Before we fall, p.1
Before We Fall, page 1
Before We Fall
Jordan Marie
BEFORE WE FALL
Copyright © 2019 by Penny Dreams LLC
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever, including but not limited to being stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the written permission of the author.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, groups, businesses, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Cover Designer by: Sarah Hansen
Photographer: Sara Eirew
Models: Mike Chabot & Sally
WARNING: This book contains sexual situations, violence and other adult themes. Recommended for 18 and above.
Created with Vellum
Contents
Title Image
Blurb
Prologue
1. Chapter One
2. Chapter Two
3. Chapter Three
4. Chapter Four
5. Chapter Five
6. Chapter Six
7. Chapter Seven
8. Chapter Eight
9. Chapter Nine
10. Chapter Ten
11. Chapter Eleven
12. Chapter Twelve
13. Chapter Thirteen
14. Chapter Fourteen
15. Chapter Fifteen
16. Chapter Sixteen
17. Chapter Seventeen
18. Chapter Eighteen
19. Chapter Nineteen
20. Chapter Twenty
21. Chapter Twenty-One
22. Chapter Twenty-Two
23. Chapter Twenty-Three
24. Chapter Twenty-Four
25. Chapter Twenty-Five
26. Chapter Twenty-Six
27. Chapter Twenty-Seven
28. Chapter Twenty-Eight
29. Chapter Twenty-Nine
30. Chapter Thirty
31. Chapter Thirty-One
32. Chapter Thirty-Two
33. Chapter Thirty-Three
34. Chapter Thirty-Four
35. Chapter Thirty-Five
36. Chapter Thirty-Six
37. Chapter Thirty-Seven
38. Chapter Thirty-Eight
39. Chapter Thirty-Nine
40. Chapter Forty
41. Chapter Forty-One
42. Chapter Forty-Two
43. Chapter Forty-Three
44. Chapter Forty-Four
45. Chapter Forty-Five
46. Chapter Forty-Six
47. Chapter Forty-Seven
48. Chapter Forty-Eight
49. Chapter Forty-Nine
50. Chapter Fifty
51. Chapter Fifty-One
52. Chapter Fifty-Two
53. Chapter Fifty-Three
54. Chapter Fifty-Four
55. Chapter Fifty-Five
56. Chapter Fifty-Six
57. Chapter Fifty-Seven
Epilogue
Epilogue
Mistakes I’ve Made
Jordan’s Early Access
Social Media Links
Also by Jordan Marie
* * *
Stone Lake Series
Book 3
If it wasn’t for bad luck, I wouldn’t have any luck at all.
That saying is as old as the hills in Tennessee, where I used to live.
And it’s definitely true.
I’m a bad luck magnet, at least when it comes to men.
Moving to Stone Lake was supposed to be a fresh start.
Here, I was going to build a life I could be proud of. Finally put down roots and live quietly.
Be safe and happy.
It didn’t quite work out that way, but I’m stubborn and I’m not about to give up.
Ben Kingston was the first man to handle me with care.
He gave me a glimpse of something I desperately wanted.
And then, tore it away from me with the carelessness of one whispered word.
I don’t need a man to complete me.
In fact, I’ve had enough of them.
I’m okay with being single the rest of my life.
I’ll be just fine with my handy friend B.O.B.
Except Ben keeps coming around, tempting me, and a girl can only take so much.
Ben’s out to prove I can trust him. I don’t trust any man, not anymore.
But my resolve weakens when he touches me, slides his hand down and proves buying stock in batteries might not be a good life plan.
Prologue
Junie
Four Months after Junie walked out on Ben.
* * *
I stand here looking at the bar and I smile with pride. It’s mine. Every fucking bit of it is mine, even the one thousand and some change payment every month. I don’t care though. I’ll work my fingers to the bone to make this business a success.
I’m standing outside of what used to be Elaine’s Tavern. The bar needs some updates, but the bones of the place is good. I already had a meeting with a construction foreman, so renovations will begin next week. I’m being conservative on the work inside. Other than a small stage and the kitchen area being overhauled so that it actually works, that’s about it. The tables inside aren’t great, but they’re good enough and the same with the barstools and bar top. This exterior however, I’m going to make a covered patio in the main front with pergolas off to the side and plenty of tables outside. I’ll add planter boxes and climbing flowers to make it pretty and a place people will want to relax and grab a sandwich. I also want a real neon sign. I just need to figure out a name, and I think I’ve finally settled on that in my head.
Elaine’s Last Chance Bar And Grill.
I never much liked my name. Elaine should be remembered, and I can admit to feeling a tad guilty that some of my blood and Atticus’s is the same. Plus, this is it. This is my last chance. I’m tired of being unsettled, and I’m tired of fighting. This is my last chance to make a real home. If it fails, then I cave. I’ll just travel wherever and not worry about putting down roots. But… I have a good feeling about this. I think this is what I’m supposed to do and where I am supposed to be. Besides, I have all that hush money from my ex’s attorney just collecting dust. It seems right that the man who tried to destroy my life would have to pay for my new beginning.
A smile forms on my lips. My first real smile since the sheriff threw me for a loop. As if I conjure him up by will, I hear his bike before I even see him. I turn just as he makes the exit and comes to a stop in front of me. Immediately the smile dies.
I hate that I liked this man. And when I say liked, I mean really liked. For the first time in my life, I think I might have begun to believe in…love. Not that I was in love, that would have been stupid, and I’m not a stupid girl. Although, it would appear that sometimes I am—especially where men are concerned.
“I heard you bought this place. I guess that means you’re sticking around,” Ben says, once he shuts his bike down.
“I guess that’s what it means,” I respond, keeping any hurt or anger I might still feel out of my voice.
Never show weakness to those that hurt you. I can’t forget that rule.
“You’ve been dodging my calls, Junie.”
I look at Ben, his eyes hidden from me by his sunglasses. I hate that he still looks so good. There should be a law that when a man hurts you he should turn ugly as a mud fence overnight.
“No, I haven’t.”
“I’ve been calling you and you haven’t been answering,” he says, arms crossed at his chest as he leans back on the bike.
“I know. I haven’t been answering them, because I don’t have anything to say.”
“I’ve been trying to apologize, but every time I see you out, you disappear before I can talk to you.”
“Merely a coincidence,” I respond with a shrug.
“And the not answering my phone calls?”
“Sheriff, I appreciate the gesture and the messages, but honestly, we don’t have anything to say to one another.”
“Junie—”
“June. My family call me Junie, Sheriff. We’re just… acquaintances.”
“Damn it, I know I fucked up, but if you would just let me explain—”
“There’s nothing to explain. We’re both broken, I just didn’t realize it in time. You were trying to force yourself to heal with me, when the woman you really wanted was out of reach, and I was just using you to try and not feel at all.”
“Is that the way you want to play this, Juniper?”
“I’m not playing anything, Sheriff. I’m just stating the facts.”
“Now, if you don’t mind. I need to get back inside. They’re starting renovations soon and I still have some things to do to get ready.”
“It doesn’t have to be this way, Junie,” he says, his voice going soft.
“It does. I hate that you’re hurting, and I get that you lost a good woman, because Luna is that. I hate that for you, but I have my own demons, and I need to face them. I don’t have the time or the energy to try and help you face yours too, Sheriff. And I really don’t want to be a stand-in for another woman.”
“You were never a stand-in, Junie.”
“June.”
He doesn’t reply. He simply stares at me.
“See you around sometime, Sheriff,” I finally respond a nd then I walk away. I’ve been in counseling for the last two months. It’s a rough process, but I’m starting to feel better, and that’s what counts. I’ll admit that I had my doubts that counseling could help anything, especially me. I make it to the door and step inside just as I hear Ben’s bike roar back to life. I ignore the regret I feel inside at not listening to him. The temptation was strong, but I wasn’t lying. I don’t have the time or the heart to help him with his own demons.
Mine are big enough all on their own.
Chapter One
Ben
Eight Months Later
* * *
Juniper Sellers has trouble written all over her. I knew it the first moment I met her, and I should have made it my mission to ignore her. It isn’t easy to ignore a woman who looks like Juniper. She’s so damn hot that she should come with a warning label. The woman has curves that go for miles, legs that were made to wrap around a man and give him the ride of his life, and lips so plump and sweet they fucking taunt me.
I was drawn to her from the beginning, even though I knew I should have run in the opposite direction. I didn’t, even knowing I wasn’t ready, and then I fucked up. I freely admit it, and I did it in one of the worst ways a man could. There’s no going back from it now and you would think that would be enough to make me give up and walk away.
Instead, I’m sitting on this barstool, nursing a whiskey and watching every move she makes. I’ve watched every man in this damn place flirt with her. Watched her laugh and shoot every single one of them down too.
A woman who looks like her could have her choice of any man she wants, but the more attention she gets, the more she pulls away. That’s proof she’s still broken. Proof she needs a man at her back.
Regret is a fucking bitter pill to swallow.
I want to push my way back into her life. Wrap my hands into that beautiful silvery-blonde hair of hers and claim those lips that haunt my dreams.
I want to do a lot more than that to her.
And that’s a problem.
Juniper Sellers is the last woman I should be attracted to. The last woman I should want. Her brother Gavin Lodge is a thorn in my side. I hate him—and I like him. It’s definitely a confusing relationship, and if he knew I was dreaming nightly of fucking his sister, while jacking off to my hand—he’d fucking lose it.
“Sheriff, did I forget to pay a parking ticket or something?” the object of my obsession asks, surprising me.
“What do you mean?” I cock a brow up at her while shooting her a smile because I like her style. Not many women will call a man on his shit. I like that Juniper doesn’t even hesitate, despite our past.
“If you stare at me any harder, you might hurt yourself.”
“It’s a good view, Juniper.” She winces as I say her full name—just as I knew she would.
“Listen, Sheriff. I don’t mind being your eye candy, but can you not call me Juniper?”
“That’s your name, right?”
“June. Call me June.”
I grin even though I don’t want to. “June it is,” I tell her, raising my whiskey up and waving it at her before taking a sip.
“Whatever. You’re an odd bird, aren’t you?” she asks, shaking her head.
“Are we on for tomorrow, Junie?” Clyde Short calls out, taking June’s attention away from me.
“Yep, we’re closed for the next three days, Clyde. If you could spray and crap then, you’ll be my hero.”
Juniper bought Elaine’s Tavern a little over a year ago. She did a fuck of a lot of renovations, and I have to admit the place looks sweet. It’s been hopping ever since it opened too, despite Juniper still having a few things left to do to the place—one of which apparently is exterminating. Of course she’s opening a kitchen in the back, so that makes sense.
“Now, that’s something to make an old man’s heart twitterpate,” Clyde says, and I roll my eyes at seeing the old asshole flirt with her. He’s old enough to be her grandfather.
“Twitterpate?” she laughs. “Is that healthy for a man your age, Clyde?”
“Honey, at my age if it feels good you do it. To hell with healthy.”
“Point made. What time do you want me here?” she asks.
“I’ll be here at eleven. I’ve got to clean out my old lady’s crawlspace before I come spray yours.”
“You’re going to be a busy man,” she laughs.
“Yeah, but one of those will be a hell of a lot more fun, and I won’t have to smell chemicals, just sweet woman.”
“That’s the horniest man this side of the ocean,” I mutter.
“Jealous?” Juniper asks.
“Why would I be jealous?”
“I’m just saying, he’s going home to his woman, not sitting alone at a bar on a Friday night, nursing a whiskey.”
“Nothing wrong with my parts. I just don’t happen to have a woman at home. Now, if you’d like to volunteer for the position for the night…”
“Not on your life, Sheriff. I bought that damn t-shirt and learned the hard way not to tangle with the law.”
“Now that’s a shame, Juniper.”
“You keep calling me Juniper and those working parts you’re bragging on will be in danger of permanent harm,” she says softly.
“You don’t want to do that,” I tell her, and I watch as her tongue darts out on her lip nervously as she looks into my eyes.
“Why not?”
“Because one day soon, Juniper Sellers, you’re going to like my working parts.”
“You are dreaming, Sheriff Kingston,” she responds, her gaze narrowing, and I know I’m pissing her off. The thing is, I like when I piss her off. Hell, I like everything when it comes to Juniper, except the fact she’s not warming my bed.
“We’ll see,” I tell her, enjoying our cat and mouse game.
“Do I look stupid to you, Sheriff? Because I promise you, I’m not.” Her voice drops down as she leans into me so I can hear her over the loud music and voices surrounding us.
“Never thought you were, Junie,” I tell her, and she flinches when I use her nickname.
“June. Only people I care about call me Junie.”
“You let me call you that once,” I remind her.
“I did, but you didn’t call me Junie when it mattered, did you, Sheriff Kingston?”
She walks away after that and fuck me if I don’t watch her ass sway as she goes, holding my glass so fucking tight it’s a wonder it doesn’t shatter in my hand.
Yeah, I definitely fucked up with Juniper Sellers.
I watch her until I finish my drink. Juniper never comes back. Instead, she sends a waitress over to take care of me in her place. I’m okay with that because sooner or later, Juniper and I are going to tangle with one another again.
Nothing will stop it…
Chapter Two
Junie
“Oh my God! Did you see that?”
“I did,” Luna cries.
“Junie—”
“Don’t you Junie me, Gavin. Did you see that shit out there?” I growl. “That kid should be kicked out of the game.”
“He’s always doing crap like that,” Luna confides. “I offered to pay Josh fifty bucks if he’d kick him in the balls.”
“You did?” I ask, my eyes going large because I wouldn’t have thought Luna would do that.
