Chapter 176 - Fire For Fire

"You could have at least let me know about your plans before confessing to her!" Bryan hissed at his brother under his breath after Tom explained the current situation of things to him.

He could tell that the phone call between Sonia and Lucy had to do with this, and he knew that if he didn't handle things properly he was going to be fighting with Sonia over it. 

It wasn't like he was there when Tom decided to be Lucy's neighbor or driver. He had only been brought into the picture after Tom had done all of that, so he wasn't going to allow Sonia to give him hell over this issue.

"You're right, I should have done that. I'm sorry. I was worried about her, so I really wasn't thinking straight," Tom confessed apologetically.

"Well, the deed has been done. What do you want to do about it now?" Bryan asked curiously as he tapped his fingers on the couch thoughtfully while trying to come up with the best way to handle Sonia when she comes flying through the door like an angry dragon. 

"I wish I knew what to do. She seemed really upset," Tom said sadly.

"Rightly so. Anyone would be mad in her shoes. But seeing how she didn't hit you, I'll take that as a good sign. I'm certain she would be logical enough to see that you meant her no harm," Bryan said, sounding optimistic.

"I really hope so. What do you suggest? Should I stay away from her and give her time to think things through, or do you think I should keep showing up on her doorstep until she chooses to hear me out and forgive me?" 

"For starters, I'll suggest you hold off on the sale of the house until you're able to sort things out with her. So don't move out of that apartment yet. Allow her to make that decision herself. It's good enough that now she knows you are there because of her, so there's no need to sell it off unless she wants you to," Bryan suggested, and it was Tom who sighed this time. 

When it came to women, he was clueless. He had spent the earlier part of his life trying to be rich while guys his age focused on chasing girls.

"Don't let it bother you too much, she will come around. I will see what I can get from Sonia on it. She is on the phone with her at the moment," Bryan said, reminding Tom that his fiancee was Lucy's best friend.

"Oh, yeah! That's right. Please I would love to speak with Sonia after you talk to her," Tom pleaded, and Bryan turned when he heard Sonia slam a door.

"Sure. I'll give you a call later," Bryan said and quickly hung up. He opened his Instagram page and pretended to be busy scrolling through pictures as Sonia walked into the living room. 

His gaze remained on the phone's screen even and he heard her footsteps stop in front of him. When she said nothing after a while, he raised his head to meet her gaze and saw her glaring at him with her arms akimbo.

"At least my real name is Bryan Hank," he said, offering her a sheepish smile. 

"So you knew about it? You were aware the whole time," Sonia said in an accusatory tone, and Bryan's brows shot up.

"Yes, I knew. And so?" He fired back, returning her glare. He knew that with Sonia a simple apology wouldn't cut it, and he wasn't even ready to apologize for a crime he didn't commit, so it was best to fight her back fire for fire. 

"And so? You pretended not to know that..."

"Did I? You mean the same way you pretended not to know that my brother was your best friend's boss and kept asking me questions about him so that you could feed Lucy with information about him?" Bryan asked accusingly.

"That was different! At least she didn't go to him pretending to be someone she wasn't!" Sonia said defensively as she folded both hands in front of her.

"Seriously? Do you really want us to fight over something like this? My name is not Tom, and the last time I checked your name is definitely not Lucy either, so I don't see any reason why we are having this ridiculous argument right now! I'm not going to fight with you over their lover's spat!" Bryan said in a warning tone.

"You call this a lover's spat? How can you call something like this a lover's spat? Your brother deceived my best friend! He broke her trust, and trust doesn't come easily to her!" Sonia snapped at him. 

"Then shouldn't he be the one at the receiving end of your anger? Why am I the one you're glaring and yelling at? Do I look like my brother? Were you there when they met? Was I there? Listen to me, if you're not going to be helpful in this situation, then stay out of it!" Bryan snapped at her before moving from the couch onto his wheelchair. 

Sonia took in a deep breath to calm herself. She knew that he was right, but she hadn't exactly expected him to react this way. She had come out expecting to breathe out fire and for him to apologize, "So you're not going to apologize?" Sonia asked, standing in front of his wheelchair and blocking his path. 

Seeing how she was begging for an apology, he could tell that he had won this fight. He had successfully dodged this fight. And although he felt triumphant and wanted to smile, he didn't let it show on his face, and decided to keep up the act instead, "What am I apologizing for? You stubbornly barged into my home as my fiancee, did you expect me to come to you and give you such a family secret?" Bryan asked, meeting her gaze squarely.

"How long have you known about your brother's relationship with Lucy under false pretense?" Sonia asked without answering his question.

"Before you got there," Bryan said with an indifferent shrug.

"And when did you find out that the lady in question was my best friend?" Sonia asked once again. 

"The morning after you got here," Bryan confessed, and then reached out a hand to grab Sonia's arm, "Let's not fight over this, okay? Tom really means your friend no harm. He just wanted to be sure about her feelings for him, that's all. So rather than fight over it, let's put our heads together and figure out a way to help them be together," Bryan pleaded as he pulled her to sit on his thighs.

Sonia felt butterflies flutter in her stomach when she weakly sat on his thighs, and Bryan brushed his lips against her neck, and kissed her earlobe, "I'm still mad at you," Sonia said in a weak voice as she surrendered to him, while admitting to herself that she had lost this round to Bryan. 

"And I'm still not going to apologize because we both know that I didn't do anything wrong.. I protected my brother's interest the same way you were protecting your best friend's interest, so why don't we kiss and make up?" Bryan whispered in a husky voice as his lips found hers.