Page 177 of Finding Hope

The cameras pan away from Jack and leave me frowning at the loss. Instead, they focus on the signs in the crowd.“Team Steph,”the first guy says awkwardly,“or Team Britt. I feel like we’re in a daytime drama.”

“Don’t be such a grouch, Greg. Dance a little! Pink is serenading us.”

Jack continues his walk through the tunnel and emerges into the crowd. Four men stand behind him. The four men that would stand in front of a bullet for him. Jon, Bobby, Aiden, and Jimmy walk behind him with their fight faces on and their chests full of adrenaline.

Jack’s fighting in the octagon tonight. But all five of them worked for it.

I follow his every movement until he reaches the cage, and it’s not until they pat him down and he steps into the octagon that I realize I’m shaking.He’ll be okay. He’s got this.

Fuck, I probably should’ve gone.

He asked me to be there, and I flaked. Fuck.

“Where are the rest of our Kincaids?”

I smile when the camera zooms to the front row and skims across them. It’s ridiculous how many prime seats they take up. This is where the A list celebrities and former champions normally sit. Pink should be sitting there, yet the Kincaids have it filled like a daycare. The women hold their babies, and the older girls sit with popcorn and soda shared between them.

Jack runs a slow lap of the octagon while the sportscasters continue to talk, but as he comes closer to his family, he stops and stares with a wounded expression.

Watching his family for a tense minute, he squats low and pokes his fingers through the cage fencing. I – and several million other people – watch on curiously as Kit stands and passes Emma to Bobby. Taking Bobby’s hand, the trio move the ten feet toward the cage, then placing her hand over Jack’s, the brother and sister talk inyes, no’sand jerky head nods.

I watch Jack’s eyes transform. I watch a single twinkling tear slide along Kit’s cheek. I watch them lay their foreheads together, even with the cage separating them, then I – and several million other women – sigh and fall a little deeper in love with Jack Reilly.

Before I’m ready, the cameras swing away from the octagon and moveacross the crowd. They zoom in on the signs that pit me and Steph against each other.

The media want this to be athing.They want it to be big.

Bigger.

They ask where I am, they wonder why I’m not there. All of theTeam Stephsign holders shout and cheer when they realize I’m not there, when I’m made out to be a horrible chick who doesn’t have his back. Then theTeam Brittpeople, who my ego finds a boost from, start cheering for me.

Finally separating, the cameras follow Kit as she takes her daughter and finds her seat. I watch in avid curiosity as the cameras pick up Tink as she stands and passes around long, blank signs to all of her siblings. Passing out pens the same as I still have rolling around my trunk, the Rollin crew women start writing on their white cardboard.

“Bets on what they’re writing, Greg?”

“I’m calling TeamSteph,”he answers arrogantly.“The new chick isn’t even here. Nothing can replace a guy’s first love, so I’m betting on Steph.”

I roll my eyes at the world’s insistence that we compete. I did enough of that already. I don’t need their help.

“Alright, show us what you got, Rollers.”

They turn their signs as one. Anyone would think this whole thing was coordinated, choreographed like a game show.

Will I win or lose? So stupid.

“Team Jack,”Greg reads out.“Well, that’s lame.”

“Team Jack… Team Jack… Team Jack… Team Jack… and… IHatePopQuizzes.”The announcer barks out a laugh.“That kid’s got spunk!”

I laugh at my sweet Evie, always the salmon swimming upstream. She just doesn’t care for acceptance. She owns her differences just like she owns her wild hair.

I love her wild insubordinate ass.

“Here comes the champion!”

I roll my eyes at the roaring crowd, and for the several minutes it takes for Greg to kiss his ass, I tune out and come back to the cemetery. “Are you ready for this, Steph? You’re watching over him, right? You’ve got his back?”

Yeah. She does.

---