“Tanner.”
“No, don’t Tanner me. Tell me what I’m supposed to do? Huh? I do this favor for you, spend time with her so everything looks real between us, which means I fall harder for her, and now I’m on the outside again. Tell me, do you care if I date your best friend?”
The line is silent for a moment. “Tanner, I don’t care if you date Sophie. In fact, I think you’d be really good for her. Warren treated her like shit. He never took her out unless it was to some dental convention. The highlight of her life was reading the Sunday freaking paper on his balcony every other weekend. I know you, Tanner. I know how you feel about her, and I think you should be together.”
“So, what do I do?”
She huffs. “Nothing, I’ll take care of it.” Ellie hangs up, leaving me in limbo. I don’t know how much time passes until I pull back into traffic and head toward the beach. I need to escape, at least for the day.
9
Sophie
What have I done? It killed me to leave Tanner in the dead of night, but I didn’t know what else to do. I hate myself for it, especially after seeing the look on his face it gutted me.
All I wanted was to grab his arm before he could walk away, but I couldn’t. Something held me back and I knew exactly what it was . . . fear. I’m scared. Scared of getting my heart broken again. Scared to have the emotions I now feel in my heart.
Rubbing my eyes, it feels like there’s sandpaper in them. As I sit down on the couch, I can feel the ache in my muscles. I’ve never been made love to the way Tanner made love to me. I crave him even now. I try to stop myself from thinking about it, but memories of last night play on overdrive in my mind. Tanner’s hands caressing every square inch of my body, the way his lips feel on my skin. I miss it all.
My phone rings and my heart skips a beat. I want it to be Tanner, to tell him I’m sorry and that he’s not the only one hurting. My phone is on the table on the other side of the couch, so I crawl across the cushions to grab it. The second I see the name that pops up on my screen, I clench my teeth.
“What do you want?” I snap into the phone. There’s no time for niceties. Warren doesn’t deserve any of it.
Warren lets out a sigh. “Good morning to you too.”
Rolling my eyes, I jump to my feet, my steps hard as they pound against my wood floor. “Cut the crap, Warren. What do you want? I think I made it perfectly clear when you cheated on me that I never want to speak to you again. I dropped off your shit and it’s done. I don’t have anything else left of yours.”
“Jesus, Sophie, I just wanted to talk to you,” he replies, his voice sounding concerned. “Is something wrong?”
I laugh but there’s no humor in it. “Yeah, you calling me is what’s wrong. And since when did you start caring if I was okay or not? Shouldn’t you have cared about that when you cheated on me?”
“Listen, Soph. I’m so sorry for everything I’ve done. After seeing you last night, I realize I’ve made a huge mistake. By the way you’re speaking to me, I know you still hate me, but I want you to know that I still love you and I’m hoping one day you’ll forgive me. I’d do anything to have you back.” Mouth gaping, I stop mid-step and stare at the phone. Did Warren seriously just say that? The man has lost his mind. I open my mouth to speak, but then close it. “Soph, you there?” he calls out.
Taking a deep breath, I let it out slow. “I don’t know what universe you live in to think that I’d ever take you back,” I say, clenching my fists tight. “The only reason you want me back is because you know you can’t have me. And for that, I think it’s pathetic. You want forgiveness? Fine, I forgive you. Just do me a favor and don’t call me ever again. I’m sorry Warren, but I’m done. We’re over and that’s it.”
“Okay,” he murmurs. “I just think you’re making a mistake.”
And that tips me over the edge. “Goodbye, Warren.” I press the end button and squeeze the phone in my hand. “What the hell?”
My phone rings again and I’m about to go off on Warren if it’s him, but instead it’s Ellie. For a second, I pause. What if she’s calling to ask about the party? What am I going to say? Am I ready to tell her I slept with her brother? Definitely not. Holding the phone in my hand, I contemplate answering, and of course, by the time I decide to answer it’s too late. I click on her name to call her back, but she does it first.
“Hey,” I say.
She huffs. “Girl, we got some things to talk about. I’m on my way. Be there in five.” She hangs up and I close my eyes. Tanner obviously told her what happened between us. Great. The day can’t get any worse.
Hurrying to my bathroom, I take a look in the mirror. My eyes are blood shot and I look like complete and utter hell. If Ellie sees me like that, she’ll have questions. I quickly put on some concealer under my eyes and rub a little foundation over the rest of my face. It helped a little with the dark circles, but my eyes were still puffy and red.
The doorbell rings and I groan. “Here we go,” I say to my reflection in the mirror. Ellie rings the doorbell again and I huff. “I’m coming,” I shout. “Geez, give me a second.” This time she bangs on the door. I jerk it open and she’s standing there with her hand raised, dressed in a pair of pajama pants and a Tarheel sweatshirt with her blonde hair in a messy bun like myself. Her lips are pursed and there are daggers in her eyes.
“You okay?” I ask, pretty sure I’m about to get an earful.
She marches past me and tosses her purse on my couch. “What’s going on between you and Tanner?”
I hold up my hands. “Nothing. I ended it. It never should’ve happened.”
Her brows furrow. “What exactly happened?”
All I can do is stare at her. I don’t know what to say. How can you tell your best friend you slept with her brother? Her eyes widen and she slaps a hand over her mouth. “Oh my God, you slept with him?”
Averting my gaze, I turn my head away. It’s not until I hear her bursting out with laughter that I jerk my attention back to her. Holding her stomach, she laughs so hard I can see her face turning red. The whole thing confuses me. I thought she was mad at me and now I have no clue what the hell she’s laughing at.
“What’s so funny?” I ask, crossing my arms over my chest.
She holds up a hand and stands up straight. “I get now why Tanner was so pissed at me.”
That catches me off guard. “At you?”
“Yep,” she replies, nodding her head. “I just wonder why two of the smartest people I know are actually really dumb.”
“Surely, you’re not talking about me.”
I glare at her and it makes her giggle. “I sure as hell am. When my brother called me this morning, I expected to hear how you two had such an amazing night. Instead, he tells me it’s my fault that you two can’t be together.” She walks toward me and shakes her head. “What in the world is that mess? Why is he blaming me?”
Groaning, I close my eyes. “Because I told him we can’t be together.” My eyes burn and I open them, the tears falling down my cheek. I didn’t think I could shed any more. “I don’t want things to come between us. Getting involved with Tanner could complicate things. The last thing I want is you having to pick sides.”