They still hadn’t talked about downsizing their living arrangements to just one place. There was no rule yet either as to whose place they’d be staying at each week. It just sort of happened. Regina was buying her place while Brandon was leasing, so it was likely that when it happened they’d end up in her place. This week they’d been at her place all week. Brandon had driven there after they’d gone to the hospital because Regina had mentioned she needed to get some things from her place, and they’d stayed there all week.
Brandon was in the shower when she arrived. She plopped onto her sofa, feeling completely exhausted. This week had been such a drain on her emotions. Just as she drove up and saw Brandon’s Jeep in front of her place, she’d started having second thoughts about bringing up the whole Sofia thing again. Did she really want to have this discussion this week? From the way he’d acted on the way home from the gathering, she knew there was potential for it to get ugly. But that was just it. The Morenos were a major part of her sister’s life, and Bell was a major part of Regina’s, so it was inevitable that they’d be running into Sofia and Eric again and again. Regina wanted this behind them. Whatever happened between Brandon and Sofia or whatever they had was in the past, but she didn’t want any surprises. Every new thing she discovered today alone had been a blow, and she was ready to just rip the bandage off once and for all—get it all out in the open.
Bell had called her twice on the way home, but Regina wasn’t up to talking about what she knew her sister was likely calling about. She’d let both calls go to voicemail, and she saw she had one now, so she hit the voicemail button to listen to it.
“Gina, please don’t be mad at me. The only reason I brought up Brandon and Sofia again was because I wanted to make sure you knew I wasn’t trying to insinuate anything about him. Everyone agrees it was all in the past and you have nothing to be upset or worried about, okay, sissy? Call me, please. I wanna hear you tell me you love me and you forgive me. I’ll be waiting.”
Regina smiled, hanging up and hitting speed dial. As soon as her sister answered, she said exactly what she wanted to. “I love you, and there is nothing to forgive because you didn’t do anything wrong.”
She heard Bell let out a sigh of relief. “Oh good, you know I hate it when we fight.”
For the first time that she could remember all week, Regina laughed. “I’d hardly call this a fight, and how could you hate it when we never do?”
“You know what I mean,” Bell said, laughing softly. She must’ve been home now because Regina could hear Romeo in the background, squealing loudly. “Seriously, I wouldn’t have even asked Alex and Valerie to come over and talk to you today if I knew it would upset you. Sofia is a sweetheart and all and completely devoted to Eric, but the news was kind of a shock to me, so I figured it would be for you too. Alex was fairly certain that Brandon probably hadn’t told you anything about it. I hated for someone to mention it one day and catch you off guard. That could be uncomfortable. Even from what Valerie finished telling me today on the phone after you left, there isn’t a whole lot to the story, but still, if it were me, I’d hate for something like that to be brought to light in a crowd with me being the only one who didn’t know. It could make things very awkward, and I just didn’t want to risk that happening to you.”
Regina sat back slowly. Even hearing Romeo’s squealing laughter, which usually made her smile, couldn’t shake the ugly feeling she suddenly had. Valerie had called her back and told her more? She glanced up at the stairway and listened for the shower. It was still going.
“Belly Bell?” she started very apprehensively, but if she got all the information she needed to know from her sister, maybe she could avoid having to have this conversation with Brandon at all. “I’m almost afraid to ask, so please be gentle with how you lay it on me, okay?”
“What?” Bell asked, no longer laughing and also sounding as nervous as Regina.
“All he told me,” she said, lowering her voice when she heard the shower upstairs turn off and she got off the sofa, “is that they had a moment—a kiss.”
She heard the bathroom door open upstairs, so she started for the front door. Once outside, she continued. “He said she took it back right after and that was it.” She squeezed her eyes shut, afraid to ask her next question, but she had to. “What else did he leave out?”
Bell exhaled dramatically, and Regina knew that wasn’t good, so she held her breath, chewing the corner of her bottom lip. “Okay, so she called me back to tell me what she couldn’t say in front of Alex. Sarah told her it was a little more than a kiss. But you can’t say anything, Gina. Sofia confessed this to Sarah only. Her brothers and especially Eric don’t know this.”
Feeling the same irrational anger she’d felt on that ride home begin to simmer inside her, Regina gripped the phone. “How much more? Did they sleep together?”
“No,” Bell said quickly. “Well, at least I don’t think so.” Bell lowered her voice as Regina braced herself. “Valerie said it was an actual slip that Sarah even told her what Sofia had shared with her. Apparently, it’d been so long since Sarah had even thought about Brandon after you guys left Sunday, she and Valerie started talking about the incredible coincidence and how awkward it was to see Brandon for a moment there. Then Sarah mentioned how guilty Sofia had felt about the whole thing back then. Hold on,” Bell said and went quiet for a moment. Regina heard a door close and suddenly Romeo’s screeching was gone. “I came out onto the porch because I don’t want Romero to hear. Anyway, Valerie said when she asked Sarah why Sofia felt so guilty over just a kiss it was as if it dawned on Sarah that she hadn’t actually told Valerie everything. She made Valerie swear not to say anything, but even then, Valerie said it seemed as if Sarah backpedaled and toned it down. All she said was that the kiss Sofie and Brandon shared was a little longer than she’d first admitted. It actually took place in his bedroom, and Sofie confessed to Sarah that she enjoyed it more than she should have. Val says she thinks maybe there was more to the story, but it was obvious Sarah felt bad about what she’d already let slip.”
Bell paused for a moment, and the very thought sunk into the frothing cesspool of jealousy at the pit of Regina’s stomach. Of course Sofia enjoyed Brandon’s kisses—but maybe there’d been more?
“What Sarah did tell her, and again, this was strictly between her and Sofie, was that before Brandon reported back to duty,” Bell paused again almost as if she hesitated to go on but then she did, “she ran into him one last time, and he told her he was in love with her.”
The door opened behind Regina, and she turned to see Brandon standing there shirtless and wearing a pair of basketball shorts ,the kind he always put on at night before getting in bed and stripping down to nothing. This look usually excited her, but at the moment, she felt nothing but utter seething jealousy.
“Hey,” he said, looking a bit perplexed. “I thought I heard the door close. Why are you out here?”
Val says she thinks maybe there was more to the story. He told her he was in love with her.
Regina pointed at her phone but said nothing as Bell’s words played back over and over in her head. Brandon’s brows came together for a moment before he nodded and went back inside.
“Was she in love with him too?” she whispered as soon as the door closed.
“Shit! I didn’t even think to ask,” Bell said, sounding irritated with herself. “I think Valerie would’ve mentioned it, but Gina you have to promise you won’t say anything to Brandon. Valerie said it was obvious Sarah felt very uncomfortable about having let it slip. The only reason Valerie even told me is because, like me, she agreed if it were her it would definitely be something she’d want to know, and she thought you should.”
“I won’t say anything to him about that.” Regina assured her, though she wasn’t making any promises. “Is there anything else?”
“No, that’s it. Honey, you’re not upset, are you? It really was a long time ago.”
“No, no.” Regina shook her head. “I’m fine. It was a long time ago, but like you said, it’s better to know everything upfront, right?”
The call was cut short when Romeo’s squealing started up again and it turned into whining. Bell had to tend to him. Regina was getting ready to pull the plug anyway. She knew Brandon was probably already wondering why she’d taken the call outside—something she hadn’t done once since they’d been staying with each other.
She walked back in to find him sitting on the sofa. It immediately felt odd because he was just sitting there doing nothing but waiting, yet already he appeared on edge.
“How’s your dad?” he asked.
“Better, I guess.”
He sat up closer to the edge of the sofa and patted the spot next to him, but she turned the opposite way toward the kitchen table to put her things down.
“What do you mean you guess? Something wrong?”
With her back to him, she took off the light sweater she wore, placing it on the chair and was startled when she felt him touch her. She turned with a flinch, and he backed away, looking at her confused.
Regina shook her head, bringing her hand to her forehead then reached out and touched his arm lightly. “I’m sorry. I was just . . .”
“What happened?” He reached for her hand, slipping his into it, and searched her eyes. “What’s wrong?” He glanced back at the door. “Who was that you were on the phone with out there?”
“My sister, Bell,” she said, already changing her mind about bringing up Sofia.
She hated how instantly things felt tense because she was incapable of hiding the unease that the revelation of knowing he’d been in love with Sofia made her feel. Regardless of what else might’ve happened in his bedroom that had Sofia feeling so guilty, it shouldn’t matter. It was a long time ago. Regina had been in love before him too, but it did matter because she couldn’t forget how, even after all this time, Sofia’s presence alone could change his demeanor so drastically.
He was still staring at her, waiting for more. “I just wanted to ask her one last thing about Dad before I called it a night.”
Clearly that answer was not satisfactory because he continued to peer at her suspiciously. “Did something happen today?” he asked, looking down at her hands, and she clenched them in case they did the stupid shaking thing when she was feeling unnerved.
Too chicken to just address the damn subject of Sofia, she shook her head.
“I was getting worried,” he said. “You were gone later tonight than the other nights.”
His eyes appeared to still be searching for some kind of clue in hers. If he looked too deeply, he just might find it because the visual of him and Sofia gazing at each other the way they had at the gathering, coupled with Bell and Alex’s words that were now roaring in her ears, was going to give her away.
“No,” she said as casually as she could. “Valerie and Alex were there tonight, so I sat and talked with them and my sisters a little longer.”
The tiny flicker in his eyes and his nodding seemed to indicate that answered something, but his eyes continued to scrutinize her. “Maybe next time you drop me a text and let me know you’ll be a little late? If you hadn’t been here by the time I got out of the shower, I was gonna call you and see if you were okay.”
She nodded, and normally his concern for her would warm her, but she got the feeling from his tone he was worried about more. One of his regular questions all week when she’d got back from seeing her dad had been “who else was there?” This time she’d given him the answer without him having to ask, and it was the first time all week that someone besides her siblings and her mom had been there. Even with the hunch that Brandon was bothered by the fact that she’d been late because she’d been talking to Alex and Valerie, she wasn’t prepared for his next question.
“So what did Alex and Valerie have to say that compelled you to stay and chat longer, Regina?”
His tone was hard—accusatory—and it had her taking a step back. Brandon’s eyes widened slowly and glanced down at her feet.
“My sister, actually, just asked if I knew about you and Sofia.”
Instantly, he jerked his head up to glare at her. “What about me and Sofie?”
The sound of those last three words, especially coming from him, and the fact that he’d said “Sofie” despite her deliberate choice to avoid the now too-cute-to-stomach nickname, may as well have been a piece of wood grinding against rock. It ignited something within her, but she attempted to remain calm. She did not want this to turn into an argument, though given the look in his heated eyes, it already felt inevitable.
“The same thing you told me,” she said, lifting her chin. “That you two shared a moment once upon a time. She is the same Sofie you told me about, right? Or is—”
“No,” he said, his brow lifting. “She’s the same one. What else did they say?”
“What else do you think?”
That flicker she’d seen earlier in his eyes was an all-out flame now. “I don’t know. Your sister wouldn’t know much, but if Alex was telling you, I can only imagine. I doubt his spin on how things went down between me and Sofie was favorable to me.” Those blue eyes burned into her now with conviction. “I told you Sofie’s brothers never liked me.”
“You may’ve not gotten along with them Brandon, but from what I know of them, they’ve always been very sweet and fair.”
Brandon scoffed. “I’m sure they were with you. They didn’t hate you.”
“The word hate never came up once today,” she explained. “As usual, Alex was very sweet when he explained the whole thing. Since it was so long ago, he said he wasn’t even going to bring it up. He said that it just didn’t feel right not saying anything.”
Those piercing eyes went darker and harder with every word she’d said. “Yeah, I’m sure his ass was in no hurry to give you his bullshit version of what happened.”
“So why don’t you tell me your side, then?”
Both his brows shot up, and he dropped her hand. “My side?”
“I meant—”
“There’re sides now, Regina?”
“No!” she said, reaching out for his hands, but he backed away.
“What else did he tell you?”
“That’s it,” she insisted, her heart racing. Then she changed her mind, so she shook her head and watched as his already heated eyes narrowed in on hers. “He told me a lot more than you did, and,” she paused, lowering her voice, “I know now things were different than how you explained it.”
“And you believe him?” His words were laced with anger and exasperation.
She stared at him, torn between telling him what Bell had asked her not to or keep it to herself. “Brandon, it’s not that—”
“You believe him?”
His expression fell, and this time there was only one thing she heard in his lowered voice—pain. She didn’t think Sarah or Valerie had made up what Sofia herself had admitted, and it was so long ago, so she didn’t understand why he’d be so wounded by her believing it.
“Is there anything you left out?”
He stared at her for a moment, shaking his head, still incredulous, and she was suddenly filled with regret. Had Sarah gotten it wrong? Was it possible that, just like she’d forgotten that she’d never told Valerie Sofia’s secret, she’d gotten her facts wrong too?
In a flash, the hurt in his eyes changed. It wasn’t gone, but it was now accompanied by disgust. “I fucking knew it!” he said, backing up. “They got to you.”
“What?” she said, walking toward him, unable to believe how angry this made him. It only made him speed up, and he was already at the bottom of the stairs. “No one got to me. What are you talking about?”
“Is that why you took your sister’s call outside, Regina?” He pointed angrily at the front door. “To make sure I didn’t overhear your conversation? Since when do you do that?”
She shook her head, feeling like an idiot that she didn’t think her going outside to talk to Bell would set off any alarms. This was Brandon. He picked up on the smallest of details. “This is crazy. Why would they be trying to get to me?”
“Did he tell you what a worthless loser I am too?”
“No! Brandon, stop this. I’d never believe something like that anyway. I know you’re not.”
He came to an abrupt stop halfway up the stairs and stared at her for an achingly long silent moment. “But you’d question if . . .” He shook his head and started up the rest of the stairs.
Regina brought her hand to her mouth, feeling the lump at her throat growing by the second. How had this gone so wrong? Just when she’d decided to follow him up, he rushed down wearing a T-shirt now, holding his shoes in one hand and his keys in the other.
Her heart plummeted. “Where are you going?”
“Home and you know what?” He turned to her. If she didn’t know any better, he’d lost some color in his face. “Don’t worry about taking sides, babe, because I’ll tell you right now,” he said as he flung the front door open, "I won’t be pleading my case to anyone, not them or you. That family can kiss my ass, and if you believe the bullshit they’re feeding you, then you can too.”
Before her rattled brain could wrap itself around his words, she flinched at the sound of her front door slamming shut. She was frozen to that spot for too long before she finally sat down at her kitchen table.
“What just happened?” she whispered to herself, bringing her trembling hand to her mouth.
She replayed the whole argument back in her head, trying to pinpoint the exact thing that set him off.
Sides.
He thought she was taking sides, and that they’d gotten to her. About what? With her heart still at her throat, as much as she wanted to go after Brandon or at the very least call him, she decided it’d be better to give him a little time to cool off. She picked up her phone ready to call Bell again instead. Just before hitting speed dial, she changed her mind. Bell had told her everything she knew. She scrolled down her contact list, looking for Sarah’s number. She could swear she’d exchanged numbers with all the girls at one point.
Her stomach tightened as she scrolled down quickly and saw Sarah Moreno. Chewing the inside of her cheek, she mulled it over whether she should call her or not. What would she say to her? That first Valerie and then Bell had passed on Sofia’s secret—something she’d trusted Sarah with? And now Regina was calling hoping to get even more from her?
Clicking the back key, she stared at her contact list again. Unlike when she searched for Sarah’s name, she scrolled further down, slowly this time. Then she saw the name she was looking for: Sofia Diego. Did she dare?
Call me please if you need to talk about anything. I mean it, okay?
Regina remembered it feeling so odd when Sofia had said that to her. It almost felt as if there was something Sofia wanted to talk about—Brandon. Of course, Regina had no intention of taking her up on the offer, but given the circumstances, she now felt as if it were something she needed to do.
Worst case scenario, they slept together. But that still didn’t explain why he would think they were trying to get to Regina or that she would be taking sides. Sides to what? That her brothers might still think Brandon had taken advantage of Sofia? So what? Sofia obviously not only went along with it she admitted to enjoying it. And Sofia naïve? That was a joke. From the moment she met the spunky Moreno sister, naïve was the last thing Regina thought her. Somehow Regina didn’t buy that Sofia would be that naïve even way back then. Regina remembered hearing some of the funny stories the girls told while sitting around having martinis and wine in past gatherings. Sofia might be sweet, but she’d been a sneaky one. Those brothers of hers didn’t know the half of it.
The truth was that their sleeping together wouldn’t be the worst-case scenario. What if Sofia had always been secretly in love with him? What if that’s what Sarah had kept from Valerie? Regina knew firsthand how easy it’d been to fall in love with Brandon, how sweet and wonderful he could be. The thought of him reverting back to the cold Sergeant Billings she’d first met choked her up. She needed to get to the bottom of this now.
Would calling Sofia make this worse? She debated about it, going back in forth on whether to try Brandon first instead. One thing was for sure. She needed answers now. There’d be no sleep for her tonight if she didn’t get them.