Page 97 of The Chances We Take

“And to love!” Jake called out, and the guys all laughed, clearly remembering some inside joke.

“To love!” we all repeated.

“Momma, I’m tired.” I looked down into honey-colored eyes, the same eyes I’d fallen in love with a decade ago and continued to fall in love with ever since our daughter was born.

“Okay, sweetheart, let’s get you to bed.” I picked her up, carrying her in my arms into our farm-style home.

I flicked on the light switch, the entryway flooding with soft light as I walked into her room and laid her down on her fluffy bed.

“I love you, Momma,” she murmured, sleep overtaking her.

“I love you too, Stella girl.” I kissed her on the forehead, before tucking her in and looking up at the tiny plastic stars dotting the ceiling.

“What are you reading?” Reid looked over my shoulder at the half-finished document on my laptop before leaving a sloppy kiss on my cheek.

“You know what I’m reading, weirdo.” For the past year, I had been working on my own writing, thinking back to the book I’d picked up at the store I workedat—the one about friends turned into lovers who took a chance on each other.

The hopeless romantic in me never left; if anything, being with Reid made me more of a romantic, just a hopeful one.

“My character better not be a complete headcase,” he joked. Reid was the one who had encouraged me to write. To use my creativity to help other people feel seen and be as optimistic as I was. He pushed me to be better every day, especially on the days where I wanted to give up.

“We’ll see, Cowboy,” I replied with a smile.

“Don’t stay up too late.” With that, he gave me a kiss and disappeared into our bedroom.

I continued to write, pouring my heart out onto the pages. It was effortless, like breathing.

But the story was simple.

Because that was us.

Our life was perfectly simple—honest. We didn’t have anything super fancy, but it was more than enough. Reid and Stella were what my world spun around, and even if I was just a tiny speck of dust in their universe, I still had everything I needed and more.