Initiation (28 page)

The longer we talked, the better I felt, though. Maybe I wasn't going to have
those
things this weekend, but I had my new friends waiting for me. Maybe we'd start our own weekend traditions.

Mom and I talked for a few more minutes before hanging up.

I hurried out to the common room, ready to rejoin everyone and order breakfast. Waffles with whipped cream sounded better by the second.

“That was
so
fun!” I heard Jill say as I neared the room. “I've
never
seen jumping like that.”

“It's a clean ride for Eve Ortiz,” an announcer said.

Eve Ortiz. Why does that name sound so familiar?

I walked into the common room. Everyone was gathered around the TV.

“Sorry about that,” I said. “What DVD did you guys—”

“Up next in cross-country is two-time junior dressage champion, Lauren Towers,” the announcer called. The camera panned to me and Skyblue. I was dressed in my best navy coat, white shirt, stock tie, spotless breeches, and shiny boots. But I didn't have to see the footage to remember what I'd worn on that particular day.

This could
not
be happening.

I rested my back against the wall for support and let my body slide down.

“Omigod, it's
you
!” Jill said, turning to look at me. “I just picked a random DVD and
you're
in it?! You were on TV! You're, like, famous!”

More like
infamous, I thought, holding my head.

I was completely frozen. I couldn't move. Or breathe.

I knew I had to stop the DVD, but all I could do was stare at my “new friends.”

Everyone was about to see my accident and find out the secret I'd been trying to keep for almost two years. I was an
ex
-champion with confidence issues.

Nausea washed over me, making me woozy. I hadn't wanted
Khloe
to find out this way. And I'd only just been hours away from telling her the truth.

“LT?” Khloe said, softly.

“Khloe,”
I said.

“You never told me you were a dressage champion!” Lexa said, excitedly. “How come? That's your favorite discipline!”

Riley didn't say a word. I watched as she sat there, expressionless, taking it all in.

“Guys, that's not
our
LT!” Khloe said. “Okay, so they look a lot alike, but that's
not
Whisper.”

TV-Lauren cued Skyblue into a canter and cleared the first brush jump. I didn't need to look at the screen to remember the exact course.

Each girl kept shifting her gaze from the screen to me. But all I could do was stay along the wall, quiet.

“They're approaching the final jump,” the announcer said, his voice getting louder. “Lauren's ride is clean and her time is fastest. She is our final competitor. If Lauren and Skyblue clear this jump, they've clinched first place— and a
huge
win for Double Aces.”

“Lauren? Come sit with us!” Jill patted the seat next to her, but I didn't move.

I closed my eyes.

This was when everything had gone horribly, horribly wrong. Somehow, I tuned out the sounds of hooves skidding on grass, a body hitting the ground, and a giant, gasping crowd.

“Oh, my God,” Riley whispered.

Then I opened my eyes. Riley, Clare, Lexa, Jill, and Khloe were all staring at me.

Without breaking her stare, Khloe paused the DVD. “Lauren,” Khloe said, too slow. “Was that you?”

I looked directly into my roommate's eyes. And suddenly, I knew I had to say it.

“No,” I said, vehement. “The person on TV is
not
me.”

Twenty-four-year-old Jess Burkhart (a.k.a. Jess Ashley) writes from Brooklyn, New York. She's obsessed with sparkly things, lip gloss, and TV. She loves hanging with her bestie, watching too much TV, and shopping for all things Hello Kitty. Learn more about Jess at www.jessicaburkhart.com. Find everything Canterwood Crest at www.canterwoodcrest.com.

Other books in the

CANTERWOOD CREST SERIES:

TAKE THE REINS
CHASING BLUE
BEHIND THE BIT
TRIPLE FAULT
BEST ENEMIES
LITTLE WHITE LIES
RIVAL REVENGE
HOME SWEET DRAMA
CITY SECRETS
ELITE AMBITION
SCANDALS, RUMORS, LIES
UNFRIENDLY COMPETITION
CHOSEN

This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real locales are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author's imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

ALADDIN M!X
Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division
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www.SimonandSchuster.com
First Aladdin M!X edition January 2012
Copyright © 2012 by Jessica Burkhart
All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction
in whole or in part in any form.

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Designed by Jessica Handelman

Cover Photography Copyright © 2012 by Monica Stevenson

The text of this book was set in Venetian 301 BT.

Library of Congress Control Number 2011940168

ISBN 978-1-4424-1948-3
ISBN 978-1-4424-1949-0 (eBook)