Only If You Dare (Falling For A Rose Book 3) Read online

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty One

  Chapter Twenty Two

  Chapter Twenty Three

  Chapter Twenty Four

  Chapter Twenty Five

  Epilogue

  Only If You Dare

  Falling for a Rose Book Three

  By

  Stephanie Nicole Norris

  Contents

  Copyright

  Dedication

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty One

  Chapter Twenty Two

  Chapter Twenty Three

  Chapter Twenty Four

  Chapter Twenty Five

  Epilogue

  More Books by Stephanie Nicole Norris

  About the Author

  Note from the Publisher: This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead or references to locations, persons, events or locations is purely coincidental. The characters, circumstances and events are imaginative and not intended to reflect real events.

  Only If You Dare

  Falling for A Rose Book Three

  Copyright 2017 Stephanie Nicole Norris

  Love is a Drug, Ink.

  All Rights Reserved and Proprietary.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, in any form or format without written permission from Author. Send all requests via email to [email protected]

  Dedication

  To all my readers who enjoy the Falling for a Rose Series. May you also find your happily ever after.

  Chapter One

  Another restless night. I blew out a deep breath as I stared at my reflection in the mirror. The puffs underneath my eyes were bringing awareness to the tumbling I’d been doing over the past week. At first, I couldn’t figure out why I was so edgy; but then I had a come to Jesus moment. The reality was, I was exhausted. This high demanding job at the Houston Report wore me down. Upon getting this journalistic opportunity six years ago, I was all too happy to take on each story by storm. However, my continuous efforts to remain one of the paper’s top journalists seemed to go unnoticed. I hadn’t received a raise in two years and going after lead stories wasn’t simplistic. At times, depending on the information, I could seriously put my life in danger.

  Desiree, Desiree, you are not telling the whole story…

  That annoying voice in the back of my head tormented me. It hadn’t gone away ever since the moment I laid eyes on him. I shrugged. So, I wasn’t telling the complete truth. Although the paper had become a thorn in my side, I also spent nights thinking about him, wondering about him, dreaming… about… him… That was unusual for me since my last disaster of a relationship. My thoughts of men didn’t go past the physical. And they only ventured there when my flesh desperately craved release. However, I spent the last week lying awake at night, coaching myself to keep my hands from between my thighs when thoughts of him arrived. I must be thoroughly honest here. Those times were many, since the moment I saw him in my mother’s hospital room.

  “Julian Alexander Rose…”

  I whispered his name like it was a part of a smooth jazz melody I heard on repeat in a nightclub. Not that I did much clubbing, I didn’t. My demanding job wouldn’t allow for such basic pleasures. I met Julian on a trip to Chicago, Illinois. That’s where I’m from by the way; born and raised. My youngest sister, Claudia, and my mother, Adeline, live there together. I moved away because… we’ll for a variety of reasons; reasons I don’t care to revisit at the moment. Claudia is my mother’s caregiver. That may instantly make you think she’s disabled, but my mom is spicy and might hit you across the head with her walker if you test her enough.

  However, a stroke and high blood pressure kept her from functioning one hundred percent on her own. Claudia stepped up to take care of mom. She didn’t have a choice since I no longer live in Chicago and my mother didn’t want to move here to Houston. Our father, well, he’s been in the wind for as long as I can remember. Anyway, my mom slipped and fell getting out of the shower. On her way down, she hit her head, and it knocked her out cold. When I received the call from Claudia, I was livid and horrified. All I could think was, it was my fault for leaving my little sister in charge. But I soon found out, I was wrong. Claudia had been tremendous with caring for our mother, and I couldn’t blame her one bit for something that could’ve happened to anyone.

  On that particular visit to Chicago, I entered her hospital room only to find Julian sitting next to her bedside. I could hardly pull my sight away from his gorgeous face to take note of the other guy sitting on the opposite side of her bed. When I did, I could see the resemblance in his features. They were no doubt brothers and smoking hot, might I add. I took my gaze back to Julian and took in his full ensemble; from his thick black hair that sat an inch off his scalp in dark waves, to his dark gray eyes, strong nose, strong jawline, and those lips.

  I shuddered as I remembered Julian’s lips, medium in size and perfectly centered on his handsome face. When he rose to his feet, I got a close up of the biceps that stretched the dark Ralph Lauren shirt he wore. His build was muscular, and I felt no shame as my eyes roamed down to the Calvin Klein jeans that hung slightly from his hips. This was a time where I should’ve been alarmed that two gorgeous men occupied space in my mother’s hospital room and there were no scrubs in sight to indicate they were a part of the hospital’s staff. Instead, pleasure ripped through me: a soothing warmth that made me dizzy and rendered me utterly speechless.

  That was not the gist of our intense moments. Releasing another heavy breath sent my bangs flying high. There was another reason I was restless. Claudia had been proposed to, and she accepted. My younger sister was getting married. Before me. I knew Claudia and Jaden’s relationship was pretty hot and heavy, but marriage? Jaden is such a sweetheart. He proposed to Claudia at her fundraiser event that she put together to raise awareness and be a resource for caregivers in Chicago. It was a successful event, and Jaden’s proposal set the city on fire. It was officially the talk of the town. That was a few weeks ago, and as much as I’d loathed coming back to Houston, I was trying to figure out what direction my life should go.

  What I want is to quit my job and move back to Chicago. But I keep asking myself, for what? As I drafted my resignation letter, that question became enormous. What was waiting for me in Chicago?

  I pacified myself, concluding that with Claudia getting married, it was now my turn to step in and become my mother’s caregiver. Also, I missed my little family. The only thing keeping me here was the Houst
on Report, and it didn’t offer the same excitement that it did in the beginning.

  I raked my fingers through my hair. I’d let it grow too long, and now it hung past my elbows. I reapplied the dark purple passion gloss to my full lips. The color had grown on me, and I loved the way it emboldened my caramel skin. The gloss didn’t do anything to hide the puff under my eyes, but my sunglasses took care of that. Nevertheless, the puff was a constant reminder that I needed rest and relaxation. I left the quiet sanctuary of the bathroom and strolled through the labyrinth of disorganized cubicles and ringing phones headed to my secluded desk. Easing into my chair, my thoughts continued to swirl with the decision I needed to make; to hand over my resignation letter or to wait. I was spaced out for longer than a minute when a voice in front of me spoke.

  “If it’s that deep, just go with your gut.”

  I glanced up to see Santana Summers, the only person in Houston I’d come to befriend during my stay here.

  “You would take that back if you knew what I was pondering,” I said.

  Santana twisted her lips. “I don’t think so. Whenever you get that faraway look in your eyes, it’s always because you’re wondering if your next assignment is worth it. And you should always go with your gut.”

  I smiled up at her, taking notice of the messy ponytail she’d shoved her hair in. For a moment, I wondered if her nights were just as rude as mine.

  “If that’s the case then…”

  I rose from my chair and grabbed my purse; pulling out my resignation letter that was sealed in a white mailing envelope. Santana frowned.

  “What’s that?”

  I pulled my lips in, hesitant to tell her my news. I didn’t know how well she would take it, so I drew my eyes away and cast them on everything around us.

  “Hello,” she said snapping her fingers. “Desiree, what’s going on?”

  I held the letter up. “I’m quitting.”

  Santana’s eyes popped. “Are you serious? When did you decide to quit?”

  “Sssssh! Don’t tell everybody. I haven’t given Fredrick my resignation letter yet!” I grabbed her hand and pulled her into my corner, practically shoving her into a chair.

  Where I thought Santana would be a little upset, she surprised me with a glowing beam.

  “I’m so excited for you,” she squealed.

  I sat back in my chair dumbfounded. “You are?”

  “Yes, yes, of course! I’ve seen the job wearing you down. I’m happy to know you’ve found something else.” She perked up. “So what’s the position and where? I want to apply, too! God knows my time in this place has long passed.”

  “Um, well, actually, I don’t have another job lined up at the moment. I was sort of going to free spirit it.”

  Her smile faltered a bit, and the glimmer in her eyes went away.

  “Oh,” she shrugged. “Well that’s not a big deal,” she predicted. “You’ve saved enough pennies to live off of for a few years. Do you have any idea where you’ll look?”

  I braced myself for the bomb I was about to drop on her. Santana and I had grown very close. We were each other’s left and right. My fingers drew a circle around the coaster sitting next to my keyboard, but it didn’t stop my words from coming out in a whisper.

  “I’m moving back to Chicago.” I cleared my throat and waited for her response.

  “Say what?”

  I cleared my throat again and adjusted my blouse, thinking it would give me more courage to speak louder. “I’ve, um, decided to move back to Chicago and find a career there.”

  What little happiness that was left on her face vanished and was replaced with a scowl.

  “What!” Santana held her arms out. “Are you kidding me?”

  “Ssssh! I know it’s surprising, but can you please keep it down.”

  “Surprising? Keep it down?” She repeated.

  I crossed my eyes. “Yes, keep it down!”

  “What do you care? You’re leaving this place, not to mention the whole city,” she hissed.

  I rubbed my temples. “I’m sorry. Look, I have to. Like you said, this job has been wearing me out, and I’m going with my gut after all. Your words, not mine.”

  Santana waved her hand in the air. “Oh, I don’t want to hear that! Since when have you ever listened to anything I’ve said? If I knew you were talking about leaving the city, I would’ve just said, don’t even think about it!”

  I gave her a small smile. “It was a last-minute thing. Come on, you know I’m not happy here, and what’s to keep me in Houston? I’m single, my job sucks, I have no family, no friends…”

  Santana glared at me.

  “I mean except for you, of course.”

  “Since when has being single been an issue for you? You don’t take the time to so much as look at a man never mind date one! Annnnnd,” she said dragging out the word, “I thought you left Chicago because living there tormented you with thoughts of losing your father. How’s going back now going to be any different? Did you have an intervention I don’t know about?”

  I massaged my forehead and let out a sigh.

  “You’re right and you’re right!” I repeated. “But, I can’t let my father’s disappearance cripple me. It’s had enough of an effect on my life thus far, and I’m done with it. I need to move on.”

  “And what about me,” she asked.

  “You can always call me. You can always visit. I’ll visit too! We will keep in touch. It’ll be like I never left.” I stood to my feet. “I have to do this before I change my mind.” I grabbed my purse and scooped up the envelope. Santana looked pensive. There was something she wanted to say, but she held her tongue and waved me off, shooing me out of the cubicle. I reached out and hugged her. She didn’t respond, only held me with that scowl.

  “How about I pay for your lunch today?” I smiled and shook my head like that would make things betters.

  “And drinks,” she muttered.

  “Yes!” I shouted, grateful to do anything that would satisfy her; if only temporarily, “Drinks, too.”

  Santana rolled her eyes. “Go,” she said, giving me the green light. I squeezed her tight and marched off to Fredrick’s office with my shoulders back, and head held high. Now encouraged, I knocked twice and didn’t wait for a response before barging right in.

  My footsteps slowed when my eyes landed on the man sitting in a visitor’s chair in front of Fredrick’s desk. Their eyes were drawn to me upon my entrance, and immediately I lost my train of thought.

  “Just the person I was getting ready to call,” Fredrick said, dropping the phone back into the cradle. “Desiree, this is Julian Alexander Rose, international male model and owner of A Few Good Men male modeling agency. We were just discussing getting the first shots of his photo shoot slated for October 3rd in Dubai. He’s requested you to put together this piece. It’s essential that we cover this story, and I know you’ll do a great job.” Fredrick’s boastful smile was staunch. “Congratulations.”

  I fixed my vision on Julian, and his dark gray eyes met mine. A sexy smile drew back his lips, and I was caught in his hypnotic stare. My legs weakened, and I almost went down. My hand flew out to brace myself on the empty chair that sat next to him. Julian moved; his strong arms circling my waist as he leaned into me.

  “Careful,” his profound voice thumped. “We wouldn’t want you to hurt yourself.”

  I got a whiff of his natural male scent mixed with a striking cologne that put my nerves on edge. My eyes dropped to his mouth, and I sucked in my bottom lip, as my tongue traced the shape of them. Fredrick cleared his throat, and I snapped out of my haze and removed myself from Julian’s grasp.

  “What do you have there?” Fredrick asked eyeing me speculatively. I’d forgotten all about the envelope in my hand that held my resignation letter. This was my moment of truth. I was supposed to be brave and tell Fredrick he would have to find another reporter for his assignment. Besides, this wasn’t a part of my job description. I went af
ter crooked politicians, restaurants that failed their inspections and covered the national news. I didn’t do photo shoots and write simple articles, even if it was with gorgeous men. But my boldness left the minute I stepped into the office and saw his beautiful face. I tucked the envelope underneath my arm and offered a flimsy smile.

  “Oh this? Nothing. I was just coming to discuss a project I’d made headway on.” My gaze went to Julian then back to Fredrick.

  “Whatever it is, give it to Ms. Summers. You’re officially on Julian’s assignment. Fredrick looked to Julian. “For the next few weeks, she’s all yours, Mr. Rose.”

  Julian’s all-pervading gaze never left me. “Then consider me the luckiest man in the world,” he said.

  Chapter Two

  “Shall we get started?” Julian asked.

  He held his hand out, again, pulling me close. The warmth of his palms trod across my skin, and I suppressed a tremor.

  “I’ll show you to my desk.” My voice dropped, and instead of sounding like a professional journalist, I sounded like a smitten kitten. Mortified at the sound, I shut my lips tight and fought to calm my racing heart.

  “I thought maybe we could discuss the specifics over lunch,” he drawled.

  “Lunch?”

  That tantalizing smile of his was back. “Yes, lunch. Unless of course, you have other plans?”

  “She doesn’t have any plans,” Fredrick interjected.

  I whipped around. “Yes I do.”

  Fredrick shook his head. “No, you don’t.”

  It was matter of fact. I pursed my lips together. As much as I wanted to put up a fight just to show Fredrick that he could kiss my whole ass, I stole another glance at Julian and thought better of it. Turning back to him I said, “I guess I don’t.”

  He pulled his bottom lip between his teeth and offered a sexy grin. “After you.”

  I took one step to make sure my balance was in order before strutting off. I opened the door and stepped out colliding with Santana. She looked to be on pins and needles as she fidgeted with her fingers.