Avoiding Commitment (Avoiding 1)

"No! You can forget it."

"It will be easy. I'll just tell them that you're an old friend of mine who's here from out of town...which you are," he added. "We don't have to give them details. They don't give a shit about anyone else besides themselves anyway."

"Oh that's real comforting," she spat back at him.

He strode across the room and stood directly in front of her. "You know what I mean. They aren't going to care who you are or where you're from as long as you are with the right people."

She tilted her head up to look into his face. "And you're the right people?"

He nodded. "Bekah is the right people."

Lexi's stomach rolled at that sound. All she could picture about this girl was some blonde bimbo following daddy's orders and spending all of daddy's money. And, yes, she was certain Bekah was blonde. Jack always dated blondes. Not to mention, her parents were Country Clubbers. She groaned at the thought. No wonder Bekah was so worried about her parents cutting her off from their finances. "I'm not going," she said crossing her arms and legs at the same time and putting on a determined face.

"Ok alright, I can't make you," he said throwing his hands up. "I'll call her back and tell her you can't make it. It would just be for a couple hours, but...whatever." He turned and made to walk out of the room.

Lexi shook her head from side to side arguing with herself. Did she really come all this way just to bicker with him? She had come here for him...even if she didn't really want to admit it. She might as well go along with his charade. "Jack," she said standing up and catching his arm before he exited.

"Look, Lex, I get it. You're a different person and blah blah. But come on, the direction you're going in life you could be one of these people someday. I mean what's the worst that could happen, you could make some useful connections if you decide to head back to the South?" he asked speaking roughly to her. "So stop spouting bullshit. I know why you don't want to go. I remember what happened with Jennifer. I thought you were better than letting one bad experience cloud your judgment."

Her jaw clenched as she listened to him rant. She didn't want to hear any of this. "Ok. Ok. Jesus Christ, Jack just shut up." He paused and looked at her expectantly. For a second, she got lost in his gaze. His baby blues clouded over with grey as he let anger take him over. Something about that stare froze her in place.

"Lex?" he asked. She hadn't even realized he had been speaking. "Were you going to say something or just stare at me?" he asked slightly amused.

"Oh. Oh yea," Lexi mumbled recovering. "I was just going to say that I'll go with you...you know...before you said all that shit."

"Oh."

"Yeah," she said shifting her weight uncomfortably.

"Well then you better change."

Lexi glared at him. "Are we back here?"

"Well now that you've agreed, you've got to change," he snapped, but his anger was gone. He actually looked bemused that she had caved so easily. She tried to not let that shake her.

Lexi changed tactics. "And what would you like to see me in?" she asked cocking her head to the side and looking at him from beneath her side-swept bangs. The flirtatiousness in her voice was evident, but this was how she and Jack worked. They argued. They made up. They f**ked...oh wait...she meant flirted. Damn it!

"We don't have time for that." She glanced up at him innocently. "Or that. Now go put on a sundress. You brought heels right?"

Lexi shrugged. "Fine whatever, but you know you owe me right."

"I always repay my debts. Now go," he said pushing her into the room. She could imagine this conversation if they were together. He would kiss her softly on the mouth and smack her ass as she went to change. He'd follow her and ravish her body before they departed for their afternoon together. She sighed. Then again if they were together, he wouldn't dare drag her to a stupid Country Club. Oh yeah, and that whole girlfriend problem.

Lexi poured over her dress options. The brown sundress was too short for a Country Club especially if she was going as a guest. That left her to decide between a strapless ivory eyelet dress with a salmon colored satin belt and a bright green spaghetti strap number that billowed out around her knees. Frustration started to take over as her indecision intensified. She didn't really want to go to this brunch, and the fact that she had to put so much effort into her outfit made it even worse. Finally, she threw on the ivory dress with a pair of brown peep-toe mules leaving the green dress for a less judgmental audience.

"Ready?" Jack asked as she entered the living room. He looked as gorgeous as ever. A rather expensive, as she could judge by the quality, baby blue button up fit him perfectly even cutting in a bit at the waist to make him look leaner. A tri-colored blue, black, and silver tie hung from his neck to his light grey dress pants. The shirt brought out the blue of his eyes, and when they rested on her, they seemed to be a million times more intense than normal. She wasn't sure if that was because of her or not.

"As ready as I'll ever be."

They set off for the twenty minute drive out of town. A vast array of music filtered through the speakers. Anything from Dave Matthews Band to Dashboard Confessional to Oasis could be heard. Lexi hummed along to Wonderwall as they pulled up to the gate of the Club. After being cleared by the overweight security guard, they drove past the million dollar homes and around the immaculate eighteen-hole golf course to the mansion of a club house. Jack parked his Mazda 3 into an available slot between a BMV SUV and a tiny Mercedes convertible. Sauntering past the other meticulously detailed luxury vehicles, they made their way towards the daunting Club house. Lexi took in the massive arching entranceway and polished marble floors as her heels clicked noisily across the surface. The room was over-air conditioned, and smelled strongly of flowers. When she glanced around, she realized why. Hundreds of flowers of various types and colors were scattered in prearranged vases all around the entranceway. Lexi didn't remember that from the last time she had been there, and didn't much like it either. The whole thing made her want to sneeze. She followed Jack through the foyer and up to the receptionist seated behind a desk large enough to swallow her whole and covered with similar vases brimming with carnations, lilies, and tulips.