All In

If the events of the past year had shown Chase anything, it was that family was everything.

Almost losing the lodge because a delusional woman thought she was entitled to her share of the family business, almost losing his brother Tanner, a brother who took a bullet for him, literally, and almost losing himself in the dark world of gambling addiction. It wasn't until he was at his lowest point that he realised he didn't want to get any lower, because if he did, there was a good chance the real Chase, the Chase who'd been gone for the past two years, would be gone forever. Things needed to change, and the only person who could change them was Chase himself. So, it was time to step up. It was time to show his mother and brother he was worth saving, that he was worth taking a bullet for. It was time to get his act together.

Arianna wasn't sure what she was searching for, but she knew it wasn't love. Love meant trouble. It meant hurt, and it meant pain, so why would you go looking for that? It didn't make sense. Something else that didn't make sense was the feeling of unrest she'd been having since her father's passing. She'd always been close with her father, it had always just been the two of them, and now he was gone and she was on her own. The last thing she promised her father was to break free of her addiction and live life to the fullest, and not wallow in grief, and they were promises she intended to keep.

It had been twelve months now, and something was missing from her life, she just wasn't sure what that something was. It was time to spread her wings and find her place in the world. Maybe it would help settle the feeling of unease, maybe it wouldn't, but she had to give it a shot, after all, it was worth the gamble. What did she have to lose?