As if on cue, the door opened, and Bekah walked out. Lexi scrambled to her feet. She didn’t want to be sitting if Bekah said anything to her. Lexi didn’t want Bekah to be able to look down at her at least.

Bekah’s lawyer followed. He looked familiar. He was probably one of the attorneys Lexi had investigated when searching out one for Jack. The lawyer nodded at Lexi and urged Bekah to keep walking, like he knew it was in her best interest not to stop.

Bekah didn’t listen.

“What a surprise!” Bekah said. She looked at Lexi smugly as if she had expected her to be here.

Lexi didn’t like falling into Bekah’s plans in any way. “Bekah,” she said curtly.

“Do you really think this is the best place for you right now?”

“Around you? No, not particularly,” Lexi responded dryly.

Bekah bristled, which was highly entertaining. Lexi liked to see her uncomfortable. She was just a little too perfect with her long blonde hair, perfect chunky bangs, and baby blues. She had on a rather innocent-looking pink dress and modest heels. Lexi assumed Bekah was playing the victim card just by her appearance.

“Let me just give you some friendly advice,” Bekah said, stepping forward toward her.

“Just what I always wanted.”

“If I were you, I’d stay away from Jack.”

“Is that so?” Lexi asked, arching an eyebrow.

“You shouldn’t even be here right now. What does Ramsey think about all this?”

“The best part about all of this, Bekah, is that it’s none of your business,” Lexi said. She shot her a big fake smile before turning her back and walking away.

Jack appeared in the entranceway a minute later. He didn’t look happy. Things must not have gone well. Lexi hadn’t thought they would.

“What happened?” she asked, concerned.

“She won.”

“It’s not over.”

Jack pulled out a paper. “I don’t even know where to start—exclusive use of the marital home, exclusive use of the motor vehicle, freeze on all joint accounts, payment of her attorney’s fees. Christ, her fucking attorney fees—when she’s a fucking vice president of Bridges,” he growled. “Plus, I still have to pay my half of the house and utilities—the house I can’t live in.”

Lexi knew that wasn’t the worst they could have done. Every single day, she was thankful that kids weren’t involved. Money could be spent and earned. It was just a piece of paper that people valued. What really mattered, money could never touch. It could make things easier, but it was such a fragile aspect of life. It was something that people so easily allowed to make or break their happiness.

“It’s okay. It’s not the worst it could be, and you’ll have time to plan a defense before you go to a full trial, if it comes to that.” When it comes to that.

Jack shook his head. “My attorney is talking to the judge. He wants to meet with me after this to discuss the impact and strategy going forward. So, I guess I can’t even see you, but thanks for showing up.”

“Of course,” she said softly.

She stared up into those blue eyes and just saw defeat. How had Bekah done this? She was destructive. Lexi wanted to go back outside now and beat her to a bloody pulp for every person she had hurt from her games and manipulation. That kind of person did not deserve to walk around the world with a chip on her shoulder as a vice president of a huge company. She deserved nothing less than to be buried six feet under—in the same way she was doing to Jack.

“Maybe I’ll see you soon,” Jack said.

It was the first optimistic thing he had said since she had arrived.

“Sounds good,” she said and then turned to go.

“Lexi, what’s that?” Jack asked, sounding shocked.

“What is, what?” She crinkled her eyebrows together.

Jack stalked forward, closing the short distance between them, and grabbed her left hand. “This. What is this?”

Lexi’s mouth went dry. No. He wasn’t supposed to find out this way. He couldn’t know now, not when he was so beat-up already.

She shook her head, not able to form the words.

“Lex, tell me,” he demanded, his eyes like ice as they stared into her.

She just shook her head more furiously. “I can’t.”

His grip on her hand tightened imperceptibly, and she winced. When she tensed, he dropped her hand like she had burned him.

“When were you going to tell me?”

“Soon,” she whispered. “Every time I wanted to, I couldn’t. The divorce—”

“Every time?” he asked, raising his eyebrows. “How long have you been…how long ago did this happen?”

He couldn’t even say it. She couldn’t either.

“About a month.”

Jack staggered back a step. His face was a mask, and if she hadn’t known him so well, she wouldn’t have seen the hurt flashing in his blue eyes.

“A month…”

“I’m sorry, Jack.”

“That you’re…” He shook his head. “Or that I found out this way?”

She took a breath before answering. “That you found out this way.”

“You always were a fucking terrible liar, Lex.”

Tears sprang to her eyes, and she shook her head. She hated hurting him. After all the fucking bullshit they had gone through, she still fucking hated this so fucking much. It made her chest ache, and her ears were ringing.

“I’m not lying,” she said. She had to stand by it. She loved Ramsey. She wanted to marry him.

“You can’t even say it. You haven’t even told me. I’ve known you for years, longer than everyone else you still talk to. I know you, Lex,” he said, still standing at his safe distance. “Don’t ever forget that I know who you are as much as you know who I am.”

“I know. God, I know, okay?” She swiped at her eyes as her vision got blurry.

“Are you happy?”

“Yes.”

“No, are you really, really happy? Like, you’ll never really be sad again because you have everything you want. Are you happy like that, Lex?” he asked.

Those blue eyes stared straight through her. They demanded she think and feel and remember.

She hesitated. “Yes.”

He shook his head and looked away from her. “Then, what are you doing here?”

“What?”

“If it’s him, Lex, and you’re really happy, then what are you doing here?”

“Don’t ask me stupid questions. I came because you asked me to,” she whispered.

He smirked at her. It was a knowing look. She had seen it a million times. How he managed it through the pain that was clear across his entire face at this point was beyond her.

“Exactly.”

Lexi just stared at him. How was she supposed to respond to that?

“And it’s why you should leave now because I’m asking you to.”

“Jack…”

“I told you once that all I wanted was for you to be happy. If you are, then that’s all that matters. That’s it,” Jack said before turning and walking back into the courtroom.

Lexi stood there, stock-still, for longer than she wanted to admit.

What had just happened?

Lexi might as well have been in a nightmare.

She stood at the center of a large group of people. Photographers were all around. A podium had been constructed off to the side. A shovel sat in the freshly tilled earth, and before her was the completely cleared land where the new Bridges medical wing was going to sit. Even though breaking ground had officially begun two months ago with the underground garage that was going in, they were having the public ceremony on this perfect sunny Saturday morning in front of the press.

The press made Lexi nervous.

They made her even more nervous when three guys who she had slept with were in close proximity. Not to mention, Bekah and Parker and Ramsey’s parents were also present!

She had never been with all of them in one place. Last year, the rehearsal dinner and wedding had been close, but John hadn’t been factored into the equation. Now, he was here, standing smugly next to Jessica. When he caught Lexi’s eye, he stared at her like he knew all of her secrets. It was completely disconcerting. She had never found out where he was getting his information from, but damn it, he seemed to know so much about her every time she saw him. He was civil and hadn’t pushed his luck with her or anything, but he was never far out of the loop.