“Four.” Monroe looked down at me. The same worry reflected back. Taking a deep breath, I pulled him with me. The guards didn’t stop me as I marched myself up to Wells’ corner. He blinked when he saw us, confused.
“What are you guys doing up here?”
“I’m coming to remind you what’s at stake. I thought you were a man to come after what he wanted. But I guess you’ll be using your hand tonight while I ride Monroe.” I glared at him, my arms crossed, but inside I was a mess. I wanted to pull his stupid face down and kiss him, making sure he was okay. But that wouldn’t help in this situation. Instead, I decided to see if some reverse psychology would help. That and banter really was our strong suit.
“Kitten, are you doubting me?” he growled, some of his fire returning as he stood up from the stool he’d been sitting on.
“What’s to doubt? I thought you KO’d people in the first round. And yet, we’re on the 4th, and here you are still sitting. So, Surly, I guess you’ve met your match? Or are you too old to swing it with the young guys?”
He gritted his teeth, his fists clenched as he pierced me with his glare. He flicked his eyes over to Monroe, who shook his head, waving his hands out in front as if he wanted no part. Spinning, I pulled Monroe’s head down and kissed him. Some hoots and hollers rang out from the crowd, but when I pulled back, I glanced over my shoulder and spotted the fire back in Wells’ eyes.
“Well played, Kitten. Don’t. Go. Anywhere. I expect a winner’s kiss.”
“You gotta be a winner first.”
He smirked, shaking his head, but when the bell rang that time, he walked out with a jaunt in his step and determination on his face, and I knew he’d finish this. Monroe and I stayed where we were, and he pulled me back into him, wrapping his arms around my waist. Bending down, he spoke into my ear, leaning his head on my shoulder.
“I can’t decide if that’s really brave what you just did or really dumb.”
“Probably a little bit of both, but I think he needed it. Look.”
Sure enough, Wells’ punches were quicker, and he was lighter on his feet as he kicked high, landing a solid kick to the chest. His opponent went down, and this time he didn’t get up. Nerves began to flutter in my lungs as the referee started to count, slapping the mat with each number. When he got to two, the guy tried to get up but fell back, not moving again. The ref jumped up when he hit one, grabbing Wells' hand and raising it high as he announced Crash the winner.
The whole time, Wells stared at me, nothing but heat in his eyes.
Perhaps it was because of this we didn’t notice the guy move or his manager hand him something, but when he sat up, he lunged for Wells, catching my attention.
“Noooo! Move!”
Wells had been watching me so closely, he noticed the instant I said it, jumping out of the way. The blade crossed his ribs as the assailant fell forward from the momentum. It felt like slow motion as the next few seconds played out. Guards rushed the ring, pulling Wells to one side for safety and pinning the other to the ground, along with his managers. I stood, frozen in fear, my hand to my mouth as I waited to see if he’d been injured. It had been too close to tell if the knife had only grazed him or had made purchase.
When he struggled against the guards to be let go, knocking the medic's hands out of the way, something in me snapped, unfreezing me, and I flew toward the ring, Monroe hot on my heels. When Wells spotted us, he stopped fighting, waiting for us to approach.
“I’m fine. Just let me go,” he growled, glaring at the guard. When they saw me, they finally let him free, and he staggered from the change but quickly righted himself. Grabbing my hand, he pulled me in the direction of the locker room. Reaching back, I linked fingers with Monroe, and we created a weird follow the leader as Wells weaved through the crowd. When we made it to the dark hallway, he didn’t stop, tugging us along and entered the room he’d been in earlier. Wells kept going until he made it to the bathroom, only dropping my hand as he went inside.
Following him, I took the washrag he was using to wet and wrung it out. As I gently began to clean the area, I focused on his cut, which I was glad to find was superficial, barely breaking the skin.
“Are you okay?” He grunted, and I felt his body move like he’d shrugged his shoulder.
I heard Monroe scoff from the doorway, and I found him leaning against it when I looked over. “You’re pissed; just admit it. That was a shit move they pulled, and it could’ve been so much worse. You’re lucky you can’t seem to take your eyes off Lo, or you’d be bleeding out on that mat upstairs.”
I didn’t acknowledge Monroe’s words, too scared of their accuracy, and I just focused on cleaning Wells up. There were several other scrapes from the fight, but nothing seemed deep as I trailed the washcloth over his body, tuning them out for my inspection. When I finished, I looked up into Wells' eyes and found him watching me.
“Thank you, Kitten.”
Nodding, I smiled. Placing the wet rag down, I pulled him into a hug, shocking us both for a second. His arms wrapped around me a moment later, and I sighed into his chest, finding it easier to speak to him this way.
“I was so scared.”
“I know. Me too, Kitten. I’m just glad it’s over. I should’ve said no when they told me the fighter I was supposed to face bailed out ten minutes before, so I had to fight outside my weight division. I was just too amped up, wanting this moment to fix things… to fix me.”
Looking up, I stared into his dark espresso eyes, so full of regret it was a wonder I’d never noticed before. “I don’t know the full story of everything, but I’ve gotten to know you. You don’t need to be fixed, Wells. There's nothing broken about you. I know my words don’t magically fix the hurts you’ve felt, but I hope you can start to hear my voice over the others, urging you to believe it. That’s all it takes, you know. Believing something different. Let me be the different voice until you can hear yours.”
“You know, I should thank that brainless blonde at Windy City gym.”
“Why’s that?” I scrunched my nose up, wondering if I’d misread everything between us.
“Because, Kitten, she sent you to my gym to piss us both off, but it turns out, you were exactly who I needed to walk through those doors. I’m sorry you were scared. It was dumb of me to do that. I promise to use my head more.”