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. Exactly. I wiped a tear from hercheek. Merry Christmas, sweetheart.Chapter Thirty-threeKatieAfter Kayla s announcement andStryker s present, things were sort ofuneventful.Mom had flipped the niceswitch and treated Stryker like he was amember of the family.She even askedabout him and they had an entire civilizedconversation, which was crazy. I think she likes you, I said thatnight as we lay in bed.Mom had given mea look when I d said we were going tobed, but she hadn t said anything asStryker followed me. Well, that s a nice step up fromloathing me, so I ll take it. He was busydrawing on my arm. So you gave me a present, so I mgoing to give you one. He d been prettysneaky with his, but I was pretty sure hehad no idea about mine. It doesn t involve you getting naked,does it? He raised his eyebrowssuggestively. Uh, no.That s not a present.That sa normal night. It s a gift, as far as I m concerned.I rolled my eyes and went to get mybag. So the wrapping isn t as pretty asyours, seeing as how I can t make myown, but it s the thought that counts,right? I d found wrapping paper onlinethat was covered in musical instruments,and I d used it for all his presents.I wanted to just tear the paper off forhim, but I let him slowly unwrap it until hegot down to the box.He popped it openand took out the card inside, reading itslowly. It s a gift certificate for the artsupply place.It s not a box for yourparents ashes with their faces painted onit, but I thought you could get some reallygood supplies and He looked up from the card andstopped my flow of words with a kiss. I love it, and I love you.So, somuch.It s perfect. I love you too, best friend.There sanother little something under that card.He pulled out the second part of that gift.It was one of those hokey charms that washalf of the heart, and it said Best on it. I ve got the other one, I said,pulling the chain out from under my shirt,showing him the other half that said, Friend.I was surprised he hadn tnoticed it yet. You don t have to wear itas a necklace or anything, if that semasculating.He pulled it out and slipped it aroundhis neck. My best friend gave me this.Just tryand take it off me. He held onto it, daringme. Never, I said, shaking my head.Thanks go, firstly, to my family fornot thinking I was crazy to quit my job towrite full time and for always thinking thatI m way cooler and more talented than Iactually am and for listening to me rambleon about the publishing industry duringChristmas.Second, to my besties, Caroline,Colleen, Liz and Rachel, you are thecheeses to my macaroni.I love all yourfaces.Third, to my editor, Jen, whoSOMEHOW found the time to do anamazing job, even with her brand newbaby.Fourth, to my beta, Laura, my soultwin.There are no words for how I creepylove you.Fifth, to my online community,including Magan Vernon and the rest ofthe Indelible ladies.You make me feellike I m not alone, and that means morethan I can say.Sixth, to all the book bloggers whohave or ever will support me.You areaca-mazing and supportive and I am notworthy of you.Seventh, to all my readers (it soundspretentious to call you fans), YOU are thereason I can do what I do.I wish I couldinvite all of you over to my house and feedyou cookies baked with love and too muchchocolate.YOU ARE ALL MY BESTESTFRIENDS.About the author:Chelsea M.Cameron is a YA/NANew York Times/USA Today BestSelling author from Maine.Lover of thingsrandom and ridiculous, JaneAusten/Charlotte and Emily BronteFangirl, red velvet cake enthusiast,obsessive tea drinker, vegetarian, formercheerleader and world s worst videogamer.When not writing, she enjoyswatching infomercials, singing in the carand tweeting.She has a degree injournalism from the University of Maine,Orono that she promptly abandoned towrite about the people in her own head.More often than not, these people turn outto be just as weird as she is.Other books by Chelsea M.Cameron:Nocturnal (The Noctalis Chronicles, BookOne)AmazonNightmare (The Noctalis Chronicles,Book Two)AmazonNeither (The Noctalis Chronicles, BookThree)AmazonWhisper (The Whisper Trilogy, BookOne)AmazonDeeper We Fall (Fall and Rise, BookOne)AmazonMy Favorite Mistake (Available fromHarlequin)AmazonFind Chelsea online:chelseamcameron.comTwitter: @chel_c_camFacebook: Chelsea M.Cameron (OfficialAuthor Page)Faster We Burn (Fall and Rise, BookTwo) is a work of fiction.Names,characters, places and incidents are eitherthe product of the author s imagination orare use fictitiously.Any resemblance toactual persons, living or dead, events,business establishments or locales isentirely coincidental.No part of this book may be reproduced,scanned or distributed in any printed orelectronic form without permission.Allrights reserved.Copyright © 2013 Chelsea M.CameronCover by Sarah Hansen at Okay Creationschelseamcameron.com.comAnd now, here s a sneak peek at NoAttachments, a New Adult ContemporaryRomance, from Tiffany King.Available on April 30, 2013!www.authortiffanyjking.blogspot.comCover created by Okay CreationsEdited by Hollie WestringAll rights reserved.Published by A.T.Publishing LLCCopyright © 2013 by Tiffany KingLicense NotesThis ebook is licensed for yourpersonal enjoyment only.This ebook maynot be re-sold or given away to otherpeople.If you would like to share thisbook with another person, please purchasean additional copy for each recipient.Ifyou re reading this book and did notpurchase it, or it was not purchased foryour use only, then please purchase yourown copy.Thank you for respecting thehard work of this author.All rights reserved.Except aspermitted under the U.S.Copyright Act of1976, no part of this publication may bereproduced, distributed, or transmitted inany form or by any means, electronic,mechanical, photocopying, recording, orotherwise, or stored in a database orretrieval system, without the prior writtenpermission of the publisher.The characters and events portrayedin this book are fictitious.Any similarityto real persons, living or dead, iscoincidental and not intended by theauthor.Chapter 1: Why lightweightsshouldn t drinkAshton Come on, go, my friend, Tressasaid, trying to push me out of my chair. What good is a bucket list if you re toochicken to do any of it? Zip it, I said out of the corner ofmy mouth as I apprehensively eyed thesituation in front of me.It seemed like agood idea on paper, but actuallycommitting to it suddenly made menauseous.I took a long pull from my beer,hoping that would help calm my nerves. God, that s disgusting. I grimaced as thefoul liquid poured down my throat. Idon t know how people drink this crap, Icomplained, slamming the bottle backdown on the table a little harder than Ishould have. You re stalling, Ash.Besides, thiswas your idea.Pick up a random strangerand bang his socks off, Tressa quipped. You need to seize the opportunity beforesomeone else does, otherwise you ll beSOL, and your only choice will be OldMan Jones over there, she added, makingour friend Brittni snort loudly. Shush, I said, elbowing her in thegut.Tressa had one volume level loud
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