Page 14 of Loving Lies (Granton University 3)

“Love you too.” As the door closed, Tess slumped down onto her mattress next to her backpack and picked at a chip on her fingernail polish. She hadn’t repainted her nails since the weekend before the shooting, when her family had gone snow skiing with Bailey’s family.

Everything seemed to be timed for before and after that day. She hated how important it had become.

When noises from the room next door told Tess her suitemate was home, she blew out a sigh of relief and padded through her bathroom to knock on the door on the other side. One of her suitemates, Mariah, had dropped out of Granton the day after the shooting, just as quite a few other students had. The other suitemate—

“Come in,” Paige’s voice called.

“Hey, sweetness.” Tess bulldozed inside. “Bailey went out for breakfast, so I’m all alo—” She gasped to a halt when she realized Paige had company. “—lone,” she finished lamely.

She still wasn’t used to Paige having a boyfriend. And Logan Xander just had to be one of those hot specimens that rendered her brain-dead.

“I…I’m sorry.” She backed her way into the bathroom and hooked her thumb over her shoulder. “I didn’t realize you—”

“It’s okay.” Paige smiled, waving her back. “Come on in. We’re just kicking back for a minute.”

She sat cuddled on her single-sized bed with Logan as they held hands. With his arm in a sling, he looked tired and pale as he rested his cheek on Paige’s shoulder. He’d only been out of the hospital for a few days, but Tess wondered if he’d left too soon. He didn’t look well at all. She hoped he was getting enough sleep and eating right. The first step toward good health was making sure to take care of the basic essentials.

Not that she’d ever have the courage to say any of that to Logan’s face.

“Did your first class of the day get cancelled too?” Paige asked.

Tess dragged her gaze away from the yummy mess that was Paige’s boyfriend and nodded. “Yeah. You guys?”

They both nodded. Logan closed his eyes and sank closer to Paige while she idly sifted her fingers over his short hair. “Want to keep us company?” she asked, glancing toward Tess.

“Umm…” Tess shook head. “No thanks. Actually…” An idea struck her. “Actually, I need to do a little research. Have either of you heard of a football player named Jonah Abbott?”

“No, I haven’t,” Logan answered, opening his eyes just enough to glance up at Paige. “You?”

She wrinkled her brow and murmured, “No. I don’t think so, but that name sounds kind of familiar for some reason. Maybe…no. Sorry, I just can’t place it.”

Tess didn’t dare tell her about his association to Einstein. Paige had been the only person to try to befriend Einstein, and it was anyone’s guess what bringing up his name would do to her. Actually, Tess just feared speaking his name aloud, period. Bad juju and all that. She hadn’t even been able to tell Bailey that he’d been Jonah’s roommate when she’d found out last night.

It still sent a spooky shiver up her spine every time she thought about it. No way would she be able to tell Jonah himself he’d roomed with the very boy who’d tried to kill him.

“Well, Jonah was shot three times in the…in…” Tess stumbled when both Logan and Paige winced. Logan’s hand flitted toward his own healing bullet wound on his chest. “Anyway, I met him yesterday when Bailey and I volunteered at the hospital. And I guess he hit his head pretty hard when he fell after being shot. He was in a coma for a week or so, and when he woke up, he had amnesia. None of his family or friends have come to visit him. I was trying to find out as much about him as possible so I could, I don’t know, give him a file of information about himself to maybe help jog his memory.”

“Well, that’s sweet of you,” Paige murmured. “But, wow, that poor guy. It’s hard to believe he hasn’t had any visitors.”

“You said he played football?” Logan asked, squinting. “Maybe you could talk to his coaches or other players. I’m sure one of them would want to see him.”

Tess bit her lip thoughtfully. Talk to hot jock guys? Yeah, that would be unlikely. “That’s a good idea,” she said, sending Logan a stiff smile. “I have his parents’ address, too. When I have some free time…” Her words drifted off as she realized she probably had time now. “Oh! You know, with all the professors cancelling classes today, I think I’ll go see if I can talk to them right now. They don’t live that far away. Will you guys let Bailey know where I went, if you see her?”

Tess hated GPS navigation systems. When she needed their guidance the most, they led her out into the middle of a cornfield. Literally. Gritting her teeth, she pressed the gas until she came to the next intersection with a county mile marker, telling her she was indeed on the correct road.

Hmm. That was odd. Going straight, she drove on until she reached the next house another half a mile down. Squinting at the mailbox, she saw that the freaking navigation system had been right. Tess pulled Bailey’s car into the driveway and turned around to head back the way she’d come. When she didn’t see another house for two more miles, she decided Jonah’s permanent address should lie between this house and the last one she’d passed, which just couldn’t be, unless the university had had the wrong information posted.

Frustrated and not sure what to do now, she started back home. Passing through the small town of Bristol, she stopped at their one stop light and waited for it to turn green as she tapped her fingers on the steering wheel. Talk about a total waste of the day.

When the light changed, she pressed the gas and rolled through the intersection. But as she passed a convenience store, she pulled in. There might be one more option she could try before leaving town. After the three-hour round trip this was going to take, she wanted to be absolutely certain she’d tried every possibility before giving up hope on Jonah’s family.

She filled up Bailey’s car, since Bailey didn’t mind if she borrowed it as long as she topped it off with gas. Then she went inside to pay. The clerk behind the counter had a phone book, thank God, and he was kind enough to let Tess borrow it. Thirty seconds later, she found the address and phone number for Ted and Phyllis Abbott. And it had been nowhere near the address in the school directory.

Which made everything even stranger.

“Excuse me.” She smiled hopefully at the clerk. “Do you know where Whispering Pines Road is?”

He scowled, looking slightly confused. “I know where the Whispering Pines trailer park is.” He winced and raised a hand to rub

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