Secrets

Free Falling

Book Two: Secrets

By Raven St Pierre

Free Falling

Book Two: Secrets

© March 2014, Raven St. Pierre

This book contains strong sexual themes and content not suitable for persons under the age of 18. 
This work is a work of fiction.  All names, characters, locations, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination, or have been used fictitiously.  Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, locales, or events is entirely coincidental.  No part of this e-book may be reproduced or shared by any electronic or mechanical means, including, but not limited to printing, file sharing, and email, without prior written permission from Raven St. Pierre.

This e-book is licensed for personal enjoyment only.  This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people.  If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with.  If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should purchase your own copy.  Thank you for respecting the author’s work.

Synopsis

SHOCKINGLY SEXY, AND SOMETIMES….JUST PLAIN SHOCKING. 

In the second installment of Free Falling, a New Adult Romance series featuring an African American heroine and Japanese hero, Samantha Kelley and Anthony “AJ” Hahn are off to college.  The pair will be experiencing a new side of life as well as discovering new depths of their relationship. 

No parents.  No rules.  No drama? 

With AJ hiding a massive secret from Sam, and Antonio lurking in the background just waiting for an opportunity to reclaim his spot in Sam’s heart, there is sure to be no shortage of conflict for the couple.  In the end, will AJ’s secrets cost him everything he’s fought to protect?  Or will this test to their foundation only strengthen his and Sam’s love for one another? 

((((((((((***************))))))))))THIS BOOK CONTAINS EXPLICIT SEXUAL CONTENT AND SCENES OF VIOLENCE THAT SOME MAY FIND OFFENSIVE; THEREFORE, THIS NOVEL IS NOT SUITABLE FOR PERSONS UNDER THE AGE OF 18.((((((((((*************))))))))))

Also available
from Raven St. Pierre

Free Falling Book 1: Gravity

Red Sun

Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob

Coming soon from Raven St. Pierre

Free Falling Book 3: Exposed

Blue Moon (Red Sun #2)

Raven appreciates your purchase and would love to get your feedback when you finish!  Leave your review of this author’s work wherever you made your purchase and let others know what you thought of “Secrets” (Free Falling Book Two).

Like Raven on Facebook
:

https://www.facebook.com/AuthorRavenSt.Pierre

Follow her on Twitter: 

@RavenStPierre

Check out her Blog: 

youaresowrite.wordpress.com

Email
feedback or inquiries to: 

[email protected]

Become a fan of Raven St. Pierre on
Goodreads.com
!!

Sometimes the secrets that we
keep can threaten to snatch the future right from our grasp…….

Preface

Rancid thoughts and sordid images pumped anger through my veins like venom, racing toward my heart as I lunged, tackling him and narrowly missing the coffee table.  Over and over again, my fists struck his face with such force that the left side began to swell before I even finished with him.   The floor and wall were spattered with his blood and the stains grew each time I made contact.   Even when one of his teeth flew out of his mouth, I didn’t let up; I couldn’t. 

Desperately
, he used his last bit of strength to try tossing me to the floor, but there was no way I was going to miss this opportunity to make him feel the same pain that he’d inflicted.  I clasped my blood-coated hands firmly around his throat and squeezed until I nearly lost feeling in my fingers.  The smell of fear was heavy in the air and I couldn’t get enough of it.  I was drunk with the need to make these his final breaths.  As his eyes dimmed I smiled as consciousness began to slip farther away from his grasp.  

             
This was the first time that I’d actually seen red.  I’ve heard people say it before, but I didn’t fully understand what that meant until this moment.  My blood felt like ice flowing through my limbs as I brought him within inches of death.  As he stared up at me, I somehow managed to squeeze tighter as the blood vessels in his eyes burst and the last bit of air sputtered from his mouth.  It was such a rush knowing that in this instant I could end his life like he deserved.  I continued to stare at his lifeless body lying on the floor long after I’d let him go.  Watching him, I still felt like I hadn’t done enough compared to what
he’d
done.  My fists were clenched as another wave of rage rolled through me.  I couldn’t control it.  The feel of his slick, warm blood on my hands made me want to hurt him more; one hit was all it would take at this point and I could see to it that the only way he’d be leaving here would be in a body bag. 

C
hapte
r
1

AJ

1,317 miles…..that’s how much distance there’d be between Sam and me for the next six months.  It’d take me approximately 17 hours to get to her if there was an emergency, and that’s on a good day where weather and traffic weren’t a factor.  The thought of it made my stomach turn.  Too preoccupied to check my mirrors when I changed lanes, I continued to think about the “how’s” and “why’s” that put us in this predicament in the first place.  The root cause of it all?  My father.  Big surprise there. 

As far as Sam knew, Charleston
just received my application too late to let me start the semester with her…but the
real
reason I was driving in the exact opposite direction of where I
should’ve
been headed was much more complicated than that.  In short, I was distancing myself to protect her.  From what exactly, I don’t even think
I
fully understood.  But what I
did
know was that whatever my father had done that required us to need 24-hour, armed security detail wasn’t anything I wanted around Sam.  She’d already been through enough because of me.  So, when things at home continued to spin out of control, I came up with a lie to give the situation time to die down. I hated keeping secrets from her, but this way, for Sam at least, there wouldn’t be danger lurking around every corner.

I’d been lying
to pretty much
all
of my friends for months.  They had no clue what it was
like being Kato Hahn’s son as of late.  Knowing that I could cross paths with the wrong person on any given day, and that they’d possibly hurt me just to get my father’s attention, I couldn’t put Sam in harm’s way, too.  Even the upcoming trip to New York would be risky, but I wouldn’t disappoint her by canceling.   

The tension betwe
en my father and me concerning my relationship with Sam created enough of a smokescreen for my anger.  To Sam, it made sense that I hated him as much as I did.  She had no clue that a big part of why I was pissed had to do with whatever douche-bag move he pulled that messed everything up – including my college plans.

I hate
d my life.  There was nothing good about it but Sam and now she was gonna be more than a thousand miles away.  She was probably getting settled into her room at that very moment.  The only bright spot in all this was that, the next day, I’d be meeting her in New York like we planned to do since her birthday.  At least that would give me a few more days to accept the fact that we’d be apart for so long. 

I looked up and caught sight of Vick in my rearview mirror and sped up when frustration set in.  Being followed only reminded me how messed up everything is now.  His would be the only familiar face when I
reached campus – a sobering thought.   Nothing awaited me at the end of this long drive except desolation and loneliness; however, I’d have to hide all that from Sam.  Sure, she’d expect me to be upset because we weren’t together, but other than that, I needed her to believe that nothing changed.  I shuttered at the thought of how many lies I’d have to tell to keep her in the dark, but it had to be that way.…..

*****

Sam

“
I don’t think I’m ready.” My whole body trembled as I stared out the window at the unfamiliar surroundings.  It was all happening so fast that I couldn’t seem to catch my breath.  One day I was safe in the comfort of my own home with AJ only a few short miles away, and then the next I was on Charleston’s Campus, alone and afraid.

             
“Samantha, baby, you’re as ready as you’ll ever be.  Deanna’s probably already in there waiting for you.  The two of you’ll be fine.”  I heard my mother speak the words, but I’m not sure that I believed them.  My hand quivered on the handle as I tried to build up the courage to open the door.  Deanna sent me a text about an hour before letting me know that she had in fact made it already, but my nerves were still frazzled.

             
“Sweetie, come on.  Your father and I need to get you unpacked before it gets too late.  You know he doesn’t like driving in the dark.” 

Reluctantly, I
stepped out, placing one foot on the ground.  Charleston was huge and I wasn’t ashamed to admit that I was intimidated. The dorm was four stories tall and students were scattered all over the lawn and steps talking and laughing.  I adjusted my clothes before shutting the car door.  Even the air smelled different.  The trees were a different shade of green than the ones back home, and the overall feeling of the place was foreign – like I was in a completely different country on some distant continent. 

             
“Here, Baby Girl.  Grab this box.  It’s pretty light,” Daddy called from behind the truck.

I grabbed the box fr
om him and stared at the large, old building that I’d be calling home.  It was eerie and cold – Gothic in structure.  On either side stood two buildings almost identical in appearance except that they were slightly smaller, forming a semi-circle centered around a courtyard and fountain.  Every building on the entire campus looked like it dated back nearly one hundred years and there were even crows perched on the roof like in a scary movie.  It was hard to imagine that there were enough students living here that they’d fill all three dorms, but they were packed to capacity. 

             
“Ok, let’s go in,” Mom said.

My feet felt like they were stuck in glue as I followed behind my parents. 

“I thought you told me these dorms
weren’t
coed, Babe,” my father said to my mother questioningly as we passed by a group of boys on the steps leading up to the second floor.

             
“No, that’s
not
what I said.  The suites aren’t coed, but the floors are mixed.  So she and Deanna will be sharing their bathroom with two other girls, but that’s about as segregated as it gets,” Mom replied.  My father immediately tensed up realizing that I’d be in very close proximity to guys without being under his watchful eye.  I tried to hide my smirk.

             
“I don’t like that at
all
.  It’s like they set these kids up to be in here screwing around or something.  That just doesn’t make good sense,” he grumbled.

             
“Calm down, James.  Samantha knows how to behave herself.”  She glanced over at me for a second.  I got the feeling that she didn’t totally believe that herself, but I rolled my eyes and shook it off.  She was probably still skeptical after catching AJ and I in the act several months ago, but I guess that’s
my
fault. 

We reached the fourth floor and rounded the corner. 
I was again overwhelmed by my new surroundings as I took note that all of the students looked way older than me.  It felt like my first day of kindergarten. 

“Which room is it again?”  Da
ddy asked breathlessly from hiking up the stairs. 

             
“Umm…..417,” I replied as I noticed the sign on the wall.  “It looks like we have to go this way.” 

We walked down the long
, narrow hallway that could’ve definitely used a few more lights.  If it was this dark in the daytime, I’d hate to see it late at night.  There were students lining both sides – a few staring as we passed.  It felt like it took us forever to reach my room.  I knocked once instead of using my key.  Deanna flung the door open and screamed at the top of her lungs. 

“I’m so glad to see you!  I waited for you to get here before I decide
d on a bed.”  She was so excited that she didn’t even give me a chance to put the box down that I carried.  “Want this one?”  She asked, pointing to the bed farthest from the door.

             
“Sure.  That’s fine.” 

T
he room was larger than I remembered it being when they gave us a tour during orientation.  We had a huge window between our beds overlooking the courtyard and a built-in bookcase on the opposite wall.  The floor was tiled instead of carpeted, reminding me of a hospital.  The first thought that came to mind was that Dee and I would have to make one of our first purchases as roomies a huge colorful rug that warmed the place up a little. 

             
“Well, we’re going to go grab more.  Go on and chat for a minute.  You can help with the next load.”  Mom was trying to smile, but I could see right through it as she and my father left the room.

Deanna’s face lit up again.  “You should
come tour campus with Karl and me tomorrow.  We’re going out to breakfast first and then getting started.”

             
“I would, but I have to be at the airport by 8 a.m,” I replied.

             
“Shoot!  I almost forgot about that.”  She moved in close to whisper just in case my parents were still in earshot.  “Did you mention it to your mom and dad yet?”

I looked at her like she was crazy. 
“Yet?  How ‘bout never?  They’d kill me!”

She laughed a little and went back the dresser to unpack a few more of her things while I thought about the trip.  Of course I was excited about seeing the Botticelli exhibit
, which was the whole purpose of me and AJ’s visit to New York, but being alone with him and being able to spend his birthday together was my real reason for wanting to go.

I noticed that Deanna’s
parents weren’t around.  “Where’re your mom and dad?”

She rolled her eyes
in irritation.  “They ran to the store.  Mom insisted on buying us both pepper spray since we’ll be here alone.  My dad told her that we’d be fine, but she’s very persistent.”  Deanna and I both laughed.  “Well, here.  I’ll help you get your stuff,” she offered, shutting the drawer she’d just filled.

             
We turned and left the room, squeezing through the crowd in the hall, trying to look like we actually belonged.  I was so far out of my element that it made me want to hyperventilate, but I managed to hide my nerves for the most part.  As we rubbed shoulders with strangers and uttered a never-ending stream of
“
excuse me’s”, one guy in particular stood out, mostly because our eyes locked on one another as I passed.  He smiled, but I quickly dropped my gaze to the floor so that he wouldn’t think I was looking at him for the wrong reasons.  He chuckled when I passed, but didn’t say a word.

Deanna led the way
back down to where the truck was parked, and my parents were already way ahead, passing us by on their way back inside the dorm.  I opened the back of the truck and searched for something to carry that wouldn’t be too heavy. 

“Need some help?”  A voice called from behin
d me. 

I turned around to find the same guy I’d noticed i
n the hall standing about two feet behind me.  Startled, I gave him a quick once-over.  He was a tall, about the same complexion as me, with chestnut-colored eyes.  He looked a little too old to have come fresh out of high school, so I assumed that he was in his third or fourth year.  Deanna looked at him just as curiously as I did.

             
“Uh….no, I think we can manage, but thanks,” I eventually answered, turning right back around to maneuver my desk chair out of the truck.  I could feel him still behind me, but I hoped that if I ignored him he’d go away.  When I turned to go back toward the building, he was
still
there. 

             
“Name’s Terrell.”  He reached out to shake my hand and I stared at it for a second.  I wasn’t sure what his angle was, but I’d had enough drama in my life already without adding
him
to the heap.  Reluctantly, I shook his hand anyway, watching him cautiously the whole time.  He laughed at my reaction.  “Trust me, I don’t bite.  I’m just trying to help.”  He held his hands up as if he were surrendering.  Perhaps I
was
being overly suspicious.  He seemed like a nice guy, but maybe he had a hidden agenda.  I learned the hard way never to underestimate
anyone
.

             
“Sorry,” I said quietly, stepping aside so he could take something off the truck.  “It was…nice of you to offer.” 

He smiled
again, grabbing a couple heavy boxes before following Deanna and I to our room.

My parents were already there unpacking the boxes they’d carried in on their last load.  When we enter
ed with Terrell in tow, they both stared at him apprehensively.  I shrugged my shoulders at Mom to let her know that I didn’t know him or where he came from either.  All I needed was for her to think that I was trying to hook up with this guy.   

             
“Mom, Dad, this is Terrell.  We met in the parking lot,” I said condescendingly as I pushed the desk chair I was carrying over to the wall.

             
“Okay.  Um….hi, Terrell,” Mom said sweetly.  She didn’t seem sure of him, but she was polite all the same.  “I’m Mrs. Kelley, Samantha’s mother.”

             
“Nice to meet you,” he smiled. 

             
Thanks, Mom…..now he knows my name.

Apparentl
y Terrell didn’t scare easily despite my efforts, so between the five of us we made about three more trips to the car before everything was unloaded.  Terrell finally returned to his room a few doors down after all the work was done. Daddy made sure to make him feel unwelcome the whole time by mentioning AJ just so Terrell knew that I wasn’t interested in him.  Terrell was nice enough, but I’d developed trust issues after the year’s events and I was in no mood for games or drama.

Deanna’s parents returned and gave us one last pep talk before heading back out. 
My parents stayed to help me unpack most of my things before they decided to make their way back home too.  Mom took it hard, but I was a little more at ease now that I’d gotten settled in and had Deanna here with me.

             
“Well, we’re officially on our own,” Deanna said while smiling, almost as soon as our parents were out of the room.  It
was
kind of exciting when I thought about it – no more curfews, no more being grounded, no one to tell me what to do or when to do it.

We sat down on our beds, leaving the door wide open to see what was going on in the hallway.  There were still quite a few students moving in and the atmosphere was li
vely.  The noise comforted me for some reason – it made me feel just a little less lonely.

I
reached for the white box on the floor by my bed and pulled out the pink laptop AJ bought for me.  I sighed as I stared at it.

“Do you know how to set this up
?  Like…link it to the wi-fi?” 

Deana shrugged, apparently just as clueless as I was
.  “Karl knows about that stuff.  He’ll be here in a little while; I’m sure he’ll help you with it.”

             
“Good, ‘cause I’m supposed to get online when AJ texts me.”

             
She stared at me thoughtfully for a minute.  “You’re really gonna miss him aren’t you?” Apparently I’d failed at trying to mask my feelings.

             
“You have no idea.  I keep trying to remind myself that it’s only for a little while, though.”  I thought back on all the things that AJ and I had been through over the past year: the drama with Antonio and Leila, my father flipping out when he first met AJ, Mr. Hahn’s many attempts to pull us apart, the accident that nearly ended my life……and losing the baby that neither AJ nor I knew existed until too late. 

             
Deanna continued to stare at me as I thought.  I got the impression that she wanted to ask me something, but she was hesitant.  Just then two figures appeared in our doorway. 

“Knock, knock,”
one of the tall, thin brunettes said.  She was smiling broadly and reminded me of the cheerleaders from high school.  Her powder blue shorts were short enough that her panties would’ve been hanging out if she’d had class enough to be wearing any.  Her barely-there tank top was tied off just above her pierced naval, scarcely covering her torso.  “Mind if we come in?”  She asked in her high-pitched, chirpy voice.  She didn’t even give us a chance to answer before she pranced in and perched on the foot of my bed.

             
“I’m Jen.  Welcome to Charleston,” she said excitedly .  The other girl was just as tall and Barbie-like as Jen, but she seemed to be a little less……well……
stupid
.