Chapter 3: The failed plan

Mark stood at his kitchen counter stirring the spaghetti sauce while his mind was occupied with thoughts about Lexie. Since Derek spoke to him earlier at the daycare he couldn't get her out of his mind. Not that she hadn't been on his mind before this talk. Now that he had time to think about it the kiss in the elevator was even more surprising than it was when it actually happened. Especially the fact that even being apart for almost a year hadn't changed anything. The fire was still there and when he didn't pay attention it could burn him to ashes. At least his heart could be burnt to ashes.

Shutting down the stove Mark's thoughts went back to the last evening Lexie had been in his apartment. The things she said still clear in his mind.

"I'm putting in some tarragon. Not that I have any idea what tarragon tastes like. But I think when people use tarragon it makes them seem like they know what they are doing."

She had been so happy because they were a couple again and she could make him dinner whenever she wanted. Chatting away in her usual rambling mode until he dropped the bomb onto her. And he had to admit it, he should have found another way to tell her. Maybe he should have approached the subject more smoothly. But he knew beforehand that she would leave him after hearing his news and he was right.

"How the hell did you get me in this position? Twice."

But he hadn't expected that she wouldn't talk to him at all. If somebody would have told him that she would have had a new boyfriend this soon afterwards he would have totally called him a fool. But she had moved on very quickly and that was still hurting like hell. Though it didn't change the fact that he was still deeply in love with her. That he would never love anyone more than he loved her. Now the only question was if he would act on his feelings or if he was too scared to get hurt again.

Standing in the elevator Lexie looked into her small make-up mirror. She wanted to look as good as possible. It was actually a big part of her plan. Dazzling him with her appearance. Closing the mirror she left the elevator on Mark's floor and walked towards his apartment. Stopping in front of the door she took in a deep breath.

"Now or never." Lexie told herself. She raised her hand and knocked on his door.

Hearing the knock Mark moved the jar completely away from the stove and walked to the door. Curious who wanted to see him now. He hoped nothing was wrong with Sofia. But he hadn't anticipated the person who stood outside of his apartment when he opened the door.

"Hey, Mark. Can I come in?"

Without thinking he closed the door into her face. He couldn't deal with her right now. Not when his emotions were crashing down on him. He let his head rest on the door. Who was he kidding? He couldn't let her walk away like this.

Lexie stood shocked in front of the door. He had shut her out. He didn't even want to talk to her. Tears sprang into her eyes but she refused to let them fall. Maybe it was just bad timing. She would try it another time. She turned around and walked slowly towards the elevator when she heard the door open again and Mark calling after her.

"Lex?"

For a few seconds Lexie toyed with the idea to just ignore him but she couldn't. Seeing him standing in the door frame made her even more aware how much she had missed him. As strange as this might sound. Locking her eyes with his she returned to the door and stepped into his apartment without waiting for an invitation. Just a minute ago she almost cried but now fury washed over her. She'd had a plan and he ruined it. Hearing the sound of the door closing behind her she swirled around and started to speak without giving Mark a chance to say anything.

"Shutting the door into my face like that? Seriously? What's wrong with you? Don't you think this is a little immature? I had a whole speech prepared. I knew exactly what I wanted to say and now you've ruined everything. I even wanted to throw in some teach me's. For god's sake! I'm even wearing the same clothes." Lexie approached him and punched him in the chest. "Not that you realized that. As if men would ever remember such unimportant things like clothing."

It took Mark a few seconds to recover from this unexpected verbal assault but Lexie was wrong. He remembered exactly what she had worn the day she came to his hotel room and he asked himself immediately if she was wearing the same bra and panties as well. She looked amazing in her fury but he couldn't remember the last time he had seen her that furious and he involuntarily took a step back.

"I put a lot of effort into this and then you went all sorehead on me." Following him Lexie shouted at him and pushed a finger repeatedly into his chest until Mark's retreat was suddenly stopped when his back hit the fridge. Standing up on her tiptoes Lexie raised her face until she was only a few inches away from his.

"I have no idea why I put up with this."

Suddenly she realized how close together they were standing and her gaze dropped involuntarily to Mark's lips before she looked up into his eyes again. No one spoke a word while they both stood stock still searching in each others eyes for an answer to the question what they should do next.

"To hell with being mature." Mark growled deep in his throat as he crushed his lips onto hers and Lexie melted into his body instantly. It was not how she imagined her plan would unfold but the result was the same. She sighed under his lips and reciprocated his kiss with such a passion that Mark's head smacked into the fridge.

His fingers dug deep into her ass and when he lifted her up she wrapped her legs immediately around his hips. Without interrupting the kiss Mark walked forward until they hit the kitchen counter. He lowered Lexie onto it and with one swift move of his arm he threw everything on it to the floor while his lips were still locked with hers. Wrapping her hands around Mark's neck Lexie leaned back on the counter and took him with her. Not wanting to lose the body contact Mark almost climbed onto the kitchen counter with her. Settling on the more comfortable possibility he balanced himself on one foot and pressed his body into hers while he kissed her desperately.

After several minutes Mark released her lips and began to trail kisses along her neck. Lexie had missed the feeling of his scruff on her skin. How could she ever think that someone else would be able to make her feel the way Mark did every time he touched her? She groaned loudly when Mark bit carefully into the sensitive flesh directly over her collarbone. But before she could relish the feeling he licked with his tongue over the same spot and she tightened her legs around him to pull him even further into her.

But suddenly Mark buried his face into her neck and stopped every movement. Lexie could hear and feel him panting against her skin and was at a loss what made him stop.

When Mark raised his head and looked into her eyes she wanted to scream. He had the same look on his face as in the elevator. She couldn't believe that he was still able to act reasonable in any way. She lost that ability the second she stepped over his threshold.

"What are we doing?" Mark asked her breathlessly.

"Making out on your kitchen counter?" Lexie replied innocently.

"This is so wrong."

"Not at all. It feels pretty amazing." Lexie arched her back so that she came in contact with his erection again but Mark pulled away from her and pushed her legs down.

"Stop it, Lexie. I can't think straight when you are near me. Never could. Never will. But I need to act rationally. For once in my life. Let me time to think about this and then we need to talk first before we jump into bed again. Do you remember the last time we acted immediately on our impulses? Not that it wasn't great. Oh my god it was amazing like it always is with you."

"You think so?" Lexie propped herself up on her elbows and looked at Mark in his disheveled state. Seeing his hair all messed up by her hands caused a tug deep in her and desire flooded over her. She wanted this man so much that it physically hurt. But Mark backed up completely and avoided any contact between them. Reluctantly Lexie stood up from the counter and straightened her clothes. Meeting her eyes Mark answered quietly.

"You know exactly how good we are between the sheets. You can't say the same about our talking skills. We always bail. We never try to make it work. Not that I haven't tried to talk to you. But you didn't want to listen to me."

"I know."

"And I still think that you should have given me ... Wait a sec. You agree?" Unconsciously Mark had taken a step towards her again so that Lexie could touch him if she would move her fingers only a few inches.

"Yes, Mark. I agree. We should have talked about it. But I was so hurt that you have another child with someone else than me." Realizing what she just spilled out Lexie shoved him away and rushed to the door. "I'll go now and leave you to the thinking. We'll talk soon."

Mark looked dumbfounded at the closed door. Did he just hear right? If he wasn't mistaken she just admitted that she wanted a child. With him. Maybe not immediately but alone the fact that she was thinking about having a family with him at some point in her life made him happy. Maybe they had still a chance. Maybe he should give this one more try.

"Why did I tell him that? Of all things." Lexie mumbled to herself as she stomped towards the elevator. Reaching it she punched the call button repeatedly as if the button was to blame for her current predicament. "I think that was the stupidest thing I've ever done in my life. I wanted to seduce him and not spill my guts out. Well, not now anyway. Of course I wanted to talk to him not only jumping him."

When the elevator arrived Lexie went into it and pressed the button to the ground floor. As the doors closed in front of her she clasped her hands over her face. "And now I'm talking with myself. I'm a mess. And it's all his fault." As she lowered her hands she promised herself that this wasn't the end. "But I'm not finished with him yet. Let's see how long it takes until I break him. I can do it. I know I can. He can't avoid me in the hospital."

Okay, that's it. For now. Thank you all for reading. I hope you enjoyed it. I already started to write the next chapter. :D