Free Falling (Falling Novella Series Book 2)

by Shirl Rickman

  “We need to stop,” I utter with little conviction.

  “We do?” Rosie says this like a question. “We do,” she repeats, but more as a statement this time.

  “We do,” I reiterate.

  “Ben and Jerry!” Rosie exclaims, startling me. She dashes around me and into the kitchen.

  When I turn around, her bottom lip is puckered out, and she’s holding two pints of ice cream. From the look on her face, I have a feeling the Chunky Monkey is a little milky. A chuckle slips out as I walk toward her, watching her face.

  “Don’t you dare laugh!” she scolds me. “I love Ben and Jerry.”

  When I reach her, I take the Chunky Monkey from her hands and turn to stick them in the freezer.

  “Are you trying to make me jealous?” I tease, pecking her on the end of her nose in the process. “You’re damn cute, Rosie Fisher,” I compliment.

  She laughs. “I didn’t know the infamous Drew Nallen got jealous.”

  “I do when it comes to you,” I respond seriously.

  Something flickers in the depths of her eyes, then a soft smile forms on her face. “I think we need another rule,” she says, a new desire shining in her eyes.

  “Oh, we do?” I question. Rosie takes me by the hand and begins leading me out of the kitchen area and to the…door? “Wait, did I say something wrong?”

  When we reach the door, she pulls it open and pushes me gently through the threshold.

  “Rosie?” I look at her desperately.

  “For this new arrangement to work, we need this last rule,” she begins, a humorous expression on her face, yet she looks like this rule isn’t something she necessarily wants. “The last rule is we must only see one another in public places until we know where this is going because frankly, Drew, it’s the only way I’m keeping my hands off of you,” she confesses.

  Before I know what’s happening, Rosie leans forward, giving me one last hard and passionate kiss. Pulling back, she quickly says, “I can’t wait to see you again,” then she closes the door in my face.

  A surprised laugh booms out of me as I turn and walk away. She is so damn adorable and smooth as hell. When I am a few feet away from her door, I turn and jog back. I get as close as I can, and shout, “I accept these rules, Rosie Fisher, and I can’t wait to see you again, too.”

  “You’re the biggest dumbass on the planet,” Tyler tells Jasper when he spills his coffee on his shirt.

  Taking a drink of my coffee, I debate in my head whether I should inform Tyler that’s the pot calling the kettle black, but before I can say anything, Parker says it for me. “Tyler, you’re also the biggest dumbass on the planet, so I’d keep your comments to yourself.”

  I start laughing so hard I almost spit my coffee across the table.

  “What are you laughing at, douchebag?” Tyler asks, sounding annoyed.

  Once again Parker takes the opportunity to give Tyler a dose of what he dishes when he slaps him upside the head.

  This is typical Nallen brother banter when we’re around one another. We give one another shit, but someone else tries to come at one of us, and they have the whole family to deal with. When we throw Kelsea, our only sister, in the mix, forget about it. She can hold her own with us. We drive our mom crazy, and my dad only adds fuel to the fire. Our family dynamic is interesting, to say the least.

  Putting my hands between my brothers, I say, “Dudes, knock it off! We’re in public.”

  Jasper starts laughing then the rest of us join in. I punch him in the shoulder, and he rubs it while he says, “It’s been too long since we’ve done this.”

  “Gah, you sound like such a pansy-ass sometimes,” I jab at him.

  I wait for Jasper’s response, but it doesn’t come. In fact, they’re all suddenly unusually quiet.

  “What the hell is—” I start to ask them, but I’m interrupted before I can finish my question.

  “Hello…hi…uh…hey,” I hear from behind me. I’d recognize that voice anywhere and when I turn around in my chair, I realize the exact reason why they’re all struck speechless.

  Rosie is standing behind me, her elbow awkwardly bent, her hand in the air in a sort of shy wave hello. She’s dressed in a tight, low-cut burgundy sweater with a pencil skirt that hugs all of her curves, and a pair of knee-high boots. You can see all of her, and she’s fully covered. I love it and hate it at the same time. This is a prime example of what I always knew, and she never understood: she’s beautiful and noticeable without even trying.

  I stand quickly, wanting to shield her from my brothers’ gawking gazes, but realize it’s a ridiculous thought. “Hey!” It’s the only thing I can seem to get out.

  “Hey,” she repeats with a smile that lights up my whole world.

  “I was going to call you later to see if you wanted to have dinner tonight,” I tell her. “I guess now I don’t need to call. Is it too short notice?” I ramble, feeling nervous. This is new for me; I can’t remember the last time someone actually made me nervous.

  “Oh, no…no, not at all. I would love to have dinner tonight,” she beams. “I’ll let you get back to your friends. I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

  Before I can tell Rosie she isn’t interrupting, a hand appears between us. It takes hold of hers, bringing it up to his lips. Tyler.

  “Hi, I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Tyler, Drew’s younger and very available brother,” he flirts.

  Suddenly, Parker appears next to me. “Tyler, don’t be an asshole,” he says before turning to Rosie. “You must be Rosie. Drew told me all about you.” He gives her his mega-watt smile that usually flips girls so fast they don’t know what hit them. “Please forgive Tyler, we only let him out of the house everyone once in a while, so his manners leave something to be desired,” Parker continued.

  I expect Jasper to pop his head in, but for once he’s smart and stays seated.

  I pull Rosie’s hand from Tyler’s and lead her to the table. “Do you have time to sit for a bit?”

  Eyes wide, Rosie nods her head. “Yeah, sure.”

  She must notice Jasper sitting at the table, drinking his coffee, pretending not to care about the beautiful girl sitting next to him, because she turns to him. “Hi, I’m Rosie,” she says sweetly. I scoot closer to her as Tyler and Parker sit back down.

  “Hey, I’m Jasper. It’s nice to meet you. So, you’re Drew’s…uh…friend?” he inquires.

  “We’re dating,” I chime in before Rosie can answer. Her head whips around and her face shows me she’s happily surprised by my response.

  I don’t have to look at my brother’s faces to know each of them is staring at me in shock.

  “Uh…uh… well, that’s great,” Jasper says, still looking confused but trying to hide it.

  “Oh man, I need to find out what you did to get my brother to use the ‘d’ word,” Tyler jibes.

  Rosie’s eyes are bouncing around the table, an overwhelmed look on her face.

  “Okay…okay, let’s give her a break. Poor thing hasn’t been able to say a word because we’ve been in her face,” Parker comments, giving me a nod in the process.

  “Rosie and I met here, actually; I guess it was about four or five months ago, right?” I explain, looking to her for confirmation.

  “Yes, it’s something like that. I literally fell right into his arms,” she says, once again beaming up at me.

  “Oh man, Mom is going to love this,” Tyler teases.

  Rolling my eyes, I look over at Rosie. “So, yeah, these are my brothers. They’re idiots,” I tell her.

  Rosie releases a tinkling giggle that sounds sweet to my ears. “Well, I know about idiot brothers,” she jokes. “No offense, guys,” Rosie adds as she stands up. “I better get going.”

  I stand up too, and I kiss her on the corner of her mouth. “I’ll pick you up around seven?”

  She smiles. “Sounds good.” Then she turns to my brothers. “It was really nice to meet you all. I hope to see you again.” Turning to m
e, she says, “I’ll see you tonight.”

  I watch her as she walks away until she disappears through the entrance of the coffee shop.

  When I turn around, all three of my brothers are sitting with their elbows on the table and chins in their hands, staring at me with a dreamy look on their faces.

  Tyler tries to impersonate a girly voice while saying, “We’re dating.” He bats his eyelashes.

  Then Jasper mocks, “Yes, she fell right into my arms, and I knew she was the one.” Loud, booming laughter escapes each of them.

  I look at them and shrug.

  “You’re all assholes, and I don’t care what you say. I think I’ve been waiting for her,” I divulge.

  Abruptly, their laughter ceases, and none of them says another word until Jasper coughs into his hand and says, “Well, if you put it that way.” Then we all finish our coffee in silence.

  After my brothers leave, I pull out my laptop. I have work to be done, and I can already see it’s going to take everything I have for me to concentrate. All I can think about is Rosie. Her name keeps echoing through my mind, a constant whisper.

  My nerves are all over the place because the revelations about my feelings for her keep presenting themselves one after another. I like her. Care about her. Want her. Need her. And it’s all of those things that are leaving my head in a state of disarray.

  I’ve been staring at the Google search page for the last few minutes, making no progress on this new proposal.

  “Hey there, mate.” Andy’s voice startles me from my thoughts. Looking over at him, I smile as he takes a seat across from me, setting another black coffee down in front of me. “It seems you and Rosie had that chat we discussed the other day,” he continues, taking a long drink of his smoothie he regularly makes for his after-work meal.

  A smile creeps across my face. Andy has a way of knowing things, and the fact he was right that day only solidifies he’s known Rosie and me better than we’ve known ourselves.

  He sets his drink down on the table and chuckles at my expression.

  “I talked to her when she came in, and I noticed her eyes immediately locked on you sitting across the room with your brothers. I knew for sure when I saw the way you both moved around one another and interacted. You’re in sync again. I’m thrilled,” he explains.

  “You’re thrilled?” I question, perplexed by his last statement.

  “Absolutely, thrilled,” he reiterates. “You see, mate, I spend my time looking and enjoying these moments in time as I like to call them. I once told Rosie to enjoy hers, but the thing is I always had a feeling the two of you had more. I like to think of your connection as more of a moment in your lifetime together than just a moment in time.”

  A lifetime. Am I ready for that kind of prediction? Is that what I want? I don’t know. Or at least I don’t think I know.

  Andy watches me. I know he’s reading the emotions that are surely flickering across my face. “I’m not sure where we are when it comes to all of that, Andy, but I can say I like the idea of any moment in time with Rosie. And that alone is something I’m not sure I’ve ever felt about anyone,” I confess.

  His gaze lingers on me once the confession is out of my mouth. Something I can’t quite decipher crosses his features before he stands up, placing his hand on my shoulder. “Mate, I think you know, but you aren’t quite ready to accept the answer. It’s going to be a beautiful thing when you do,” he declares, then gives my shoulder one last squeeze before walking away.

  I watch him go, wondering if Andy is right about the fact I already know the answer to what I ultimately want from Rosie. I worry about what it will take for me to ask for it.

  I guess our first date tonight will be the first step in the direction we’ll be taking together.

  Pivotal moment number three…the day I realized I might be in over my head.

  I’m going to walk over there and beat the shit out of this guy. He’s been looking at Rosie all night like she’s his possession. Something he wants to own and have his way.

  A primal feeling sears my veins as I watch his eyes roam over her body.

  When I see her abruptly scoot back in her chair, I know he’s touched her beneath the table. I immediately stand. He’s going to regret he ever joined that God damned dating site. Before I move, Rosie picks up her purse and leaves the table.

  Initially, I keep my eyes glued to Rosie’s date as he watches her walk away, turning his head to the side as if he’s trying to get a better view of her ass. Again, I contemplate murder.

  I catch a glimpse of Rosie darting down the hallway leading to the bathrooms from the corner of my eye. Immediately, my focus changes and I just need to get to her and make sure she’s okay.

  Following her down the hall, I continue into the bathroom, not caring who else might be in there. When I push the door open, I spot Rosie instantly. I don’t even give her a chance to register the fact I just walked into the ladies’ room.

  Taking her face into my palms, I slide my thumb against her cheek. It’s so soft. So beautiful.

  “Did he touch you?” I ask quietly. What is this girl doing to me? I don’t know what I’m going to do if she says yes. I don’t know why it even matters, but it does. “Tell me, Rosie. Did he touch you?” I ask, my voice a little more demanding.

  Her eyes go wide at my tone. “Drew, barely on my knee, and it doesn’t matter,” she responds reluctantly.

  I have the urge to shout at her that it does matter. It matters to me. But how can I say that to her when I don’t even know what that means or if it means anything. It matters to me? It matters.

  “It matters,” I insist. “He can’t do that; it’s a rule.” Suddenly, I’m peppering kisses all around her mouth. “It’s a rule, Rosie,” I repeat between kisses.

  She closes her eyes, releasing a soft sigh.

  That is all it takes for me to lose complete control of my senses. Of its own volition, my mouth covers hers. Something I know now it has wanted to do all day. Losing even more control, my hands and mouth are everywhere. I’m not thinking straight, and Rosie is letting me have my way.

  Lifting her, I back her against the wall and slip my hand under her dress, moving toward her most private spot, knowing it’s wet and waiting. But this is wrong in here. Doing this to her.

  What am I doing? Losing this control? Letting this girl in, letting Rosie in. Rosie.

  My God, she deserves better than this. Me practically attacking her in the ladies’ room of a restaurant is unacceptable.

  Pulling away abruptly, I slowly lower her to the ground.

  Pressing my forehead against hers, we both stay in that spot without moving or saying a word. Then it hits me again. She deserves better. She is better.

  “Jesus, Rosie. Don’t ever let anyone do that to you again. Not me. Not anyone,” I tell her before pulling her into my arms, enveloping her. “I’m going insane with want for you. God, how I want you,” I whisper.

  “Me too,” she breathes.

  “You owe this guy nothing. Leave,” I insist. Then it hits me; I need her, and I’m about to say the craziest thing I’ve probably ever said. “Hell, you owe me nothing, but I’m going to walk out of this bathroom right now, and I’ll be waiting outside your door for you. It will be your decision if you let me in or not.”

  I don’t even wait for an answer from her. I simply turn and walk out of the bathroom.

  I don’t stop until I reach my car. Once I’m inside, I drop my forehead to the steering wheel. God damn it! I just lost control for the first time in ten years. I’m starting to wonder if this arrangement is such a good idea.

  It’s our first official date. My first date with Rosie. An actual date. More than sex. More than friends, first date. And I’m nervous as hell.

  Me. Drew Nallen. The guy all of his friends and family call the playboy is nervous because he’s about to go on a real date with a girl. A girl he thinks about constantly. A girl he’s falling in love with more and more each time he
sees her.

  I stand on the bottom step leading up to her apartment building, looking up at the window with that very girl standing in it. She shines, leaning her head out of the window, yelling down, “I’ll be right there.” Shutting the window quickly, she disappears.

  I turn my attention to the doors of her building, waiting for Rosie to appear.

  Before I know it, she moves hurriedly through the door, hobbling out with one tall leather boot in her hand and the other on her foot. I look her up and down, my eyes hanging on the way the dark denim hugs her curves. “I couldn’t get this damn boot on,” she announces just before she stumbles, falling forward into my arms. A quiet yelp slips between her lips. When she hits my chest, I turn her in my arms to cradle her, looking down at her face. Her eyes are closed tightly.

  She blinks them open, and without thinking, I press my lips against hers, unable to resist. Rosie kisses me back, softly caressing my lips with her own. A low moan slips out between our mouths. The kiss is brief yet full of fire, when I force myself to pull away.

  Standing her up, I look down into her eyes. “It seems like we just reenacted the first time we met,” I joke.

  Blushing, Rosie giggles. “I don’t think that’s exactly what happened the last time I fell into your arms.”

  “Maybe not, but it’s what I thought about doing the first time you fell into my arms.” I grin.

  She instantly stops laughing, watching me, and I let her for a moment. I want her to understand I’m in this and it’s not just some whim or something I decided I suddenly wanted. I want Rosie to grasp the fact I’ve been thinking about her from the very start.

  “Here.” I break the silence. “Let me have that boot so I can help you get it on,” I insist as I reach for the leather shoe still in her hand.

  Rosie hands me the boot and sits on the top step. I move to stand in front of her and hold it out so she can stick her foot in it. When she has her foot in, I push it on with little effort. She shrugs when I stare down at her. I shake my head and smile.