The Avoiding Series Boxset

by K. A. Linde

  “But you proposed to her only hours after having sex with me!” she cried, straightening up to avoid the prolonged eye contact. “That’s disgusting.”

  “It’s just…I thought we could be together, and then I saw you with Ramsey. I was…jealous,” he murmured attempting to stand up.

  “You were jealous of Ramsey?” she asked arching an eyebrow.

  “Yeah, and apparently I had good reason to be. You guys were together for a year. You’re here for him,” he said with a shrug.

  “So, you proposed to Bekah, because I kissed Ramsey, not because you wanted to marry her?” Lexi asked. However implausible the scenario was, she wanted to get his absurd answers out in the open.

  “That’s not exactly what I meant.”

  “No? You do realize whatever you are going to say will sound ridiculous,” she said, crossing her arms again to block off the sympathy that was starting to creep up in her. She had known Jack too long. She didn’t need to get sucked into his trap again.

  “I just mean that when I saw you with Ramsey, I saw that I wasn’t everything to you,” he murmured leaning against a dresser for support. “I saw that we had too much baggage to really work together as a couple. I wanted it. I always wanted it, but I wasn’t sure if it was ever plausible. I wasn’t sure if you could ever look past what had happened in our past to move onto a future with us.”

  “So, you picked the easy way out. You fucked me and then went for your blonde bitch as always,” she snapped forcefully. Lexi was so angry at his explanation. She’d had similar thoughts at one point in time, but that didn’t mean she was going to walk away from him. They had both run away too many times before. They were two peas in a pod, as much each other’s escape as the thing to run from.

  But to just desert their entire past because he was scared and jealous was a terrible explanation. She would have expected better from Jack. “You didn’t even have the decency to—oh, I don’t know—communicate with me about any of this. I didn’t even know you were planning to propose, and then poof, you’re engaged!”

  “I was going to tell you,” he said reaching out to her.

  Lexi instantly took a step away from him. She couldn’t believe him. She couldn’t believe anything he said to her anymore. He had lied to her…about everything. And it was about damn time that she followed through with that belief. She liked to think she had grown since then…even in a week’s time. “No. No, you weren’t, and it doesn’t matter. You were right about Ramsey anyway. That’s probably why we’re back together.”

  “What?” Jack asked his head snapping to face her. He groaned at the sudden movement and leaned more heavily on the dresser. “You guys are back together?”

  Lexi looked at him suspiciously. He looked a bit shaken by the announcement though to be fair she had just kicked him in the balls. “Yes, stop acting so surprised.”

  “He’s not right for you,” Jack said instantly.

  “Oh, please,” Lexi said rolling her eyes. “As if Bekah is right for you? I don’t think so.”

  “This isn’t about Bekah. This is about Ramsey.”

  “This is as much about Bekah as it is about Ramsey. You have no say in whether or not I’m dating him or why,” Lexi snapped. She was tired of his games. She was tired of him wanting her to be single while he went off and married Bekah. That didn’t make sense. Bekah and Ramsey were intrinsically linked in this charade that her and Jack had been playing.

  She could see it in his face that he didn’t want to concede that point. He never wanted to give up his hold on her. It didn’t matter if he was going to be married in a few hours. “I know you’re dating him, because you think he can give you a happy life.”

  “I don’t just think that, Jack. I know he can,” she said with a cocky smile.

  Jack took a few steps back from the dresser and rested against the footboard of the enormous bed centered in the room. Lexi knew she had entered a bedroom when she had walked in, but until that second she hadn’t really assessed her surroundings. The bed really was massive. It took up a significant portion of the room and was so full of down pillows and a soft down comforter that when Jack leaned back, the bed dipped in around him. It looked like it would completely envelope her if she lay back against it.

  “What? You think everything is going to be fine now that he’s working with Parker every day?” Jack asked.

  Lexi didn’t want to think about Parker, but she knew that she couldn’t back down from Jack. Once he knew he had an advantage he would keep pushing until he got his way, and she couldn’t have that. Ramsey was not interested in Parker. They had history and nothing else. If Ramsey had wanted to get back together with Parker, he’d had years to do that. There was no need now, when he was finally happy with Lexi, to go and mess around with Parker. The only reason Lexi was even here was because Ramsey had asked her. He had trusted her enough to not give into Jack, and she had to trust him in turn.

  “Yes, I think everything will be fine,” she said standing her ground.

  Jack laughed. He actually laughed at her. It sounded rather painful since he was still recovering, but it was definitely laughter. “When people have that much history, it’s never fine. Just look at us…look at where we are. You think this is just fine?”

  “I think I kicked you in your balls to show you how fine everything is between us,” she said leveling her gaze on him.

  “Yes, but they were going to get married. It’s a bit different, don’t you think?” he asked trying to unseat her.

  “You want to bring up people getting married, Jack? Really?” she asked glaring at him.

  Jack shrugged again. “Go on, and tell me that you think it’s the same as us,” he challenged her.

  “You know, in fact, I don’t think it’s the same as us. If they wanted to be together, they would have. Clearly, they don’t want that. They might be working together, but that’s all, Jack. Not everyone is like you. You have no idea what Ramsey can give me,” she said, shoving a lock of hair behind her ear.

  Jack shook his head side to side. “Just as delusional as you always were,” he said resting his arm back against the bed invitingly.

  “And what’s that supposed to mean?” she asked avoiding looking at the bed. The last thing she wanted to do was appear interested in that bed.

  “On some small level, you don’t think that working in close proximity together every day is going to rekindle something that was once there? Imagine if we had to work together every day. What would it be like?” Lexi stopped and considered it. She was sure that it would be a disaster. She had trouble enough resisting him when she rarely ever saw him. She couldn’t imagine what it would be like. But she didn’t know if that’s how Ramsey and Parker’s relationship worked. It was unfair to judge them based on how an atypical relationship functioned. “I take it you get my point?”

  “I think it’s different with them than it is with us, because they were together, they broke up, and they moved on. We were never together, we never broke up, and we’ve never moved on. Clearly, you just kissed me.”

  “But it’s not that far-fetched,” Jack countered.

  “Stop trying to make me doubt what I have. It’s not going to work. Ramsey and I have so much more than you ever gave me. You don’t even know what it’s like to be in a relationship with me. Ramsey does. You don’t know what it’s like to vacation with me. Ramsey does. You don’t know what it’s like to not be scared that we’re going to cheat on each other. Ramsey knows that feeling. In some ways, he knows me better than you ever could Jack, because you never gave us a real shot. I’m not going to stand here and let you talk shit about Ramsey. I love him and that’s that,” she said turning away from him angrily.

  She knew that she hadn’t exactly done what she had been planning to do when she walked into Jack’s room, but he had changed the game when he had kissed her. She didn’t care if he married the bitch or not. She didn’t care whether or not he ruined his life. She just wanted him out of hers.r />
  Lexi reached for the doorknob, but Jack stopped her. “Okay, Lexi, you win.”

  She wasn’t sure if she had ever heard those words from his mouth. Somehow throughout their entire relationship, Lexi had always felt like she was on the losing side of the scenario. Jack never gave in. Jack never backed down. Jack never relented.

  “What did you say?” she asked slowly turning back around.

  “You win,” he repeated admitting defeat.

  Lexi gulped. “What do I win?” she asked hesitantly.

  “I didn’t give you what you deserved. I screwed you over like a royal ass, when I really just wanted to make everything better,” he said edging toward her.

  “Jack,” she murmured, eyeing his approach with caution. She didn’t want or need this apology. All she had wanted was to leave on a high. She had pushed him back, stood her ground, and was satisfied to leave it as it was.

  “I’ve never treated you the way I should have. I told you once that I’d never go back to change what happened between us. That I might miss out on what we had,” he said softly. “But I was wrong. I would do anything I could to go back to that time when we could have been together and change the way I acted. I’d change it, because we were fated to be together however brief, however unbelievable, however painful, however flawed. But…”

  “But you can’t,” she finished for him easily.

  “No…I can’t. I can’t change it,” he said nodding his head sadly. “So what should I do, Lex?” he asked his bright blue eyes searching hers.

  Lexi sighed and shrugged her shoulders. What could she tell him? She was here to tell him to get married, to give up on her, and wasn’t that exactly what she had just argued for? Yet, a small part of her didn’t want him to get married—to marry Bekah.

  She was torn. Could she truly tell him to marry someone she thought was completely wrong for him? Was it better to allow him to be completely and totally off the market even if she was sending him to his grave? She hated thinking like that, but it kind of felt like that.

  “I can’t tell you what to do, Jack,” she murmured dropping her arms. “You have to decide on your own.”

  “I know I should, but what should I do?” he asked begging her for an answer.

  “The fact that you are debating this at all should be a sign,” she finally muttered.

  Jack nodded, pleading with her to continue. “So, you think I should call it off?”

  “I am not going to be responsible for you calling off your wedding!” she cried. “You make up your own fucking mind, Jack Howard!”

  “Don’t start yelling at me. You know how I feel about you when you get angry,” he said taking another step toward her.

  “Do you want to have another injury?” she asked him arching an eyebrow. He couldn’t get any closer. Her body didn’t listen to her brain, and the thought of him slamming her back into the door again crossed her mind. She quickly tried to repress it, but she backed up farther from him for good measure.

  “Uh, no,” he said stepping backward again. “I just don’t know what to do, Lex.”

  “Do whatever you want. I was supposed to come in here to convince you to marry her. Well, I came here a year ago and was pretty successful at it. Why should now be any different?”

  Jack stopped and really looked at her. Lexi wasn’t sure why that statement had managed to keep him from advancing on her, but she wasn’t going to complain. If she had finally gotten through to him, then all the better.

  “All right,” he said nodding. “Thanks for coming to see me even though you didn’t want to. I appreciate you being here for me like I was for you. It really means a lot…everything to me, Lex.”

  Lexi tried to keep her mouth from dropping open. Who was this person? Jack never gave up. Jack never apologized. He certainly never thanked her for her opinion on the matter. They could work together in the easy way that their relationship had formed over time, but this was different. This made it seem like Jack had somehow grown too, since she had last seen him, which seemed pretty implausible considering he had just kissed her.

  “You’re welcome, Jack,” she said taking that opportunity to push the bedroom door back open.

  Lexi turned around to face the questioning looks of the groomsmen and found herself face to face with an entire room of people.

  “I knew it!” Bekah screeched sauntering forward. Her hair and makeup were immaculate, but she had yet to be fitted into her wedding dress for the upcoming event. She looked manic as she stormed across the suite.

  Lexi could not figure out what the fuck she was doing here. Ramsey, Chyna, and Adam ran after her, trying to restrain her from walking forward, but what was she doing in the room in the first place? This was her wedding day. She was not supposed to know that Lexi had ever been in that room. It was tradition that the groom wasn’t supposed to see the bride on their wedding day. Lexi would have never pinned Bekah as someone who wanted to break tradition. This didn’t make any sense.

  “Bekah, stop,” Ramsey commanded grabbing her elbow forcefully. “You’re going to ruin everything.”

  “I’m going to ruin everything?” she asked twirling around and smacking his hand off of her. “Your little home wrecker is in a bedroom with my fiancé! Don’t you think I should be a little concerned with that?”

  “Not if you trust Jack like I trust Lexi,” he pointed out.

  “I trust Jack,” she amended quickly, “just not Lexi. You don’t know what she’s done.”

  “Actually, I think I do. I know you find it hard to believe, but Lexi and I did talk about her past relationships when we dated for the last year.”

  “Then you know she’s a cheating whore!” Bekah cried, turning back to glare at Lexi who hadn’t moved from her position in front of the door.

  Ramsey grabbed her arm even more forcefully and yanked her backward. “Now you listen and you listen good, because I’m only going to say this once. Don’t fucking talk about her like that.”

  “Don’t you fucking talk to me like that, or manhandle me,” she said pulling away from him again. “She’s the one trying to ruin my wedding.”

  “She’s the one trying to fix your wedding,” he growled releasing her.

  “It wouldn’t need to be fixed, if she didn’t try to ruin everything,” she said walking forward toward Lexi. “Isn’t that right?”

  Lexi didn’t know what to say. It was true that she had tried to ruin their relationship, but only under the pretense that her and Jack were going to be together. After that, she had left them completely alone. She had only contacted Jack twice before this week, and both times had been heartbreaking, dire circumstance—her father’s heart attack and her break up with Ramsey. They didn’t really count.

  “I’m not trying to ruin anything for you, Bekah,” Lexi finally said.

  “You sure about that?” she asked, “Because you look like you are coming out of a bedroom with my fiancé.”

  “Bekah, what are you doing?” Jack asked, walking out of the bedroom and standing next to Lexi.

  “Jack,” she murmured after he spoke. “She’s out to ruin us.”

  “No, she’s not. Just calm down,” he said trying to reason with her. “What are you even doing here? I’m not supposed to see you until the wedding.”

  “I had a sneaking suspicion that she was here. I had to follow my instincts, and look she’s here! That doesn’t seem like a coincidence. There’s something going on.”

  “There’s nothing going on between me and Jack,” Lexi grumbled. “I can’t fucking believe you would barge in here on your wedding day. You have no concept of reality. You have no concept of trust. You thought something was going on and came in here unannounced. I’m not ruining your wedding day. You are!” Lexi couldn’t believe she had gotten the words out. She had wanted to say something catty to Bekah for so long, but out of respect for the men in her life she had resisted. The accusations she was hurling Lexi’s way had been too much in that moment. She hadn’t been ab
le to hold back.

  “This coming from the woman who walks out of a bedroom with another woman’s fiancé,” Bekah pointed out.

  “But nothing happened with me and Jack,” Lexi said standing her ground.

  “Oh, stop trying to act so innocent!” Bekah said to Lexi, raising her voice.

  Lexi narrowed her eyes at her dangerously. “Me? Act innocent? After everything you’ve done to sabotage my life?”

  Bekah scoffed. “You don’t even need my help. You fuck it up enough on your own.”

  “I really don’t need to hear this from you,” Lexi said shaking her head and turning the other direction.

  “Bekah, don’t you think you’ve done enough damage?” Ramsey asked glaring at his sister.

  “I am your sister!” she cried staring at him in disbelief. “I am only trying to look out for you.”

  “By trying to hurt my girlfriend?” he asked looking at her like she was mentally impaired.

  “By protecting you,” she said grasping for straws.

  “Oh, that always worked out so well in your favor,” Lexi said rolling her eyes. “Going to convince another girl to get an abortion to save your skin?” Lexi spat at her.

  The room went silent. She hadn’t even meant to say that out loud, but something about Bekah had made her snap. She hated her with everything she had. She wanted nothing more than for her to live a long and miserable life filled with heartache and loneliness. It was what she deserved after all the deception and lies. She wanted to tear her down as much as she had torn Lexi down. She knew it was wrong and that she should take the higher ground, but Bekah hardly deserved that.

  “What…are…you…talking about?” Bekah asked her voice shaking.

  “Lexi,” Ramsey hissed grabbing her elbow.

  “What is she talking about, Ramsey?” Bekah demanded, spinning around to face him.

  “You know what I’m talking about. Stop acting so ignorant of the situation,” Lexi responded. Ramsey’s grip on her elbow tightened, and she snapped her mouth close. She had gone too far. He didn’t talk about these things. He didn’t bring these things up, and here she had just announced the details to an entire group of people. Even if no one else really knew what was going on, they were sure to think the worst. This seemed to be a conversation he had avoided having with Bekah. Lexi had figured they had already had it out about his suspicions that Bekah had convinced Parker to have an abortion. How wrong could she be?