I could sense her rolling her eyes as she fiddled with her phone. "He's a friend, so yeah."
I nodded slowly. "Like, how recently have you...spokenwith him?"
Sofia sighed as the sounds ofStopby The Spice Girls started playing. "What are you really trying to ask me, Simon?"
"Are you still fucking him?"
I heard her suck in her breath. As if she couldn't believe that I actually asked her that. "Are you still fucking Maria?" She retorted.
The intentional meaning behind our questions hung heavily between us. I felt like a schoolboy asking a girl if she wanted to go steady.
Except I'd never gone steady with a girl. As soon as I started having sex, I realized that variety was the spice of life.
But the thought of being with another girl - or worse, the thought of Sofia being with Brian or any other guy - soured my stomach.
"No. I'm not seeing anyone right now."
"Hmm," she hummed.
I breathed deeply through my nostrils as the implication that she didn't believe me rang clear. I was also painfully aware that she didn't deny that she was still seeing Brian.
When we arrived at the cabin, there was a light drizzle. I had checked the weather before we left, so I knew it would rain overnight. Come morning; it was supposed to be clear for the rest of the weekend.
As we pulled up, Barron's car was already parked. He was lifting two bags from the trunk and making his way into the cabin. Eden slowly followed behind him as she scrolled through her phone.
"I'll take your bag up to the loft," I offered. But I was talking to thin air. Sofia had already exited the vehicle in an excited flourish.
I shook my head in amusement as she embraced Eden as if they hadn't just seen each other over an hour ago.
I grabbed our bags before walking past their animated chatter and into the cabin. I placed Sofia's green duffel at the bottom of the stairs that led up to the loft. We had yet to discuss sleeping arrangements, but with the two bedrooms most likely occupied by the two couples, that left the loft. Or the couches.
I didn't want to presume where she wanted to sleep.
As I moved back outside to grab the wine and beers, I spotted Eden on her own, taking pictures of the misty-backed mountains.
I cleared my throat nervously as I approached. "Hey, Eden. Do you mind if I chat with you real quick?"
She gave me a surprised look before lowering her phone with a smile. "Sure."
I wanted to do this quickly before Barron interrupted our moment. My cousin had a habit of hovering over his fiancée.
"I owe you a huge apology."
She tipped her head with a frown. "You do?"
"Yeah. I know it's not a good idea to drag the past up, but I wasn't a good friend to you when we were teens. I disrespected you and Barron's relationship and treated you like you didn't exist."
Eden's face cleared as she took a step closer to me. "Oh, Simon. That's in the past."
I averted my gaze, willing my reddening cheeks to cool down. Admitting fault and apologizing was something I still struggled with.
"Yeah, I know. But I never apologized. We were friends, and I acted like you didn't matter."
I could see Barron stroll outside and search around for Eden. When he clocked us chatting, he moved to follow but stopped in his tracks when Eden put her hand up, letting Barron know that she was okay.
"Also. Maria." I shook my head as Eden gazed at me with soft eyes. "I'm sorry about bringing her to your engagement party. That was a dick move. I want you to know that I ended things with her."
"Oh," Eden responded with a frown. "I hope not for our sake?"
