He hated to let go, but he had to. Once on the plane, all he could think about was what happened the last time they were apart for a while. He’d long ago stopped worrying about being able to trust Sofia, and though he’d forgiven her, as much as he wanted to, he’d never forget.

With the distraction of arriving in a new country and getting settled in to his dorm, Eric’s anxiety about being away from Sofia had begun to decline. He’d all but stopped thinking about it. He was almost done unpacking when he got the text from Sofia.

I wanted to tell you before you heard from anyone else. Brandon is home for the holidays. But don’t worry, my brothers are already on it. Sal went and had a talk with him and I haven’t seen him since the day I found out he was here.

Eric felt the slow boil in his veins start up. He called her back. He didn’t give a shit about how expensive the call would be. This wasn’t a conversation he was having via text. She answered on the first ring. “So you saw him?”

“Only for a moment. He was here when Sarah and I got back from shopping the other day, talking to Angel outside.”

“Did you talk to him?” Eric gripped the phone. The memories and the thought of Sofia kissing Brandon were back like a slap.

“He said hi and he asked how I’d been then he left, and I came inside. Sal told both Angel and Alex, and well, you can imagine how they reacted. Trust me, Brandon won’t be coming around here anymore. Not if he values his life.”

“Why hadn’t you told me?”

Eric hated that Sofia had brought any doubt into their relationship. Before this happened, he would’ve never questioned anything she did or said. He told himself once he decided he would forgive her, that he’d let it go. He didn’t want to dwell on it forever, but he couldn’t help feeling resentful.

“Sal told me not to until you left. He was worried you might do something and get yourself in trouble. Eric, please don’t be mad.”

“I’m not,” he lied.

There was a short silence, then she asked. “Isn’t this call gonna be really expensive?”

Glad she brought it up, not because he cared about the money, but because he suddenly didn’t want to talk to her anymore. “Yeah, it is. I’ll text you later.”

“Eric…”

“What?” He didn’t even try to hide the incredible annoyance he was feeling at that moment.

“Don’t be mad at me… please?”

He pinched the rim of his nose and closed his eyes. “I’m not, Sof. It’s just… I gotta go.”

“I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

In all the time he’d been saying those words, this was the first time it felt forced. He knew it was only because he was so mad, but he didn’t like the feeling at all.

***

Not wanting to even chance it, Sofia went back to running at the beach. She’d do it until she knew Brandon was gone. Alex didn’t have to warn her, but he had, anyway, that if he saw Brandon so much as talk to her he’d beat his ass.

All three of her brothers were convinced he’d planned the whole thing, coercing her back to his place just to spite them all, including Eric. Of course, it made her feel like a complete idiot. If their theory held any merit, that would make her the pawn in the middle of this lifelong clash between her brothers and Brandon. The naive pawn that fell for Brandon’s plan hook, line, and sinker.

Sofia still didn’t believe Brandon had planned it, but she was done arguing with her brothers. It wasn’t like it mattered, anyhow. No matter what they thought, any type of friendship with Brandon was out of the question—a fact she was more than willing to accept. She only wished he didn’t live so close. Any time he’d be home there would be that tension between her and Eric. That same undeniable tension she’d felt over the phone when she told him about Brandon being home.

Eric had been gone less than a week, and Sofia was already missing him terribly. He hadn’t called her since that first day, but they texted everyday. He sent her pictures of the different places he visited and promised they’d go back together and visit some day.

She pulled into the parking space at the beach where she was getting ready to take her run and admired the latest pictures Eric had sent her. They were of an old marketplace he said he’d visited the day before. It looked a lot like the market places in Mexico. Even resembled Old Town San Diego, with the exception of the cobblestone streets and the European feel of the buildings just behind the marketplace.

Sofia noticed a car pull into the parking space next to hers at the same time she had and someone got out. But it wasn’t until she got out of her car that she realized it was Brandon.

“Look.” He held up a hand before she could say anything. “I know I’m supposed to stay away from you. But I just wanted to talk to you one last time. I’ll stay on this side of the car and you can stay on that side.”

She didn’t want him to notice how nervous his presence made her. Her heart raced, but it wasn’t like when her heart had raced from being near him before. It was out of fear. Fear of what her brothers would do if they found out he was here. “Did you follow me?”

“Sofia, I had to. It’s been killing me to know if you really believe what your brothers are saying, that I planned the whole thing. Because I swear to you, I didn’t.”

The fact that he followed her alone wou helanld be enough to make Alex go after him. He was just itching for a reason to rip Brandon apart. Sofia stared at him, choosing her words very carefully, because she knew she’d be repeating them to Eric later. “I believe you, Brandon. But what happened was wrong. We both knew it, and we did it anyway. Eric knows. I told him.”