Limits
Over the next two weeks the feud between Roman Reigns and Jey Uso intensified finally becoming physical between them both. Cassie was writing the escalation of emotion brilliantly and Joe , well he dazzled on screen. Cassie realised he had something that was rare , good looks , talent and absolute commitment to the character. Women backstage stared at him a lot , she noticed that over time. To her knowledge, he was still playing the field. But thankfully he had not subjected her to any more viewings of his sexual encounters. Their friendship flourished , they spoke everyday, mostly about work but as time went on about everything else too. The pay per View Clash of champions was coming up at the end of the week and Cassie had been tasked to come up with a memorable finish to the main event. It was agreed Roman would retain the belt , but she had to weave in the family feud also. She agreed to meet Joe for coffee on Sunday evening and she wanted to run an idea past him. They met at their usual coffee stand at Lake Eola Park , it was a warm evening and Cassie dressed in a blue and white striped sundress with white flat sandals and her brown wavy hair hanging in curls. Joe was already there when she arrived. He wore a baseball cap, along with black shorts and a very tight grey t-shirt. The thing was practically sculpted onto him , she could clearly see his abs. He waved when he saw her and she saw He had already ordered a coffee for her and was carrying a paper bag also. "Here you go , cappuccino, skinny milk right?". Cassie nodded impressed " Now that's what I like to see , a man who pays attention" he gave her a smile before looking around for a spot where they could sit. " Over there look" , there was a bench right in front of the Lake with gorgeous views. They got settled and enjoyed the view. " Such a lovely evening" Cassie said putting her sunglasses on " Those are nice" Joe observed looking at her. "My favourite Ray Bans , not many glasses suit me, these are my go to's". She looked at him again "And have you got a date or something after this?". Joe looked confused " No just going to Galina's to put the kids to bed before I go back to my place , why?". Cassie laughed " Oh come on Joe , I can practically see your nipples through that shirt , it's very tight for coffee let's just say that. Unless, you and Galina?". Joe winced "Jesus Cass, no that ship has sailed. I like this shirt, ok maybe it's a little ...snug, next time we have coffee I will wear an oversized sweartshirt , happy now?".
The park was starting to empty out a little as evening rolled in. " OK I can't stay too long cause I gotta collect Aubrey. She is at Pauls". Joe nodded " Yeah Travis is away working again this weekend you said. Is he back tonight?". Cassie nodded , " Yeah for about 8pm, so no bed for Aubrey until she sees Daddy". Joe smiled "So tell me your idea then". Cassie had a momentary crises of confidence , but Joe caught it , "Just say it , no judgement remember". She took a deep breath " OK, The tribal chief" she said dramatically. Joe looked at her " What's that?". Cassie was beyond nervous but she forced herself to keep talking " Not a what , its a who. And that's you , well you as in Roman Reigns. I read up a bit on Samoan Culture and the importance of the position of Chief. He is kind of the Head of the table , the leader and he is respected hugely by his family. I think you should become the self declared Tribal Chief of your family, and we start that this Sunday". Joe sat back and sipped his coffee for a minute. " Damn, I wish I could see what happens in that head of yours and how these ideas grow, I love it". Cassie had been chewing on her hair with nervousness . " You do?". He gave her the biggest smile "Yes I do". She left out a breath she had been holding and her whole face lit up, dimples and all. Joe felt a sense of pride that he had been able to elicit that smile from her. "Lets work it through the week , but now I think you really deserve what's coming next". She turned just in time to see a quartet of string musicians setting up to play some music. " They play here every Sunday evening , it's so relaxing". As the strings started to play Cassie was immediately moved by the music , it was mellow and emotional and struck a chord with her. "Looks like I am not the only one full of surprises.". Joe smirked " I am more than just a Neanderthal who throws people around for a living you know". Cassie took in the beautiful water in front of them and the sounds of the gorgeous music and realised how right he was. " So how many of the ladies have you brought here then, this would win a lot of brownie points for a date you know". Joe turned away from the music and took a look at her " if you're going to make fun of me, at least take off those sunglasses so I can see your eyes when you do it ". She did as she was told allowing their eyes to meet. " The answer , for your information is zero. Haven't taken anyone on a date here , its been my little secret". Cassie kept her eyes on his " Ma real name is Joe" she said teasingly. He rolled his eyes " I'm gonna kill Jey for that one , now eat your cake and let me listen to my music". He handed her the paper bag he had been holding and she saw it was two small chocolate cakes , she handed him one and a napkin as he enjoyed the music from the violinist. As she ate her cake Cassie looked around at all the couples smiling and hugging each other ,the families with their arms around each other. This was a truly beautiful moment captured by the most gorgeous of music. She looked at Joe who was leaning forward , his concentration fully on the musicians , she found herself saying a silent thank you to God for sending him to her. All of a sudden her life seemed a lot more enjoyable and a lot of that was down to him.
About an hour later the musicians finished up and they decided to leave , actually Cassie had lost track of time and only realised , at 7.30pm that she was way late. " Go, get Aubrey , I will clean this up" Joe urged. She smiled at him and waved goodbye and dashed off it was only after she was gone he realised she had left her sunglasses behind. He would drop them Into her house tomorrow after taking the boys to school. It had been a lovely evening and Joe realised as he got into his car that he hadn't actually spent time with a female without leading to sex in quite a while. But Cassie was safe ground, married and absolutely key to being happy in his career . It was nice to have her to talk to about things and their friendship as it grew was becoming really Important to him.
The next day after dropping the boys off , he swung the car in the direction of her house , he had tried calling her earlier but she didn't answer so he decided just to take his chances. He noticed only her car there when he pulled up. Good , he wasn't really in the mood for Travis this morning. The guy irritated the hell out of him. He opened the screen door and knocked , he heard the sound of footsteps running to the door and it was thrown open. Cassie stood before him , she looked disappointed that it was him , but even worse than that he noticed her eyes looked really red as if she had been crying. "Cass , what's wrong?". He said it with such tenderness that she burst out crying again. He ushered her inside not wanting her neighbours to see anything. When they got inside he turned her back to him , she looked devastated " Come here babygirl" was all he said and she allowed him to pull her into his arms. She buried her head in his chest and sobbed , he rubbed her hair to soothe her. After she ran put of steam she drew back " I am so sorry , um you weren't supposed to see this. Its Travis he didn't come home. He is not answering the phone and I keep waiting for the cops to knock on the door and tell me something has happened to him. " she couldn't go on and her eyes began to fill again. He led her to the sofa and sat her down " Ok take a breath for me ok, lots of things could have happened ok , a break down , he could have lost the phone , I am going to stay right here with you until we find him ok". She nodded still stuck in a daze of imagining the worst. Joe stood and went to the kitchen area , he opened the fridge and got some water for her " Here you go". She took it gratefully and sipped it gratefully . She was wearing a dark black hoody with leggings and looked so tired he knew she hadn't even slept. Her face was etched with worry. "OK we are going to take this step by step. When did you last speak to him?". " Before I met you yesterday , he said he would be back for 8pm. But he didn't come back , Aubrey.." she broke down again at the mention of her daughter. Joe moved closer to her on the couch and wiped a tear away "Listen to me Cassie , this will all be ok. We will figure it out , I need you to try and hold it together as much as you can honey, ok?". She nodded " I grew up without a Dad , I don't want that for Aubrey. That's why I stay with him. But I don't want anything bad to happen to him either". She was babbling but it was clear to Joe from what she was saying that her and Travis were there solely for Aubrey and not each other. " OK so have you called some of his work colleagues, the guy he was away with?". Cassie nodded " George , yeah . But no answer either". " OK thats a good sign, it's probably some delay with work or something.". Cassie nodded but she didn't really buy what he was saying. " OK I want you to lie down , I am going to call around the local hospitals on the route, just to be sure". Cassie shook her head " No I can't sleep". Joe looked at her "OK then just lie there and watch me make the calls OK?" she agreed to that , putting her head on a cushion and her legs tucked behind Joe as he started to Google hospitals and calling to make enquiries. He rang four of them in total , no one had a patient admitted that matched Travis 's description or had his I.d.. That was good news. Joe wasn't sure what to do next , but he knew that he had to stay with her , he was beginning to fear the worst himself . He made them a chicken salad for lunch but Cassie just pushed her food around. He offered to collect Aubrey from school so Cassie could stay there in case there was news. The little girl had been delighted to see him at the gates and told her friend that Roman Reigns was one of her friends. Joe smiled at her kindly , they set off for the house , Joe explaining that he wanted to see Aubreys school, which she accepted without question.
When they got back Joe hoped he would see Travis's car this time but it wasn't to be. Cassie was smiling bravely at her daughter , but Joe could see she was struggling " Is Daddy back yet?" she asked . Tears filled Cassie's eyes and she looked away so her daughter wouldn't see. Joe interrupted " Not yet sweetie , but how about we put on a movie . What's your favourite ?". Aubrey smiled " Really , can we make popcorn?". Cassie rubbed her head " Sure honey". She looked back at Joe " Coco is my favourite". They switched on the movie Aubrey sitting between them. Cassie kept checking her phone and Joe was wondering how he was going to broach the subject of calling the police because even he was now starting to fear the worst. As the day rolled on , they kept calling Travis's phone. While Cassie made dinner Joe was tasked with calling the office where Travis worked. He got through to a receptionist. She informed him that Travis was due to have today off anyway. He relayed this to Cassie after dinner while they washed up ."Sometimes he likes to collect Aubrey from school when he has been away, he must have been planning to do that. He probably forgot to tell me". Joe found it all a bit of a coincidence but he didn't say a thing. Aubrey went to bed for 8pm and Cassie came back out and flopped down on the chair " You don't need to stay Joe . The boys are probably waiting on you". He shook his head " No Cass I gave you my word . I stay until we know where he is. But listen I think its time we called the police , report him missing". Her eyes filled again and she nodded , he reached over and took his hand in hers and squeezed it gently. As they shared a look filled with emotion, the door of the house opened and shut. Cassie jumped up and ran , Joe right behind her. " Travis , oh my god". She ran to him , he looked shocked and even more perplexed when he saw Joe. " I was worried sick , I was trying to reach you. I thought something horrible had happened". Travis gave her what Joe thought was a pretty cold hug "Cassie stop it , what's all this fuss. I got caught up at work . Hey Joe what are you doing here man". Joe felt beyond uncomfortable " Um Cassie was worried I was dropping off her sunglasses so just um making sure all ok". Travis flared his nostrils " Yeah man , sorry. This is just crossed wires , I thought I told Cass I was delayed. Seriously honey , you need to stop worrying so much". Cassie couldn't even look at Joe , Travis was blatantly lying and he was not about to break Cassies confidence and say just how upset she had been. " OK I am going to take off , that OK Cassie?" he was giving her an out , If she needed him she just had to say. " Yeah thanks Joe". He left them to it. One thing was for sure though. Cassie deserved way better than that douche , he basically was trying to make out like she had overreacted. Back inside Travis was brazening it out. Cassie was worn out from crying and thinking the worst that she actually couldn't even argue back with him. She went up close to him " Enough of you and enough of your shit Travis. We both know that you said you would be home last night. This is it Travis is last chance , I am not kidding". As she walked off " You would do that to Aubrey?" he said , using the one thing he knew would get to her. She turned on him , a look of conviction he had never seen before " Just try me , you son of a bitch" she said before going to the spare room and slamming the door shut.