Read Online Pretty Wanted by Elisa Ludwig - Free Book Online Page A

check,” one of the guys near us said. “Victim? Give me a break. Next thing you know, she’s going to sue someone for damages.”
    “I don’t blame her for being mad,” his girlfriend piped up. “The criminal kids are celebrities, crisscrossing the country. These girls are stuck in their boring little hometown, baking brownies on Friday night. Hell, I’d sue, too.”
    Baking brownies. If only. They had no idea what the Glitterati were capable of, or why I’d stolen from them to try to help the scholarship kids. In a way I felt nostalgic, looking at their perfectly dewy eyes. They reminded me of a simpler time, when stealing from rich jerks was the biggest challenge in my life. Now things were much more complex.
    “What I want to know is how come they haven’t caught those kids yet? Seems like they’re on the news every day,” the other guy said.
    I gulped for air. Did they even know that we were sitting right behind them? Aidan tugged his hat lower.
    The camera flashed back to the announcer who was standing at the gate of Valley Prep, the little white sign framed to his left. “For days now, members of the media have been camped out at this elite school, trying to make sense of the story, and how the actions of its two lawbreaking students have impacted an ordinarily sleepy and affluent community. Most of the teachers and staff at the school refused comment, but we did manage to speak to Latin instructor Sheila Clemons, who offered her thoughts.”
    The camera flashed to an attractive thirtysomething woman with satiny black hair and long legs emerging from a slim gray skirt. I vaguely recognized her from the halls of VP, but I’d never taken Latin.
    “Did you know these students?” the interviewer asked, frowning with faux concern.
    “I knew Aidan Murphy, yes. He was my student.”
    I looked over at Aidan. His face was slack.
    “How does it feel to see kids you’ve nurtured and trained on the run like criminals?”
    Ugh. Could the question be any more leading? I was starting to really hate the media.
    She paused and tossed her mane of hair. “For most of us here, it’s very strange. We’re trying to do the best we can to we keep the school running as usual so that those students who are following the rules and doing what they’re supposed to be doing don’t get shortchanged. But it’s a distraction, I’ll say that much.”
    The interviewer nodded sympathetically. “What would you like to see happen to them? Do you think they should be put in jail?”
    “I just hope their immature behavior isn’t rewarded with a reality show or something. They’re already getting way more attention than they deserve. No, I hope the cops find them and justice is served.”
    “What a bitch,” Aidan said.
    I looked at him, surprised at how strong his reaction was. I’d never heard him use that word before.
    Then it hit me: Sheila.
    Sheila was the name of the woman who had been sending him text messages. I’d caught them on his Droid and tried to confront him back in California, but he’d told me that it was a long story, that he couldn’t explain it because he was trying to protect me.
    Miss you, baby. That was what one of them had said. My stomach roiled, all the greasy food we’d eaten minutes before threatening to revolt. Did he have some kind of fling with his teacher ?
    His secret—all this time I’d been trying to give him the benefit of the doubt, but I realized with sinking dread that it was something much bigger than I’d ever guessed. He promised me he never lied. Secrets or lies, what was the difference? Aidan had been dishonest with me all along. Just like everyone else.
    I’d thought I could deal with whatever he was hiding, that true love was stronger than anything, but now I was starting to think differently. In the situation we were in, with so many people against us, I needed complete trust. And, bottom line, Aidan still hadn’t proved that he deserved mine.
    I looked up again. Cops were