Hello Beautiful Readers!
I’m so pleased to give you a sneak peek into Daring Destiny, book 2 in my Charming Irish series. It’s the story of Brennan McGloughlin, the tech genius no one noticed in high school and Astrid Gustafsson, the class president who seemed to have it all collide years later, sparks fly in ways neither of them expected. Brennan’s hyper-focused world meets Astrid’s perfectionist facade in this opposites-attract romance where love dares them to embrace their destiny—flaws and all.” Or, better yet, preorder here.
Here is your sneak peek!
What the fuck am I doing here?
Never, in a million, billion years, could I have predicted I’d end up at my fifteen-year high-school reunion.
I mean, who even has a fifteen-year reunion?
Uh, my disorganized, indifferent class, that’s who I guess.
We blew past our ten-year and I didn’t even notice. No interest. High school sucked, it wasn’t for me.
I never fit in.
Until recently, my all-consuming focus has been the company I founded when I was at Foster Business School, CognifyAI. We revolutionized the real estate industry by turning market data into actionable insights for realtors, offering predictive analytics, personalized property recommendations, and immersive virtual tours, all through an intuitive, graphical interface. We scaled the technology into the hospitality industry, making my company the highest-grossing technology company in the world after we went public.
Shit.
I’m such a fucking turd.
Even my own thoughts sound like elevator pitches.
Chill out, man.
I’m trying to, for fuck’s sake. Which is why I’m standing here in the renovated cafeteria at Garfield High with a whiskey in hand and a polite smile plastered on my face. I’m completely out of my comfort zone. Social outings like this make me cringe. I suck at small talk. It’s pointless. Irrelevant. Boring.
I wouldn’t have bothered, except for one reason.
Astrid.
Just thinking her name sends a little thrill down my spine. And, a lightning bolt of remorse.
She was my low-key obsession back in high school, The ultimate in main-character energy. An ice-blonde goddess who glided through the halls, dressed like a superstar as if she owned the place. Kind and compassionate to everyone. Hot as fuck. Every guy wanted her.
Especially me.
Unfortunately, a socially awkward, slightly overweight kid never stood a chance with an it-girl like Astrid. No, she was hooking up with Jake Thompson, the asshole basketball superstar who treated her like garbage but looked like a Greek god.
He’s not here tonight, of course. Mr. Big-Time NBA superstar couldn’t be bothered.
Oh, how times have changed. Tonight, I’m wearing the BDE crown on my own, I guess. Last month, Wired named me the most influential tech CEO of the past decade. I guess it’s true, but it’s weird for someone who deliberately stayed out of the spotlight to suddenly be recognized everywhere.
Hence, why I’ve parked myself in a dark corner. Too many classmates I don’t care for suddenly want to be my best friend. No fucking thank you. Clout chasers are not my jam. As soon as Astrid sees I’ve made the effort, I’ll make my escape.
Whoa. There she is. She looks incredible, as usual. My God, after all these years it’s uncanny the way she has an effortless way of looking like a million bucks.
Tonight, she rocks a shimmery black dress. It dips low enough to enhance her impressive cleavage but not enough to be obscene. Her long, blonde hair falls in waves over her shoulder. Other than the dark eyeliner, which makes her green eyes pop, her face is clean and natural. Even her jewelry is classy. Simple gold earrings and a matching bracelet. Sky-high black heels make her slim, toned legs look like they go on forever.
God. It’s like she walked straight out of some fashion magazine.
It’s hard to believe it was three-ish years ago when she reached out to me through my brother Connor, the bass player in Seattle’s biggest band, Less Than Zero. Coincidentally, she was his realtor. Sold him a multimillion-dollar house on Hunt’s Point, where the richest people in the Seattle area live. When Connor mentioned she wanted to get in touch, I thought it was a joke.
Why would the high-school “it” girl want to talk to me? A guy she never acknowledged?
I did what any self-respecting guy with a past like mine would do.
Ignored her.
She was persistent, though. Turned out she wanted help with this reunion. Apparently, convincing a bunch of thirty-somethings to relive their glory days wasn’t as easy as it sounded, even for the most popular girl in the class. She had a brilliant idea and I was, apparently, the one who could help her.
I’m still not entirely sure why I agreed. Maybe it was the challenge. Maybe it was the allure of Astrid-fucking-Gustafsson paying attention to me for once. Whatever the reason, we hit it off.
And, we created something special.
Gazing over at her chatting with some of her old friends, I’m glad she’s having fun. She’s been so intent about making this a success, this must be a dream come true. It’s packed. Our classmates are completely immersed in the interactive experience which, to me, is a much better way to catch up with someone you haven’t talked to in fifteen years.
Who wants to listen some rando drone on and on and on about career, marriage and their snotty kids?
No fucking thank you times two.
“Brennan.” Astrid’s smooth, whisky-tinged voice hits me in the core, as it always does.
She strides toward me. Her smile is forced and tight, which I totally understand. I’m, deservedly, not her favorite person at the moment.
I try to sound casual, like I haven’t been keeping my eye on her all goddamn night. “Hey. Congratulations. Your idea’s a huge success.”
“Our idea,“ she corrects, gazing out at the crowd. “You’re the one who made it all happen.”
Side by side, we look around the room and for a moment, things feel normal. We’re two people who worked hard and used our respective skills to make an innovative concept a reality.
Astrid spent her time gathering key moments from high school from the official photo archive and images pulled from social media. With a team of developers, I created the technology powering the interactive display.
Now, snippets of everyone’s lives over the past fifteen years are being projected on sixty-foot walls. It’s a living yearbook come to life. With a companion app so people can continuously update and reconnect based on their interests, job titles, and locations.
A culmination of the best and most heartbreaking years of my life.
Maybe she’s in a conciliatory mood. I take a step toward her. “Well, it was a team effort.”
Astrid holds up her hand to stop me and squints at me incredulously. “Don’t even. Not tonight.”
I wish I could say her snark catches me off guard. It doesn’t.
Truth be told, I’m honestly not sure why she’s even speaking to me.
We stand there awkwardly while the room around us buzzes with energy. The digital displays continue to randomly flash images from our high school days. People are laughing, reconnecting, living in the moment. As cool as everything has turned out, the familiar niggle starts to take root in my brain when things get uncomfortable.
I’ve gotta get out of here.
“Actually, before you bolt, I do need to talk to you. Come outside with me?” Astrid can read me like a book, she knows I won’t last long in this environment.
I do my best to keep my voice steady. “Uh, okay. Sure.”
Before I can fully process what’s happening, Astrid takes my hand and leads me toward the exit. We slip out the back and the noise of the reunion fades behind us.
Outside, the quiet night air is a stark contrast to the festivities inside.
Sweet. Sweet. Relief.
Astrid looks up at the sky. I watch as her shoulders relax and tension melts away.
“God, I needed some peace.” She shakes out her shiny, blonde hair. “It’s exhausting, you know?”
I nod, because I do know.
As I’ve gotten to know Astrid for real, it’s something we have in common. She’s actually much different than I thought she was as a teenager. She seemed so comfortable around everyone. A naturally gregarious, outgoing person everyone aspires to be.
It’s an act, though. She shoulders too many expectations. Cares too much about what people think. Feels pressure to always be perfect. Believes she has no choice but to keep her shit together at all times. It’s funny how we’re the same in this regard.
It’s exhausting.
“You hide it well.” I can’t help but voice what I’m thinking out loud.
She laughs bitterly. “Years of practice.”
We fall into another stretch of silence, standing together in the dark.
“So…” she says quietly. “Can we talk?”
“Yeah.” I brace myself for what’s coming next.
The end. This is probably the last time I’ll ever see Astrid. My heart is breaking into a million pieces and I’m not sure how to stop her from…
Without thinking, I reach out and take her hand, comforted by how natural it feels. She doesn’t pull away, just flicks her eyes up to me and blinks rapidly. As if she’s trying to stop from crying. My heart thunders in my chest. She moves in closer.
Thu-thump.
Suddenly, her lips are on mine.
In the beginning, it’s a soft kiss. Tentative, as if she’s testing the waters. Then, it quickly deepens and I find myself pulling her flush against my chest. Instinctively, my arms wrap around her as I lose myself in the moment. She tastes like peaches and heaven.
When our lips finally part, our foreheads remain pressed together as we try to catch our breath.
“I didn’t mean to…” She clutches at my waist.
“Neither did I,” I mutter, though it’s a lie. If I could kiss Astrid forever, I would.
I planned to.
We stand there for a moment, holding each other. Neither of us willing to let go. The air between us is charged. Electric.
She gazes up at me, her eyes soft but guarded. “Thank you.”
“For what?” I’m genuinely confused.
“For being here tonight. I truly didn’t think you’d come” She takes in a huge breath and lets it out, like she’s nervous.
Considering the situation, I’m unsure how to respond. “Why wouldn’t I be here? It was important to you. To us.”
She smiles wistfully and tilts her head. “Brennan.”
“I… Uh…” I don’t know how to respond.
Astrid shoots me a look as if to say, shut the fuck up.
So, I don’t bother finishing the sentence. It’s pointless to bullshit her. I’m not capable of giving her what she needs and we both know it.
I’m utter crap at relationships. I don’t know how to nurture them. Prioritize them. Communicate properly. I never have. Probably never will.
Astrid should have been different. She’s everything I ever dreamed about. My ultimate fantasy. And I had her. Until I fucked up.
Ruined us.
Astrid sucks in a breath. “So…turns out I’m pregnant.”
Wait, what?
Reality crashes down, unforgiving. Like a hundred million buckets of ice water.
If I can’t manage a romantic relationship with someone as perfect as Astrid…
How in the fuck can I be a good father?
HOPE & HARMONY
Dive into “Hope & Harmony,” a captivating anthology featuring fourteen of romance’s best-selling authors. Each story celebrates the undeniable connection between love and music, supporting MusiCares with every page turned. Experience passion, melody, and heart in every tale.
P.S. For more about MusiCares and the incredible work they do in the music community, please visit MusiCares.org.
That’s it for this week! I Hope you loved your sneak peek at Daring Destiny!
Love,
Kaylene
