Catch Me Falling (2 page)

A
lexa followed Isaac at a calm
, sedate walk. It was the opposite of how she felt. Her cheeks were flushed, her body hot, and all she wanted to do was kiss him or for him to screw her senseless. But she also didn’t want to get either of them arrested for public indecency. It would be embarrassing to have to defend herself in court.

“Where are we going?” she asked, her voice hushed so she couldn’t be overheard. He turned and led her down a hallway. Doors lined the walls. They were by the hotel rooms, then.

“Just act natural.” He smiled at her and she bit her lip, trying not to melt into jelly. His smile was like kryptonite.

He swung her arm, his gaze warm, affectionate. She smiled back, hung onto his hand. Pretended that they were a normal couple, doing normal things. Like sneaking around in a hotel, seconds away from jumping each other.

They passed a maid coming out of a room and Isaac slowed to a stop, his lips still curved in that wicked, teasing smile. When she turned, trundled forward with her cart, he sneaked forward, tucking his foot in the door at the last second.

Alexa raised her eyebrows, and he tilted his head in the direction of the room, pushing the door open and heading in. Her heart beating fast, she followed. She had never done anything like this, never had sex with someone in a dimly lit hotel room when she was supposed to be at a work event. She felt light headed, high on him, and she liked it.

The moment the door closed he was on her, pressing her against the door and ravaging her with his mouth. His lips were soft, sensual, but they were hard against her as his hands put hers on him. She cupped his ass, ground against him, feeling his hard cock through his suit. She groaned into the kiss, felt him shudder.

“I’m going to fuck you,” he murmured against her lips.

Alexa moaned. She was more than okay with that. “Get on with it,” she said. “I won’t wait forever.”

He paused and pulled back. Looked at her with raised eyebrows.

She smirked.

His lips were back on hers, but then kisses turned into little butterfly kisses as he kissed his way up her jawline and to a sensitive spot underneath her ear. She gasped, shivered, tilting her head so he got better access. She was soaking her panties now, wetter than she had ever been, and it was his fault.

“Fuck me, damn it,” she hissed.

He pulled her close, against his hard body, his hard cock. “So impatient.” He kissed her and then, grabbing her wrist, pulled her into the room and tossed her onto the bed. It was rough, but not in a bad way. Everything he did was heightening her arousal, sending shockwaves of pleasure through her. And he hadn’t even touched her yet.

She sat up, grabbed his tie and yanked him onto the bed, pushing him to the mattress. “I’ll be on top.” The lighting was dim, which worked to her benefit, but she could see his smile. She would keep her clothes on, just in case. She didn’t want him to see her scars.

“Then get on with it.” He kissed her and then spread his legs, his gaze cocky.

She was more than up for it. She straddled his legs, kissed him, let him take control of the kiss. He was fucking her with his tongue, making her dizzy, her breathing coming fast. She couldn’t undo her dress, not without revealing too much, but she moved his hands to her breasts. He could figure it out, he was smart enough.

She undid his pants, tugged down his boxers with his help. He was big, and oh so hard. He would feel amazing in her, and she was the one in charge. She kissed him, shifting forward until she could slide onto him. She pulled aside her panties and sank onto him in one long thrust, groaning into the messy kiss.

“You’re so tight,” Isaac said, sounding breathless.

Alexa bit her lip, bit back a whimper. He filled her up, and God, it felt even more perfect than she had thought it would.

He shifted on the bed, moved so that he had an arm on the bed and could thrust his hips up into her at an angle that made her moan. “So tight.”

“You’re going to make me come,” Alexa murmured. She let her head fall back, riding him even as he thrust up into her.

“That’s kind of the point.” He chuckled, kissing her neck. He slid a finger down and circled her clit, lubricated by her wetness. She jerked, feeling her pussy muscles clench around him. She was so close, oh so close.

“Oh God.”

“Come for me,” Isaac said into her ear, his breath ghosting across her skin.

She closed her eyes, moved up and down, feeling him fill her every time. She was close, so close-

There was a loud knock on the door and she scrambled off of him, pulling down her dress. “Housekeeping,” a voice from the other side of the door said.

“Shit,” Alexa whispered, trying to restore her dress and her underwear to their previous state of – well, not being screwed. She didn’t think there was much hope.

When she glanced up at Isaac he looked immaculate, like he hadn’t just been balls deep in her moments before. Stupid men. His suit didn’t even look wrinkled. “Yes?” Isaac called out, going to the door.

It was the same housekeeper as before. “I’m sorry, I forgot my clipboard in the bathroom.”

Isaac smiled, waved her in. Alexa sat there on the bed, trying to pretend her cheeks weren’t scarlet, that she hadn’t just been in the middle of having sex. What had she been thinking? They didn’t even have a condom. So much could have gone wrong.

But oh God, so much had gone right.

When the housekeeper left, Isaac turned to look at her. “Well, that’s a mood killer.”

Alexa let out a surprised laugh. “Yes.”

He smiled at her, not moving away from the door. “Good night, Alexa.” Then he was out the door, and she watched it close behind him.

So far the night certainly hadn’t gone as she’d expected.

She went into the bathroom, checked herself over. Her makeup was mussed, but there was nothing she could do about it. Jill had her clutch. And Jill was probably wondering where she was. Fixing herself as best she could, she headed back to the retirement party. Hopefully Jill hadn’t left without her.

When she got back to the ballroom Jill was standing not far from where Alexa had last seen her, talking to a tall woman in a purple dress. Alexa almost hated to interrupt her. “Jill?” Alexa came up behind her.

“There you are.” Jill’s eyes raked her, searching for any and all bits of gossip. “Where’d you go?”

“We went for a walk,” Alexa said, not quite ready to admit in public what had happened. Sex in a hotel room wasn’t a thing she did. Much less with a complete stranger.

“Uh huh.” Jill raised her eyebrows. She turned to the other woman, hugged her. “I’ll see you later, Sarah.”

“Who’s that?” Alexa asked as they walked away.

“Sarah. She’s a surgeon for Sun River’s sister hospital.” Jill linked her arm with Alexa. “Where’d you go for a walk?” Her voice was skeptical.

“Just outside, on the concrete so I could go barefoot.”

Jill made a doubtful noise, but didn’t contradict her. “Ready to go home?”

“More than ready,” Alexa agreed.

Jill glanced at her, as if she was trying to see through Alexa’s lies, but said nothing as they headed to Jill’s car. Once Alexa was settled in the passenger’s seat, she pulled her phone out of her clutch. Three new texts. Like the glutton for punishment she was, she opened them.

I hate you.

You’re worthless without me.

You’ll never find anyone as good as me.

Come back to me, bitch, or you’re dead.

She sighed. Things had been so good with Damien, a year ago. He had been an up-and-coming lawyer, working with a mid-sized firm. Then his firm had gone bankrupt and he’d lost his job. Drinking had soothed him – but had also made him angry. Not all of the time, just sometimes. He hadn’t been angry all the time – and for a while, the good things made up for the bad. When things got bad, when he hit her, he had promised that it would be the last time, that he would stop drinking. But he never kept his promises. She stared at the messages, at what they meant.

I already found someone that’s better than you in bed
, she texted back, triumphant. It wasn’t true, not really. Isaac was a one-night-stand, not her new boyfriend, but she didn’t care.
Leave me alone.
She blocked his number, not sure it would do any good. All he needed to do was get a new phone, but maybe he wouldn’t bother.

“You okay?” Jill asked, drawing her out of her thoughts.

Alexa smiled, tucking her phone back in her clutch. “Just tired.”

Jill nodded, reached out and patted her thigh. They had parked in their complex and it was time to go home. “Get some sleep. The new consultant will be at your office early tomorrow.”

That was true. Alexa sighed, got out of the car. She hugged Jill good night. “See you in the morning.”

“Night.”

Alexa headed to her apartment, pulled out a bottle of wine, and drank a few glasses before she went to sleep. It had been just one night. She would never see Isaac again.

No matter how much she wanted to.

A
lexa’s head
thudded miserably as she rode the elevator upstairs, heading to her office. The night had passed both far too fast and too slow at the same time. While wine didn’t normally give her a hangover, that changed when she drank a bottle and a half of it. But it hadn’t worked. No matter what she did, she could still feel his hands on her skin, his body against hers. One night. It had been just one night.

Her office was her favorite part of the hospital, tucked off to the side on the fifth floor. It had tan walls and blue carpet, with Jill’s desk in front of a glass partition that hid a door off to the left, where Alexa’s office was. The glass was opaque, cloudy, but clear enough that she could see the shadow of someone standing back there. Jill had taken the stairs as part of her new exercise routine – which was ridiculous since she was tiny – and was settled at her desk with a Cheshire cat grin on her face.

Alexa narrowed her eyes at her. Jill only smiled like that when she was inordinately pleased about something. “What’s going on?”

“It’s your new consultant.” Jill’s grin got impossibly larger. “You won’t believe who it is.”

“Who is it?” Jill grinning like the cat who ate the canary didn’t narrow it down much, really. It was only seven a.m. and already the day wasn’t making sense. That wasn’t promising.

“It’s the cute guy, from last night. The one who was your type.”

Ah. No wonder Jill looked so proud of herself.

Alexa’s brain, however, had conveniently crashed like a shoddy computer. “Isaac?”

“I think that’s his name.” Jill looked at her, her brows furrowing in concern. “You okay?”

“Yes.” Alexa pulled on her lawyer persona, smiled reassuringly at Jill. Ignored the fact that her heart was pounding faster and panic was flooding her body. One night. It was supposed to be one night.

She took a deep breath to settle herself, to cement her facade like armor. She walked around the partition, a professional smile on her face. “Hello.”

He turned and looked at her, then stopped, his eyebrows shooting towards his hairline. “Hello indeed.”

He was, well, as stupidly sexy as he had been the night before. Dark blue jeans that hugged his ass, button-up shirt that showed off his muscles. His dark blue eyes were focused on hers, but there was a hint of amusement in them. She couldn’t really blame him. She was incredulous herself.

“Hello.” His lips curved into that heart-stopping smile. “Alexa, wasn’t it?”

His lips on hers, his hand sliding down her body as she rode him
–

“You’re my new consultant?” Was this really happening? She wanted to pinch herself, make sure it wasn’t just a nightmare. But it felt real.

“Yes.” His gaze raked up her body. She felt naked under his eyes, exposed. Like he saw straight through her lawyer mask. Not that she was doing a good job of hiding anything. She was doing a shitty job, actually. The adventurous, rule-breaking part of her would be quite fine if he took her into her office and finished what they had started.

But the rest of her did remember she had a job to do.

“Here’s the paperwork you need,” he said, offering her the folder he held.

She took it, careful to keep her hand from brushing his. Work. She had to focus on work. Flipping it open, she skimmed the first page. It confirmed what both he and Jill had said. Well, crap. She shut the file and forced herself to take a deep breath, adrenaline making her shaky. “Well.” She wasn’t sure what to say next. What to do, what to do. Should she bring up the night before? Should she ignore it? Why did they not have a professional way to handle this stuff in the handbook?

“What’s your name?” He tilted his head to the side, his eyes not leaving hers.

“Alexa Matthews. I’m one of the medical malpractice attorneys here.”

“I know.” His lips curved into his wicked smile.

She swallowed, her throat suddenly dry. Arousal thrummed through her veins, putting her on high alert. It was probably incredibly unprofessional to ask the new consultant to pound her into the desk, but she was tempted. “Who are you?”

“Isaac Wallace. ER doctor.” His eyes were smoldering, and he took a step closer.

She took a step back.

He moved forward.

One step back. One step forward.

She ended up with her back against her office door, looking at him. He leaned forward, his body against her. His mouth against her ear. “Call me when you need me,” he murmured, his voice thick with innuendo. Then he nodded cordially to her and disappeared down the hallway.

She watched him go, waiting for him to disappear past the partition and turn the corner towards the elevators before she let out the breath she’d been holding. She sank down until she was on the ground, staring at the far wall. He’d screwed her with his eyes, made it clear he wanted to do more than that. She blinked, then slowly rose to her feet and unlocked her office. The morning most certainly hadn’t gone the way she had expected.

I
saac turned
the corner and leaned against the wall, his heart thudding far too fast in his chest. He had wanted her the moment he had seen her at the party, saw her eyes, her long limbs, her body – she was perfect for him. He didn’t care that he had to work with her for the next three months. Sex was sex, work was work. They were entirely different things. He just hadn’t expected her to have such an impact on him. He had that impact on women; he pursued them. Not the other way around. While he didn’t object, the quick fuck in the hotel room hadn’t originally been on his agenda.

One and done, that was his rule. But they had been interrupted, so technically it hadn’t been – done. His lips curved into a wicked smile, even though she wasn’t there. Perfect. He could see her again. Take her again. This time he would get what he wanted, and make sure she enjoyed it. He wasn’t sure just one time would be enough with her, but he had three months to figure it out. She didn’t seem to object, even though they were working together.

Not that he was voluntarily working for her, anyway. The ER partners took turns serving as consultants, helping the hospital attorneys understand the ins and outs of medicine. He hated consulting, but it was part of his duties as a partner and what he needed to do to get promoted. It felt like he was being a snitch, prosecuting other doctors for what could be legitimate mistakes. He had been on the witness stand, trying to protect good doctors with shitty lawyers. Sometimes he had helped. Sometimes he had failed.

Isaac hated those cases.

He didn’t know enough about Alexa to judge how good she was at law. He did have an idea of how good she was bed, though. And he was quite interested in finding out more about both.

His shift in the ER wasn't due to start for an hour, so he detoured to the hospital cafeteria. Picking a table, he ordered something and settled down to eat. The breakfast wasn’t horrible, but it wasn’t great either. Regardless, it gave him a chance to settle his mind. The ER was always chaos, and it was dangerous to go into his shift there with an unsettled mind.

His thoughts kept going back to Alexa, to what she looked like. How she had felt against him when they had waltzed last night, how tight she had been, riding his cock. Was she interested in a repeat performance? He thought so. The way her breathing had hitched outside her office, the way she had looked at him. She was so fucking sexy it made him hard just thinking about her. He was half-hard under the table, something his tight jeans constricted. That was bad, so close to work. He focused on other things, less sexy things. Like peanut butter, or coffee.

A glance at the clock told him that it was almost time for his shift. He had to change into scrubs and go to work. The ER was two floors down, one of the biggest departments of the hospital. As a level 1 trauma center, they got the worst of the worst, and it kept him running the entire twelve hours of his shift. He loved it, though. Loved the adrenaline rush and the constant teetering on the edge of destruction. He even loved the soaring highs and jagged lows of his job. Sometimes patients were saved – but sometimes they weren’t. No matter what he did, no matter how hard he tried, there were some patients he couldn’t save. It was the hardest part of the job.

His phone buzzed and it was the doctor he was relieving in the ER, asking him if he could come early. Of course he could. It was better than sitting there, in the hospital cafeteria, sexually frustrated. He ate the rest of his breakfast and then tossed the trash, leaving the cafeteria. There was a family entering, Mom, Dad, three little kids. Isaac smiled at them, watched them pass. The children were older than his siblings had been when it had happened. Isaac couldn’t help but wonder what they would have been like, if they had grown older. What shape his family would have taken if they had been able to grow up. His hands clenched into fists and his breathing quickened. He couldn’t think about that, not in public.

His phone buzzed again and he looked at it. Time to go. His heart thudding fast in anticipation of the adrenaline, Isaac made his way down to the ER. The ER required him to be on his game, and he would be.

I
t took
Alexa longer than she would've liked to shake off her encounter with Isaac. The man she had screwed in the hotel room. The one she had thought she would never see again, but would instead see every day for the next three months. She hadn’t quite wrapped her head around that. She forced herself to take a deep breath. She couldn’t do her job when she got this worked up.

Turning to her computer she logged back into the system. Her phone buzzed and she ignored the way it made the hairs of her neck stand on end, the way it sent prickles of fear through her. Why the fuck was Damien drunk that early? It wasn’t even ten a.m. Apparently the block hadn’t worked. She deleted the texts without looking at them, then turned her phone on silent and stuck it in a drawer. She was at work. If someone needed her, she could be reached on her work phone.

She hated how much time it was taking to make her less paranoid. It had taken a month before her phone buzzing caused mild alarm instead of a full-blown panic attack. Other scars ran deeper, things she hadn’t even begun to touch. The scars he had left on her body had healed long ago, but the ones on her heart had much longer to go. She would never risk a relationship, ever again. But sex? Sex she could probably do. Especially if it was with
him
. God, even the best sex with Damien had never been that good.

Dragging her mind out of the gutter, she made her to do list, written on a pad of paper next to her keyboard. It was long, as usual, but for the first time, Isaac was on it. The first time, yes, and not the last. Already there were two cases in her email that she needed him to look at. Both were from the ER, his medical specialty.

That wasn’t his only specialty, from what she knew. She hadn’t heard much about him, not specifics, but the hospital employees that ate in the cafeteria tended to be gossipers. He had apparently slept his way through most of the nursing staff and even some of the female ER doctors, although none of them had lasted the full night. Sex and then out the door. Apparently he wasn’t a cuddler. His reputation was half legendary, half a danger to the hospital’s PR campaign.

He was sex on legs in bed. No wonder he’d screwed half of the ER.

She went over to her filing cabinet and pulled out a couple of blank folders to start making the case files that she wanted to show him. Glancing at the clock, she grimaced. She needed to get in touch with him, let him know she needed to meet with him. But there was something stopping her from picking up the phone and calling him. He was probably at work, anyway, which meant he wouldn’t be able to answer his phone. Or it was just a convenient excuse.

It felt childish, not wanting to talk to him. But she didn’t want to admit that she needed him. That maybe, just maybe, she felt something for him.

With a sigh she logged back into her computer and composed an email.

T
o
: [email protected]

From: [email protected]

Hello Isaac,

If you have time, please drop by after your shift. I’ll be at the office until 6pm.

Best,

Alexa

T
here
. Super professional email. That was good. When she looked back up Jill was standing there, a hand on her hip and her eyebrows raised. “What actually happened last night?”

“Nothing.” Alexa kept her gaze on the computer, ignored the pleasant warmth that coiled in her stomach at the memory.

“You’re blushing. Alexa Matthews, you’re hiding something!” Jill sank down onto her desk. “Spill.”

Alexa scowled at her. “You’re sitting on my files.”

“And you’re full of bullshit.” Jill smiled.

“I was just emailing Isaac about coming over after his shift was over, that’s all.” Maybe they would finish what they started last night. If she was lucky.

Jill raised her eyebrows. “Outside of court you’re a really bad liar.”

Alexa sighed. “He kissed me, okay?” It wasn’t technically a lie. Just an omission.

Jill grinned. “I thought so.”

Alexa scowled at her, feeling the blush heat her cheeks.

Jill came around Alexa’s desk and hugged her around the shoulders. “At least you caught a sexy one this time.”

Alexa ignored the reminder of Damien. Jill had met the tail end of him, but Alexa had never told her about the real nature of their relationship, what he had done to her. “I didn’t catch him.”

Jill snorted. “We’ll see about that.”

Alexa chuckled, doubtful, and then hugged Jill around the middle. “I’ll keep you posted.”

Jill smiled widely. “Good. That’s what friends are for, after all?”

Alexa felt the weight of her secrets pulling her down, drowning her, but she smiled anyway. “That’s what friends are for.”

I
saac glanced
at himself as he waited for the elevator and grimaced. His scrubs were wrinkled but at least clean. In theory, he should have changed into street clothes before he went to her office, but that would have made him even later. The extra pair of scrubs would have to do. Hopefully their meeting would be short. His shift had gone over by two hours and all he wanted was to go home. Three codes and with an understaffed ER had made everyone late. He was tired, he was hungry, and he didn’t have a choice. It definitely wasn’t the way he had expected his first work meeting with Alexa to go.

He made it upstairs, nodding to the small, dark lady at the main desk. “She’s in her office,” she said.

“Thanks.” Isaac offered her a tired smile, then headed towards Alexa’s office. He knocked on the door frame, looked inside. “Hello?”

She looked up, stood and came to the door. “Dr. Wallace,” she said, extending a hand for him to shake. He took it, kept his face professional.

“Ms. Matthews.” Isaac inclined his head. Being near her helped more with his exhaustion than he wanted to admit. He drank her in, her short brown hair, sharp but delicate features. Startling green eyes. She looked distant. Strikingly vulnerable. There was a floral smell in the air, not roses but close. Her perfume, probably. As tired as he was, his cock twitched in his scrubs. Her desk looked pretty sturdy. Maybe that was an option. It wouldn’t be the first time he’d had sex on a desk.

“Isaac,” he corrected her. He sank into the chair opposite her. “Sorry for being late. Shift ran over by two hours.” He grimaced.

“I understand,” Alexa said, but her face was guarded. He couldn’t read her.

No first name in return, either. She was serious about being professional. He would have to fix that. “What can I help you with, Ms. Matthews?” He leaned forward, his smile inviting. She had a desk. It looked sturdy.

Her eyes narrowed a small bit, and he leaned backwards. She actually wanted to do work first. Okay. He could deal with that.

She pulled out a couple files and pushed them his way. “These are two ER cases that may go to litigation,” she said. “Tell me whether or not they're viable.”

He took the files, skimmed them. It took maybe two seconds to know that she was testing him. Interesting. Was that because of the hotel? Or did she do this to all of her new consultants? “Both of them should go to litigation,” he said calmly. He kept his gaze professional. He could do his job.

She raised her eyebrows. “Why?”

“There is obvious malpractice in both cases. The first one, Dr. Kendall, is known for drinking on the job and the nurse reported bloodshot eyes when he was treating the kid. Dr. Anthony shirked his duties to leave and see his mistress, leaving the patient with an obvious MI without medical treatment for far too long.” He cocked his head to the side. “These aren't the cases you actually wanted to show me, are they?”

Alexa studied him without saying anything. He wasn't sure if he imagined a little bit of respect in her eyes. “Here,” she said, pushing two more files towards him.

He picked up the files and looked at her. “Do you test all your new consultants?”

She leaned forward, something shifting on her face. The professionalism had dropped, and something darker had taken its place. Interesting. “Only those who play games.”

His lips curved into a smile, his gaze locked on hers.

“What do you think of the files?” She looked down at them, breaking their eye contact.

He flipped them open, started skimming them. “Do you want your answer tonight, or do you want me to come back tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow's fine.”

Isaac nodded, his focus on the files in his hands. He could have given her an answer, but he also wanted to do a bit more research. The appendicitis case was easy enough. The doctor obviously hadn’t checked the clinical signs, he’d ignored them and assumed food poisoning instead, despite non-classic symptomology. But he didn’t see breast cancer as often in his ER, so he wanted to do some more research on the standard of care.

He lifted his head and saw she was looking at him again. She had gorgeous eyes, the dark green catching even in the dull lights of her office. “We didn’t finish what we started, did we?” He curved his lips into a wicked smile, one that had worked on so many other women.

Alexa inhaled sharply, startled. Then she studied him for a moment. “We didn’t.”

He glanced at the closed door, looked back at her. “We’ve got privacy.”

She chuckled. There was a glint to her eyes, a playfulness. He liked it. She stood, coming around her desk and settling on his lap. It probably wasn’t the most comfortable position – the chair wasn’t that big – but it reminded him of last night, of the way she had ridden his cock. He was hard already. He held her steady as she settled onto him, the warmth between her legs lined up with his hardness. Any exhaustion he had felt was gone.

She wrapped her arms around his neck, her green eyes looking down at him. Then she kissed him, her soft mouth moving against his.

He groaned, shifting so that she was more fully pressed against him. He ground into her, felt her gasp into their kiss. Yes. She smelled so good, floral with a hint of jasmine. She was warm against him, her body fitting perfectly against his. She was so fucking perfect.