Fallen Duet: Brody & Lola: Free Fall & Down Fall (Easton Family Duet Boxsets Book 1)

by Abigail Davies

  “We meant what we said out there, Lola,” Brody said, moving closer to me. “We’ve handled it. You don’t need to worry about—”

  “Yeah, I heard you. But that doesn’t stop the images in my head and the regret swirling through me.” I leaned against the sink. “I killed someone, Brody. I actually killed someone.”

  His hands grasped my hips, and he pulled me flush against his body. “You said it yourself, darlin'. You didn’t have a choice.”

  “I know,” I whispered, my hands fluttering to his forearms. “But, I—”

  “No buts.” He pressed his forehead to mine and lowered his voice. “Wipe the slate clean. Of everything. Don’t forget, but forgive. Forgive yourself and everyone around you, and start fresh.” He paused and drew in a breath, his hands moving up past my waist and to my neck. “Start fresh with me.”

  I stared into his eyes. “With you?”

  “Yeah, darlin'. You and me. What do you say?”

  I didn’t answer him with my words. Instead, I pressed my lips to his and relished in the second first kiss we had.

  LOLA

  A lot could change in the space of a few hours, and even more in a couple of weeks.

  If I really thought about where my life would have ended up, it wouldn’t have been here. If I were honest with myself, I thought I’d still be stuck in that house with Hut.

  But Hut was gone.

  I didn’t think it was right I attended his funeral, but I did anyway. Brody had said it would be the last piece of closure I’d need, and he was right. I let go of everything that had happened with him. I let go of every bruise he marred my body with, and every cut that scarred my flesh. I forgot about the names he would call me, and how isolated he made me feel toward the end.

  I let it all go because holding on to it would only destroy me.

  His body was cremated, his ashes scattered across the lake he used to love as a kid, and life was moving on. I could have easily let what happened consume me. I could have thought about that night over and over again and tried to think of different outcomes. But the reality was, nothing could have been different. He’d been destroying himself for years before that, and nothing anyone did would have stopped him.

  Quinn had been at the funeral, but he hadn’t spoken to me, not when I was surrounded by Brody and the three guys. I hadn’t seen Ford there, but Brody said he was somewhere safe, bettering his life, and I was glad because if there was one person who deserved it, it was him.

  I wasn’t sure if my dad and Crystal would show up, but I wasn’t surprised when they didn’t. They hadn’t been seen since the day of the cookout when Crystal had held a knife to my throat. I didn’t want to think about that too much, because if I did, I’d have to be honest with the fact that Hut had probably found them and made them pay like he’d promised he would.

  Now I was exhausted and ready for my bed, but considering it was only 7 p.m. I didn’t think it was right to go to bed this early, so I lay down on the sofa, telling myself I’d just rest for a little while. And that was when I felt it. A slight fluttering in my stomach, but there was no way to mistake it for nerves. I locked my muscles, and stayed very still, staring at the ceiling with wide eyes to see if it would happen again.

  I counted to two hundred, and just when I was sure I’d imagined it, I felt it a second time. I spread my fingers over my stomach, a gasp escaping my parted lips as I reached for my cell with my other hand.

  “Lola?” his deep voice asked.

  “Brody.” My voice was barely a whisper.

  “What’s wrong?”

  I smiled, imagining him standing up and already collecting his things to come to me. And I wanted that, more than anything, but not for the reason he was probably thinking. “I”—I felt it again, just a small flutter—“I felt the baby.”

  “You…” His voice trailed off, silence ringing out in its wake. “I’m coming over.” The line went dead, and I grinned wider than I ever had before.

  It was all becoming so real, my belly just starting to protrude a little bit, feeling the tiny flutters, and the sickness starting to ebb away. My calendar told me I was sixteen weeks along, and the internet informed me the second trimester was the one where you started to feel more like yourself and enjoyed being pregnant.

  I didn’t move off the sofa for twenty minutes, only turning my head when the door opened, and Brody walked inside. It was on the tip of my tongue to ask where he’d gotten a key, but I rolled my eyes at myself. Of course he’d gotten a key. He was Brody, a DEA agent. There wasn’t anything he couldn’t get.

  The door slammed shut behind him, and he darted over to me, getting down onto his knees beside me and placing his large hand over mine. “You won’t be able to feel it,” I told him, my eyes burning at the sight of his glazing eyes. “It’s only a small flutter.”

  “I don’t care,” he choked out, pushing his face closer to mine. “I’m not missing this moment.” He rested his forehead against mine.

  “It just happened again,” I said, my smile turning shaky. “I can’t believe this is happening.”

  “Can’t believe what, darlin'?” he asked, pulling away slightly. I moved my hand from under his, loving the way his rough palm felt against my stomach, and placed my hand on the side of his face. His scruff itched across my fingertips.

  “This. That you’re here. That I can feel our baby. That I’m still here.” I didn’t want to say it out loud. I didn’t want to admit I wasn’t sure I was going to make it, not after everything that had happened, but I was still here. I was lying on this sofa with the man I loved more than anything at my side.

  “Believe it,” he growled out. “Because I’m not going anywhere.” He paused and ran his knuckles over my cheek. “Ever.”

  “I love you,” I whispered, needing him to hear the words.

  “Darlin'”—he pushed his face closer, his breath hitting my lips—“I love you, too.”

  He pressed his lips against mine in a soft, gentle caress, and that was my undoing. I could handle hard, caveman Brody like a pro, but gentle Brody? He snapped something inside my chest and cracked it wide open.

  His tongue swiped along the seam of my lips, and I opened up for him, letting him in and relishing every second of it. His hand trailed over my stomach and up to my breasts, not stopping in any one place as he felt all of me. It had been so long since we’d been like this, only this time, there weren’t any lies between us. Everything was out in the open, and I felt closer to him than I ever had.

  It hadn’t been easy to get to this point. God, it had been hard. And I was honest with myself when I was waiting for the other shoe to drop. But maybe it was because of the things I’d been through. Maybe I was always expecting the worst because that was how it had always been?

  It was time to embrace the good, so I lifted into a sitting position, wrapped my arms around his neck, and whispered, “Take me to my bedroom.”

  “I didn’t come here to—”

  I shook my head. “I know you didn’t.” I stared into his dark-brown eyes, seeing nothing but admiration in them. “But I want it. I want you.”

  “Fuck.” He curled his arms around my waist and stood. I wrapped my legs around his hips, not able to look away from him for a second. “I never thought I’d hear you say that again.”

  “I want you,” I repeated, just to hammer the point home.

  He took five steps into my bedroom but didn’t let me go as he sat on the edge of the bed, our hips aligned, and chests pressed against each other. “I want to spend the time worshipping every inch of you,” he ground out, gripping the edge of my shirt and pulling it over my head. He unsnapped my bra. “But I gotta be honest.” His hands moved down to my jeans, his fingers skipping over the open button, and instead, undoing the zipper. “I’m not sure if I can go slow right now.”

  I ran my hand through his hair, pulling on it to get his attention. “I don’t need you to go slow.” I rolled my hips, groaning at the feel of his erection. “I
just need you.”

  His hooded eyes didn’t move off me as he lifted me up and twirled me around to deposit me on the bed. He didn’t look away as he pulled my jeans off, followed by my panties, and finally, my socks. I was laid bare for him, and the way his eyes soaked in every inch, made me feel like the most beautiful girl in the world.

  He grabbed at the back of his T-shirt, pulling it over his head in one swoop and revealing his defined chest and abs. His long fingers moved to the button on his jeans, unhooking it. His jeans fell low on his hips because of the weight of the things attached to his belt, and I could see the V that led down to something I wanted so much right now.

  I was salivating at the sight of him, but I didn’t move. I stayed right where I was, soaking in every inch of him, and knowing that he was all mine.

  He moved back, pulling the badge off his belt and placing it on my dresser. His gun followed, and then another device. He unbuckled his belt and pushed down on the waistband of his jeans, letting them drop to the floor. He stepped out of them and stalked toward me.

  Words weren’t needed, not when the atmosphere was sparking so much it could light on fire any second. His erection bobbed with each step he took, and then he slowly crawled over me, placing his hands on either side of my head.

  “I love you,” he said, and I’d never get tired of hearing those three little words.

  One of his hands lifted, and he trailed it between us, rubbing his palm over my skin and making me groan. He stopped at my hip, his fingers moving round to my ass, and squeezed. A moan slipped out from the roughness of his fingers, and my leg lifted to hook around his hip.

  I could feel his erection pressed against me, and as much as I wanted to feel his fingers on my clit, I couldn’t wait. I lifted my ass off the bed, feeling him against my opening.

  “Lola—”

  “Do it,” I urged, placing my hand on the side of his neck.

  He didn’t waste another second, thrusting his hips, and filling me to the hilt. My eyes closed, my moan mixing in with his groan.

  I was sure that nothing would ever feel this good ever again.

  BRODY

  I tapped my fingers on the steering wheel as I waited outside the diner for Lola and Cade. It occurred to me that I was picking up my son and girlfriend who were closer in age than we were, but I couldn’t bring myself to care.

  It was different with Lola. There was something more, something I couldn’t explain no matter how much I tried. The number of years we’d had on this earth didn’t matter one bit. She’d been through more than your average thirty-year-old, and was wise beyond her years, but she didn’t let it bother her.

  I hadn’t seen her in a couple of days, and the last time I’d slept at her house was the one night a week ago when Cade stayed over Moira’s. I wasn’t sure what to think about Cade barely going back to her place, but if the angry messages she was sending me were anything to go by, I’d say she wasn’t happy about it. I’d expected Cade to want to stay with his mom, after all, it was me who had cheated, but there was nothing she could do. It wasn’t like he was a little kid and could be told where to go. He’d be sixteen in a few weeks after school started back up.

  A shadow in the diner caught my attention, and I grinned at Cade as he walked ahead of Lola. I could see the downturn of her lips as she stared at him, but as soon as she spotted me, she pasted a smile on her face.

  I tilted my head, wondering what was happening, but had my answer when he pushed through the front doors and didn’t hold it open for her. What the fuck? I thought he was okay with Lola and me, but apparently not according to his sullen face. How had I missed that?

  He pulled open the passenger door and pushed the seat forward, waiting for…was he waiting for Lola to get in the back? Lola hesitated a second and stepped forward.

  “No.” I shook my head and held on to the back of the passenger seat as I glanced over at Cade. “Get in the back.”

  “What?” he asked, his voice trying to be a growl, but it came out more like a squeak. “She can get in the back.”

  “She has a name,” I ground out. “And you’ll respect her by getting your ass in the back of this car.”

  “Why?” He crossed his arms over his chest. “She’s smaller than me—”

  “She’s also my girlfriend and four months pregnant.”

  Cade’s eyes widened, and Lola’s shoulders slumped as she groaned. “Brody.” She covered her face with her hand. “We were meant to do that together.”

  “Yeah, well, that was before my son thought it was okay to not hold the door open for a woman and to try and force her in the back of the car.” I kept my gaze trained on Cade, already knowing I shouldn’t have told him in that way. But I didn’t have any control when it came to Lola. My past showed that.

  “You knocked her up?” Cade asked, turning around to look at Lola. “You trapped him?”

  I growled so loud they both jumped out of their skins and turned to face me. “She didn’t fuckin' trap me.” I slammed my hand down on the steering wheel. “Jesus, Cade. You know Lola. You really think she’d do that? Not to mention, I didn’t wrap it up.” I pointed at him. “Make sure you wrap it up.”

  “Is that the extent of your sexual education?” Lola asked, her brow raised and a small smile on her face. “No birds and the bees?”

  I shrugged, trying to hold back the grin that wanted to break free. “It’s all I got, kid.”

  “Sage advice though, old man,” she volleyed back.

  “I thought so too.”

  “You two are freaking weird,” Cade huffed out and finally moved into the back. I pushed the seat into its position, and Lola slipped inside. “And for your information,” Cade said, clipping his belt in. “I’m still a virgin, and unlike my dad, I know what condoms are.”

  “Oh burn,” Lola choked out.

  Cade grinned at her, and the atmosphere that had surrounded them when they walked out disappeared. “I speak the truth, what can I say.”

  I huffed out a breath and put the car in gear. “You two will be the death of me.”

  “Only because you’re old,” Lola replied, her face a serious mask. “It’s okay though, we’ll look after you.” She patted my arm, and I snatched her hand up.

  “That right?” My lips quirked at the corner, my mind flashing back to the last time I’d had her naked and underneath me. It had been too long ago. If she’d just—

  “Move in with me.”

  “Wh-what?” Her eyes were so wide I was sure her eyeballs would fall out of their sockets. “You can’t be serious.”

  “I am.” I pushed the car out of gear, not caring that we were still sitting in front of the diner with Cade in the back. “You’re on the other side of town, and Cade is basically living with me now. I want to be able to wake up next to you. I want to fall asleep with you in my arms.” I moved our hands to her growing stomach. It was the smallest of bumps, just barely there, but it had grown so much in the last week, and I was missing it all. “I bought that house for us. It was always meant to be us in there, not just me and Cade.”

  “But…” Her gaze flicked to Cade in the back. “I don’t want to intrude, and it’s so soon, and—”

  “Jesus, Lola,” Cade groaned out. “I’m trapped in the back listening to my dad talking flowers and shit. Can you just say yes so we can go home? I’ve got a gaming marathon I’m late for.”

  “I…” She moved her attention back to me, worrying her lip. “I don’t know. This is all going so fast and I…” She shook her head and gripped my hand tighter. “Can I think about it? Give me a week to just process everything?”

  I didn’t want to give her a week. I wanted her to be in my bed tonight and every other night after. But I understood what she was saying. She didn’t want to rush into it. Too bad for her that I was in this all the way, and in a few months we’d have a baby. She wouldn’t have a choice then.

  I could have reeled all of that off to her. I could have persuaded her to move
in today, but I respected what she said. So I lifted her hand to my lips, placed a kiss on her knuckles, and nodded. “Of course you can.” I let her hand go and pushed the car in gear again.

  The engine vibrated through my seat as I pulled out of the lot and headed home. Lola hadn’t been there yet, and now would have been the perfect time to show her, but I didn’t want her to think I was pushing it on her. It had to be her choice. So I pulled to a stop outside the house, let Cade out, and slipped back inside.

  “Are you ready?” I asked her.

  “Ready?”

  “For our first official date?” I winked and pulled back out onto the road. “I have the perfect place in mind.”

  “You do?”

  “Uh-huh.” I took her hand and ran my thumb over her wrist. The soft skin was the complete opposite of my rough palms, but I knew she liked that as much as I did.

  I’d planned this date this morning while I was sitting in my office, finishing up more paperwork for my new position. There was only one week left until Aaron was gone, and then the department was mine. I’d be in charge of around forty people, and even though the thought scared me, it also excited me.

  It would mean I was home more often than not. I’d still have to go away now and again, but not like I had before. My life would be different from how it had been for the last fifteen years, but it could only mean better things.

  I looked over at Lola, grinning at her open mouth as she napped. She’d fall asleep anywhere at the moment. But that meant it would be more of a surprise. I didn’t want her to see where we were going. I didn’t want her to think of what else had happened in that area. I just wanted her to remember that first night.

  After an hour, I pulled into the lot and turned the engine off. The vibrations had Lola’s eyes springing open. “Crap, did I fall asleep again?”

  I chuckled. “Yeah, but we’re here now.”

  She smiled sleepily at me and moved her attention to the diner I was parked in front of—the same diner I took her to that first night. It may not have been an official date back then, but it would always be our first night.