“I’m Kasey,” Kasey says, drawing Tess’s attention back to her. “Ignore this idiot.”
Tess grins. “Oh, I do on the daily.”
I roll my eyes. “I guess that explains why another cat picture ended up on our Twitter feed? Interesting how that happens even though we tell you not to post them.”
She sighs dramatically. “There was an album cover in the background!”
“Ollie was laying on half of it,” I deadpan.
“He wouldn’t sit still enough for me to take a picture showing the full cover. Consider it a sneak peek for the fans!”
Dylan snorts. “Of course, you’d find an angle to spin it.”
Tess balls up a napkin and throws it at Dylan’s head. He manages to dodge it, flipping her off.
Tess brushes the gesture off. “Well I’m glad that we get to finally meet you, Kasey. Ian’s been hogging you all to himself.”
I put my arm around Kasey’s shoulders. “Don’t be jealous, Tess. You know I have a special place in my heart for you, too.”
Tess rolls her eyes. “Don’t bullshit me, Wells. It’s unbecoming of you.”
“Oh, shit,” Dylan chirps. “She’s pulling out the big words now.”
“Unbecoming is a big word to you?” I muse, guiding Kasey over to our table.
“When your brain is the size of a walnut like Dylan’s, it sure is,” Tess retorts, plopping down next to Will.
Will kisses the side of her head, putting his arm around her shoulders. “What did we talk about, Tess?”
She grumbles. “That I have to play nice because it’s the holidays.”
“And?” Will prods.
She sighs. “And we have company, so I can’t scare her away.” She looks at me. “Can you believe that he thinks I’ll scare her away? I mean she’s dating you. Clearly, she can handle herself.”
That makes Kasey laugh. “I like her.”
Tessa beams.
“I think you just made her day,” I inform her, nuzzling my face into the crook of her neck.
She giggles when I find the spot that she’s ticklish, and can’t help but remember all the other areas I’ve found during my many explorations of her.
Even still, we’re finding things out about each other that we didn’t before.
“Can you not make me vomit at the table, please?” Dylan groans, downing half his beer.
“You need to get laid, man,” Bash tells him, shaking his head.
Dylan eyes him. “You’re practically celibate, and you want to lecture me on getting some? Please.”
“Maybe you’ll be less sour,” Tess agrees.
Dylan groans. “Don’t help him! You’re supposed to be on my side.”
“You were a dick to me the whole time Ian was away. This is payback, Hilton.”
He mumbles something under his breath about getting another drink, and gets up to go see Marty at the bar.
Bash looks at Kasey. “So this one hasn’t scared you away yet. I’m impressed. Didn’t know he had it in him to be romantic.”
“Your jealousy is showing again. I know I don’t make you swoon like I make Kasey, but it’s for the better. You should really go talk to Opal. Maybe she can help you out.”
“Your matchmaking days are over, dude. Give it up.”
Kasey looks at me in confusion.
I shrug. “I like to help my friends out.”
“We call him Godmother,” Tess pipes in.
I glare at her. “No we don’t.”
Kasey laughs. “It fits.”
I groan. “Don’t encourage her. Doing that is like feeding a stray cat. It’ll just keep coming back for more.”
“Again with the cat references,” Tess huffs, rolling her eyes.
Will picks at her sweatshirt, which has a printed picture of her cat in a Santa hat. Underneath, it says “Here Comes Santa Claws.”
She looks down at her sweatshirt and sighs. “Okay, I see where they come from. But I’m just saying, that there are other animals to choose from.”
“Not with you,” everybody but Kasey says.
Once Tess and Will start their own conversation, and Dylan comes back with beers for himself, Bash, and Ben, I give Kasey a quick peck on the lips.
“You okay? You’re quiet.”
She looks up at me, smiling. “Yeah, I’m fine. I’m glad I’m here. Your friends are just like you said they were.”
I see Tess cringe. “That could be seen as a bad thing depending on who you ask.”
Kasey laughs. “Well, I like you, so that’s all that matters.”
Tess smiles back before returning to her conversation with Will.
“Jake always loved the New Year,” she admits quietly to me. “He always took the whole resolution thing very seriously. Said the New Year was meant for bettering yourself.”
“Did you make a resolution?”
She nods. “To be happy.”
“And do you think you’ll accomplish that?”
“I cheated,” she states, “because I’ve already accomplished it. With you. With Rose. Everything seems to be working out better than I imagined.”
I pull her into me, resting my cheek against the top of her head. “I’m happy to hear that.”
Tess asks Marty for a round of shots, and he comes over with a tray full.
“We all need to toast to something,” Tess insists, passing out the shot glasses.
I look at Kasey, and smile. “To risks.”
We stare at each other, both with a light in our eyes that seems to be a silent agreement in itself.
“To risks,” the table echoes, downing their shots.
Kasey leans into me again, and I silently add, And to a life full of happiness.
There are always a lot of people that I want to thank when it comes to acknowledgements. This book has been a long time coming, and I know so many people have been waiting for it.
Thank you to my readers. Seeing the love that you had for Ian in The Summer We Changed made me so excited to be able to write this story.
Thank you to Micalea, Sara, and Wendi. Even though our competition totally distracted me for a solid month from writing this book, the friendship I gained from it was well worth it. Let’s pray there are no more magical potato pregnancies that come from it.
To Dylan, who listened to me babble about this book nonstop, you’re amazing. Even when I complained about never being able to focus on it because of college, you never told me to shut up. Thanks for not being a dick.
To my editor Melissa, thank you for polishing my baby and not killing me for making you cry over the ending. I look forward to working with you on the next book.
To my cover designer Sofie, you created exactly what I wanted on the first try. You knew what kind of hesitation I wanted to portray between characters, and you brought them to life. The cover is stunning, and I can’t thank you enough.
To my parents for pimping my books out, thank you for everything! One day I’ll be able to afford everything I promised you. Except maybe the bridge to Ireland. And the golden diaper. Why don’t we just settle on a nice dinner?
To everybody who is reading this, THANK YOU. Thank you for the support, for the reviews, for letting me be able to do the only thing that truly makes me happy. It’s you guys that will allow me to live my dream.
Barbara C. Doyle grew up in a small town in Upstate New York, surrounded by a passion for writing, pizza, and cats.
Her journey started at the young age of fourteen, and grew as she pursued a degree in English and Journalism throughout college. She believes that the written word is best used as a mode to escape into a different reality, thus the birth of her novels.
Her other passions include binge-watching Netflix, reading, and hanging out with her cat.
Follow me!
Facebook reader group: http://tinyurl.com/BarbarasBookNerds
Instagram: @Barbara_C_Doyle
Snapchat: @barbara41096
>
Barbara C. Doyle, The Risks We Take
The Risks We Take Page 24
