Page 66 of The Chances We Take

Before I could say anything else, Clay stood from his seat next to Colter and clinked his fork against his glass. “Hello, everyone, if you don’t know me already, I’m Clay, the more charming Carson brother.” He winked when Colter rolled his eyes.

“And I’m Caitlin, the sister of these two knuckleheads.” Cait had stood and walked over next to Clay so they were closer together to pass the microphone.

“Isabelle and Reid will do their speeches in a moment, but first, we wanted to tell you a story about our little brother here.” Clay lifted the microphone a bit too close to his lips, the sound seeming to reverberate off the walls.

Caitlin put her hand on the top of the microphone to lower it slightly before saying with a laugh, “I think Colter was about fifteen when this happened.”

Colter groaned and threw his head back, as if he knew exactly where this was going. I, however, didn’t think I’d ever heard this story before, so my attention was locked on Clay and Caitlin.

“Anyway, I was home from college and Caitlin had just turned eighteen. None of us were of legal drinking age at this point, okay? But, growing up in a small town, that never stopped us from trying to get beer anyway.”

“Mom had eyes on Clay like a hawk, and I wasn’t going to take the fall for buying him beer. Besides, even if we had fake IDs to use, everyone in town recognized us and knew how old we really were.” Caitlin turned to Clay as they took turns telling the story. “ButColter.”

Clay took over. “Colter was the golden child of the family. Momma loved him. He’s herbaby. And there was no way she would suspect Colter would try to go buy beer. It was afool-proofplan…or so we thought.” Clay chuckled as Colter rolled his eyes.

I flicked my eyes to Isa for a brief moment, but her gaze was locked on Clay and Caitlin, lips curled up in a breathtaking grin at the anecdote.

“Colter was obviously too young to go to a gas station to get it, and a lot of the older folks who went into the gas station knew us, so he couldn’t ask them to buy it,” Caitlin continued. “If he had done that, it definitely would have gotten back to our parents, so we told him to go buy beer from these guys who had graduated from college a year or two prior and lived down the street. Because theyalwayshad beer. And I know what you’re thinking. Why didn’t you guys just go get it yourselves? Well, like I said, Mom had eyes on Clay like ahawkand basically didn’t leave him out of her sight the whole time he was home. And I didn’t like them all that much. They also would have recognized either of us, but I don’t think they really knew who Colter was.”

They continued with their story, but the words were like static as I slid my arm under the table and brushed Isa’s fingers with mine.

She gave me a puzzled look, so I pulled them back, mouthing an apology to her. She looked down where ourhands were a moment before but then snapped her eyes up again when the crowd started laughing.

“We told Colter to give them twenty bucks, or whatever they wanted, then bring it back and put it in my truck. I think I gave him thirty dollars just in case and sent him on his way. Well, he comes back thirty minutes later, and I ask him if he put the beer in the truck like I told him to. And what was his response, you ask?” Clay paused for dramatic effect. “‘Oh, shit. I forgot the beer.’ And I asked him what he meant by, ‘I forgot the beer,’ and he told me, ‘I forgot it. I paid them and then left without grabbing it. But I’mnot going back.’”

“Andthatwas how we paid thirty dollars for a case of beer we never got.”

The guests burst into laughter again as Cait and Clay finished their story, Colter’s face looking redder than a tomato. Chip could hardly contain his amusement, but Maggie looked absolutely mortified.

“Sorry, I guess our mom never knew about this story. Which I’m kind of surprised about.” Clay laughed when he saw the look on her face. “Don’t worry, Colter’s still your golden child. We didn’t corrupt him too much, I don’t think.”

“Anyway, we’ll hand it off to Isabelle and Reid for the real speeches,” Cait said into the mic.

“We love you, brother. Ellison, good luck with this one and know that if you need someone to pull a heist for you, Colter is not the guy. He’ll forget the one thing he was meant to grab.” Clay gave her a mischievous grin and saluted her as she shook her head.

Caitlin walked over and passed the microphone to Isa as she stood and shook her head with amusement—although there was an air about her that seemed a bitflustered. “Wow, um, I’m not sure how I’m supposed to follow that.”

The crowd chuckled a little.

If she was thinking about anything else at that moment, she composed herself quickly. “In case you haven’t had the pleasure of meeting me yet,” she joked, “my name is Isabelle Bennett, and I’m Ellison’s best friend, non-biological sister, and true soulmate. Sorry, Colter.”

Ellison looped her arm through Colter’s, tapping his bicep.

“I’ve known Ellison since our freshman year of college, so about six years now, holy shit.” Her eyes grew to the size of saucers when she realized how long they’d been friends. “Ells may not be my longest friend, but she’s definitely my closest. I could spend all night telling you embarrassing stories about her, but I’ll spare you all…for now.”

“Thank God,” Ellison muttered under her breath, but it was loud enough that the people sitting closest to us could hear, and they snickered a bit.

“I haven’t known Colter quite as long, but anyone who can make Ellison giggle over her phone like a lovesick teenager is definitely the right one. It’s been incredible getting to see you two grow together the past two years, and I can’t wait to watch you continue to grow together in life and in love. And, Colter, I know where you live now, so let’s just say I may be small but I’m sure I could hide a body if I needed to.” She winked at Colter as she raised her glass. “To Mr. and Mrs. Carson.”

Everyone raised their glasses and repeated the sentiment as Ellison and Isa hugged each other.

“Your turn, Cowboy.” Isa handed the microphone to me as she sat, brushing her hand over my arm, sending a shiver up my spine.

I cleared my throat, but my voice still came out gravelly. “I’ll have to admit, I’m not quite as good with words as Isa and Colter’s siblings are, but one thing I do know is there’s nothing more important than the people you love and the people who love you. I’ve known Colter long enough to say he’s more than a best friend to me, he’s family. And family isn’t something I take lightly.”

I took a deep breath, looking in the crowd for Rudy, who had obviously shown up for the wedding. He loved meandColter. When my eyes locked on him, I continued. “A wise man once told me that he wished he’d valued the time he had with his family more. I’m not sure how this whole marriage thing works,” I said with a laugh and held up my hand showing off mybarering finger, which made a few people smile. “But the best advice I can give you, Colt and Ellie, is to cherish the time you have together. And I know you both will, because I know you well. And I know you know each other well.”

Ellison jutted her lip out a little as she soaked in my speech.

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