Read Online Truth Game by Anna Staniszewski - Free Book Online Page B

it’ll jog her memory about the pineapple gods.
    We pull up to Caitlin Schubert’s house, and I quickly close the app and put my phone away. Inside, Caitlin’s mom, Ms. Montelle, is bustling around the house like she can’t figure out where she left her head.
    â€œThank goodness you’re here!” she says. “This house is such a mess that I can’t even find my to-do lists for the wedding.” She laughs. “First thing on the list? Clean the house.”
    Mom smiles and assures her that we’ll take care of everything. Over the summer, we were afraid we’d lost Ms. Montelle as a client, but now that Mom is working with Ladybug Cleaners, we’re back to doing her house every weekend. I don’t even dread seeing Caitlin, though I doubt the two of us will ever be best friends or anything.
    â€œWho said planning a wedding in a month was a good idea?” Ms. Montelle is saying as she paces around the kitchen. “I must have been out of my mind!”
    Mom gives a sympathetic chuckle. “You’ll be great. Everything will work out.”
    â€œCaitlin’s been so helpful, but knowing we’re going to be on TV puts that much more pressure on everything!”
    â€œYou can rest assured that the catering will be perfect. Rachel here works at Ryan’s Bakery now.”
    Ms. Montelle turns to me. “You do? That’s wonderful!”
    I shrug. “I won’t be there the day of the wedding though. I’ll be back at the bakery. But Bri—” I freeze, remembering I’m not supposed to tell anyone about Briana being there. How is she going to keep Caitlin (or anyone) from seeing her at the wedding when Cherie will probably have her running around all day setting stuff up? But I definitely don’t want to be the one to spill Briana’s secret, so I keep my mouth shut.
    â€œHi there!” a friendly looking man with a graying beard calls from the hallway. “I’m Paul Brennan! The fiancé!” He comes over and enthusiastically shakes our hands, like he’s thrilled to meet us. He seems just as nice as Ms. Montelle and not at all what I expected a rich, big-shot guy to be like.
    Ms. Montelle smiles and puts her arm around his waist. “This whole thing has gotten so big so fast! We wanted a nice, small wedding. But as long as the groom shows up, I’ll be happy.”
    â€œHmm,” he says, pretending to mull that over. “I’ll see if I can fit it into my calendar.”
    â€œAnd a delicious wedding cake wouldn’t hurt either.” She gives me a little wink.
    As I watch Ms. Montelle and Mr. Brennan drive off to an appointment with the florist, I suddenly have an image of their perfect wedding cake again. It’s still covered in seashells, but this time, it’s a soft-blue color with a few pops of yellow to reflect their sunny personalities.
    I shake the image out of my head. Not only will I never be allowed to touch their wedding cake, but I know the one Chef Ryan is planning is way more intricate than the one in my head. There’s no way they’d be into something so ordinary.
    When Mom and I are almost done cleaning, Caitlin comes through the door with Steve Mueller. I freeze. Oh my goldfish. Steve Mueller is going to see me covered in grime and sweat and sporting neon cleaning gloves! But then I remember: I don’t care about Steve Mueller anymore. Not only is he dating Caitlin now, but I have a much better guy in my life who actually knows I exist. Still, I tear off my gloves and smooth back my hair, trying to look as presentable as possible. Just because my crush on Steve is gone doesn’t mean I want him to see me looking like a house elf.
    â€œOh hey, Rachel,” Caitlin says, and it almost sounds friendly coming out of her mouth. “How’s it going?”
    â€œGood.” I swallow, forcing myself to talk to her like we’re not on totally different ends of