Avoiding Commitment (Avoiding #1)(162)

"First, don't ever call me that again. I hate it," she said crossing her arms over her chest. In fact, she had only ever liked it when Jack said it. The way it came out of his mouth made it sound so sexy. But that was the last thing she wanted now. "And second, waste your time with someone who wants to listen to you like your fiancé, or your secretary, or hell even your apartment attendant. They all seem very interested in you."

Jack colored slightly at the accusation, but, Lexi noted, he didn't deny anything. "I know you probably never want to speak with me, but I can't end it like this."

"Oh you can't? Well I don't give a f**k. If you didn't want it to end like this, then you wouldn't have f**ked me in the hallway at Turner Field less than twelve hours before proposing to someone else," she squealed not caring that the cab driver or anyone else was listening.

"I know," he said nodding his head.

"I don't think you do or you would have taken the slap in the face to mean stay the f**k away from me like it was meant."

"I told you I can't leave it like this. I was blinded by my jealousy over you and Ramsey. I couldn't even believe you when you said nothing was going on. We said we'd never lie, but neither of us trusts the other."

Lexi kept that fact that he had been lying to her all along to herself. He would disagree with the statement and there was no need for him to try and convince her otherwise. He was right. She would never believe him. He wouldn't have chosen Bekah over her in the end, if he had really wanted to be with her. He would have cut his loose ends. He would have tried to make it work. He would have loved her the way she deserved to be loved. No, he had lied all along and she could never trust his word again. It had been broken once before when they had first begun and she had been stupid to believe in him to this day.

"You don't trust me right?" he asked mournfully.

"Stupid question," she quipped.

"Right. Well I guess you have no reason to."

"Yep," she said popping the final sound and staring out across the city.

"I really couldn't help it though."

"Oh this should be good," she said sarcastically. "You're going to tell me how you couldn't help but propose. Wonderful."

"No, I was going to propose. Can you just look at me please Lex?" he pleaded.

She turned and glared at him. "Do not call me that. Why did you string me along if you knew you planned on proposing?" she asked.

"Well I knew before you got here that's what I was planning to do, but then you showed up and I couldn't think about doing that."

"Then why the hell did you drag me down here? I was supposed to be here to convince Bekah you were ready to commit to her. You told me you just wanted her off your back that you had no intention of doing it. If you really were ready to commit, then why didn't you just f**king tell her that and leave me out of it?"

"Because she found the ring," he cried throwing his hands up in the air in defeat.

"I might hit you again if we continue talking about this," she threatened.

"She found your ring," he said more calmly.

"Yes, I f**king realize that moron. The ring that is now currently on her finger. The ring that was meant for my finger," she said waving her left hand around in the air. "Is nothing sacred, Jack? Go ahead. Please try to explain to me how her finding my ring has anything to do with me being down here."

"Because she flipped out and was shrieking, jumping up and down, going insane when she found it," he told her deflecting the glares she was shooting his way, "and then I crushed her when I told her it wasn't for her."

"Guess you changed your mind," she muttered angrily.

"No I didn't."

"Jack, get out of the f**king cab," she told him. "Sir, can you pull over right here?"

"Ma'am, we're on the highway."

"He can walk," she told him.

"That is illegal. I cannot let you out of the car until we are off the interstate," he said zooming down highway 85 towards the airport.

"I'm not going anywhere anyway," Jack told her.

"Then I'll get out and hail another cab," she told him turning back towards the window.

"Lexi it's a duplicate," he told her reaching out and turning her head towards him. She yanked her face out of his reach.

"A...wait…what?" she asked staring in the blue pools of his eyes.

"A duplicate. I had another one made, because I couldn't give her your ring," he said reaching into his pocket and pulling out a rather familiar black box. He flipped the top up and Lexi stared down at the wedding ring he had almost given her once. It was as exquisite as she remembered with every detail cut to perfection.

"How do I know this isn't the duplicate?" she asked staring down at the ring and knowing that no one could really duplicate this. The ring itself had an old time-y appearance and was completely unlike anything else she had ever seen.

"Why would I go to the trouble of getting you a duplicate?"

"To cover your ass?" she guessed.

"No to show you that, no matter what happens, you truly will always have a place in my heart," he whispered tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. The cab pulled into the line of traffic in front of the airport.