when Cassie showed Travis something on her phone and he leaned in close to see the screen he almost burst.
The one thing about Joe was that unless you knew him really well , you couldn't read him at all . He came across as in control and calm at all times. When he came and asked Cassie if she had any bottled water , she could tell he was off. " I think there may be a cooler out front on the porch but I got none here" she said calmly. He flashed a smile and came back with three waters , handing one to both her and Travis- she studied him for a moment, as he unscrewed the cap and drank thirstily his hair a little dishevelled and his red t-shirt dirty from lifting boxes. He looked around the kitchen " Looks good Cass , coming together nicely" he observed. Travis agreed " Yeah you did well here , looks really good". They both looked at her expectantly, each waiting for an answer and she felt under inspection. ' Thanks so much guys for all your help". A diplomatic answer and one she felt was best given her stance with both of these men . "Let's get back to it" she said moving the conversation along.
Once all the movers had left and Travis had kindly collected Aubrey and brought her to the new house , dusk Began to fall. Cassie couldn't help but stifle a laugh when it became clear that Joe had no intention of leaving her and Travis together alone In any proximity. After kissing Aubrey goodbye , Travis took his leave and Cassie gave him a hug to Aubreys delight. It looked like they could salvage some type of relationship for the sake of their daughter. With Travis gone, Joe left them to get some Pizza , which they ate sitting in the floor of the kitchen with paper plates . Aubrey bed was set up and Cassie planned to sleep with her that night together. " Are you sure you don't want to come and stay in my house ?" Joe asked again. " No thanks I am looking forward to spending my first night here but thanks for the offer". Joe nodded and stood to leave , at the same time so did Cassie. Her eyes met his " Wait for me to get her to sleep and ill be back. There's some wine in the fridge" . As she walked Aubrey up the stairs she felt his eyes on her watching , it made her feel a little giddy inside .
She found Joe out on her new porch sitting on the Steps enjoying the breeze. "Aubrey gone to sleep?" he asked handing her the glass. "Yeah" she answered sitting beside him. They were silent for a moment " So, was there any particular reason why you wanted me to stay here ?" He asked. She looked at him dead in the eye " Joe , what are we doing ? What is this – we went from fighting to kissing in Vegas. And you can deny it all you want but I know you were a little jealous of Travis here today , I know you and how you think". Joe couldn't argue with that – "I'm not going to deny that. Paul and everyone else keeps talking about how us getting together will ruin what we have going on in work. And they are right, if this goes south then our careers follow suit , right ?". Cassie sighed heavily "Sure, I guess." . She didn't say anything else. There was silence and they both sipped their drinks in thought "Unless..." Joe ventured. She raised an eyebrow at him " Unless , what ?". " They don't have to know , we don't have to tell anyone what goes on between us behind closes doors". Cassie got where he was going " So like a secret thing?" she asked , her pulse quickening at the thought. "Yeah , no explanations needed and if it all goes south then no one knows anyway just us and we deal with that then". Cassie liked it , just her and Joe taking the time to work this out between them. She lifted the glass to her lips again and then as she drank she looked up at him locking eyes again. He was beyond sexy was her first thought as his eyes searched hers. She stood suddenly and Joe frowned. " I mean if we are doing this then I think kissing in front of my new neighbour's is not a great start". She walked to the door and he was hot on her heels. He closed the door behind him and they stood in the hallway for a moment. No words were spoken. His hands found her face , she went on her tip toes to reach him and then his lips were on hers. It started soft before becoming more urgent , her heart was beating loudly , she had a feeling of yearning in her stomach and she wanted this moment to keep going. Joe was feeling the same way , lifting her up easily and she wrapped her legs around his waist. He supported her weight with his arms. Then her tongue found his and it intensified again. He didn't make a move to go further , he wanted to work at her pace. They kissed for a while , tender and sweet and just enjoying the feel of the other. When she felt things were about to move along she pulled back and looked at him in his eyes " I don't want Aubrey to hear anything or see anything" . Joe understood , as a Dad he knew how easily kids could get upset. " We don't have to go all the way you know , there are other things we can do". She raised an eyebrow at him and he settled her on a counter in the kitchen. " Like this" he said kissing her again on the lips. " Oh like make out you mean , what are we like 13?" she teased. Joe caressed her cheek " what , you don't want to kiss me now". He teased. Cassie smiled " Please I always want to kiss you , that's the problem". He smiled at her. The thing about Joe was he knew exactly what she wanted and when. He was able to be so tender with her like right now as he affectionately ran his hands up and down her arms while he spoke to her. "I really should go , we don't want to confuse Aubrey. And it's been a long day. But I meant what I said , I want to explore this more , just me and you . No one else needs to know, gives us time to work through this and avoid any questions or judgements. Are you sure you want to do this?". Cassie responded by pulling him in by the t-shirt for a kiss. " Oh I'm sure". He smiled at her through their kisses and she could tell his happiness mirrored hers. When they finally broke apart he got his car keys and things together before giving her a final kiss. She walked him again to the porch " Not exactly the most erotic start to a torrid affair is it?" she said with a smile. Joe turned back to her " We haven't even started yet and don't worry , I'll make sure you are satisfied as much as you want to be" he gave her a cheeky wink before heading to his car. She waved as he drove off . What had the gotten herself into?