Hard to Fall

by Marquita Valentine

  He sucks hard on my clit and shoves his fingers deep, pressing them against a spot inside me so sensitive that I half-scream his name. My legs quiver, my breasts heave, and I come apart right against the glass door.

  Right in the middle of the lake where anyone can see us. Right where anyone can hear my cries of pleasure and see him kneeling between my legs and feasting on me.

  His fingers slide out of me and I almost collapse to the floor, but he holds me steady with one hand while the other pushes at his shorts, freeing his massive erection. This time I fall on my knees, taking the broad head into my mouth and sucking deep.

  I know how he likes this. I know what he wants because he showed me and I remember every single thing. Every kiss, every touch…the way he tasted as he came down my throat.

  He wraps my hair around his fist, pulling me to him and sending his cock deeper…yet just like before, he’s gentle in a way that defies logic and reason. I’m not on my knees because he forced me here. I’m on my knees, taking him in my mouth, because I want to do this for him.

  I can’t help myself. I don’t want to help myself. I want to be careless one more time. I want to experience all the things I held myself away from. The boys, the men, friends…life.

  For so long, I stayed alone because I thought it was the only way I could live. But now…I’m afraid that the only way I can live is if I’m with Hayden.

  The thought shocks me to my very core, even as I lick him and take him deeper. He groans, his hips pumping steadily as he whispers words of encouragement laced with profanities that make me throb for him again.

  “That far…oh, baby, do it again.”

  Peering up at him, I suck him so hard that my cheeks hollow out on either side and that’s when he loses it. I know that face, the way he bites his lip, the way his lashes fall to his cheek…he’s going to—

  “Up. Get up.” He pulls away from me, his cock slipping out of my mouth. “Stand up, sunshine.”

  On shaky legs I do as he commands. He picks me up easily, his broad shoulders and muscular arms flexing with the movement. “Not going to come in you. Just have to be in you. Please tell me I can. I…haven’t been with anyone in six months. I’m clean. Swear it. Got tested and everything not too long ago, but if that’s not—”

  “Hush.” The first time we had sex, we used a condom. The second time, not so much, not that it mattered…at least as far as pregnancy goes. “I haven’t been with anyone else either.” Not lying. I’m so not lying.

  Grabbing his cock, he rubs the tip of it between my slick folds. “You feel so damn good. Never done this before.”

  Oh but you have and it was amazing. “I’ve never done this before with anyone else, either.”

  “Shit. I’m not thinking clearly. I’m not lying to you, but I’m not thinking clearly.” He squeezes the end of his erection, a look of pain covering his face. “Fuck. I need to be in you.”

  “I can take you in my mouth again.”

  He kisses me hard, so hard that our teeth knock together, but I don’t care. I wrap my arms around him and roll my hips until his cock slips inside me a little.

  “Oh, fuck,” he whispers. “Just an inch more.”

  I nod, kissing him again and sliding my tongue in his mouth. Another inch slides in and I shift, trying to take him deeper, but he won’t go any farther. The cords of his neck strain as he holds himself back.

  “You’re tight. So damn tight. Warm.” His head falls to my neck. “Trying not to be stupid, but that’s all I want to be right now.”

  “We can be careless this one time,” I say.

  “Tell me you’re on birth control.” His voice is harsh, filled with obvious need for me. For the answer he needs. Thankfully, it’s the truth when I answer.

  “I am.”

  That’s all he needs to hear. He thrusts deep, holding on to my hips and working his thick, long erection in. He lifts his head up, his bottom lip caught between his teeth as he moves.

  Finally, my inner muscles give and he slides all the way in. Bracing his legs apart slightly, he bends his knees and starts to move.

  “Won’t last long. You feel too damn good.”

  Another slam of his hips and something inside me sparks. One of his hands goes to my lower back, holding me still while he pumps into me. He stops suddenly, his body tensing under my hands as he lets out a growl.

  He shoves deep inside me and I feel each and every hot spurt of his orgasm as he comes. I wrap my legs around his waist, digging my heels into his ass. Wanting him closer. Wanting him…needing him.

  Pulling out of me with a muttered curse, he takes two fingers and presses them against my clit, using his semen as lubrication. I begin to shake, my second orgasm tantalizingly close.

  “I can eat you out again,” he whispers. “Wouldn’t bother me at all.”

  My eyes round. “That’s not necessary,” I say, even more turned on at the thought.

  “I know it’s not, but I bet you taste amazing. A blend of both of us. Damn, I want to fuck you again. Keep you like this, filled up with my sperm and tied to the bed for my pleasure. But it just wouldn’t be for my pleasure. Oh, no. I’m not a greedy, sadistic bastard. I want you to come just as often and just as hard as I would.” He nips at the juncture between my neck and shoulder. “Would you like that?”

  The combination of his dirty words and slick, insistent fingers send me over the edge again. White-hot pleasure bursts inside me and I close my eyes, unable to do anything more than ride it out.

  We fall to the floor in a tangle of legs and arms, our mouths fusing together as we explore each other again. He’s hard where I’m soft, his abs rippling under my fingers as they tiptoe down his stomach and grip his semi-hard erection.

  He groans my name and places his fingers against my mouth. “Suck.”

  Opening wide, I take three of them, licking off the combination of us while he watches with hooded eyes.

  “Want you again.”

  “I’m yours,” is all I can say.

  Somehow, I end up on top, riding him as he grips my hips so hard that I’ll have marks for days.

  “Lean down a little so I can suck on your nipples.”

  Pushing my shoulders back, I offer my breasts to him. “Just for you.”

  A ghost of a grin covers his face before he wraps his hot mouth around one hard point and suckles me hard, biting the tip before doing the same thing to my other nipple.

  His thumb touches the top of my clit, barely passing over it, but it’s enough to make me cry out his name.

  He pushes me down to the floor, putting me on my hands and knees, lifting my butt in the air. “Can’t get enough,” is all the warning I get before he slams home. He coasts his hands up and down my body, cupping my breasts and tweaking my nipples. I can feel his balls against me, he’s so deep.

  “Want to be careless again?” he asks, and I think of all the times I wasn’t. All the times I played it safe so I wouldn’t end up like my parents. Where has that gotten me, until now?

  Until Hayden.

  “Yes. Oh, yes.”

  “Last time, I promise,” he says, hips bucking against my ass as once again he comes. I feel him pulsing inside me, feel the way I grip him, and milk every last drop.

  His heavy weight presses against me and my arms give out, but instead of falling flat on my face, he rolls me to the side while keeping his cock firmly in place.

  “That was…”

  “Yeah,” he replies. “You were…more than amazing. It’s like you were reading my mind the entire time. Beyond that, I think we have something special, Saylor. Something I’ve never had with another woman.”

  Now reality enters the picture, making me, a careless woman’s daughter, regret that I ever lied to him.

  “I feel the same way.”

  “Good.” He peppers my back and shoulder with kisses. “You can’t avoid me anymore. Can’t say that I’m not attracted to you or that you’re not my type, and I sure as hell wasn’t p
icturing anyone but you while we fucked.”

  I want to bury my face in my hands and cry, but I don’t because I’m a coward. I’m a coward in the worst way.

  “Hayden, I have something to tell you.”

  He grabs my chin, turning me slightly so I can look right into his sexy, blue eyes. “You can tell me anything.”

  As soon as I open my mouth, a weird siren rings out.

  “Shit. I have to take that.” He pushes away from me, but not before giving me another kiss that makes my toes curl. “That’s work and it’s not good. Stay there—I’ll be right back to clean you up.”

  But he doesn’t come right back. I can hear the intensity of his voice as he talks on the phone, so I gather my things and head inside, finding a huge shower in the bathroom.

  I quickly wash and dry off, then go out in search of my bag.

  Hayden’s waiting for me in the living room. “There you are. I have your bag. You have time to shower and change, but we’ll need to head back within the hour. It’s a nonemergency emergency type of thing. Thankfully.”

  “I already used the shower. Hope you don’t mind.” I take my bag from him and dig through it, finding the cute dress and extra lingerie I’d packed with Evangeline’s approval.

  “Actually, I do mind, but only because I wasn’t there to help.” He searches my face. “We good?”

  I nod. “Yup.”

  He nods, too. Oh wonderful. It’s like the end of almost every date I’ve ever gone on. “I have to shower and change into more appropriate clothing.”

  “Sounds like a plan. I’ll get Eva to come get me.”

  “Why would you do that?”

  Because I’ve found my mind again and I can’t believe what I allowed to happen between us without telling you the truth first. “Just making things easier since I live in the opposite direction of where you need to be.”

  His eyes narrow. “That sounds suspiciously like you’re trying to get rid of me.”

  “I’m not. I’m…I’m…” I let my words trail away, hating that I can’t think of the right thing to say, or even something completely outrageous to blurt out that has nothing to do with the conversation in the first place.

  A whimper leaves me and I have to tear my gaze away from him. I stare at the lake, at the families playing in the water.

  Hayden’s nude body blocks my view, but I refuse to really look at him. He gently grabs my chin, forcing me to acknowledge he’s there. With infinite tenderness, he kisses me and I tremble.

  “My fault for responding like Pavlov’s dog instead of making sure you were taken care of first. That you knew this isn’t a hookup.”

  “It’s not?”

  “No, sunshine, it’s not.” Hayden crushes me to him, squeezing me tight. My bag falls to the floor, my clothes right along with it, but I don’t care. “This is anything but a hookup.”

  Then what is it? I want to ask, but I can’t force the question out of my mouth.

  Chapter 13

  Hayden

  I don’t think I’ve ever regretted leaving a woman after sex as much as I did Saylor, and I’m regretting it even more now due to the fact that I wasn’t needed at the station after all.

  One of our new guys punched in the wrong code and sent out an all-alert text. Since he didn’t know he messed up, none of us could confirm the emergency.

  Fucking nightmare of epic proportions.

  The press is going to love replaying this on the nightly news, and once again, the senator will have more ammunition to use against me.

  But none of that compares to how the entire situation obviously made Saylor feel. Our conversations on the way to her place were painful.

  Awkward.

  Forced.

  And that was just on my end.

  Some politician I’ll make, if I can’t smooth things over with a woman I can’t get enough of.

  Then again, that reinforces my long-held opinion that I’m not cut out for a career in politics. I do it enough as fire captain and that’s just local politics. I can handle that. I hold my own, too.

  Except the senator will never see it that way.

  I shake my head and punch in the code to the building.

  Nodding at Eric, who mans the front desk exceptionally well, I ask, “How’s it going? That new baby still keeping you up at night?”

  He grins a little. “She’s getting the hang of sleeping. My wife’s a champ, though. Her family is here, helping us out.”

  I press my floor number’s code and wait. “Good to hear, man.”

  “Mr. Walker,” Eric says, and I turn. The grin on his face has disappeared and something close to panic has entered his eyes. “Your dad is here. I know I’m not supposed to give out the code, but he was rather insistent.”

  Fuck. My. Life.

  My first instinct is to reply with a you’re yanking my chain, right, but I don’t go with that. Instead I settle for adhering to the most important rule any public figure should follow. Maintain appearances at all costs—even if you have to lie your ass off while you do it.

  “No worries. He’s here earlier than I expected, which is tremendous.” So fucking tremendous that I want to leave right this second.

  Eric visibly swallows. “I tried to explain our policy, but he said you’d understand.”

  “He’s right.” The elevator doors slide open and I step inside. “Again, don’t worry. You did nothing wrong.”

  He pulls at his collar. “Thanks.”

  I smile even though I want to punch something. Not Eric. He had fuck all to do with it. Tapping my fingers against the side of my thigh, I silently urge the elevator to go faster so I can get this meeting over with.

  The doors open to my private foyer and I step inside, punching the code to lock out anyone from accessing my apartment. I drop my keys, wallet, and cellphone on a narrow table, then stride to the living room.

  The senator stands in my favorite spot in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows, with his hands loosely clasped behind him.

  “To what do I owe this honor?” I ask.

  “You’re late.” His voice is terse.

  “Wasn’t aware I had an appointment with you.”

  Pivoting, he walks up to me. “Time’s up, son. Your family needs you. I need you.”

  “You said I had a year. By my count, I have forty-five days to consider running for office.” I cross my arms over my chest, daring him to contradict me. “Besides, your polling numbers climbed once I made fire captain. Seems to me it would be in the family’s best interest if I continue to serve the public here. In Charlotte.”

  “For someone who claims to care so little about politics, you sure know a hell of a lot.”

  “Learned from the best.”

  “Don’t give me false compliments, Hayden. You’re better than that.” He pinches the bridge of his nose with his free hand and begins to massage it. “However, I’ve come to make a deal with you.”

  “I can’t promise to agree, but I’m willing to listen.”

  Admiration flashes in his eyes, but it’s so fleeting that I think I imagined it. Given our contentious relationship, I probably did imagine it. “Your mother and I discussed your situation.”

  I bite back the urge to argue with him. The faster he tells me about this deal, the quicker I can say no and go make this afternoon up with Saylor.

  “She actually agrees with your theory about my polling numbers.”

  “Always knew you married a smart woman.”

  “That she is, along with kind and compassionate. I’m not, so here is my offer. Find a woman to marry and agree to stump for me as much as your schedule will allow, or run for Jennings’s seat in the state senate.”

  How in the hell is that an alternative to running for office? “And if I agree to neither?”

  His gaze turns icy. “Then I’ll have you fired and you will never be considered for another job as a firefighter again. You’ll leave in disgrace.”

  “What did I ever do to make you
hate me so much?”

  “It’s not about emotions. It’s about keeping your promises. I’m only offering an alternative due to your mother’s rationale. I trust her judgment. I do not trust yours.”

  My jaw works in anger. “I have sixty men and women working for me that trust my judgment.”

  “That’s because they haven’t experienced the humiliation of trying to explain away the pictures of their son going off with a married woman into a greenhouse with their biggest campaign contributor in this state.” He lets out a harsh breath. “I realize that you weren’t aware of who she was at the time, and I don’t fault you for that. But it’s irrational decisions—decisions where you allow yourself to be led around by your dick—that get our family in trouble.”

  I can’t defend myself. I’m guilty, completely, but I won’t put up with him making me into the black sheep of the family. “My dick didn’t make me go to fire school. My dick sure as hell didn’t get me to the top of the class, regardless of the morals you think I lack. Do you really believe that I would hold the position I do if I fucked around? People around here don’t care what my last name is. They only care that I get the job done, and I do.”

  “Then it shouldn’t be a problem for you to decide.”

  “How long do I have?”

  “Forty-five days.”

  “You’ll have an answer on day forty-four.”

  He smiles grimly. “Looking forward to planning your campaign.”

  I don’t bother saying goodbye when he leaves.

  Rage flows through my veins.

  No way in hell I can see Saylor like this. No way in hell I can see anyone.

  I need to get this out of my system, need to clear my head and talk with someone I trust.

  Marching to the foyer, I grab my phone and text Hunter.

  Me: The senator just left my apartment. Need to blow off steam. You available?

  Hunter: Give me thirty minutes and I’ll meet you in the ring.

  Chapter 14

  Saylor

  I stare at my biological father as he stands in the middle of my hallway. “You were supposed to call me first.”

  “Thought I’d surprise you.” Tripp smiles at me. “May I come inside?”