What's Not Lost

ALSO BY VALERIE TAYLOR What’s Not SaidWhat’s Not True PRAISE FOR THE WHAT’S NOT SERIES FOR WHAT’S NOT SAID (BOOK ONE) 2021 Firebird Book Awards Winner: Romantic Comedy, ContemporaryNovel, Chick Lit, and Marriage2021 CIBA Chatelaine Book Awards First Place, Best in Category:Romance Fiction2021 Literary Titan Book Awards Silver Winner2021 Best Book Awards Finalist in Fiction: Literary and Women’s Fiction2021 American Fiction Awards Finalist in Women’s Fiction2021 International Book Awards Finalist in Fiction: Women’s Fiction2020 Canadian Book Club Awards Finalist in Fiction “Taylor’s dialogue is snappy and contemporary . . . A witty and often amusing marriage drama.” —Kirkus Reviews “In this dramatic tale of love, lust, and lies, author Valerie Taylor crafts an entertaining and gripping story. . . . a shocking novel full of secrets, twists, and turns, but it also has elements of pure humor and deep love. If I had to pick one word to describe What’s Not Said, it would be the word ‘captivating.’” —Readers’ Favorite “What’s Not Said is highly recommended for women who look for not just stories of marital relationships, but the unexpected revelations that revolve around life purpose and the immortality of love.” —Midwest Book Reviews “Overall, this was a wickedly fun read, and entirely engaging in its soap-opera-esque style of storytelling.” —Reedsy “Taylor’s debut is a mystery, a romance, and a tale about chance and coincidence. It’s a book about secrets and lies and the elusive dream of a fairytale ending.” —BookTrib FOR WHAT’S NOT TRUE (BOOK TWO) 2022 Maxy Awards Winner in Romance & Women’s Fiction2022 Independent Press Awards Distinguished Favorite in Romantic Comedy2021 Firebird Book Awards First Place Winner: Series, ContemporaryFiction, Chick Lit, and Marriage2021 Firebird Book Awards Second Place Winner in Romantic Comedy “Valerie Taylor’s prose is crystalline . . . she does not waste words, rather using them to create a tense nerve-shredder that offers full entertainment to readers. What’s Not True is compelling, real, and utterly enjoyable.” —Readers’ Favorite 5-star review “What’s Not True is an engaging story of love, honesty, tangled family relationships, jealousy, and ambition. . . . As a beach read and satisfying stand-alone sequel to What’s Not Said . . . What’s Not True expands upon many themes while staying true to the course of charting Kassie’s emotional and romantic growth.” —Midwest Book Review “This was a dramatic, comedic telenovela of a women’s fiction about infidelity and fickle hearts . . . Overall, this was an enjoyable read, with spicy characters and drama galore.” —Reedsy “What’s Not True is a heartwarming story that would make a great beach read, filled with plot twists and interesting characters. This captivating and romantic story is anything but predictable.” —Literary Titan 5-Star review This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Copyright © 2022, Valerie Taylor All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, digital scanning, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, please contact Aspetuck Publishing. All company and/or product names, logos, trademarks, and/or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Edited by Sara WalkerCover design by Tabitha LahrBook design by Danna Mathias Steele Published 2022 ISBN: 979-8-9865995-0-2 (paperback)ISBN: 979-8-9865995-1-9 (ebook) Library of Congress Control Number: 2022913096 For information, contact:Aspetuck Publishing159 High HLShelton, CT 06484 Printed in the United States of America Dedicated to all those who dare to dream. What do we live for, if it is not to make life less difficult for each other? — George Eliot To dare is to lose one’s footing momentarily. Not to dare is to lose oneself. — Søren Kierkegaard Chapters Prologue 1. The Mourning After 2. The Cat's Meow 3. Twin Peaks 4. Moneybags 5. Barefooted 6. Parent Trap 7. An Honest Offer 8. No, No, Nana 9. Baby, It’s Cold Inside 10. Daydream Believer 11. Cleansing Breath 12. FAQs 13. Family Feud 14. Words Matter 15. Frenemies? 16. Hide-and-Seek 17. FWPB 18. Music to Her Ears 19. Is That All? 20. Center Stage 21. Need You Now 22. The Intern 23. Paul Revere 24. One Option 25. Green Is the New … 26. Love Bites 27. Modern Family 28. New Rules 29. The Uninvited 30. Hover Craft 31. Surprise! 32. Mission Accomplished 33. True Confession 34. Word Salad 35. The Changing Tide 36. Warning Sign 37. Eyeball Yoga 38. Blissful Thinking 39. Flower Power 40. Voices in Her Head 41. Day One 42. Gotcha! 43. Cinderella 44. Thursday 45. Not a Date 46. Girl Talk 47. Listicle 48. Lost and Found Epilogue Prologue Black is not my favorite color. My mom should’ve warned everyone not to wear black yesterday when they came to the house. I much prefer blues and grays. Sometimes yellow works, but then that would clash with my handsome orangish-and-white mane. Though the sun blazes high in the pale-blue sky on this Wednesday in late July, I’m a cool cat living in Newton, a suburb of Boston, with Kassie O’Callaghan—my mom. I’m home alone, again, as usual. But I’m staying out of trouble as I’m on a reconnaissance mission. Won’t you come along with me? My favorite plaything is missing. One day, my mom tossed him across the room saying, “Go get Puss!” Was Puss a new kitty about to crash my pad? Nope. Puss is a navy-blue-and-silver toy with eight paws, twice as many as I have, and smells minty and crinkles when I punch or chew him. I love him so much I could just lick him for hours. So far in my search for Puss, I’ve stretched my white mitts under each piece of furniture in the dozen rooms in this house, and I’ve come