So Many Boys (20 page)

Tapping her nails on the steel seat of the Ferris wheel cart, the operative turned to look out over the parking lot, wishing the ride would stop. She was hungry. Spying sometimes did that to her. She gazed over to the food tents and—

The operative flinched when she saw her—Tessa Crimson, walking by the rows of games, laughing. But she wasn’t alone. She was walking with a guy.

Reaching to get her camera, the operative zoomed in on their faces. Tessa’s smooth features were perfect as always. Her dark, shiny hair was pulled back into a perky ponytail, flowing down behind her shoulders. Her wide smile flashed, not only drawing attention from the guy she was with, but from the filthy fair workers watching her.

The operative moved her lens, taking in the face of Tessa’s companion. It took a second from that height before she recognized him. It was
Joel Fletcher
! She gasped as she scanned him from head to toe. His hazel eyes were set off nicely against his light skin. He had on a vintage-rocker T-shirt and a faded pair of loose jeans that completed his look.

The operative clenched her jaw. “Again?” she whispered, her voice nearly a growl. As if one cheating friend wasn’t enough, now there was Tessa Crimson with an attached guy—eating a corn dog!

Was Tessa the ultimate cheating accomplice? Getting away with it all by being perky and cute. Slipping under the radar. Narrowing her eyes, the operative aimed the camera at the two of them, clicking off shot after shot until she ran out of film. She wouldn’t stand for this.

No, Tessa Crimson was going down.

When the Ferris wheel stopped, the operative climbed out, her fist clenching the strap of the satchel over her shoulder. Heading toward the parking lot, she thought about the best way to take Tessa down. She didn’t need proof this time. Tessa was a repeat offender—she’d already been through this with Christian.

About halfway across the concrete she paused, remembering the mission she’d just accomplished. Jenn and Tate.

It took a minute to find it, but when she spotted Jenn’s Honda Accord, she wasted no time. She stomped over to it, darting around cautionary glances. When no one was near, she squatted and took a metal letter opener out of her bag. She gripped it in one hand and drove it into the smooth part of the driver’s-side tire. She twisted and turned the blade, her face pulled into a snarl.

There was a hiss as the air escaped from the rubber. The operative pulled out her weapon and slid it back into her satchel as she straightened up. She doubted that Jenn knew how to change a tire. And depending on the kind of guy Tate was, he might not know either.

With that, she brought a business card out of her back pocket, kissed it, and put it in the jamb of the driver’s-side window.

Now it was time to catch a Kitten.

“THIS LOOKS DISGUSTING.” I LAUGHED, TWIRLING
the corn dog stick in my hand.

“Come on.” Joel knocked his elbow into mine as we walked across the fairgrounds. “Hot dogs covered in batter and shoved on a stick? It’s like the most delicious combination on the planet.”

I didn’t mind coming here with Joel. I was really enjoying it. Even though Kira, Leona, Izzie, and the other girls on the squad were great, I really missed having a guy around. Not in a boyfriend way, but just that male presence. In fact, it was nice to not have to worry about the boyfriend baggage.

“So Kira told me she was going to put you back on the squad,” Joel said as we passed the Ferris wheel. “Did she?”

“Yep. I am officially a Smitten Kitten, a member of the fiercest squad in Washington.”

“Ah,” Joel said. “Taking your rightful place at the helm soon, hopefully.” He finished his corn dog and tossed the stick in the trash as we passed it. “It’d be a good thing,” he added. “I was starting to think that Kira was going to lose her mind with all the practices and infighting. You all are a feisty bunch!”

I pursed my lips and then nodded. “Yeah, but we love each other.”

“So sweet,” Joel cooed, placing his hand over his heart.

“Zip your lip!”

“Wait.” Joel took my arm and pulled me sideways. “We have to go see this!”

“What?” I followed him as he dragged me over to the haunted house, which was really a renovated trailer. “They might have real ax-wielding murderers in there,” I said, raising my eyebrow.

“Don’t worry,” he whispered as he paid the carnie in tickets. “I’m a trained assassin.”

“Wow.”

“Yep. Deadly. Ninja-like reflexes.”

I laughed and walked into the haunted house behind him, pausing to throw out my half-eaten corn dog before going in.

The haunted house was a bit of a letdown. The cart stalled out once, stranding us in a small room among a sea of glowing red eyes. Only most of the bulbs had burned out, so there was just a lot of winking lights going on. Despite the non-scare factor, Joel made bad jokes the entire time, so it was sort of fun.

And after about two hours and
three
rides on the super-slide, I was exhausted—filled with confectionary sugar and ready to go. We were halfway to his car (still needing to jump my own) when my phone vibrated in my pocket.

“It’s Kira,” I said, looking down at it as I pulled it out. “Tell her I say hi,” Joel replied, reaching into his jeans to take out his car keys.

The minute I clicked on the phone and put it to my ear, Kira started talking.

“We’re at the gymnasium,” she said in a monotone. “You need to meet us here.”

“Oh…” I looked over at Joel, surprised by Kira’s tone. “Did something—”

“And bring Joel with you,” Kira interrupted, and then hung up.

My breath caught and I stopped walking, pulling the phone slowly from my ear to look at it. Guilt consumed me.

“Everything okay?” Joel asked, clicking the locks of his car. I brought my eyes to his soft hazel ones, wondering if I’d done something wrong.

“She wants me to meet her at the gym,” I said, swallowing hard.

“Cool. Your car is parked there anyway. I’ll drop you off.”

“Actually,” I said, moving past him to his passenger door. “She wants to see both of us.”

Joel looked back at me, then shrugged and walked around the front of his car to his door. He might not look fazed, but something in Kira’s voice worried me. And I had a feeling the fair might not have been a good idea after all.

 

Kira shifted on her sneakered feet, glaring at me as we walked into the gymnasium. Then she softened her eyes and looked to Joel. “Hi, honey,” she said with exaggerated sweetness as her voice echoed across the court. “I’ve been wondering where you were.” She was smiling, but I could tell by the shallowness of her dimples that it was forced.

“Hey.” Joel left my side and walked across the gymnasium to Kira, kissing her cheek when he got there. He’d fixed my car before we came in just in case. In case of what, I wasn’t sure. “It took a while,” Joel told Kira. “Tessa needed a jump.”

Leona coughed at his word choice.

He darted a glance at her before continuing. “Then I figured since I had to bring her back here, I’d stop by the fair at the mall and get a corn dog.”

“You’re so adorable,” Kira said, reaching up to pet his chin. I felt a small twinge of discomfort.

The gym doors swung open and Izzie came running in. “Girls,” she called. “There’s something you have to see.…” She stopped in her tracks, noticing Joel. “Oh. Hi, Joel,” she said, looking between him and the rest of the squad.

He laughed. “Where’s the fire, Izzie?”

Izzie took her hair in her hand and twisted, a sure sign of her nervousness. “It…” I could tell she was struggling to find an answer.

“Is that the new jacket you wanted from Hollister?” Kira interrupted, her eyes narrowed slightly.

“Yes,” Izzie snapped, sighing. “The jacket. Isn’t it great?”

Joel nodded, not catching on in the slightest. Normally I would have politely asked him to leave, but judging by Kira’s protective hand on his bicep, it wasn’t my place. And I had a feeling that she was already pretty ticked at me.

“Mind if I meet you after practice?” she asked him, flicking her eyes toward me once. I lowered my head.

“That’s cool,” he said. “Call me when you’re done and I’ll pick you up.”

They embraced quickly, and I felt further out of place. I wrapped my arms around myself in a hug. When they separated, Joel waved to the other girls and walked past me on the way to the exit.

“And thanks for hanging out, Tess. It was really fun.” His smile was innocent, friendly. But I could practically feel the daggers coming my way from Kira.

“Bye,” I said casually, not returning his compliment.

Pressing his lips together and raising his eyebrows in a “what’s up” gesture, Joel raised his hand to me and crossed to the double doors. I regretted not being able to return his enthusiasm, but I could feel the hot water boiling around me. When Joel was gone, I looked over at Kira.

She was watching me, twisting a blonde curl around her finger. Her eyes were wide and innocent, but I knew Kira. That expression was hiding something underneath.

“Are you upset with me?” I asked, walking toward her.

She laughed, dropping her arms at her sides. “Of course not. Why would I be mad? You’re Tessa. So you get your pick, right?”

I gasped. Leona mumbled something I couldn’t quite catch before walking to the bleachers.

“Kira!” Was she implying that I was trying to steal her boyfriend? That was completely uncalled for! I put my fists on my hips. “What do you mean by that?”

“Izzie,” she said, holding out her hand. “Can you give me the pictures again?”

“Sure.” Izzie sounded absolutely defeated. “There was also an update on the blog,” she whispered. She darted a glance at me and then pulled a few glossy pages of pictures from her backpack. She marched over and handed them to Kira, peering over her shoulder.

“Oh, look,” Kira said sarcastically. “You’re super-photogenic, Tess!” She jutted out her hand, the papers flapping. I took them from her and looked down.

TGI Friday’s! Someone had been spying on me! I swallowed hard as I sorted through the pictures. They were from the fair, when I was with Joel. Only, the way the pictures looked, I was
with
Joel.

There were several frames of us staring at each other, laughing. Even the moment when he had to reach over to wipe a bit of whipped cream off my chin. We looked rather…cozy.

“It’s not what it seems,” I said, glancing up at Kira.

She watched me for a minute, seeming to think it over. “Someone dropped these in an unmarked envelope taped to my front door a little while ago.” She sighed, maybe suddenly recognizing that I hadn’t actually done anything wrong. “Either way, it’s obvious that you’re their target,” she said. “I think it’s time you start keeping a lower profile, Tess. Maybe Mary was right. Maybe the Smitten Kittens aren’t for you after all.”

The annoyance in her voice was palpable. She turned toward the bleachers, picking at her manicure.

“You can’t just take it back like that,” I called to her.

She spun to face me. “Can’t I?”

“Wait,” Leona said, holding up her finger. I was happy someone was going to stick up for me. “This can be a good thing.”

“It is?” Kira asked, looking over her shoulder at her. I glared at Leona, unsure how my dismissal from the squad could ever be a positive thing.

“Not the Smitten Kitten stuff.” Leona shook her head. “The spying on Tessa. We can use it. Use it to lure out the copy-Kitten. And I have an idea,” she added, starting to smile at me. “But it’s kinda crazy.”

“How crazy?” I asked, my heart beginning to speed up at the look of excitement on Leona’s face. If anyone could make sense of the situation, it was Leona. She was amazingly logical.

“Faked affair,” she said, nodding and licking at her teeth. “One between you and Joel.”

“Oh, that sounds brilliant,” Kira snapped fiercely. “My boyfriend is not a pawn in your game of checkers.”

“It’s chess, you dumb blonde. Now
what
is your deal?” Leona shouted at her, standing up. “You’ve been a total bitch since becoming captain. Do you have chronic PMS or what?”

“Um.” Izzie raised her hand. “PMS is a real condition. I don’t think we should joke about it.”

“Shut up!” both Leona and Kira said to her at the same time. I gasped. Were my Kittens about to tango?

Kira straightened and then climbed atop a bleacher so that she stood a foot higher than Leona. “You don’t know anything,” Kira hissed at her.

“You mean, other than the fact that your insecurities are making you a jealous maniac? And I’m not just talking about Joel here.”

“Leona,” I scolded, marching over to them.

“Stay out of this, Tessa,” Kira said without looking at me. I stopped, staring at her. But Kira was going skirt to skirt with Leona, locked in some ancient art of intimidation.

“She’s our true captain,” Leona said through a clenched jaw. It made me think they’d had this conversation before—maybe about me getting back on the squad.

“Doesn’t mean I have to stand by and watch it.”

“Watch what?” My heart was pounding in my chest. I felt like I was coming in late to an argument, but I’d been here from the start. From the start of everything.

Both Kira and Leona ignored me for a minute, and then Kira dropped her head. “Whatever,” she said, waving her hand. “Do what you want, but count me out. I’m not putting my boyfriend up for grabs for the sake of Tessa’s reputation.”

Before Leona could respond, Kira hopped down from the bleachers and grabbed up her backpack from the gym floor. She looked up once and met my eyes.

“Sorry,” she said to me, her blue eyes glassy. “I’m not trying to hurt your feelings, Tess. But…you know what they say.” She put her pack over her shoulder. “Keep your friends close, but your best friends even closer.”