Page 152 of The Obvious Check

Why am I surprised? It's obvious that anyone who comes in contact with her would fall for her. She's phenomenal.

“I'm trying to get her out of here.”

His eyes lock with mine. “Me, too.”

“She's my wife.”

“Wife?”

Wrong thing to say. His fist clips my jaw, sending my head snapping back until I hear my neck crack.

Fuck, that hurt.

I hold my nose as I take a few steps back, ignoring the jeering from ringside because this is the first time I've struggled in here, and the regulars are eating it up. Taking a breath, I launch myself at Jeremy and grab onto his waist, forcing him to fall with me.

“Luke's got her trapped. She wants to get Adley back, but she can't do it until she leaves. He'll only let her if I win.”

I bounce back up and I can see it in his eyes. There's more than hesitation now. The mention of Adley hits something in him, and his entire demeanor shifts.

“Adley?” His voice cracks slightly on the name. “Her little sister?”

“You know about her?”

Jeremy's expression darkens, but not with anger directed at me. “Savannah used to talk about her all the time. Used to cry herself to sleep worrying about that kid.” His fists clench, but his stance becomes less aggressive. “She's been trying to get her back this whole time?”

“That's all she wants. A family. A life away from all this shit.”

Jeremy exhales heavily, his massive chest rising and falling as he stares at me. I can practically see the memories flooding back, probably every moment he spent falling for a girl who saw him as a friend, who needed protection more than romance.

“She deserved better than that place,” he says quietly, almost to himself. “Deserved better than any of this.”

His jaw flexes, and when he looks at me again, there's a different kind of intensity in his eyes. If he kills me, he kills all ofherdreams.

His nostrils flare, his expression darkening as he hesitates, working through whatever internal battle he's having. Then he mutters something under his breath, something I almost miss over the noise.

“I’m supposed to kill you tonight.”

The words barely register at first, my brain sluggish from the beating I've taken. But then, they sink in like a blade through my ribs.

My muscles go rigid. My vision sharpens.

“What?” My voice is barely a whisper.

Jeremy shifts, rolling his shoulders back like he's shaking off something unpleasant. “Luke doesn't just want you out of the way, he wants you fucking gone” His jaw flexes, his fists clenching at his sides. “You're not supposed to walk out of here.”

The weight of his words crashes down on me, making the pain in my body feel like nothing in comparison.

I knew it. Luke didn't just plan for me to fight. He planned for me to never get in his way again.

“He's a fucking psychopath,” I grit out, blood spilling from my mouth.Rage coils tight inside me as I throw another lackluster punch, one he avoids easily. “And you were gonna go through with it?”

Jeremy lets out a bitter laugh, but his eyes drift to where Savannah disappeared. “I've been in love with her since I wasfifteen years old,” he admits, his voice barely audible over the crowd. “Never told her. Never had the guts. And now…”

His voice trails off, but I can fill in the blanks. Now she's married to someone else.

“Fucking fight me,” he says, his voice raw, but I understand why. He's not fighting me. He's fighting for her.

He jabs me in the ribs, sending me back into the ropes, but there's no real force behind it. I groan anyway. That rib is definitely cracked.

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