Deceitful (Rules of Deception 1)

I thought about the times I could have spoken to Alec in school without Ana’s noticing and there weren’t many; she and Devon seemed to be glued to my sides. “Actually, I met him right after I was released from the hospital. I went for a walk around the neighborhood to get some fresh air.”

“Your parents let you out alone?”

Shit. “No, I snuck out once, so please don’t mention it around anyone.” I waited for her to nod before I continued my tale. “Alec was jogging near our house and we kind of just started talking. And during lunch break today, I met him in the parking lot and he asked me out.”

“What are you going to do?”

My mind drew a blank and a panicky feeling wormed its way into my head as I struggled for a semi-intelligent reply. “He’s picking me up in his car and we’re going to drive around a bit and familiarize ourselves with the area. I mean, since he just moved here and I don’t really remember much about it.” Damn, I was a rambling idiot.

“Okay, but please be careful. You don’t know him very well. Keep your cell phone in your pocket and call me if he’s acting like a douche. Promise me,” she said. Her brown eyes fixed me with a stare that reminded me of Kate’s when she rummaged in other people’s brains.

I snorted, unable to help myself. “You sound like my mom.”

“Maddy, I’m serious.”

“I know.”

She relaxed against her seat.

“Don’t tell your mom we’re meeting at my house. If she calls and my mom picks up the phone, she’ll know it was a lie. Tell her we’re spending the day in Manlow. I wanted to head there anyway to go to the mall,” she said.

That was one of the moments I wished I was just a normal girl. A girl who could go shopping and hang out with her friends instead of doing the kind of work that would terrify any normal person.

“Thank you,” I said.

“And don’t think I’ll let you off the hook so easily this time. I want a detailed account of your kind-of-date.”

“And you’ll get one, I promise. I know I’ve been a bad friend . . . and I’m trying to get better, but I’m still trying to figure things out myself. I don’t even know what my life was like before. I don’t even remember why I broke up with Ryan or why I dated him in the first place. Do you know how hard that is? It’s like living someone else’s life.”

Guilt filled Ana’s face. “I’m so sorry, Maddy. Sometimes I almost forget what happened. It’s easier that way, you know?”

“I know but it’s my life. I can’t pretend it hasn’t happened.” I knew I had her. This was my chance to pry more information out of her. “Can’t you just tell me more about Ryan and me? I need to know what’s been going on before I can allow myself to consider dating someone new.” I made a mental note to tell Alec about all of this later so our stories would line up.

Ana bit her lip and nodded. “You’d been dating Ryan for a year and a half and you were the dream couple. And you really were happy, at least from the outside. But then, maybe three months before you and Ryan broke up, something changed. I don’t really know what happened. You never said anything about it, but I could see something wasn’t right.” She glanced at me and I tried to keep a straight face. “I thought you and Ryan were drifting apart. It happens. I mean, we’re only in high school, you know? But then Franny and Kristen told everyone they saw you with another guy at the lake, and it was all downhill from there.”

“How did Ryan react to the rumors?”

“It’s actually funny. He should have been furious but he never showed it. I think he didn’t believe it. He’s one of those guys who is so full of himself, it’s like he couldn’t imagine his girlfriend would ever want someone else.”

I nodded as if I understood. But the truth was, I didn’t know Ryan well enough. I hadn’t even talked to him yet. “Thanks, Ana,” I said. I wondered why Madison had kept her in the dark when she seemed like such a good friend.

We pulled up to the Chambers’ house, where, just like every other day, Linda was already waiting for me in the front yard. New flowers had been planted in the flowerbeds—purple geraniums—and the lawn was freshly mowed.

“Oh, and Ana? Could you please keep my date with Alec to yourself? Devon is uber protective at the moment. I don’t want him to threaten Alec or something. That would be too embarrassing.”

“My lips are sealed, don’t worry,” she promised.