TAKING THE FALL - the Complete Series by Alexa Riley

I’m not your goddamn anything, Michael.”
    Saint goes to reach for her but Jeanette shrinks back from him and he stops.
    “ Touch me and I’ll scream this house down. You better get out or I’m calling the cops.”
    Saint takes a step back and I see his shoulders drop in defeat. “I’ll give you some time but this will never be over, Mama,” he says with resolve and turns to leave. It’s only then that I notice a silent Justin behind him walk out at the same time.
    And then Jeanette does the one thing I’ve never seen her do. She cries.
     



CARTER
    I put the picture on her bedside table and I stare down at her naked body, not wanting to leave. Every cell in my body is pulling me back to bed with her but I have to ignore it. I sit on the edge of the bed and allow myself two more minutes. I’ve waited eight years to be this close to her. I just need two more minutes before we’re separated again.
    I lightly stroke her cheek and she leans into my touch. She smiles a little and I can only hope she’s dreaming of me.
    The only thing that could take me away from her is protecting her. I didn’t lie to her – she’s safe and she’s free. I’m out and she won’t ever have to worry again, but I’m going to find her father and make him pay for everything he did to her. I told her I’ll be back and I just hope she doesn’t hate me for leaving like this. If she looked me in the eyes and asked me to stay, I would. So I’m taking the easy way out because I can’t risk someone coming after her again.
    My soul aches as I stand up and step away from the bed. I turn around and let myself have one last look at her before I close the door.
    “ Wait for me, baby,” I whisper. And then I’m gone.

LAYLA
    Three months later
    “ I said get your nasty fucking cunt out of my face before I lose my temper,” I growl. I have a pounding headache and this shit isn’t helping.
    “ Oh come on, Daddy, don’t be like that. I can feel you’ve got a big pole in there you’d like me to dance on. Let me take you in the back, no extra charge.” The stripper grinds on my limp cock and winks over her shoulder at me. Like that’s what it’s going to take to get me to fuck her. She eyed me up the second I walked in this place. She’s been rubbing all over me and it’s taking all my strength not to stand up and put her on her ass. Fake tits and bleached-out hair might do it for some guys, but my cock only gets hard for one woman, and this one ain’t her.
    I used to love places like this. I could roll in, have a few drinks with the boys, and avail of some free, no-strings, easy pussy. Now my cock only wants Layla. The damn thing has only wanted her since I laid eyes on her nine years ago. It pisses me off that this stripper thinks she can have something that isn’t hers. Who am I kidding, though; I’m not even sure if it’s mine anymore.
    The only reason I let her get this close is because I don’t want to draw attention. I’m trying to blend in, which is hard for someone who is as big as I am, but I can’t let this chick think she’s getting anything from me. I’m not sure what she thinks I could do with her anyway – she’s a fucking twig, and I’d probably break her in half. It only makes me miss my Cherry more, with her luscious curves that fill my hands. I swear my girl’s skin is as soft as rose petals and as pure as snow. I love that she’s only been touched by me.
    Catching a whiff of the stripper’s perfume, I’m pulled from my thoughts of Cherry, which only pisses me off.
    “ Listen up, Diamond, Mercedes, Daffodil, or whatever name it is you go by. If I have to tell you one more time to go away, I’m gonna put a gag in your mouth, handcuff you to the stage, and tell everyone in here there’s a seven-dollar hooker looking for a train ride. You feel that?”
    Immediately, she stands up and walks towards the bar. “Asshole,” she mumbles and it’s all I can do to stay in my chair.
    I take another sip