Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 75089 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 375(@200wpm)___ 300(@250wpm)___ 250(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75089 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 375(@200wpm)___ 300(@250wpm)___ 250(@300wpm)
I lost track of Andi, of the confrontation between Fallon and Jax. It wasn't like I could do anything if those two came to blows, if both clubs started a brawl, even, being locked up in this cage with this bastard who had just as much to prove as I did.
I had my back to the door, so I missed it, missed her, until she was rushing into the cage, into the center of the ring, putting her back to me, holding her arms up, palms out at Toll.
"Stop!" she screamed, the sound, and her sudden presence, seeming to cut through the demons we were both wrestling with, acting as an ice bath to our overheated systems.
Shock crossed Toll's face at the sight of the girl he'd been flirting with in the middle of the ring, begging him to stay back.
Shock had to have crossed mine as well.
Because she wasn't just trying to break up a fight.
No.
She was trying to protect me.
Me.
Who had been nothing but an asshole to her since I'd seen her again.
"Please stop," she demanded again, voice cracking.
"Hey—" Toll started, hand reaching out.
"Don't fucking touch her," I snapped, drawing his attention again, seeing the knowledge and challenge crossing his face in a blink.
"I believe that's her choice," Toll said, cocking his head to the side, starting to move to the side a bit.
"You need to go," I demanded, following Toll as he moved away from Andi.
"I'm not going anywhere," Andi insisted, looking quickly between us. "Stop this."
"Andi, go," I told her, watching as her lower lip trembled, but trying to keep my gaze on Toll who now knew why this fight was so personal.
"Yeah, girl, you can't be in the ring with two psychopaths," Hope's voice joined, reaching out to grab Andi, trying to pull her out of the center of the ring.
"Let go. Someone needs to stop them."
"Yeah, probably. But not you. You know how much shit I will get from your father if I let you get pummeled in a cage fight?"
"Andi, fucking please," I hissed, looking over my shoulder at her. I hadn't heard desperation in my voice in so long it sounded unfamiliar even to my own ears, but it seemed to register with Andi, making those big blue eyes of hers go even wider.
But looking over at her, that had been a stupid move.
You never took your eye off a predator like that.
The blow landed to the side of my temple, catching me off guard, sending me flying backward, landing with a shooting pain up my back.
"No!" Andi cried, yanking away from Hope, landing down on the floor at my side, body half-covering mine as her hand went to my shoulder, pushing down to keep me in place.
"You need to go," I told her, watching Toll move in behind her.
"He's not going to hit me," she insisted, her other hand touching the spot to my temple where I'd been struck, wincing when I hissed.
"You don't know that."
"I—"
"What the fuck?" a different voice roared, drawing everyone's attention.
And there was Ross Ward, standing near the side of the cage, hand closing around the padlock for a second, registering what he was seeing, then looking at me, at Toll, at Andi, then the crowd, before zeroing in on his son.
"It's over," yet another voice said, making me look at the cage door again where my father was pulling Hope out, pushing her over toward one of the other OG guys who had shown up, likely tipped off by Fallon or Seth. "Get up," he demanded, looking down at me.
"I think he hurt his back," Andi insisted, shaking her head.
"Your legs still working?" he asked, gaze holding mine.
"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine," I said, gritting my teeth against the pain that went down my spine and leg as I folded upward.
"Toll, let's go," Danny, Toll's boss—for lack of a better word—called from the side of the cage, anger flickering in her gaze, her jaw tight.
"Fuck," I hissed, taking a deep breath as I tried to push up, get off the ground.
"Here," Andi said, reaching for my hand, slipping under, curling around. The electric shock of that was enough to pull my attention away from my pain as she pulled me up onto my feet, stumbling back a little. "There we go," she said in that fake sing-song voice she used on hurt animals. "Okay. Let's get you out of here," she said, hand still in mine, pulling me along with her as she followed my father out of the ring.
Ward was standing there with his son, scolding him under his breath. Seeing me, Jax's gaze shifted for a second. I didn't see any regret or remorse. No. If anything, there was just a cocky smirk on his face.
"Watch your fucking back, Jax," I hissed at him, making one of his brows lift.