Chapter 43

Delilah got a standing ovation after that and Jon presented her raised arm to each side of the squared circle, to the fans, and then let go, applauding her right along with them. This was real, nothing scripted, and he knew the fans appreciated it. He also knew if she ever returned to the ring, – He knew she would because there was just no way he could imagine this ring without her beautiful backside in it – she'd be welcomed back with open arms. Jon held the ropes for her when she made her way to exit them, dropping down and holding out his hand. It wasn't that he was trying to 'help' her or treat her like glass, he was publicly showing his support and his love for his woman in the only way he knew how.

The crazy way.

Jon didn't come out as Jon Moxley this night. He was simply Jonathan Good supporting his wife in her time of need. That was it. That was what the fans got to see, the vulnerability, and they felt the love between man and wife in the ring. Once they were backstage, Tony was there hugging her and shaking Jon's hand. Britt hugged her close, letting her know she had this, and she was praying for the best outcome for her long-time friend. Tony had given Jon the night off since he'd already shown himself out there to the fans. That was good enough, right now, he had to go home to be with his wife, who was having a very serious neck surgery in just two days.

"If you need more time off, Jon, you let me know."

Delilah overheard that and didn't say anything, burying her face in his chest to start crying all over again, her tears soaking through his shirt. "I-I'm sorry…" She mumbled against his chest, looking up at him with a tear-stained face, and her hands reached up to cup his bearded face. "I love you so much, Jon."

"I love you too." Even when they didn't act like they loved each other, he knew they still did. Marriage was definitely not wine and roses, and anyone who said it was easy and didn't require work was in a boring, Stepford situation. Even when he wanted to choke this woman out, he loved her. "Don't be sorry, not for anything." He rumbled, knowing it was easy for all the bad and negative garbage they had been through lately to disappear in this moment. "We're going to get through this, Delilah, you're not alone." She couldn't lose him even if she tried, and he'd give it to her; she had really tried lately to push him away, whether she realized it or not.

All she could do was nod and reach up to hug him around the neck, pressing her body against his, and breathe him in. "I missed you so much." Delilah felt like such a cold bitch for what she'd done to him lately, for pushing him away.

Granted, the main reason she had gotten her own hotel rooms was because of his drinking and partying, but a wife wasn't supposed to do that. Regardless of what Jon was doing, unless he cheated on her, Delilah should've stuck by his side and instead she failed him. No more separate rooms, no more living separate lives because their marriage was too important to her. Still, she would not let him give his career up for her…that decision she was steadfast on and nothing would change her mind.

"I still can't believe you did that out there. You definitely know how to shock the shit out of me, Moxley."

If his wife hadn't been a cold-hearted bitch, who shut him down whenever he tried talking, or even yelling, at her over her neck, Jon wouldn't have gone out and partied and drank like a fish. This was their problem, not that either of them realized it or would probably admit it. They blamed each other for WHY they did things when they were both just as bad. No matter how bad things got, no matter how drunk he had gotten, he had NEVER cheated on her, and he had plenty of chances. Jon had turned down a LOT of offers of pussy; he was interested in only one woman, even when she wasn't interested in his drunk, whiskey dick backside. As for his career, she could tell him what he was doing until she was blue in the face, but the fact of the matter was, Jon didn't need her permission to do anything. If he wanted to take time off, he would. If he wanted to retire, he would. Delilah literally had no say and, at this point, he was just extending her a courtesy by not discussing it. The only thing he cared about right now was getting through this surgery and then seeing what happened after rehabilitation and everything else, knowing she was going to need him, whether she wanted to admit it or not.

"Well, the day I stop surprising you is probably the day we're done, darlin'," And that would never happen because Jon still had plenty of tricks up his sleeves. "I love you, and I'm with you on this, and sometimes…I think you need a reminder of how much I love you." Honestly, he could think of no other way better than publicly in that ring.

"You never have to prove to me how much you love me. I already know you do."

Even if Jon did cheat on her during their break from each other, Delilah wouldn't have left him over it. With all the alcohol he drank, it wouldn't surprise her if he had a romp or two with someone else. That was the harsh reality of her situation. But at the same time, she trusted Jon to be faithful and loyal to her.

"Since we're leaving tonight and we're close to Cincinnati," They were about 6-7 hours away since they were in Chicago. "I want to go get Blue…" Jon shook his head, touching the back of her neck gently to remind her of what was to come. "I miss him, Jon. We've barely seen him lately, and I don't want him to think we abandoned him. He's our baby boy and he'll make me feel better, please?"

"I've seen him, he's gotten fatter." Because he had been in the area and lit, Jon had gone home to his mommy and cried on his fat, spoiled dog before passing out on her tiny couch. Mom hadn't said anything about the drinking; she had just let him cry, be a baby, and that was that. She knew if he wanted to talk, he'd talk. Sometimes, just being nearby was enough. "He'll be fine for a bit longer, he might actually miss his grandma anyway." His Mom fed Blue a LOT of table scraps, but Blue seemed happy. AFTER her surgery, after Delilah had rested a bit, they'd bring Blue home. "He'd try knocking your ass over, Del, and he might be able too now." He would have to take his dog on runs again, whip him back into shape.

Sighing heavily, Delilah's face fell a little upon hearing that, but she also knew Jon was right. Blue wasn't a small dog by any means, and she didn't want her baby boy hurting her after her surgery. "Okay, you're right." It wasn't easy for her to admit when she was wrong, but Jon deserved it after everything that had happened lately. "Tony said you don't have a match tonight or anything?" He nodded, wrapping his arm around her shoulders as they began trekking down the hallway to his dressing room to grab his bag. Hers was in the back of her rental car that she had planned on taking to the airport after cutting her heartfelt promo and dropping the women's title. "My flight leaves in about two hours, so I'll change it and we can get on the same one together. You good with that?"

Blue was a little bigger than she remembered. Maybe he should get the dog into a program before she saw him, since she might be a bit surprised at how…well-fed Blue was now. He made a mental note to let his Mom know no more table food for a while. Jon hadn't been thinking clearly the other night when he was there.

"That's fine, darlin', whatever you want to do."

Jon hadn't had much of an appetite lately and had been eating because he had to. Now, even with that surgery looming, he felt his appetite returning. He knew why too, because they were back together and it felt like everything was going to be all right. They hadn't been intimate with each other in months because he had flat out told her he wasn't fucking her or making love, any of it, and risking hurting her further. As much as he hated it, he felt vindicated in that decision, realizing he seriously COULD have injured her. Then the drinking and opiates combined with her not wanting him, karma was a bitch and he had gotten it in spades.

"You hungry, babe?" She looked a little…thinner, actually, and she was flexing her fingers. "Your arm okay?" He didn't realize she had been losing feeling or getting tingly sensations in it.

"I'm fine…it happens sometimes." Delilah just kept flexing her fingers like she'd been doing, waiting for the pins and needles feeling to disappear. "There we go…there we go…" She smacked her shoulder and shook her hand, blinking when Jon stopped them both from walking to stare down at her. "I get this numb feeling down my arm sometimes, and I just have to wait for it to go away…" His eyes widened upon hearing that and her eyes lowered, knowing she had really pushed herself too far with this injury. Delilah had made a mountain out of a molehill. "It's fine now, I have the feeling back in my arm and fingers."

No, she had royally screwed the pooch! Delilah had tried working through it and may have made it worse. What if it had been okay after that first doctor's visit and Delilah's insistence on still wrestling had turned 'okay' to 'oh shit'? That was a horrible thought, and Jon knew she had probably already thought of it first.

"Okay." He didn't know what else to say, his voice coming out low and uncertain. "Let's go, you got a rental?" He held out his hand when she nodded. "I'll drive and you can change your flight around." Since he had come in with Eddie, he had his bag over his shoulder and he doubted Eddie was expecting him tonight. The man could listen to his damn soul-hurting country music alone for a while. Jon was done with that. "What sounds good to eat?" Was it bad that he wanted a beer?

"Well, if you're coming home with me, don't you have to change your flight too?" Delilah remarked, keeping her own voice calm since she was used to feeling the tingly sensation in her arm and hand.

The doctor told her it was normal due to where the injury was located in her neck. If she experienced pure numbness for more than a few minutes, she needed to go to the emergency room immediately. Jon told her what time his flight was scheduled for, which was the next day, so they decided to head home tomorrow instead of tonight and just stay at the hotel. She canceled her flight, got one with him later the following morning, and let Jon decide where to go for food. Honestly, she didn't have an appetite, her heart broken now that she wasn't the AEW women's champion, and possibly her wrestling career was over.

"I know there are a lot of issues between us that need to be fixed, but I really appreciate what you did for me tonight and supporting me. Breaking character couldn't have been easy for you to do."

Considering she wouldn't be allowed to eat for like, twelve hours or so, before that surgery, Jon figured she might want to eat something delicious before getting stuck on liquids at the hospital. "You have no idea exactly how easy it was, Del." Jon figured something with a drive-thru was in order, somewhere he couldn't get a drink, and he doubted either of them was up for hanging out in public after tonight. There would be a good chance someone recognized them; neither needed that headache. He hadn't thought twice about going out there, and he hadn't planned on it either. But her heartbreak in that ring had called to him, and he had answered the call. "I love you, no matter where we're currently at with each other, and I'll always support you." As best as he was able, anyway.

Or unless he thought she was putting her health and life at risk.

"I should've listened to you and taken some time off to heal my neck properly. Then I wouldn't be in this position. And I'm done with the painkillers. No matter how much pain I'm in after the surgery, I'm not taking them."

Delilah would go cold turkey, really hoping her body hadn't gotten addicted to them in the past few months. Didn't it usually take longer than that? Maybe, maybe not. She'd do it, needing to cleanse herself before she went too far with them and wrecked her life, her marriage, and what was left of her career. Jon could only nod and pulled up to an Arby's, ordering them a bunch of beef & cheddar with a few things for himself. Delilah didn't care what he ordered as she stared out the window, holding the food in her lap while he drove to the hotel.

Jon doubted she was going to have a choice on those painkillers, at least not until she was off IVs and everything else. Honestly, surgery on the neck was no joke. He would have recommended asking for a prescription with NO refills on it, but…he didn't. Nor did he comment about what Delilah said about listening to him, not sure what to say. He didn't want to rub it in her face, even though he knew he had been right, but hearing her admit it after all this hell…still felt wrong. Almost like she had given up, and that terrified him all over again. They were quiet all the way to the hotel. Once inside her room, he set the food out on the small table, having even gotten her a shake; it used to be one she had tried feeding him, and it was gross.

Delilah unzipped the jumpsuit she had on since it was in the front and pulled it from her body, stepping out of it after kicking her heels off. She had on a cotton white thong and bra, not wanting any panty lines while wearing this outfit. It wasn't the first thong Jon had seen her in and it wouldn't be the last. She lifted her bag onto the bed and folded the jumpsuit up before unfastening her bra, placing it in there, and pulling out a plain black long nightshirt. She pulled it on and zipped her bag back up, stopping when something orange caught her eye. Delilah froze at the bottle of pills staring back at her and narrowed her eyes, immediately taking them into the bathroom to flush them down the toilet, meaning what she said.

Jon had watched all that, not touching his food while watching her. She was beautiful, stunningly beautiful, and always had been. Was it possible to train his cock to not even twitch though? Through fear, rejection, and then way too much alcohol in a short time? Because there was not even a hint of a boner, even though his wife was in just her thong and a bra, all white. He had watched through the open door as she tossed those pain pills, knowing she hadn't fallen very far into an addiction with them, if any. Delilah wasn't that way, she was a lot stronger than people, even him sometimes, gave her credit for.

On the other hand, he wasn't.

It would be hard to deal with the pain, but Delilah had to detox her body from the opiates before the addiction got any worse. It was an addiction, and her entire body trembled slightly while dumping those pills. Washing her makeup off in the sink, she finally emerged from the bathroom with Jon still seated at the table with his untouched food. He wasn't hungry either, not like he'd thought. Beneath the makeup were dark circles that marred her eyes, which was why she didn't go out in public without makeup on these days. She had to hide them and hoped that after this surgery, she could get back to a somewhat normal life without pain and her arm going numb or tingly. Right now, however, none of that was on the forefront of her mind. Her handsome, thoughtful husband was who hadn't touched her until that night in the ring in front of millions.

Padding over to him, those eyes looked up at her, and she moved to straddle him in the chair, getting as comfortable as she could. "I miss you, Jon. I miss us. Nothing else matters except us right here right now." She softly brushed her lips against his, sliding her hands up to grip his muscular shoulders, and pressed herself a little harder against him. "Make love to me, I need you, and I know you need me. I'll never give up on us, and tonight you showed me you're not either."

Jon had refused to sleep with her when this all started, and he shook his head once again, denying her. "I can't, Delilah." Jon whispered, knowing this wouldn't settle well with her, but he just couldn't.

He had tried a few times, blackout drunk, and she had rightfully, smartly turned him down. Jon had regret the next day when she informed he had tried fucking her. Talk about being a hypocrite, refusing 90% of the time to risk hurting her further, and then 10% being blitzed and trying! Jon could feel the need, the want, in her and he just couldn't, shaking his head again and brushing his lips against her forehead.

"If I hurt you or made it worse, I'd never forgive myself." Just like she had made decisions for them based on what she wanted, he was making this one based on what he wanted. That was a clear conscience, knowing he wasn't risking paralyzing the love of his life.

"But you won't…" He was still shaking his head, steadfast on this, and it broke her heart because she needed her husband. She needed him more than ever right now, and he was being overprotective of her. What more could she do or say to change his mind? Once Jon's mind was made up about something, nothing could change it. "W-We could go slow and…" Again, he shook his head and this time lifted her off him to stand, rising to his own feet in front of her.

Tears glistened in her eyes at the realization that once her surgery was done, they wouldn't be able to make love for a very long time. It would take a minimum of nine months to fully recover, according to her doctor, but that depended on the severity of the damage done. Maybe keeping separate rooms was the right thing to do, after all. Her husband didn't want her sexually because of her injury, and Delilah had nobody else to blame except herself.

"Fine. I'm going to bed then." Jon reached out to touch her, and she backed away, so much hurt and pain on her face and in her eyes flashing back at him. "Don't touch me unless you plan on fucking me." That was harsh, but also fair because she could not handle Jon touching her without the intimacy. Turning, she went to the bed and lay down with her back facing him, not wanting him to see her tears.

Losing her career was bad enough, but to be rejected again by her husband…it was too much for Delilah to handle all at once.

How's it feel? He mentally asked, inwardly bitchslapping himself as soon as the unkind thought hit.

But it was true. Rejection was horrible, and being given absolutely no say was also. Her decisions had been made because she cared more about his career than he did at the moment. The fact was that even going slow and cautiously, if he did something to hurt her neck, even gently rocking her body, he could make her condition worse. Jon could live with a LOT on his conscience, but not that. Groaning, he abandoned the dinner on the table and went into the bathroom to shower, cursing under his breath.