Chapter 4

Lexie’s POV

After lunch was over, Tyler pulled my chair out and grabbed my hand once again leading me out of the restaurant part of the Country Club following Emily and Eric. When we got to the grand entrance Emily turned and noticed once again that Tyler had ahold of my hand but she still did not say a word but looked at her brother and asked, “Is Lexie riding with you or me?” I thought the question was odd because I assumed I was riding with her.

“She’s riding with me.” Tyler said and Emily looked at me and said, “I’ll see you when you get home.”

“Okay.” I said to her not knowing what else to say because I have no clue what is going on today between Tyler and me.

Once Emily and Eric left, Tyler said, “Wait here.” As he let go of my hand and headed in the opposite direction that we came from.

As I waited for Tyler to return, I watched as people came in and went out of the club and realized I was out of place in this establishment. The ladies were decked out in designer clothes and had so much jewelry on that it was probably worth more than the house I grew up in back home. Their hair, makeup and nails were done and you could clearly see they were kept women. Even if I scored a job this week I would never be able to live this lifestyle. I lowered my head trying not to draw any attention to myself but then I heard, “Miss Thomas.” And I looked up to see Chase standing before me.

“Hello again.” I say to him. Chase was extremely handsome. He stood a good six foot plus like Tyler and had hair as black as a raven with green eyes that sparkled in the lighting. He was a very attractive man but there was something about him that screamed caution especially after what happened at lunch earlier.

“I was hoping to run into you again.” He said and I quickly said, “You were now.”

Chase chuckled and then said, “I just thought since you were new in town you’d might like to join me for dinner some night this week and then join me at my place afterwards.”

A laugh slipped from my mouth and Chase looked at me surprised with my sudden outburst of laughter before I said, “I thought Tyler made it clear to you but apparently you didn’t understand him. So, let me tell you once again. I am his.”

Chase then looked look at me like he was looking for something and as he went to say, “I don’t see...” Tyler was now standing beside me and he stopped what he was going to say which I assumed was he don’t see a ring. Which was typical of a man to say when you tell them you are taken.

Tyler then moved in front of me and stood nose to nose with Chase and said, “You heard her, she is mine.”

Chase throws his hands up in submission and backed away from Tyler but before he turned to walk away, he said, “She’s unmarked which makes her fair game.”

What sounded like a growl rumbled from Tyler before he turns and grabbed my hand and walked us out to the valet where his black two-seater Mercedes sat waiting for us. The valet attendant opens my door for me to get in and after I got in he shuts the door. Before I got my seat belt buckled Tyler sped off and I could clearly tell he wasn’t in a good mood.

Once we got a couple of miles from the Country Club Tyler began to slow down and then he once again placed his hand on my thigh and I placed my hand on top of his placing my fingers between his. “I’m sorry.” He says and I look over at him wondering why he is apologizing.

“What are you sorry for?” I ask him.

“For having Emily bring you there. I should have thought it through first.” He tells me.

I put my head down and say, “I’m sorry I don’t fit in with the rest of the women there. If I embarrassed you among your friends, I am sorry. I know I don’t fit into your world.” I slowly removed my hand from on top of his.

The car then veered off the road and came to an abrupt stop and I was thankful I had my seat belt on as my body jerk forward and then back against the seat. Tyler then puts the car in park and turns and looks at me and says, “You think I am embarrassed of you?”

“Well, yes. I don’t look like all those women there. They are so beautiful, and I am just, you know poor and plain.” I tell him as I put my head down ashamed of myself.

Tyler then reached over and grabbed my chin with his hand and pulled my face to look at him. “Those women that you speak of are nothing and they don’t hold a candle to the beauty that you possess. I cannot help what you were born into but I will tell you that you will never have to want again for nothing as long as you decide to stay here.”

I didn’t know what to say to what Tyler just told me, so I remained silent as he stared at me and I lowered my eyes not able to show him what I was feeling right now. Tyler finally removed his hand from my chin and put the car back in drive and sped off towards home.

Once we pulled into the garage I quickly got out of the car and headed into Emily and my side of the house and ran upstairs to my bedroom. Closing the door to my room I threw myself onto the bed and pulled a pillow over my head and screamed as realization hits me that maybe I wasn’t meant to be here. Everything seems so far out of my league here and I was beginning to see that maybe I made a grave mistake thinking I could do this.

A knock on my door makes me jump and I pray that it isn’t Tyler but then I hear Emily’s voice say, “Lexie, can I come in.”

I sit up and put my pillow back where it belongs on the bed and say, “Yes.”

Emily opens the door and peaks in at me and says, “Is everything okay?”

Tears start to pool in my eyes as I take in her question. “No.” I finally say, and she comes in and pulls me into a hug.

“Did Tyler do something to hurt you?” She asks me and I quickly say, “No.”

She pulled away from the hug and looked at me, “Then what happened?”

I tried wiping my tears away when I say, “I just don’t know if I belong here. I still feel like the girl on the other side of the tracks here. I just don’t feel like I am good enough to be here.”

“Oh, Lexie I am so sorry. I should have been more considerate when I took you shopping and maybe we should have started out with a different restaurant.” She says blaming herself.

“No that’s the thing Emily. I don’t want you to have to stop your normal lifestyle because the poor girl moved in with you. I want you to live life to the fullest like you are. Next time I will just stay here at the house while you guys go out and do your thing. I don’t need to go out to eat and shop. I will just be happy being here and I can find things to occupy me while you guys are gone.” I tell her and she tries to put up a fight but she knows I’m not letting her win this battle.

“Well, I guess it’s not a good time to tell you that I sort a went back to the store and bought you the red dress for you for your birthday.” Emily now confesses to me, and I don’t know if I want to strangle her or hug her.

“Well, I did look really good in that dress.” I started to say and Emily cuts in and says, “You mean smoking hot in that dress.”

“Ugh, Emily okay just because you already bought it. Thank you but nothing else, okay.” I tell her and she agrees.

“Now what’s going on with you and my brother?” Emily now asks as my face starts to feel hot like I am beginning to blush.

“Actually, I was going to ask you about him. What was up with the whole she’s mine and the holding my hand thing? And when did Tyler start speaking in full sentences?” I ask her and she begins to laugh at my last question.

“For one he has always spoken in full sentences just not around you. Why, I don’t know, but now I am starting to believe that he may have had a crush on you this whole time. As for the possessiveness of you, saying you were his, he was trying to protect you from Chase.” Emily tells me.

“What’s the deal with Chase?” I ask her, needing to know why Tyler and him hate each other so much.

“I don’t know when it started it. They used to be close and now when they see each other they want to kill one another.” She tells me but I believe by her facial expressions that there is more to the story than she is telling.

Just then music started to blare from next door and Emily got off the bed and walked to my door and said, “I better go check on my brother. He only does this when something is bothering him. I put your dresses in your closet if you want to try them on again.”

“Thank you.” I told her as she left my room and shut the door behind her.

After a few minutes the music from Tyler’s place turned down and it was probably because Emily calmed him down and I wondered what he was so upset about, other than Chase.

That night I didn’t have much of an appetite and I decided to go for a walk down to the beach. It was a beautiful night and I wanted to see if I could catch the sun setting. When I made it to the beach, the ocean was already beginning to turn a red and orange shade from the sun being so low on its horizon. I found a spot on the beach and sat down in the sand and marveled over how peaceful and beautiful this place really was. I really wanted to make this work and I just hoped that Emily would abide by what I asked of her. I was just as happy sitting here on the beach enjoying the views as I would be going somewhere expensive.

As I continued to sit and watch the sun set, I heard someone coming up behind me and I looked up to see Tyler. “May I?” he asked, and I shook my head yes and he sat down beside me.

We sat in silence watching the last moments before the sun completely disappeared. “Isn’t it beautiful?” I ask turning to him and his eyes were on me already when he says, “Yes, it is.”

I begin to blush because I’m not so sure we are talking about the same thing and when his hand moves to cup my face, I am sure we aren’t talking about the same thing. Tyler stares me in the eyes like he is dying to kiss me and honestly at this moment, I wanted to kiss him too, but he doesn’t and his hand moves from my face and he slowly gets up and offers me his hand. I take his hand and he helps me up and he pulls me into his body. Our bodies are flush against each other and my heart begins to race at his proximity. I raise my head up to look at him and his arms wrap around my body. I couldn’t take it any longer, so I wrapped my arms up around his neck as I licked my lips.

Tyler’s eyes watched as my tongue left my mouth and ran slowly over my lips. If that wasn’t an invitation to kiss me, I don’t know what is. Just when I thought he was going to kiss me he says with a husky voice, “We better get home you have a job interview tomorrow.”

My heart sank as he pulled away from me but then he grabbed my hand and lead me back to the house. As we walked in the common door that led to the long hallway between the two sides. We came to where the doors on both side where, as I turned to walk to my side, he walked to his side our hands were still being held slowly our hands slipped from one another’s as the distance between us became greater until the tips of our finger touched no more.

We both stood in our open doorways looking at one another begging the other to be the first to close the door. Something in me told me to be the first so I looked down and closed the door leaving Tyler to watch me.