Fighter(7)

I was shocked, but only slightly. Haley and Dylan had flirted for years. I waited to see if I should be disgusted. I felt a surge of joy when my brother grabbed her hip and pulled her close against him (not that part—that part was gross). Her arm lifted behind him, reaching for the fire alarm. As she deepened the kiss, her right hand wound around his head and grabbed his hair, then her left finger lifted the handle for the alarm and lingered on the lever.

I still needed to get in place. She was giving me time.

I didn’t waste it. Sally’s had three exits: one through the kitchen, a second back by the restrooms, and a third to the left, hidden behind the stage where the deejay had set up that night. Everyone would clamber for the restroom exit and the deejay exit. Knowing Jax, I figured he’d go through the kitchen. There would be the least resistance there since a lot of the customers didn’t know about that one, so I started wheeling. I intended to block him and slap my handcuffs on him. I just had to get there first.

I wheeled past the main bar and was almost to the kitchen entrance. I ignored the attention I received and glanced back to where Haley was still kissing Dylan. Oh whoa. He had her pressed against the wall now, right beside the fire alarm. Both of her hands were twisted in his hair, but she was looking for me. Our gazes collided, and she shoved my brother away for a split second. Taking a deep breath, she pushed down the alarm and grabbed his hand.

The sound split through the air a second later, along with flashing lights from every alarm in the bar.

There was pandemonium after that. If the alarms were going off, that meant the fire station had been alerted, and that meant the police too. People pushed to get out. The underground fighting tournament wasn’t a secret around our town, but as long as the cops didn’t “officially” know where it was, they couldn’t arrest anyone for attending. However, if they were actually called to its location, all bets were off. Hence the chaos.

When I saw a bunch of the staff running toward me and the kitchen exit, I pumped the wheels of my chair faster. I went through the door and parked by the counter. Jax would be running past me soon, and knowing a catch was coming had my adrenaline buzzing. I could barely stay sitting in the chair, even when people sprinted past and threw confused looks my way. Let ‘em look. I had my handcuffs ready. I was going to get him. I knew it. Then he burst through the door and flew right past me.

“Well, f*ck.” I sighed. I hadn’t counted on that happening. Putting my cuffs away, I started wheeling myself forward.

“Holy shit!” someone yelled behind me.

That was all the warning I had. I’d started to turn around when my wheelchair tipped over, and suddenly I was sprawled out onto the floor. Feeling the burn from the impact, a split second of terror went through me as, in slow motion, I saw the onslaught of people coming my way. They were going to stampede over me. I threw an arm forward, trying to grab hold of something to pull myself out the way, but then I was hauled into the air.

Jax tucked me against his chest. I glimpsed the firm set of his jaw and knew he was pissed, but he took off running with me. I looked down to find my handcuffs were gone. I peeked over his shoulder and saw someone kick them underneath the counters.

They’d be no help to me now, but hell, I was in his arms again. A girl couldn’t be too picky. I’d figure something else out. I still had my stun gun.

Chapter Four

After Jax set me back down on my feet outside, I cringed. My ankle still hurt. I grabbed onto his truck for balance and took a moment to focus on easing the shooting pains going up the inside of my thigh.

He used those thirty seconds. He was fast too. His hands skimmed over me, and before I could stop him, my stun gun, radio, and pepper spray had all been deposited in the back cab of his truck. He reached to pull the cover back down, but paused and studied me.

I knew what he was thinking. I had a second set of handcuffs stuffed down my pants. My jeans were tight enough to hold them in place, but he wouldn’t…he would. I caught the speculative gleam in his eyes and then his gaze lingered on my waist. My shirt had ridden up, so he got a good eyeful of skin. I flushed and tried to tug my top down, but it was too late. He’d seen the slight bulge at the side of my hip. As he came toward me, I tried to position myself so he couldn’t reach around. Maybe I could still grab them and work some magic… But he grabbed my wrist. A smirk on his face, he tugged me against him. My hip wasn’t protected by the truck now; it was firmly in the palm of his hand.

I cursed in my head as my body came alive, pressing against him. It had a mind of its own. It was like something had turned off the control board in my brain. The something being all my lovely lady parts, which were panting for him. A fervor worked over me, and I had to be honest: I tried to think no and remind myself what I needed to do, but as his hand started to slide inside my waistband, that thought quickly faded. My body said yes.

A slow pant began building, and then he removed his hand and brandished my pink handcuffs in front of me. “I knew you kept a second pair.”

I groaned, my head falling to his shoulder. “Jax, come on. Let me take you in. I’ll post your bail tonight even.”

“Nope.” He still stood right in front of me, but reached around me to open his door. His chest rubbed tighter against me as he did this. I heard the locks unlock, and he swept me back up off my feet.

“Jax!”

He carried me around to the passenger door and deposited me inside. Seat-belting me in, he flashed me a heart-melting grin. “There you go. Good as gold, my sweet Doily.”