Chasing Nikki & Finding Chase by Lacey Weatherford

Chase is heading nowhere fast. He was a star quarterback, popular, headed for a bright future. All that changed when his father died tragically in a plane crash. Now Chase lives to forget, drowning his pain with drugs and alcohol. After he gets arrested for under aged drinking, his mother moves him back to the ranch where she grew up, hoping a change in scenery will help them both.

When Chase sees Nikki, he is determined to have her. The only problem is she will have nothing to do with him. She has been burned before by guys like Chase, but he slowly wears her down and she agrees to go out with him. Chase finds in Nikki what he has been searching for since the death of his father - understanding, acceptance, and a reason to move forward. When another accident threatens to derail Chase again, he must make the ultimate decision - give up and return to the numb existence he lived before, or move forward and prove to Nikki and himself that life is worth living.

Chase has kept his vow to Nikki - to keep moving forward - even if he struggles to do so every day. Chase, having won a college scholarship, is heading off to school hoping that immersing himself in football will help ease the intense pain in his heart. He is doing his best to fulfill his promise, but doesn't know how to do it, other than move through the motions one day at a time. He is determined to keep everyone at an arm's length so that he never has to experience the pain of loss again. It helps that Chase's closet friends are all going to the same college. As Chase continues to heal, he begins to feel things that he never thought he would feel again and imagining a future he thought he lost forever. When fate offers him another chance at love, will he be brave enough to seize it?

I love, love, loved this series! What an emotional roller coaster! I fell head over heels for Chase and all his beautifully damaged perfection and was so happy at the end when he got his happy ending. I swear my heart dropped at the end of Finding Chase and I thought I was going to have to write a strongly worded letter to the author, but in the end no harm, no foul. I was even more floored when I read the author's note and found out that Lacey herself went through a similar situation. My heart broke all over again, but her story again proves that what doesn't kill us, does make us stronger. I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason, even when that reason is not always clear. It often takes some time before you can step back and see how everything is connected, especially when you are in the midst of it, but somehow it always seems to come together in the end. This is a must read for any YA romancers. Just remember to keep your tissues close!!