All Chapters of Falling Hard: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

Rain pounded the glass walls of the towering Veylin skyscraper, blurring the city lights below. At the top floor, Ezekiel sat in his leather chair, legs spread, fingers drumming against the mahogany desk. The predator in him was calm, calculating. He wasn’t in the mood for games tonight—he was here for business.“Bring her in,” he ordered.His assistant, Maddox, nodded and disappeared. Moments later, the door opened, and she walked in. Small frame, soaked from the storm, lips trembling but head held high. Ezekiel’s cold, whiskey eyes dropped to the pathetic state of her cheap dress clinging to her curves, the worn-out sneakers on her feet. Isla Ramirez—twenty-three years old, broke, desperate, and exactly what he needed.“Sit,” he commanded.Isla sat, stiff and silent. Her fingers curled into the sleeves of her thrift store jacket. She’d never stepped into a place like this, much less spoken to a man like him—Ezekiel Veylin, heir to the Veylin empire, billionaire, playboy, destroyer o

The next morning, Isla woke to the blinding glare of sunlight bleeding through floor-to-ceiling windows. For a second, she forgot where she was—forgot about the diamond collar weighing down her neck, the suffocating luxury surrounding her. Then she turned her head and saw the empty side of the enormous bed.Reality crashed down.The sheets beside her were untouched, cold. Ezekiel Veylin hadn’t spent the night with his new wife. Of course not. He didn’t need her warmth—he needed her presence. She was a trophy, nothing more.Dragging herself out of bed, Isla padded toward the closet. It wasn’t just a closet—it was a boutique. Silk dresses, designer shoes, jewelry worth more than her entire life lined the walls. Her old existence felt like a distant memory.She found a simple black blouse and high-waisted skirt, modest enough, hoping to feel like herself for at least one day. When she stepped out of the bedroom, she found Maddox already waiting, phone in hand.“Breakfast is served on the

The next few days were a brutal crash course in living as Mrs. Veylin. Isla barely had time to breathe. Breakfasts were formal, afternoons filled with fittings, and evenings spent parading on Ezekiel’s arm through corporate gatherings and charity functions. She was given a stylist, a posture coach, even a private etiquette instructor—all ordered by Ezekiel without so much as asking her opinion.Her life was no longer her own.But what Ezekiel didn’t realize was that every insult sharpened her resolve. Every judgment, every dismissive glance from the world around her fueled something stronger than fear—defiance.On the fifth evening, Maddox appeared at her door as she was buttoning up a sleek emerald gown. “Mr. Veylin requests your presence in the library. Ten minutes.”Isla’s stomach knotted. She hadn’t spoken to Ezekiel properly since their tense car ride from the estate. He’d been distant, colder than usual. Tonight felt… different.When she entered the vast library, she found him b

Morning came like a slap to the face—sunlight poured through the floor-to-ceiling windows, illuminating the chaos of the night before. Torn sheets, discarded clothes, the lingering scent of lust and something more dangerous… possession.Isla woke alone, unsurprised. Ezekiel Veylin was not the type to stay tangled in bedsheets after satisfaction. He had empires to control, reputations to uphold, and apparently, a contract to enforce.Still, she didn’t feel defeated. For the first time since stepping into this glass prison, Isla felt… powerful.She dressed herself in a sharp navy pantsuit that hugged her in all the right places, her hair in a sleek braid. Gone were the days of playing the meek, fragile wife. If she was going to survive in Ezekiel’s world, she would walk through it with her chin up and heels sharpened like blades.Maddox was waiting for her in the hall, ever expressionless. “Mr. Veylin requests your presence in the office.”Of course, he does.Isla didn’t hesitate. She’d

The storm outside raged, lightning crackling across the sky, but inside Ezekiel’s penthouse, it was another kind of storm swirling—one built from tension, desire, and everything they had tried to deny.Isla stood by the window, arms folded tight, her pulse thrumming in her ears after their argument. She should be furious. She should’ve walked away. But when she heard the soft creak of the door behind her and the heavy footsteps of Ezekiel approaching, her body betrayed her.Ezekiel’s voice was low, rasping against her skin before he even touched her. “Tell me to leave, Isla… and I will.”She stayed silent, heart pounding like a drum.His warm breath kissed her neck as his hand slid around her waist, fingers splaying across her stomach, pulling her back into his chest. His scent—clean, woodsy, masculine—wrapped around her like a drug.“You don’t want me to leave,” he whispered, his lips grazing her ear. “Your body remembers me… every inch of it.”Isla swallowed hard, her eyelids flutte