“I told you not to bug her,” Kira said, as if I wasn’t on the line. “Aiden’s in town.”
“Ugh,” Leona moaned. “Doesn’t that boy have his own place to live?”
My mouth twitched. I did not want to get into this discussion again. Sure, Aiden and I still spent a lot of quality time together, and yeah, I’d been a bit distant from the squad since I’d left, but that wasn’t all because of my boyfriend…er…ex-boyfriend (sort of).
“Hurry,” Aiden whispered as he walked past me, swishing my hair with his hand. “I have to get back to school pretty soon.”
I watched Aiden stroll back into my living room, still shirtless in loose khakis, barefoot, handsome.…
“Can I call you later?” I said absently into the phone. I didn’t want Aiden to go back to college. Once he left, I knew it’d be at least a week—maybe two—before I saw him again.
I was just about to hang up when Leona’s no-nonsense voice rang through my ears with urgency.
“Tessa,” she snapped. “I’m calling you with a message. And it’s from SOS.”
SOS CHANGE ORDER
Dear Clients,
Now that SOS has resumed its investigations, we want to clear up some confusion. We have created a fee schedule in addition to donations to keep our operation afloat. SOS is in need of new equipment, especially computer discs.
The new fee breakdown is as follows:
Cheater Report: $20
Potential Boyfriend Report: $15
Matchmaking Service: $15
Also, SOS will no longer be a secret organization. Details will soon follow, but rest assured, SOS will once again make this county a safer place for hearts.
Keep kicking ass.
SOS
SOS
Text: 555-1863
Exposing Cheaters for Over Three Years
CHAPTER TWO
MY. HEART. STOPPED.
“Leona, there is no SOS,” I murmured, my face tingling. “We disbanded, remember? Even packed everything away in Izzie’s grandparents’ garage.” I winced as I felt yet another twinge in my back. Just the letters SOS nearly brought on a panic attack.
I glanced into the living room, where Aiden was sitting on the couch, flipping through the television stations. He looked so peaceful. I hated thinking about SOS, especially when Aiden was here.
“I know,” Leona said. “But it just came through on my SOS e-mail.”
“Mine too,” Kira chimed in.
“Check your account.” Leona’s voice was quickening—a sure sign of anxiety, which could trigger post-traumatic SOS disorder. Poor Kira had already gone to therapy to get rid of it once.
I limped toward my bedroom, holding up one finger to let Aiden know I’d be back in a minute. Leona was pretty tech savvy, but things like the Internet sometimes confused Kira. If this was all a misunderstanding, I wouldn’t want to alarm Aiden for no reason.
But I could feel the stress clinging to me. My hairdresser had said that the drama of my junior year had worn all of the shine off my hair. I had to do weekly hot-oil treatments now. And hot oil was totally gross!
When I’d made Kira the new full-time captain of the Smitten Kittens, I’d told her she needed to act more dignified in uniform. She agreed.
And for the most part, the squad had understood my decision. Even Leona had thought a break would be good for me. Of course, she also thought that Kira would eventually mess up and that she could take over as captain. Her ambition was admirable.
So with all of that gone and Aiden usually away at college, it left me a bit on the lonely side. Which was why I spent all my extra money on therapy. Oprah once said that teenage girls needed to work on their self-esteem—put themselves first. I was taking her advice. I swear, that woman was brilliant.
I eased into the leather chair at my desk and flipped on the monitor. My room smelled like vanilla lavender, the perfect relaxation scent that my aromatherapist recommended. Matched with my freshly spruced-up pink walls and new comforter, I was swimming in positive feng shui.
“What’s the subject line?” I asked into the phone. I didn’t want to leave Aiden by himself too long, so I logged in and scanned the page. Goose bumps rose on my arms when I saw it. It couldn’t be.
“It says, ‘Now Taking New Clients,’ ” Leona answered.
“I see it,” I whispered. The fruit salad I’d eaten for breakfast was about to make an encore appearance, but I swallowed hard and leaned toward the screen as I clicked the message.
“The squad is unhinged,” Leona continued. “Kira is being completely unresponsive.”
Kira gasped. “Did you ever think that I was launching an investigation of my own, Leona? Tessa told us she was taking a break.”
“But she can help! Tessa knows SOS better than anyone.”
“I’m not going to argue,” Kira said. “As captain, I’m in charge of the squad and SOS.”
“There is no SOS,” I mumbled, examining the page.
“Yeah,” Leona started. “But maybe we should rethink that.”
I closed my eyes. It was no secret that the Kittens were all itching to get back into the spying biz, but I’d put the brakes on it. I’d learned my lesson and hoped that they had too. “It’s not up for discussion,” I said, trying to sound authoritative, even though I had no real claim to the skirt anymore. “Now, are you sure none of the Smitten Kittens were involved in this SOS message?” I looked over the screen, trying to authenticate the letterhead. It was exactly the same as ours. The entire document was a perfect duplicate.
Kira cleared her throat. “I’ve spoken to the girls, and they’ve all insisted they’re not involved. Although several of them suspect Chloe Ferril.”
I rested my elbow on my desk, rubbing at my temple. “K, we need to have an internal investigation before we seek outside suspects.”
“It’s not us,” Kira said. “And honestly, I can’t believe you would even think that we’d go behind your back. I have enough problems now that you’re gone. You didn’t come to practice last week to teach us that cheer like you promised, and Izzie fell off the human pyramid and almost died!” I gasped.
“It’s true,” Leona added. “I had to call 9-1-1.”
Kira sighed. “Tess, I know you’re on a soul-searching mission or whatever, but we don’t have time for internal investigations when our spirit is at stake! We don’t even have our routine set for homecoming!”
“Are you serious?” I demanded. Homecoming wasn’t far off, and it was a big deal for the school. We played the Ducks (our rivals), and the money raised was usually enough to buy our sports equipment for the year. But without a shiny new routine, we’d be a total disappointment.
“No offense, Kira,” Leona said. “But the squad has fallen apart. Between your lifeless cheers and Izzie’s new boyfriend, we’re not connecting on any level.”
“And what about you?” Kira shot back. “You’ve been taking electives in body shop. You show up at practice with grease on your skirt. Grease!”
I shook my head as feelings of guilt and regret rushed through me. Between therapies I had tried to sit in on as many practices as possible to help keep the transition smooth, but I had never really noticed how disjointed things had gotten. Sure, I knew there were problems the last time I’d seen their practice; their below-regulation-height herkies, for one. I just hadn’t wanted to meddle.
“Girls,” I said. “United front. Smitten Kittens don’t hold animosity toward one another.”
“Forget it,” Kira said, sniffling. “I’m trying so hard, and no one appreciates it.”
My heart broke. I hated that I’d done this to her. I’d completely overburdened her.
“Kira.” Leona sighed. “Don’t be overdramatic. I think you’re a good captain. I just think that with this SOS problem, you’re in over your head. We need Tessa’s help.”
I straightened my stiff back and adjusted the phone at my ear. “She’s right, K. You are a good captain. And I gave you the squad
because I trust you. You’re the right leader for the Smitten Kittens.”
Kira was quiet for a second. “Thanks,” she said finally, sounding more courageous. “I know we’ll pull the cheers together in time for the game.”
“I know you will too. Now,” I sighed. “Tell me about this SOS alert. I think it’s important we figure out this mess before it gets out of hand. When was it sent?”
“This morning,” Leona said, without missing a beat. “I got a call from Izzie at about nine. The message was sent to all the girls in the county—including us. Only these messages were sent to our old SOS accounts. She figured they must know—”
“Who we are,” I finished, glancing back at the screen. My stomach twisted as I thought of how someone had found out our identities…and what they would do with them.
“But I guess it’s not the first one,” Leona added. “In the beginning of the summer they had sent out a flyer, just not to us. Wonder why we got one this time?”
“A warning?” Kira asked.
“Good guess,” I said. It made total sense that whoever was sending out these messages would send one to us. Because really, it was their way of proving that they knew our identities. And a way to keep us quiet. Like a threat.
“So what’s our move?” Leona asked. “Are we going to restart the real SOS?”
“No,” I answered quickly, then clicked off the computer monitor and slowly got up from my desk chair. I had to think this through. Someone had discovered SOS, and even though I wasn’t captain anymore, I was still a Smitten Kitten at heart. I wasn’t going to let someone get away with pretending to be us. This was a forgery of the worst kind—a reputation hijack.
“Listen up, girls,” I said. “Call the rest of the squad and schedule an emergency meeting for tomorrow morning. I’d like to open an investigation of my own.”
When I came into the living room, Aiden was sprawled across the sofa, looking completely bored.
“What was that about?” he asked. “Kira have another dating disaster?”
I walked around the couch and flopped down against his legs. “No,” I said, not wanting to bring up SOS yet. “Kira doesn’t have anymore DDs. She’s settled down.”
Aiden widened his eyes. “Seriously? Kira’s got a man?”
“I told you,” I said, running my hand down Aiden’s calf as I leaned on him. “That guy she met over the summer.”
“I don’t remember.”
“They’re totally steady. Heard he’s really nice, too. Not like her usual.”
“Huh.” Aiden considered this. “Well, good for her. I felt bad after the whole Darren thing.”
“Me too.”
I pulled a peach-flavored Jolly Rancher out of my pocket and began crunching it between my teeth. I was stalling. I knew that I had to tell Aiden about the faux SOS, but I was nervous. We’d had such a nice weekend, and bringing up the super-secret snooping society that I’d once used to spy on him might ruin the mood. I was torn. “So…”
“Uh-oh. What?” Aiden rested his elbows on his knees as he stared at me intently. It made my throat tighten.
“Something…happened,” I said.
“Wait, what? Are you okay?” Aiden reached out to touch my hand protectively. It made my mouth twitch into a smile. I hadn’t felt all that protected lately.
I exhaled and closed my eyes. “Today every girl in Redmond received a solicitation from SOS.”
Aiden cleared his throat and pulled his hand away. When I looked at him, his jaw was clenched. I’d promised him that my spying days were behind me.
“But I didn’t do it!” I said quickly, knowing that SOS was still a sore subject with us. “It was a fake communication. I didn’t send it!”
“A solicitation? And none of the Sex Kittens wrote it?” Aiden asked, sounding suspicious. “It said SOS, right?”
I shook my head, feeling a little annoyed. “It’s Smitten Kittens. And yes, it said SOS, but none of them were involved.”
“But the Smitten Kittens are the only ones that know how to pull off stuff like that, right? Didn’t you keep the files?”
I furrowed my brow, surprised that Aiden would mention our files. Thing was, Leona had asked to convert all of our paper forms into electronic ones last year. But since Kira had trouble figuring out how to open the documents, we’d kept both. I’d never talked about the SOS system with Aiden, so it seemed an odd thing to bring up.
“No,” I said slowly, shaking my head. “We stored the files somewhere safe.”
Aiden stared down at the wood floor of my living room. “Well, I don’t know what to say, Tess. My money would be on a rogue Kitten. But if you’re sure…”
“No,” I said. “Kira was over ninety percent sure that it wasn’t anyone on the squad. And it definitely wasn’t me. I trust the squad. They wouldn’t do this.” Aiden shrugged and I pursed my lips, looking him over. He knew about the SOS files. In fact, Aiden knew about a lot of things. “Hey, you…you didn’t mention SOS to anyone, did you?” Like maybe Chloe Ferril?
My ex-boyfriend spun to face me so quickly that I nearly choked.
“Me?” he asked, his mouth hanging open. “You think I ratted you out to the school?” He laughed. “Oh, baby,” he said, taking my hand again. “If I was going to spill your secrets, I’d make sure to blackmail you first.” He grinned wickedly.
I couldn’t help but smile as I wondered what exactly he’d want as payment. Aiden’s hand was warm on mine. I loved that feeling—that safe feeling. He looked over, but I saw his expression change as he ran his thumb over my hand. Aiden was thinking, and that was never a good sign.
“Hey,” I said, realizing that I’d just brought up the one thing that still hurt him. “I promised you that SOS would stop spying, and we did. I wouldn’t lie to you again.”
Aiden brought his fingers to my cheek, touching it softly. “I believe you,” he whispered. “I just…I don’t want you getting yourself into trouble again.” He leaned over to give me a quick kiss.
“Okay.”
He sighed, smiling a little. “Now what did this fake Kitty have to say?”
I felt better. Aiden believed me and he was looking out for me. He was my guy, even if technically he wasn’t really. “Well,” I began, “I only saw the one e-mail. No word yet if it went beyond that, but we have an emergency meeting scheduled for tomorrow.”
“Meeting?” Aiden glanced at me. “You’re not thinking of restarting SOS, are you?”
I shook my head. “No. But the squad needs to meet to discuss this. Aiden, e-mails are going out with the SOS logo on them. Someone who knows us is a total copy-Kitten! And I need to find out who it is.”
“Copy-Kitten? Oh, baby, you’re so cute.”
“This is not a time for cute!”
“Okay, okay. I’m sorry. What can I do to help you?” he asked, his voice getting softer, as if he knew it would turn me into pistachio pudding.
I chewed on the corner of my lip. Surely with his ties to the boys at our school, Aiden would be privy to information I couldn’t get on my own.
“I need you to call Darren and some of the other guys from the team. See if they know about any funny business going on at school. But be careful not to out us. We don’t need anyone else knowing about SOS or that we’ve been heading it for the last few years.”
Aiden sighed again. “Tess, I haven’t talked to Darren in weeks. I’m not on the team anymore. I don’t even go to your school. Don’t you think it would look weird if I called him now?”
“Not if you play it smooth.”
He grinned. “Oh, I’m always smooth.”
“Are you going to call Darren or not?” But he was right. He was always smooth.
“Fine,” he said, sounding sort of annoyed. “I’ll call and check into it. But I guarantee they don’t know anything. If they did—” He stopped. Aiden knew the ramifications of our exposure. It might involve mobs with pitchforks.
“Thanks,” I whispered.
“An
ytime. I’ve got to go,” he murmured, leaning down to kiss the top of my head. “I have to hit the gym, and I have class early in the morning.”
I frowned. “Will you call me later?” I asked, not wanting to move away from him. I knew I was being clingy, but I almost couldn’t help myself. With things so different between us, I felt like I had to fight for every second with him.
Aiden paused, making my stomach twist in pretzel knots. “I’ll try,” he said. “But I have…plans tonight.”
“Oh.” Did he have a date? I pressed my lips together, trying to remind myself that ex-boyfriends were allowed to date. Especially when their ex-girlfriends spied, lied, and cheated on them. But then I reminded myself that ex-boyfriends who slept over at my house were absolutely not allowed to date anyone. Except me. The rules of ex-dating still had me all turned around.
“Let go, Tess,” Aiden said, pulling out of my grasp. Then his eyes weakened. “It’s not anything like that,” he whispered. “I just have to get in a workout, and then I’m meeting a few friends for dinner. That’s all. Don’t look so sad. You know I can’t stand it when you’re sad.”
“I know.” I tried to sound as perky as possible. Still there was an ache in my chest, a dull one, but it was there. I tried to smile. “Call me tomorrow, okay?”
“ Course, baby,” he said, moving to kiss me deeply. When he pulled away, I felt a bit calmer. But only a bit.
I watched from my seat as he walked around gathering his stuff, never glancing at me. In fact, it seemed like he was trying not to.
Before heading for the door, Aiden moved in front of me. “You know how much I care about you, right, Tess?” he asked softly.
I nodded, reaching up to put my hands on either side of his face. I kissed him, wanting to keep him here, knowing I couldn’t. When I pulled away, his eyes were closed.
“I’ll call you soon,” he said. And then he walked away.
“I love you,” I called, but the door was already closed.
Alone, I covered my face with my palms. Deep breath. I needed to stay focused. There was a copy-Kitten out there, and they’d already inflicted serious damage.