Avoiding Temptation (Avoiding #3)(68)
Author: K.A. Linde

“I was a serial cheater, too. People tend to forget that when they start to blame Jack for everything. We were both at fault, and now, we’ve both come to terms with who we were and moved on to the people we want to be. So, if you’re going to judge him, then you should judge me, too.”

“So, that’s it then?” John asked. “I can’t change your mind? Tell you how much of a mistake you’re making?”

“I’m not making a mistake. I’ve made my choice. It’s the right one because it makes me happy.”

“Okay.”

He didn’t sound convinced, but she was pretty sure her words were beginning to sink in.

They heard rustling from the other room and then the turn of a doorknob. John pressed his lips together and then sighed.

“Tell Adam I had to head out. I hope you’re right about him,” John said. “I bet Ramsey would smash his face in, too, if it turns out you’re wrong.”

“Yeah, I bet he would,” Lexi said with a giggle even though she was sure John didn’t find that funny at all. “Sorry, not funny. Just feels like a lifetime ago.”

“I’m glad I got to see you. If you change your mind—”

“I won’t,” Lexi answered automatically.

“All right,” John said with a shrug.

And then, he walked out of Chyna’s apartment without another word—no big fanfare, no emotional heart-tugging moment, no farewell kiss. Just the likely realization that he was wasting his time by continuing to fight for her. She had no doubts that if things didn’t work out with Jack, then John would still be interested, but she didn’t think that was going to happen.

In fact, at this point, she couldn’t even imagine a possibility of a life without Jack.

And she counted on never having to.

Chapter 26

Just as John closed the door behind him, Chyna and Adam started down the hallway.

“Alexa!” Chyna crowed, walking confidently down the hall in her six-inch high heels and tiny, tight black mini dress.

Lexi could tell that she had clearly been hitting the bottle already.

“Hey, C,” Lexi said with a shake of her head.

She felt a bit strange after what had happened with John coupled with Jack disappearing out of nowhere. She could use a drink of her own.

“Where’s your man?”

“Had to stop to get something. He said it was a surprise, and he would meet us at the restaurant. Are you ready?” Lexi asked quickly.

Chyna raised one perfectly manicured eyebrow. “He just went to get something? That’s…odd.”

Lexi shrugged, trying to let it roll off her shoulders. “It’ll be fine.”

“Totally. I mean, he would be stupid to screw up now,” Chyna said with a tipsy giggle.

Adam shook his head and strode past Chyna. “I have the most insensitive wife in the world.”

“And you love every minute of it,” Chyna snapped back.

“I’m sure Jack is doing exactly what he said he was doing,” Adam said, ignoring Chyna’s outburst. “Have you seen John by any chance?”

“Yeah. He just told me to let you know that he had to head out. He found out about Ramsey and Jack and then took off.”

“Ah,” Adam said.

Their eyes met, and she knew that Adam understood what had passed between her and John. She had always had an uncanny connection with Adam, and Lexi knew that he was very close with John. She wondered but had never asked if John and Adam had talked about her after Adam had found out that they had slept together. She figured it didn’t matter now.

“Well, we’re already going to be late because Adam wanted to give me two orgasms instead of one. Isn’t he a stand-up guy?” Chyna said with a wink as she snaked her hand up his back.

Adam rolled his eyes, but Lexi saw his ears burn red. Lexi assumed it was always like this between them. He was probably used to it even if it still made him blush.

“Get your ass to the car,” he said, smacking her playfully on the butt.

“Y’all are ridiculous,” Lexi said.

Lexi followed their ridiculous asses back out of Chyna’s apartment and into the backseat of her town car. A few minutes later, they pulled up in front of the new restaurant that had just been opened by a prominent reality-TV chef. It was classic Americana food in a gourmet setting with the decadence of the Upper East Side.

As soon as Chyna flounced into the place, they were ushered upstairs and deposited at a table in a private room off of the main dining floor. With candlelight illuminating the small room, the table was set for four with single-sheet hardback menus at each place. Lexi checked her cell phone to see the time. Jack still wasn’t here. They had shown up ten minutes late for their dinner reservations, so she couldn’t say anything about him being late. But she missed him and was so damn curious about what the hell he was doing.

The waitress appeared a few seconds later, and Chyna ordered an expensive bottle of wine for the table while they waited for Jack to appear. The wine was uncorked, and four glasses were poured when Jack showed up. His cheeks were flushed with the chill from outside, and his blue eyes locked in on Lexi. He smiled, and she felt her heart stop.

“Sorry I’m late,” he said before kissing Lexi’s cheek and then taking a seat beside her.

“Glad you could join us,” Chyna said dryly.

Jack chuckled at her. “Drink some more wine, Chyna.”

“Don’t mind if I do,” she said before tipping back her glass. She pulled it back and pointed between them. “You know, I knew that you would pick him.”

“You told me,” Lexi said.

Once Lexi had finally called Chyna to let her know what happened, Chyna had gone on and on about how she knew that Lexi would end up with Jack. Lexi was pretty sure Chyna had thought that Lexi would just leave Jack and Ramsey altogether, but Chyna had insisted it was Jack all along.

And Lexi agreed with her on that. It was always Jack—her Jack.

Dinner came and went without Lexi getting a chance to ask Jack about what he had been up to. She eyed him, trying to get him to spill, but he just smiled and squeezed her hand under the table. If he was bound and determined to hold it back, she might as well let him keep his surprise to himself. She would find out in good time.

“Did you get my message?” Jack whispered when Adam and Chyna were seriously invested in another intimate debate. “You never responded.”

“Message? No. I checked my phone right before you got here. When did you send it?”

“Right before I walked into the room.”

Lexi held up her finger and dug her phone back out. Yep. There was a missed message from Jack.

3 o’clock.

Lexi giggled. “You were checking me out.”

The last time she had gotten a text message like that was when she had been in college, and he had seen her from across the bar. That night had been the spark that they needed to end up back together. And they had kept ending up together for years after that.

“How could I not?”

“You’re silly. I could never forget that night.”

“I could never forget you.”

Her phone buzzed in her hand just as she was putting it away, and she clicked on the email that had come in.

Huh. It was from Cierra.

Cierra had been sad to hear about Lexi breaking up with Ramsey, but she had understood Lexi’s side on the whole thing. Lexi was lucky to still have her as a friend even though she worked for Bridges. Cierra was going to be a bridesmaid for Lexi after all.

The email appeared before her eyes, and as Lexi skimmed the intro, she immediately started laughing.

“What?” Chyna asked, coming out of her argument with Adam.

“Oh, you’ll never believe this,” Lexi said, covering her mouth to keep from laughing hysterically as she read through the article attached to the email.

“Atlanta Lifestyle magazine has a full-page spread about none other than the Bitch herself,” Lexi announced.

“Bekah?” Jack asked softly.

“What is Atlanta Lifestyle magazine?” Chyna asked.

“It’s the richie-rich Atlanta magazine,” Jack explained with a shrug. “All the country clubbers read it religiously. Bekah has had a subscription her whole life. Basically your page six.”

“Oh,” Chyna said, turning her nose up. “So, what does it say?”

Lexi turned her phone around and showed off the picture. It was a clearly unstable Bekah lunging at Lexi with her arms outstretched in front of her and her father holding her back. She looked ready to murder Lexi. Luckily, only the back of Lexi’s head was visible or else it wouldn’t have been as hilarious.

“It briefly mentions the divorce proceedings going wrong for her. The majority of it deals with her cheating with Clark and the destruction of her golden-girl reputation. And get this part,” Lexi said, turning the phone back to herself and reading a part of it. “Due to the humiliation endured against the famous Bridges name and her inability to handle her own finances, an anonymous source has leaked to us that Bekah’s trust fund has been frozen, and her active role as Bridges Enterprise vice president has been revoked until further notice.”

“Wow,” Jack whispered. “She’s got to be mortified.”

“Yeah,” Lexi said, seeing the concern on Jack’s face. “I’m sorry. I mean…I still hate her, but I’m sorry it all happened like this.”

“You know, she was the first person to ever cheat on me,” Jack said offhand.

“I know.”

“Well, personally, I think that crazy bitch got what was coming to her,” Chyna said. “She was pretty dreadful to everyone.”

Lexi reached over and grabbed Jack’s hand.

He smiled at Lexi and agreed, “She was, wasn’t she?”

“Yes. I think this calls for a toast in fact,” Chyna said, raising her glass into the air.

Lexi loved the way her best friend diffused tension…with alcohol.

“What are we toasting to?” Adam asked, jumping in with his wife.

“To being free,” Chyna said.

Lexi laughed, remembering the time when she had boarded Chyna’s jet to escape the world with those same words ringing true. “No,” Lexi said. “To closure.”

Chyna winked at her as Jack and Adam raised their glasses as well.

Just before they clinked their glasses together, Jack added, “To new beginnings.”

They finished off their wine, and a heavy buzz began setting in on the conversation. As her treat, Chyna insisted on paying the entire tab even though everyone tried to argue with her, but really, there wasn’t a way to argue with Chyna.

Lexi half-stumbled down the stairs and back out of the building. Jack had his arm around her waist and helped support her unsteady legs as they exited into the chilly evening.

“I think we’re going to head back,” Jack told Chyna with a smile.

“Now?” Lexi asked. “But the night has just started.”

“It’ll be worth it,” he whispered into her ear. “I’m still dying to get my hands on you again.”