Before We Fall

  Jacey shouts louder, and the cat growls menacingly as she bends to pick up a large round rock, a foot in diameter. The cat opens its mouth and roars, a shrill and hoarse sound like a scream. Jacey freezes, and what happens next happens so fast that it’s a blur.

  The cat roars again, standing up on its hind legs and batting at the air with its paw before it lunges toward me.

  Jacey shrieks and jumps in front of me, hurling the rock at the giant animal, hitting it squarely in the face. But as she throws it, she trips and sprawls in the red dust directly in front of the giant cat.

  She’s entirely at its mercy.

  For a second, my heart stops. I move to shield Jacey from an attack, but the cat turns, shaking its head, as if to clear it from the impact of the rock. It stumbles for a second, then to my surprise, it spins around and retreats, loping off into the distance.

  I’m frozen for a moment before I scramble to get to Jacey.

  “What the hell?” I demand. “You could’ve been killed. You don’t go rushing at a wild animal like that!”

  Jacey stares up at me, her eyes wide and filled with pain. “I didn’t mean to. I tripped. But either way, it worked. The fucking thing is gone, isn’t it?”

  “What’s wrong?” I ask her quickly. Her eyes are watering and she’s gripping her ankle like she’s never letting go.

  “My foot,” she says through gritted teeth. “I twisted it. How cliché is that?”

  Adrenaline is coursing through me and I swallow the acidic taste.

  “Jacey, you could’ve died. The chopper isn’t coming back for us for another hour. If that thing would’ve attacked you, we might not have made it to a hospital in time. Why the fuck did you do that?”

  She opens her eyes and shrugs, determined to make it seem like a small deal. “Because it was going to jump on you. It was the only plan I could think of.”

  “Your plan sucked,” I growl as I grab her up and haul her onto my lap, lifting her foot to examine it. As carefully as I can, I pull her sneaker off. Her foot is already swollen, and it’s turning purple fast.

  “I don’t know if it’s broken,” I tell her quietly. “It might be. Or it could just be bruised. Either way, it’s going to hurt.”

  “Going to?” she grimaces, gritting her teeth. “I don’t think I can walk on it.”

  “I’m sure you can’t.” I eye it. “There’s no way. We’ll just stay right here until our ride comes back. You’ll have to see the Grand Canyon from here. I’m sorry.”

  “I’m not worried about it,” she answers, nestling back into my arms, molding herself to my chest. “I just hope he doesn’t come back. Oh my god. He sounded like a woman screaming, didn’t he? Holy shit. I’ll never forget that sound.”

  “Me either,” I admit, looking around. “I don’t see any more lurking around. You scared the shit out of that one. I doubt he’ll be back.” I glance down at her swollen foot and wince. “I wish I’d thought to bring some ibuprofen or something. I’m sorry. God. This is the second time you’ve been hurt because of me.”

  Something akin to guilt wells up in me, but she shrugs, curling up on my lap. It’s been awhile since someone has lain there for a reason other than sucking my dick. I try not to think about that as I wrap my arms around her and keep her close.

  She just risked her life for me.

  I don’t know anyone, other than my parents or Sin or maybe Duncan, who would do that for me. It’s mind-blowing, actually.

  When the helicopter arrives an hour later, I realize something else startling. I’ve been holding her hand this entire time and I didn’t even know it.

  Chapter Twenty

  Jacey

  My foot throbs like bloody hell as I curl up once again on Dominic’s veranda and soak in the moonlight. Since I can’t move from my seat, I make sure to enjoy the scenery, which consists of Dominic’s perfect ass and chiseled abs. I’ve been staring at both things off and on for the last hour.

  “Thank you for having a doctor come by,” I tell him once again. “I didn’t even know doctors made house calls anymore.”

  “People will do anything if you pay them enough,” Dominic answers tiredly, bringing a tray of food through the glass doors. “He’s the doctor we use on set. I’m just glad your ankle isn’t broken.”

  “Nope,” I reply as cheerfully as I can. “Just bruised. I’ll be good as new in a week or so.”

  Dominic rolls his eyes. “Are you always this cheerful?”

  I shake my head. “Hell no. Try waking me up before nine A.M. and you’ll see a whole new level of ugly.”

  He chuckles, settling back into the cushions. “Do you want to go to bed? You must be tired.”

  I shake my head. “The pain meds your guy gave me are making me a little sleepy, but I’m sort of too amped up to rest. Can we just talk for a while?”

  Dominic looks pained. “Oh yeah. My favorite thing to do.”

  The way he says it makes me laugh and Dominic smiles. “So glad to be a source of amusement to you.”

  I smile again as the warm breeze lifts the hair away from my face. “Can you help me into the pool? It was so hot and dry out in the canyon that I’d like to get wet.”

  I left myself wide open for a sexual jab by Dominic, but he ignores it.

  “Are you sure?” He raises an eyebrow. “The doctor said you should rest your foot.”

  I shake my head. “He also said it wasn’t broken. Trust me, I’ve got enough pain meds in me to put out a small horse. I’m feeling no pain.” To prove my point, I stand up awkwardly, swaying a bit before I catch my balance. I strip off my shirt, then sit back down to take off my shorts.

  Dominic doesn’t say anything… he just sits back and watches me, his eyes darkening as I strip off my bra. There’s a million things hidden in his eyes right now, but he doesn’t voice any of them. Instead, he just stands up and gently grabs my arm.

  “Ready?”

  I nod, expecting him to help me hobble into the water, but that’s not what he does. Instead, he scoops me up and carries me directly into the pool, pausing only for a second to kick his shoes off at the edge.

  Other than that, he’s fully clothed.

  He carries me straight into the water, completely soaking his clothes. I stare at him in shock. “Why didn’t you undress?”

  He stares down at me, his dark gaze meeting mine. “Jacey, you jumped in front of a cougar for me today. If you say you want to swim, I’m going to drop what I’m doing and carry you into the water.”

  A weird feeling ripples through me, warm and tingly.

  “Seriously? That’s all I had to do to impress you? I just had to jump in front of a hungry wild animal? Why didn’t you tell me? I would’ve done it a long time ago.”

  He throws his head back and laughs, a genuine laugh and his teeth gleam in the dark. He tightens his grip on me for a second, then he lowers me carefully into the water, holding me up as I gingerly set my foot down, then pick it back up and tread water.

  “Who says you impressed me?” he asks mockingly, treading water in front of me. “I’m only admitting that I owe you. I pay my debts.”

  I roll my eyes now. “Whatever. I know you’re impressed. And what’s more, you like me. You just don’t want to admit it. You don’t want to admit that I’m a decent person… because you think that the world is only made up of assholes. To admit that I’m not horrible would mess up your deep-seated belief system. I wouldn’t want to do that.”

  Dom cocks his head, studying me in the night. “I thought you said you weren’t decent?”

  I shrug, my fingers slicing through the cool water. “I don’t think I am. But compared to your opinion of humanity, I think I do okay.”

  “If you’re not decent, then who is?” Dominic demands, swimming toward me. “Because I’d like to meet that person.”

  “My best friend Maddy,” I answer immediately. “She’s pretty amazing. But she moved to Connecticut, so you probably won’t ever meet her. That’s good though.
She’s drop-dead gorgeous, and my brother would kick your ass if he caught you drooling over her, so it’s for the best.”

  “Do you really think I would drool over her if you were in the room?” Dominic asks softly, treading water very close to me. The moonlight makes him look pensive, thoughtful. And I stare at him.

  “Probably,” I answer finally. “Everyone does.”

  “Not me,” Dominic replies firmly. “I wouldn’t have any need to.”

  “Why are you being so nice to me today?” I demand quickly. “First a picnic in the Grand Canyon, then you ordered a private midnight snack on your veranda, and now you’re giving me compliments. You’re freaking me out, Dom. Knock it off.”

  “I haven’t even begun to get nice yet,” he tells me, his voice growing as dark as his eyes. He pushes me through the water until we reach the side of the pool, where he rests his hands on either side of my hips. “Want me to start right now?”

  He doesn’t give me a chance to reply. Instead, he kisses me, suddenly and thoroughly. His mouth covers mine, his lips cold and wet. I wrap my arms around his neck and hold on, melting into him, absorbing his heat, enjoying the way his wet body feels against mine.

  “Why did you do it?” he whispers into my ear. “Why did you risk yourself like that for me?”

  He nips at my ear and trails his lips down the length of my neck until he reaches my collarbone. “Tell me,” he demands. “I need to know. I don’t see what you gained from it.”

  I force myself to pull away from him, just for a minute. “I didn’t gain anything from it,” I answer sharply. “Just the knowledge and satisfaction of knowing that you didn’t get eaten. That was enough.”

  He pulls away too, just for a minute, and stares into my eyes. In the night, his eyes look almost black. Without saying another word, he kisses me again, and again, and again. Hard, soft, brutal, exquisite.

  “Take off your clothes,” I urge him. “I want to feel your skin.”

  To my surprise, he does. He peels off the wet clothes and flings them onto the stone deck, turning again to pull me to him. His chest is hard, his stomach flat, and his dick hard. Very hard. It wedges between my legs and I shiver a bit, at the mere thought that it’s all for me.

  He’s hard for me.

  He lifts me up and I wrap my legs around his waist, kissing him yet again. I decide that I could kiss him forever… he’s perfect at it. His tongue slides along my lip and he bites at it, just a little.

  “Do you want more?” he whispers. “Yes or no?”

  “We’re back to that?” I answer softly. “You can’t tell what I want?”

  He looks at me. “I just like hearing the word yes.”

  “I’d think you’d get tired of hearing it all the time,” I reply as he holds me up in the water.

  “Not from you,” he answers. He kisses me again, his lips consuming me. And then he stops, looking at me seriously.

  “I’m a very good actor,” he tells me matter-of-factly. “I’m good at pretending that I’m someone else. And tonight, I’m going to be someone else. Does that bother you?”

  I’m surprised by his sudden turn and by the oh-so-serious expression on his face, but no, I’m not bothered. I tell him that and he smiles.

  “But who do you want to be?” I add curiously. He shrugs.

  “Anyone but me.”

  He pushes me against the side of the pool, thrusting his hips against me, rubbing me. His weight is perfect, hard, rigid, amazing. I suck in a breath when he bends his head and nips at my breast, sucking my nipple into his mouth. I throw my head back as he sucks harder.

  “But why?” I manage to persist, even though he’s trying his best to distract me. “You’re pretty amazing. Why would you want to be someone else? Are you sure that you just don’t want me to be someone else?”

  Dominic stops what he’s doing and pulls away, looking at me with a hard expression. His green eyes have a dull light in them now, something that happens when he’s annoyed. I stare back, trying to be unabashed.

  “What do you mean?” he asks slowly. “Why would I want you to be someone else?”

  I shrug, trying to ignore my pounding heart. Why did I choose this moment to bring this up? Why? But I’m not one to back down, so I don’t.

  “I don’t know. I just thought maybe you were pretending that I’m Emma.”

  As soon as the name falls from my lips, I know it’s a mistake.

  Dominic’s face immediately closes, his eyes turning into hardened marble. He releases me quickly as though touching me is burning his hands. And then he turns his back on me and walks out of the pool.

  “What’s wrong with you?” I call after him as I follow. “It was just a question. I was just wondering. About her.”

  Dominic turns, and for a minute his face is filled with pain, but then he conceals it, replacing it with a hardened mask. “You don’t have any right to be curious about her,” he answers starkly. “Please don’t bring her up again.”

  “But—”

  Dominic holds up his hand. “No buts. She isn’t significant to you. Just leave it alone. Good night.”

  He actually turns around and stalks back into the house, leaving me to stand naked on his terrace alone.

  What the hell was that about? He can’t even hear her name? I think I have every right to ask if he’s imagining that I’m her. But then again, he has no idea that I saw the letters… and her picture. He doesn’t know how much I know of her.

  And how much it tells about him.

  But as I think of it, I realize too that I don’t really know all that much at all. What I do know is that if we’re going to continue whatever it is that we are doing, I need to know.

  I need to know about Emma. I need to know how she broke Dominic.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Dominic

  I lay in the dark, naked and alone, and try to pull myself together.

  Quit being such a pussy.

  But Emma’s name, coming from Jacey’s lips, was such an unexpected shock to the system that it took the wind out of me. Jacey has no idea how much I don’t pretend that she’s Emma. She has no idea how much that name guts me.

  And she won’t ever know, because there’s no way in hell that I’m going to talk about it. Jesus.

  I can’t believe I’d been so close… so close to simply pretending that I was someone else tonight… and fucking Jacey in my pool.

  I almost let my guard down that fucking much.

  It won’t happen again. I flip over onto my back and shove a pillow onto my head so I can sleep.

  The flight home is awkward and quiet. Jacey stares quietly out the window, barely saying anything. I want to say something, but I’m not sure what. I’m not sure what there is to say. She wants more of me than I can give. She wants to know me.

  Well, she thinks she does. If she did get to know me, she’d take back that wish. I can guarantee that.

  I drop her off at her house, and she barely looks at me as she kisses my cheek and gets out of the car.

  She doesn’t talk to me for two days.

  It’s a long fucking two days.

  She ignores me at work, and by the first night, I itch to call her. I go so far as to pull out my phone and start to dial her number before I stare at it and sigh.

  Call her and say what?

  There’s nothing to say. We’re at an impasse. She needs more than I can give.

  The strange thing is that I wish it were different. For the first time ever, I wish that I could be that guy. The guy who can do a relationship. The guy who can do the give-and-take thing. But I know me. And I know that I’m the guy who just takes and takes.

  I don’t have the ability to give.

  I put my phone away.

  On the second day, as I round the corner into the locker room, I hear Jacey’s voice and I freeze, not wanting her to see me.

  “I know, Mad.” She sighs, and I know that she’s on the phone with her best friend. “I know. But he’s not l
ike Jared. I swear to god. He’s not like that.”

  There’s a pause while she listens, and I’d give my left nut to be able to hear what Maddy is saying.

  “He won’t talk about it,” she continues. “Trust me, I tried. But—”