“Then you can just wait and read about what a damn fool I was,” he said flatly.

Riley leaned forward so he could catch Kyle’s eye. “Your business has been doing great. Why would you invest with DeBussi?”

“The demand for solar panels is going up. I wanted to expand the factory, but I guess I’ll be putting that off for a while.”

Ted tapped Brandon’s calf with one foot to get his attention. “I’m surprised he didn’t come to you, too, Mr. Extreme Skier. I’m sure he knows you made some money in your heyday.”

Brandon’s mouth curved in a self-satisfied grin.

“What?” Kyle said, cluing in.

“He did come to me,” Brandon told him. “Last time he was in town. I passed on the offer.”

“Shit!” Kyle smacked the table, rattling the silverware. “Are you kidding me?”

Brandon rocked back at this unhappy response, but he was chuckling when he did. “What? You wish I’d gotten ripped off, too?”

“Pretty much,” Kyle mumbled.

“Misery loves company, huh?”

Everybody laughed except Kyle. It was always interesting to watch him interact with his stepbrother, to see how they got along, particularly since Brandon married the woman Kyle had wanted. Every once in a while, Ted saw Kyle look at Olivia with a touch of longing. It made him sad because he knew he did the same thing with Sophia, even though he professed to hate her.

Brandon polished off his second doughnut, which he must’ve bought on the way in, because Black Gold didn’t sell doughnuts. “Yeah, well, thanks for that, big brother.”

Kyle didn’t have a chance to respond. Olivia spoke up. “Do you think...”

When she paused, everyone waited expectantly. “What?” Riley asked.

She winced as if she hated saying what she was about to suggest. “Do you think Sophia could’ve known what Skip was doing?”

“No.” Callie shook her head, adamant. “Sophia wouldn’t go along with him cheating anyone, especially the people here in town.”

“I don’t think so, either,” Riley said. “It was all Skip. The guy had no shame. I heard he scammed his own parents. Took them for their retirement, their savings, everything.”

Olivia shoved the tinfoil lid of her orange juice into the plastic cup. “That’s tragic, but I’ve never been a fan of the DeBussis.”

“Who could be a fan of his brother?” Brandon asked. “That dude’s a mess.”

“I wasn’t talking about Colby,” she told him. “At least Colby doesn’t act as if he’s better than everyone else. It’s Skip’s parents who swagger around this town like they own it. You’ve seen them—in the Fourth of July parade, showing off their fancy cars.” She took a bite of the coffee cake she’d been sharing with Brandon. “Still, I would never have wished anything like this on them.”

“What’s Sophia going to do?” Callie asked, her voice filled with concern. “From what I’ve heard, Skip took all the money they had left, and now that the feds have his cash, they won’t give her a cent of it. How will she get by?”

Ted got the impression she was asking him—maybe because she glanced in his direction. “How would I know?”

“She’ll have to go to work to support her daughter,” Kyle said.

Riley disagreed. “No, her in-laws will help.”

“I don’t think they can,” Eve said. “Not after this.”

Levi set his cup down. “He ripped them off that badly?”

Eve gave him a helpless look. “From what I’ve heard. I doubt Sophia has many options. That’s why I encouraged her to apply for Ted’s housekeeper position.”

Ted nearly fell off his chair. “You what?”

“Well, I didn’t actually speak to her,” Eve said with a sheepish expression. “I just...left a message telling her that might be an option.”

“Well, it’s not an option,” Ted snapped. “That position’s not open to her.”

“Why not?” Callie asked, immediately taking Eve’s side.

“Forget it.” He waved her off. “She’s been a kept woman her whole life. She probably doesn’t know the first thing about scrubbing toilets and making dinner.”

“I don’t think she’s ever had a housekeeper,” Callie pointed out.

She’d had the money to hire an army of domestic servants. “I bet she’s had one all along,” he argued. “Besides, I’m offering $2,500 a month. That wouldn’t even cover her spa treatments.”

“You wouldn’t give her a chance if she applied?” Eve asked.

“I don’t have to answer that because she’ll never apply. I’m sure she’ll find another sugar daddy before life gets too grim, even if it means moving away.” He hoped she would leave town. Then there’d be no more risk of bumping into her when he went out. He’d spent years trying to avoid her.

Thankfully, Olivia shifted the focus of the conversation. It was a slight shift but at least his friends were no longer suggesting he employ his ex-girlfriend. “Does anyone know when the funeral will be?”

“Skip only washed up a couple of days ago,” Ted replied. “I doubt they’ve set a date, considering it’ll take some time to get the body home from Brazil.”

Kyle hooked an arm around the back of his chair. “If anyone’s interested, the funeral should be announced in the Gold Country Gazette.”

“That’s a weekly,” Noah said. “It wouldn’t be the place to go for information if they decide to have it soon.”

“Word spreads like wildfire in this town,” Brandon told them. “I’m sure we’ll hear about it.”

Riley gazed around at the group. “Who’s planning to go? Kyle and I aren’t. That’s for damn sure. I bet Noah won’t, either.”

Noah confirmed that with a muttered, “Hell, no.”

“What about the rest of you?” Riley asked.

Ted raised both hands. “Don’t look at me.”

“I’ll go, to support Sophia.” Callie wiped her mouth with a napkin.

“Me, too. It’s not like any of this is her fault.” Eve sent Ted an accusing glare.

“You don’t know that,” Ted insisted. She’d certainly stirred up enough trouble in high school. She’d also stirred his heart—and a lower part of his body—but he didn’t like to acknowledge that these days.

“We’re giving her the benefit of the doubt,” Callie said. “You should try it sometime. Anyway, I’m guessing Gail will go, too.” Gail DeMarco-O’Neal had grown up in Whiskey Creek, but she’d left for college and never moved back. After starting her own PR firm in Los Angeles, she’d married one of her clients—box-office hit Simon O’Neal—and was so busy she didn’t visit often.

“Since when did Gail become friends with Sophia?” Ted didn’t remember any type of rapport between them. Sophia had been part of a rival clique, was actually the leader of it—until the girls who were part of her posse moved away.

Eve cocked an eyebrow at him. “Gail invited Sophia to her wedding, remember?”

Seeing that the line to order food was gone, Ted stood up, intending to get his coffee. “I remember, but I thought it was strange then, and I think it’s strange now.”

Callie folded her arms. “Why?”

“Because Scott Harris was her big brother’s best friend. She knew him well.”

“I don’t think you can hold Sophia responsible for what happened to Scott,” Callie said. “She didn’t force him to drive drunk.”

He pulled out his wallet. “If it wasn’t for her, he wouldn’t have left the party.”

Callie wasn’t about to back down. “She was sixteen or seventeen, Ted. She made a mistake.”

“Oh, well. Actions have consequences. Ask Scott’s family about that the next time you see them, okay?” He’d given in to Callie’s kind of thinking once before, and Sophia had made him sorry he had.

“She probably never dreamed her actions would lead where they did.” Callie crumpled the napkin she’d used and dropped it on her plate. “Haven’t you ever done anything you regret?”

He was already on his way to the counter, so he left her question unanswered. But he had done something he regretted.

He regretted ever getting involved with Sophia.