Body, Heart, and Soul 2023
January 13
Santa Barbara
Valentine home
--------------------
As much as Tommy and I tend to have a lot of fun every time we go to New Orleans, he wasn't able to come with me there for Breakdown, due to his PT schedule. So, I got home Friday afternoon, with another shot glass to add to our collection and a mini king cake since it was Mardi Gras season and those things are fucking decadent. As much as I tried to seem like I was in a good mood though due to the things I brought home, Tommy knew I was still pissed. I should have known he'd see through me. Tommy was sitting at the end of the kitchen island, his laptop in front of him, when I came downstairs from getting my luggage up there. I had brought the cake down and set it on the counter, then plopped myself into a chair at the island, on the long side. Tommy looked up at me with concern.
“Okay, now I know you're upset, you haven't cut that cake yet.”
I shrugged. “I thought we'd wait til after dinner.”
“Be that as it may, you can stop pretending you're not in a shit mood. I did watch last night, you know.”
I sighed, which turned into something of a groan. “Can you fucking believe it?! If that damn doctor would have cleared me when I was ready, I could have had my shot!”
“Twenty is higher than seven, babe.”
“No shit. But I wasn't even listed. How many more would I have gotten if I was? Double? Triple? I could have won the damn thing instead of that goddamn cartoon character!”
Tommy seemed to think about that a moment, and tilted his head a bit in concession. “Okay, that's a fair point, I didn't think of it that way. Goes to show you how many people hate the idea of Cruze as a Champion.”
“That's what I'm saying! I tried to talk to someone in charge but everyone blew me off. It seemed like they were pissed I got the information. I'm pissed they tried to bury it! No one would have known if not for Jenni handing me that envelope. I'm gonna have to find a way to thank her.”
“Don't look at me, she's not my type.”
I laughed. “That wasn't what I had in mind, but noted.” He smirked. “The woman likes money, I recently came into a large chunk of it. Maybe I'll send her a gratuity.”
“I'm sure she'd appreciate that. And keep her sweet to continue to share relevant information with you.”
“Ooh, good thinking. I'll take care of it soon. Just think though... I'd have no real basis for claiming my place if she hadn't given me those results. Screaming that I didn't get my match nine months ago isn't the best selling point. But with those numbers? I'm not gonna let them ignore it like they were gonna try to!”
Tommy sighed and pushed his laptop away, and I knew I wasn't going to like whatever he was about to say. “Are you sure you're really ready to jump right back into where you were before getting hurt?”
“What's that supposed to mean?”
“You've been through a lot, that's all. Twisted your knee, had it made worse in a car accident, surgery, rehab... is it the best thing for you to dive into the deep end right away? There seems to be a whole line of people claiming next and they clearly don't like you trying to jump the line.”
“I'm not jumping anything! When I couldn't make the match, they gave you my shot, and I was fine with that, you deserved it as much as I did. But after that? Everyone else who had a crack at the bitch only had that spot because I wasn't there. Now I'm back. And I want my spot. The deep end is my favorite place, I've always been go big or go home. You know that. This entire relationship is proof of that.” Tommy nodded, he knew that well. Everything for us started with me agreeing to what was supposed to be a one night stand. And now we're fucking married. Sure, it took almost four years, but that's pretty damn fast for someone who used to treat even the smallest commitment like the plague. “Some people might be able to make a return and just roll with whatever they're given, but that's not me. I never play anything cautiously. I want what I was supposed to have before I got hurt, I deserved it then and I deserve it now. It sure the fuck seems like a lot of people agree.”
“I also agree, you earned that spot and you should get it. I'm just concerned about you getting it right now. I don't want to see you re-injure yourself. Everyone knows about your knee, it'll be a target.”
“Don't you think I know that? Come on, you know I've been training to protect it. I'll be wearing a hard brace. I'll be fine. Look at how long Chastaine worked with a bad knee and a brace on it. Or more recently, Datura. I've researched all this, I know what I'm doing. Stop stressing, okay?”
He sighed again. “I'm not stressing, just concerned.”
“Bullshit. I know what this is. You're stressing because you can't be there to have my back and keep me from getting hurt again.”
“I'll admit that's part of it.”
“It doesn't need to be. You have my back at home, you're my biggest supporter mentally and motivationally, and that's way more important than being at ringside.”
“Really?”
“Yes, really. Please just trust that I can take care of myself? I'm a big girl.”
“I'll try.” Tommy leaned over the corner of the island and kissed my cheek. I turned my head and returned a kiss on his lips. We then both grinned.
“Thank you.”
Tommy pulled his laptop back in front of him. Before he did so though I caught sight of what he was looking up. It looked like a listing of cars for sale. Old ones, Tommy has always had a thing for old, or as he calls them, classic, cars. His primary car is a Chevy Impala from the 60s that he fixed up. It's pretty sexy I have to admit, black and sleek. There's another one in the garage that I have no idea what it is cause I'm not a car person. All I know is it's red with a white convertible top. So the fact he was looking for another one struck me odd.
“Looking for a new car, huh?” I gesture to the screen.
“Something like that. Kinda just browsing.”
“I thought you were in love with the Impala?”
“I am! Never getting rid of the old girl. I was just thinking... since it seems like I'm not going to be joining you in SCW in the foreseeable, as long as this damn shoulder refuses to cooperate with PT, I could use something to occupy my time. I thought about getting something I can work on restoring.”
“That's a good idea. I remember you telling me how much you enjoyed fixing up the Impala.”
Tommy nodded. “Yeah, and it's been a while since I've done it. The Mustang in the garage, I bought pretty much in road condition.”
Oh, so that's what red one was. “You should do it.”
“I'm pretty much set on it, really. Unfortunately the car I have in mind is really hard to find.” He turned the laptop screen to me. The search bar at the top of the listing page read “Dodge Coronet Deluxe 1967.” And the prices in the few listed were... well, fucking outrageous. The car itself? I didn't really care for it, I liked the Impala better. But I wasn't the one shopping.
“Holy shit!”
“Yeah. The problem is, nearly everything I'm able to find is already redone. That's not really what I'm looking for. So far the only one I've seen that would be a project was wrecked, and I'm not sure it's actually fixable.”
“That sucks. I'm sure if you keep looking though something you want will come up. You can be pretty persistent.”
“I'm trying. I might have to give up and look for a different model.”
I got up and stood behind him, wrapping my arms around his shoulders, but not leaning on him like I would have before, I didn't want to hurt him. “I hope you find what you're looking for. I'll leave you to it, I've already interrupted your search with my bad mood.”
“Hey, you're never an interruption.”
“You say that now. Just wait till you have the car and you're working on it and I walk into the garage naked.”
Tommy laughed. “As long as I don't stab myself with a tool, I'm sure I'd appreciate your presence.”
“I'll keep that in mind.” I planted a kiss on his neck. “I'm gonna go upstairs and have a long hot bath, destress myself.”
“Alright. I'll figure out dinner while you do that.”
“You're the best.” I stood up and took a few steps away, but then turned back. “Oh and don't you dare cut that cake without me.”
Tommy looked up with a smirk. “Wouldn't dream of it.”
I smirked back and headed towards the stairs. A good soak was just what I needed to calm my nerves and really focus on what to do next. I understood Tommy's concern about my repaired knee, I'd thought about it myself. But I wasn't going to let it hold me back. I've been held back long enough and I am long overdue for my chance at the top. I just had to play my cards right to get it.
January 17
Los Angeles
SRS Studio storage
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Almost a year ago, I entered a contest ran by SRS Studios, an independent movie studio to have a sculpture be used as the main prop piece in a movie. I created a piece and entered it. Two sets of handcuffs, one ring as the base, the chain as a stem, with the other ring open at the top. The second set has one ring interlocked with the open one, also open. The other ring of that set sort of floats in the air. It's a representation of choosing to stay connected with someone, even though the freedom to leave is there. It's basically my interpretation of me and Tommy's relationship. I won the contest, and filming started not too long after that. I was even invited to the set one day to be an extra in an art gallery scene. The movie, Art Wreck, hasn't been released yet. My (foster) brother, Nate, works for the same company his father did, PropX. They build sets and create or procure props. He'd been keeping in touch with the movie's director for updates. Turns out they had a funding issue during post-production, now it's been taken care of and they are moving forward with planning the release. There's some small film festival coming up in a few months and the movie will premiere there. They contacted Nate, to contact me, because they want me to appear in an ad, trailer, whatever they call it, with my piece, to promote the movie.
So, Nate and I were going to SRS Studios in the morning. But first, we had to get my statue from the warehouse where it was being stored. During the drive, Nate explained. The warehouse belonged to PropX, and it's where they store props they've made or procured for all the studios they've worked for. PropX has done work for major studios like Paramount and MGM, and smaller ones, such as SRS Studios.
We arrived and Nate pulled a card out of his wallet, and swiped it on the reader at the door. We entered... and holy shit.
“Holy shit!” The place was huge. Like, it didn't look this big from the outside.
“Yeah, it's pretty intimidating the first time you come in here.”
It was the size of a large convention center room, with doors on either side. I could read names on the doors. Some were studio names, some were movie names.
“Just to be clear, you can't tell anyone what you see in here. A lot of it is for movies not released yet.”
“No problem. So those doors... are they like smaller storage rooms?”
“Exactly. As you can see, larger pieces are kept out here on the main floor. If you look close at the floor, spaces are marked with tape for each owner of the crate or piece.”
The middle of the room was filled with random shit. Wooden crates, that Nate explained were built around large fragile pieces, or in some cases just to conceal what the prop was to avoid anything leaking. There were pieces of furniture, false doors, motorcycles that looked custom built, a few cars that were covered, and even a small boat. It looked like some strange garage sale.
“Okay, SRS' unit is almost all the way in the back, just follow me.” Nate led the way. I looked all around and tried to see everything as we walked down the right side of the massive building, past about a dozen labeled doors, until Nate stopped in front of one marked SRS. Nate used the same card (I think) to unlock the door, and we went in. The storage room was about the size of a small bedroom, maybe twelve by twelve. The back and one side wall were covered in shelving, the shelves filled with smaller items. Just like the main room, there were a few crates in the middle. And in the back right corner was a glass display case on a wooden pedestal. My statue was inside. I recognized the case from the day I went to the set to be an extra.
“So, we're just gonna grab that and casually walk out of here carrying it?”
“Of course not.” Nate went around the crates and pulled out a small gray cart. “We'll use this to get it outside. You can sit in the backseat and hold it on the way to the studio to meet Keith.” Keith Werner, the movie's director. He was filming my bit today. I watched Nate open the case and start to grab the statue. “Wait... where do I...”
“Move.” Nate didn't seem to know how to pick it up. So I showed him, grabbing it near the bottom with one and, and under the floating cuffs with the other. It has a metal frame under the hardened clay so it was a lot sturdier than it looks. I turned and set it on the cart. It looked like it might fall over while rolling so I carefully laid it down instead. “Is that it?”
“Yeah, that's it. I just have to close the door and hit the code to lock it.” Nate did so, and we started walking back towards the main entrance. We passed by a car that was under a car cover. We passed it earlier and I paid no mind to it, but from this direction, I could see that the cover had been pulled up over the rear end, and the taillights were exposed, as well as the model name on the side – Coronet. Holy shit!
“Nate! Stop! This car....”
Nate turned and looked. “Yeah, what about it?”
“What's the deal with it? Like, what's it being used for?”
Nate looked closer, and then at the line on the floor. It was marked, and I looked down. Written on the tape was “Lionsgate – DC2 - X”
“Oh, this one was already used. It's some drug gang movie and one of the main characters drove this car. We kept it because they were gonna use it for promoting the movie. Like in ads, posters, maybe some TV spots. But, the movie was shelved for legal reasons. It-”
“Wait. Is that the one with the rapist actor, that Lancaster's husband was in? The Helms bastard. What the fuck is his name... Thatcher? No, Weller?”
“Teller. Yeah that's the one.”
“Damn. Don't tell anyone, but I liked the first one.”
Nate laughed. “A lot of people did. This one was supposed to be better, but as far as I can tell, it'll never see the light of day. Last I heard they had a lot of evidence on the douchebag. So, the car sits here until they decide what to do with it.”
“Can I look at the rest of it?”
Nate gave me an odd look, like he had no idea why I wanted to look at an old car. He shrugged. “I don't see why not.”
He pulled the cover all the way off. The car was a dark green, and the inside was dark beige, I think the bougie call it camel. The outside looked mostly okay, there was a small dent near the front tire, and a few scratches and rust spots. I walked around the front, one headlight was cracked, as well as the grill. There was space between the car and the crate next to it for me to pass, so I kept going around. The passenger side looked a lot worse, there was no door handle, and a lot more rust. I kept walking around to the back, which had been the first thing I saw. But on a closer look, I saw the taillights were broken too, and the bumper was badly dented and rusted. Back where I started, I looked into the window to see the inside better. The upholstery looked like leather, but it was torn and cracked, both front and back seats. The steering wheel was missing. I turned and looked at Nate, and pointed.
“Oh, that. Film crews usually remove the steering wheel because it gets in the way of the shots. If I remember correctly, this one is in the trunk, but I can't be sure.”
“Oh... I had no idea. So, how did they use this in a movie with all the rust on the other side, and the inside all torn up?”
“It was mainly shot from this side, and only from outside with the actor sitting in the driver's seat. They didn't shoot the inside.”
I just nodded. I could see how that would work with camera angles and shit. I had an idea as soon as I saw the name on the car. Tommy's birthday was coming up, and this was exactly what he had been looking for. I don't really believe in God or any of that shit, but it seemed like something made sure that I passed by this car and saw it. I had to shoot my shot.
“So. If they're not using it for anything, and it's just sitting here gathering dust and taking up storage space... what would be my chances of buying it?”
Nate blinked hard and leaned his head down towards me, as if he hadn't heard me. “What?”
“Yeah. Could I buy it?”
“Uh... it's worth asking I guess, but... why would you want an old rusty car when you just won a fucking Mercedes?”
I smiled. “It's not for me. It's for Tommy. For his birthday.”
I saw the confusion clear up on Nate's face immediately. “Oh right... he does have that classic Impala. Now you're making sense. I can make a few calls and get back to you.”
“If you can pull this off for me, I will owe you for the rest of my life.”
Nate laughed. “I'll do my best.”
Nate re-covered the car and we left, rolling my statue out. We made it to the set without damaging my work, which I knew we would, it was made out of strong stuff. Keith Werner met us there, he gave me my script. The bit was a 15 second part going into a few longer ads and a trailer, with me just saying my name, that my piece won the part in the movie, and I was proud to be a part of it. We did several takes, with slightly different scripts, and Keith said the producers would decide which ones to use. Through the whole thing I couldn't stop thinking about that car. If this somehow worked out.... wife of the year, right here.
January 19
Columbus, OH
Kandis' hotel room
------------------------
I was in one of the most boring cities in America, getting my gear bag ready to head to the arena for Breakdown that night. I wasn't booked, but it's an unwritten yet well known rule in wrestling – never show up without your gear. You never know what could happen. I had about an hour before call time and I didn't know what traffic would be like, so I was preparing to leave and order an Uber when my phone rang in my hand. It was Nate.
“Hey brother.”
“Hey yourself. You got a few minutes?”
“Like two, or I'll be late to the arena.”
“This won't take long. The car you asked me about?”
“Yeah?” I sat on the end of the bed, hoping for good news.
“I was able to get in contact with one of Lionsgate producers. Firstly, they do own the car outright, they bought it from a collector who didn't have time to fix it up. Secondly, and I'll admit I was surprised, they are willing to sell it.” I gasped.
“Holy shit. Seriously? How much?”
“Just what they paid the collector for it, fifty-five grand. I looked it up myself to see if the number was legit, and it looks like it. I saw some asking less, but they were in worse condition, and didn't run. This one runs.”
That's less than the ones I saw Tommy looking at, but most of those were already restored. “Sounds fair, sold. Will you tell them, or should I call, or...?”
“I'll call back right now. They'll probably contact you after.”
“This is fucking amazing. I can't believe it. Thank you.”
“Wasn't that hard, they're almost acting like you're doing them a favor. But you're welcome.”
“One more thing...”
“What?”
“If you say one syllable of this to Tommy, I'm going to have to murder you in your sleep.”
Nate laughed. “Understood. I'll let you go, I know you have to get going. I'm calling now.”
Nate ended the call and I grabbed my bag and hurried downstairs, tapping on the Uber app on the elevator ride. I hoped I wasn't late.
I made it to the arena on time, and just as I was getting settled in my locker room, Nate texted me. A producer would be contacting me soon. As soon as I hit send on my reply, the phone rang.
“Hello?”
“Ms. Valentine?” It was so nice to not cringe anytime someone used my last name anymore.
“Yes.”
“Hi, I'm Mike Clark, I work for Lionsgate, I just spoke with your brother Nathan.”
“Yes, he told me. Thanks for calling me.”
“Of course. I don't know how much he told you, but this is really good timing. We were just looking to sell off a few things from that film, try to recoup even a fraction of the loss we took. No other studio had a use for that kind of vehicle at the moment though, so I wasn't sure what to do next. Then Nathan got in touch with me.”
“I'm glad my interest helps you out, it works out great for us both.”
“Mind if I ask, what exactly is your interest in the car? I'm vaguely aware of your work, you didn't strike me as a classic car girl.”
“I'm not, but my husband is classic car guy. And he's been looking for one of these for a while. His birthday is coming up, and I happened to see it in the warehouse when I was there with Nate, and.... here we are.”
“Serendipity!”
“You could call it that.”
“Alright then. Nathan gave you the cost?”
“Yes, I'm happy with that. How do we do this?”
“Well, I don't know what kind of credit card you have, or you could authorize a bank transfer.”
“I don't have any credit cards, honestly. Just the bank card. So a transfer would probably be easier.”
Over the next fifteen minutes I contacted my bank, told them what I wanted to do, gave them the information Mike Clark gave me, and within the hour, fifty-five K of my winnings were gone, and I owned that car. Mike agreed to let me keep it at the warehouse until the day of Tommy's birthday, it's not like I could have hidden it anywhere, and then he would have it delivered for me. Yes, all the way from LA to Santa Barbara. It pays to know people in this town.
I was on a natural high the rest of the night, and had some fun at Breakdown. I had been told in no uncertain terms I wasn't getting the match I wanted any time soon, but even that didn't sour my mood too much I just channeled that into laying hands all over Asher's arrogant ass, and not in the way he would have liked. Let him have a taste of what was waiting for him at Body, Heart, and Soul.
January 29
Santa Barbara
Valentine home
--------------------
At Breakdown I won my match against Kelsai Adamson. Asher Hayes won his against Glory Braddock too, so we both had bragging rights going into our match. I wanted him to make sure he knew I was watching so I went out there and gave him a little love tap with my boot. Braddock decided to get involved and that's something I'll deal with eventually, people need to learn to stay out of my business.
But I soon put worrying about that aside, replaced by my nervousness about Tommy's car being delivered. The morning of his birthday, I woke up him up with my mouth, which he greatly appreciated. After I was done with that, I let him sleep in a little and went downstairs and made coffee and breakfast. Look, I'm not the best cook, but I can handle pancakes and bacon.
Both Tommy and I decided to take the day off from Ante Up, so as far as he knew, we had no schedule until our dinner reservations at seven. However, I had scheduled the car delivery for noon. I figured that gave us time to wake up, morning/birthday sex, eat something, all of that, before the truck arrived. After breakfast, we got dressed, and then Tommy's phone started going off. Texts and phone calls and social media notifications. He acted like he was annoyed but I know he really loved the attention. While he fielded calls, I went upstairs into my studio, pretending like I was going to look for something, but I was really calling the delivery driver, to make sure they were going to be on time. The driver assured me they were. I relaxed a little, and fiddled around cleaning up some paints and brushes, to make it take longer than just the two minute phone call. After about fifteen minutes, I went back down, with a card in hand. It's what I was going to say I was looking for.
Tommy was on the sofa, talking on the phone. He smiled when he saw me, and put up a finger, signaling 'one minute.'
“Okay Mom, Kandis just walked in, so.... yes I will.... thanks again... love you too Mom. Bye.” He then looked up at me as he tossed his phone aside. “Love that woman to death but sometimes she talks my ear right the fuck off.”
“Guess I came down at the right time?”
“Perfectly on time. She says hi, by the way.” Of course she did. My mother-in-law genuinely liked me. A lot of people aren't so lucky. Look at me, grew up having no mother at all, and now at the age of 35 I have three.
“Hi.” I smirked as I sat next to him. I then handed him the card. “Found it.”
Tommy took the card, then set it aside. “I'll save that for opening at dinner. Is that okay?”
“Whatever you want to do.”
He smiled and set it on the coffee table. It wasn't anything super fancy, just a regular card that I made a lipstick print on instead of signing.
“Anyone else important call?”
“Charlotte. Then Kirst had the kids video call me and sing. That was... entertaining.”
“I wish I could have seen that.”
“I recorded it, I'll show you. Other than that...oh, Jada called for the obligatory well wishes and said she had a small thing for me at the club.”
“That's nice of her.” By the way, I was right a few weeks ago at the Starmaker. Jada was in fact Tommy's newest side piece. She knew I knew, it's all good. I like her.
“Expecting anyone else, or can I have your attention?”
Tommy didn't answer, he simply made a show of turning his phone off. I smiled and moved to sit on him, straddling. He grabbed my ass as usual, and started to say something. I stopped it with a kiss.
“No talking, unless you're telling me how you want me.”
Tommy smirked, giving my ass a squeeze. “That's right, I get you any way I want today.”
“Yes you do. So... how do you want me?” I wiggled in his lap a little, and felt him rise to attention under me.
“This is good. Here is fine.”
“Oh, and I thought you had a fun idea.” I put on a fake pout.
“That's for later. Right now is cause my morning wake up call left me a bit wanting....” He moved his hands a little lower on my ass, technically the back of my thighs, and squeezed again. He knew that was the quickest way to get me going for a fast one. I stood up and pulled my tights off as he opened his jeans. By the time I was getting back into position, he was ready. I hovered a moment, a little tease.
“Babe...”
I leaned over and kissed him at the same time as I slid down on him. I would never get tired of this particular cock inside me.
About ten minutes later (hey, I did say 'fast one') I was seated next to Tommy again on the couch, still bottomless, on top of a throw blanket.
“There, that'll keep me satisfied til later tonight.”
“Oh, so you do have fun plans?”
He winked at me. “You'll see.”
“What if I had plans, too?”
“Do you?”
I smirked. “You'll see.”
“Cheeky.” He leaned in and kissed me, then pulled me towards him to lean on him. “In all seriousness, the only plans I have are going out for dinner, then coming back here and getting creative. I was gonna leave that part up to you.”
“Mmm, I do have a few ideas.”
Just then, the buzzer for the entry gate went off. I looked at the clock on the wall... right on time. I got up to answer it.
“Yes?”
“Delivery for Kandis?”
“Sure. One minute.” I pressed the button that opens the gate. When I turned around Tommy was eyeing me.
“Delivery?”
“Yep. Throw me my tights. We need to go outside.”
By the time I was dressed again and we went out to the driveway, a pick up truck pulling a covered trailer was parking. The curious look on Tommy's face hadn't changed.
“Kandis... what did you do?”
“I bought you something.”
“Something so big it had to be delivered like that?”
“Yep.” I could barely contain my smile.
The two delivery guys got out of the truck and walked up to us.
“Afternoon, ma'am. Please sign here.”
“I'm not signing anything until I see that my item arrived in the same condition it was in the last time I saw it.”
The guys eyed each other, then the Papers guy nodded. “Alright. We'll open her up.”
The trailer was made for transporting cars and had double doors on the side. One guy unlocked the latch, then they each took a door handle and pulled at the same time. The Dodge did in fact look the same as when I last saw it, only slightly less dusty. They had also replaced the steering wheel, which was nice of them. I looked at Tommy, and he actually took a step backwards.
“No way....”
“Happy birthday, baby.”
Tommy looked between the car and me a few times, utterly speechless. I can't believe I fucking did it.
“What? I mean, where did you- How-”
“Nate has connections.”
“I don't understand.”
“It was used in a movie. I saw it when Nate and I went to get my statue for the movie ad. It was just sitting there in the warehouse collecting dust, so I gave it a better home.”
He looked at the car again, where the guys were unhooking the straps around the tires. “This is for real? You really bought it?”
“I really bought it. For you.”
Finally, he broke into a big smile and laughed. “Holy shit, babe. I'm gonna want details later but.... holy shit!” He hugged me tight and even lifted me off the ground for a few seconds, even though he probably shouldn't have with his shoulder. As soon as my feet were back on the ground, he kissed me. “Thank you.”
“Oh, you'll thank me later.”
He laughed, then turned back to the trailer. The guys were just standing there, watching. They looked amused at Tommy's reaction.
“Can I get in there and look?”
“Sure man, it's yours. The car, not the trailer.”
Tommy chuckled a little at the joke as he stepped inside and walked around, looking at everything, much like I had at the warehouse.
“Hope you got a good place to park this beaut, my man.” The second guy spoke for the first time.
“Sure do, there's a five car garage around back. Hang on... does it run?”
I stepped up for that one. “They told me it does.”
“Yeah, it runs... barely. It'll crank, and I was able to drive it into the trailer. But I wouldn't recommend pushing her past twenty. Sounds terrible.”
“I'll only need about five to get her to the garage.”
“Alright, let's get her outta here.”
Tommy hopped out of the trailer through the side doors and we watched as the guys did their job. One pulled the ramps down as the other got in the car. I assume he put it in neutral, as the other guy came around and pushed from the front. The Dodge rolled neatly down the ramps and stopped a few feet back. As the guy in the car was getting out, the first one, who seemed to be in charge, grabbed the clipboard again.
“Sign now?”
“Yes sir.” I scribbled my name on the form, and he ripped me off the copy. He then pulled an envelope from under the papers.
“Here you go, previous owner info, something from the movie studio, bill of sale, and the signed title for you to get it switched..”
“Thanks. You guys are great.”
The other guy walked up and extended his hand to me, keys dangling. I just pointed at Tommy. The guy nodded, then swung his arm over, handing them to Tommy instead. He took them, staring down still in disbelief.
“Thanks, man. Really appreciate the job you've done.”
“So do I. Hang on...” I reached into my pocket and pulled out a hundred dollar bill I had put aside for their tip. “Here you go, with my gratitude.”
“Wow, thanks ma'am.”
After the delivery guys were gone, Tommy went to the car and got in. “I still can't believe you actually found this and bought it.”
“Well you're sitting in it.” I smirked. He smiled back, and turned the key. The engine hesitated a bit before turning over, loudly. Tommy made a face.
“I see what he meant.... wonder if its just because it sat up. Do you know how long?”
“I guess about a year.”
“That could do it. But I've got plenty of time to figure it out.” The engine's rumble smoothed out a little. It still sounded bad, but not as bad. “I may not want to leave for dinner.”
“Should I leave you two alone? You gonna have sex with the car instead of me?”
“I just might.” We both laughed.
“At least there's lube in the garage.”
Tommy just laughed again, then shifted the car to drive. The engine rumble changed. I watched as he slowly drove the car up the driveway to the garage. He was going slow enough that I walked and caught up with him just as he got out. He leaned against the car and shook his head at me.
“You're never gonna be able to top this, you realize?”
“Challenge accepted.”
With a smile Tommy pulled me close and kissed me.
As we walked back into the house and Tommy pulled me upstairs, no doubt for another round, I was sure that whatever little trinket Jada got for him was nowhere near as good as my gift.
ON CAMERA
Is anyone surprised? I walked out at Breakdown for my first singles match in nine months and I kicked ass like nothing ever happened, as if I was never hurt, as if I didn't get my knee surgically repaired. I'll give Kelsai her credit, she brought it just like I expected she would. But in the end she was no match for my drive. I wanted a match before Body, Heart, and Soul to prove a point. To show everyone that I haven't missed one fucking step despite my injury. Did you see me limp? Did you see me falter at all? The repaired knee is the one that hits the Starmaker, and Kelsai dropped just as hard as everyone else I've knocked out with it.
Were you watching, Asher?
Whether you were or not, I made sure you didn't forget what was in your future after your hard-fought win over Glory Braddock. I couldn't let you celebrate too long because I needed your attention on me. I needed you to focus on what's coming to you, the consequences you're going to face for interrupting me and trying to convince anyone that you're more deserving than I am. Why Braddock decided to stick her nose into my business and put her hands on me is a problem for another day, but right now, later tonight? My problem is you, Asher.
Let me get this straight. The last time we saw you in SCW, you were being stood on to be pinned in Tactical Warfare. You tucked your dick and ran, like the pussy you are. As I mentioned on air, I know you made an appearance in The Flame, but it was a blip and didn't matter because you didn't win. I bet no one would have remembered you were there if I hadn't brought it up. Why you thought entering another battle royal to make a comeback was a good idea, I have no fucking idea, but hey, at least you did better this time! You made it almost to the end. And if Ember Young hadn't got in my way, I'd have been the one to eliminate your ass, and you wouldn't have a leg to stand on stepping up to me!
I'm really curious though, what the fuck kind of mental gymnastics did you have to twist your brain in to come to the conclusion that you should be ahead of me for a World Championship shot? Is it because Ember got involved and I didn't pin you to win the battle royal? Do you think that really means a damn thing in that clusterfuck? Let me assure you that it doesn't. I'll tell you what means something. Our standings before we had our absences from SCW. First of all, I will never get tired of pointing out that your absence was by choice. We've already gone over the last few times you were in an SCW ring before this year. Nothing worth talking about. You lost Tactical Warfare for your team, you had a forgettable appearance in The Flame, and that's it. That's it!
The last time people saw me before New Year's Eve? I was preparing to face the World Champion! The whole deck had been cleared, thanks to Double Jeopardy but let me remind you and everyone else... I was not pinned in that match. Everyone else had their shot, some had multiple! And there I was... the only one who was unpinned in the whole conversation. That's how I earned my shot then, and that's why I still deserve that shot now! I did not choose to get injured and give up my shot. I didn't lose to Selena, I never fought her! I never fought the World Champion one on one, and no matter what I've been told about my request, that I'm not getting it... I am not going to quietly step back and accept it. Y'all know me better than that by now.
I don't quit.
Everyone knows I deserve it. Just look at the End of the Year voting results. Imagine how much seven percent of the respondents hate that brat as champion so much that they wrote my name in. Me. One of the biggest bitches on the roster. Even the people who hate me know that I should have been fighting Owen Cruze that night, and that after this farce with Kim Williams is over, I should be next!
This match isn't billed as a contendership match but to me? It is. Every match I fight until I get the shot I earned will be treated as a contendership match. That's what I did to Kelsai, and that's what I'm gonna do to Asher. I'm walking into Body, Heart, and Soul to fight you, Asher, to prove that all of your talk is just hot air and you shouldn't be allowed anywhere near the World Championship until I've had my shot! I'll admit, you looked pretty damn good against Glory, but one good match and win just isn't enough to jump you ahead of me. You were gone longer than I was, for fucks sake! If I didn't know better, I'd wonder if you were back on the drugs, but I know SCW wouldn't allow you back if you were, so there has to be some other explanation for why you have the ridiculous idea that I should stand aside for you.
I stand aside for no one!
I was sidelined by a freak injury and then another freak accident and I'm just frothing to make up for lost time. Just when I had my chance, just as I was no longer being overlooked and underestimated, I was stopped in my tracks, literally. But I'm good as new now, better than ever, as everyone saw last Breakdown. Don't believe me? Ask Kelsai Adamson. Ask her how hard I hit. Ask her how far I threw her. Ask her how much my knee hurt when I drilled it into her skull.
Asher... you won't have to ask. You fucked around sticking your nose into my business, trying to cut me off. Tonight? You're gonna find out for yourself just how big of a mistake that was and how driven I am to not stop, not quit, not back down until I get what I want!
All of you are on notice. Do not get in my way.