All right, well The Hybrid is coming to a close in a few chapters and I've been working on this story when I was blocked on that so here goes....
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{Chapter 1}

“Mr. Kennedy,” the somber faced doctor said softly, entering the waiting area on the cardiac unit.

Ken Kennedy looked up from the magazine he had been leafing through. The images and words on the pages flashed before his eyes, but he barely registered anything. His only concern was his father’s health. Seeing the young doctor he tossed aside the magazine, stood and walked over to her.

“I’m afraid your father has taken a turn for the worse. He’s in and out now…mostly out,” she said softly. “It’s doubtful James will make it through the night. I wish that we had been able to treat his cancer more aggressively. The most we can do now is keep him comfortable.”

“Thank you, doctor,” Kennedy said. “I appreciate all you’ve done for him.” The doctor patted him on the shoulder, giving it a momentary squeeze. “Is it all right for me to go in and sit with him?”

“Of course,” the doctor replied. “You should be with him now.”

Kennedy headed toward his father’s room. The news had hit him like a ton of bricks. His father was dying and there wasn’t a thing he could do to help him. Sure he had staved off death for a few months, but the cancer had spread too quickly and his health deteriorated in a matter of weeks.

Kennedy stopped outside his father’s room. Now he would have to say goodbye to his father. His only remaining parent. The realization of being alone hit him and he had to hold onto the wall for support. This just couldn’t be happening.

“Are you all right,” a nurse asked as she passed him.

“Fine,” Kennedy replied forcing a smile. She gazed into his father’s room and gave him a sympathetic smile, reaching out to touch his arm. The personnel on this floor knew all too well what the man’s prognosis was.

“He’ll be going to a better place,” she said softly, giving his arm a slight squeeze. “Where he won’t be in pain anymore.”

Kennedy nodded and watched as she made her rounds to the other patient’s rooms. With a sigh he headed into the room, pulling over a chair to take a seat. He reached out and took the frail man’s hand in his.

“Hey, dad,” he said softly. “It’s Ken. I’m here.” The older man opened his eyes, though they didn’t seem to focus on anything.

James coughed and squeezed Kennedy’s hand. “Ken,” he said hoarsely.

“Just rest, dad,” he said softly.

“Ken, I have a confession to make.” He coughed again, wincing in pain. “I’ve done a terrible thing.”

“Whatever you did doesn’t matter now,” Kennedy said trying to quiet his father.

“You have to listen to me,” James said adamantly. “Many years ago I cheated on your mother.”

“She forgives you, dad,” Kennedy said not understanding why his father was telling him such a thing.

“I fathered a child with this woman,” James said taking in a shuddering breath. “Your mother knew of the affair, but not the resulting child, Ken. I knew she would never forgive me for it, especially knowing what I did when I learned of the child.”

Kennedy was floored. “What..what did you do,” he asked.

“I abandoned the child and her mother. I left them and returned to your mother. She would have never forgiven me if she had known about the child.” He felt the life draining from him and knew he had to tell his son everything before it was too late.

“You did what you thought was best,” Kennedy said trying to assuage his father’s guilt.

“You were only four when it happened,” James said. “You have a half-sister out there, Ken.”

“That’s not important,” Kennedy said softly. He just couldn’t process what his father was telling him.

James gripped Kennedy’s hand with all the strength he had left in him, pulling his son down to eye level with him. “You’ll be all alone once I’m gone, son,” he said. “You need to find your sister. You need family. Promise me you’ll find her.”

“I will,” Kennedy said seeing how much it meant to James. “I promise you, dad. I will find her.”

Hearing these words James relaxed, letting go of Kennedy’s hand. His eyes slid shut and a soft smile curled his lips. Soon his breathing slowed and the monitors in the room began to beep. Kennedy closed his eyes, tears slipping down his cheeks. He knew all too well that his father had finally lost his battle.

The rest of the night and the days after James’ death were a blur. He had no idea how he got through the funeral arrangements. He barely recalled anything. All he could think about was the fact that he was alone in the world…until he found his half-sister.

He had been given time off from work and after spending much of that time in a fog he finally came to his senses. He had made a promise to his father and needed to follow through on it. With a feeling of trepidation he headed over to his father’s place to see if he could find a name or something that would give him a starting point.

After rifling through endless amounts of paperwork, old letters and newspaper clippings and photos he finally found something. A photograph of a woman with long jet black hair holding a small child with a mass of dark brown curls. Looking at the back of the photo he found the names Janice and Isabella, six months old. The name Janice sounded familiar and he dug through his father’s phone book until he came up with the name Janice Burroughs.

“I sure hope this is the woman,” Kennedy sighed picking up the phone and dialing the number. He frowned hearing that the number had been disconnected. “I guess I’ll need to hire someone to look for her.”

With a sigh he pocketed the picture and set about clearing out some of the items he had deemed as trash. He had been at it for a couple of hours when he heard the screen door in the kitchen bang shut.

“Ken,” he heard Cindy call. It wasn’t long before the petite raven haired beauty came into view. “You’ve been gone for hours,” she said. Her sky blue eyes full of concern for him.

“I’m all right, Honey,” he said standing, wiping the dust off his hands and placing a soft kiss on her cheek. “Just sorting through all this junk.”

“Well, I brought lunch,” she said, wiping a smudge of dirt off his cheek. “Come have something to eat and then I’ll help you get a little more done before we go home for the night.”

“What would I do without you,” he asked with a small smile.

“Probably starve to death,” she replied with a chuckle as she led the way into the kitchen. She had been by his side through everything and knew he was taking it really hard, though he refused to talk about it.

“Chicken salad,” Kennedy said when she set a sandwich in front of him.

“And a brownie for dessert,” she said smiling taking a seat next to him.

“You spoil me,” he said taking her hand in his. “Check this out,” he said pulling the photo out of his pocket and handing it to Cindy. “I think this is my half-sister.”

“Her mother is beautiful,” Cindy said flipping it over to read what it said. “Isabella is her name?” Kennedy nodded. “Do you have a last name?”

“Burroughs,” Kennedy replied with a mouthful of sandwich. “I found an entry in Dad’s phone book, but it’s been disconnected.”

“Well, you can always get in touch with Jackson,” Cindy suggested. Her old high school friend had gone into the private investigation field and she knew he would be more than happy to work the case. “I’ll get you his number.”

“Great,” Kennedy said finishing up his sandwich and digging into his brownie. “I could use all the help I can get on this. Who knows if she’s even going by Isabella Burroughs. She could be married with kids for all I know.”

“Jackson will find her,” Cindy said confidently. “He’s very good at what he does.”

“I’ll call him later,” he said downing the last of his drink and finishing off his brownie. “For now I should try to get some more work done here before it’s too late. I need to get this place ready for the realtor.”

Cindy cleaned up and followed him into the living room where there were various boxes and stacks of items that needed sorting. With a sigh she settled in to help him clean up a bit. Together they worked until late in the night.

“I think that’s all I can do,” he said after hours of work. “I need a shower and to hit the sack.”

Cindy smiled a mischievous glint in her sky blue eyes. “That makes two of us,” she said. “How about we make it a double shower and then hit the sack?”

“Baby,” Kennedy chuckled. “How could I say no to that offer.” He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and led the way out of the house and to the car.

~*~

Kennedy sat in the diner a few days later. He had called Cindy’s friend Jackson Douglas and made an appointment with him. Kennedy was just finishing off his coffee when Jackson met him.

“So, Cindy tells me you want to find your sister,” Jackson said once he had placed his order. He raked a hand through his shoulder length wavy chestnut hair and examined Kennedy with his deep brown eyes.

“Half-sister,” Kennedy replied. “It was important to my father that I find her.” Jackson nodded taking a sip of his coffee. “Money’s no object. I just need to find her.”

“You have a name…anything to go on,” Jackson asked digging in when his club sandwich was served.

Kennedy reached into his pocket and pulled the photo and slid it across the table toward Jackson. “My sister’s name is Isabella Burroughs. I have an old phone number and address for her mother, but when I called it I got the message that the number had been disconnected.” He jotted down the number and address he had memorized on a napkin and slid that across the table to Jackson.

“Well, it’s better than nothing,” Jackson said. “I’ll look into it and see what I can dig up.” He finished off half of his sandwich before calling the waitress over and asked her to put the other half in a doggie bag. “I’ll call you when I have more info for you.”

“I appreciate this Jackson,” Kennedy said shaking the man’s hand as he stood to leave.

{Chapter 2}

A few days after meeting with Jackson Kennedy awoke to the sound of Cindy scolding someone. With a groan he slid out of bed and padded down the hall to the bathroom and chuckled when he heard Cindy smack her cousin upside the head. They bickered more like siblings at times and it amused him to no end.

He headed down the stairs moments later and was greeted by the sight of Jeff Hardy rubbing his head and his older brother Matt snickering at him. “Morning,” he called going to Cindy and kissing her softly.

“Ew,” Jeff scowled. “Could you not do that in front of me.”

“You want another slap,” Cindy said holding her hand up to him. He cowered away and shook his head no. “Sit down, honey, I’ll get you some breakfast.”

Kennedy took a seat next to Matt, who was still snickering over his cousin slapping Jeff upside the head. “So, what do you guys have in store for today,” Kennedy asked the brothers.

“We were just gonna hang out here,” Jeff said smiling brightly.

“Freeloading again, huh,” Kennedy said thanking Cindy when she set a plate of food and a cup of coffee in front of him.

Matt choked on his orange juice at Kennedy’s words and Jeff’s smile faltered. “That ain’t right, man,” Jeff said now pouting. “We’re practically family.”

“Do you see a ring on this finger,” Cindy demanded slapping Jeff upside the head again.

“OW! Cinder,” he whined. “Stop hitting me!”

“Yeah, he’s brain damaged enough,” Matt said snickering. “Seriously, though guys. It’s just a matter of time before the two of you get hitched. I mean you’ve been together forever.”

“Two years is forever,” Kennedy asked.

Before Matt could answer the phone rang. Cindy went to answer it. “Ken,” she said. “It’s Jackson.” She handed him the cordless and took a seat next to Jeff, who was still rubbing his sore head.

“Hey, Jackson,” Kennedy said taking the phone in the other room.

“What’s he talkin’ to Jackson about,” Matt asked.

“I told you guys Ken’s got a half sister out there somewhere right,” Cindy asked. The brothers nodded. “Jackson’s trying to track her down.”

“Well, he thinks he found her,” Kennedy declared setting the phone back on the base.

“That’s great,” Cindy said smiling. “When are you going to meet her?”

“He has to make sure, honey,” he said with a sigh. “He’s getting on a flight to New Jersey as we speak to investigate it. Janice Burroughs is deceased for three years now. Jackson found a listing for an Isabella Burroughs-Carter.”

“A hyphenated name,” Matt said. “Your little sis is married?”

“It’s a possibility,” Kennedy said. “Maybe I have a niece or nephew or both.” He smiled thinking of the possibilities. He couldn’t wait to meet his sister and her possible family. “I think I’m gonna head to the gym,” he announced. “I need to work off some of this excitement.

~*~

About a week later Jackson Douglas was back from New Jersey with some information on Isabella Burrough-Carter. “So, what did you find,” Kennedy asked.

“Your sister,” Jackson replied smiling. He handed Kennedy a manila envelope full of pictures. The woman in the pictures looked a lot like her mother. Her curls from the baby picture were gone. Her dark brown hair was now straight and just past her shoulders. She was slender and from what Kennedy could tell from the photo had a few tattoos. Perhaps she was a bit of a wild child.

“Great,” Kennedy said smiling looking over the pictures of his sister at her job in a diner, walking the street, food shopping and sitting in the park reading.

“Here’s her address,” Jackson said handing over the home address he had dug up as well as the address of the diner where she worked. “One more thing…she’s a bit feisty.”

Kennedy arched an eyebrow at Jackson. “What do you mean,” he asked, not sure he wanted to know.

“Well, a customer grabbed her ass while she was passing by in the diner and…well, I’d be surprised if she didn’t dislocate his arm,” Jackson replied with a smirk.

“Wow,” Kennedy said smirking. “Sounds like she’s got some of the Kennedy spunk in her.” Jackson nodded. “So, is she married? Does she have kids?”

“No and no,” Jackson replied handing over a copy of a marriage license dated seven years ago and a copy of a divorce decree dated two years later.

“So, she kept her married name,” Kennedy asked.

“Sometimes it’s just easier that way,” Jackson said shrugging. “Well, that’s all I could dig up on your sister. The rest is up to you, Ken.”

“Thanks a lot, Jackson,” Kennedy said shaking his hand.

“You won’t be thanking me when you get my bill,” Jackson chuckled as he left.

Cindy came home from grocery shopping then and saw the pictures on the table. “Is this Isabella,” she asked picking up the pictures and looking at them. Kennedy nodded smiling. “She’s beautiful.”

Kennedy looked at the calendar on the fridge and smiled wide. “I’ll be going back to work in a couple of days and we’ll be in Jersey for a house show,” he said. “This is perfect.”

“Ken,” Cindy said biting her bottom lip. “Don’t get your hopes up. She hasn’t known her father all her life…she may not be quite so receptive to you just barging into her life.”

“Everything will be fine,” he said kissing her temple. “I’m gonna go pack.” Cindy watched him walk away and sighed. She had the feeling he was in for a rude awakening when he went to meet Isabella.

~*~

A few days later Kennedy had checked in at his hotel and set out to find his sister. He found the diner easily and browsed the place spotting Isabella in the back taking an elderly couple’s order. With a smile he sat down at the counter as she headed back to place the order. She caught sight of him and smiled motioning that she’d be with him in a moment. He nodded and waited looking over the menu.

“Thanks for waiting,” she said sounding tired. “What can I get ya?” The tattoos from the photos were now crystal clear. On her left wrist she sported a bracelet of roses. On her right upper arm was a dove holding a banner in its beak that read Janice.

“I’ll have a burger, onion rings and a coke,” he said and looked at her name tag. “Would your last name happen to be Burroughs?”

“How’d you know,” she asked with a smirk as she jotted down the order.

“This is going to sound totally bizarre,” Kennedy began. “You see…up until a couple of weeks ago I had no idea who you were.”

“Dude, you’re starting to creep me out,” she said. “Get to the point or I’ll have Ralphie the chef boot your ass.”

“Right,” Kennedy said trying hard to compose his thoughts. “You’re my sister,” he finally blurted out.

“That’s it. I’m getting Ralphie,” she said heading toward the chef.

Kennedy grabbed her wrist. “Please, I know it sounds crazy. My father had an affair with your mother, Janice Burroughs. You were the result of that affair. You grew up never knowing him because…well…he did the shitty thing and went back to my mother instead of helping to raise you.”

Isabella yanked her hand free from him and glared at him, her hazel eyes darkening to a brown. “You expect me to believe that because your piece of shit father couldn’t keep his dick in his pants I’m your sister,” she demanded.

“Everything all right, Izzy,” Ralphie asked seeing that the blonde gentleman was angering her.

“Fine, Ralphie,” she replied. “This gentleman was just leaving.”

“Good,” Ralphie said casting a scathing look at Kennedy.

Kennedy saw the size of Ralphie and decided it was best if he didn’t provoke the bigger man. “I’m leaving,” he said. “Isabella, I’m sorry I angered you. Just…if we’re not related then how did I get this picture.” He took the picture of her and Janice out of his pocket and slid it across the counter toward her. With that he left.

Isabella picked up the picture and looked at it. It was a wallet sized of a photo that sat framed on her nightstand. She looked after Kennedy, who had disappeared outside. With a sigh she pocketed the picture and went back to waiting tables.

{Chapter 3}

Her feet were aching and her back was killing her, but Isabella strolled the three blocks to her apartment. As she rounded the corner pulling keys out of her pocket she groaned. “I don’t believe this,” she grumbled. Seated on the front porch to her building was the man from the diner.

Spotting her he stood and smiled. “You work late,” he said noting the time.

“Why are you here and what can I do to change that,” she demanded, not in the mood to deal with some loon.

“You always work this late,” he asked ignoring the question. “Because this is hardly the type of neighborhood to be walking around in at this hour.”

“And yet here you are,” she muttered rolling her eyes. “I had to pull a double,” she added as she brushed past him to unlocking the front door. She groaned when he followed her into the building. “Can I help you with something Mr…?”

“Kennedy. Ken Kennedy. I told you,” Kennedy replied smiling. “You’re my half sister. Is it so wrong that I want to get to know the sister I never knew I had?”

“And you expect us to be one happy family,” she asked clearly annoyed by this stranger. “What’s the matter dear old dad sick?”

“Actually…”

“Tough shit,” she replied glaring at him. “Look the fucker wasn’t a part of my life for twenty seven fucking years. Why should a I give a shit about him now?”

“He’s dead,” Kennedy said softly. “He passed away just a couple of weeks ago. Look, I’m sorry to have bothered you. Clearly you have issues and…I just thought…I don’t know. Sorry for bothering you.”

Isabella sighed watching him walking away sadly. She knew she’d probably wind up regretting what she was about to do, but he just looked so forlorn that it broke her heart. “Wait,” she called. Kennedy stopped and turned back to her. “Come on in,” she said motioning toward the door at the back of the hall. “At least come in and have a drink or something. Seems like you need it.”

He nodded following her into the apartment. The moment the door opened a loud mew greeted them. “Hey kitty,” Kennedy said bending down to pet the black and gray tabby that was twining itself around their feet. It happily nuzzled his hand purring and allowed him to pick it up.

“That’s Meepers,” she said setting her bag aside and kicking off her shoes. “Let me change out of this God awful uniform and we can have a drink and talk. All right?”

“All right,” Kennedy said taking a seat on the couch with Meepers in his arms. The cat was loving the attention and purring up a storm. “Meepers will be keeping me company.” She chuckled and headed into her bedroom to change.

When she returned a few minutes later she had on cut off sweats and an old T-shirt. The logo on it was faded to the point of being illegible, but she loved it because it was comfortable. Now that she was in shorts and barefoot Kennedy could see she had a dragon tattoo around her left ankle. As she took a seat next to him her shirt rose up and he could see a butterfly tattoo on the small of her back.

“You like my ink,” she asked noticing that he was staring at the butterfly. “Or do you always check out your supposed sister’s ass?”

Kennedy flushed. “I was looking at the tattoo,” he replied. “I have a couple myself. He rolled up his sleeve to show her the clown on his arm. “Not real happy with this one though. Didn’t come out the way I wanted it.”

“Why don’t you have it covered up,” she asked. “That’s what I did when I got…the king of all jackasses’ name on my ankle. She showed him the dragon. “Best decision I ever made getting him out of my life.”

“My job really prevents me from getting any new ink done,” he replied. “Doesn’t really allow for healing time.”

“Can’t you take time off,” she asked quirking a brow at him. “You don’t get vacation days?”

“Not unless I’m injured,” he replied. She quirked a brow at him. “I’m a wrestler for the WWE,” he replied proudly. Isabella snickered. “What’s so funny?”

“You parade around in those little undies and get all sweaty with other men,” she giggled.

“That’s not funny,” Kennedy said. “What I do is entertainment.”

“Sure it is,” she said rolling her eyes. “I’ve seen a couple of matches. That shit is so fake!”

Kennedy was trying to hold his temper in check. “Look, I’m here trying to fulfill my father’s dying wish,” he said as calmly as he could muster. “He wanted me to find you. After meeting you…I don’t know what I was thinking. Clearly this was a mistake.” He stood and stormed out of the apartment.

Isabella followed him to the door. “Ken, I’m sorry,” she called. “Ken, please don’t go off all mad.”

Kennedy turned around to face her in the hall, his eyes blazing. “You just insulted my profession, me and all of my colleagues and heroes and you think sorry makes up for that? No, Isabella, I’m sorry. I’m sorry I ever attempted to try to get to know you,” with that he turned back toward the front door. “Have a good life, Isabella.”

Isabella shut her door and locked it. Meepers was at her feet, rubbing against her. “Come on, Meepers,” she said scooping up the cat. “Let’s get you fed.”

~*~

The next day Isabella was down in the basement of her building doing laundry. She pulled her uniform out of the basket and the picture Kennedy had given her the night before fell out. She picked it up and looked at it a moment. With a sigh she made up her mind to find Kennedy. If he really was her brother she should at least give him a chance.

She finished off her laundry and brought it upstairs. She pulled out her laptop and tried to find info on the WWE show that was in the area. Finding out the information she quickly dressed and headed over to the arena. The show wouldn’t be starting for a couple of hours, but maybe she would luck out and find someone who knew Kennedy.

~*~

Isabella stood in the lot where a bunch of fans had congregated. No one had gone in or out of the building yet. She was sure the fans would be screaming for autographs if any of the stars came by.

“Oh my God it’s Jeff Hardy,” one girl squealed happily pointing toward a car that had just pulled into the lot.

Isabella turned her attention toward where the girl was pointing and saw a slender man with rainbow colored hair getting out of the car. He grabbed a bag from the trunk of his car before coming over to greet some fans. Taking a deep breath she approached him.

“Excuse me,” she said to him after he had signed a couple of autographs.

“Yeah, you got somethin’ for me to sign,” he asked with a smile.

“This is going to sound so strange,” she said. “Do you happen to know a Ken Kennedy?” He looked at her arching a brow. “Look, he’s…my brother…and we kind of had a spat last night and…”

“Oh man,” Jeff said smiling wide. “You’re Isabella?” She nodded, shocked that he knew her name.

“Can you help me get in to see Ken,” she asked.

“Of course,” Jeff said wrapping an arm around her shoulders and leading her toward the building. “Man, you’re prettier than your pictures. Ken’ll be so happy to see you.”

“I doubt that,” Isabella replied. “Things didn’t go well last night.”

“Bummer,” Jeff said as they walked through the halls toward the locker room. “Yo, Cody, you seen Ken?”

“Down that way,” the man addressed as Cody replied pointing toward the left.

“Come on,” Jeff said ushering Isabella down the hall. They made it to the locker room marked Mr. Kennedy and Jeff knocked. Kennedy opened the door and took one look at Isabella before slamming it in their faces.

“Ken,” Jeff called, opening the door. “Your sister came to see you, man.”

“I don’t have a sister,” Kennedy replied staring daggers at the doorway where Isabella stood.

“Dude, she’s all you could talk about since you found out about her,” Jeff said. “She came to see you. Don’t you think you should at least see what she has to say?”

Kennedy grumbled something under his breath. “Fine,” he finally said after glaring at Isabella a while longer.

Jeff motioned for her to come in. When she didn’t budge he grabbed her had and dragged her in. “You guys have fun,” he said before heading off to his own locker room.

“Guess we get our temper from our father, huh,” she said trying to make him smile.

“I thought you didn’t believe that we’re related,” he said as he laced up his boots.

“Look, I’m not sure I believe it or not,” she replied taking a seat next to him on the bench. “I guess we’ll have to get one of those tests to determine if we’re related. I came to apologize for insulting you last night. I shouldn’t have said that what you do is fake.”

“Damn right you shouldn’t have,” Kennedy fumed.

“Hey, I’m trying to be nice here. Could you drop the attitude,” she demanded.

Kennedy sighed, his shoulders slumping. “You have to understand…when my dad died…I was alone in the world. Then I found out about you and suddenly I had family again. I was really looking forward to meeting you and getting to know you. It just didn’t go as I had imagined it in my head.”

“I’m sorry,” Isabella said softly, knowing what it was like to feel alone. It had been three years since her mother died. She had never known her father and had no other family that she knew of.

“So, if you really don’t want to be part of my life I’ll understand,” he said softly. “You can just go on with your life and I’ll go on with mine.”

“Let’s find out if we’re really related or not first,” Isabella said. “In the meantime let’s get to know each other. What do you say?”

Kennedy smiled for the first time since Jeff had brought her to him. “I say you have a deal,” he replied.

{Chapter 4}

“Well, right now I have a match to prepare for,” Kennedy said to Isabella. “Would you like to meet my opponent?”

“Uh…okay,” she replied.

“Great,” Kennedy said smiling. He took her hand and led her out into the hall. Scanning the people milling about he spotted who he was looking for. “Hey, Shawn,” he called waving to the older man. He led Isabella down the hall toward the man.

“Hey, Kennedy, Kennedy,” Shawn said smirking. “Hey, man, I’m real sorry about your dad.”

“Thanks,” Kennedy said.

It was then that Shawn saw Isabella with Kennedy. “And who is this lovely lady? You’re not stepping out on Cindy, are you?”

“No,” Kennedy replied chuckling. “Wouldn’t dream of it. This,” he said wrapping an arm around Isabella’s shoulders and giving her a squeeze. “Is my little sister, Isabella.”

“I didn’t know you had a little sister,” Shawn said. “Isabella, nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too, Shawn,” Isabella said politely. “Ken? Can I speak to you a moment?”

“Sure,” Kennedy replied excusing himself from Shawn and following Isabella down the hall a bit. “What’s up?”

“Look, we haven’t had a test done to prove we’re related yet,” she said. “Could you cool it with the little sister intro?”

“How would you like me to introduce you,” Kennedy demanded crossing his arms across his chest.

“I don’t know,” Isabella replied with a huff. “It’s just weird being introduced like that. I’ve been an only child for twenty seven years.”

Kennedy smirked. “You don’t like being a little sister?”

“I don’t like thinking I might be related to a goofball like you,” she replied punching his arm.

“My girlfriend thinks I’m charming,” he replied.

“That poor girl,” Isabella giggled.

Jeff Hardy walked by just then. “Hey, Jeff,” Kennedy said waving him over. “Would you mind keeping an eye on Isabella for me.”

“I’m not five,” she said. “And please call me Izzy. I hate Isabella.”

“I know you’re not five, Izzy,” Kennedy said. “I just don’t want you getting lost or mixed up with certain unsavory characters.”

“Not a problem, Ken,” Jeff said smiling. “My match is last so I got all the time in the world. Go on. Shawn’s waiting.” He motioned to where the older man was trying to get Kennedy’s attention.

Together Jeff and Isabella watched Kennedy walk off, meeting up with Shawn. They soon disappeared, hearing Kennedy’s music blasting through the arena. Jeff smiled and turned his attention to Isabella.

“Come on,” he said taking her hand and practically dragging her down the hall.

“Where are we going,” she asked as they dodged people heading onto God knew where.

“Special spot I like to go to watch the matches,” Jeff replied smiling. “I think you should see your brother in action. He’s really quite entertaining. Of course Shawn’s no slouch either.”

“I’ll have no idea what’s going on,” Isabella said not at all looking forward to watching professional wrestling.

“It’s not that hard to figure out,” Jeff said as they entered an area that looked down on the ring. They could see the fans, but no one could see them as they took seats. “Just watch and listen to the crowd’s reaction.”

Isabella sighed and turned her attention to the ring. Like the crowd she found it frustrating when Kennedy kept ducking out of the ring when Shawn tried to kick him. She could understand why the fans were booing him. To her he seemed like a coward. She cringed when Shawn finally managed to kick Kennedy in the face and get the pin.

“That has got to hurt,” she said. “And Ken actually enjoys doing this?”

“We’ve all got a few screws loose,” Jeff replied with a smirk. “Yeah, it’s hell on our bodies, but hearing the roar of the crowd makes all the pain worth it.” He could see that Kennedy and Shawn had vacated the ring. “Come on.”

Again he took her hand and dragged her off. It was all Isabella could do to keep up with Jeff. As they were headed toward the locker room Randy Orton approached them.

“Hey, Jeff, I need to go over a few things before our match,” Randy said. Isabella took him in. He was tall and muscular, though not overly so. He was very handsome and had the bluest eyes she had ever seen. She found herself staring at him, unable to look away. It was then that Randy noticed her standing there. “And who is this?” He smiled at Isabella.

“This is Isabella,” Jeff said wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “She’s Ken’s…” He groaned when Isabella elbowed him in the ribs.

“Isabella Burroughs,” she said smiling at Randy and holding out her hand for him to shake. He took her hand and placed a kiss to the back of it. “I’m a friend of Ken’s.”

“Just a friend,” Randy asked laying on the charm. She nodded. “I’m Randy Orton. The Legend Killer.” Though she had no idea what he was talking about she smiled, blushing a little as he flirted with her.

“Izzy,” Jeff said still rubbing his sore ribs. “Why don’t we go meet Ken. He should be back from his match.” He didn’t like the way Randy was eyeing her up and down as if he was about to devour her. He made a mental note to warn Ken later. “As soon as I help her find Ken I’ll come run through things with you, Randy.”

“Was nice meeting you, Randy,” Isabella said unable to keep the smile off her face.

“Hope we meet again, Isabella,” Randy said smiling and waving as Jeff dragged her away. Though she hated her name it somehow sounded so good rolling off Randy's tongue.

“Izzy, you don’t wanna get caught up with Orton,” Jeff said as they walked away.

“Oh,” she asked, intrigued now. She should have learned better by now, but damn it if she didn’t love bad boys.

“He calls himself the Legend Killer, but everyone around here calls him the Lady Killer behind his back,” Jeff said shaking his head. “Rumor has it he’s got a woman in every city, sometimes more than one.”

“Interesting,” Isabella said, really intrigued. Lady Killer…we’ll just have to see about that.

“Hey,” Ken said smiling when he saw her.

“I took her up to see your match,” Jeff said proudly.

“How’d you like it,” Kennedy asked.

“Doesn’t your face hurt,” she asked. “I mean Shawn kicked you…”

“We have ways of making things look much more painful than they actually are,” Kennedy replied. “Not to say we don’t go through our share of pain. Sometimes things are a little exaggerated.”

“I see,” Isabella replied.

“So, if you don’t mind hanging around a bit more I’ll go jump in the shower and change and then we can go get a late dinner or something.”

“Actually,” Isabella said. “If you don’t mind I’d like to stay and watch Jeff’s match.” Jeff beamed at her words. “It’s just…I’d like to see what he can do in the ring.” Jeff never for a second thought that she had an ulterior motive for wanting to see his match.

“All right,” Kennedy replied. “Well, Jeff, would you mind taking her back to the spot so she can watch the rest of the show. I’ll come find her when I’m all ready.” He turned back to Isabella. “Is that all right with you, Izzy?”

“Sure,” she replied smiling.

Jeff led her back to the spot where they had watched Kennedy’s match, explaining who the people were until he finally had to go get ready for his match. It wasn't very long before Kennedy had found them and took over telling her about angles and explaining why things were happening so that Jeff could prepare for his match. Isabella had to admit that she found things really fascinating. She had never realized how much went into each match.

It finally came time for Jeff’s match. Kennedy let her know when Jeff’s music started. She watched as Jeff bounced down to the ring smiling at how full of energy and charisma he was. When she heard Randy’s music start up she watched as he sauntered to the ring, his championship belt slung proudly over his shoulder. There was just something about him that she was drawn to.

During the match Isabella found herself reacting to the action just like the crowd. Kennedy couldn’t hide the smile as he watched her. For someone who had thought his profession was fake the night before she was reacting to the action just like he knew she would. It made him happy to see she was being entertained despite the fact that she had no clue what was going on.

“So, what did you think of your first wrestling show,” Kennedy asked once Jeff had pinned Randy.

“I had no idea how much fun it could be watching this stuff,” she said smiling.

“Still think it’s fake,” he teased as they headed back to his locker room so he could grab his bag.

“All right so I was wrong,” Isabella said smirking. “But come on, certain aspects are fake.”

“True,” Kennedy relented. “But you can’t fake gravity.”

“Wow, it’s late,” she said glancing at her watch.

“Hey, why don’t you come back to the hotel,” Kennedy suggested. “I can introduce you to a few of the guys and I have an extra bed that you can use if you don't want to drive home later.”

She needed a split second to think about his offer. It was a possibility that Randy would be there. If that was the case she definitely wanted to be there.

“Sounds like a plan,” she replied. “Good thing today and tomorrow are my days off.”

“Great,” Kennedy said smiling. They grabbed his bag and then headed to the parking lot. She followed in her car to the hotel.

{Chapter 5}

Kennedy and Isabella walked into the hotel lobby and headed up to his room so that he could drop off his bag. While Kennedy changed his shirt she excused herself and went into the bathroom to freshen up her make up. She looked at her reflection fluffing her hair and applying some lip gloss. Giving herself a once over in the mirror again she exited the bathroom.

“Ready to meet some more of my friends,” Kennedy asked.

“Let’s go,” Isabella said smiling.

When they arrived in the hotel bar they found a couple of guys hanging around, sipping drinks and chatting away. Kennedy brought her over to the bar and ordered himself and Isabella a beer. It was there that they ran into John Cena.

“Hey, Ken,” Cena said smiling. “Who’s this?”

“This is Isabella,” Kennedy replied. “She’s…a friend.” Cena quirked a brow. “It’s a long story, John.”

“Long story short, I might be Ken’s half sister,” Isabella said smiling. “We have to have a test done to be sure. “You can call me Izzy.”

“Well, Izzy,” Cena said smiling. “I’m John Cena, but you can call me anything you like.”

“Anything,” Isabella asked smirking.

Cena chuckled rubbing the back of his neck. “How about we stick to John?”

“John works for me,” Isabella replied.

“Excuse me, Mr. Kennedy? Would you mind taking some picture with me and my friends,” a blonde woman asked. Isabella assumed that she was a fan.

“I’ll be back in a bit,” Kennedy said to Isabella, who nodded.

“Don’t worry about me,” she said. “John and I will get to know each other.”

“So, what do you do for a living, Izzy,” Cena asked.

“Right now I’m a waitress,” she replied. “I’ve kinda been bouncing around in the job market. It’s been kinda rough since my mom passed three years ago.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Cena said taking a sip of his drink. There was an awkward silence between them for a moment. “So, when did you and Ken finally meet?”

“Yesterday, actually,” Isabella said shaking her head at the memory of him coming into the diner. “He came into the diner where I work and kind of just dropped a bombshell in my lap. I kicked him out of the diner. When I got home he was waiting on my porch.”

Cena chuckled. “Yup, that’s Ken. He’s a persistent one.”

“You say persistent I say stubborn ,” Isabella chuckled. Cena smiled. Out of the corner of her eyes she saw Randy enter the bar. She tried her hardest to pay attention to what Cena was saying, but found her attention waning.

“Were you a wrestling fan before you met Ken,” Cena asked and noticed that her attention was elsewhere. He followed her gaze and groaned. She was staring at Orton. “Izzy,” he said nudging her shoulder.

“I’m sorry,” she said blushing a bit. “What did you say?”

“I asked if you were a wrestling fan before you met Ken,” Cena repeated.

“No, I had only ever seen a match when my ex would watch it and then I couldn’t stand it,” she replied honestly. “I just may change my mind about it though after seeing the show tonight.”

“Well, that’s good news,” Cena said smiling. He chattered away for a while before he realized that she wasn’t paying attention to him. “And that’s when I decided to get myself a monkey to help me really raise my game to the next level.”

“That’s nice,” Isabella said turning her attention back to him momentarily. “Would you excuse me, John?”

“Sure,” Cena sighed. He knew better than to try to compete with Randy Orton.

Isabella slid off her stool and headed over to where Randy Orton was signing a couple of autographs. He looked up and saw her heading his way. A smile spread across his face seeing her. There was no two ways about it Ken’s friend was a beauty. She would make a lovely notch on his belt.

“Isabella,” he said smiling. “What a lovely surprise.”

“I’m here with Ken,” she replied smiling. Though I’d rather be leaving with you “But he’s a little busy with some fans.”

Randy glanced around and caught sight of Kennedy posing for pictures and signing a couple of autographs. “Well, that’s just tragic,” he said. “Leaving you all alone.” He motioned her over to a table.

“I don’t mind,” she replied. “It gives me a chance to observe him at work so to speak.” Randy quirked a brow at her. “Well, when I said I was Ken’s friend…that wasn’t exactly true. We just met yesterday. He thinks I’m his half sister.”

“Really,” Randy asked. So, this is Kennedy’s little sister, huh? Interesting “You guys didn’t know about each other at all?”

“Nope,” Isabella replied and went on to explain about their father’s dying confession.

~*~

“Hey, Johnny,” Kennedy said once he had finished up with his fans. “Where’s Izzy?” He picked up his beer and took a long sip.

Cena sighed and pointed to the table where Isabella was laughing and chattering away with Randy. “Caught sight of the Lady Killer the moment he walked in and dumped me like a bad habit.” Cena shrugged. “Guess I wasn’t interesting enough.”

Kennedy watched her shamelessly flirting with Randy, his blood boiling. Of all the men for her to be throwing herself at! He gripped his beer bottle tightly watching as Isabella giggled at something Randy said and leaned in to touch his hand.

“Hey, Ken,” Jeff said joining Kennedy and Cena. “Ken? You all right, man? Your knuckles are turning white.” Cena tapped Jeff on the shoulders and pointed to where Isabella was. “Oh shit,” he groaned. “I warned her about Orton.”

Just then the bottle Kennedy was gripping shattered in his hand, surprising Cena and Jeff. “Ken,” Cena said seeing the blood pouring off his hand. “You all right, man?”

“Ken? Seriously. Are you all right,” Jeff asked.

“Guys,” Kennedy said dropping the remnants of his beer bottle and picking some bits of glass out of his flesh. “Catch me.” With that his eyes rolled up in his head and he passed out, falling right into Jeff and Cena’s arms.

~*~

The commotion at the bar caught Isabella’s eye and she was shocked to see Kennedy passed out and Cena and Jeff supporting his weight. “Excuse me, Randy,” she said concerned. She made her way over to the bar. “What happened?” She saw the glass shards and then Kennedy’s bloody hand, the blood pouring out of it quickly.

“We’re not sure,” Jeff replied. “His bottle just shattered and then the next thing we knew he passed out.”

“We need something to tie around his hand,” Isabella said.

Cena stripped off his shirt and handed it to her. “Use this,” he said.

“Thanks,” she replied taking the shirt and tying it around Kennedy’s hand. “I think he’s going to need stitches.”

“We got him,” Cena said grabbing Kennedy under the arms. “Jeff, you get his legs.” Jeff nodded grabbing Kennedy’s legs and carrying him out of the bar with Cena.

“I’ll drive,” Isabella said opening up the back door. Cena and Jeff slid into the back with Kennedy in their laps. She slid behind the wheel and got them to the hospital as quickly as she could. She was sure that she broke several traffic laws, but she didn’t care.

By the time they got to the hospital Kennedy was beginning to come around. He was ushered into an exam room in the emergency room. Cena, Jeff and Isabella all took seats in the waiting room. Neither one of them knew what to say so they sat in silence.

A half hour later Kennedy strolled out to the waiting room, his hand heavily bandaged. He looked a little pale, but otherwise he seemed fine. “Can we go back to the hotel,” he asked tiredly.

“Sure,” Isabella said standing.

Cena and Jeff followed behind them. Neither man knew what to say to Kennedy. They knew that he’d get ribbed about the injury eventually and right now wasn't the time to poke fun. They decided to just keep quiet as they all got into the car.

It didn’t take long to get back to the hotel. The silence continued as they all rode the elevator to their respective floors. Once Cena and Jeff had exited and the car was moving again Isabella finally decided to speak up.

“Are you going to tell me how this happened or is it going to remain a secret that three of you are keeping,” she asked.

Kennedy sighed, picking at his bandage, searching for the right words to say. “You were talking to Orton,” he finally said.

“There a law against making new friends,” she demanded following him out of the elevator when they got to Kennedy's floor.

“No,” he replied pulling out his key card and opening the door to his room. “Look, I just don’t want you to get hurt, Izzy, that’s all. Randy’s not a good person when it comes to women.”

“Last time I checked, Ken, I’m a grown woman,” Isabella replied.

“I don’t want to fight, Izzy,” Kennedy said kicking his shoes off and plopping down on his bed. “You’re welcome to stay for the night. I’m beat.”

“I’ll stay,” Isabella said realizing she was tired as well. “Only because I’m worried about you.” She pulled back the covers on the spare bed as she kicked off her shoes.

“Goodnight,” Kennedy yawned, crawling under the covers. Within seconds he was sound asleep, softly snoring.

Isabella sighed, lying back on the pillows. It was going to be a rough adjustment to get used to having a brother…if he was indeed her brother. Pulling up the covers around her she closed her eyes, drifting off to sleep quickly.

{Chapter 6}

The next morning Randy Orton casually strolled down the hall on his way to Kennedy’s room. “Hello, Isabella,” he said practicing his greeting. “No. Hel-lo, Isabella. Yeah that’s good.”

Once outside the door he checked his hair in the number plate on the door and checked his breath, popping in a couple of breath mints. When he was satisfied with his appearance and how his breath smelled he knocked. He was just wiping some lint off his shirt when the door opened.

“Hel-lo…Oh hi, Ken,” Randy said smiling. “How’s your hand?”

“Fine,” Kennedy replied and attempted to close the door. Randy stopped it with his foot.

“Is Isabella still here,” he asked.

“No,” Kennedy replied and again attempted to close the door. This time Isabella stopped him.

“KEN,” she exclaimed shoving him out of the way. “Hi, Randy. What’s up?”

“I was stopping by to see if I could take you to breakfast,” Randy replied smiling. “That is if you haven’t already made plans with Ken.”

“Actually, we have made plans,” Kennedy interjected.

“We have not,” Isabella said glaring at Kennedy. “I would love to go to breakfast with you, Randy.”

“Izzy, what about that test,” Kennedy asked, desperate for her not to leave with Randy.

“I’ll call you,” she replied taking Randy’s hand and closing the door behind her.

Kennedy frowned. This was not good. With a sigh he grabbed his phone and called Cena and then Jeff, telling them to meet him in the lobby in ten minutes. He knew Randy would take Isabella to the hotel’s restaurant not wanting to stray far from easy access to a bed.

~*~

“What’s this about,” Cena asked when Kennedy met the men in the hotel lobby.

“Yeah, I could have used a couple of more hours of sleep,” Jeff replied rubbing his eyes.

“Orton stopped by my room and asked Isabella to breakfast,” Kennedy replied. “We have got to do everything in our power to keep him from taking her back to his room.”

Cena smirked at him. “Look at you,” he said. “Goin’ into big brother mode already.”

“And you don’t even know for sure if she is your sister,” Jeff added.

“I don’t need a test to tell me what I already know,” Kennedy replied. “Now are you with me or not?”

“A chance to fuck with Randy Orton,” Cena asked.

“You better believe it,” Jeff said smiling. Cena nodded.

The three men crept into the restaurant and spotted Randy and Isabella in a booth in the back. Taking seats at the counter they kept a careful eye on the two. As they sat Jeff got a sly smile on his face.

“Let’s see how she feels about Randy when I’m done,” he said to the others. Casually he strolled by the booth, doing a double take and then going straight to the table. “Randy, I’m glad I found you, man.”

“What’s up, Jeff,” Randy said, obviously upset about being interrupted.

“Well, you know that girl that you met in Ohio,” he asked. Randy shook his head.

“We meet lots of girls, Jeff,” he replied casting an apologetic glance at Isabella. “You’ll have to be more specific.”

“You know the one,” he replied. “She had the really big…” He gestured a set of large breasts with his hands. “Brains. What was her name? Um..Oh yeah! Barbie.” He fought the urge to smile when Randy blushed. “She said she needs to speak to you REALLY bad. Something about a test…I’m not sure what she meant…oh…I think it was a paternity test.”

“That’s funny, Jeff,” Randy said through gritted teeth. “Real funny. Get lost.”

“Just thought you’d want to know,” Jeff said with a shrug before strolling away from the booth.

“I have no clue what he was talking about,” Randy said when he realized Isabella was looking at him with a smirk on her face. “It’s probably his idea of a stupid rib.”

“Really? Because a little birdie told me that you have a woman in every city,” she replied. “Are you telling me that you’re not a hot little man whore?”

Randy stared her, mouth agape. “That depends,” he finally replied with a smirk. “Do you like man whores?”

“That depends,” she replied smiling.

“On what,” he asked.

“That’s for me to know and you to find out,” she replied with a giggle.

~*~

Jeff had finally made it back to Cena and Kennedy, proud of what he had just done. He sat down turning his attention to the both. His smile turned to a scowl.

“Oh come on,” he exclaimed. “That should have sent her runnin’ for the door!”

“What’d you say,” Cena asked.

“I told Randy some chick named Barbie with big tits called about a paternity test,” Jeff sighed. Cena snickered.

“Well, guess it’s my turn,” Cena said standing. “Wish me luck, boys.”

He strolled over to the booth a smile on his face. “Randy,” he called, chuckling when Randy groaned. “Hey, buddy.”

“John, can’t you see I’m a little busy right now,” Randy asked.

“Hey, Izzy,” Cena said waving to Isabella. “Yeah, I’ll only be a minute. Listen, Doc wants to know if the cream cleared up that rash. He said you can go see him anytime you need more.”

Randy’s blue eyes blazed with anger. One rib was fine. He could deal with the one immature imbecile, but this was getting ridiculous. Shaking his head he chuckled.

“Funny, John,” he said still chuckling. “Nice rib. Now get lost so that Isabella and I can be ALONE.”

“All right, man,” Cena said holding up his hands. “Just passin’ on a message. Don’t shoot the messenger.” With that he walked away with a big goofy grin on his face.

“Seriously, he was just ribbing me,” Randy said to Isabella. She had an expression on her face that was a cross between amusement and repulsion. “I don’t have any rashes. I swear.”

“Good to know,” she replied. “I think it’s time for me to go.”

“So soon,” Randy asked, cursing Cena and Jeff. “I was hoping we could spend some more time getting to know each other.”

~*~

Cena joined Jeff and Kennedy, turning his attention to the booth. They could see Isabella attempting to leave, but Randy took her hand trying to sweet talk her into staying. “Come on, Izzy,” Kennedy muttered. “Get up and leave.”

They watched some more and finally she pulled her hand free of Randy’s, pulling a pen out of her purse and jotting something down on a napkin. With that she slid out of the booth. Randy too stood, no doubt still trying to convince her to stay a while longer. Isabella placed a kiss on his cheek and headed toward the door.

“Shit,” Kennedy said grabbing a menu and holding it over his face. Jeff and Cena did the same as Isabella passed them.

When she was gone they all breathed a sigh of relief and put the menus down. “I should have known you’d be behind this, Ken,” Randy said having spotted them once Isabella had left. “This is real petty, man. She’s a grown woman. Let her make her own decisions.”

“You mean mistakes,” Kennedy replied. “That’s what you’ll be to her, Randy, and you know it. Once you get what you want she’ll just be another notch on your belt. You'll be on to your next conquest and she’ll be heartbroken. You’re not gonna pull that shit with my sister.”

“You don’t even know that she really is your sister,” Randy replied.

Kennedy took a step forward, his hands balling into fists. Cena held him back. “Ken, let it go. He’s not worth it. Izzy will wise up to his bullshit.”

Randy smirked at Cena. “What’s the matter, John? Sour because she prefers me over you?” He chuckled. “Guess she prefers a man with rugged good looks over a goofball.”

Cena’s blue eyes became cold as ice as she stared daggers at Randy. “Trust me, Randy, she’ll see through your crap,” he said coldly. “And when she does who do you think she’ll come to for a shoulder to cry on.”

Randy scoffed. “So, you like sloppy seconds is what you’re saying,” he snickered. “What a loser.” He turned his attention to Jeff, who had been quiet all this time. “As for you, ya rainbow haired freak…well, it’s easy to see why she’d prefer me over a loser like you.” He pulled the napkin with Isabella’s number on it out of his pocket and smiled. “I think I’ll be getting good use out of this very soon.” With that he left the restaurant.

“I’m going to kill that son of bitch,” Kennedy said once Randy had gone. “I am going to kill him.”

“Can I help,” Cena asked.

“Me too,” Jeff agreed.

“I don’t need this shit,” Kennedy groaned rubbing his temples. His hand had begun to throb. “Why the hell did my dad ever have to tell me about her.”

“If he had taken that secret to the grave then you would never have met her,” Jeff said. “She’s family, Ken. That’s what’s important.”

“And a huge pain in my ass and I’ve only known her two days,” Kennedy grumbled.

“That’s what little sisters are for,” Cena said clapping him on the back. “They live to annoy big brothers.”

“Come on, Ken, we’ll help you pack up your stuff,” Jeff said. “We got a flight to catch in a couple of hours.” Kennedy sighed following his friends out of the restaurant.

~*~

Isabella was standing in the lobby when they headed to the elevators. “Hey,” she said smiling. She had a sneaking suspicion that Kennedy had been behind what Cena and Jeff had done. “So, Randy told me that you guys will be leaving in a couple of hours.”

“Yeah,” Kennedy replied. “Wish I could stay longer, but…it’s my job. Ya know?”

“You’ll still be able to wrestle with those stitches,” she asked pointing to his bandaged hand.

“I’m sure creative will find something for me to do until I heal,” he replied.

“Well, you have my number whenever you want to set up that test,” she asked. Kennedy nodded. “Don’t be a stranger. All right? Maybe I can come on the road with you to hang out sometime soon.”

“Yeah, maybe,” Kennedy said forcing a smile. He suspected her real reason for saying that was because she wanted to be close to Randy.

“It was great meeting you,” she said holding out her arms for a hug. Kennedy smiled and enveloped her in his arms. “Just so you know, I’m hoping you are my brother. It’ll be nice having someone there to look out for me.” He could see that she genuinely meant what she had said and it made him smile.

“Izzy, I don’t need a test to tell me you’re my blood,” he replied softly. “I can tell just by looking at you. I’ll call you to set up that test just so you’ll be 100% certain.” She smiled placing a kiss on his cheek before saying goodbye to Cena and Jeff and leaving.

Kennedy watched her leave before turning her attention to his friends. “Once I prove to her that she’s my sister maybe she’ll believe me about Orton,” he said. “Because, quite frankly, if he hurts her there will be a vacated title because I’ll fucking murder him.”

{Chapter 7}

As Kennedy had suspected he would be given promo work until his hand healed. He was taken off of house shows due to the injury as well. With his newfound free time he decided to look into labs that could do the test that Isabella wanted.

He had just gotten off the phone with a lab that seemed promising and decided to give Isabella a call. The phone rang a couple of times before she answered. “Hey, Izzy,” he said happily. “It’s Ken.”

“Hi, Ken,” she replied, though it was evident that she had been crying. He could hear her sniffling.

“What’s wrong,” he asked.

“It’s nothing,” she said and yelped in pain.

“Izzy, I know we’ve only just met, but you’re in pain and crying. What’s going on,” he demanded.

Isabella cursed under her breath. She hated having to admit this to him. “My ex-husband was here when I got home today,” she said trying hard to keep her voice even. “Turns out he saw me leave with you a couple of days ago. When I didn't come home that night...he thinks I’m sleeping with you.”

“So, didn’t you guys get divorced like five years ago,” Kennedy asked.

“He doesn’t give up easily,” Isabella replied. “I made the mistake of trying to explain who you were to him when he was drunk or high or both.”

“What’d he do,” Kennedy asked.

“He smacked me around a bit,” she replied softly. “He bolted when I managed to get to the phone and started calling the police.”

“What’d the police say,” Kennedy asked, wanting to kill the bastard for assaulting her.

“I hung up when he left,” she admitted. “They never do much of anything and then he just comes back angrier. I’ve learned that if I value my life...just let it go.”

“Let it go,” Kennedy yelled. “He fucking assaulted you, Izzy.”

“Just let it go, Ken,” Isabella sighed.

“Izzy, he hit you,” he replied. “No man has a right to treat a woman that way.”

“I can deal with him,” she replied. “I just need to change my locks again.”

“What good is that going to do,” Kennedy demanded. “If he got in before he’ll get in again. You’re not safe with him around. I’m booking a flight for you to come stay with me and Cindy for a while.”

“I can’t just pack up and leave,” Isabella fumed. “I have a job and…”

“And a psychopath for an ex who is going to snap one day and kill you,” Kennedy replied. “Please don’t argue with me on this. Besides while you’re out here we can have that test done.”

“What about your job,” she asked with sigh. She sensed that Kennedy was not one to argue with once he had made his mind up.

“I only have to show up for Raw on Mondays until my hand heals,” he replied looking at the bandage with disdain. “Come on, Izzy. Come stay with Cindy and me. It’ll put my mind at ease knowing you’re safe.”

Isabella looked around her apartment and sighed. She really didn’t have much to stick around for. Aside from her cat and a few neighbors she really didn’t have any friends, having distanced herself from the ones she used to hang out with when she had gotten married. She was sure she could take Meepers over to Mrs. Stratford to be taken care of. She had a couple of cats herself and always loved Meepers.

“All right,” she replied.

Kennedy smiled, opening up his laptop and booking the flight as they spoke. He gave her the flight info and got off the phone so that she could pack. With a sigh he hung up the phone, his blood still boiling.

“Isabella’s coming to stay with us,” Cindy asked having overheard the conversation as she sat on the couch reading.

“Yeah,” Kennedy replied taking a seat next to her and resting his head on her shoulder. “Her bastard ex-husband slapped her around. I swear he’s lucky I wasn’t there because I would have really let him have it.”

“I know you would have,” Cindy said wrapping an arm around his shoulders and rubbing his shoulder. “When does her flight get in?”

“Seven,” Kennedy replied absentmindedly digging at his bandage.

“Quit that,” Cindy said setting aside her book and smacking his hand.

“It’s itchy,” he whined.

“Go make yourself useful and fix up the guest room for Isabella,” she said, smacking his hand again as he began to dig at the bandage.

“Fine,” he replied, pouting as he stood and headed to the linen closet for some fresh sheets.

~*~

Isabella looked at her reflection in the airport bathroom mirror. She had gone to check her make up. With a frown she saw that the cover up was not working on the large bruise along her jaw.

“Thanks for the souvenir, Jakob,” she grumbled tossing her make up back into her purse and exiting the bathroom. She hoped that Kennedy wouldn’t notice the bruise, but deep down she knew he would.

She found Kennedy easily enough and knew he was giving her the once over to survey the damage. He looked happy to see her though he frowned at the sight of her jaw. He could tell she had tried to cover up the bruise, but it had not worked well. From her chin practically to her ear was a large purple bruise.

“Come on,” he said holding out his good hand to take her bag. “Cindy’s waiting.” She handed over the bag and followed him out of the terminal.

They drove home in silence, Isabella sitting looking out the window, her head pressed against the cool glass. Kennedy would cast glances at her now and again, but didn’t know what to say. He did know one thing…he was going to hurt the man responsible for hurting Isabella. If he ever came face to face with the scumbag he would make him regret the day he ever laid a hand on her.

“This is home,” he said turning off the car and getting out. He grabbed Isabella’s bags and helped her out of the passenger seat.

“So, this wrestling thing pays well, huh,” she asked smirking as she gazed at the two story house.

“You could say that,” Kennedy replied smiling. “Come on, Cindy’s been dying to meet you.”

Isabella followed Kennedy into the house. Just as they entered a petite woman with long black hair greeted them. Her sky blue eyes lit up when she saw Kennedy and then Isabella. She went to Kennedy, placing a soft kiss on his lips.

“You must be Isabella,” she said holding out her hand. If she had seen the bruise on Isabella's jaw she showed no signs of it. “I’m…”

“Cindy Hardy, also known as the love of my life,” Kennedy finished for her.

“Hardy? As in…Jeff,” Isabella asked as she shook Cindy’s hand.

“He’s my cousin,” Cindy said smiling. “You haven’t met Matt yet. He’s the more sane one in the family.” Isabella couldn’t help chuckling. “Well, come on,” she said taking the bag from Isabella. “I’ll show you to your room.”

She took Isabella’s hand and began leading her away. “Is she always this pushy,” Isabella called over her shoulder to Kennedy.

Kennedy chuckled and nodded. “Since the day I met her,” he replied. “Don’t worry, you’ll get used to it.”

“Ken, darling, you better watch what you say or you’ll be sleeping on the couch,” Cindy called as she continued up the stairs toward the guest bedroom. They could hear Kennedy cursing under his breath and both women chuckled.

“So, how long have you and Ken been together,” Isabella asked once inside the guestroom. Cindy was helping her unpack a little.

“Going on two years now,” Cindy replied hanging up some things in the closet.

“Can I ask…why,” Isabella asked setting some things in a drawer. Cindy just chuckled. “I take it you get that a lot.”

“Yeah,” Cindy replied still chuckling. “I can’t explain it, really. He’s just…charming.”

“Honey,” Kennedy bellowed up the stairs. “I think dinner is burning. It’s a shame too ‘cause it smelled good and I’m starving.”

“Oh yeah, charming,” Isabella replied with a smirk.

Cindy sighed, shaking her head. “It’s not burning,” she yelled as she came down the stairs. “You’re just trying to get me to serve dinner faster.”

Kennedy chuckled as he took a seat on the couch and turned on the television. “So, maybe I fibbed a little,” he replied. For the comment he got a smack upside the head as Cindy passed him. Isabella was right behind her and joined Kennedy on the couch. He scowled and rubbed his head.

“Serves you right,” Isabella snickered. “Not like you couldn’t stand to miss a meal or two.” She patted his belly with a chuckle.

“I will have you know that this is all muscle,” he replied pulling up his shirt.

“Save it for the girlfriend,” she snickered covering her eyes.

“Honey,” he whined. “Izzy’s making fun of me!” Isabella hid her face in a pillow, laughing.

“Grow up, Ken,” Cindy fired back from the kitchen. “Now stop bothering me. I’m trying to get dinner finished up. Whatever problem you and Izzy have…work it out for yourselves.”

“You’re supposed to take my side,” Ken groaned. “Honey, she’s calling me fat!”

“Am not,” Isabella said. “I just meant he was chubby.”

“IZZY,” Ken exclaimed. “Take it back!” Isabella shook her head no, sticking out her tongue at Kennedy. “Take it back!”

“Or what,” Isabella asked, ready to get to her feet and run.

“Or…I’ll have to…”

“Go on a diet,” Isabella teased, jumping up.

“That’s it,” Kennedy yelled getting to his feet. “You are so dead!”

“Cindy, save me,” Isabella giggled rushing into the kitchen. “The chubby man is going to kill me!”

“I am NOT chubby,” Kennedy growled. “Quit hiding behind Cindy!”

“Both of you stop,” Cindy yelled finally. “Get out of my kitchen! Good Lord! You would think you two were little kids the way you’ve been carrying on!” She shook her head tossing the potholders down onto the counter. “And Ken…Izzy’s right…you are chubby.” She smiled sweetly up at him as she pinched his belly lightly. “Now go wash up for dinner.”

Isabella had to cover her mouth to keep from laughing out loud as she watched Kennedy sputter incoherently for a few moments. He finally grumbled something under his breath and headed off to wash up. Cindy turned her gaze on Isabella. “I was only messin’ with him,” she said smiling.

“I know,” Cindy replied with a smirk. “Dinner’s ready. You should go wash up too. That is…if you think you can handle Ken and his temper.” She smirked at Isabella.

“I think I can handle him,” she replied. “I can tell he’s all bark and no bite. Just a big teddy bear when it comes down to it.” Cindy nodded, smiling. With a nod Isabella headed out of the kitchen to wash up for dinner.

{Chapter 8}

Once everyone had washed up they all sat down at the table to eat.
“Are you two over the whole chubby thing or do I have to worry about you making piggy noises while I eat,” Kennedy asked.

“Ken,” Cindy said in mock hurt. “Would I do such a horrible thing to you?”

“No, but she might,” Kennedy replied pointing to Isabella.

“I am seriously wounded, Ken,” Isabella said. “We’re here to have this lovely dinner as a family.” Kennedy smiled. “I wouldn’t dream of making piggy noises. Honestly.”

“All right,” Kennedy said. “I get the message, Izzy. You’re gonna be a handful aren’t you?”

Isabella just smirked and inhaled the heavenly scent of the meal on the table. “Everything looks and smells delicious,” she said to Cindy.

“Thank you,” Cindy said smiling as she passed the bowl of mixed vegetables to Kennedy. “Oh, I forgot the dinner rolls.” With that she stood and rushed into the kitchen.

“So, how did you and Cindy meet,” Isabella asked as she took some slices of pot roast and passed the plate to him.

“Uh uh,” Kennedy replied as Cindy came back with the basket of dinner rolls and placed them on the table. “You tell me how you met your scumbag ex first.”

Isabella sighed. “Not much to talk about,” she replied shrugging.

“Don’t give me that,” Kennedy said. “You were married to the guy for two years.”

“How exactly do you know so much about my life,” Isabella demanded.

“Well…I needed to find you,” Kennedy sputtered. “So, I…hired a private investigator.”

“I thought it was suspicious when Jeff mentioned something about photos,” Isabella said with a frown. “I’m not sure I like you snooping around in my life.”

“I wasn’t snooping,” Kennedy said defensively. “I just needed to find you.”

“Whatever,” Isabella said with a wave of her hand. “I met Jakob when I was nineteen,” she said. “He was playing in a local band and I had a huge crush on him. I got the chance to meet him one night after a gig and from there we seemed to just click. We started dating and before I knew it…Jakob proposed.”

“Is this before or after he started getting violent,” Kennedy asked.

“Way before,” Isabella replied. She hated dredging up the memories.

“Did your mom approve of Jakob,” Cindy asked.

“Not at all,” Isabella replied. “She saw something in him that I was totally blind to. She actually told me that if I went ahead and married him I would no longer be welcome in her home.”

“And yet you went ahead and married him anyway,” Kennedy said shaking his head.

“I was in love,” Isabella replied defensively. “Yes, I went ahead and married Jakob. We eloped. It wasn’t long after that when he started verbally abusing me. Things weren’t going well for his band and he lashed out at me. Then he started drinking and getting high.”

“Why didn’t you get out then,” Kennedy asked, unable to understand why she would stay with someone like that.

“I was afraid of him,” she replied forcing back the tears. “I tried to leave him once. I packed my bags and everything. He..he threatened to kill me if I left.”

“When did he start hitting you,” Cindy asked gently.

“A little over a year into our marriage I found out that I was pregnant,” she said softly. “When Jakob found out he was livid.”

Kennedy groaned inwardly. Though he had a feeling he knew what happened he asked anyway. “What happened to the baby?”

“Jakob beat me so bad that night,” she said a couple of tears slipping down her cheeks. “I lost it.” She wiped the tears away. “Mom came to the hospital and took me home. After that she helped me get away from Jakob. She’s the one who gave me the strength to file for divorce.”

“You poor thing,” Cindy said getting up and hugging Isabella.

“Thank you for the lovely dinner, Cindy,” she said sniffling. “If it’s all right with you guys I’d like to just go to bed. It’s been a long day.”

“Of course,” Kennedy said. He watched Isabella head upstairs, a frown on his face. “Jesus, Randy Orton is a fucking saint compared to her ex.”

“Maybe you should just trust that she knows what she’s doing, Ken,” Cindy said clearing Isabella’s plate. “She is a big girl. She seems to have a good head on her shoulders. She’ll see through Orton’s shit soon enough.”

“I suppose you’re right,” Kennedy murmured.

~*~

The next morning Isabella was awakened by someone signing…badly…and off key. With a groan she sat up in bed, hoping and praying it wasn’t Kennedy. She threw on a robe and headed downstairs.

“Hey, Izzy,” Jeff happily greeted before going back to singing as he flipped pancakes.

“Are you always this cheerful in the morning,” she asked, going to the coffeepot and pouring herself a cup. She took a sip and cringed, adding sugar and milk to it.

“He’s this cheerful no matter what time of day it is,” came a voice from behind her. She turned to face the speaker. “Matt Hardy, that screwball’s older brother,” the man said smiling. He was slightly taller than Jeff and had long, dark brown hair and chocolate brown eyes.

“Isabella,” she replied. “But you can call me Izzy. Where’s Ken and Cindy?”

“We’re here,” Cindy called coming into the kitchen with Kennedy’s arm around her waist. “I see you’ve met Matt.” All four of them cringed when Jeff began to sing louder.

“Jeff! Can it,” Kennedy called. “Is breakfast ready yet?”

“Almost,” Jeff said flipping the last pancake onto a plate. “Just need to check on the eggs.” He set the plate on the table. “You guys can dig in. I’ll join you in a little while.”

“Whose idea was it for Rainbow to cook breakfast,” Isabella asked eyeing the pancakes suspiciously.

“It’s tradition,” Jeff said setting a platter of scrambled eggs on the table.

“Matt and Jeff stop over for breakfast at least once a week,” Kennedy explained. “It’s how they keep in touch with their cousin. Family means a lot to the boys.”

Matt nodded. “Go on,” he said taking a bite of egg. “Jeff might look like a freak, but he cooks a mean breakfast.”

With a shrug Isabella grabbed a couple of pancakes and some eggs and dug in. Taking a bite of the pancakes she was surprised to find that they were chocolate chip. Her favorite. “This is delicious,” she said smiling at Jeff.

“Thank you,” Jeff chirped. “So, what are your plans for today?”

“Oh, I almost forgot,” Kennedy said setting his fork down. “Izzy, I made an appointment to have the testing done. It’s for this afternoon.”

“All right,” she replied.

“Then you have the morning free,” Jeff asked. Isabella nodded, though she kind of feared what he had in mind.

“Great,” Jeff said excitedly. “We can head to the mall and get you a make over.”

“What’s wrong with the way I look,” Isabella demanded.

“Nothing,” Matt replied. “Jeff just likes to give people make overs.”

“Great,” Isabella sighed, knowing it would be no use arguing with Jeff.

~*~

“Come on, Izzy,” Jeff called banging on the changing room door. “You’ve been in there a long time.”

“I’m not coming out,” Isabella replied. “It was one thing when you had them lop off all my hair.” She looked at her hair in the mirror and frowned. Her once long, dark brown tresses were now styled in a short, angular cut with streaks of neon pink and turquoise in it. “I am not coming out in this ridiculous outfit.”

She had humored Jeff when he had picked out the miniskirt and belly shirt combo, but now that she had it on…it just wasn’t her. She shook her head looking at the outfit and quickly changed back into her jeans and baggy shirt. Jeff groaned when she came out of the changing room.

“I think you’re missing the point of a make over,” he said.

“Fine, you want me to try on an outfit?” He nodded his head emphatically. “Let me pick out the clothes.” She surveyed the racks and picked out some pieces before heading into the changing room.

When she emerged she was wearing a pair of hip hugging black jeans and an electric blue tank top. “Happy now,” she asked turning around so that Jeff could see the crystal butterflies on the back pockets of the jeans.

“Yes,” he replied. “Now we can go.” He snatched the tags off the new clothes and brought them to the cashier, paying before Isabella could protest. “Come on. We have about twenty minutes to meet Ken at the lab.”

~*~

“Izzy,” Ken asked when Jeff walked in with her. “Is that you?”

“Jeff’s idea,” she said running her fingers through her hair. “Do you like?”

“You look…beautiful,” he replied. He meant it too. The change was a good one, though he could do without the streaks of color in her hair.

“Let’s get this test done,” she muttered. Kennedy nodded and followed her to the reception desk.

{Chapter 9}

“Ken,” Isabella whined. “This is not what I had in mind when I said I wanted to come hang out with you on the road.” She had accompanied him to where Raw would be airing live that night. Isabella had no idea that Kennedy planned to drag her out of bed so early in the morning though.

“Come on, Izzy,” Kennedy said smirking when he spotted Cena and Jeff already inside the gym. “A workout will wake you up.”

Isabella crossed her arms across her chest and pouted. “I wanted to sleep in,” she replied.

Kennedy sighed. “Izzy, maybe Randy will be here.” He hated that she was so into Randy Orton, but what Cindy had said really hit him. She was an adult and could make her own decisions. He just had to trust that she would make the right one. If the time came that she needed a shoulder to cry on he’d be there for her.

Isabella brightened up. “Really? Do you think,” she asked running her fingers through her hair. Her fingers then grazed the fading bruise on her cheek and she winced at the slight twinge of pain. “Ken, I can’t see him like this.”

“Izzy, you look fine. I’m sure thanks to Jeff nearly everyone on the roster knows about…” His words faltered when she paled at his words. “What I meant to say was that…”

“Jeff’s a big blabbermouth,” Isabella asked and shook her head. “It’s fine. I can’t hide this damn thing. I might as well just acknowledge it and move on.”

“Atta girl,” Kennedy said slinging his arms around her shoulders. “Trust me, Izzy, once you get past the shock factor you hardly even notice it.” He led her into the gym and met up with Jeff and Cena.

“Hey, Izzy,” Cena said smiling. His smile faltered when he saw the bruise on her face. Jeff had told him about it, but to actually see it was a different story. “HOLY SHIT WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR FACE?!” Jeff elbowed him in the ribs hard and he doubled over in pain. “Right,” he gasped. “Jeff told me.”

“Way to be subtle, John,” Kennedy grumbled. “Ignore the ignoramus, Izzy.”

“Hey,” Jeff exclaimed. “Oh, wait…you mean John. Cool. I’m not the ignoramus for a change.”

Isabella couldn’t help giggling. “You guys always like this,” she asked.

“Pretty much,” Kennedy smirked. “Come on. I’ll show you where you can change.”

~*~

“So, how much longer until you get the test results,” Cena asked as he watched Isabella working out on the Stairmaster. She wasn’t into the weights like he, Jeff and Kennedy were. He frowned when Randy finally wandered over to her.

“A couple of more days,” Kennedy said setting down the weight he had been using and mopping his brow with a towel.

“She seems pretty cozy with Randy,” Jeff said motioning toward where the two were chatting.

“Look, considering what she’s been through in the past with her ex, Randy’s a fuckin’ boy scout,” Kennedy said turning his back to the two. “I don’t like it, but…she’s old enough to make her own decisions.”

Cena slapped Kennedy upside the head. “What hell is wrong with you,” he demanded. “That’s your little sister and you’re just gonna let Randy stomp all over her heart? What the fuck?”

Kennedy slapped Cena upside the head, glaring at him. “I’m trying to keep her in my life, John,” he replied. “If keeping her in my life means accepting the scumbags she’s into…then so be it.” With that he went to shower and change, having had enough of working out for the day.

Cena and Jeff followed him into the locker room. Neither man knew what to say. They didn’t like Kennedy’s newfound attitude, but didn’t want to further anger their friend.

~*~

“Hey, Ken,” Randy said seeing Kennedy in the locker room. “How’s the hand?”

“Getting better everyday,” Kennedy replied, flexing his bandaged hand.

“That’s great. Listen, I’m going to take Isabella out for lunch,” Randy said smirking smugly. “Hope that’s all right with you.”

“It’s fine, Randy,” Kennedy replied. He knew exactly what the younger man was up to and wasn’t going to give in to what he wanted. “Hope you two have a good time.”

“Oh I’m sure we will,” Randy said his smug smile growing as he left the locker room.

Cena and Jeff watched him leave before turning their attention back to Kennedy. “Dude, please tell me you’re not just gonna let him have his way with your sister without a fight,” Jeff said.

Kennedy shrugged and Cena groaned. “You can’t be serious,” he fumed.

“Just let it go, guys,” Kennedy replied grabbing his bag. With that he exited the locker room.

Cena and Jeff exchanged glances. “Are we gonna just leave this alone?”

“Hell no,” Cena replied. “She’s too good for Orton and you and I both know it. I’m gonna do everything in my power to make her see that.” Jeff nodded in agreement as he followed Cena out of the locker room.

~*~

Randy spotted Cena and Jeff chatting in the hallway later on that night. Raw had just started and they were all waiting for their respective matches to start. Kennedy was showing Isabella around until it was time for his match.

“John, Jeff,” he said smirking. “How’s it going, guys?”

“What do you want, Orton,” Cena asked, not in the mood for Randy and his cockiness.

“Man, I hope I have enough energy for our match later, Jeff,” Randy said ignoring Cena’s tone. “Isabella…man…she’s just…amazing.”

“A gentleman doesn’t kiss and tell, Randy,” Jeff said not liking the gloating.

“Jeff, no one’s ever accused this joker of being a gentleman,” Cena said.

Randy chuckled shaking his head. “Is that jealousy, John,” he asked.

“What the fuck would I have to be jealous of,” Cena demanded, feeling close to just clocking Randy.

“Oh I don’t know,” Randy replied the smug smile seemingly permanently plastered on his face. “Maybe the fact that I spent the most amazing afternoon with a beautiful, sexy woman in my bed.” He sighed dreamily as if he were reminiscing in his mind. “She is an amazing woman, fellas. You don’t know what you’re missing.” With that he strutted off.

“It would be a real shame if Ken were to find out what Randy’s saying about his little sister,” Cena said, his hands balling and unballing at his sides.

“It really would,” Jeff said.

“Hey, what’s going on,” Kennedy asked seeing that Cena was pissed.

“Randy’s been sharing about his afternoon with Izzy,” Jeff replied.

“Speaking of Izzy, where is she,” Cena asked.

“I left her with the Divas,” Kennedy replied. “Thought it might do her some good to hang out with some women for a change.”

~*~

“So, was that Randy Orton I saw you getting all snuggly with earlier,” Melina asked Isabella as she primped in the mirror.

“Yeah, he’s a sweet guy,” Isabella replied smiling. Candice snorted. Ashley snickered shaking her head. Maria arched an eyebrow. “What?”

“Honey,” Beth Phoenix said. “Randy Orton is…well…he’s a man whore.”

“Why does everyone keep saying that,” Isabella asked.

“Because it’s true,” Mickie James replied as she fixed her tights.

“He’s either slept with or tried to sleep with all of us at one point in time,” Ashley said.

“He’s the hit it and quit it type of guy,” Melina said remembering her one night stand with the Legend Killer.

“Definitely,” Candice agreed. “The Legend Killer will never change.”

“He might,” Isabella said. “Maybe he just hasn’t met the right woman yet.”

“Yeah and monkeys will fly out of my ass,” Beth said snickering.

“It was just a thought,” Isabella replied. “So, he’s a man whore. That must mean he’s pretty good at what he does, huh?”

“You’d have to talk to them about that,” Ashley said pointing to Mickie, Melina and Candice.

“Yeah, cocky assholes aren’t my style,” Beth said.

~*~

Cena and Jeff stood at the end of the hall smirking, proud of themselves. They had been sure to share Randy’s choice words about Isabella, embellishing here and there. They now watched as Kennedy stalked down the hall toward where the Legend Killer was being interviewed by Todd Grisham.

Kennedy was too much of a professional to let his emotions interfere with business. He waited patiently until the interview wrapped. The camera crew cleared out and Grisham headed off for his next assignment. Orton saw Kennedy standing there, but the older man's face was unreadable.

“Hey, Ken,” he said smiling moments before Kennedy’s fist connected with his face. “WHAT THE FUCK,” he exclaimed, holding his eye.

“Get one thing straight, Orton,” Kennedy growled. “I don’t like you even looking at my sister, but if I want to stay in her life I need to keep out of her personal life.”

Randy pulled his hand away from his eye, it was already bruised and swollen. “Great! How am I supposed to explain this?”

“Brag about sleeping with Izzy again and I’ll do more than give you a black eye,” Kennedy said and stalked off.

Randy watched him walking away, his eye slightly swollen shut. A small smirk curled his lips. He now had a weapon to use at his will against the older man. It was going to be fun playing mind games. With a snicker he headed off to find some ice for his eye.

{Chapter 10}

Isabella was walking and talking with Maria and Ashley when she saw Randy holding an ice pack to his eye by the medic station. “Excuse me, ladies,” she said and headed over to him. “Randy, what happened?”

He peeled the ice pack away revealing a black eye. The ice had brought the swelling down and he would thankfully be able to see during his match. “Ken,” he grunted.

“Ken did this,” she asked pulling his face down so that she could survey the damage. Randy nodded and winced when she touched it. It didn’t really hurt anymore, but he wanted her sympathy. “Why would he do this?”

“I don’t know,” Randy lied. “He grumbled something about staying away from his sister and stormed off.”

“Well, keep that ice pack on it until your match,” Isabella sighed. “I need to find a certain blonde loudmouth.”

“Will I see you after the show,” Randy asked before she could walk away. “I may need a nurse to take care of me.”

“Of course,” she replied with a smile and kissed him softly before heading off to find Kennedy.

Ashley and Maria watched the whole thing, knowing that Randy was lying through his teeth. When Isabella walked away they both approached him. Randy saw the women and smiled wide.

“Come to lavish some attention on the wounded man,” he asked.

“Cut the shit, Orton,” Ashley said crossing her arms across her chest.

“Yeah, we know what you’re up to, Randy,” Maria said mimicking Ashley’s stance. “Izzy’s not some dumb ring rat.”

“Or a Diva you’ve loosened up with tons of alcohol. She’ll see through your shit soon and when she does you’ll be on your ass,” Ashley added.

“Ladies,” Randy said tossing the ice pack away and wrapping an arm around each woman. “You’re just jealous because you had your chance with me and now you’ve lost it.” Ashley and Maria let out exasperated grunts. “Face it, ladies, you’re beautiful and all…but quite frankly you’re yesterday’s news.” Both women were seething. “Isabella is…well…she’s perfection. Why would I bother with second rate when I could have top of the line.”

“Randy,” Ashley said. “You should really stop talking now.”

“Why’s that,” he asked oblivious to the two angry women at his side.

“This is why,” Maria said stomping on his foot as hard as she could. He doubled over hopping on one foot, holding his now sore and possibly broken foot.

“Second rate,” Ashley growled. “How’s this for second rate?” She grabbed his head and smashed it into his knee causing him to fall backwards hard. Both women towered over him as he lay on the floor slightly stunned.

“Ladies, can we talk about this,” he asked when he saw both of them raise their feet. Maria wore a pair of stiletto heels. Ashley wore a pair of combat boots.

“No,” both women replied and proceed to kick him repeatedly. Maria made extra sure to grind her heel into his side as much as possible. When they were satisfied with the damage they had caused they walked away happily chattering about what they would be doing for their segment on the show.

Randy groaned in pain, getting to his feet. It was then that he heard the snickering. He turned around and groaned, hanging his head. Hunter and Shawn had seen the whole thing and were now laughing at his misfortune. The ribbing would be endless.

“Who would have thought, Shawn, the Legend Killer got his ass handed to him by two WOMEN,” Hunter snickered. Shawn was doubled over wiping tears from his eyes and trying to catch his breath.

“Laugh it up, assholes,” Randy growled and stormed away.

“Randy wait,” Shawn called finally able to speak. “Do you need a couple of bodyguards? There might be more Divas lurking about!” Hunter had to lean against the wall for support he was laughing so hard.

~*~

Isabella found Kennedy talking to Cena and Jeff. She walked right up to him, grabbing his arm and spinning him around to face him. “Izzy, what the fu…” was all he got out before her fist connected with his face. “WHAT THE FUCK?!”

“That’s for Randy,” she said glaring at him.

“Izzy, I think you should know…” Jeff began, but when she turned her glare on him he stopped.

“Izzy, you didn’t hear what he was saying…” She slapped her hand over Kennedy’s mouth.

“When you came into the diner I thought you were some crackpot,” she said as calmly as she could. “When you told me you could possibly be my brother I had mixed feelings. If that test reveals that you are indeed my brother…and listen closely if you expect to remain part of my life…stay the fuck out of my personal life! Got it?”

“Yes,” Kennedy replied, holding his throbbing jaw. “May I say something now?” Isabella nodded.

“Uh…Ken…maybe I should explain things to Izzy,” Cena said.

“No, John, I’m the one who punched Randy,” Kennedy said pulling Isabella down the hall a little.

Cena and Jeff watched as Kennedy explained his actions to Isabella. She listened for a while before she slapped him across the face and stalked off. Cena and Jeff cringed at this, shaking their heads.

“Guess that didn’t go well,” Jeff said.

“Oh I don’t know,” Cena said. “Could have been worse.”

“He could have gotten his ass kicked like Randy did,” came Shawn’s amused voice from behind them. Hunter was once again laughing his ass off.

“Say what now,” Cena asked.

“Ma…Maria and Ashley kicked Randy’s ass,” Hunter choked out between chuckles before going on to explain things to the men.

~*~

“I can not believe that man,” Isabella fumed as she stormed down the hall. It was then that she realized that she had wandered back to the medic station. Once again she saw Randy, but he was in worse condition than before. “Randy,” she said joining him. “What happened?”

Randy looked at her and groaned, wondering if this conquest was worth all the abuse that he was taking. He looked into her concerned hazel eyes and sighed. “It’s not important,” he said groaning. His body hurt, but he still had a match that night. Aside from the black eye he showed no outward signs of injury.

“You poor thing,” she said taking his arm and slinging it around her neck. “Come on. I’ll give you a nice massage until it’s time for your match.”

“Maybe I should get hurt more often,” Randy smirked.

“Don’t be cheeky,” she said nudging him in the ribs with her elbow as she helped him to his locker room. He cringed as she managed to hit the exact spot where Maria’s stiletto had practically impaled him. “You just tell me where it hurts and I’ll rub it for you. All right?”

“That depends,” he replied with a small smirk. “If I tell you where it REALLY hurts will you still rub it?”

“Get in there and lie down,” she said shoving him through the door with a chuckle.

~*~

“Have you seen Randy at all, John,” Jeff asked Cena. “Our match is up next and I haven’t seen him since Ken socked him.”

“Did you try his locker room,” Cena asked. Jeff sighed and shook his head. “Come on. I’ll walk you there.”

Together the two men headed down the hall to Randy’s locker room. Jeff raised his hand to knock, but dropped it when he heard a noise from inside. He pressed his ear to the door and listened, his eyes wide.

“Jeff, that’s rude,” Cena said. “What do you hear?” He pressed his ear to the door and listened, his eyes also going wide.

“Oh God, Isabella,” the heard Randy groan. “Damn, baby.” They heard Isabella giggle and murmur something they couldn’t make out. “Oh yeah, right there, baby. That’s it.”

“Guys,” Kennedy said coming upon Cena and Jeff listening at Randy’s locker room door. Both men nearly jumped out of their skin. “What are you doing?”

“Hey, Ken,” Jeff said chuckling nervously. “What…what are we doing?”

“That’s what I asked,” Kennedy replied with a small smile.

“Well, that’s a good question,” Cena replied with a chuckle. “You see…we…”

“We…weren’t listening to what sounds like Randy having sex with Izzy,” Jeff said. Cena slapped his forehead and ran his hand down his face.

Kennedy’s smile fell and was replaced by a scowl. “Now, Ken, listen,” Cena said seeing that Kennedy was close to breaking down the door. Just as Cena said that they could hear a loud groan come from inside the locker room and Isabella giggling.

“That’s not what I wanted you to hear,” Cena said grabbing Kennedy when he took a step toward the door. “Jeff, get Randy’s ass out of there for your match. Ken, buddy, we should go get you some nice cold water. Yes, you need to cool down.” With that he dragged Kennedy away, though it was a harder task than he thought it would be.

With a sigh Jeff knocked on the door. Randy poked his head out and scowled at him. “What do you want, Jeff,” he demanded.

“It’s almost time for our match,” Jeff replied. “Please tell me you’re not naked.” Only Randy’s torso was visible.

Realizing what Jeff must think Randy smirked. “Wish I could, but I’d hate to lie to you, buddy,” he said.

Jeff shuddered. “Well, get some pants on and get your ass to Gorilla. We got until the end of commercials.”

“Oh hey Jeff,” Isabella said poking her head out. She squeezed out past Randy and then turned back to him and placed a kiss on his lips. “I need to find a monitor to watch you in action.”

“We weren’t done yet,” he pouted, knowing that Jeff would most likely blab to Kennedy.

“We’ll finish after the show,” Isabella said. “I’ll meet you at your room.”

“It’s a date,” Randy said and pulled her close for another kiss.

“Three minutes, Randy,” Jeff said before stalking off.

Randy released Isabella and watched as Jeff headed off to loosen up for the match. A smile curved his lips. It pleased him to no end that he could torture Kennedy without even breaking a sweat.

{Chapter 11}

“In the damn locker room,” Kennedy fumed, kicking a chair in the catering area. “She was…and he was…and…in the damn locker room!” He kicked another chair, this one went sailing across the floor barely missing a passerby.

“Calm down, Ken,” Cena said. “Look, we don’t know what was really going on.”

“Hey guys,” Isabella said finding the two men. She took one look at Kennedy and knew something was up. “What’s going on?”

Kennedy remembered how angry she had been earlier and sighed, trying to calm himself down. “Nothing,” he muttered. “I’m going back to the hotel. Izzy, you catching a ride with Randy?”

“No, but go on. You look beat,” she said. “And pissed,” she muttered under her breath, wondering if he was still angry about her punching him earlier. “John can give me a ride. Right?”

“Uh..yeah,” Cena replied, surprised. “No problem.” Kennedy nodded and headed to his locker room to grab his things.

“Wanna watch Randy and Jeff’s match with me,” Isabella asked.

“Actually I have to do a run in at the end,” Cena confessed. “But until then I can watch with you. Come on.”

They headed toward a monitor that was close to the Gorilla position and Cena grabbed a couple of folding chairs for them. Jeff had just made it to the ring when they took their seats. Chris Jericho’s music hit and the crowd roared.

“So, who’s this Jericho guy,” Isabella asked Cena.

“Are you kidding me,” he asked. “The Ayatollah of Rock ‘n’ Rollah? The Sexy Beast? Y2J?” She shrugged and shook her head. “I keep forgetting that you never watched any of this until you met Ken. Wow. Well, I can’t really describe Chris. You’ll just have to watch him in action to see what he’s all about.”

By the time they turned their attention back to the monitor JBL had entered the ring. Randy’s music hit and the crowd instantly began to boo and jeer. Isabella’s eyes were glued to the screen as soon as Randy made his entrance; his belt perched on his shoulder proudly.

Cena watched her as she watched the match. He loved to see people’s reactions to the business he loved so much. She cringed when Jericho took a nasty spill over the ropes, shaking her head. Cena smiled. No doubt she was wondering how they put their bodies through such torture.

“Well, time for me to head over and wait for my cue,” Cena said when he saw that the match was nearly over.

“All right,” Isabella said pulling her attention away from the screen momentarily to flash a smile at him.

Isabella watched as Randy delivered a devastating RKO to Jericho while he had JBL locked in the walls of Jericho. JBL covered Jericho and got the pin. Soon she heard Cena’s music blaring and she watched as Cena ran down to the ring and began to beat on Randy. She gasped when Cena hoisted Randy up and FUed him before celebrating in the ring until Raw went off the air.

She saw Jeff walking back from the ring. “Great match, Jeff,” she said smiling. He nodded to her before heading to his locker room. Cena was the first back after that.

“So, what’d you think,” he asked with a goofy grin.

“Impressive,” she replied smiling.

“Thank you,” he said taking a bow. “Come on. Let me grab my stuff and then we can head out of here.”

Isabella waited outside of Cena’s locker room while he quickly changed into his street clothes and grabbed his stuff to leave. Once he had done so they headed out to his rental. He held the passenger side door open for her, making sure she got in with no problem before jogging around to the driver’s side and slipping behind the wheel.

Randy stood watching as Isabella got in the car with Cena. He didn’t like that the former champ was horning in on his girl. She began to giggle at something that Cena had said and his blood began to boil.

“Not gonna happen, Cena,” he muttered.

“Hi, Randy,” came a female voice from behind him. Turning around he saw Jillian Hall standing there. “You looked really good out there tonight. Then again you look really good every night.”

“Why thank you, Jillian,” Randy said smiling, his blue eyes fixed on her abundant breasts.

“Could I buy you a drink,” she asked innocently.

Randy smiled slinging an arm around Jillian’s shoulders. “My dear, you can do a lot more than that,” he replied. “What room are you in?” She giggled as he led her out of the building and toward his car.

~*~

“So, what was Ken so pissed about,” Isabella said as they drove to the hotel.

“Umm…well…we heard…noises coming out of Randy’s locker room,” Cena replied.

“Yeah, I was giving Randy a massage,” Isabella replied. “He needed to work out a few kinks before his match.”

“I’m sure he did,” Cena muttered.

“John, I swear I was only giving him a massage. We were both fully clothed…well…he was in his wrestling gear, but you know what I mean,” she said.

“Look, Izzy, whatever you do is your business,” Cena said. “You’re a grown woman. Ken knows that…it’s just hard for him to deal with. Just next time you want some nookie…wait until after the show. The boss kinda frowns on doing that in the locker rooms.”

“No one was getting any nookie,” Isabella replied. “Honestly, John, I’m not into doing that in public places.”

“How about we just drop it,” Cena asked. “Let’s just get you back to the hotel.”

~*~

Once at the hotel Isabella headed right to Randy’s room. She knocked and waited for him to answer. When the door didn’t open she knocked again. Still no Randy.

With a sigh she pulled out her phone and dialed his cell. It went straight to voicemail. Isabella frowned. She had been looking forward to spending some time with Randy.

“Hey, Randy, It’s Isabella,” she said leaving a message as she headed toward the elevator. “Guess you were beat after the show and just went to bed. Give me a call in the morning. Maybe we can have breakfast.” With that she closed her phone and headed back to her room.

When she arrived on her floor she headed to her room only to realize she had forgotten the keycard. “Damn it,” she said and kicked the door. Unless she could remember what rooms Jeff or Cena were in she was screwed.

She didn’t have to jog her memory for long because Cena came out of a room a few doors down, ice bucket in hand. “I thought you were meeting up with Randy,” he said when he saw her.

“He’s not answering the door or his phone,” she replied. “And now I’m locked out of my room. I really don’t want to bother Ken.”

“No problem,” Cena said smiling. “I left my door open. Just go on in. I’m going to get some ice. I have a spare bed. We’ll call down to the front desk in the morning about getting into your room.”

She nodded and headed into Cena’s room. He wasn’t gone long and when he returned he had a full ice bucket. “Make yourself at home,” he said setting the ice down and tossing a few cubes in a cup. “Soda?”

“No thanks,” Isabella replied kicking off her shoes and sitting down on the bed that Cena hadn’t spread stuff all over. “So, you’re not heading to bed?”

“Nah, I’m too wired after a show. I usually read a bit, watch a movie or some TV. Shit like that,” Cena replied pouring himself some soda. “So, we have a choice here…cheesy made for TV movie, chick flick or crappy reality show rerun. Ladies choice.”

“Hmmm…how about chick flick,” she suggested.

“I was afraid you’d say that,” he groaned turning to the channel with the movie.

“Oh John, you shouldn’t have given me the choice,” she said smirking. He shrugged and shoved the things off his bed, getting comfortable. “Got room for one more or do I have to stay on my own side of the room?”

“Come on,” Cena said patting the bed next to him with a smile. Isabella crawled into bed next to Cena and settled in to watch the movie.

“John, thanks for letting me stay,” she said softly after a few moments of silence. “You and Jeff have been really good to me and you barely know me.”

“Ken’s family is our family,” Cena said smiling. “I know you haven’t gotten the test results back yet, but I see a lot of Ken in you.”

“Wow, just what every girl wants to hear,” she said chuckling.

“I’m serious,” Cena replied. “A lot of what you do and how you act is exactly the way Ken is. You’re both stubborn as hell and damn do you have a mean right hook.” She chuckled. “Plus you’re both really great people to have as friends.” At that moment in time he wanted nothing more than to lean over and kiss her, but he fought the urge. “Now are we gonna watch this crappy chick flick or what?”

She chuckled and settled in to watch the movie. It wasn’t long before he felt her head on his shoulder. Looking down he saw that she had fallen asleep. With a sigh he stood, careful not to wake her. Gently he picked her up and laid her in the spare bed. He brushed some hair out of her face and watched her sleeping for a moment.

“I hope you see through Randy’s bullshit before he hurts you, Izzy,” he said softly. “If not…I’ll be here for you.”

He went back to his own bed, suddenly feeling tired himself, and snuggled down under the covers. Though he had only known her a short while he couldn’t help being attracted to her. With a sigh he rolled onto his side and stared at her sleeping form. He knew Kennedy didn’t approve of Randy being with her, but he wondered how Kennedy would react if he showed an interest in her. With those thoughts swimming through his mind he drifted off to sleep.


{Chapter 12}

Randy looked down at the blonde in his arms and sighed. Jillian had been fun, but sleeping with her hadn’t been as fulfilling as he had hoped it would be. He soon found his thoughts drifting to Isabella.

No matter how much time he spent with her he still wanted more. It didn’t matter what they did he just wanted to be with her. This puzzled Randy. No woman had ever affected him this way before.

Jillian sighed softly in her sleep and shifted in his arms. Randy looked down at her and suddenly felt guilty for taking advantage of her little crush on him. Carefully he rolled her onto the pillow next to him and quietly slipped out of bed, quickly dressing and leaving the room.

He was just slipping out of Jillian’s room when he heard Isabella’s voice down the hall. Hiding as best he could he peered down the hall and watched. Isabella came out into the hall giggling. She turned around and faced whoever she was talking to. Randy’s hands clenched into fists when he saw John Cena follow her out into the hall.

“Thanks for letting me stay with you last night, John,” she said smiling.

“What was I supposed to do,” he asked also smiling. “Let you sleep in the hall? My room is your room…uh…that wasn’t supposed to sound as cheesy as it did.”

She chuckled. “Thank you,” she said again and gave him a peck on the cheek before heading toward the elevator.

Cena touched his cheek with a dreamy smile curling his lips. Randy chose this moment to leave his hiding place. He sauntered down the hall and stood behind Cena, who was staring after Isabella still.

“Finally removed the shrink wrap from you dick, John,” Randy asked causing Cena to jump a little.

He spun around to face Randy and his blue eyes narrowed into slits. “Where the hell were you last night,” Cena demanded. “Izzy was disappointed that she couldn’t spend time with you.”

“I was taking care of something,” Randy replied feeling a pang of guilt. “Not that it’s any of your business.”

“Isn’t your room one floor down,” Cena asked. “So, by taking care of something can I assume you mean fucking around behind Izzy’s back?”

“Why would you assume that, John,” Randy asked.

“Because I know you,” Cena replied. “Izzy got locked out of her room. If you wait around I’m sure she’ll be back soon. She went to the front desk to get a spare key.”

Just then Jillian’s door opened. “Randy,” she called down the hall.

“Gotta go,” Randy said and practically ran toward the elevator.

Cena looked down the hall at where Jillian stood, a sheet wrapped around her body. He shook his head and headed back into his room. “Orton will never change,” he muttered. “And Izzy deserves better.”

~*~

“Hey, Ken, you got a minute,” Isabella asked. Once she had been able to get into her room and shower and change she headed next door to speak to Kennedy.

“Sure,” he replied stepping aside so she could enter his room.

“I think we need to clear up some things from last night,” she said taking a seat on the end of the bed. “It seems like you and a few others have the wrong idea about what was going on last night between Randy and I.”

“Look, Izzy, you made it perfectly clear that you wanted me to stay out of your personal life,” Kennedy replied. “Consider me out.” He began to pace the room. “If you want to screw around in the locker room then that’s your business.”

Isabella stood and made him stop pacing. “Ken, that’s just it, Randy and I didn’t screw around in the locker room. He was sore so I gave him a massage. That’s all that happened.”

Kennedy seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. “Really?”

“Yes,” she replied. “What kind of girl do you think I am,” she asked. “You think I haven’t heard all the shit you, John and Jeff have been saying about Randy? Not to mention the stories all the Divas told me. I know that once he gets what he wants he’ll be on to the next woman.”

“So, you mean to tell me that you haven’t…done anything with him…at all,” Kennedy asked, feeling the tension slowly leaving his body.

“No,” Isabella replied shaking her head. “We’ve made out a couple of times, but never any further than that. I won’t let it get that far…not yet.”

“But why,” Kennedy asked, confused now. “Most girls would have melted at the sight of his smile.”

“I’m not like most girls, now am I,” she replied crossing her arms across her chest.

“No,” Kennedy smiled. “You’re not.” He sighed. “Oh, Izzy, can you forgive me for being a…”

“An overbearing, nosy jackass,” she finished for him. “Of course. It’s what big brothers do.”

“Oh so now you acknowledge that we’re family,” he asked with a smirk.

“Someone pointed out the qualities that we share,” Isabella replied. “So, what’s on deck for today?”

“Well, I have an appearance that I have to make in…shit…half an hour and then we’re off to the next town,” Kennedy said.

“All right,” Isabella replied. “I’ll leave you to get ready.”

She exited Kennedy’s room, leaving him to get ready for his appearance. She needed to pack anyway. As she headed out into the hall she saw Jillian and Melina pass by.

“Randy left his phone in my room when he left this morning,” Jillian said.

“Couldn’t get out fast enough, huh,” Melina asked with a chuckle and then caught sight of Isabella. “Oh, Izzy…”

“It’s all right, Melina,” Isabella replied. “I was just going to go see Randy. I could deliver the phone to him.”

“Sure,” Jillian said handing over the phone. She looked at Melina as if to ask who Isabella was. She was the only Diva not in the locker room when Isabella had been introduced around. Isabella took the phone and headed toward the elevators. “Who is she?”

“Ken’s little sister,” Melina replied. “Randy’s been…pursuing her.”

“Oh,” Jillian replied. “I didn’t know.”

“I know, Jilly,” Melina said, shaking her head. If Isabella had any sense she’d tell Randy off and let that be the end of it. “Come on. I’ll buy you breakfast.”

~*~

Isabella took the stairs down to Randy’s floor, not wanting to sit and wait stewing on the elevator. She made it to Randy’s door and knocked loudly. He opened the door expecting to see a big guy standing there. Instead he found Isabella.

“Isabella,” he said pleasantly surprised. “What can I do…” His words were cut short when his phone struck him in the face. “What the…what was that for?”

“I thought we were supposed to hang out last night,” she said angrily.

“Honey, I…got busy,” Randy replied.

“Yeah, with a blonde named Jillian,” she replied. “Apparently fucking a Barbie doll look alike is a bigger priority to you than keeping a commitment with a friend.”

“Isabella, look it wasn’t like that,” Randy said trying to dig himself out of the hole he found himself in.

“No,” Isabella asked crossing her arms across her chest.

“No, I was thinking of you the whole time,” he said and cringed when he realized how that sounded.

“Well, you can think of me on those lonely nights you have coming up, Randy,” she replied, appalled by his words. “It’s over.” She chuckled shaking her head. “Like it had ever begun.” With that she walked away leaving him staring after her.

Jeff had heard the whole thing. He had been exiting his room a couple of doors down just as Isabella had thrown the phone at Randy. Now he made his way down the hall to where Randy stood.

“You screwed up, Orton,” he said. “That was the best thing that could have happened to you and there she goes out of your life.”

“Thanks, Jeff,” Randy growled. “Like I couldn’t figure that out for myself.” With that he went back into his room and slammed the door.

“That’s odd,” Jeff muttered. “Usually Randy would have let it roll right off his back and be on to the next girl.” He made a mental note to speak to Cena and Kennedy about when they had some alone time.

~*~

Isabella ran into Cena on her way back to her room…literally. She collided with his chest and went flying backward onto her ass. “Izzy, shit,” Cena yelped and helped her to her feet. “Are you all right?”

“Fine,” she replied. “I need to go pack.” With that she headed into her room.

Cena went to the door and found that she hadn’t clicked it shut. He gently pushed it open. He watched for bit as she grabbed things and shoved them into her bags, not even bothering to fold anything.

“Izzy, you know you can talk to me if something is bothering you,” he said softly as he entered the room.

She looked at him, unshed tears in her hazel eyes. She groaned and plopped down on the bed. “I thought that if I didn’t give him what he wanted right away maybe we could get to know each other,” she said finally. “I should have known better.”

“What’d Randy do,” he asked taking a seat next to her.

“You mean who,” she replied sniffling. Cena knew then that she had found out about Jillian. “He’s never going to change. Everyone was right.” She let out a shuddering sigh. “I give up on men.”

“Does that mean you’re becoming a lesbian,” Cena asked with a smirk. “’Cause I gotta tell you, your stock just went sky high in my book.”

“John,” she exclaimed, smacking him, though she was chuckling. “Thanks for trying to cheer me up.”

“Look, Randy’s an ass when it comes to women,” Cena said. “Don’t let one jerk taint your opinion of the complete male species. We’re not all jerks.”

“It’s not just one,” she replied softly. “I wish it was just Randy, but it’s not.” She sighed sadly. “I should see if Ken’s back yet and let him know I want to go back to stay with Cindy.”

“Oh that’s a shame,” Cena said. “Because I was lookin’ forward to using you as a pillow on the ride to the next town.”

“You’re riding with Ken,” she asked.

He nodded. “And Jeff too,” Cena replied. “But if you feel that’s too much testosterone for you…”

“I get the message, John,” she said smiling. “You want me around. Fine. I’ll come, but only if you promise to kick the shit out of Randy next time we see him.”

“You got yourself a deal,” he said chuckling. “You finish packing. I’ll swing by to pick you up and meet Jeff and then Ken and we’ll hit the road.” With that he left the room leaving her to pack. Cena smiled to himself. Randy’s loss just might be his gain.

{Chapter 13}

“Hey! Izzy’s ridin’ with us,” Jeff exclaimed happily as he slid in the passenger seat. “This is gonna be so much fun!”

“Jeff, we’re stuck in a car for the next few hours,” Isabella chuckled. “How is that fun?”

“You obviously haven’t ridden with Jeff Hardy before,” Cena teased from the backseat next to Isabella. “Come on, Rainbow. Whip out that bag ‘o goodies!”

Jeff smiled and pulled the bag he had tossed at his feet into his lap. He pulled out various magazines, some music, various snacks, cards and some drinks. Jeff shuffled through some CDs a smile on his face. Kennedy, who was driving, groaned.

“No,” he said shaking his head as Jeff attempted to put a CD in. “I am NOT listening to Pearl Jam for the entire trip.”

“They’re not ALL Pearl Jam,” Jeff pouted.

“Let me see them Jeff,” Isabella said leaning forward with her hand out. He handed her a stack of CDs and she sifted through them. “Here, play this one.” She handed one back to Jeff and he smiled approvingly, popping it in and putting it on shuffle.

“I don’t get a say in this,” Kennedy asked.

“Nope,” Isabella replied smiling as the opening of Hinder’s Lips of an Angel began to play.

Kennedy groaned hearing the song. “Chick rock,” he grumbled.

“Hey! I listen to it and I’m not a chick,” Jeff said.

“That’s debatable,” Cena called from the backseat, earning him a slap upside the head from Isabella. “Hey! We ain’t known each other long enough for you to be assaulting me!” He pouted at her, rubbing his now sore head.

“John, let’s be honest, five minutes was enough time to know you and I wanted to assault you,” Kennedy said chuckling.

“That ain’t right, man,” Cena said crossing his arms across his chest and pouting.

“Hey there Mr. Grumpy Pants,” Isabella said leaning over toward him and using a nasal voice. “Don’t be sad. Turn your frown upside down.”

“Izzy, honey, you’re scaring Jeff,” Kennedy chuckled.

“Not scared,” Jeff said. “Kinda creeped out though. Where the hell did that voice come from?”

Isabella laughed and shrugged. “Just came out,” she replied and glanced at Cena. He was still pouting, though his blue eyes showed amusement.

“All right, I can’t take this music,” Cena said grabbing the stack of CDs that were still in the backseat. “Perfect,” he said smiling pulling out an Akon CD. “Yo, Jeff, pop this bad boy in.”

Jeff took the CD and popped it in, once again hitting shuffle. Kennedy groaned again. “Doesn’t anyone listen to real music,” he grumbled.

“Sorry, Ken,” Isabella said smirking. “We’re not into that old fart music that you like to listen to.”

“Don’t make me pull this car over, young lady,” he grumbled. Jeff, Cena and Isabella all laughed. “Holy shit. I was channeling my dad just then.”

“Just enjoy the music and the fine company, Ken,” Cena said dancing in his seat. Smack That started to play and he smiled wide, bopping around to the beat. He closed his eyes still dancing in his seat.

“John, be careful,” Kennedy said peeking in the rear view mirror and seeing that Cena had begun to flail his arms around as he danced.

He cringed as he saw things unfold in slow motion. Cena’s arm came at Isabella’s face too quick for her to duck. It smacked her right in the nose. Cena sat there a moment stunned, unable to believe what he had just done.

“Shit, Izzy, are you all right,” he asked.

Isabella held her nose, the blood trickling from between her fingers. “It’s not broken,” she managed to say, tilting her head back.

“You don’t know that,” Kennedy said glancing around for a rest stop. “Jesus, John! Are you trying to maim my sister?”

“It was an accident,” Cena cried. “Izzy, I am so sorry.”

“It’s all right, John,” she said, her voice nasal from pinching the bridge of her nose to stem the flow of blood. “Ken, I do know it’s not broken. I’ve had a broken nose before. I know what it feels like.”

“Here, Izzy,” Jeff said handing over some napkins he found in his bag. He handed Cena a bottle of water so he could help clean her up.

“Thanks, Jeff,” she said. “The bleeding has stopped. Ken, you can stop freaking out now.”

“I’m looking for a rest stop, Izzy,” he said. “You need to clean up and I have to piss like a racehorse.”

“That’s nice,” Isabella said as she cleaned off the last remnants of blood from her face. “TMI, Ken.” She looked down at her shirt and sighed. At least it wasn’t one that she loved. Tossing it when they got to the rest stop wouldn’t be a big deal.

“I am so sorry,” Cena said again. “I just…I’m such a fucking idiot.”

“John, I’ll live,” Isabella said. “It was an accident. No hard feelings. All right?”

“Rest stop, Ken,” Jeff said pointing to the sign that said it was on the next right.

About ten minutes later they pulled into the rest stop. Kennedy and Jeff jumped out of the car and headed toward the rest rooms. Cena looked around the rest area. He still felt terrible about injuring Isabella and hoped he could find a gift shop to buy her something to make it up to her. It was then that he spotted Randy’s rental pulling into a space not far from their car.

Isabella was already out of the car, stretching. Cena scurried out the side she had gotten out and grabbed her by the shoulders. “Just go along with me,” he muttered to her. He glanced out of the corner of his eye and saw Randy also stretching. He cupped Isabella’s face in one hand and brought his lips to hers.

Isabella’s eyes went wide when Cena did this, not expecting him to kiss her. She tried to fight him off for a split second before the warmth of his lips made her give in. Her eyes drifted shut and she melted into him, her arms wrapping around his waist.

Cena wrapped his arms around Isabella, pulling her closer to him as he deepened the kiss. She groaned into his mouth as his tongue twined with hers, massaging it. One hand slid up her back, tangling in her hair. If he kept this up much longer he knew he’d lose control and he didn’t want that.

Reluctantly Cena broke the kiss, his intense blue eyes connecting with her hazel ones. “What was that for,” she asked breathlessly.

“Randy just pulled in a couple of cars down,” he said softly, smirking. His eyes never left hers. “Just wanted him to know what he’d be missing out on.”

~*~

From where he was stretching Randy caught sight of a couple kissing. It didn’t take him long to recognize that it was Isabella and Cena. “That motherfucker,” he growled, jealousy boiling up inside of him.

“Wow, that was hot,” Jeff said. He had spotted Randy and had been on his way over to talk over some ideas for their match later that evening when he saw Randy staring at someone or something. He had turned his attention in the direction Randy was staring just in time to see the tail end of the kiss.

“Disgusting is more like it,” Randy said prying his eyes away from the two.

“This from a man who once had a three way kiss with Melina and Mickie James right in the middle of our table when we were at a club,” Jeff said smirking. “Face it, Randy, you fucked up with Izzy and now you regret it.”

“You’re delusional, Hardy,” Randy said and headed toward the rest rooms. Jeff followed him.

~*~

Kennedy left the men’s room shaking his wet hands. “Damn public bathrooms,” he grumbled. “Never have any paper towels.” He glanced around the lot looking for his rental and spotted Cena and Isabella kissing. “Come on,” he groaned and stalked over to the two.

Isabella grabbed a clean shirt from her bag in the trunk and headed off to the ladies’ room to change just as Kennedy made it back to the car. “Hey, Ken,” Cena said unable to hide the smile on his face. “Izzy went to change.”

“What the hell, John,” Kennedy demanded.

“What?” He then realized that Kennedy had seen the kiss. “Oh that? That was nothing. We were just fuckin’ with Randy.”

“It didn’t look like nothing,” Kennedy replied. Cena chuckled, still unable to wipe the smile off his face. “John, come on. Do I need to worry about you too?”

“Worry…Ken, it was just a kiss. Christ, I don’t even know if Izzy likes me like that.”

Kennedy sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I’ve got a headache,” he groaned.

“Just chill, Ken,” Cena said. “Why don’t I drive for the rest of the way. Izzy can sit up front with me and you can lie down in the back.”

“What about Jeff,” Kennedy sighed.

“I’m gonna ride with Randy,” Jeff said as if on cue. He hooked a thumb over to where Orton was waiting by his rental. “We have some things we need to discuss for our match.” He reached into the car and grabbed his bag. “Tell Izzy I’ll see her at the hotel.” With that he skipped off to join Randy.

Cena watched him go before chuckling. Kennedy looked at him questioningly. “Think about it,” Cena said still chuckling. “Jeff is riding with Randy. He’s gonna torture him with Pearl Jam and any other music he’s got in that bag.” Kennedy too began to chuckle.

~*~

“So, Randy,” Jeff said as he popped a CD in. “What’s the deal with you and Izzy?”

“Look, Jeff, I agreed to let you ride with me because you said you wanted to talk about our match,” Randy sighed.

“Right,” Jeff replied bopping his head to the song that was playing. “I think you like Izzy a lot more than you’re letting on.”

“Damn it, Jeff!” Randy punched the steering wheel and sighed. “Fine, yes, I like her. A lot.”

“Then why did you…”

“I don’t know,” Randy growled. “I…fucked up.” He sighed and raked a hand through his hair. “She probably hates me now.”

Jeff quirked a brow at the other man. He had never seen Randy take something so hard. “I don’t think she hates you, man,” Jeff said. “I think she’s just disappointed in your actions.”

Randy glanced at Jeff and sighed shaking his head. “I blew it. She’s with John now,” he said sadly.

Jeff didn’t know what to say. He had been happy that Isabella had seen Randy for what he was, but now he felt bad for him. He seemed to really like Izzy. He might even care about her. With a sigh he settled into the passenger seat and listened to the music, letting Randy drive on in silence.

{Chapter 14}

Kennedy laid in the backseat listening as Cena and Isabella chattered away. He couldn’t help smiling when he heard his sister laughing at Cena’s antics. The man had a knack for making people laugh Kennedy would give him that. He soon drifted off to sleep listening to the two, a smile curling his lips.

“Yo, Ken,” Cena hollered a couple of hours later. Kennedy felt someone shaking his foot. Opening one eye he peered at Cena. “Morning, Sunshine,” he said cheerfully. “Actually early evening. Whatever. We’re at the hotel. Come on. We need to drop off our shit and head to the arena.”

“Great,” Kennedy groaned sitting up and climbing out of the backseat.

“Jeff’s here,” Isabella said frowning when she saw Randy’s car pull into the parking lot. She was in no mood to see Randy.

“Izzy,” Jeff exclaimed grabbing his bag and rushing over to her. He dropped the bag and hugged her. “I missed you!”

“Jeff,” she chuckled shaking her head. “It’s only been a couple of hours since you last saw me.”

Jeff groaned and shook his head, seeing Randy headed their way. “He’s SOOO boring!”

“Wasn’t my idea for you to ride with me,” Randy muttered. He cast a glance at Isabella, but averted his eyes before she could meet his gaze. “I’ll see you guys at the arena,” he said and headed into the hotel.

“He’s in a chipper mood,” Cena commented.

“Oh yeah, I need to talk to you, John,” Jeff said grabbing his bag and then ushering Cena inside the hotel.

Isabella looked at Kennedy shaking her head. “You have some strange friends,” she said. “Has anyone ever told you that?”

He chuckled, opening the trunk and handing her bag to her. “Only everyday since I started working for this company,” he replied. “And Jeff’ll be family if Cindy and I…”

“Ken, are you thinking of proposing,” Isabella asked, smiling.

“I go back and forth on it a lot,” he replied. “Mainly because I’m not sure I really want that in my family.” He pointed toward where Jeff and Cena stood talking animatedly in the hotel lobby.

“Oh stop it,” Isabella said punching his arm playfully. “I see how you look at Cindy. You love her and you’d be willing to put up with anything for her.”

“All right, enough about my personal life,” Kennedy said. “Let’s get checked in.”

~*~

“Jeff, I don’t care,” Cena fumed. His eyes trailing to the glass door where he could see Isabella talking to Kennedy. “Randy doesn’t deserve her. You and I both know it.”

“I’m just saying that maybe he can change for her,” Jeff replied. “You didn’t ride with him. You didn’t see the way he talked about her…when he did talk about her. For the most part he kept quiet. Broody really doesn’t suit him.”

“Jeff, he’s a douche,” Cena said. “Izzy saw him for what he is. End of story.”

“You like her too,” Jeff said realizing why Cena wasn’t willing to listen to what he had to say. “Oh man! This is some soap opera shit!” He slapped his forehead and raked the hand down his face.

“Would you quiet down,” Cena growled. “Yes, I like Izzy. She’s a cool chick to hang out with. That’s all. As for Randy being miserable…serves him right for treating women like trash. I have no sympathy.” With that he headed to the front desk to check in.

“Lie all you want, John, I can see it in your eyes that you like Izzy more than you’re letting on,” Jeff muttered to himself. He sighed and headed to the desk to check him himself.

~*~

“Are you sure you want your hair in braids,” Isabella asked Jeff as she sat in the locker room with him. He sat on the floor in front of her cross legged.

“Yeah, I usually do it myself,” he replied handing her a rubber band for the braid she had just finished. “But I need a little help tonight.” Truth be told he had wanted to speak to her alone to feel out how she felt about Randy and Cena. “So, you and John seem to be getting along well.”

“Yeah, he’s a nice guy,” Isabella said smiling.

“And apparently a hell of a kisser,” Jeff replied. “OW! Izzy, don’t pull my hair,” he whined, rubbing his sore scalp. “You practically gave me a bald patch!”

“Calm down, ya big baby,” she said chuckling. “I didn’t pull your hair that hard.”

“All I was sayin’ was you seemed to enjoy that kiss John laid on you earlier,” Jeff said cringing, waiting for another tug on his hair.

“My, you’re nosy,” Isabella said shaking her head. “Yes, he’s a very good kisser.”

“As good as Randy,” Jeff asked. He winced as she tugged his hair again. “Just a question!”

“What are you up to, Hardy,” she asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

“Just making conversation,” Jeff replied. “So, was John as good as Randy?”

Isabella sighed. “Jeff…”

“You can tell me anything, Izzy,” he said. “I won’t tell Ken or John or even Randy. Everything you say to me is completely confidential. I swear.”

“I know, Jeff,” she replied. “I can’t really compare the two. It’s like comparing apples and oranges.”

“Well, which did you like better,” Jeff asked.

“Let’s just get your hair finished so you can have your match, all right, Jeff,” Isabella said shutting down.

“All right,” Jeff said pouting.

“Trust me, Rainbow, when there’s juicy love life to gossip about you’ll be the first person I confide in,” she said. He smiled and allowed her to continue braiding his hair.

~*~

Isabella was watching Shawn’s match up in a special spot Jeff had shown her. Kennedy would be getting his stitches out over the weekend and he was going to interfere in Shawn’s match that night. She felt her phone vibrating in her pocket as she waited for Ken to make an appearance.

She sighed, not really wanting to miss the finish, but knowing she’d never be able to hear whoever was calling if she stayed where she was. She got to her feet fishing the phone out of her pocket and headed to a quieter spot. With a finger she covered one ear and held the phone to the other one.

“Hello?”

No one answered. She was about to hang up when she heard what sounded like raspy breathing. When no one spoke she grew irritated. She was missing the match for an obscene phone call?

“Hello? I can hear you breathing,” she grumbled into the phone.

“Did you think you could run away, Isabella,” came the voice on the other end.

She paled. “Ja..Jakob,” she gasped. “How did you get this number?”

“Interesting what people will give you if properly motivated,” he replied. She could hear that he was slurring his words. “Ralphie says hi. Poor guy’s got quite the crush on you.”

“Leave me alone,” she said as evenly as she could manage. Despite it only being a phone conversation the man still frightened her. “It’s over, Jakob. We’re over. We have been for five years.” Tears were spilling down her cheeks now. “I’m not your wife anymore. I don’t want you in my life.”

“Is it because of your new wrestling buddies,” Jakob demanded. “The blonde one, and the dark haired ones and the rainbow haired freak? You fucking all of them?”

“Just leave me alone,” she screeched into the phone before ending the call and wrapping her arms around herself, rubbing her upper arms.

She needed to regroup before Kennedy got back and saw her upset. Isabella was halfway down the hall toward the ladies room when the phone rang again. She jumped a mile, yelping. Tentatively she looked at the caller ID and groaned. It was Jakob again and she involuntarily began to shiver.

“Why won’t he just leave me alone,” she moaned, turning off the phone and slipping it back into her pocket. She made a mental note to cancel the account as soon as possible.

Randy was pacing the hall preparing for his match when he saw Isabella. Though her back was to him he could tell something was wrong by the way she was walking. He watched her reaction to the phone call and grew concerned when she began to shiver, wrapping her arms tighter around herself.

“Isabella,” he called closing the distance between them in a few steps. “Are you all right?”

She quickly wiped the tears away and forced a smile as she turned to face him. “Never better,” she replied, though a stray tear slipped down her cheek.

“Then why are you crying,” he asked, catching the tear on his finger as it slid from her cheek. “You’re shaking. What’s wrong?”

“Why do you care,” she asked, her eyes growing cold as ice. “Shouldn't you be trying to fuck one of the Divas?”

Her words stung and he visibly flinched. “Isabella, please. You’re upset. I just want to know if there’s anything I can do to help.”

He reached out to touch her cheek, but she pulled away. “You’ve done enough,” she replied. She saw Cena and Jeff headed her way and thanked her lucky stars.

“Izzy, what’s wrong,” Jeff asked.

“Is he botherin’ you,” Cena asked, his blue eyes boring holes into Randy.

“I was just leaving,” Randy muttered. “I didn’t upset her, John. She was already upset when I found her.” With that he walked away.

Cena turned his attention to Isabella, who was trying hard not to burst into tears again. “Izzy, what happened,” he asked.

“It’s Jakob,” she managed to choke out and pulled her phone out of her pocket. “He called me. He didn’t know my cell number. He said he got it from Ralphie.” She was sobbing now. “He hurt Ralphie. He had to. He wouldn’t just give Jakob my number.”

“Izzy, calm down, honey,” Cena said pulling her into his arms and stroking her back. “What did Jakob say?”

“The same thing he always says,” she replied sniffling. “He accuses me of being a whore. I hung up on him and he…” She realized that he called back and most likely left a message. With great hesitation she turned on the phone and groaned when she heard the voicemail indicator beep.

“Izzy, what is it,” Jeff asked looking at the phone.

“He called back,” she replied, and connected to her voice mail. She punched in her code and put the phone on speaker.

“YOU HUNG UP ON ME, YOU FUCKING CUNT! YOU DON’T FUCKING HANG UP ON ME,” Jakob screamed into the phone. “YOU’LL PAY, YOU BITCH!” He then cleared his throat. “I think I’ll start making you pay by teaching one of your boyfriends a lesson starting with the blonde one. He might just have a little accident sometime soon.” With that the call ended.

Isabella’s eye grew wide as saucers. “Izzy,” Cena said gripping her shoulders tightly. “Stay calm, honey.” She was practically catatonic. “Shit. Jeff, get her back to the locker room. I need to let Stephanie hear this message. Security needs to be beefed up until this psychopath is off the streets.”

Jeff nodded leading Isabella away. Cena turned around came face to face with Randy. “What do you want, Orton,” he demanded not in the mood for whatever he was about to pull.

“Is she all right,” he asked falling into step beside Cena. “She was so upset. What’s going on?”

Cena sighed seeing the concern in Randy’s blue eyes. He hated to admit it, but Jeff might be right. “Her ex called her tonight,” he replied finally. “He threatened her.”

“This the same son of a bitch that bruised her face,” Randy asked, already hating the man. Cena nodded. “John,” he said stopping the older man. “I know I’m the last person she wants to see right now and I’m sure between you, Jeff and Ken she’ll be safe, but if you need any help…”

“We’ll call you, Randy,” Cena said patting him on the shoulder. “I need to talk to Stephanie about beefing up security.” Randy arched a brow at him. “This joker threatened you, me, Ken and Jeff too. Can’t be too careful.” Randy nodded and watched him head into Stephanie’s office.

~*~

By the time Kennedy made it back to his locker room Isabella had calmed down a bit. The tears were still flowing down her cheeks though. When Kennedy entered the locker room she shot from her seat and threw herself in his arms.

“I am so sorry, Ken,” she sobbed.

“Izzy, what’s going on,” He asked, wrapping his arms around her. “Jeff, what happened.” Jeff filled him in on the phone calls and then reluctantly headed out to find Randy for their match.

“Izzy, quiet down now,” he cooed, his voice deceptively calm for the way he felt inside. “Everything will be all right. I promise you. For the rest of the road trip I think it would be best if you stay close to at least one of us.” She nodded wiping the tears away and sniffling. “Why don’t you go wash your face and we’ll head back to the hotel?”

He watched her leave the locker room to wash up and raked a hand through his hair. With a sigh he went to his bag and pulled out his cell phone, calling Cindy to let her know what was going on. She listened as he spoke, knowing he needed to vent a little.

“Just keep her safe, honey,” she said once he had finished. “And I know both of you don’t want Randy around, but…”

“No,” Kennedy replied. “He’s not getting near her again, Cindy.”

“It might not be a bad thing to have him around, Ken,” she replied. Jeff had called her earlier in the day and told her of what he had discovered.

“I gotta go, babe,” he said when Cena entered the locker room.

“I think you should hear this message,” he said handing Isabella’s phone to Kennedy. “I let Stephanie hear it and she’s agreed to add some security to the shows until things die down. I have to get out there to interfere in the match.” He let Kennedy know the code and left.

Kennedy sat down and played the message. Isabella returned in the middle of it. Seeing her face he quickly ended it and handed the phone back to her. He didn't need to hear the rest to know that Jakob was seriously deranged. “He won’t touch you again, Izzy,” he said softly, pulling her into a hug. “I promise you that.”

{Chapter 15}

A few days after the incident at the house show Kennedy and Isabella arrived home. Cindy greeted them at the door, a wide smile curling her lips. Kennedy gave her a peck on the cheek and eyed her. Isabella had been quiet for the remainder of the road trip, staying close to Cena, Jeff or Kennedy. She now headed into the living room to leave the couple to their hellos.

“What’s with you,” he asked.

Cindy produced a manila envelope from behind her back. “The test results arrived yesterday,” she said happily.

“With all the shit going on I’d completely forgotten about this,” he said taking the envelope and heading into the living room where Isabella sat on the couch. “Izzy, we got the test results.”

“Open it already,” Cindy demanded, still smiling.

Kennedy opened up the envelope, pulling out the paperwork. He scanned it silently, his face unreadable. Isabella waited patiently to know if she was related to this man or not. Cindy groaned impatiently when Kennedy didn’t say anything for a long while.

“Well? What does it say,” she demanded.

Kennedy’s face broke into a smile. “I hate to tell ya this, kid,” he said to Isabella. “But you’re stuck with me for the rest of your life. You’re definitely my sister.”

Isabella smiled for the first time in days. “Then this calls for a celebration,” she said. “I’ll make a nice dinner for us.”

“Jeff and Matt are coming over,” Cindy said smiling.

“Oh yeah and I invited John,” Kennedy said. “He was in town doing some promotional shit.”

“Great,” Isabella said. “We’ll need supplies.”

“I can drive you to the market,” Cindy said.

“I can do it,” Isabella said holding out her hand for the car keys. Cindy hesitated looking to Kennedy. “Guys, I’m just going to the market and back here. Please don’t get all weird on me.”

“All right,” Kennedy said pulling his car keys out of his pocket and tossing them to her. They watched her leave before Cindy turned back to him.

“Ken, what if…”

“She needs this time, Cinder,” he said. “She just needs some time to herself.”

~*~

Later in the afternoon delicious scents filled the air. Isabella had sequestered herself away in the kitchen, not allowing anyone to enter while she cooked for everyone. Even Cindy was relegated to entertaining her cousins for the time being. Dinner would be a surprise and Isabella didn’t want anyone to spoil it.

The doorbell rang and Kennedy went to answer the door. He opened it expecting to see Cena and he did, though he had brought a guest. “What the fuck is he doing here,” Kennedy demanded.

“Randy’s flight was canceled,” Cena said. “He didn’t have any place to go until tomorrow. I told him it would be cool to hang out.”

“Ken, I can leave,” Randy said, not enjoying the fact that they were talking about him like he wasn’t there.

“No,” Cena said grabbing Randy’s arm and all but dragging him into the house. “The more the merrier, right Ken?”

Kennedy sighed, but deep down he knew that the more people that were there the less likely Jakob would be able to try anything if he made an appearance. “Right,” Kennedy replied. “Come on in, guys. Izzy’s making dinner.”

Cena sniffed the air, his mouth practically watering at the aromas coming from the kitchen. “She can cook too,” he asked smiling. “Damn. She’s the total package.”

“Hey, watch it,” Kennedy chuckled. “That’s my sister you’re talking about.”

“And it’s official now. We got the test results to prove it,” Isabella said coming out of the kitchen. “Dinner’s almost ready.” She then caught sight of Randy. “What’s he doing here?”

“I invited him,” Cena replied. “He’s got nowhere to be until tomorrow so I told him it’d be all right to hang out.”

“If you don’t have enough food for everyone I can just go back to the hotel,” Randy said softly.

“There’s plenty,” Isabella said. “Besides what I’ve made is probably better for you than room service.” With that she headed into the kitchen. “I could use a hand from someone.”

“Go on, Randy,” Cena said shoving him after Isabella. “Give the lady a hand.”

Reluctantly Randy followed Isabella into the kitchen. “Everything smells delicious,” he said watching as she stirred a big pot of tomato sauce. She opened up the oven and motioned for Randy to come over.

“It’s a little heavy,” she said pointing to the lasagna that was in the oven. He nodded grabbing some potholders and pulling the pan out of the oven, placing it on the table.

“How are you doing,” he asked watching as she sliced up some tomatoes for the salad. “Last time I saw you…”

“Look, you’re done in here,” she said turning to glare at him. “You can go back to your friends now.”

“Isabella, I really wish you wouldn’t do that,” he said.

“Yeah and I wish you’d fall on your head and drown in your own barf, but we can’t always get what we want,” she replied coldly.

Randy sighed. “Fine. You know I think I’ll pass on dinner. I’m suddenly not hungry.” With that he headed out of the kitchen. Moments later she heard the front door close.

“What happened,” Jeff asked coming to see if Isabella needed any help.

“Nothing,” she lied. “He just wasn’t hungry. Could you take that into the dining room and tell the others that dinner is ready.” She went back to tossing the salad. Jeff frowned, but took the lasagna into the dining room as asked.

When Isabella emerged from the kitchen moments later she wore a smile on her face. Happily she served dinner and listened to stories about life on the road and various other tales the men had to share. Jeff suspected that she was putting on a brave face to keep her mind off of Jakob and anything else that was bothering her.

It was late by the time Matt and Jeff left. It was later still when Cena decided to call it a night. Not wanting him to drive so late at night Kennedy offered him the couch, which he gladly accepted. Isabella had retired to her room hours before, feigning a headache.

~*~

It was a little after three in the morning when Cena was coming back from the bathroom and he saw someone sneak out of the house. He followed the person and saw Isabella struggling with her bag. Not caring that it was a cold night and he had no shoes on he followed her.

“Does Ken know you’re skipping out on him,” Cena asked, causing her to jump out of her skin.

“Damn it, John,” she hissed. “Don’t scare me like that!”

“You didn’t answer my question,” he replied crossing his arms across his chest.

“No, Ken doesn’t know,” she replied dropping the bag she had been dragging along. “Neither does Cindy.”

“Why would you do this to them, Izzy,” he asked. “They opened up their home to you when you were just a stranger to them. Now that you know you’re family you’re just leaving?”

“It’s safer for them,” Isabella said the tears stinging her eyes. “For all of you. I don’t want you or Ken or Jeff hurt just because of me.”

“It wouldn’t be because of you, Izzy,” John replied. “If…big fat IF anything happened to one of us it would be because Jakob is a fucking lunatic.”

“I couldn’t live with that,” she said softly, the tears slipping down her cheeks.

“Izzy, you’re all Ken’s got left in this world. You’re his only family,” Cena said. “If you leave…it would crush him. Any physical pain Jakob causes him he can get over. The emotional pain of losing his only family…that could scar him for life.”

“I don’t know what to do, John,” she whimpered. “I want to stay. I want Ken to be part of my life, but…I don’t want Jakob to hurt him.”

“You let us worry about Jakob,” Cena said picking up her bag with ease. “Just come on back inside ‘cause I’m freezin’ my nuts off here.”

She smirked a little bit, sniffling. “All right,” she replied finally following him back into the house. “You can’t tell Ken about this,” she said softly. “If he knew I tried to leave…I couldn't stand to see the hurt in his eyes.”

“Your secret is safe with me, Izzy,” Cena said smiling. “Go get some sleep.” He watched her head up to her room before heading back to the couch to get some more sleep.

{Chapter 16}

Isabella had relaxed a little since the night she tried to run away. She had closed her phone account so that she couldn’t get anymore calls from Jakob. Kennedy had opened a new one for her, making sure it was as secure as possible.

Cena made it a point to give her a call every night no matter where he was just to chat. He was worried about her and wanted to make sure she was all right. Jeff made a point to call or visit as often as he could too. Isabella seemed to be the only person besides his cousin who understood and tolerated his scatter brained antics.

The two men had convinced some of the Divas to keep in touch with Isabella as well. They really didn’t have to do much in the way of convincing though. Ashley loved chatting with Isabella and had already made a date to go get a new tattoo together. Candice and Maria often invited Isabella to shop with them whenever she accompanied Kennedy on the road. Melina loved to gossip with her, mainly because Isabella was the only one who would listen.

A couple of weeks after she attempted to run away Isabella was on the road with Kennedy. Cindy had accompanied them as well. That night was a supershow so the locker rooms and halls were especially crowded. The two women had spent most of their time watching from a perch that Jeff had found for them.

“Hey, Cinder, you seen Jeff,” Matt asked as the women headed to Kennedy’s locker room after the show.

“Not since he was in the ring,” Cindy replied.

“If you see him could you tell him I’ll be waiting for him in the car,” Matt asked. Cindy nodded allowing him to give her a quick squeeze and a peck on the cheek before he headed of the building for the night.

~*~

“Oh, did Jeff ever find Matt,” Cindy asked as she walked out with Kennedy, his arm around her shoulders. Isabella trailed behind them with Cena by her side.

“He headed out to the parking lot about ten minutes ago,” Cena said.

The four headed out of the building just in time to hear Jeff wailing. “Matt,” he cried. “Oh God! Matty, please be all right!”

Cindy bolted to her cousin’s side. She found Jeff, kneeling on the ground, Matt’s bloody head in his lap. The others were close behind her, stopping when they saw the brothers. Isabella began to tremble. She just knew Jakob had something to do with this.

He looked at Cindy, anguish in his green eyes, and whimpered “He won’t wake up.”

“Ken, call an ambulance,” Cindy called, leaning over Matt to see what exactly his injuries were. Just as Kennedy pulled out his cell phone he was tackled to the ground. His phone skittered to a stop next to Jeff. “KEN,” Cindy screamed springing to her feet.

Isabella watched in horror as Jakob tackled her brother to the ground. It was like everything was happening in slow motion. With wide eyes she saw Cindy attempt to get Jakob off Kennedy only to be thrown aside like a rag doll.

“Cindy,” she gasped. “Are you all right?” Cindy looked at her hand, which was scraped, but nodded. She would live.

“Jeff call 911,” Cena called as he wrenched Jakob off of Kennedy. Jeff picked up Kennedy’s phone testing it to make sure it still worked. When he got a dial tone he quickly punched in 9-1-1.

Kennedy had a gash the back of his head from the contact with the pavement, but otherwise was unwounded. As he got to his feet Jakob ran Cena into a car parked nearby. The alarm began to sound loudly, cutting through the night.

“What’s going on,” Randy asked coming upon the scene as he exited the arena.

“Randy, get the girls back to the hotel,” Kennedy called before going to help Cena.

Randy turned his gaze to where Cena stood battling a man he didn’t recognize. He suddenly understood that this man must be Jakob. “Come on,” he said ushering Isabella and Cindy toward his rental not far from the scene.

“We can’t just leave,” Cindy cried. “Ken and John need help! And Jeff and Matt!”

“Jeff’s calling for help, Cindy,” Isabella said taking the other woman’s hand and leading her to Randy’s car.

“I need to get you ladies back to the hotel and then I promise I’ll go back and help them, all right,” Randy said in hopes that Cindy would get in his car. It worked and she quietly got in the back seat. Isabella slid into the passenger seat as Randy slid behind the wheel.

“Thank you…for this,” Isabella said to Randy as he drove them back to the hotel. She was a bundle of raw nerves knowing that Kennedy and Cena were risking their lives to protect her. Jakob would not hesitate to kill them she knew this. He only cared about one thing and that was getting her back at all costs.

“I’m just glad you’re safe,” Randy said with a sigh. “Glad I could help…that you let me help.”

That was all that was said between the two as they rode the rest of the way in silence. Once Randy had parked the car he helped both Cindy and Isabella out. He was just ushering them into the lobby when he felt someone strike him from behind.

“RANDY,” Isabella cried when he dropped to a knee looking glassy eyed. She turned her attention to whoever had attacked him and gasped. “No, Jakob. You can’t be…”

“Did you honestly think that those ‘roided up freaks were any match for me,” he demanded. His jade green eyes cold. His shoulder length dark brown hair blew in the night air, uncombed. “Why do you make it so hard for me to love you, baby?” He looked much more maniacal than she remembered.

“This isn’t love, Jakob,” Isabella replied. “What did you do to Ken and John?”

“Is that their names,” Jakob asked smiling. “Doesn’t matter now. They could all be named John Doe for all I care. They’ve got a one way ticket to the morgue now, sweetheart.”

“You bastard,” Cindy growled lunging at him. Isabella held her back just as Jakob held up what he had struck Randy with.

“Nice little toy, isn’t it, baby,” Jakob asked holding up the small revolver. It’s silver barrel glinted in the street light.

Isabella gasped, her hands covering her mouth as the tears stung her eyes. She suddenly understood how he had gotten to the hotel so quickly. She only hoped and prayed that Cena and Kennedy weren’t really dead.

Pushing her fears to the back of her mind she glared at him. “What are you gonna do, Jakob, kill me,” she demanded.

“Not you, baby, never you,” he replied, holding out his free hand to her. “Just anyone who gets in the way of what I want.”

“And I’m just supposed to go with you,” she demanded, crossing her arms across her chest. “Because you want me? It’s been five years Jakob. Haven’t you figured out that I don’t want you?”

Randy groaned, getting to his feet with Cindy’s help. He felt the back of his head and groaned again. There was a lump there swelling up to the size of a goose egg. “Isabella, what are you doing?”

“Haven’t I shown you how much I love you, baby,” he asked.

Isabella scoffed. “Was it the black eye you gave me that one time that was supposed to show me,” she demanded. “Or the broken ribs on our anniversary? No, wait, I remember it was beating me until I lost our baby. Yeah, that was it.”

“Izzy,” Cindy groaned seeing Jakob’s gun hand trembling. “Stop it.”

“Was that how much you loved me, Jakob,” she demanded. “Putting me in the hospital? That’s how much you love me?”

Jakob snarled at her. “This is how much I love you,” he growled, pointing his gun at Cindy and pulling the trigger.

The raven haired woman’s sky blue eyes went wide as saucers as the blood began to pour from her chest. Isabella gasped as she watched Cindy cover up the wound moments before dropping to her knees. Randy tried in vain to catch her before she could hit the ground, but failed. Cindy landed face down on the pavement, her raven locks pooling around her.

{Chapter 17}

“You sick son of a bitch,” Isabella growled, her eyes never leaving Cindy. One by one Jakob was taking everyone she cared about. “Are you mentally deficient? Does that make you feel like a big man? Shooting an innocent woman?”

“Innocent,” Jakob snorted. “She was trying to keep us apart, baby. The bitch had to die.” He pointed the gun at Randy now. Isabella saw this and stepped in front of Randy.

“Don’t you even think about it,” she said.

“Get out of the way, baby,” he demanded.

“Or what Jakob,” Isabella demanded. “You gonna shoot me?”

“GET OUT OF THE WAY,” Jakob yelled.

“Go on Jakob,” Isabella said calmly. “Shoot me.”

“Isabella,” Randy said, his head still foggy. “What are you doing?”

“I SAID GET THE FUCK OUT OF THE WAY,” Jakob screamed.

“AND I SAID SHOOT ME,” Isabella screeched. “What’s the matter, Jakob? Don’t have the balls? You can shoot total strangers, but not the woman you claim to love? SHOOT ME!”

“SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH,” Jakob yelled. “YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN THE FUCK TO SHUT UP!” As he spoke he gestured with the gun. “YOU’RE MORE TROUBLE THAN YOU’RE WORTH!” With the gesture for those words he squeezed the trigger involuntarily.

“Isabella,” Randy yelled, eyes going wide. He lunged, shoving her out of the way. She fell to the ground next to Cindy. The bullet hit Randy in the shoulder, the arm going numb nearly instantly.

“She’s mine motherfucker,” Jakob said inching forward to tower over Randy. “You can’t have her!”

“She doesn’t want you,” Randy spat, groaning at the pain in his shoulder. “You’re a crazy son of a bitch.”

Jakob pressed the gun into Randy’s temple. “Say that to me again, boy,” he growled. “Go on. Be a big man.”

“Jakob,” Isabella yelled getting to her feet. She grabbed his hand pulling the gun away from Randy. “If I agree to go with you will you stop this craziness?”

His jade green eyes lit up when she asked the question. “All I need is you, baby,” he said, reaching out to caress her face with his free hand.

It turned her stomach to do it, but she leaned into his touch. “I’ve been lost, Jakob,” she said, hating herself for saying these words. “I should have never left you. You’re the only man I need.” She reached out and pulled his arm around her waist.

“Isabella,” Randy said. “What are you doing?”

She turned her gaze on him, her hazel eyes full of sadness. “Saving your life,” she said softly. “Cindy is still alive, but just barely. Make sure she gets help.” She turned back to Jakob. “I’m ready to go with you.”

Jakob smiled. “I knew you’d see things my way,” he said.

“First, I need you to do something for me,” Isabella said softly.

“Anything,” he replied.

“I need you to give me the gun,” she said, hoping he’d do as she asked. He looked down at the revolver in his hand. “It’s the only way I’ll come with you.” Reluctantly he handed over the revolver. “Thank you, Jakob,” she said taking the gun.

“Now we can be happy like we used to be, baby,” he said, pulling her close to him and crushing his lips to hers.

Tears streamed down her cheeks as she allowed him to deepen the kiss. She broke the kiss before things could go any further and before Jakob could do anything squeezed the trigger twice. Jakob’s eyes grew wide as the bullets penetrated his stomach, tearing through his organs. He stumbled back, looking down at the large hole in his gut. The blood poured from the wound.

She dropped to her knees, sobbing. For a moment Randy thought that Jakob had shot her. He then saw the wounded man fall flat on his back, sputtering. Getting to his feet he went to Isabella’s side, taking the gun from her and tossing it aside.

“Isabella,” he said softly. “Are you all right?”

“It’s over,” she sobbed. “It’s finally over.”

The shrill sound of sirens could be heard in the distance. Randy looked in the direction the sound came from. The sound was getting closer to them and he hoped that there was an ambulance in that parade of sirens. Cindy wasn’t looking good.

“Izzy,” they heard as car doors slammed.

Isabella turned her eyes toward the owner of the voice and was relieved to see Kennedy running toward them. His arm was bandaged, but she could see the blood seeping through the gauze. Cena was close behind him.

Kennedy stopped when he saw Jakob’s lifeless body. His eyes then trailed to Cindy. “Cindy,” he exclaimed going to his fallen girlfriend. “Oh God no.” He pulled her limp body into his arms. “Baby. Baby, no.”

Moments later the police cars pulled into the parking lot. An ambulance was indeed with them and the EMTs went to work on Cindy. Cena managed to get Kennedy away from her so that they could do their jobs.

Randy was looked over before being questioned by the police. Isabella, though she was still in shock, was questioned as well. Jakob’s body was taken away, but the death had to be investigated.

“Mr. Kennedy,” one of the EMTs said as Cindy was being loaded into the ambulance. “Miss Hardy is being taken to the hospital. She needs surgery.”

“Can I ride with her,” Kennedy asked. The EMT nodded. Kennedy turned his attention to where Randy sat with Isabella, his shoulder heavily packed with gauze. He too needed to go to the hospital, but he refused to go anywhere until he knew that Isabella was all right. “Izzy,” Kennedy said softly. “I’m going to the hospital with Cindy.” She stared at him blankly.

“We’ll make sure she gets there,” Cena said. Randy nodded. With a sad sigh Kennedy followed the EMT to the ambulance, climbing in the back to be with Cindy.

He sat down next to her and took her hand. “Cinder, you gotta hold on,” he said softly. “I need you, baby.” He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. He didn’t want to openly cry in front of the EMT. “You gotta hold on, baby, because…because I'm gonna ask you to be my wife.” He brought her limp hand up to his lips and kissed the back of it softly.

~*~

“Come on, Randy,” Cena said helping the younger man up. “You need to get that shoulder looked at.”

“What about…”

“I’ll keep an eye on Izzy,” Cena said. He helped her up as well. “Come on, honey. We’re going to meet Ken at the hospital.”

“Cindy,” she said softly. “Is she..”

“We don’t know yet,” Randy said slipping his uninjured arm around her. “She needs surgery.”

She turned her gaze to him, her eyes blank of any emotion. “You’re hurt,” she said looking at the blood seeping through the gauze on his shoulder.

“I’ll be all right,” Randy said, though his shoulder hurt like a bitch.

“You took a bullet for me,” she said softly.

“Yeah, I did,” he replied.

“I took one too,” Cena said showing her his arm. A large gash went across his bicep. “Well…it just grazed me, but hurt like a motherfucker.”

Isabella didn’t say a word. She didn’t even chuckle at his words. She was still in shock. She was nearly catatonic from the whole ordeal. The three made it the car and Randy slid in the backseat with Isabella.

As Cena drove he glanced in the rear view mirror and saw Isabella lay her head on Randy’s good shoulder. Randy wrapped his arm around her, pulling her closer to him. Cena could see the silent tears streaming down her cheeks as Randy stroked her hair. Though he hated to admit it, Cena could see that Randy cared for Isabella.

It hurt to come to this decision, but he made a mental note to speak to Isabella about giving Randy a second chance. He had after all taken a bullet for her. He was satisfied that was proof enough that Randy had changed.

The three made their way into the hospital meeting up with Kennedy. “No word on Cindy,” he said pacing when he saw Cena, Randy and Isabella get off the elevator. “She’s been in there forever.” He sighed and slumped into a seat in the waiting area. “I hate hospitals.”

Randy took a seat and Isabella sat down next to him, leaning on him. This didn’t go unnoticed by Kennedy. He looked to Cena questioningly. Cena pointed to his shoulder signing that Randy had taken a bullet for Isabella. Kennedy nodded that he understood and sighed waiting for any word on Cindy.

“Ken,” Jeff called exited the elevator a few minutes later. “How’s Cindy?”

“No word yet,” Kennedy replied. “How’s Matt?”

“Concussion,” Jeff replied. “He’s being kept for observation.” He took a seat with the rest of them.

An eternity passed before a doctor came to the waiting area. Kennedy was up and practically pounced on the doctor for news. “Miss Hardy has been stabilized,” the doctor said. “She’s going to be fine. The bullet caused some damage to bones, but they’ve been repaired with pins and plates. She’s very lucky that no major organs were hit.”

“Can I see her,” Kennedy asked.

“She’ll be out from the anesthesia, but you can sit with her,” the doctor said.

“Go be with your girl,” Cena said to Kennedy. “We’ll get Izzy back to the hotel.” Kennedy nodded and headed toward Cindy’s room.

“Jeff, you take Izzy back to the hotel. I’m taking Randy to get his shoulder checked out.” Nodding Jeff took Isabella’s hand and led her away.

{Chapter 18}

Kennedy was sitting with Cindy, holding her hand as he dozed in the uncomfortable chair at her bedside. He felt her squeeze his hand and opened his eyes. Her sky blue orbs met him.

“Hey,” he said smiling. “You’re awake.”

“And in a world of pain,” she replied wincing as she shifted position.

“I’m just happy to look into those beautiful eyes again,” he replied. “I’ll go get the nurse to get you something for the pain.” He released her hand and stood to get the nurse.

“Ken,” she called softly. He stopped in the doorway turning his attention back to her. “The answer is yes.” He looked at her questioningly. “In the ambulance you said you were going to ask me to be your wife. The answer is yes.” She smiled at him sweetly, though she winced as pain shot through her shoulder.

“I’ll get the nurse and then we can discuss that later,” he said chuckling as he left the room.

~*~

Randy groaned when someone knocked on his hotel room door. Cena and Jeff had to go on to the next town with the company. Neither man was seriously wounded and had a job to do. Randy had stayed at the hotel to keep an eye on Isabella for Kennedy. He would be out of action for some time while his wound healed. He had some minor nerve damage, but was told it would heal as well.

He padded over to the door and opened it revealing Isabella. She carried a blanket and pillow with her. “I couldn’t sleep,” she said softly. “Can I stay with you?”

“Come on in,” he said. “You didn’t need to bring a blanket and pillow though.”

“I’m a blanket hog,” she replied smirking a little. It was the first sign of the old Isabella he had seen since getting back from the hospital. “Which side is yours?”

“Left,” Randy replied.

“Too bad,” she said throwing her pillow down and pulling the blanket around her as she curled up on the left side of the bed. “You’ll have to deal with the right side.”

Randy smiled. “I’ll deal,” he chuckled. “Good night, Izzy.” He crawled into bed next to her.

“That’s the first time you’ve called me that,” she said.

“John told me you don’t like Isabella,” Randy replied.

“I don’t mind it when you call me that,” she replied softly. “Good night Randy.” She curled up on her side and closed her eyes.

“Good night, Isabella,” he said and leaned over to the nightstand, shutting off the bedside lamp.

Sometime in the middle of the night Randy was awakened by the sound of whimpering. He realized that Isabella was having a nightmare. Reaching out he pulled her into his arms.

“It’s all right, Isabella,” he cooed softly. “You’re safe. I won’t let anyone hurt you…ever.” She quieted and relaxed in his arms. He watched her sleeping for a while before his eyes drifted shut, sleep overtaking him.

~*~

Isabella woke in the morning feeling arms wrapped tightly around her. Carefully she pulled free and rolled over, watching Randy sleeping. Her eyes trailed to the heavily bandaged shoulder and guilt washed over her. He had taken the bullet for her…saved her life.

Tentatively she reached out and lightly touched the bandage. He groaned and opened his eyes, his blue orbs meeting her hazel ones. They laid there staring into each other’s eyes for a long while.

“Did I ever thank you for that,” she finally asked.

“You don’t need to thank me,” he replied softly. “You were in danger and…I just reacted.” He was lying through his teeth. The truth of the matter was that he was afraid Jakob would have killed her and he couldn’t stand the thought of losing her.

“It was more than just a reaction,” she said reaching out to touch his cheek. Closing his eyes he leaned into her touch. “You saved my life, Randy. You risked your own life for me.”

“It was nothing,” he said opening his eyes and meeting her gaze once again.

“Has anyone ever told you that you’re a terrible liar,” she asked with a smirk. “Thank you, Randy.” With those words she brought her lips to his and kissed him softly.

Randy wrapped his uninjured arm around her, pulling her closer to him. He wanted to savor the kiss, to feel her warm body close to his. She pulled away a few moments later and he groaned inwardly. It was over too quickly and he wanted more.

“I’m sorry, Isabella,” he said after a few moments of silence. “About Jillian. About being a total ass and ruining what could have been a great relationship.”

“You can make it up to me,” she said.

“How,” he asked.

“Dinner and a movie is a good start,” she said. “Then we can see where things go from there.”

“You got yourself a deal, beautiful,” he said smiling.

~*~

Slowly Isabella returned back to normal. The investigation into Jakob Carter’s death ruled it as self defense. Slowly her nightmares had dissipated until she was able to sleep the night without tossing and turning. She had finally gotten her life back. Isabella no longer needed to live in fear of her ex coming back into her life.

Cindy spent a few days in the hospital mending and then was released. Isabella had planned a big welcome home party for her. She had enlisted Jeff and Matt to help decorate. Cena and Randy also helped while she prepared the food.

“They’re home,” Jeff called as he watched Kennedy help Cindy out of the car.

“What’s all this,” Kennedy asked as they entered the house.

“Welcome home party for Cindy,” Isabella said.

“All this for me,” Cindy asked smiling.

“You deserve it, Cinder,” Matt said to his cousin. “We missed you.”

“Yeah,” Jeff said giving her a hug gingerly. “You’re like the little sister we never had, Cinder.”

“Speaking of sisters,” Isabella said smiling wide. “Ken tells me I’ll be calling you my sister-in-law soon.”

Cindy chuckled and nodded. “We haven’t set a date yet, but yeah. Ken made it official before I left the hospital.” She held out her hand showing off the engagement ring.

“Check out the size of that rock,” Cena said. “So, Kenny, you decided to make an honest woman out of our little Cindy, huh?” He clapped Kennedy on the back.

“Sure did,” Kennedy replied, slipping an arm around Cindy’s waist. “Couldn’t risk losing her and a joker like you snapping her up, John.”

“You couldn’t lose me if you tried,” Cindy chuckled.

Isabella watched as Kennedy ushered Cindy over to the couch and propped her up on a bunch of pillows. Randy joined her, slipping an arm around her waist. “Aren’t they cute,” she asked him.

“Very,” Randy said smiling and kissed her neck softly. “Why don’t you serve that delicious food your prepared, baby?”

“Only if you help me,” she said taking his hand and leading him into the kitchen.

Cena watched them and sighed sadly. Jeff joined him. “You could have had her all to yourself you know,” he commented.

“Nah, she was into Randy this whole time,” Cena replied rubbing the back of his neck. “I never stood a chance. She’s happy now and that’s all that matters.”

~*~

After everyone had gone home full from a delicious meal Isabella sat with Kennedy and Cindy just relaxing with a movie. Kennedy was close to dozing as Cindy lay with her head in his lap. Isabella wasn’t really interested in the movie, but didn’t want to go up to bed just yet.

“So, Izzy,” Cindy said after a while of comfortable silence. “How long before Randy proposes?”

“Jesus Christ, Cindy,” Kennedy exclaimed. “They’ve just started dating!”

“Relax, Ken,” Isabella said chuckling. “I’m sure Cindy was just making conversation.”

“I was,” Cindy said smiling mischievously. “So, how long do you think, Izzy?”

“For Christ sake,” Kennedy grumbled.

“Not for a very long time,” Isabella said chuckling. “Right now I need to concentrate on finding a job and a place of my own here.”

“You’re not going back to Jersey,” Kennedy asked, ecstatic that she wanted to stay close to him.

“Nothing for me there,” Isabella replied with a yawn. “Besides, how can I torment my dear old brother if I’m in another state?” Cindy giggled at her comment. Kennedy just shook his head. “I think I’m heading off to bed. Night guys.”

“I think we should hit the sack too,” Cindy said to Kennedy once Isabella had disappeared upstairs.

“I’m not really tired,” he replied smirking.

“Then we’ll have to do something about that,” she said smirking as well. She offered him her hand and he took it standing and allowing her to lead the way up the stairs.