Avoiding Commitment (Avoiding #1)(52)
Author: K.A. Linde

"Watch yourself. I might have to come visit my best friend and do just that." Lexi knew that she was only half-joking. What Chyna wanted, she typically acquired. The only things in life she hadn’t been able to control were her parent’s separation and the fact that her gorgeous designer friend, Frederick, was one hundred percent playing for the other team. He was the only man she had ever met that was too g*y to sleep with her and it bothered her every day.

The delicious aroma emanating from the machine was mouth-watering. Lexi poured two mugs full of the hot brew. Then she leaned back against the counter to finish her conversation and wait for the coffee to cool down. "Well that’s kind of the reason I called you. I need you here this weekend," she said forcing her hair behind her ear several times as she waited for Chyna to as the question she was dreading.

"Before I get onto the subject of why you might need me in Atlanta this weekend, you didn’t answer my question. How good is he?" she asked for the third time.

"I didn’t sleep with him," Lexi admitted reluctantly.

"Oh. So that’s why you need me there this weekend," Chyna announced.

"What? No. I don’t need you here to help me get with him. I could have if I’d wanted to, but there are a few uh…issues with that. Like a certain someone," she said sipping on her coffee.

"Alexa, what have you done?"

"Oh Chyna," she cried exasperated with herself, "I just need you here. I went to talk to Jack to get everything clear between us, but it didn’t work out the way I had planned."

"Did you sleep with him?" Chyna shrieked into the phone.

"No. No I didn’t."

"Don’t lie to me Alexa Mae."

"I’m not lying. I didn’t sleep with him. I promise Chy. But he wanted to. And we would have, if I hadn’t stopped his advances. Now he’s saying he wants to be with me for real this time, and I just don’t know what to do Chyna. He’s what I want. Of course, he is. And he says that he’s made his decision, but I just don’t want things to backfire in my face," she said, confessing all her fears.

"Oh baby, you shouldn’t be doing this to yourself," Chyna cried maddeningly. "You know he’s just going to hurt you. That’s what he does. He hurts you. He drags you down."

"But he doesn’t," Lexi eagerly protested. Though, she wasn’t quite as certain about that as she let on. "He makes everything right with me. You’ve only seen the worst of the situation. You only saw what happened in New York. If I can make it right with us, that’s what I want. That’s what I’ve always wanted."

"Shit!" Chyna cursed.

"What?"

"I told you not to do that. God, he just completely changes you, doesn’t he?" Chyna asked sighing heavily. Lexi could tell that she was starting to get pissed off. She heard Chyna take a few calming breathes before continuing. "You are absolutely right chica. I need to be there. I’ll talk to daddy about using the jet. I should arrive in Atlanta in a matter of hours. I’ll have a car pick me up at the airport, and then we can talk this all out together. Possibly a shopping spree to get our minds off of what potential disaster you are creating in your life."

"Chyna, you can’t come down here thinking…" Lexi stopped mid-sentence and set her coffee mug down on the counter silently. She thought that she had heard something at the door. She had been pretty sure she had heard something, but she had been so heated in her conversation she had almost missed it. She strained her ears to listen for another potential noise.

"Thinking what?" Chyna asked snippily.

"Hold on one second," Lexi said listening more closely this time. Someone was knocking on the door. She jogged down the hallway and pressed her eye to the peep hole. Ramsey’s face appeared distorted and warped by the curved glass, but it was definitely him. "Shit!"

"What?" Chyna cried surprised by Lexi’s outburst. "What’s going on?"

Lexi rushed back down the hall her heart leaping to her throat as she panicked. "Ramsey is here."

"Here where?" Chyna questioned her.

"Oh shit, shit, shit," Lexi mumbled under her breath pushing her free hand through her messy bed-ridden hair. She smacked her hand against her forehead wondering if her luck could get any worse.

"Alexa, calm down. Where are you? I thought you were at your parents," she asked trying to get a grasp on the situation.

"No I’m not. I really have to go," Lexi told her thinking about what she would have to do next.

"Where are you?"

Lexi sighed heavily hating that she had to admit this to Chyna. "I’m at Jack’s place. I’ll see you in a few hours chica."

"Don’t hang up…"

Lexi clicked off the line before Chyna could even finish her statement. She paced in a circle once feeling more and more nervous as the seconds ticked by. The knock on the door forced her spring to action and she rushed down the hallway to Jack’s bedroom. She burst through the door in a panic. Jack’s head was buried under a mound of pillows when she walked in.

"You were gone too long. Come lay down," Jack said patting the bed beside him.

"Ramsey is here!" she cried hopping onto the bed beside him and yanking a pillow off of his head.

"What?" he asked jumping up like he had been jolted with electricity.

"Ramsey is at the front door," she repeated. "He’s banging on the front door like a freaking maniac. Did you know he was coming over?" she asked frantic brushing her hair away from her face as she looked into his now frightened blue eyes.

"No, I didn’t know. What is he doing here?" he asked brushing his hand through his own hair and cursing under his breath.

"How the hell should I know? He’s at your front door. You have to go great rid of him. He can’t see us together. Shit would hit the f**king fan."

"I know. I know. I’ll see what I can do. Shit!" he said hopping off the bed and throwing a t-shirt over his head. "What the f**k is he doing here?"

"I don’t know just get rid of him," she said shoving him towards the door.

"I’m going. Just stay in the guest bedroom or the bathroom until he leaves. I’ll go find out what he’s doing here," he said as he jogged down the hallway. "Don’t make a peep," he warned."

Lexi just rolled her eyes. As if she was stupid enough to do that. She walked into the guest bedroom leaving the door slightly ajar. She wanted to be able to hear what they were talking about while still remaining hidden. She leaned her head back against the wall and strained to hear what was going on at the front door.

"I’m coming," Jack yelled racing down the hallway and unbolting the door. "Ramsey, hey man, what’s up?" he asked casually leaning against the doorframe to block his view of inside.

"Hey sorry to barge in on you like this," Ramsey said eyeing him reproachfully as he looked at his ragged appearance and then glanced at his watch revealing the time to be nearly noon. "Bekah told me that you weren’t going into work today, and that you should be home. I just wanted to see if I could talk to you for a bit."

"You know right now really isn’t the best time," he said scratching the back of his head and yawning wide. "I was up all night punching numbers. I’m pretty beat, and since I’ll be out all weekend, I really need to get in as much work as I can."

"Oh it’ll only be for a few minutes," he said easily towering over Jack’s frame with his six two build. "I just have a few questions to pass by you."

Ramsey brushed past Jack before he received an answer. "Sure come right in," he remarked sarcastically shutting the door as Ramsey entered the living room.

"So…" Jack said following him into the room. "Coffee?"

"No thanks. I just had a few questions," he said leaning back against the sofa and crossing his arms, "about Lexi."

Jack’s head snapped to the side at the last statement. "Excuse me?"

Ramsey’s eyebrows lifted at Jack’s reaction, but otherwise gave no sign that he had noticed his sharp intake of breath at the mention of Lexi’s name. He smiled pleasantly knowing he was on the verge of acquiring the information he had been so interested in for the past couple days. He just hadn’t been sure when he would be able to talk to Jack. Lexi was a closed book, shying away from any mention of her past. Bekah got furious with him for even broaching the subject, and though they typically shared everything, he knew she was hiding from him. Jack, on the other hand, couldn’t escape him now.

"I just wanted to find out a little more about her. What she’s like, where she’s from, how ya’ll know each other, what she’s doing here…that sort of thing," he said easing Jack into the situation.

"Uh…well why don’t you just ask her?" he said regretting that statement as soon as he said it. That wouldn’t exactly be the best thing for him to do. He could just imagine Lexi’s phone going off in his room while Ramsey dialed it from the living room. That thought made him cringe. No, that certainly wouldn’t go over well.

"I’m just curious about her. I don’t want to come on too strong. I’ve only known her for a couple days. Don’t you think it would be strange for me to be asking her all these questions? I know you. You’re practically my brother," Ramsey said clapping Jack on the back. "I don’t see why you wouldn’t share some valuable information with your brother."

"Yeah, man, I would, but I just don’t feel comfortable sharing her personal information without talking to her first." Jack didn’t know what Ramsey’s interest in Lexi was, but he didn’t like it. He knew he was acting defense about the situation, but he had caught them kissing on Ramsey’s balcony. Granted, he had way too much to drink and had completely overreacted. Regardless, he simply did not want Ramsey to take interest in Lexi.

"Come on Jack. I’m not digging around for personal information or anything," Ramsey said, "I’m talking to you about her. Obviously ya’ll were together a long time ago."

"What makes you think that?" Jack asked defensively.

"Have you seen the girl? She’s hot. I wouldn’t have blamed you for getting with her before you met Bekah. She’s a polar opposite from my sister though," Ramsey said falling easily into the playboy persona he exuded around the majority of the people he knew.

"Yeah that’s for sure," Jack agreed. "And yeah I mean we were together back in college, but that was a long time ago."

"And I’m sure she’s changed a lot since then, but just fill me in," Ramsey pleaded seeing Jack begin to cave under his requests.

"Well alright," Jack agreed looking across the room at the cracked bedroom door. He remained composed despite the nagging feeling creeping throughout his body. He was unsure of what he was getting himself into, but he knew one thing at least, that he didn’t want to tell Ramsey anything about Lexi. "What did you want to know?"

"So ya’ll met in college and dated while you were there, why is she still in your life?" he asked bluntly. He figured it was best just to dive in so he wouldn’t give Jack time to sugar coat his answer.

Jack’s face flushed at the accusations behind his words. "What do you mean why is she in my life? She’s a good friend of mine."