I narrowed my eyes at him, hoping that Kira and Leona hadn’t heard. Aiden wasn’t a big hit with the squad lately. They seemed to think that he was the reason for my sudden decrease in pep. But I denied it wholeheartedly. I was plenty peppy! Especially when Aiden was around.
Before walking away, I leaned in to give him a quick kiss on the lips and then put the ice to my back. I limped to the kitchen table, and when I sat down, Aiden motioned with his finger for me to come back over, but I shook my head and refocused on my phone call.
“Sorry, girls. What were we talking about?” I tried to turn in my chair so that I couldn’t see Aiden anymore, but when I did, my muscle clenched again.
Butterscotch! I really hoped this wasn’t a true pulled muscle, one that would require physical therapy. I had always been very careful about stretching before any athletic exertion. Maybe I was just getting old. After all, I would be eighteen this year.
“Have you even been listening?” Leona asked with a heavy sigh.
“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.