Giving up my chance at f.., p.1
Giving Up My Chance at Forever_Prequel, page 1
part #4 of Chance Series Series
Giving Up My Chance at Forever
The Chance Series
K.B. Andrews
Prequel
Copyright © 2017 by K.B. Andrews
All rights reserved.
This book or parts thereof may not be reproduced in any form, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means - electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise - without prior written permission of the publisher, except as provided by the United States of America copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, at “Attention: Permissions Coordinator” at authorkbandrews@gmail.com
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Editing: Charlotte Stanley
Formatting: Two Broke Authors
Cover: K.B. Andrews
Disclaimer: The following story contains mature themes, strong language, violence, and sexual situations. It is intended for mature adults.
To the readers, without all of you loving this series, this book would’ve never been written.
Contents
Foreword
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Sneak Peek at One More Chance at Forever
Acknowledgments
Also by K.B. Andrews
About the Author
Foreword
Hi, everyone. I just wanted to put this up front for any new readers of this series.
Books 1-3 are the original story written in Mason and Lennox’s point of view.
This book, the prequel, is set before book one and is written in Dane and Alissa’s point of view. This is for all the people that loved the original series and wanted to know more about Dane and Alissa.
The book coming up, One More Chance at Forever, goes back to the original story, picking up with Mason and Lennox sixteen years after book three.
So if you read this book but haven’t read books 1-3, don’t read book 5 until you’ve done so. This book, Giving Up My Chance at Forever is more of a standalone. You don’t need to read books 1-3 to read this one, however, I strongly recommend that you do! 😘
Chapter One
Dane
Present Day
Here I sit, in the office my dad left me. Bottle in one hand, cigarette in the other, I look around me. I guess he was right after all. I’ll never make something of myself. The man’s been gone for a year, and not one damn thing has changed. I’m pulled out of my thoughts when someone knocks on the door and opens it quickly. It’s Mason. He closes the door behind him and sits down across from me.
“What’s going on? You don’t usually come back here,” I say, turning in my seat to face him.
He runs his hands through his hair, something he always does when he’s nervous. “I don’t know. I met this girl.”
“I figured it had something to do with a girl.” I smile and sit up straight. “So, what is it? Is Ashley stalking you again?” I can’t keep the grin off my face. Sure, I’m a little buzzed, but I get a kick out of watching that girl torture my little brother. She never takes no for an answer.
“No, it’s not her.” He leans back in his seat. “Her name is Lennox, Lennox Madison. I met her yesterday. She and her father came by looking for a place to dock their boat.”
“And let me guess, you rented out dock space?” I scratch my jaw, just waiting for him to confirm my suspicions.
He nods. “How could I not? The girl is gorgeous. She has dark hair, that she wears in these soft curls, and legs that go on for days. She came into the shop in a little white dress and barefoot. I don’t know what the fuck is wrong with me.”
“There’s nothing wrong with you, dumbass. You like a girl. Big deal.”
“I’ve never liked a girl this much. I took her out tonight, and we had a few drinks. After getting all worked up dancing, I needed some fresh air, so I took her on my boat, where we got a little too close.” His Adam’s apple bobs, and he looks at his hands on his lap. “I didn’t want to stop, Dane. Before, I didn’t care about girls. I mean yeah, I like girls. If they wanted me, great. If they didn’t, I didn’t care. But now, here comes this girl, and she has to like me. I’m a fucking mess.” He leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees.
I know he must be messed up if he’s coming to me for advice. All I do is serve as a bad example. An example of love and loss and the misery life becomes after it. I long to protect him. So, I do the only thing I know. I give him a little bit of truth mixed with a little bit of lie. “Listen, I know how you feel. In high school, I fucked around with a lot of girls and never gave a shit about any of them. Then one day, Alissa walked into my life. She just had something no other girl had. I fell hard for this one. It was great for a couple of months, then she fucked my world up. She cheated on me with that asshole, Sean. I was angry. I beat the shit out of him, and I yelled at her and broke it off. But then you know what I did?”
I fell to my knees and begged her not to leave me, but I can’t let my brother know I’m that big of a pussy.
He shrugs while never breaking eye contact.
“About a week later, I called her crying, begging her to take me back.”
I didn’t actually call her either. She called me but refused to talk. When those calls came through, I knew it was her, and I bared my heart to her. Not that it did any good.
“You did what?” he asks with a smile, clearly finding my moment of weakness amusing.
“Yeah, that’s what a girl can do to you. You fall in love, and it’s over, man. Just like that. One day, it will be over, and you will be left alone to pick up the pieces.” I admit, I may be a little bitter over the whole situation. This was THE girl. The one that got away.
“That won’t happen. I’m not a pussy like that,” he says, interrupting my thoughts.
“Just wait.” I take a long drink of Jack. Thinking about that time in my life makes it feel real. It’s been so long now that it almost seems like I have someone else’s memories. Like it was just a dream I had. Like she never existed at all.
“Dude, this shit is depressing. I thought you would give me some sort of pep talk or some shit.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. It’s true love. You must be with this girl. Go get her, now.” I sit up straight and wave my arms around dramatically. “Is that better?” The grin I’ve been trying to hold back since this conversation started tugs at my lips.
“You’re fucking drunk. Careful going home, man. I will see you tomorrow.” Mason leaves my office as quickly as he appeared.
Throwing myself back in my chair, I raise the bottle to my lips again and let the amber liquid flow into my mouth before swallowing it down. I reach for the pack of cigarettes that’s always tucked away into the top drawer of my desk. With a shake, one falls out, and I place it between my lips before digging the red lighter out of my pocket and holding the flame to the end. Memories wash over me before I have a chance to stop them.
Age: 16
“Dude, I can’t believe you didn’t come to the party last night,” Sean says as we walk down the dock.
“My dad wouldn’t let me out of the house. He’s on some curfew kick.” I push my long, dark hair away from my eyes. It’s hot today, but my dad insists I repair a damn jet ski — something I know nothing about. That’s Mason’s job, not mine.
“You should’ve snuck out. You’ve got to see the hottie that just moved to town. She’ll be starting school with us tomorrow.”
I lean against a tree by the edge of the shop, soaking up any shade I can get after being stuck out in the heat all day. “Yeah, what’s her name?” I ask, squinting against the setting sun.
“Alissa. She has this long blonde hair and a nice set of…” His sentence drops off, but he holds his hands to his chest, showing me what he means by set.
I laugh at his description. “If she’s as good looking as you say, I’m sure I’ll find her tomorrow at school.”
“Dane!” my dad sticks his head out of the shop door and yells.
I turn to look at his reddening face. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow, Sean. Looks like I’m in more trouble.”
Sean slaps me on the back as he laughs and walks away.
I make my way up the two steps and stand directly in front of my dad. “What did I do now?” His gray hair is neatly slicked back, and his brows are furrowed together. The wrinkles around his eyes only form when he’s mad or serious. I’m not sure which he is at this moment, but I’m assuming mad. He’s always mad at me.
“Did you finish that jet ski?” he asks with the tone of voice that cuts right through me, angering me even more.
“No, I have no idea how to fix it. You showed Mason that crap, not me.”
He lets out an exasperated sigh and shakes his head. “I showed you both at the exact same time. You,” he points his finger at me and continues, “just didn’t pay attention.”
I step around him and walk into the shop, taking a seat next to Joey behind the counter. “I’m sorry, Dad. That kind of thing just doesn’t interest me.”
I smile as I watch her jump over the edge, her full chest bouncing with the action.
Suddenly, I’m smacked up side the head. “Did you hear a damn word I said?” my dad asks. He turns to see what has stolen my attention away from the ass chewing he’s in the middle of giving.
He rubs his brows and shakes his head, tired of putting up with my shit already. “Go pick up your brother from soccer practice.” As he walks back into his office, disappointment and disdain roll off of him.
I don’t move right away. I sit and take a deep breath, then rub my temples with both hands.
“He just cares about you,” Joey says.
“He sure has a funny way of showing it.” I shove off the stool and make my way to the parking lot.
Getting behind the wheel of my beat-up Mustang, I look out over the ocean. I want nothing more than to leave home, but that seems impossible. My dad’s right about me. My grades are shit. My work ethic sucks. And the only thing that gets me off my ass is a hot girl… or a party. I am a lost cause. I’m sure of it.
When I get to the school, I park the car along the fence surrounding the field. I step out and sit on the hood, watching as practice wraps up. My eyes find Mason on the field, and I watch as he steals the ball from one of his teammates and drills it perfectly into the goal. I feel like standing and cheering for the little shit — but I don’t.
A part of me has always been a tad jealous of my little brother. He makes good grades, he’s a big soccer star, and everything just seems to come so easy to him.
Nothing comes easy to me, though. I’ve had to fight my whole life just to get the C’s and D’s I make.
The only thing that’s ever made any sense to me, is music. I picked up my first guitar when I was six and haven’t put it down since. Reading music, that’s what’s easy to me. I’ve never had any official training or lessons. Just Dan, one of Dad’s friends, showing me how to read music while drinking with my dad out on the balcony one night.
The only bad thing about that is that it’s not practical. I can’t make a living playing guitar. I know because my dad has told me time and time again.
I’m in a band, and we play a wide range of cover songs. Guns and Roses, Ozzy, and Pink Floyd to name a few. But what I really love to play is the music that I write. I love writing a song and watching as a big group of people hear it for the first time. Not to mention, girls love musicians. Yeah, the girls that throw themselves at me makes it all worth it.
The whistle blowing snaps me out of my thoughts. I shake my head, clearing it from my doomed future.
Mason jogs up to me with his bag thrown over his shoulder. At fourteen, he’s big for his age, almost as big as I am. His dark hair is soaked with sweat. He runs his hand through it, causing it to spike in all directions.
“Did you see that goal I made?” he asks with a wide grin covering his face.
“Yeah, I did. Good job!” I give him a high five as I stand from the hood of the car and make my way to the driver’s side.
Mase throws his bag into the back and takes the seat next to me. Just as I start the car, a girl I recognize from school leans against the passenger side door and bends down to look at him through the window.
“Nice goal, Mason,” she says, flirting with my little brother. I roll my eyes when she places her arms against the door and gives him a nice shot down her shirt.
“Thanks,” he says nervously with a wide smile.
“Are you finally going to be at our school this year?” She twists her long, dark hair around her finger and bats her big brown eyes.
“Yeah, I’m finally a freshman.” He nods with that stupid ass smile still plastered on his face.
She smiles brightly. “Good, maybe I can show you around tomorrow.”
I watch as his eyes fall to his lap and bounce back up to her. “Yeah, I’d…I’d like that,” he stutters.
She stands up and tells him goodbye. Turning back, she blows him a kiss.
When she’s far enough way, I let my laughter fill the car.
Mason reaches over and punches me in the arm.
“What was that for?” I ask around my laughter.
“You’re embarrassing me. What’s wrong with you?” His face is flushed red.
I put the car into reverse and back out of my parking space. “Nothing, I just find it funny is all.”
“What’s so funny?”
“That girl is a sophomore, and she’s trying to lay claim to the new soccer star. Don’t tell me you’re falling for it.”
“I’m not falling for anything.” He turns to look out the window, but within a second, he’s looking right back at me. “She is pretty hot though, right?”
I roll my eyes. “I guess if you like long, dark hair and the innocent type.”
He looks at me. “Well, what’s your type, Mr. Know-It-All?”
I grin from thinking about my dream girl. “Long blonde hair, nice rack, likes to party, and have a good time.” I shrug.
“You just described Mrs. Williams,” Mason says around laughs.
Mrs. Williams is the local druggie. She does nothing but party and get fucked up, refusing to grow up and take care of her daughter, who’s Mason’s age.
I smack him across the chest with the back of my hand. “Fuck you.” I lean back and place my arm across the top of the steering wheel. “I bet she was hot back in the day, though.”
He laughs. “You’re nasty. If you like her so much, why don’t you date Ashley?”
“Ashley Williams?” I look at him for confirmation.
He nods.
“I think Ashley only has eyes for you. Plus, she’s too young for me.”
“She’s my age,” he argues.
“My point exactly. I’m almost seventeen. I’m not dating a fourteen-year-old.”
“She’s turning fifteen soon! Plus, it would really get her off my back.”
I laugh and flip him off. “I see what you’re doing. You just want me to get her away from you. Not happening, bro. That girl is all yours.”
I park the car at the shop, and we both get out and walk inside. Dad comes out of his office and looks at us both razzing each other. He places his hands firmly on his hips. “Alright, that’s enough from the both of ya.”
We stop with the jabs and punches and stand up straight.
“Mason, how was practice?”
“Good. I scored the winning goal,” he beams.
Dad nods. “Good job, but it’s time to get to work. I need you to show Dane how to fix that jet ski out there.”
“Again?” he complains.
I smack him on the back of the head as he steps toward the door. Dad doesn’t know that Mason’s tried to show me multiple times.
Dad’s brows lift while he stares at me. He crosses his arms over his chest with a heavy sigh. “I have a feeling this will be the last time. Won’t it, Dane?” His eyes narrow in on me.
“Yes, sir,” I answer while moving toward the door, trying my hardest to refrain from rolling my eyes.
Morning comes bright and early. I’ve slept ‘til noon all summer, so six A.M. is an unwelcome change for me.
I pull on a pair of jeans from the floor and dig through my dresser, looking for a t-shirt. Then I check myself out in the mirror. My dark hair is falling in my eyes, so I push it back before my dad sees me. He’s always on me about getting a haircut.
