by Jaclyn Weist
“What do you mean?” I stopped.
“Your mom texted me instead of you. Your dad didn’t come home from jogging.”
All the air left my lungs. My dad. My mind reeled with possibilities. “Maybe he just took a different route. He does that.”
“It’s possible. But I don’t think so, and neither does anyone else.”
Someone was going to pay for ruining what was supposed to be my perfect day. I fought back tears and darted into a classroom. “Why’d they let you in on it?”
“So, you could act like everything is okay. Which you’re not doing.” Max tugged on my arm. “Come on. Please. If you’re not in the next room in two minutes, they’re going to come searching.”
“Fine.” I let him drag me to math where Mr. Reynolds was replaced by Lawrence. I kept my eyes on my paper and worked ignoring Brandon and everything else. Just having Max and an agent in my room was enough to throw me off.
And every class was like that, including our final dress rehearsal right after school. I was a basket of raw nerves, and I was going to have to pretend to be some clueless baker’s wife in a couple of hours.
A text appeared on my phone as I was getting ready for opening night. Dad sent a picture hugging Mom outside the school, and all the worry disappeared.
It’s okay, sweetie. I’m here.
Sweetie. That’s not what he called me. I frowned and went to find the agent who was supposed to be watching the entrance.
“Sir? This just came to me.” I handed him my phone.
“Yeah?” He looked over at me. “So?”
I shoved it at him. “That’s not what he calls me.”
The man glared and spoke into his mouthpiece. His accent had been hidden at first, but the more he spoke, the more it came out. I backed away, hitting Max’s number as I went around the corner.
I yelped as hands grabbed me from behind. “Get away.”
“Alayna? What’s going on?” Max’s voice was frantic and faint as the man made me drop the phone to the ground.
“Help.”
The man covered my mouth with his hands and leaned in, his face close to mine. “Your father took everything from me. Now he’ll see how it feels to have everything taken from him. It’s just a shame Brandon didn’t get ahold of you before we were caught.”
Wait, what?
“You didn’t know, did you?” He laughed. “Did you really think that Brandon, the most popular guy in school, would ever fall for a nobody like you?”
That was it.
I growled and stomped backward, instinct kicking in. Now I knew why Dad had insisted on the karate classes. They hadn’t just brought my best friend into my life. They were going to save me. I shoved my elbow into his stomach and turned, kneeing him in the groin. “Did you really think you could beat a ticked off teenage girl? Now that is a shame.”
He groaned and fell to the ground, yanking a knife from his boot as he dropped. I stomped down on his arm and felt a crack.
“Alayna?” Max ran around the corner with two agents on his heels. His eye was black, and a bruise was forming on his forehead. “He got to me first or I would have been here sooner.”
“It’s fine. He messed with the wrong baker’s wife.” I took the cuffs from the agent and leaned down on the guy so I could secure him. “Did you guys find my parents?”
Lawrence yanked the guy up to standing. “They were on their way when they got a message from you saying they’d moved the play.”
“I didn’t send—”
He chuckled. “I know. He misspelled theater, and that was enough for them to know you were in trouble.”
See? It helped to be obsessed with grammar sometimes. I leaned against the wall, trying to catch my breath. “Please tell me that was the last of them.”
“He is. We knew we had a mole, but didn’t know who it was until those texts. We were able to trace them back to him. Don’t worry, though. We’re not going to stop searching until we know for sure it’s done.”
“Thank you. Can I please go perform now?” I wiped my forehead. My makeup would have to be done all over again.
He grinned. “Break a leg.”
I turned to find Max, but he was busy talking to one of the other agents. If he wasn’t careful, he’d end up being pulled into Dad’s organization, and I wasn’t sure I’d like that.
“Twenty-five minutes!” Mrs. Carrington’s voice carried throughout the theater.
I glanced back over to Max, then went to get my makeup on. It was time.
Heather and I stared out the curtain at the auditorium. It was filling up quickly, and my heart pounded with nerves.
“Why’d I let you talk me into this?” I glanced back at Heather.
“Me? You’re the one who got yourself into this.” She smoothed her ball gown. “You’ll do great, you know.”
I shook my head. “I’m not so sure about that. Besides, I wasn’t talking about the play.”
She tipped her head, then her eyes widened. “Ah, that. You know it’s going to be perfect, right?”
“Maybe. What if it wasn’t actually him? Maybe it’s . . . it’s . . . someone else. Or maybe it’s a joke, and I just set myself up to be the laughingstock of the school.”
Heather grabbed my shoulders and turned me to face her. “It’s going to be perfect.”
“You’re sure?”
“No. But just trust me anyway.” Heather straightened my bow in my hair just as Mrs. Carrington’s voice drifted from the stage.
“Welcome to the opening night of Into the Woods. And while I would like to think you are all here for our play, I have a feeling it’s for something else.”
Laughter broke out in the theater. Another glance at the audience, and I realized most of the people out there were teenagers. Oh boy.
“Cupid? Could you come out here please?”
I closed my eyes and breathed deeply. I could do this. And hopefully not trip on the way. I stepped out in front of the curtain. Murmurs broke out as they realized who Cupid was. It was too bad that I couldn’t keep the secrecy, but it was the price I was willing to pay. I was pulling the secret admirer out of the shadows with me.
“As most of you know, a newspaper column was started where students could ask each other to the Valentine’s Dance. What Ms. Cupid here didn’t realize was that her column would become the most popular piece our newspaper has ever seen.” She paused until the clapping and cheering died down.
I didn’t know it was the most popular, but considering the several extra editions we’d had to put out, it shouldn’t have surprised me.
“Along with the column, another fun surprise emerged. A secret admirer sent out emails once a day, and I must admit, I was curious myself to see who this mystery person was. I have it on good authority they’re here tonight, so if you would please come out on stage, we’d love to meet you.”
Silence.
The crowd went quiet as we waited for whoever it could be to come onto the stage. And for a moment, I worried that it was no one. That some sick person really had been baiting, just like they’d done with the texts to me and my parents.
But then the curtain rustled, and someone walked out onto the stage surrounded by a handful of balloons. Each one of them had a poem written on it, and as the person crossed over to me, a balloon drifted away.
Cheering and clapping turned to pleas to just let go of the rest of the balloons, but I couldn’t say anything. I recognized the shoes, the person’s walk, the ring on his finger that he’d gotten from his mom.
And as the last of the balloons were let go, I ran into Max’s arms. He grabbed me and turned in a circle then set me down.
I looked up into his eyes. “You admire me?”
“No. I think I love you.”
“Good. Because I love you too.” I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him down for a kiss.
Mom fussed with my cap until I pushed her hands away. “I almost had it.”
“It’s good, Mom. Really.” I hugged h
er and turned to Dad. “I’m so glad you could be here.”
“Me too.” He pulled Mom away so they could go sit down in the crowd.
Max came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. “You know, back in kindergarten, I never would have thought we’d make it this far.”
“You didn’t think we’d graduate?” I moved my cap back to where it was before Mom messed with it. There, that was better.
He chuckled. “No, that’s not what I meant. Although, I wondered about that part too. You and your antics almost got us kicked out of school more than once.”
“Hey, it wasn’t my smoke bomb that went off in third grade.”
Heather came up. “Are you two finished? We have a graduation to attend.”
Max let go of my waist and took my hand. “Oh, was that today?”
“I think so.” We walked out and sat in our assigned seats. Max was two rows behind me, and Heather was up at the front as Valedictorian. There was an empty seat where Brandon should have been sitting. He’d been arrested along with his dad on the last day of school.
A phone went off in the middle of her speech, making me cringe. I knew that ring all too well. I turned to find my dad in the crowd, and he winked back at me. He’d stayed off the call. That was a first.
The ceremony lasted way longer than I would have liked—the joys of going to a big high school—but finally it was time to get our diplomas. As I walked across the stage, they listed the five different scholarships I received, and I shook my head. Writing scholarships, government scholarships, and a full ride to whichever school I wanted to attend. It helped having a father as a hero, and it helped even more that I took down the mole.
Truth was, I didn’t know which school I wanted to go to, and strangely enough, I was okay with that. I had a journal full of dreams to pull writing from, and that was my first priority.
“There she goes, dreaming again.” Max grabbed me for a kiss.
“Always.” I posed for a picture for our parents and then pulled Heather for another one. “Ready for our next adventure?”
Max grinned. “As long as it’s with you.”
Lost in a Fairy Tale
Timeless
Fearless
Endless
Limitless
The Luck Series
Stolen Luck
Twist of Luck
Best of Luck
More Than Just Luck
No Such Luck
Just My Luck
Lost Luck
Seeking His Luck
My Secret Crush
My Secret Santa
My Secret Valentine
Gates of Atlantis (Middle Grade)
Magicians of the Deep
Celtic Fairy Tale Romances
Leana
Keela
Jaclyn is an Idaho farm girl who grew up loving to read. She developed a love for writing at a young age and published her first book in 2013. She met her husband, Steve, at BYU, and they have six happy, crazy children who encourage her to keep writing. After owning a bookstore and running away to have adventures in Australia, they settled back down in their home in Utah. Jaclyn now spends her days herding her kids to various activities and trying to remember what she was supposed to do next. Her books include the Lost in a Fairy Tale Series ~ Endless, Timeless, Fearless, and Limitless; Magicians of the Deep; Leana; Keela; and the Luck series, which helped feed her obsession with all things Irish. You can learn more about her at www.jaclynweist.com