Lexi smacked her head back against the door instantly regretting her actions. Reaching her hand back to touch her head, she found a small knot forming where it had been knocked against concrete. As if her problems weren’t enough, now every bump and bruise would remind her of Jack. Great!

She groaned as she forced her body to stand back up. Hugging her arms tightly around her body, she moved in front of the full-length mirror pinned against the wall. Lexi gently pulled down the side zipper on her now ruined dress. The silky material slid off her narrow hips and pooled at her feet. She unclasped her black, strappy, high heels and kicked them off. Her strapless bra followed. Lexi turned from side to side examining the damage. She could see little bruised indentions in her thighs where Jack’s hands had held her up. Her lip was turning a slight shade of purple, but her neck wasn’t quite as bad as she had anticipated. Her back was scratched, but not red and puffy like before. In the dim lighting, the rest of her body looked nearly normal.

This allowed a small smile to cross her face. Their indiscretions wouldn’t be as noticeable as she thought. Her aches were at a minimum, and she would be as fit as ever in a couple days.

The smile dropped off her face and the tears began to well in her eyes. She allowed them to flow freely down her cheeks, cursing herself for feeling the emotions she was encountering.

This might be her last reminder of Jack.

He had said that he still needed time to think, but didn’t she, of all people, know better? Jack didn’t think. He acted. He did exactly what he wanted when he wanted to, and since he had done that with her, he had received everything he had endeavored towards.

She collapsed, naked, in a heap to the floor. Her hair cascaded around her face. She felt something wet on her knees and she realized, suddenly, that it was tears. Lexi swiped at her eyes. She glanced up into the mirror and recognized the trail of black flowing down her cheeks. She vigorously scrubbed the mascara tears away leaving her cheeks raw and splotchy.

Her head tilted to the side as she stared onwards at her reflection. She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear once out of habit. The movement reassured her, and she did it again until the curly strands were maintained neatly behind her ears. It was the least she could do to keep from crying again.

This was the last time she ever wanted to cry for Jack Howard.

Her head snapped to the side at the sound of the door creaking open. Ramsey stood silhouetted in the doorway in nothing but a snug pair of maroon boxer briefs. For a second as she stared at him, she lost all thought of being naked sitting on the floor. He looked so delectable. She had never seen him with his shirt off, and damn was her first impression right. He certainly had to have a personal trainer.

“Oh, sorry,” he said his eyes sliding down her near naked form. She could tell he wasn’t sorry, and she was too broken and dazed to say otherwise.

“Did you need something?” she asked, her voice cracking with the effort to keep from crying.

“I was coming to check on you.”

For once, he kept his distance. Lexi let her head drop wishing she could erase this entire night. She had been stupid to think that she could be a part of Jack’s life. And in that moment, she felt more used than she ever had in her life. Even if that hadn’t been Jack’s original intention, after he left her standing there bruised and broken, she couldn’t help but feel that he had used her. And she wasn’t even sure what had fueled such anger from him. The sex was amazing, but there was an undertone of hostility in his movements. Not to mention his abrupt goodbye. When he said that it didn’t change things, she was really more afraid that he meant it.

“Is there something I can do?” he whispered into the darkness.

She shook her head back and forth. All she needed was to be alone.

“Are you sure?” he asked taking a few tentative steps into the room.

“I’m fine,” she murmured. It wasn’t believable though. She was naked sitting in a crumpled heap on his floor looking as if she had been crying.

She glanced back up and met his worried gaze. “You don’t look fine.” He took another step forward.

“Thanks,” she muttered sarcastically.

“I didn’t mean it like that. I just meant…” he trailed off.

“I know what you meant.”

He cleared the space between them in a quick stride and squatted in front of her. “Please let me make it better. I hate seeing you this way,” he whispered reaching out to her.

“Then don’t look at me,” she said pulling herself away from his touch.

“I can’t help but look at you.”

“Yes, you can.”

“No, I can’t,” he said leaning in closer. “You are the most beautiful thing I’ve ever laid eyes on.”

“Beauty is only skin deep,” she quipped not letting herself get suckered into his sweet talk.

“Not on you.”

“You don’t even know me.”

“And you don’t know me. Yet, we’ve gone on two dates and we’ve kissed. I know you feel something for me. You just don’t know what it is yet,” he told her sitting next to her on the floor.

Lexi shook her head. “You’re right. I don’t know you, and I don’t know what I feel.”

“Then let me show you,” he said leaning forward and capturing her lips in his own.

Lexi groaned deep in her throat wondering how she had gotten herself into this mess. Here she was going back and forth between two guys. This, being here right now, was so wrong.

Misreading her groan, Ramsey took this as encouragement and deepened the kiss. He let his tongue slide into her mouth and flick against her tongue. His hands buried themselves into her thick mass of curls pulling her face closer to his. She couldn’t stay unresponsive as he expertly maneuvered against her mouth. It was as if some kissing instinct had awakened in her, and she tilted her head giving him a better angle.

Her mind was so frazzled from the events of the night, but still she knew this was wrong. “Ramsey,” she muttered against his lips.

As soon as it came out of her mouth, she knew he would take it as further encouragement. His name had come out breathy and seductive when she had been going for questioning.

“Mmm,” he moaned against her lips, letting one hand trail down her neck, across her slight shoulder, and gently grazed the side of her breast, before resting strongly on her waistline. She couldn’t keep her breath from hitching as his large hands staked a claim on her body.

She knew she should stop him from continuing. Her mind went into overdrive as she thought about how wrong her actions were in that moment. But before she could even push him away, he snuck his arm up under her legs and effortlessly hoisted her into the air. The sweet taste of peppermint lingered on the tip of her tongue as she broke away from him.

He carried her to the foot of the bed and gently laid her back against the soft down comforter. She was distinctly aware of her nakedness as she stretched out across the bed. There was so little clothing between them leaving her in a very precarious position. From her angle, she could see the bulge in his boxer briefs growing at the sight of her. She couldn’t help but smile at his reaction. Of course, she knew it was the wrong reaction. All she seemed to be doing was sending him wrong signals, but she couldn’t help it. Very few women wouldn’t have smiled at that moment.

His hands moved forward and clutched onto her hip bones. Then he dipped his head down and began kissing upwards from her navel. Slowly but surely he moved around her belly button, up between the curves of her breasts, to the base of her neck, across her jaw line, and then, finally, back to her lips. She felt him press against her as he coaxed a reaction out of her tender lips. His hands roamed her body taking in every curve of her skin. She could feel him urging her on, aching for her body. He interlaced their fingers and pressed her arms above her head leaving her completely vulnerable. He began a slow grind against her, never letting up on his amazing kisses.