hat kind of stories?” Jesse asked.
“You don’t have to answer,” Edward told me. He turned to Jesse. “Sophia’s made innuendos before, Jess. It’s not hard to imagine how she embellished them.” He turned back to me. “And people believe her? How can anyone take what Sophia says seriously?”
I shrugged. “People now know what you have bought me and how much you have done for me. She and Christian made sure of that. Tongues were wagging.”
“That doesn’t automatically mean we’re sleeping with you.”
“No, but my grandmother used to say, ‘La envidia es la madre del chisme.’ Envy is the mother of gossip.”
“And we know if Sophia is anything, she is envious,” Jesse said.
“Many of the girls were envious,” I told them. “As hard as it might be to believe, I think even Fani envied me.”
They were both quiet a moment. I was sure their imaginations were flooded with distasteful images. Despite what Edward predicted, I hated being the bearer of such news.
“I am sorry, Edward.”
“You’re sorry? You have no reason to be sorry. Damn. I’ll fix her good for this,” Edward swore. “Don’t you worry about us, Delia. This won’t change a thing.”
“What are you going to do, Edward? You said you wouldn’t fly off the handle.”
“I won’t, but I think it’s time my mother and I had a real heart-to-heart about Sophia and all this,” he said. “We must bring it to a head and end it one way or the other. Obviously, this can’t go on. Jesse and I have another life elsewhere and will survive, but you have to remain here and wallow in this muck.”
Jesse nodded and then smiled at me. “You know, Delia, ironically, your dating Adan Bovio will be the fastest way to put out this fire.”
“That’s no reason for her to date someone,” Edward snapped at him. “Especially Adan Bovio.”
Jesse shrugged. “If she likes him and wants to date him, it won’t do any harm. That’s all I meant. Of course, you should do only what you want to do, Delia, but it can’t hurt if you like him.”
Suddenly, I felt even more trapped. It was on the tip of my tongue to tell them the final secret, and maybe I would have done so if it were not for Sophia’s standing in the doorway and gleefully smiling in at us.
“I wonder why you don’t bring up my breakfast, Edward,” she said, “and talk to me while I’m still in my flimsy nightgown.”
The moment she said it, I brought the blanket up over my breasts. I could feel Edward’s rage. The air in the room seemed to cook in the fire from his eyes.
Jesse stepped in front of him as he started toward her. “Your mother,” Jesse reminded him. “Go speak to your mother. That’s the sensible solution, Edward. Nothing else.”
“Enjoy your breakfast and whatever else you do,” Sophia said, and walked away.
I looked at the food. Just the thought of it made my throat tighten along with my stomach.
“C’mon,” Jesse urged. “Go do what you have to do. We have to get back to L.A., too. You know what work we have yet.”
Edward took a deep breath to put out the fire in his heart. “All right. Get our stuff together. I’ll go pay my mother a visit. She doesn’t come out of her bedroom on Sundays until midday. You don’t have to wonder where Sophia gets her habits.” He squeezed my hand gently to reassure me and started out.
“Wait,” Jesse called after him. He handed him the paper. “Make sure she sees the newspaper first. It’s good psychology.”
Edward took it and smiled. “Right. When she hears how darling Sophia is dirtying our reputations in light of this, she’ll be even angrier. Maybe she’ll take away her breathing privileges,” he said, and left.
“Breathing privileges? What does that mean?”
Jesse laughed. “He’s exaggerating…but not by much,” he said. “Eat something, Delia. It’s going to be all right. Think about our trip to Mexico, and forget Sophia for a while.”
He left to get ready for their trip back to Los Angeles, and I did begin to eat some toast and jam. I thought about our trip to Mexico, too, and how wonderful it could be, especially for Ignacio and me. I would need to get the details to Ignacio as soon as Edward and Jesse planned them. Of course, I had to do all of that without his father knowing. He’d be worried that I would expose Ignacio to the police.
When I got out of bed, I realized my ankle was much improved. I did not need to use the crutches, but I was careful not to put too much pressure on that foot. After I was dressed, I picked up the tray to take downstairs but paused when I heard someone running in the hallway and then Sophia’s bedroom door slam shut. I held my breath in anticipation of more trouble.
Almost immediately, there were footsteps. I was expecting Edward, but when the door opened, it was mi tía Isabela standing there in her scarlet bathrobe, her hair down around her shoulders. I had rarely seen her without any makeup at all. She looked as if she had aged overnight. There were dark rings around her eyes, and her face was pale, almost sickly.