Vanished (Private 12)

Someone European.

I laughed mournfully at my own silly turn of thoughts. Like I, Reed Brennan from Croton, Pennsylvania, was supertight with anyone, anywhere in Europe. And then it hit me like an arrow to the chest.

Upton Giles.

My very fingertips tingled and I bit my bottom lip in excitement. I could call Upton. Upton would do anything for me. He’d both said and proven so more than once. He may not have been in France, but he was in England, which was a hell of a lot closer to Paris than Easton, Connecticut.

I glanced at the clock. It was 7:15 a.m. here, which meant it was 12:15 p.m. there. Could I possibly be lucky enough to find him in his dorm room? It was worth a shot.

I quickly opened up Skype and dialed Upton’s number. It rang a few times while I looked at the hold screen and then, all of a sudden, he was there. Smiling, shirtless, Upton Giles leaned over his desk as he hit the keyboard to answer my call.

“Reed! What a fantastic surprise!”

I got an extreme close-up of his bare chest as he sat down at his desk, and then his gorgeous face was in full view again. Already, I was blushing. I may have been completely committed to Josh now, but that didn’t mean I was immune to Upton’s world-renowned hotness.

“Hi, Upton. It’s good to see you. But is there a reason you’re shirtless at noon?” I joked.

He laughed that carefree Upton-y laugh. “Do I offend?” he said, opening his arms wide.

I blushed even harder, remembering exactly what it felt like to be in those arms, leaning against that chest, listening to the beat of his heart.

Okay, Reed. Focus. This is not about that right now. This is about Noelle.

“Not at all,” I said. “But Upton, I’m actually calling because I need a favor. A huge, important favor.”

Upton’s expression grew serious. “What is it?”

“Is there any possible way you could go to Paris?” I asked, biting my lip again, this time out of extreme doubt. “Like, today?”

Upton laughed while I stayed deadly silent. “Wait. You’re serious.”

“There’s this kind of a scavenger hunt thing going on at school,” I said, making things up on the fly, “and the prize is … well, it’s something I really want. But there’s somethin

g I’m supposed to get from Paris,” I told him.

“What is it?” Upton asked.

“I have to get a note from Noelle’s grandmother excusing her from school for the next two weeks,” I said. “And I need it overnighted to me.”

There was no way he was ever going to buy this. The whole thing sounded so ridiculous, even to my own ears, that I half expected him to ask what drugs I was experimenting with.

“Why would you need to get that?” he asked. “Sounds more like something Noelle would have to get.”

“Well, we’re a team,” I told him, surprised at how easily the lies were rolling off my tongue. “The two of us.”

“Oh. Okay, then,” he said, lifting one shoulder. “Why not? I could go for some authentic croque monsieur. Plus, I worship Lenora. She’s a total minx, that one.”

“You know Noelle’s grandmother?” I asked, surprised.

“Of course I do,” Upton said, clearly surprised. “Our families go way back, remember?”

“So you think she’d be okay with this?” I asked.

“Are you kidding?” Upton said. “Woman’s got a latent wild streak that burns brighter than Noelle’s does. But Noelle could have told you all this. Is she even there?”

“Not right now,” I said, swallowing at a sudden tightness in my throat. “I came up with the idea to call you on my own.”

“Oh, okay. Well, tell her it’s done. And if she has any messages to relay to Grandma, have her text me.”