The weight of the ring in her hand as she slid it into Ramsey’s palm. The look of pure unadulterated sadness that took over his face. The realization that he had lost her…that it was over.
With the beginning wave of acceptance already taking over, Ramsey had embraced her and left a lone kiss on the top of her head. She had let herself feel his arms around her once more, knowing that this would be the last time. Ramsey had stared down into her eyes one last time as he had pushed her hair behind her earlobe.
He had leaned forward and whispered into her ear, “His warning still stands with me, Lexi.” His voice had been hoarse with the edge of protectiveness that he had always had. “If he hurts you, I’ll kill him.”
Lexi had finally pulled back, her mouth set into a straight line, and nodded. He had nodded back, and that had said everything without saying anything. She hadn’t wanted to hide it from him. He deserved to know the truth, and through that one look, she had known that while he might not like it, and it would take time for him to get over it, he would get over it…get over her.
And then, he had let her go. Because there was nothing else that they could do. She had made up her mind.
So, she had said her farewell and departed.
She hated hurting Ramsey, seeing the pain that she had inflicted upon him, but she would hate herself more if she stayed with him and didn’t love him…not like she wanted to…not like he deserved.
Her hand had come down lightly on the doorframe. Her hand had fisted over her heart as she had pushed the pain aside. Ramsey occupied a different part of her heart, but the truth of it was…she could never give herself away fully to anyone with Jack still taking up residence. So, she had to let the pain pass, let it wash off of her like water on clay, and know that she was making the right decision.
With a sigh and another deep breath, she had dropped her hands and straightened her back. She would never forget the three-and-a-half years she had spent with Ramsey. They had been good years.
But she was ready to begin the rest of her life.
The door swung inward, and Lexi held her breath as Jack’s face came into view. He was still rubbing his eyes, trying to orient his already groggy body. She must have pulled him out of bed. He was wearing nothing more than burgundy basketball shorts hanging low on his hips. She could see the navy plaid boxers underneath, like he had just slid the shorts over top of them. He was shirtless, and she could see every muscular line in his chest and abdomen. Her eyes traced the taut muscles in his shoulders and down his arms before lifting back to that gorgeous face and those baby-blue eyes that were now staring back at her in shock. It was clear that he hadn’t been expecting to see her…maybe never again.
Their eyes locked on to each other, and it was like she didn’t even have to speak. It felt like he knew every thought in her head. This was her Jack.
“Lex,” he whispered.
“Can I come in?” she asked, her chest rising and falling in rhythm with her increased heartbeat.
Jack opened the door wider without a word and let her pass before him. It took everything she had not to just grab him, but she needed to talk to him first. She wanted to be rational about all of this…before he made her lose all her senses.
“I didn’t…I didn’t think you’d come back,” he said honestly.
Jack could never hide anything from her.
“I know,” she said.
It hurt her to think about what he had thought when she had left…when she hadn’t come back. She didn’t want to hurt him like that again.
“You issued an ultimatum last night…”
“I can’t keep doing this, Lexi,” Jack said immediately. “I want you. All of you. I want you so bad right now that I’m shaking to find control.”
Lexi smiled faintly. He still thought she was deciding.
“Jack, you’ve never made me decide. You always just…wanted me however you could have me. Why is this time any different?”
Jack closed his eyes and shook his head, walking a pace away from her. “I thought I explained last night. When you walked out of the wedding, I knew it was the end. I knew I had finally pushed you away…irreconcilably broken. But you broke me that day, too…in the best possible way. When I said I never wanted to hurt you again and I just wanted to see you happy, I meant it. I’ve been working for that these past couple of years. I’ve been giving you what you wanted. But I’m officially getting divorced in a few short weeks, and the thought of not fighting to be the person who makes you happy, to be the man who you come home to…well, I couldn’t live with myself. Because you’re what I want.”
He took a deep breath, and their eyes met again.
“And if I’m not what you want, then…just put me out of my misery.”
“Oh, Jack,” Lexi groaned, closing the distance between them and wrapping her arms around his waist. “You’re what I want. You’re all I want.”
Jack stood frozen, like he couldn’t believe what she had just said. She pulled back to look into his eyes, which were clouded over.
“What about Ramsey?” he asked, his voice hoarse.
“I already talked to him,” she said, letting Jack go and showing him her left hand. “I told him it was over—that I couldn’t keep the ring because I already had one.”
He stared down at her hand, blatant shock on his face. He had thought that last night was the last one they would have together. He had clearly believed that that it was over…that the woman he had loved for ten years was going to walk out of his life forever. And he had been willing to let her go…if that were what she wanted.
He drew her left hand into his with a smirk and planted his lips ever so softly onto her ring finger. “Damn right, you do.”
She closed her eyes with a sigh right before his lips crashed down on top of hers. Their lips melded together with the ease of two people who had spent ten years fighting to be together. He tasted and smelled and felt exactly how she remembered. Every sense was heightened, and she knew then that she could drown in this right here. This was right. It was sweet perfection, hypnotic energy, euphoric adrenaline pumping down through her veins.
Her hands moved up to tangle into his dark brown hair, and she tugged on the strands, pulling him closer to her, trying to feel all of him, as his tongue explored her mouth. He groaned into her mouth as she yanked a bit too hard, but his grip just tightened on her waist where he had moved aside her shirt and dug his fingers into her warm flesh.