Hard To Fall (Sliding Home Book 3)

by Elizabeth Perry

  “Oh, well, Rachel invited me out. I figured that it would be fine since Isaac is gone.”

  Our eyes lock, and her teeth fly to her lip as she meets my stare.

  “Rach, can you give us a second?” I ask her, before grabbing Isabelle’s elbow and pulling her with me into the kitchen.

  “Yeah, sure.” Rachel shrugs. “Isabelle, I’ll be waiting in the car.”

  “Really, baby?” I murmur, before taking a step towards her and backing her into the wall.

  “Ryan,” she hisses, before turning her head towards the doorway. “Your sister is right outside!”

  My hand trails her bare leg and she whimpers. Her teeth clamp down so hard on her bottom lip that I worry she might draw blood.

  I let my finger trail underneath her dress, loving the way that her eyes close at my touch.

  “You’re only going because you’re trying to hide from me.”

  “Well? Can you blame me? Last night was a mistake, Ryan, and no matter how you try to spin it, it cannot happen again.”

  “No?” I trail my finger underneath her panties, finding her soaking wet. “If you don’t want me, then why are you so wet?”

  I slide one finger inside of her, and she whimpers even louder.

  “Ryan!”

  “Just admit it. You want me just as fucking much as I want you.”

  “I’m not admitting anything,” she sighs, before pushing my hand away.

  “I don’t like the idea of you going out with my sister.”

  “Why?” She adjusts her panties before glaring at me. “It’s your sister. She seems great.”

  “She is great. It’s not that I don’t want you going out with her, I just don’t want you going out, period. I want to keep you all to myself.”

  Rachel beeps the horn, and Isabelle turns her attention back to the door.

  “I really should get going.”

  I smack her ass and she shakes her head.

  “Fine. Go and have fun, baby. But remember one thing. I don’t fucking share, Isabelle. Dance all that you want with my sister, but just remember, at the end of the night, you’re coming home to me.”

  “Why, so I can be another one of your mistakes?” She cuts her eyes at me before grabbing her purse and opening the front door. “No thanks, Ryan. We need to stop whatever this is, and I need to go. Have a good night.”

  I watch as Rachel’s car pulls out of the driveway, and then I begin to pace.

  She’s going out on the town, and every fucking man out there tonight is going to be all over her.

  I could sit back and wait for it to happen, or I could stop it now.

  If I race to the bar and end this, I need to be willing to move forward with her. I mean, I can’t just cockblock her and then set her off to the side.

  She thinks that she was a mistake for me, and she thinks that sleeping with me was a mistake on her end too.

  I see things differently.

  I have no idea what to make of the feelings that I have for her, because to be honest, they hit me so fast that I haven’t had time to process it.

  All that I know, is I cannot stand the thought of any other man laying a hand on her.

  She’s mine, and I need her to understand that.

  Yeah, me being her boss complicates things, but now that I’ve had her, there’s no fucking way that I can keep my hands off of her.

  If I’m going to do this, then I need to lock that shit down.

  Regardless of what it takes.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Isabelle

  When Rachel asked me to go out with her tonight, I figured that it was the perfect way to escape being stuck in that house, all alone, with Ryan.

  Turns out, that now I’m stuck in a bar, and my mind is only focused on him.

  It definitely didn’t help that he yet again, backed me into a wall and made me lose my mind.

  I ache for him in a place that I shouldn’t, and now, I can smell him on me.

  There seems to be no escaping Ryan James.

  Gah.

  See?

  This is precisely why I should have never allowed myself to act on what my stupid body wanted. My brain knew that it was a bad idea.

  My damn vagina has gotten me into a mess.

  But, the drinks are pouring, and the atmosphere is great.

  I’ve never been really big on the bar scene, but sometimes it’s a good idea to step out of my comfort zone and live a little.

  As long as that doesn’t involve spreading my legs for Ryan again, I’m all about trying new things.

  Rachel’s girlfriends are kind and funny and seem like they always have a good time.

  I knew yesterday right away that I adored Rachel, and now after tonight, I’m even more certain of it.

  While Ryan is quiet and reserved, Rachel is loud and is completely out there.

  With her, what you see is what you get. And I love that.

  She reminds me a lot of my sister, Arielle, who is and always will be, the life of every party. I’m usually the quiet one in the corner, taking it all in.

  But not tonight. Rachel seems hell bent on handing me drinks and getting me on the dance floor, and I’m all too willing to cooperate.

  It feels good to let loose, and to try to let my mind focus on anything but Ryan.

  I’ve danced with several different men tonight, never more than once, though, and I haven’t let them get too close to me.

  I’m not all about that.

  But after a few more drinks, I find myself back on the dance floor, and this time, when a tall, dark skinned man brushes up against me and cuts into my dance circle, I let him wrap an arm around my waist and pull me close.

  I let my body move to the music, as my mind totally clears.

  At least for a second.

  In the next moment, another arm wraps around my waist and pulls me forward.

  My eyes snap open and meet a set of grey eyes that look incredibly pissed off.

  “Dude. What the fuck?” My dance partner mutters, as Ryan’s eyes flash.

  “Find someone else to grind on. She’s mine.” His words are harsh, as he pulls me into him.

  “Ryan. What are you doing?” I hiss, as he pulls my body against his, and begins to grind his hips against me as the song changes.

  “What I should have done from the fucking start,” he retorts, before grabbing my face in his hands and mashing his lips against mine.

  Oh my god.

  I can’t even help myself.

  I fall into him, not even caring that we are in a crowded bar, surrounded by all kinds of people who likely recognize him and are watching this with a front row seat.

  The only thing that I care about is the way that his body feels wrapped around mine.

  It feels like heaven.

  He finally pulls his mouth away from mine, before flashing me a devilish grin.

  “I’m taking you home, with me, where you belong.”

  He nods at Rachel, who is standing as still as a statue, watching us with wide eyes.

  “You good, sis?”

  She nods once.

  “You have a way to get home?”

  Again, she gives just a single nod.

  “Good. I’m taking Isabelle with me.”

  And with that, I’m tucked underneath his arm and shuffled out of the bar.

  It all happens so fast, and I’m in such a blur, that I hardly noticed all the flashes of the camera’s, as our very private moment is caught on everyone’s phones.

  We barely make it to the car before Ryan’s hands are back on my body.

  “Fuck. You make me so fucking crazy.”

  I sink into him, pressing my mouth back against his.

  “Obviously. You just made quite the scene in there.”

  “Good. At least now every fucker in there knows that you’re mine.”

  That I’m his?

  Well, this has escalated quickly.

  “Ryan, seriously.”

  “If yo
u’re going to tell me that this is a mistake, and that we should stop, then I don’t want to hear it. Seriously, Isabelle. Do you want me?”

  Hell yes, I do.

  I manage to nod once.

  “Well, I fucking want you too.”

  Oh, dear.

  He starts the engine and pulls into the street, driving like a bat out of hell back towards his house.

  “Your whole family knows that I’m more than just Isaac’s nanny now. You realize that, right?”

  “I’m pretty sure that they already knew that the second they saw the way that I was looking at you.”

  I melt. Literally, fucking melt.

  “So, what does this mean, then? I mean, what…”

  We pull into the driveway ,and Ryan is out of the car and running towards my door before I can even finish my question.

  “I don’t have the answer to your question right now. And I need to know that you’re ok with that.”

  I pause, as he pulls me out of the car.

  “I just mean, I’ve been through some shit. I’m still working some of that out inside of my head, and before I slap a label on this, I want to make sure that I’m all good up here.”

  He taps himself on the head.

  “It doesn’t mean that I’m not crazy about you, and it sure as hell doesn’t mean that I’m willing to share you. But I need to be in the right state of mind before we make this official.”

  Well, I am officially confused.

  That wasn’t exactly the answer that I was looking for, and honestly, it fills me with an awful lot of unease. Way more than I felt this morning when he seemed so damn regretful.

  But, he’s telling me that he’s crazy about me, so maybe I should just run with that for now.

  I mean, I’m not exactly in a good place to start a relationship either.

  He says that he doesn’t want to share me, but, will I be sharing him?

  The thought makes me sick.

  I don’t have much time to dwell on it, though, because in the next moment, I’m damn near carried inside of the house and pressed against the door.

  My little yellow dress is pulled over my head and tossed to the side as Ryan sinks to his knees in front of me, tossing one of my heel clad feet over his shoulder.

  As my panties are pushed to the side, and his tongue slides inside of me, all my thoughts go out the window, and I’m suddenly spinning, lost in a cloud of lust that is so damn thick, I don’t think that I will ever get out of it.

  He licks me slow at first, flicking his tongue against my clit, and causing me to cry out for him. I feel him smile against me, before he opens his mouth wide and begins to suck on me.

  Oh, dear God.

  The sensation is almost too much to take. The feeling of his mouth right there causes my body to go into overdrive.

  I almost can’t take it. The feeling is just too damn good.

  I dig my nails into his shoulder, pulling him tighter against me, as my head tips back and his name leaves my lips in a continuous chant.

  He moans my name, and continues to mutter things underneath his breath, as his mouth works wonders on my hot and aching core.

  In a second, I’m fucking his face, all while screaming out his name, as I begin to spiral out of control, until I finally explode all around him.

  “Jesus,” he murmurs, as my limp body falls into him.

  “You’re so fucking sexy, baby. So fucking sweet.” He scoops me up into his arms before pressing me back against the door.

  There’s no way that I could hold myself up right now. I can’t even open my eyes as my body desperately tries to recover from that earth-shattering orgasm.

  He presses his lips back onto mine and kisses me hard.

  “You’re mine, Isabelle. All fucking mine. Don’t you ever forget that.”

  I can’t even form a complete thought right now, let alone respond to him.

  “When I saw that guy tonight with his hands on you, I about lost my fucking mind.” His mouth moves to my neck where he begins to lick and bite my skin.

  “I wanted to fucking kill him. It made me fucking crazy.”

  His lips trail down to my breasts, and his tongue flicks against my nipple, before his mouth covers me, sucking hard.

  I cry out.

  It doesn’t hurt, it’s just so many sensations, that honestly, my brain can’t keep up.

  All that I know is that I need more from him.

  One orgasm could never be enough. I want as many as he can possibly give me.

  “Tell me that you’re mine,” he orders before his teeth rake against my nipple.

  “Tell me that this pussy is mine.” He reaches down and strokes my oh so sensitive folds.

  “Ryan,” I cry, as my hands grip his biceps.

  “Please. I need you.” I buck my hips against his hand, making him groan. He pulls back for just a second, and I whimper as we lose the contact.

  But then, I hear the distinct sound of the foil wrapper, and as I open my eyes, I watch as he slides the condom onto his thick erection.

  His eyes never leave my face, but my eyes are staring at him, watching as he rolls on the condom.

  Jesus.

  He’s so big. It’s seriously not even right, that any man can have a dick that big.

  I can’t even believe that he is about to fit that inside of me again.

  He positions himself at my entrance before reaching under my chin and tipping my face up so that our eyes lock.

  “Fucking say it, Isabelle. Tell me that you’re mine, and only mine. Tell me that this pussy belongs to me. I don’t fucking share, baby.”

  He strokes my entrance with the tip of his dick, and I about orgasm right there. My arms and legs are shaky with need, and all that I can focus on is the intense need to have him inside of my body.

  “Ryan, yes, ok? Now please, fuck me.” I’m begging him, and I know that it makes me pathetic. But I honestly just do not care.

  I’ve never been this filled with need, and honestly, it should scare me.

  But my mind can’t even try to focus on that right now.

  He presses the tip inside of me, making me cry out, before pulling himself back.

  “I need to hear you say it.” All I can do is whimper.

  “Ok, ok. I’m yours. All yours. My vagina is all yours too. Now please…”

  He enters me in one long stroke, causing me to cry out. He pauses once he’s all of the way inside of me, and rests his forehead against mine.

  “You make me so fucking crazy.”

  “I’m done for when it comes to you, baby. So fucking done for.”

  “Me too,” I whisper, and as he lifts his head, he stares hard into my eyes. He pulls back, never breaking our stare, before thrusting back inside of me.

  “Fuck yes,” he moans holding on tightly to my hips, and beginning to move.

  My hair is fisted into his hand as he fucks me hard against the door.

  He continues to mutter my name, until neither one of us can say a single thing. His hands move all over my body, gripping and stroking me, as he fucks me in a way that I have never been before.

  When it’s all over, I realize that no amount of Kegels in the world are ever going to get my vagina back to normal.

  And later on, in the night, as Ryan gently makes love to me, all while staring deeply into my eyes, I realize that no amount of distance is going to keep me from falling hard for Ryan James.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Isabelle

  “Seriously?” Arielle screeches before grabbing my arm and pulling me into her office.

  I knew that this would be her reaction, since I’ve dodged her phone calls for the last two days. Since everyone and their brother have now seen pictures of Ryan and I making out on the Internet, I figured Arielle had too.

  Plus, the ten texts that she sent me today were dead giveaways.

  I knew she would want the details, and I really wanted to eat dinner in her restaurant.

  I guess yo
u could say that I’m killing two birds with one stone.

  She folds her arms across her chest before glaring at me.

  “I’ve been trying to call you! I figured that you were trying to avoid me. But now you’re here, so spill it.”

  “Spill what?”

  “Do not even start with me, Isabelle. I’ve seen the pictures online, so I already know that you hooked up with Ryan, you little slut.”

  Her eyes gleam as she stares at me, and I totally fold.

  “Alright. I did hook up with him.”

  “So?” Her eyes widen as a devilish grin spreads across her face.

  “Are the rumors true? Is he really all that he’s made out to be?”

  Good lord, yes. The rumors don’t even begin to tell the whole truth of Ryan James in bed. Yes, he’s hung, that’s for sure. But he also knows exactly how to use it.

  I shift in my seat, trying to ignore the unwelcome pang of longing that these thoughts bring.

  “Yes.”

  Arielle squeals before clasping her hands together and jumping around on her feet.

  “I knew it! I so knew that you were going to end up in bed with that guy. I called it. Didn’t I call it?”

  It’s my turn to glare at her.

  “Listen, it was a one-time thing, alright?”

  Ok, it was a multiple time thing, but who is keeping track?

  She snorts.

  “Yeah, right. Why in the hell would it only be a one-time thing? You need this. You need to get your groove back and show that ex piece of shit that you’ve moved on. Lord knows that he probably has.”

  Isn’t that the truth. But continuing to sleep with Ryan is a bad idea. I already like the guy way too much, and that is something that won’t end well for me.

  The last thing that I need is to get feelings involved with whatever this is.

  I don’t know what I was hoping that he would say about us, but the words that have left his mouth have only made me more uneasy.

  He doesn’t want to put a label on us, which in my mind, means that it’s because he isn’t looking to be tied down.

  It’s not like I can blame him.

  He could have any woman that he wants.

  Why in the world would he want to settle down with a twenty-eight-year-old teacher, who still lives with her parents?