Burned by Sara Shepard Page B

on a lifeguard stand, gazing at a few swimmers in the water. To the left was a heavy thicket of trees. Green, globelike fruit hung in bunches from the branches, and a sweet, pleasant odor filled the air. The trees looked just like the search images on Graham’s phone.
    Thick leaves waved over their heads, and Aria spied an envelope pinned to one of the trunks. It had the cruise line’s logo in the upper right corner. “The next clue!” she cried.
    She tore it off the trunk. Inside were instructions to put the clue back in the envelope for other hunters to find it, and then a link to a website that would tell them where to go next.
    She showed Graham what she’d found. “We rock! High five!”
    She raised her palm in the air, and Graham slapped it. Suddenly, his eyes widened at something on the beach. Aria swiveled. Two girls stood near the lifeguard stand, slathering sunscreen on their bare legs.
    “What is it?” she asked.
    Graham stuffed his hands in his pockets and turned away. “Nothing.”
    Aria squinted at him, then back at the girls. One had long, hippie-wild hair and wore Birkenstocks, and the other had pixie-short brown hair and a nose ring. She recognized both of them from the cruise ship—they’d been behind her in the waffle line at breakfast this morning. “Do they go to your school?”
    “Uh-huh,” Graham mumbled.
    “They’re cute.”
    Graham looked tortured. “Yeah, but whatever.”
    “You wouldn’t ask one of them out?”
    Graham snorted. “Like they’d say yes.”
    “Why not?”
    Graham chuckled sadly. “Honestly? I don’t know how to talk to girls—especially after Tabitha dumped me. And I don’t know why they’d want to go out with a dork who pretends he’s a knight.”
    Aria stopped next to a French-language No Parking sign and stared at him. “You’re not a dork! Look at you! You’re cute, you’re funny, you’re smart—so many girls would be dying to go out with you!”
    Graham blushed. “I doubt that.”
    Aria placed her hands on her hips. “ I don’t. And you know what? I’m going to prove it to you. With my help, you’re going to be dating one of those hotties by the end of this trip.”
    Graham’s head snapped up. “ No! ”
    “I’m serious! Now which one are you into? Elf Girl, with the nose ring, or Miss Hippie?”
    Graham chuckled at the nicknames. “Fine. I’m sort of into Elf Girl. Her real name is Tori. But seriously—nothing’s going to happen. I’ve liked her for two months, and it hasn’t gone anywhere.”
    “Have you actually ever talked to her?”
    “Well, no.” Graham buried half his foot in the sand.
    Aria groaned good-naturedly. “That should be your first clue that nothing’s going to happen. She seems perfect for you. Go offer to get her a soda from the drinks cart.”
    “Now?” Graham looked panicked.
    “Yes, now!” Aria really, really liked this idea. Here was her chance to do something nice for Graham. It was a chance to atone for Tabitha, too. Square things up with the universe. Restore her karma.
    She marched over to the drinks cart and purchased four Oranginas, two for them and two for the girls. “Now you don’t even have to buy her a drink. Just go and offer these to Elf and Hippie. That’ll strike up a conversation.”
    “About what?”
    “I don’t know!” Aria exclaimed, laughing out loud. “French beverages, whatever! Now c’mon, do it!”
    Graham licked his lips. But after a moment, the tortured look on his face fell away, and he seemed almost a little excited. “Okay,” he said.
    He padded across the sand, holding the squash-shaped bottles in his hands. The girls shaded their eyes when he approached. They accepted the drinks and unscrewed the tops. Graham squatted down and said something to Elf Girl, and Elf Girl giggled.
    Yes , Aria thought, taking a swig of her Orangina. She felt like Cupid.
    Suddenly, her phone chimed from inside her bag. She reached for it. One new text message . The sender was a