“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?”