Sure enough, after several calls to defend himself and even more unanswered punches, the ref steps in to end the fight. Jax stands up with raised arms and a victorious grin on his face.
Screams echo throughout the entire arena. Fans love finishes more than anything else, so victories like this one always earn a lot of praise, as evidenced by the volume of the arena right now. And for the first time, I'm able to drag my hands away my face and let out a loud cheer.
I'm overjoyed when I turn to an equally excited Remy, who's holding onto Lucy with a white-knuckled grip and screaming, "That's what I'm talking about!"
I can’t help but smile even bigger at the sight of Jax pulling Tristan in for a hug. Clearly, Tristan is so excited about his friend’s victory that he forgets all about his usual comfort levels and returns Jax's hug with equal amounts of enthusiasm. And when the ref pulls the fighters back to the center of the cage, so he can raise the victor's hand, his grin stretches from ear-to-ear.
When our screams and cheers finally die down and Jax is led out of the cage, I hear Steve sigh and murmur, "That was fun. So can we go now?"
I look at him in surprise. I completely forgot he was even here. I nibble on my lip, torn about what to do. On the one hand, I know Steve doesn't like fighting and only came here because of me. But on the other hand, it's an unspoken rule that you wait for the winner to come out into the arena after he gets cleaned up.
"You're not coming out with us?" Lucy asks when she overhears Steve's question. "We were going to head over to Frankie's as soon as the next fight is over. You guys should come for a drink!"
The corner of Steve's lip twitches in distaste, though he tries to hide it. "That sounds fun, but I think I'd rather get Hailey home." He wraps an arm around my shoulders and says, "You know she can't really handle her liquor. It's better if we just call it a night. Isn't that right, babe?"
I'd much rather stay and hang out with my friends, but I know there's no chance of that with Steve here. So I just smile and nod.
"Raincheck," I tell Lucy. "We should get you, me, and Remy together one of these nights anyway. We could hang at Remy's place, and I could make those margaritas you guys love so much."
I feel Steve stiffen next to me, and I'm immediately reminded that I should never blurt out that kind of plan without talking to him first. I press against his side in silent apology.
"We should get going," he interjects in a flat voice.
I smile at him and nod. "Okay, babe. Let me just use the bathroom before we go."
He gives a stiff nod goodbye to Remy and Lucy, and then he's turning me toward the exit. I toss a silent, apologetic glance over my shoulder at my sister and friend, trying to block out how much I hate the pitying looks on their faces.
Well, Lucy's is pitying. Remy's is furious.
I push both out of my head and follow Steve to the bathroom. But right after I pull away from his side to cut off to the ladies' room, who else but Jax steps out of the men's.
His eyes light up when he sees me. It's only been a few minutes since he's gotten out of the cage, so he's still shirtless and drenched in sweat, a red mark starting to appear on his ribs where he got hit.
"Hailey," he says in surprise. "I didn't know if you were going to come."
I can't help the smile that stretches across my face. "Of course, I was going to come. I'll never miss one of your fights. Congrats on the win, Superman."
Happiness overtakes his entire expression. He steps forward to give me a hug but then glances over my shoulder and freezes.
I hear Steve's voice next to my ear just as he steps up beside me and slides his arm around my waist. "Yeah, man. Congrats on beating another man into a bloody pulp."
I wince at the not-so-veiled mocking in his tone. It's no secret he's not a fan of fighting, but he's rarely this obvious about it. I can feel the embarrassed blush flame across my skin.
Jax just stares at Steve. If I didn't know him as well as I do, I wouldn't be able to see the hate behind his expression. But I do know him, and my blush intensifies from the knowledge that all my friends hate my boyfriend.
I remind myself yet again that they just don't know him like I do, that they don't see the sides of him that I know and love.
"Thanks, man," Jax says tightly. "Yeah, it's pretty fucking satisfying knowing I could kill a man with my bare hands."
My eyes widen. Jax is the nicest guy I know, so it's shocking to hear him say something like that. If I didn't know better, it would almost sound like a threat.
Steve must interpret it as one because I feel him stiffen next to me. But this must be some kind of dick-measuring contest that I don’t understand because he responds with, "I didn't realize we've reverted to the times where we solve conflicts by physical means."
"Steve," I scold quietly.
He turns to me with a frown, as if he's surprised I spoke up against him. I can see him mentally roll his eyes when he drops his arm from around my waist at my expression.
"I'm just going to pull the car around. Try not to make me wait."