So Many Boys (15 page)

“The psychic?” Kira gasped. “She’s the reason I hate fortune-tellers!”

Kira’s mother turned off the sink and turned to us. “Oh, no,” she said. “No more psychic hotlines in this house!”

“Mom,” Kira interrupted. “I already said I was sorry!”

Her mother adjusted her robe and cursed under her breath as she walked across the apartment toward her room. I hated when Kira and her mother fought, which was surprisingly often. My mom never yelled at me, let alone threw things in my general direction when she was angry. Kira’s household didn’t follow the same rules.

I sighed. Kira was a great friend and a hardworking captain, but I wasn’t sure I wanted her to be my matchmaker. Not after the dating debacle she got Izzie involved in this summer. Before she’d settled down with Sam, Izzie had let Kira set her up with a guy from her church. But honestly, Izzie shared part of the blame in the mess. She should have been able to recognize her own cousin!

“I’ll go to the movie,” I said, sighing. I had to do my part to reunite the Smitten Kittens. “But please understand that it’s not a real date. I still want Aiden. This is just for the squad.”

Kira clapped. “Yay! You’re going to have a new boyfriend by the end of the night!”

My stomach turned at the thought. I just wanted my old boyfriend back, but each day that passed, I could feel it becoming more unlikely. At least my fake date could help me get something back: the Smitten Kittens.

 

As I sat on Kira’s bed, listening to Izzie tearfully recount her fight with Sam, I glanced around Kira’s room, at the mixture of music posters and cheer paraphernalia. The pictures of us stuck to the mirror of her vanity, a few folded so they cut Leona’s face just enough to make her look like a Cyclops. And then there were the piles of clothes flowing from the closet. Kira had never been big into organization.

“Personally,” Leona said, ignoring Izzie’s sniffling, “I think you could do better than Sam. Have you seen that kid Franco in my Spanish class? He’s
muy caliente
.”

“Leona.” Kira stomped her foot. “You know we don’t speak Spanish, so don’t try any secret codes.” She twitched her mouth and then readjusted her stance. “Now which guy are you talking about?”

“But I like Sam,” Izzie whined.

“I understand,” I whispered. Izzie looked up, her green eyes brimming with tears. “And I’m sorry about the team too. But we’ll get through this together,” I said. “And I know that your boyfriend is number-one priority, but we also have to crack down on this copy-Kitten.”

“Speaking of,” Leona interrupted. “I haven’t received the signed release form from you or Kira yet. Are you on board for Operation Knockoff?”

Kira and I turned to each other at the same time. It looked like we’d both been slacking. “I’ll get it to you by lunch,” I said to Leona. Kira pressed her lips in a smile and turned to Leona.

“I’ll hand in mine right now.”

I shifted a little uneasily but then tried to refocus as Kira began rummaging through the crumpled papers on her dresser.

“So,” I began, looking between Izzie and Leona. “We’ll do the movies tonight, but after the show, we’ll plan the first SOS sting for tomorrow. Sound good?”

Izzie nodded, wiping at her nose with the back of her sleeve. Leona nodded approvingly. “Finally.”

And with that, SOS was officially back and ready to investigate.

Something was off about all of us, but that would change soon. Once I was a bona fide member of the squad again, people would listen. Because overall, the skirt demanded respect. Even if I wasn’t the captain anymore.

 

CASE
: 003

CLIENT
: Izzie Edwards

SUBJECT
: Samuel Facillo

 

Dear Ms. Edwards,

Thank you for your cheater request. Although we sympathize with your concerns that your college boyfriend is cheating, we regret that we cannot take on your case.

Because of your current status with the Smitten Kittens, you and your fellow cheerleaders are banned from our investigations. I’m sure you can understand the conflict.

We do hope that Mr. Facillo is in fact not cheating, but if you find out that he is, we trust you will do what’s right and carry out the relationship termination on your own.

Thank you for thinking of us. And we offer you our sincerest wishes for your future.

“YOU DID WHAT?” I DEMANDED, MY MOUTH HANG
ing open as I stared at Izzie while she drove.

“I thought they could help,” Izzie said, her face puffy from crying. She’d just admitted that she’d solicited help from the fake SOS in order to find out if Sam had been cheating on her!

“Izzie, why would you do that? Don’t you remember what happened when I spied on Aiden?” If not, the small scar on my forehead should be a reminder.

“I know! It was stupid,” she said, tears racing down her cheeks. “But what am I supposed to do? He said he wanted to take a break. Why would he need a break if there wasn’t another girl involved?”

I shook my head. Okay, I knew the stats. And I knew it was not only possible, but probable that Sam had met someone else, but that didn’t mean Izzie had the right to spy on him. “Don’t take this the wrong way,” I said softly, reaching out to touch her shoulder. “But Sam broke up with you. So technically, if he’s seeing someone else, it’s not cheating.”

Izzie whipped her head toward me so fast, the car swerved. “You think he’s seeing someone else?”

“Hey,” I said, pointing at the windshield. “Watch the road.” I was thankful to see the multiplex just ahead. “I’m not saying he is, but I just don’t want you doing something crazy out of anger.”

Izzie sniffled, resuming her gaze on the road as she turned into the movie-theater parking lot.

“That copy-Kitten can’t be trusted, Izzie. You should know that. I promise we’ll work through this. You just need to be patient.”

Izzie nodded and parked her car before turning off the engine. “You’re right,” she said quietly. “Just because I’m desperate, it doesn’t mean I can get in bed with the enemy. You know, like you did with Christian.”

My face stung and I turned quickly to look out the passenger window. Even if Izzie didn’t mean it as an insult, her words crushed me.

Izzie looked at me, her green eyes tired and sad. “I’m sorry that I didn’t come to you first, Tess,” she murmured. “But I needed a captain. I needed a leader.”

I nodded in agreement. But after the obvious disarray of the squad, I wasn’t sure if she was following the right captain anymore.

 

When we got inside, Kira hadn’t arrived yet, but Leona was waiting in front of the concession stand, tapping one size-nine sneaker in annoyance. The bright neon lights across the ceiling flashed blue, green, and red across her glasses. Chris Townsend emerged from the line behind her with two Cokes. He smiled widely at me, and I swallowed hard. I was so not ready for this.

“Chris is so cute,” Izzie whispered, her minty breath washing over the side of my face. “And you guys will look totally dreamy together.”

I twitched my nose as I waved halfheartedly to Chris, watching as he and Leona made their way over to us. Chris’s blond hair was perfectly messy, and his button-down shirt made his blue eyes stand out fantastically. And sure, he was cute enough—but he wasn’t Aiden.

“Hey, Tessa,” he said, pausing in front of me.

“Hello, Chris. You look nice.” I tried to smile.

His face brightened. “Yeah? Well…um…you look nice too.” He handed me one of the Cokes, then slid his now-empty hand in his pocket; then, as if rethinking it, he ran it through his hair instead.

“Nice shirt,” Leona mumbled from next to me, adjusting her glasses as she looked over Chris, then turned away.

He glanced at her. “Oh. Thanks.” Then he looked back to me. “So…” He let the word hang there, but I didn’t know what to say! This date wasn’t my idea. My fingers began to tremble, and I blinked quickly, chewing on my lip.

“I’m here!” Kira announced from behind us, and I turned to see her, walking up, waving her hands wildly. “Sorry I’m late.” I immediately felt better. Waiting for Kira could have been an all-night affair.

As she passed behind Chris, she looked him over (pausing to get a good look at his rear), then gave me a big thumbs-up. I laughed.

Just then, the glass doors of the cinema swung open, and Joel came running in, skidding to a stop on the tile floor when he saw us all gathered in the lobby.

“And where were you?” Kira asked, just as he opened his mouth to talk. Joel’s eyes flicked to mine, then back toward her.

“Sorry. My dad needed to put the car—”

“Whatev,” she said, waving her hand. “I had to get a ride from my
mother
because you weren’t answering your phone. I’m really unhappy.” Kira pulled her glossy lips into a pout. I looked at Leona, who groaned next to me. This was awfully uncomfortable.

“Wow, Kira. You’re so pleasant. No wonder he didn’t answer the phone.” Leona laughed, but Kira spun around so fast that it actually made us jump back a little.

“Shut your stupid mouth, Leona,” she snapped. “And stay out of it.”

My eyes widened. I’d never seen Kira lose it like this. It wasn’t like Leona’s harsh comments were something new.

“Whoa,” Leona said, holding up her hands. “Back off, Dragon Lady. I was just being observant.” When Kira seemed to calm down, Leona shrugged. “And besides, getting called stupid by
you
is almost like a compliment.”

“Okay, okay,” Joel said, stepping over to stand between my friends. “Keep it up, and you’ll both be in time-out.”

“Thanks, Dad,” Leona said, walking away toward the movie entrance to check her phone.

I glanced over at Joel to find him grinning at me. His crooked smile made me sigh. I was glad to be here. Even if I was on a tragically misguided date, it was nice to be around friends.

“Do you want some popcorn?” Chris asked, his deep voice startling me as he touched my arm.

I glanced over at the concession stand. “Sure. No butter, though.” Because those five pounds weren’t going to lose themselves.

“What?” Joel asked, shaking his head. “You have to get butter on it.” He paused, looking me over. “You’re not one of those diet girls, are you?” He leaned in to whisper. “After all, I saw you inhale an entire pizza.”

“Half!”

“And a Frappuccino.”

Ooh…he had me there. I glanced at the group, glad Kira hadn’t heard. Suddenly I felt like everyone was sizing me up. Literally.

“Tessa needs to get in shape before she comes back to the squad,” Kira said, fluffing her curls and smoothing her lips together.

Joel scoffed as he pointed to me. “You’re joking, right?” He glanced toward my…er…date. “Chris, do you believe that shit?”

“I think she looks great,” Chris said, his hand grazing mine as he stood next to me. I gulped.

“Thanks.” I tried to sound upbeat, but the idea of sitting in a darkened theater with Chris was making my stomach butterflies go from anxious to nauseous.

“Now get this girl some butter.” Joel smiled at me. “And see if they have any gummy bears. I bet she likes gummy bears.”

Hm. It just so happened that he was right.

“What about me?” Kira asked, her arms sliding around Joel’s waist from behind. “Anything you want,” he murmured over his shoulder to her, his voice low, sexy.

I felt queasy. I remembered when Aiden and I were like that. Oblivious to the people around us—just in love. I sniffled.

“Tessa.” Leona called from across the lobby. She was standing with Izzie, who even from here looked like a complete wreck. “Let’s go get seats. Now.”

I glanced at Chris, who nodded.

“See you in there,” Joel said with a smile before taking Kira’s hand and walking toward the concessions.

We parked ourselves in the back row of the near-empty theater and tried to answer the movie trivia. After a few minutes, I took out my phone and called Aiden’s dorm room, but all I got was his voice mail. I hung up.

“Stop calling him,” Leona murmured from the seat next to me. “You’re trying to look like you’re on a date.” She wasn’t even looking in my direction, but I nodded anyway.

I heard loud giggling as the theater doors opened. I turned in my seat to see Kira being followed in by both Joel and Chris. She looked completely confident. The opposite of how I felt.

“She looks so pretty,” I said.

“She always looks nice for Joel,” Izzie replied.

As Kira made her way down the aisle, Leona got up and moved to the far corner by the wall (at least four seats away from Kira) and Izzie slid over next to her. Chris carefully balanced a tub of popcorn—with butter running down its side—as he sat next to me, and Kira dropped down on my other side. Joel paused before sinking down next to Kira.

“I’ve had the worst day,” Kira said, turning to me as she fanned herself with her hand. “Mary has been calling me nonstop.”

“Really?” My back flinched. “What about now?”

“You.”

I widened my eyes. “I told her to back off,” I said. “Remember, Kira, she isn’t part of the squad anymore. You don’t have to listen to her.” Just thinking about Mary’s betrayal was making my blood boil.

Kira reached over for a handful of popcorn. “I know,” she said. “First she was rambling on about college, and honestly, Tess, you know how much I hate talking about the academic system. Mostly she wanted to hear your cheer status.”

Seemed like I was the talk of the squad lately, only no one was talking
to
me. “And what about…other things?” I asked, not sure what Kira had updated her on regarding SOS. Just then I noticed how Joel was leaning forward, listening to our conversation. He was being a bit of a snoop. “We’ll discuss this after the movie,” I whispered to Kira, leaning back in my chair.