The front door crashed open and she swiveled a little too fast for the headache that had taken residence in her temples. Ramsey flanked by the two roommates she had met the night before paraded into the room together not taking any notice of Lexi. She became increasingly aware that she was wearing men’s sleeping clothes with no bra, she had not seen a mirror, and she had the feeling she would be hungover until the next day at least. This all added up her looking terrible and wishing she had tried another door to get to a bathroom. Knowing they were all about to look at her in her condition made her already angry stomach lash out at her.
Ramsey didn’t even miss a beat when he looked at her. She looked like she had been through hell and back last night. Her long brown hair was tousled and tangled, and she looked a green tinge to her skin. But it did nothing to detract from her beauty. It was quite apparent that she needed nothing to make herself look good.
“Oh good, you’re awake. I was afraid you were going to die up there.” His roommates gaped at her before smirking at each other and venturing upstairs leaving her and Ramsey alone.
Lexi hadn’t worn a watch so she had no idea of the time. Apparently, this was starting to become a trend around Ramsey. “What time is it?” she croaked hating the way her voice sounded all throaty in the morning.
He could have listened to her speak all day with how sexy her voice was in the morning. “Nearly two.”
“Oh my God!” she yelled too loud for her own ears. She pushed her palms to her temples and cringed. “Two in the afternoon?” she moaned.
“Yeah, we would have brought you back lunch, but we weren’t sure what you wanted. So, I just got you coffee,” he said holding up a brown Starbucks cup. She stared at it like it was her lifeline.
“Uh…thanks,” she said awkwardly reaching for the glass. “How did I end up in your guest bedroom last night and not at a hotel?” she meekly asked the question that was on her mind.
“You weren’t in my guest bedroom. You were in my room,” he corrected her taking a step into her personal space.
It was as she had dreaded. She had slept with him. God, she just wanted to bury her face in her hands. She didn’t even remember sleeping with him. Had he been good? Had they been careful? Ugh…she felt like such a slut.
“I dragged you up there after you passed out on my couch last night. I got you awake enough for you to change into this,” he gestured to her clothing. “Then tucked you into my bed where you proceeded to pass out again. And now here you are,” he muttered quickly.
“Wait, we didn’t sleep together?” she asked blushing furiously as the question tumbled out of her mouth.
“I didn’t know you wanted to,” he chirped smiling down brightly at her. How did he look so good in the morning…oh wait, afternoon?
“Oh, I didn’t say that I did. I just assumed…” she trailed off.
“No, I did exactly what I said I was going to do except the part where you slept in a hotel. I thought you would like better accommodations than that.”
“Where did you sleep?”
“Couch.”
“Oh, well, thank you.” So she had been wrong. She liked knowing that her judgment was still intact. Jack had been completely misguided...just jealous ramblings of an ex-lover. Fantastic.
“Anytime,” he said still not leaving her personal space.
“I know that you did a great thing by letting me stay at your place, but we really need to work on your manners Country Club boy,” she quipped.
“My manners?” he inquired.
“Yeah. Personal space,” she reminded him sticking her hand out and pushing him back a step.
“Right. I forgot.”
“Oh, black coffee. How did you know?” she asked after guzzling a good quantity into her system.
“I paid attention at brunch yesterday.”
“Oh God, was that yesterday?”
“Yeah, hey, do you want to go get some lunch?” he couldn’t help asking.
Lexi stared at him amazed. Was he asking her out? No way was that happening. Sure they had kissed and he had let her stay at his place, but that probably happened all the time. He was just being kind. And besides that she looked and felt terrible. He had to see that on her. Was he just humoring her?
“Uh...I don’t have any clothes. They were in Jack’s car.”
“He left them,” he said evading her first excuse.
“I still feel kind of shitty,” she admitted.
“Alright then, how about dinner?” he asked prepared for this.
“Oh,” she began chewing on her bottom lip and pushing her hair behind her ears. What was she supposed to say? He had been very generous and all she had been was rude to him. She figured she at least owed him that much. “Well, I guess we could do that.”
“I mean you don’t have to go,” he said misinterpreting her hesitation.
“No, no, we should go. I appreciate what you did for me last night.”
“Hey, it’s no problem. I’m letting you pay me back by allowing me to take you to dinner,” he said smoothly scratching the back of his head thoughtfully as he looked at her.
She smiled for the first time that morning. He had decided that he liked her smile much more than the frown she normally sent his way. He wasn’t sure how he elicited such anger from her, but he would work much harder from now on so long as she continued smiling like that.
“Alright. Sounds like a plan.”
“Like a date,” he corrected sending her his most charming smile he could muster.
CHAPTER 12
NOVEMBER TWO AND HALF YEARS EARLIER
“You busy?”
Lexi read the text message she received from Jack and smiled. She relaxed back against Clark’s passenger seat. They were on their way back to his place from eating at a quaint downtown deli before finals.
“Not sure. I’m w/ Clark. What’s up?”
“Who’s that?” Clark asked his eyebrows furrowing as he watched her fingers slide against her beat up phone.
“Oh,” she said her head snapping up as she pressed the send button, “Jack’s just seeing what we’re doing tonight.”
“I want to see your sexy little body.”
Lexi’s grin widened at the message. “You miss me?”
“What did you tell him?” Clark questioned her, taking the turn a little faster than she had anticipated. Lexi’s shoulder slammed into the doorframe, and she readjusted in her seat glancing nervously at her boyfriend.
“That it was up to you,” she told him returning to her text message.
“It’s been five fucking long days!”
“Well, in that case, maybe I can get away.”
“Did you want to do something?” Clark asked attempting to read the message over her shoulder.
“Doesn’t matter to me. We can if you want,” she said her head still buried in her phone. “Did you want to?”
“Do that. I can’t wait another minute without you.”
“I mean, I was planning on going home,” he said checking her reaction.
She snapped her phone shut and turned to face him in her seat. “You want to leave?” she gasped. “I thought we were going to do something together this weekend. You were gone all last weekend with MBA stuff. Don’t go.” Clark had been accepted into their school’s prestigious Business graduate program at the end of last year. It had been extremely beneficial that he had received the offer since that meant that he wasn’t leaving for Atlanta to find a job. Instead, he would be able to stay in town for her senior year.