Avoiding Temptation (Avoiding #3)(16)
Author: K.A. Linde

Her breathing was ragged when the phone went dead, and she hadn’t even realized how riled up she had gotten. Goddamn it! Why did Jack Fucking Howard always do this to her? It wasn’t enough that he had gotten married? Couldn’t he just let her at least try to move past it all?

Her phone lit up in her hand, and she almost snarled in frustration.

Not asking you out. I’m sorry. Jesus, I can’t seem to do anything right. I didn’t mean to bother you or make you feel like an idiot. I have concert tickets—that’s all. Can I call you back…please?

Concert tickets? Well, that piqued her interest. Why the hell was he contacting her about concert tickets?

If you hear me out and still hate me…you can hang up on me again.

Lexi actually laughed at that, and then she looked up to see if anyone had heard. The hallway was empty. She didn’t have much time before she had to go see Brandon. Satiate her curiosity or just let it go…

Fine. This better be good, Jack.

Her phone rang almost immediately.

“Hey,” he said softly. “Sorry.”

“What is this about concert tickets?”

“Okay, so the story is…Bekah got me tickets to the Sienna Sexton and D-Bags show in Atlanta next weekend.”

“Oh my God…” Lexi breathed. It was their favorite band.

“Yeah. Well, the mix-up at the, uh…wedding,” he began.

Lexi cringed at the word.

“Anyway, Bekah refuses to go and support them since they canceled last minute. Now, I have two tickets…and I guess I could have asked someone else, but I know you love the D-Bags.”

“Yeah. That song of theirs playing on the radio is so good,” she murmured.

That Sienna was a lucky bitch if she were f**king the lead singer because he was quite possibly one of the sexiest men on the planet. Lexi was sure she would use a pass with Ramsey to get to Kellan Kyle.

“It is. And the D-Bags’ ‘Good-bye’ song…I can still listen to it on repeat.”

“Me, too.”

That song always sounded like someone had written it with a specific person in mind. It was so emotional, tugging at her heart and forcing her to feel every powerful, heart-wrenching word.

Silence lingered between them as shared memories took up the space. Sometimes, she hated how easy it was with Jack. She was angry with him. She didn’t want to remember a time when they had been able to listen to their favorite band together.

“So…will you go with me? Just as a friend. You know…someone who also happens to like the same music as me.”

“What does Bekah think about that?” Lexi asked, deflecting. She had never been able to be Jack’s friend—never.

“Bekah told me to take whoever I want because she’s not going.”

“I don’t think she meant me.”

“She didn’t specify.”

“Well, she’s not too bright, is she?” Lexi muttered before she thought better of it.

“Let’s just…not, okay?” Jack sighed through the line.

She wondered what he was thinking. She never really knew with Jack.

“You don’t have to go if you don’t want to, but I know you’ve never seen them live. I just thought I was being nice.”

Fuckity-fuck. Fuck.

“I have to check with Ramsey.”

“Of course. Take all the time you need. The show is next Friday night at seven thirty at Philips Arena. It’s sold out.”

Lexi tilted her head back, closed her eyes, and sighed heavily. This was such a bad idea, but damn did she want to go to that show. The D-Bags had been one of her favorite bands since college. She was so excited that they were getting more attention, and they were even opening at a huge venue for Sienna Sexton.

“All right,” she said, breathing out in frustration. “If Ramsey is okay with it, then I’ll go. You should probably make sure Bekah actually knows you’re taking me. If I’m going to the concert, then it’s not going to be a secret.”

“Got it. No secrets. Text me after you talk to Ramsey. If he’s down, I’ll talk to Bekah.”

It felt a little like they were getting permission from their parents, but at least she was going about it the right way. Under no circumstances was she going to risk Ramsey a second time for a f**king concert. She wanted to see the D-Bags, but that wouldn’t be worth losing him

“Okay, I have to go. I have lunch plans. Bye, Jack.”

“See ya, Lex. Also, uh…thank you.”

She swallowed and nodded even though he couldn’t see her. She hung up the phone and placed it back into her purse. This was going to be interesting.

Lexi walked the remaining distance to Brandon’s office and knocked. She heard muffled voices from the room and then laughed. He never ceased to amaze her.

“Brandon,” she called, wondering who the lucky lady was that he was entertaining.

“Just a minute,” he said.

A minute later, the door opened, and a familiar brunette walked past Lexi.

“See you soon, Kace,” Brandon said as she walked out.

“Go to hell, Calloway,” Kace said, straightening her skirt.

“Why does she still fight you?” Lexi asked. She shut the door behind her as she entered the office.

“She likes to put on a show. I don’t mind role-playing,” Brandon said, cocking an eyebrow. “You interested, honey?”

“Now, now, Pookie. You know I’m taken, by one of your bosses no less.”

“That changes daily.”

Lexi rolled her eyes and jabbed him in the side. “Don’t be an ass.”

“Now, there’s a thought,” he said with a wicked glimmer in his eyes.

“Oh my God,” Lexi said, a blush creeping up on her cheeks.

He chuckled deep in his chest and ran his hand back through his dark hair. “I’ve missed you, Lexi. It’s nice to have you back in the city.”

“Are we going to get lunch? Or are you going to be ridiculous?”

“I can’t promise you that I won’t be ridiculous, but I think I choose lunch.”

“Great. Let’s get the f**k out of here.”

They left the office and walked out to the elevator. Brandon pressed the button and started firing off questions about her time when she had returned to New York, the new job, moving in with Ramsey.

She laughed at his string of questions and tried to begin answering them, but he seemed to have another question already poised on his tongue before she could elaborate. She would be talking nonstop during lunch.

The elevator dinged open, and Lexi followed Brandon inside. When she took the last step inside the elevator, she realized that Jack was standing in front of her. She stopped laughing at Brandon, her face going blank.

“Lexi,” Jack said, surprised.

“Um…hey.”

“What are you doing here?”

“I said I had lunch plans,” she said, sticking her thumb out at Brandon.

“Oh, hey, man,” Jack said.

He extended his hand out to Brandon, and the guys shook.

Jack turned his attention back to Lexi. “If I’d known you were in the building, I would have just talked to you in person.”

“Well, this is for the better then,” Lexi said, doing everything she could to keep her hands at her side. All she wanted to do was furiously push her hair behind her ears.

His blue eyes landed on her brown ones, and he smiled that Jack smile. She swallowed, but didn’t look away.

“Well, I hope you go to the concert. The seats are pretty good.”

Lexi shrugged. “We’ll see. I should be able to make it as long as…everything works out,” she said vaguely.

The elevator dropped to the bottom floor, and the doors dinged open.

“Have fun at lunch then. Brandon.” Jack nodded his head at him. “Talk to you later, Lex.”

Jack walked away, and Lexi sagged slightly as he disappeared into the Bridges lobby.

Stupid bad luck!

Brandon and Lexi moved forward in silence until they made it out to the parking garage and almost all the way to Brandon’s truck. Then, he couldn’t seem to hold it in any longer, and he started laughing.

“You’re going to a concert with Jack?” Brandon asked.

“Yeah,” Lexi said with a shrug. “I guess.”

“You do know he got married, right?”

“Yes, I know he got married,” she snapped a little too harshly.

She took a deep breath. It was still too fresh, too early. She shouldn’t go to the concert. It was stupid, but the offer was too hard to resist. It certainly had nothing to do with Jack because she still wanted to pummel him.

“But this isn’t about Jack. This is about Kellan Kyle.”

Brandon continued laughing at her as he hopped into his truck. He was still laughing almost the entire way to the sushi restaurant.

“Knowing what I know about you, Lexi, I feel like I should tell you that this is probably a bad idea.”

“It’ll be fine,” she said, convincing herself.

“You like me because I don’t shoot shit. I tell you how it is, like I always have. Like, I want to f**k you and see how that gymnast body bends.”

“Brandon,” she groaned.

“Yes, I want to hear you scream out my name, too, but that’s beyond the point, Lexi. Keep your mind out of the gutter.”

“Insufferable,” she grumbled under her breath.

“What I’m trying to tell you is that before, when you screwed up royally in the past, it wasn’t that bad because, while you were dating other people, neither of you were married.”

“I know that!”

“Well then, I’ll just remind you. Coming from someone who got the shit beat out of him for sleeping with a married woman, I wouldn’t recommend it.”

“You get the shit beat out of you a lot, don’t you?” she asked, remembering the time Brandon had told her about Ramsey punching him because Brandon had started dating Parker. That all felt so long ago.

Brandon smirked. “Hardly. This guy had an unfair advantage.”

“Which was?”

“A car.”

“Oh Jesus,” Lexi cried.

“Anyway, I don’t like to talk about serious shit. So, don’t do anything stupid.”

“You mean, don’t act like you?” she asked, arching an eyebrow.

“Even I’m not stupid enough to push Bekah Bridges’s buttons. You have a few more degrees than me,” he said, glancing at her out of the corner of his eyes. “Use them.”

Lexi shrugged and looked out the window. She had no intention whatsoever of doing anything with Jack. She had been avoiding him ever since the wedding and really the entire year before that. She might want to push Bekah off a cliff, but that didn’t mean she was going to do anything that would bring her closer with the Bitch at a more normal occasion.

Lexi tried not to think about it anymore. She would have to talk to Ramsey when she got home, and that, in itself, was not going to be a fun conversation, but it was one she needed to have. If she could yell at him about not holding back any more secrets, then she had to be willing to be more forthcoming about her own life.