“I don’t think I wasted any time,” Lexi said defiantly.
John balked at the statement but kept going. “Are you moving back?”
“I think so, but I still have some loose ends to tie up.”
“When can I see you again?” he asked without missing a beat.
Lexi shook her head. Her heart broke a little bit for him. “Why have you waited for me all this time with no certainty that anything would ever happen?”
“You’ve always been at the forefront of my mind. I’ve never met another woman quite like you.”
“One who told you no?” she asked, arching an eyebrow.
He chuckled and shrugged. “There’s that, but you’re different, Lexi. You know that. You don’t bullshit. You’re not afraid to speak your mind. You’re smart and beautiful. A deadly combination.”
“I’m sorry,” she said.
She hated having this conversation again, but at this point, she knew it was necessary. She wasn’t sure how many times she had told John that they couldn’t be together, and it hurt each and every time to have to deliver the news. He could have anyone he wanted, and she couldn’t understand, even with his kind words, why that person would be her.
“What is holding you back?” John asked, reaching for her, wanting to sway her.
“Jack,” she answered, pulling out of his grasp. “It was always Jack.”
John narrowed his eyes. “The one I could never compare to?” he asked the question as if it was still the most ridiculous thing he had ever heard.
She hated to admit it, but she still meant every word that she had said to him that night over dinner.
“Isn’t he still married?”
Lexi shook her head. “No. He got divorced.”
“And now, you’re together.”
“Yes,” she whispered.
“Perfect,” he said sarcastically. “Where is he now?”
Lexi bit her lip. Great. Just what she wanted him to ask. “He’s in the city with me, but I don’t know where right now. He’s on his way.”
“From everything I’ve heard about him, he’s a serial cheater. You’re not concerned that he’s just off and away?” John asked, spouting all the fears that had clouded her mind for years.
But she couldn’t stand there and let him say those things. Jack hadn’t cheated in a very long time. And if she could change, then why couldn’t he? Why couldn’t she give him the benefit of the doubt? Neither of them had been faultless, but they couldn’t continue to judge each other on what had happened so long ago. As Jack had said the day he found out about the divorce paperwork, he was no longer that nineteen-year-old boy anymore.
“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.
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.