Avoiding Commitment (60 page)

However, she had made it pretty clear, up
until last night, that she had realized her mistake and wasn’t
going to continue on that path. If Jack hadn’t ran in New York, she
would have taken some time away from him. She had wanted to show
him that what he had done was not right. They had cheated and
deluded themselves into thinking it was alright, but it wasn’t and
it never would be.

But the other part of her knew that this was
just as much Jack’s fault, if not more. He had been the first to
cheat. He had been the first to tell her that it was always going
to be okay, that they could just be friends, that it didn’t matter
what they had done, rather what they felt. He had never given
up.

And up until today, she thought he had always
kept that one important promise that had saved them through so many
battles. He had promised that he would never lie to her. Through
everything, he had told her exactly what was going on and exactly
what happened. He had even told her when he had cheated on her.
Yet, she realized, through her mind clouded with anger, Jack had
lied to her all along.

Because he had always said that he wanted to
be with Lexi, and it was pretty obvious now that that was simply
not the case.

The memory of Jack pulling out an exquisite
wedding ring and all but proposing was still fresh in her mind. She
could remember every little emotion she had felt that day from his
confession, to her depression, to his attempt at making amends.

And now her ring,
her
ring, was on
that bony, blonde bitch’s finger.

Lexi reared back and with every ounce of
force she possessed in her tiny body slapped Jack clear across the
face. His head snapped sideways with the momentum of her strike.
Her breathing was heavy and uncontrollable fury was ricocheting
throughout her entire body. She could hear Jack’s ragged breaths in
front of her, but she couldn’t even stand the sight of him after
what he had done. She heard Bekah gasp and rush forward as if to do
something about what had happened, but something in Lexi’s eyes
must have stopped her in her tracks. Lexi wasn’t certain what she
looked like in that moment, but she was sure it wasn’t something
that anyone would want to deal with.

“What the…” Jack cried bringing his hand up
to his face to rub his jaw line.

“What is wrong with you?” Bekah cried still
staying far enough out of Lexi’s reach.

“At the moment, everything is wrong with me,”
she spat back at Bekah.

“How dare you react like this! Now, I knew
that you still had feelings for Jack, but honestly this is
ridiculous. Coming here, hanging all over him, and then slapping
him when you have news of our engagement?” Bekah asked angrily.
“That is childish and completely uncalled for. I think you should
exit the premises.”

“Childish and uncalled for, honestly?” Lexi
cried out. She couldn’t even form clear words to tell Bekah how
absolutely ridiculous her statements were. How could you explain to
a woman who was crazy about weddings and had just been proposed to
that her ring was never meant for her? Could she break the news to
her?

She had never liked Bekah, but she couldn’t
shatter her dreams just because she was angrier at now Jack than
she ever had been in her life. Actually, she might be angrier than
she had ever been in her life.

But Lexi agreed with her. Perhaps, she should
leave the premises. There was no need for her to stay here and make
a fool of herself any longer. Jack had crushed her. That was all
there was to it. He didn’t want her any longer. He had given her
ring to Bekah, which proved that more than anything else ever
could.

“Yes, absolutely,” Bekah told her, folding
her arms one over the other.

“Whatever,” Lexi said glaring at Jack who
still hadn’t spoken up. “There is so much I could tell you that I
held back from you to save you heartache.”

“Like what?” Bekah challenged steeling
herself against Lexi’s threat.

Jack glanced between the two girls uneasily.
“You really don’t even want to know,” Lexi announced.

“I do. Please, shock me,” Bekah said raising
her eyebrows as if challenging her to continue.

“Bekah, ignore her. She’s just pissed. I’m
getting out of here and you should come too. You don’t need this,”
Jack said snatching up his suit jacket and storming out of the
room.

“That’s right, just run away like you always
do,” Lexi called after his retreating back. Bekah stayed put and
watched as Jack exited the room in a blaze of fury. “Aren’t you
going to run after him?” Lexi asked condescendingly. She realized
how much of a failure her coming to this place had been. Jack had
used her and then threw her out with the trash just like Chyna had
said.

“No, I think not,” Bekah said a smile
creeping onto her face. “I’m actually very happy that we have this
moment together.”

Lexi looked at her in disbelief. “And why is
that?”

“Because I’ve been waiting for this very
moment.”

“And again, why is that?”

“For you to finally realize that Jack will
never be yours,” Bekah stated sweetly, tilting her head slightly to
the right as she stared wide-eyed at Lexi.

“What are you even talking about?” Lexi asked
staring at Bekah blankly. She wasn’t exactly sure about the change
of conversation, but was still too angry to process what she was
saying.

“Why do you even think that you’re here?”
Bekah asked placing one hand on her hip and leaning into it.

“What do you mean what am I doing here? I
came to talk to Jack.”

“No,, I mean, why do you think you’re in
Atlanta?”

Lexi sighed. “I’m here, because Jack asked me
to talk to you and convince you that he was ready to commit to
you,” she said letting all the words come out in a rush.

Bekah’s smile widened. “You thought you were
here to convince
me
that Jack was ready for commitment?”
Bekah asked sardonically. “What a silly little girl you are after
all.”

Lexi tilted her head to the side as if
evaluating the situation. “What are you even talking about? That’s
exactly what Jack told me, and fuck you, I’m not a silly little
girl.”

“Well, yes, of course he told you that. I
told him to tell you that, and he believed me,” she announced
smiling sweetly.

“Then what are you talking about?” Lexi
demanded tired of this ridiculous behavior.

“You didn’t come here to convince me…you came
here to convince him,” Bekah stated simply. “I knew all about you.
When he gets drunk, he babbles too much, and on occasion you were
brought up. He never remembered mentioning you, or if he did, then
he pretended as if he hadn’t spoken a word. You see, I knew that he
wasn’t over you. I could tell from the way he looked when he spoke
about you.”

Lexi stomach began churning. Why was Bekah
telling her all this?

“So I made sure you came down to visit. I
knew that if you were around, he would finally get over you. And
you did just as I suspected, you convinced him that he was ready to
marry me. You played right into my hand. I applaud you,” she said
beginning a slow golfer’s clap. “I never thought you would make it
so easy for me.”

“I…I don’t believe you,” Lexi croaked her
stomach dropping completely out of her body.

“Of course you don’t,” Bekah said throwing
one hand in the air. “You can’t see past your stupid little fantasy
that Jack is one day going to be yours. You can’t see past the
history you guys once had. You can’t get over the charade you two
put on for every other person you have ever been with or ever
known. Even your own best friend can’t understand that you will
never
get over Jack.

“And I understand because Jack is amazing,
but he is not yours. He is all mine. You know if you could have
realized that Jack will never be yours earlier, you would have seen
what was happening all along.” Bekah smirked and fluffed her blonde
hair over her shoulder with her left hand letting the giant diamond
glitter in the afternoon sun light filtering in through the
windows.

“You are completely demented,” Lexi cried.
“And it is
not
a fantasy, because you know damn well that
Jack has been mine for nearly six years now.”

“Wow. You really are dumber than I thought,”
Bekah said chuckling to herself. “Why can’t you get it through your
head that Jack has never nor will he ever be yours? You are the
mistress, the other woman, the second choice. That’s all you are or
ever will be to him. He could never see you as anything more.
That’s why he never left anyone else for you. That’s why he cheated
on you at the first opportunity and then left. That’s why he is
choosing me…not you.”

Lexi’s mouth dropped open. She hated the fact
that what she was saying actually made sense. She had thought about
those facts many times before, but she had never been able to come
to that conclusion. She had never been able to believe it was over.
How could it ever be over?

Today was the first time she had ever
realized that she would lose him. She had thought for a long time
that things were not the way they should be between them, but she
never lost hope for them to be together. Bekah was right. She was
stupid for believing they would work it out after everything they
had been through.

“Oh look, I think you might have finally
realized it,” Bekah cooed as if she were speaking with a
toddler.

“What the fuck ever,” Lexi said brushing past
Bekah and stomping towards the exit. She didn’t need this…not from
Bekah…not from anyone. She needed to move on with her life and that
meant doing just as Bekah ordered: exiting the premises. It was
time to leave Atlanta and get back home where things were less
drama filled and a bit more reliable.

Bekah chuckled one more time. She turned as
Lexi brushed past her and just as Lexi put her hand on the door she
said maliciously, “Not to mention my brother played his part
perfectly.”

Lexi stopped with her hand on the door ready
to pull it open. She took a deep breath and willed herself to
leave. She knew Bekah was antagonizing her now, and she needed to
get out before she got suckered in. She twisted the handle
attempting to keep her curiosity at bay. But she couldn’t keep it
at bay. “What does Ramsey have to do with this?”

Bekah smirked knowing she had caught her
interest. “Oh, you know Ramsey,” she said shrugging.

Lexi looked at her as if she had no idea what
she was talking about. “Bekah,” she said warningly, “I’m tired of
this bullshit. Just tell me what you obviously want me to
know.”

“Honestly, I never would have imagined Ramsey
to be such a good actor.”

“What was he acting about?” Lexi asked afraid
to get the answer. There were so many things that could go wrong
with this conversation. She wasn’t sure what had happened over the
past week, but she had begun to trust him. It was a scary feeling
for her to allow someone else into her life, but Ramsey was
beginning to grow on her. She couldn’t imagine what it would mean
if Bekah told her something that would shatter yet another
relationship. Lexi wasn’t sure if she could handle that at this
moment in time.

“Really, Lexi, can’t you answer that
question? The way you were putty in his hands really worked in my
favor to be honest.”

“Ramsey?” Lexi asked doubtfully.

“Yes, Ramsey. What? Did you think he liked
you? He is
my
brother. Who do you think he would choose if
it came down to it? Oh, come on, that’s a stupid question, he would
choose me over you. It was really easy to convince him to fuck
around with you.”

No, Lexi couldn’t believe it. Ramsey wasn’t a
pawn in his sister’s game. He would never play her like a fool.
What did he have to gain from Bekah’s game?

Bekah continued, “Then planting Jack in the
perfect location to witness everything that was going on. Of course
I had to leave you and Jack alone some so that he could get pissed
off at you. Just enough for you to have a rift and then let the
trust issues, which you already have, blossom into true anger.”

Lexi didn’t know Ramsey all that well. They
had only been hanging out this week and if he had been under
Bekah’s influence the entire time, then it was all a lie. Both of
their public kisses had been in front of Jack. Only a day after her
date with Ramsey, he had gone straight to Jack and told him that
they had been together. No wonder Jack had thought there was
something going on. Bekah and Ramsey had set them up.

“It was almost too easy how it worked
out.”

Lexi’s heart was racing as she turned to face
Bekah. She knew that something had changed between her and Ramsey
in the past week. She hadn’t even really been aware of it herself.
She had started to like him. Even with everything going on with
Jack, she had somehow found her heart could still beat. And it
didn’t feel manufactured. Was it wishful thinking to believe that
he had really had true affections for her?

“Oh, do you care about him?” Bekah asked
sounding demented.

“I can’t believe you,” Lexi finally decided.
Her voice lacked the conviction that she wanted to feel. Ramsey, at
least, she thought she could count on. She wasn’t sure why. Maybe
because something about him seemed so sincere. Maybe because they
had seemed genuinely interested in each other when they spent time
together. Maybe because she had some means of self-control around
him and still found that she was attracted to him. But could all of
that been from acting?

What did she really know about him? He didn’t
work for Bridges Enterprise, and she didn’t know where he did work.
She didn’t know where he had gone to school or if he had gone to
college at all. She knew he had a trust fund and was around during
much of the day. He had a nice ass.

Yeah, that was about it.