Avoiding Temptation (Avoiding #3)(113)

“I know why he wants to marry you. And I know why, despite the red flags, he can’t see anything but you,” Jack said.

“Why? Because I sure don’t see it. I mean, I’m not crazy. How he is acting about Parker is a huge red flag, right?”

She tucked a piece of hair behind her ear and stared into his blue eyes.

“You’re not crazy. He’s the guy who realized your worth and put you first. He gave you what you deserved. And he’s a complete f**king idiot to do anything to jeopardize that.”

Lexi stared down at the floor as his words sank in. She had given Ramsey everything, and he had risked their relationship with whatever was going on with Parker. Something that had happened between them years ago, which should have been put to rest years ago, was cropping up and suffocating everything she had invested in.

“He should have learned from my mistakes,” Jack said.

And then, she saw it in those crystal-clear blue eyes she had missed more than she cared to admit.

He wanted her. And it was a terrible idea to even let him see that she might want him, too. But it was Jack. She licked her lips and felt her pulse racing. She was too exhausted from work, too run-down, too emotionally distraught over the collapse of her life. She needed to back out of this situation and deal with it another night.

Jack’s hand slid down her cheek and down the curve of her neck, and then he pulled her head forward toward him. She breathed in sharply as he met her halfway, their faces no more than an inch apart. She could close her eyes and practically feel his lips on hers. This was a bad idea, but her brain and her heart weren’t listening to her. She wanted to forget everything. Jack had always been the easiest escape.

But no…

She couldn’t.

Her ring sat heavily on her finger.

Jack tilted his head forward, and instead of kissing her as she had expected, he rested his forehead against hers and dropped his hands to her shoulders.

“Losing you was the biggest mistake of my life. I don’t think another person deserves to feel that loss at my expense.”

And he pulled back, and she was left there, gasping.

Jack had…stopped. She didn’t know how to respond. Was she supposed to be relieved?

Because she wasn’t. She had expected him to kiss her. Her relationship was in shambles, and the thought of returning to her house left her feeling nauseated.

And now…through her haze, she heard the words that Jack had just said to her.

Losing you was the biggest mistake of my life.

Oh God!

After all this time…

Lexi pulled away sharply and stared forward at the far wall. She wasn’t sure if she was breathing properly. Her heart felt ready to burst. It was too much, all at one time.

“I think…I think I need to get some sleep,” she said, standing.

She couldn’t address what had just happened. She couldn’t let herself think about his words and the consequences in his meaning. She couldn’t think about how much she had wanted him to kiss her, to feel his lips pressed against her, to taste him.

“Yeah,” he murmured. “You can take the bed.”

“Okay,” she said, not wanting to argue with him.

She trudged down the short hall after him to the only bedroom in the place. He opened the door for her and flipped on a light. The minimalist décor continued into the bedroom. There was a queen-sized bed sitting in the corner and a small dresser. The closet was open on the opposite wall, and she could see that it, at least, was mostly full. It seemed the only real thing he had moved over to the place was his clothing.

“Bathroom is across the hall. Let me know if you need anything,” he told her. “I’ll just grab a pillow. I only have the ones on the bed.”

“Oh, okay,” she said.

He took a pillow and walked back out of his own room. “Good night.” He smiled forlornly, and then he disappeared back down the hall to where he would be sleeping…on the couch.

What was the world coming to?

Lexi padded into the bathroom where she changed into sleeping clothes and brushed her teeth. She stared at her reflection and wondered how anyone could want her at all. She looked run-down because she was run-down. She hadn’t exercised since last week, and that wasn’t helping anything. When her job put her on benders like this, she didn’t get to do much of anything—sleep, eat, work out. Circles were under her puffy red eyes, and her complexion was seriously missing the beach. At least her hair was still long and glossy.

Ever the optimist.

Lexi rolled her eyes and walked back across the hall and into the bedroom. She shut the door with a sigh and then hesitantly curled up into Jack’s bed. She groaned when she took in her first breath and buried her nose into the pillow.

Christ! The whole bed smelled like him—musky sexy cologne and sex. It made her entire body curl in on itself in pleasure from the heady feeling of intoxication that washed over her and the joyous aftereffect of an adrenaline boost pumping endorphins through her body.

There was no way that she was going to be able to sleep in this. All she could think about was all the times she had been pressed into his body in college after marathons tucked away in his bed…and the sound of his voice telling her that losing her had been the worst mistake of his life.

She lay in bed, wide-awake, for as long as she could stand it. She knew that she had to work bright and early in the morning, but she couldn’t fall asleep, lying here. If only her exhaustion would just set in and give her the temporary relief she needed…