Risk Taker Read online

  Rose stands on the second step of the grand staircase and taps her wineglass with a spoon. I turn to scan the crowd, still looking for Damon but glimpse someone who looks like Em. I take a step in that direction but realize there’s another stunning redhead at the party.

  “Where are you headed, young lady? I need you here with me.” Rose waves me over and points to a spot in front of the stairs. “Stand right there.”

  “Ladies and gentlemen, thanks for coming today,” Rose walks up the stairs to stand a level above. “This is a special time in my life. As you know, I lost a husband and a son to cancer, and I nearly lost Damon to oversight and ignorance. A wonderful woman named Katarina Cross met my son and changed his life forever. She gave him love, encouragement, and hope for a bright future. She’s here tonight under the guise of throwing a retirement party for a colleague.” She spreads her arms to the crowd. “All of you are here because you either know my son or you know Katarina. Damon is here tonight because he’s helplessly in love.”

  A thousand butterflies swarm my insides. Damon steps out a nearby room and joins his mother at the top of the stairs. He’s dressed in a black tuxedo that fits him to perfection. He smiles, but it’s not just his lips, it’s his eyes that smile too; eyes full of love, hope, and passion.

  “Good evening, everyone.” He waves to the crowd and kisses his mom on the cheek. She turns and descends the stairs. “Hello, Angel,” he stares at me, and I swear we’re the only two people in the room. “Several months ago, I met this amazing woman. Hold up your hand, Katarina, so everyone can see you.”

  I raise my hand a little, but I’m embarrassed by the attention. Several people crowd around me, and when I look, my parents and Greta are on one side, and Chris, Trevor, and Rose are on the other. Anthony and Emma are standing next to the stairs. The people I love surround me.

  “We met unconventionally—a blind date of sorts, but I knew the day I met her, I’d never let her go. She’s a little thing, but she packs an incredible amount of strength in her five-foot-four frame. She has to be strong to put up with me. So many people show you what they think you want to see, but Katarina shows you who she is.” He looks at my parents. “I’m so grateful for her parents, who raised her with love and gave her the freedom to be herself.”

  Looking back at the crowd, Damon says, “She got to see the real me, and it wasn’t pretty, but she loved me despite it all, and she didn’t give up on me.” He takes a deep breath. “I’m a damaged person. So much sorrow has touched my life, and I never imagined I’d feel happy again. She changed everything. If you’ll humor me for a moment, I’d like to take the time to tell her what’s in my heart.”

  Tears fill my eyes. Not only does this man care for me, but he’s publicly declaring it.

  Rose walks over and leans in to whisper, “Give my boy a chance, Katarina. He won’t disappoint you.”

  “The first time I met Katarina, I asked her about her prerequisites for dating, and she informed me that I had to have nice teeth and not be a serial killer.”

  Everyone laughs.

  Damon walks down a few steps and hands Emma two envelopes. She brings them to me and places them into my palm.

  “Katarina, there are two envelopes in your hand. One is a letter from my dentist confirming I’m cavity-free and up to date on my cleanings. He even went as far as to say I have excellent teeth.” The crowd laughs again. “The second is a full background check. No run-ins with the law, and my credit rating is stellar. I’m offering you full disclosure. There is nothing I’ll hide from you. Most importantly, I want to tell the world I love you. I’ve lived too long without you and refuse to spend another minute alone. You are my heart and my soul, and without you, I’m less.”

  He walks down the steps until he’s in front of me with his eyes looking into mine.

  “Damon, I love you. I always have.” I place my palm over his rapidly beating heart. “I want all of you. Including the heart you claimed to not have.”

  He places his hands on my waist and pulls me closer. “I’m yours for as long as you’ll have me, and I hope it’s forever. My heart belongs to you.” He leans forward and brushes his lips across mine. “I’d love to start over again. Can I take you to dinner?”

  “Dinner, Damon?” I make a tsk tsk sound. “There’s no moving backward.”

  He speaks to the crowd. “She’s a risk-taker and is willing to take me on. If you don’t mind, I’d like to start forever right now. Enjoy the food and drinks.”

  He lifts me into his arms and turns me around in circles. When his lips press against mine, I’m whole again.

  The crowd’s hoots and hollers fade as we near the front door.

  I don’t know where we’re headed, but when he whispers, “Relax and enjoy,” I know I’m going somewhere I’ve never been.

  Epilogue

  Five Years Later

  I look at my diamond wedding ring sparkling under the sunlight and wonder where the time has gone. Four years ago, we married. A year later, our son Nathan was born.

  “You need anything, sweetheart?”

  “Just you.”

  Damon leans down and kisses my swollen belly. “How are my girls?” He takes the lounge chair beside me and looks out over the canyon.

  “Fighting as usual.” My hand sits on top of my undulating stomach, feeling the twins battle for space. I imagine what will happen in eight weeks when they’re due and tired of wombing together. “Have you thought about names?”

  He smiles. It’s the kind of smile he gets when he’s up to no good. “I have the perfect plan.”

  Since we’ve considered everything from famous twins to thing one and two, I’m open for discussion.

  “You know how much fun the bag was? Why don’t we bring it out again?”

  “I’m not naming my daughters bondage and blowjob.”

  Damon laughed so hard that Nathan came from the kitchen, where he was at the table coloring with Rose.

  “Daddy laugh.” Nathan climbed into Damon’s lap.

  “Daddy and Mommy are naming the babies today.”

  I narrowed my eyes like heat-seeking missiles at Damon.

  “We are negotiating. Do you remember what that means?” I ask.

  Nathan shook his head.

  “That means anything Mommy says goes,” Damon tells him.

  “Not fair.”

  Damon shrugs. “That’s marriage.”

  I shoot my fist out to punch him in the arm. “Seriously, you’re going to scar him before he reaches four.”

  Damon rubs his arm. “You’ll scar me before I can name our daughters.”

  “Can I name them Mommy. What about Daphne and Velma?” Nathan asked.

  I look at our son and shake my head. “Oh, honey, those are great names, we’ll put them on the list.” I turn to my husband who is holding back a laugh. “You need to tell your mom he’s watching too much Scooby-Doo.”

  “It’s the bag then, and I just happen to have it here.” He pulls the bag from his back pocket. “Let’s do this. I’ll pick one, and then you pick one.”

  Running things is one of Damon’s strengths, so I let him have his way now since we both know I’ll win in the end.

  He holds up the bag, and I choose a sticky note. “You put in the finalists, right?”

  He winks.

  When I open the note, it says Griffith Park.

  “Really?”

  “We both know we’re naming the girls Ella and Emma after the woman who made us a possibility.”

  I look at my beautiful son. “Hey, little man, go ask grandma if she’ll take you for ice cream. Daddy and I are going for a drive.”

  Damon throws his fist in the air. “Yes! Let’s go break some rules.”

  My life with Damon is better than I could have imagined. It is never boring, rarely predictable, and full of passion. He wants what he wants and likes what he likes. He’s a man who can have anyone and anything, and yet, he chooses to love me.

  He helps me i
nto the car and tells me to relax and enjoy. Those three little words will always send my heart into overdrive.

  If you enjoyed Risk Taker, you’ll love my Making the Grade starting with The Dean’s List.

  Thank you for reading.

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  Other Books by Kelly Collins

  Making the Grade Series

  The Learning Curve

  The Dean’s List

  Honor Roll

  Making the Grade Box Set

  An Aspen Cove Romance Series

  One Hundred Reasons

  One Hundred Heartbeats

  One Hundred Wishes

  One Hundred Promises

  One Hundred Excuses

  One Hundred Christmas Kisses

  One Hundred Lifetimes

  One Hundred Ways

  One Hundred Goodbyes

  One Hundred Secrets

  One Hundred Regrets

  One Hundred Choices

  One Hundred Decisions

  One Hundred Glances

  The Second Chance Series

  Set Free

  Set Aside

  Set in Stone

  Set Up

  Set on You

  The Second Chance Series Box Set

  Holiday Novels

  The Trouble with Tinsel

  Wrapped around My Heart

  Cole for Christmas

  Christmas Inn Love

  Mistletoe and Millionaires

  Wilde Love Series

  Betting On Him

  Betting On Her

  Betting On Us

  A Wilde Love Collection

  The Boys of Fury Series

  Redeeming Ryker

  Saving Silas

  Delivering Decker

  The Boys of Fury Boxset

  A Beloved Duet

  Still the One

  Always the One

  Small Town Big Love

  What If

  Imagine That

  No Regrets

  Small Town Big Love Boxset

  Frazier Falls

  Rescue Me

  Shelter Me

  Defend Me

  About the Author

  International bestselling author of more than thirty novels, Kelly Collins writes with the intention of keeping the love alive. Always a romantic, she blends real-life events with her vivid imagination to create characters and stories that lovers of contemporary romance, new adult, and romantic suspense will return to again and again.

  Kelly lives in Colorado at the base of the Rocky Mountains with her husband of twenty-nine years, their dog Sophie, and a green cheeked conure named Rosco. She has three amazing children, whom she loves to pieces.

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