The Avoiding Series Boxset

by K. A. Linde

  “So, what did you want to talk about?” she prodded.

  Jack chuckled. “Not here, Lex.”

  His blue eyes seemed to stare straight through her, and she looked away quickly. She knew those eyes still had power. They were friends, but it wasn’t always an easy gaze to hold.

  Lexi cleared her throat before speaking again. “If not here, then where are we going to talk?”

  “I was hoping we could get into your office.”

  “What?” she asked, surprised.

  Jack had been to her office before, but usually, he would only meet her there to go to lunch or something. The office was closed. It was after-hours. He knew that. What could he want to go to her office for?

  “I just need somewhere private to talk to you.”

  “It’s closed, Jack.”

  “You have a key, don’t you?”

  “Well, yeah…”

  He looked at her pointedly, pleading. “So, we could still go?”

  Why was she letting herself get sucked in by that stare? It must have something to do with that desperation she had heard through the phone yesterday.

  “I mean, yeah, we can go, but why do we need to?”

  “I don’t want to talk about it here.” He actually looked uncomfortable. “Can we just go to your office? I was hoping we could get this to go.”

  Lexi sighed. This man always had his own agenda.

  “Fine. We can go there, but we can’t stay long.”

  He reached out and squeezed her right hand. “Thanks for understanding.”

  She stood still for a second as that same bolt of electricity shot through her body, like it always had. She saw it mirrored in his eyes, and then they both hastily dropped their hands.

  Same old Jack, yet…still so different.

  With to-go bags in hand, they returned to their respective cars and drove the short distance to her office. Jack got stuck at a red light right as she turned into the parking lot. Lexi easily slid her car into her normal parking spot even though there were closer places. It was just a habit at this point.

  As she waited for him to make it through that interminably long light, she stared down at her ring. Her jacket was long enough that it covered her hands, and unless Jack had been looking for it, he probably wouldn’t have noticed the diamond on her finger. She had been meaning to tell him over dinner, but now that they were bringing dinner to her office, it felt too intimate.

  Biting her lip, she yanked the expensive ring from her finger and placed it in the glove box. Ugh! She already hated herself for doing it. Her hand looked bare without the ring, and guilt seeped into every pore. She should tell Jack today. But…she couldn’t tell him. She hadn’t even told her parents or Chyna yet. Jack couldn’t be the first person to know.

  A tap on her window made her jump clear out of her seat. Her hand flew to her chest, and her head darted to the source of the noise. Jack was laughing as he looked at her through the window, and she scowled up at him. She opened the door really fast and heard him grunt as it collided with his knee.

  “Jesus, Lex,” he said, grabbing for the door to keep it from hitting him anywhere else.

  Lexi stood from the car and smirked. “Serves you right. You shouldn’t scare a girl like that.”

  “I didn’t think I would scare you. Chill,” he said, shutting the door for her. He experimentally stretched his knee out a few times, but then he seemed to walk just fine once they started up the hill to the entrance.

  When Lexi located her office key, she opened the door and quickly disabled the security system. Once Jack was inside, she reactivated the alarm, so no one could follow behind them. Then, she shut and locked the door. They took the elevator to the third floor, and Lexi flipped on the light switch, illuminating the open office space.

  Her office was one of the first doors, right next to the employee lounge, which was both good and bad. She always heard the latest gossip, but people frequently dragged her away from her work. Not to mention, she was one of the first people her boss would see when he walked in.

  “Do you want to eat in the lounge?” Lexi asked, pointing at the open door.

  “Sure.”

  The lounge was high-end with two black leather couches, a mounted flat screen television, a small but sleek kitchen, and a wooden table that could seat six comfortably. Jack walked inside and set the food down on the glass coffee table in front of the couch. She followed behind him and took a seat on one of the couches before reaching for her food.

  Lexi was anxious to know what he wanted to talk about. Too many scenarios ran through her head, but none seemed plausible. She never knew with Jack though—anything could happen. She wanted to broach the subject again, but he was already pulling out his pad thai and digging in, leaving no room for conversation. Seeing that he wasn’t going to talk about what had been so urgent yesterday until he was ready, Lexi reached for her sushi.

  Silence with Jack had never been uncomfortable. Even now that things were different between them, it still seemed as effortless as it always had. He didn’t seem to be in a rush, so she didn’t rush. She didn’t have anything else to do tonight besides finally telling Chyna about the engagement. At that thought, she bit down on her lip on accident and squeaked. Jack looked up at her with a question in his blue eyes, but she just swallowed her food and looked away. He didn’t know why she was jittery, and she certainly wasn’t going to tell him after prying that damn ring off of her finger.

  After they finished their food, Jack threw the rest away in the trash across the lounge. Then, he leaned back against the counter and stared at her. Lexi stared right back. She searched his face for a clue, for anything that would tell her what she was about to hear, but she didn’t like what she saw. His eyes were stormy and contemplative, his forehead was creased in thought, and his arms were folded lightly over his chest. Whatever it was…was heavy.

  “Jack,” she whispered unintentionally, “what is it?”

  “You remember that time we went to the beach together?” Jack asked.

  Lexi tilted her head to the side and eyed him suspiciously. What did that have to do with anything? And for that matter, how could he think she would forget? That had been the first time they had…been together.

  “Of course I do. What about it?”

  “I was just remembering how you looked at me that day when you saw me in the sand.” His eyes were distant as he seemed to be recalling the moment.

  “You weren’t supposed to be at the beach. You were supposed to be in Savannah,” she reminded him. “I was just surprised.”

  “Surprised.” He laughed and shook his head. “You were flat-out shocked and lit into me, like it was all my fault for existing.”

  Lexi’s cheeks burned as she recollected the experience. She remembered he had been about to kiss her before Kate and Clark had interrupted them. He had deserved her sharp tongue.

  “It had a happy ending, I suppose,” he said with a shrug.

  Lexi narrowed her eyes. “Happy ending? Clark conning me into telling him we slept together was a happy ending?”

  Jack shook his head like he was breaking out of a trance—as if he had forgotten that was how the story had ended. “Sleeping with you was the happy ending.”

  She immediately dropped her gaze to her hands. What the hell was up with him? Recounting old memories and digging up the past—there was no point in any of that anymore.

  “What does this have to do with anything, Jack?”

  “Nothing.” He shrugged. “It doesn’t have to do with anything, Lex. I don’t even know why I brought it up.”

  “Jack, what’s going on? You’re acting really strange,” Lexi said, her gaze returning to his troubled blue eyes.

  “Bekah served me divorce papers,” he said flatly.

  “What?” Lexi snapped. “What did you say?”

  “She served me papers,” he said, his blue eyes showing as much pity and shock as she had ever seen.

  “After everything…sh
e’s filing for divorce?” Lexi couldn’t believe it. She couldn’t fucking believe it. Bekah had done everything to keep her and Jack together, and now, she was going to divorce him after only two years. Lexi suddenly felt murderous. How dare she ruin everyone’s life over and over and over again like this!

  “I guess, Lexi. I don’t know what to do. That’s why I called you. I never thought this would happen.”

  “But did she at least give you a reason?” Lexi demanded.

  Jack hung his head and sighed. Her heart went out to him in that moment. He looked so lost and vulnerable. Those weren’t emotions she associated with Jack.

  “She thinks I cheated on her.”

  Lexi snorted. That was rich!

  “I’m serious!” he cried angrily. “Take this seriously.”

  “How can I when this is all a sham to begin with? You did cheat on her!”

  “Not while we were married!”

  “And who’s going to believe you?”

  “I was hoping you would.”

  “You thought I would believe that about you, Jack? After everything I know about you, you thought I would think you wouldn’t cheat on Bekah? Did you hit your head this morning?” Lexi asked, crossing her arms.

  Jack rolled his beautiful blue eyes at Lexi’s dramatic behavior. “I thought I’d proven myself over the past couple of years.”

  “You thought wrong. I know who you are, even if you are my friend. Even more so, I’ve known you too long. I’ve been there.”

  “But it didn’t happen! You have to convince her—”

  “Whoa, there!” Lexi cried, holding her hands up in front of her. “I’m never convincing Bekah of anything ever again.”

  “I didn’t mean—”

  “I don’t care! I don’t care! Can’t you just deal with this like everyone else?”

  “How does everyone else deal with this, Lexi? I’m not everyone else. This isn’t a normal scenario or anything.”

  “It never is with you,” Lexi remarked sullenly.

  Jack sighed and stormed away from Lexi to the other end of the room. “Can we be serious for one goddamn second? My whole marriage is on the line.”

  “You shouldn’t have gotten married in the first place!” she cried angrily.

  She hadn’t been able to hold it back. He shouldn’t have gotten married. That was one thing she was damn certain of.

  She shook her head, already riled up from the conversation.

  “I knew it was a mistake to ask you about this.”

  Lexi shrugged. She couldn’t agree more. “I don’t know how you could expect anything else from me.”

  “Things are different.”

  “You’ve been saying that for a long time.”

  “But you know they are.”

  Lexi tried not to glance at her left ring finger. She wasn’t ready to tell him about that yet.

  “Maybe they are, Jack,” she whispered.

  She should tell him! She knew she should tell him.

  He walked back across the lounge to Lexi and sat next to her. “I’m sorry I bothered you. You shouldn’t have to deal with this. You have your own life. I know what we are now, but you’re all I have left. I can’t talk to anyone else about something like this. Lex, you’re my best friend,” he whispered huskily.

  She diverted her eyes from the curve of his lips, those soft pleading eyes, the heady smell of him. She couldn’t help him. She wouldn’t.

  He tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, and he was so close that she could almost taste the familiar scent she associated with Jack. It was like musky cologne, sex, and tension all rolled into one delicious mix. Her nerves cracked at the feel of his hand against her earlobe.

  “Stop it!” she cried, jumping off the couch, feeling the heat and adrenaline course through her veins.

  “Lex, I’m not doing anything!” he yelled back, unable to control his temper. “You’re the one accusing me of cheating on Bekah!”

  Lexi stormed across the room in a fury. She had been so in control around him that she hated getting this heated. She knew what her anger did to him, even if they hadn’t done anything in two years.

  She just wanted to punch something. Here he was—after all that shit they had gone through—requesting the same goddamn thing of her all over again. It was like he hadn’t even considered what this would do to her.

  “I haven’t done anything in the past two years to make you believe I have cheated on her,” he growled, standing angrily. “Tell me I’ve done something that makes you think that.”

  Pressing her palms to her temples, Lexi shook her head back and forth. “It’s nothing you’ve done in the past two years. It’s everything that happened the seven before that.”

  “You can’t always hold me accountable for the past. You’ve done bad things, too, Lexi. I’m not the only one! So, stop blaming me for everything. I’m trying…I’ve tried to be a better person. I’ve been successful in fact. So, can you please stop acting like I’m the same nineteen-year-old boy who you knew all those years ago? It’s not fair to me. After all the effort I’ve put in, the fact that you can come to me like this…I came to you as a friend. You are the only person I can still rely on.”

  “Okay, I get it,” she grumbled, turning around slowly and putting up her hands. “I’m sorry, all right? It’s easy to fall back into what we…were.”

  “I know,” he agreed, diverting his eyes.

  “It’s easy to forget the wedding…and everything else that happened afterward,” she said wistfully.

  Well, it hadn’t been easy at first, but she had gotten there with time. When she was around him, she just forgot the rest of the world. Even though they weren’t romantically involved anymore, he still had that same pull that she could never deny. He was just so…Jack.

  “It is.” He looked up at her from across the room.

  Their eyes locked, and from that distance, she could tell from his crystal-clear blue eyes that he was thinking the same thing she was thinking. It was a good thing he was so far away.

  “I’m glad we’re past that,” she murmured, never breaking away from his gaze.

  “I agree.” His characteristic smirk crossed his face.

  “I wouldn’t be able to be around you if we were anything but friends.” She hoped she sounded convincing.

  “Definitely not.” He stuffed his hands into the pockets of his jeans and tried not to look smug.

  “So, I’m glad we have this…friendship,” she told him.

  “Me, too.”

  “It’s weird when you’re not in my life,” she admitted.

  She wasn’t sure why she was admitting any of this right now. Maybe it was the familiar way he was looking at her. Maybe she was trying to pivot away from his ungodly request. Maybe it was the heated passion that sometimes flared up between them that she tried desperately to douse.

  “I don’t like it,” he said, looking at her in a way that made it clear he was wondering where she was going with this line of conversation.

  He ran his hand through his dark brown hair, letting each strand fall back into place. She wished it were longer. He used to let it fall into his eyes…those eyes. Now, it just hit his forehead. He looked good…professional. It suited him for the accounting career he had decided on, but it didn’t suit Jack.

  The silence dragged on as Lexi and Jack stared at each other across the room. The tension was palpable. She didn’t know what to do or what to say. What Jack wanted from her, was out of the question. They had gone through too much and put up with too many years for her to agree to help him. It would only hurt the one relationship she hadn’t royally fucked-up.

  “What are you going to do about the divorce?” Lexi finally asked.

  “What should I do?” His eyes searched her face for the answers that she had never had.

  It was a more in-depth, determined, focused question than could be answered in words. She could feel years of questions hanging in the balance. She could feel years
of desperation forced between them. She could feel years of heartache, destitution, and irreversible need roll off of every syllable.

  “What happens if you and Bekah get a divorce?” she breathed, barely above a whisper.

  She couldn’t believe she had asked it. She was engaged! It didn’t matter. It didn’t matter what happened. Why did she even have to ask him that question?

  The stretch of space between them had felt like a hundred miles growing every day since he had said, I do. Yet, here she was, the day after accepting Ramsey’s proposal, feeling the distance between them dissipating. She wanted to ignore it. She desperately wanted to ignore it. But what would she do if the Bitch no longer had her claws in him?

  Jack looked down at the ground and rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet. She could see the thoughts running through his head. She could see what he wanted to say, but she knew he wouldn’t. She knew he wouldn’t say it.

  “What do you want me to say, Lex?”

  There was that pet name again.

  She didn’t even know what she wanted him to say. And even if she did, even if she allowed herself the slip-up, what could be done?

  “Nothing,” she finally whispered, turning away from Jack.

  She tried to shut herself down, to think only about the memorable night she had had the day before. Yet, her mind kept wishing he would call out to her, but he didn’t. He didn’t stop her from walking away.

  SEPTEMBER—TWO YEARS AND ONE MONTH EARLIER

  Five whole days of silence from Chyna.

  It wasn’t the longest Lexi had gone without hearing from her. She had been in Milan for nearly two months after all, but this was deliberate. Chyna had walked out of that wedding with Lexi, Ramsey, and Adam, but Lexi hadn’t heard from her since.

  Lexi couldn’t let this stand. She had tried reaching out to Chyna. She knew it would be best to talk things through before Chyna got to sit and stew. The woman could hold a grudge like no one else. But of course, Chyna seemed to be avoiding Lexi’s phone calls.

  Lexi needed to make this right. Throwing on a pair of tennis shoes, she decided she was going to go over there and talk to her. She knew that Chyna was pissed about John, but that was over now. She was going to have dinner with John today to end things just like she had told him in the parking lot. The end.