I sprawl on top of him, my arm wrapping around his neck. I could rush it. Squeeze quick. Let him know he has nowhere to go. Instead, I take my time. Slowly adding pressure and tightening my grip while trapping his hand between my ribs and the mat, so he has nothing to do but tap out or pass out. His armsflail. Bucking and squirming and clawing at my forearm. When he tries to dig his finger toward my mouth, I slide to his back, preventing him from landing a fishhook because, seriously? Another illegal move?
What an ass.
The crowd screams around me, but I can’t hear it through the chaos in my ears. My blood is pounding. Locking the body triangle, I wait for the breath. The panic. The final moment when he knows he’s screwed. And he is. Because there’s no way I’ll let this sorry sonofabitch take my victory. Not when I’m so close. My body tightens as I sink into a rear-naked choke, just like our first fight, watching his hands like a hawk in case the asshole even thinks about taking my eye out like he attempted to last time.
The bastard fights. His body is slick with sweat and blood, making it nearly impossible to keep my grip, but I don’t back down. I don’t let go. Three, two?—
Tap. Tap. Tap.
The ref darts forward before Morgan’s body has a chance to go limp from lack of oxygen. It’s almost a shame. I fight the urge to kick him as the ref tugs me off Morgan and raises my hand into the air.
I won. I fucking won!
I glance down at Morgan on his hands and knees, coughing his ass off and fighting for air. Good. I hope he stays hoarse for a week.
“Jag-ger! Jag-ger! Jag-ger!” the crowd chants, but all I see is my Little Thief standing at the edge. A sheen mars her pretty gaze, her fingers pressed to her pouty lips. Relief. Pride. Happiness. They all battle for the spotlight as she stares up at me, motionless.
“Love you,” I breathe out, knowing she can read my lips as easily as she has a way of reading my mind.
“Love you,” she returns. I don’t hear it, but I don’t need to. I feel it in my bones.
As soon as the ref lets my arm go, I rush toward Violet at the edge of the mat. She meets me halfway, wrapping her body around me. “You did it!” She grabs my face, kissing the shit out of me as the roar from the crowd spurs her on. The sting from my lip is nothing but a blip on my radar. I’m too wrapped up in Violet and what this victory means. Sure, I won. And yeah, it feels pretty damn sweet, but there will be repercussions.
Pushing aside the thought, I cup Violet’s ass, spinning us around and around while the rest of the world fades away. In this moment, it’s only me and Vi. My Little Thief. The only one with the power to bring me to my knees. And even though that power almost ruined me tonight, she brought me back from the darkness as soon as she could.
We fucking won!
55
VIOLET
Iknow the Harden brothers have always been royalty around here, but I’m not sure Jagger ever really felt like a king until tonight. A slew of people line up, each taking their turns to kiss the proverbial ring and congratulate Jagger on his win. Ford promises to tally up the numbers. Hawke gives his big brother a solid clap on the back and disappears into the fog of people. Roman stands guard at the edge of the mat, handling the spectators like a seasoned security guard at a rock concert.
And all the while, Jagger’s grip on my fingers never dissipates. Nope. The man refuses to let me leave his side. Joke’s on him, though. There's nowhere else I’d rather be. I’m not sure how much time passes. Whether it’s thirty minutes or two hours, but soon, the line shortens, and my body feels heavier. It seems all the adrenaline I’ve been running on finally seeped out of me. Seriously, I’m pretty sure I could sleep for a week. As I cover my yawn with my free hand, Jagger looks down at me, hooks his arm around my neck, mumbles, “I’ll talk with you later,” to whoever’s congratulating him, then directs me toward June and Lexie. They claimed a corner earlier, and have clearly set up camp. Okay, not literally, but Lexie did manage to scrounge up a couple folding chairs, some drinks, and a couple bags of chips.
“You guys stuck around,” I note when we finally reach them.
“I mean, you’re our ride, so…” Lexie rolls her eyes. “Good fight, Jagger,” she adds.
“Thanks, Lex,” he returns. “How’s your brother?”
With a shrug, she looks around the room but doesn’t say anything else.
“Lexie’s going to stay at our place tonight,” June interrupts. “You okay with that, Vi?”
“He probably needs some time to calm down, you know?” Lexie explains. “I figure the, uh, the wider the berth, the better.”
I nod. “Yeah, for sure. That makes sense.” Peeking up at Jagger, I add, “Why don’t you take my bed, Lex? I’ll, uh, I’ll stay at Jagger’s. You know, if it’s okay with you?”
His sweaty arm stays wrapped around my neck as he bends down and kisses the crown of my head. “Don’t even need to ask.”
I soak up the warmth of his body and his words. God, I love this man. So. Damn. Much. My lips curve up in contentment as I dig out my car keys and hand them to Lexie. “Here. I’ll catch a ride with Jagger.”
“Sounds good.” Stealing me from Jagger’s hold, Lexie pulls me into a hug, then lets me go. Her expression changes into something more…I don’t know. Somber, I guess? I’m not sure. I’ve never really seen it on her. “One more thing.” She peers up at Jagger. “Just…be careful, okay? My brother’s a good guy, but…even though he doesn’t really ever tell me anything, I’m pretty sure he had a lot riding on this fight, and, uh, since it didn’t pan out the way he was expecting...” She twists her fingers in front of her. “Just be careful,” she repeats. “I think it’s going to take him some time to let it go or whatever, and…yeah.”
Jagger’s chin dips in acknowledgement. “You, too.”
She rolls her eyes again. “I’m always careful.” Glancing at my roommate, she adds, “Come on, June. We should get going.”
