"But I wasn't with Bill Chase. It was Bruce Patman. How I could have spent a second with him is beyond me."

"But I saw you two on the beach together. If you were with Bruce, who's with Bill?"

They looked at each other, and the same name popped out.

"Jessica!"

Todd laughed with relief. "How do you like that? It was only Jessica."

Elizabeth shook her head, trying to straighten out her thoughts. Jessica with Bill Chase?

"What's the matter?" Todd asked.

"Bad news," Elizabeth said.

"You mean he's up to no good?"

Elizabeth shook her head sadly. "I'm afraid it's Jess who's up to no good. Bill Chase turned her down one time, and she's always sworn to get even with him if she ever got the chance."

"Well, it's probably nothing serious," Todd said. "I'm just so happy to have you back!" He grabbed her and held on, his powerful hands gripping her trembling body tightly against his. Elizabeth felt herself overflowing with love and appreciation for this strong, safe boy who held her with such passion.

"Todd," she breathed, and her mouth was on his in a deep, long kiss that she wished would last forever.

Bill and Jessica had reached that special sand dune he had mentioned, and now they stood in the moonlight, locked in each other's arms.

"Look at me and tell me again," Jessica told him.

"I love you."

"And not my sister?"

"No, never. I couldn't possibly love anyone but you."

"What's so special about me, Bill?"

"Your smile, your warmth, the sound of your voice, the touch of your lips, the feel of you in my arms. I've never been surer of anything in my life."

Jessica smiled. "Then you do love Jessica Wakefield, Bill, because that's who I am!"

Is Bill Chase caught in Jessica's trap? Find out in Sweet Valley High #8, HEARTBREAKER.

Heartbreaker.

Pascal, Francine.

Dear Reader, The minute I came up with the idea of Sweet Valley High, now thirty years ago, I knew it was perfect. But I knew it needed something else. And that something else was girl power. Unlike the Sleeping Beauty version of romance novels, where the heroine has to wait for the wake-up kiss, in my series the girls would drive the action. And there would be two of them; the good and the bad in all of us.

After that all I needed were the stories. With my three daughters and my own teenage years to draw on, I had endless possibilities. I started with a bible where I developed the characters, the school, and the town, and then began writing the stories for first twelve books, and then twelve more and more and more until I had written 144 stories. And then with the help of other writers, they became the 144 books of the Sweet Valley High series, which more than 100 million fans have loved.

And now it's all back as e-books for a whole new generation of teenagers who want to lose themselves in the world of Sweet Valley, the fantasy of the eighties, and the best high school no one ever went to.

And for the grown women who want to look back at the love of their high school lives and revel in the nostalgia of life with the most incredible twins, read away.

Sincerely, Francine Pascal.

To Marian Woodruff.

One.

"Kiss me," Jessica purred seductively in Bill's ear. "Maybe we can get it right this time."

Color flooded Bill Chase's tanned cheeks, turning them a dull brick red. Jessica knew he was really squirming. It was only a rehearsal for the drama club's spring play, but to Bill it was obviously all too real. Poor Bill, she thought, suppressing a wicked smile. He was madly in love with her. It was too good an opportunity to let pass.

They'd rehearsed this scene, the big love scene from Splendor in the Grass, at least a dozen times already. Each time Bill kissed her, Jessica insisted it wasn't right-forcing him to do it again despite his embarrassment.

"OK, I'll try," he mumbled.

Bill leaned close, squeezing his eyes shut so he wouldn't have to look at Jessica. Even so, he could still see her-those deep, deep blue-green eyes, the spun-gold hair that drifted silkily about her shoulders, her cameo of a face, perfect down to the adorable dimple that showed up in one cheek when she was smiling.

As Bill's lips hovered inches from her own, Jessica only half tried to stifle the giggle that erupted out of nowhere. Bill's eyes flew open. His face turned from dull red to crimson.

"Sorry, Bill," Jessica twittered. "I just couldn't help it. You looked so funny, all puckered up like that."

A ripple of laughter passed through the onlookers. Mr. Jaworski, the drama coach, was the only one who wasn't amused.

"I think we can call it a day," he announced dryly. "Let's all meet here same time tomorrow. And don't worry, Bill," he added, looping an arm about his leading man's shoulders, "you're doing just fine. Just relax and don't take everything so seriously."

"Sure, Bill," Jessica put in, shooting him a dazzling grin. "You did your best. It's not your fault that kissing me is such a deadly chore."

"I don't mind. I-I like kissing you," Bill stammered, then quickly hung his head, his thick blond hair fanning over his forehead, when he realized what he'd just said.

Well, it was only fair, Jessica thought. Once upon a time, she'd asked him to a Sadie Hawkins dance, and he'd done the unforgivable-he'd turned her down. Jessica never forgot an insult, especially one as serious as someone refusing the golden opportunity to go out with her. Bill Chase was only getting what he so richly deserved.

She'd been waiting for an opportunity to get back at him, and several weeks ago the perfect one had finally come along. It was during the period when her identical twin sister Elizabeth was behaving so strangely after a motorcycle accident she'd been in, and had accepted dates with two different boys on the same night. By the time Bill Chase showed up, Elizabeth was long gone with Bruce Patman. Jessica quickly stepped in, pretending to be Elizabeth. While she had Bill duped into thinking she was Elizabeth, Jessica turned on her charm full force. Bill never stood a chance. By the time he discovered the deception, it was too late. He was hopelessly hooked on Jessica.

"That was really mean, Jess."

Elizabeth cornered her twin in the hallway after the rehearsal and forced Jessica to meet her gaze. It was like looking into a mirror. The two girls were identical in every way-the same honey-and-sunshine hair, the same aquamarine eyes and perfect, even features-except that Elizabeth's face wore a concerned expression in contrast to Jessica's look of playful triumph.

"You know Bill's crazy about you," Elizabeth went on. "Did you have to rub his nose in it?"

Jessica shrugged. "I was only teasing him. I kid around with a lot of people."

"With Bill it's different, and you know it."

"Can I help it if he's in love with me?"

"Come on, Jess, that's like the spider telling the fly it's his fault for getting stuck in the web."

"Are you implying I'm responsible?" asked Jessica, fluttering her long lashes in complete innocence. "Remember, Liz, I only went out with him in the first place to save your skin. You were out with Bruce, if I recall."

Elizabeth groaned. "Ugh, don't remind me!"

Normally, Elizabeth would never have agreed to go out with Bruce Patman. That he was handsome, popular, and rich didn't change the fact that Bruce was a stuck-up creep, in her opinion. The trouble was, she hadn't been her normal self the night she'd gone to his beach house.

Jessica linked an affectionate arm through her sister's. "Not that I'm blaming you, Liz. I know you couldn't help it. After all, Bruce is so disgustingly ugly and unpopular, anyone would have had to be crazy to go out with him, right?"

Elizabeth wasn't sure how Jessica managed it, but somehow Elizabeth always found herself being defensive when it was her sister who was in the wrong.

She sighed. "Bill's not like Bruce. He's nice, and he really likes you."

"I know, I know," Jessica gloated. "It's a real problem, isn't it?"

The truth was, she was enjoying every bit of it. Bill was actually kind of cute in a cool, mysterious way, and certainly not unpopular, though not many people had gotten close to him. He was a loner who lived to surf-sort of a mystery man. Falling in love with Jessica had probably been more of a surprise to Bill himself than to anyone else. He obviously wasn't used to being out of control and didn't know how to handle it. Half the time he spent gazing at her with a moonstruck expression, the other half he spent avoiding her like the plague.

"Maybe for Bill it's a problem," Elizabeth agreed. "For you, I'm sure it's just one more broken heart to add to your list. Just be careful what you do to him."

"I don't know what you're talking about. I'm not doing anything."

"That's just the point. If you're not going to go out with him, stop leading him on."

Jessica giggled. "That might be kind of hard, since I already am his leading lady."

"Sure, Jess. I know it's all a big joke to you. Just don't get carried away, OK?"

"Anything you say, big sister." Elizabeth was older only by four minutes, but sometimes it seemed more like four years.

"Listen," Elizabeth said. "I've got to go now. I only came by to meet Todd here. Bill's elected him as a sort of unofficial cheerleader." Elizabeth's boyfriend, Todd, was the closest thing Bill had to a good friend.

"Bill's really uptight about this play, isn't he?" Jessica asked.

"Can you blame him? It's the first time he's ever gotten involved in anything like this. He's usually too busy surfing."

"Blame it on Mr. Collins. I heard he was so impressed by Bill's reading of Macbeth in English class that he practically forced Bill to try out for the play."

"Well, I'm glad he did," Elizabeth said. "I think Bill is really talented. Although," she added with a laugh, "I don't think he'll win an Academy Award for kissing you."

"Oh, my God, Liz, speaking of kissing..." Jessica leaned toward her sister, lowering her voice to a whisper. "Looks like you've got competition." She darted a look over her shoulder.

Elizabeth followed her glance, barely managing to stifle a horrified gasp. Standing beside Todd was one of the most beautiful girls Elizabeth had ever seen-and he had his arms around her! Elizabeth felt as if the bottom had dropped out of her stomach. Slowly, stiffly, she made her way toward them.

"Oh, hi, Liz!" Todd disengaged himself from Miss America's arms as he greeted Elizabeth. "Listen, I want you to meet an old friend of mine. Patsy Webber."

Elizabeth stuck out a hand that was as limp as a rag in comparison to Patsy's cool, confident grasp. "Hi," Elizabeth croaked. If Patsy was such a good friend, why hadn't she heard of her before?

"Nice to meet you, Liz."

Patsy smiled, revealing glorious white teeth and a charming dimple in her heart-shaped chin. She could be a model! Elizabeth couldn't help thinking. Patsy looked too sophisticated to be in high school. She was wearing a straw-slim skirt belted with a wide leather sash around her tiny waist, and delicate high heels. Her coppery-red hair was cut fashionably short in back, with a tumble of curls that dipped over her forehead. A pair of slanted green eyes regarded Elizabeth with friendly interest.

Immediately Elizabeth felt guilty for suspecting the worst. Patsy was probably very nice, she told herself. Why shouldn't Todd hug her if she was an old friend? That was all there was to it. She was stupid to be jealous.

"Patsy's been living in Paris," Todd explained. "Her father was transferred over there at the end of her freshman year."

Patsy sighed. "Dad's always getting transferred. Sometimes I feel like a Ping-Pong ball. But this time we're home to stay. I hope," she added with a giggle.

"Home?" Elizabeth echoed.

"Sweet Valley now. I'll be going to school here. We used to live in Palisades." Impulsively Patsy threw her arms around Todd once more. "You can't imagine how good it is to be back in the area. To see all my old friends."

She was gazing up at Todd with an expression that seemed to hint at something far more than friendship. Todd looked pleased by all the attention, as well as faintly embarrassed.

"Patsy seems nice," Elizabeth told Todd when Patsy had moved out of earshot and was talking to someone else. Elizabeth bit her lip. "Were you two very good friends?"

Todd slipped an arm about Elizabeth's shoulders. She looked up at him, marveling for the hundred thousandth time that he was hers. Tall, muscular, with wavy brown hair and velvety brown eyes, Todd was easily one of the cutest boys in Sweet Valley High. He was also the basketball team's hottest star.

Todd cleared his throat and looked away. "Actually, Liz, I used to go out with Patsy. But that was way before I met you, so don't worry. We're just friends now."

"I'm not worried," Elizabeth said quickly. It was partly true. She trusted Todd, she really did. He had stuck by her during that awful time after the motorcycle accident. The least she could do was give him the benefit of the doubt now.

It was just that Patsy seemed so different and special. It probably came from living in Paris. Dressed in comfortable old jeans and a tank top, Elizabeth felt dull and uninteresting in comparison. She was sure Todd had noticed as well.

Bill and one of the other cast members, DeeDee Gordon, joined them, and they began walking down the hall together.

"You were great, Bill," Todd reassured his friend. "Didn't you think so, Liz?"

Elizabeth nodded enthusiastically.

"Fantastic!" DeeDee chimed. She was small and athletic-looking, with a roundish face dusted lightly with freckles and merry brown eyes that peered out from a glossy dark fringe of bangs.