Avoiding Temptation (Avoiding 3)

“Hey, are you ready?” Ramsey asked, poking his head in a few minutes later.

She was still standing there in her bra and thong with a pile of dresses at her feet. “I don’t have anything to wear,” she whispered.

“You have a million things to wear.”

Lexi turned her head to the side and looked out the window. How could she explain this to him? She had to look nice—no, perfect. She had to look absolutely perfect. This was supposed to be the best time of her life, and she didn’t even have something to wear to it.

Ramsey checked his watch, which made her cringe. She was going to make them late—all because she couldn’t figure out what outfit to wear.

“How about purple?” Ramsey said. He walked through the closet and pulled out a deep purple dress and handed it to her.

It was a bit dressy, but he looked so cute, holding it up for her to take.

She just smiled and grabbed it. “This is perfect.”

His smile grew as she tossed the hanger to the ground and yanked the dress over her head. She slid her hands down her sides and held in her sigh. The material hugged her perfectly, but it wasn’t so tight that she felt like she would be better fit for the club. Ramsey certainly appreciated it.

Tugging on a pair of knee-high brown boots and grabbing her jacket, she followed Ramsey out of the house. They drove across town and into Buckhead. Lexi was already squirming. Ramsey might be covering the cost of this, but just the fact that the wedding planner’s office was in Buckhead meant it was going to be expensive.

They pulled up to a small boutique called Happily Ever After with its crisp, clear design work and nondescript entrance. So, this was it. Lexi took a deep breath and exited the car. Ramsey walked over to her side to walk with her inside.

The interior was gorgeous and modern, set in all blues with baby blue cushioned chairs and a navy blue coffee table. A receptionist sat behind a white desk, and a large spread display of the company’s work was on the wall behind her head.

“Welcome to Happily Ever After. I’m Eve. How can I help you?” she asked, placing her hands demurely in her lap and staring up at them.

“We have an appointment,” Ramsey said. “It’s under Bridges.”

“Ah, Mr. Bridges, of course. Let me contact Sherri,” the woman said before pressing a number on the phone and letting Sherri know that they were here.

A woman about Lexi’s height or maybe even shorter with insanely straight blonde hair to her shoulders and a soft look to all her features walked out of the back of the office. She wore a black pencil skirt with a pale blue blouse and all gold jewelry.

“Ramsey Bridges,” she said with a bright smile. “Pleasure to finally have you here.”

“Sherri,” he acknowledged, shaking her hand carefully, “it’s great to see you. I’ve heard such great things.”

She waved him aside. “Don’t flatter me. I’m just doing my job. Now, introduce me to your beautiful bride-to-be.”

Lexi stood stoically through the entire conversation. She had never wondered how Ramsey had selected the wedding planner. Did he know her personally? They sure seemed to know each other, but Lexi didn’t know how they were acquainted.

“Sherri, this is Lexi,” Ramsey said, drawing Lexi closer to him.

“Hello,” Lexi said politely. She extended her hand out, which Sherri took.

“So nice to meet you. You are positively stunning!”

“Thank you.”

Lexi could tell that Sheri was trying to assuage whatever nerves were floating around inside Lexi, but that wasn’t likely to happen.

“Please, come back into my office. I’m so excited to work with y’all on your special day,” she said.

They followed her down the hallway and into the back area of the boutique.

Sherri chatted away the entire time. “I don’t normally work with the grooms as well. It’s a real treat to have you along to help plan. You know I would do anything for the Bridges. After working on your sister’s lovely wedding, I am just thrilled that you contacted me for this.”

Lexi froze in place in the middle of the hallway. Bekah. Ramsey had selected Bekah’s wedding planner. That was how they knew each other because Ramsey had been in Bekah’s wedding—the wedding he had walked out of with Lexi.

Ramsey’s hand slid into hers, and he urged her to continue walking, but she stayed rooted in place. There were a million planners in the city, and he had chosen the one who had worked with Bekah.

“Why?” she whispered.

She could see in his eyes that he knew what she was asking.

“She’s the best. You deserve the best.”

“But Bekah…”

“That was two years ago, Lexi. Bekah can’t dictate our choices.”

“Yet, you selected her planner.”

“I’m having you meet with the planner that she used, yes. She’s so popular that she books out two years in advance. Just the fact that she is meeting us is out of her normal schedule. But she likes me, and she likes my family.”

“Why does it always have to be about who you know?” Lexi asked.

“Because that’s the world we live in. I can’t help that my name holds influence. It just does. I don’t think you deserve anything less than Bekah on your wedding day. In fact, you deserve much more than her. I’m simply asking you to try this…for us. Please.”

“Fine,” she said, only because he was pleading with her.

A part of her just wished that something had changed during those two years since she had agreed to get back together with Ramsey. They were better but still, he hadn’t told her about the planner. How hard would it have been to just tell her?

It was probably as hard as it had been for her to just tell Jack she had gotten engaged, yet she still hadn’t.

That thought sprang her into action, and she moved forward down the hallway. The wedding planner had stopped at her door, pretending not to listen during the exchange. Lexi wondered how many other women had breakdowns and freak-outs during the earliest stages of planning.

Sherri ushered them into her immaculately decorated office. The room had soft sand-colored accented in varying shades of green and supplemented with plants to make the room feel more natural and inviting. Lexi and Ramsey took the seats opposite Sherri, waiting for her cue.

After giving a lengthy introduction about the company, Sherri turned the spotlight on Lexi. “What is your vision for this, Lexi? I’d love to know what your dream wedding looks like. I’m in the business of making dreams come true,” she said with a big toothy smile.