Free Taking a Chance by KC Ann Wright

yourself. You did nothing wrong. I want to thank you for showing me what I’ve been missing these last years. Until last night, I had forgotten how good someone could make me feel.”
    He looked hard at her, which stopped her from chiding herself again. But her cheeks flushed and she ducked her head. In her moment of vulnerability, he wrapped his arms tighter pulling her closer. She put her arms around him and leaned her head back.
    “Well, thank you to you, too. You made me feel safe.”
    “You deserve to be taken care of and treated right.”
    He kissed her one final long kiss. She didn’t want him to let go, but she knew she had to get back upstairs.
    “See you soon, Maddie.”
    “I hope so,” she said as she turned and went back into the elevator. She smiled to herself as she rode it up.
    Molly got up and gave Maddie a hug when she came into the room.
    “What was that for?”
    “Just because. You look happy and I’m happy for you. I’ve missed you.”
    Maddie hugged her back. She knew Molly had been worried about her and had pushed to know what was wrong, but Maddie had shut her out. At that moment, Maddie felt like meeting Todd had been one of the best things to happen to her. He had reminded her how things were supposed to be and for that she was grateful.

Chapter 9
    T he girls were shopping the Magnificent Mile and were loaded up with bags by lunchtime. Famished, they stopped for lunch at Frontera Grill, Maddie’s favorite Mexican restaurant in the city. After they filled up on margaritas and great food, they were reenergized and ready to shop again. A few more hours of shopping and Maddie was ready to head back to her place before the rest of the girls arrived. She also needed to stop at the grocery store near her building to pick up a few last minute snacks and the bakery items she had ordered for Saturday morning breakfast.
    “We can all go back with you, Maddie,” said Shannon.
    “That’s okay, you guys continue shopping. I can take care of everything.”
    “We can hang out on your rooftop deck. Besides, with so many girls and only two bathrooms, I can’t imagine how long it will take for all of us to get ready,” said Amanda.
    “True, we should probably start now,” said Shannon.
    They took cabs back to Maddie’s place and she gave Amanda her keys. The girls took Maddie’s and Molly’s packages up, and they strolled down the street to the grocery store.
    “So, are you going to give me any hints about what we’re doing tonight?”
    “Nope, this one we are keeping a surprise. Don’t worry, Maddie, it will be fun. You won’t be doing anything that will embarrass you like karaoke or dancing in front of a room full of people.”
    Maddie laughed to herself—she’d danced in front of a room full of people just two nights ago. That made her think of Todd and she wondered how his day was going.
    As Maddie was checking out, Molly got a call and stepped away from the counter to talk. When Maddie looked around for her, she noticed that Molly seemed agitated. Her head was down and she was running her hand back and forth across her forehead. Maddie finished checking out, grabbed the bags and hung a few on each arm.
    When Maddie walked out, Molly followed but stayed a few feet behind her until she’d finished the call. A few moments later, she caught up to Maddie and grabbed the bags off one of her arms.
    “Everything okay, Mol?”
    “Yeah. No.” She waved her hand. “Oh, I don’t know. Travis has been acting strange and it just feels like he’s hiding something from me.”
    “Maybe he’s planning on proposing to you and wants to make sure you don’t catch on. I’m sure you have nothing to worry about. Travis is great and you know he would never do anything to hurt you.”
    “You’re right. Maybe I’m just reading into it too much.”
    Maddie thought back to George’s proposal. They had been on a long weekend in Napa Valley. On the second day, they had gone to the spa late in the