Sweet Downfall (33 page)

He sighed. “I rest my case. I have no taste for the taken anyway.”

“Really? Then why the black eyes, man?”

He got him there, the fucker.

Alexis gave him a brotherly slap on the shoulder. “If the Yulo twins give you any more trouble, just tell me. It’s time I meddled a bit.”

“Thanks, man but I can handle the twins. I can handle them all.”

“Okay. As for Jordan, honestly, man, I’m at a loss. Jordan is cool and I like him but you are my brother.”

“I know and I’m sorry for putting you in the middle of this mess, man. Everything just went out of hand and…” He couldn’t explain further because he also didn’t understand why things turned out the way they did.

“Rad came to talk to me.”

“Yeah? He did tell me he’d ask you to kick me out of the club.”

“Yeah, something like that.”

“When you invited me to join the club years ago, you knew my only reason was our friendship, bro. Not connection, business, power, none of that. If I did something that’s contrary to the club’s code, then I will accept the expulsion. No questions. It’s up to you.”

Alexis sighed deeply. “I’m just wondering…”

“Yeah?”

“Did you leak the video?”

He smiled sadly. “You know, I’ve been waiting for you to ask me that point blank. Do you all think I did it?”

Alexis flushed a little. “All I know is that you hate the Yulos.”

Jaq shook his head and looked far away.

“Maaan, no offense…”

“No, it’s okay. I’m glad you asked and you’re honest about what you think. I’ll set the record straight once and for all. No, I did not leak the video. I’ll never do anything as despicable as that. Not to her and to anybody.”

Alexis heaved a sigh of relief. “I believe you, man. I’m sorry, I just needed to hear it from you.”

He nodded. “No apologies needed.”

“Who would do such a thing? The twins are convinced you did it.”

“Actually, the fuckers ransacked my house looking for the video but they didn’t find it. It was securely hidden in a safe. I’m the only one who knows where it is and the only one who knows the combination numbers of the lock and believe me, it’s no ordinary safe. It would take a professional thief to even open it, if he can find its location.”

“But you shot that video, right?”

He sighed and nodded.

Alexis shook his head. “Man, what the fuck were you thinking?”

“Wasn’t supposed to come out at all.”

“Anyway, so who would leak it? Somebody so pissed off at the Yulos for sure. But where would they get a copy of that vid?”

“Angie has a copy.”

Alexis removed his aviator glasses. “What?!”

He nodded. “Yup.”

“Maaan, this is getting way complicated.”

“I didn’t do it, I swear, man. It’s definitely someone from her camp.”

“But why would someone from her camp do something like that? It’s like throwing your shit at the fan and your face is right in front of it.”

He laughed. “Somehow, that analogy gives me immense satisfaction, bro. I hope it’s true. They all need to smell their own shit anyway.”

“And what about you and Angie?’

“What about her?’

“Come on man, after going through a decade of cold war with her father and brothers, you’d tell me she’s nothing to you? I’m a financier. I can spot an insufficient collateral from a mile away. ‘Fess up.”

He sighed. What he would give to feel nothing for her anymore. His life would have been so much better if Angelina Yulo had never entered it. Or would it have been?

“What can I possibly gain from caring for her still, X? More pain in the mind, the body and worst of all, the soul,” he admitted without pretense.

Alexis grew quiet, then he put his arm around his shoulders in a comforting gesture. “Come on, let’s build a house.”

Angie got up from bed. She crashed at Darry’s condo last night
.
She didn’t want to go home and face her family immediately after what happened at the Empress. She had to prepare for that.

She went to the bathroom and was greeted by a haggard-looking face in the mirror. Her eyes were red and swollen from crying last night.

She washed up and went looking for Darry. The aroma of brewing coffee brought her to the kitchen. Her BFF was already there, preparing breakfast. Or brunch.

“Hi! Did you sleep well?”

“What do you think? Look at me,” she murmured without energy and sat on a dining chair.

“Sorry, but if it were my show last night, I would have slept with a beatific smile on my lips. You definitely brought the house down, girl. I’m so proud of you!” Darry put a smoking mug of brewed coffee in front of her.

She grimaced. “You think that was funny?”

“Nope. Plain ballsy, dearest. I mean, wow! That grand finale, it was like watching a fifties movie starring Vivien Leigh. Awesome! I bet that was the most memorable birthday party Monique ever had.”

Awesome? That was the last word she’d use to describe her life right now. “My life is so fucked up I can’t tell the difference between my ass and my face anymore.”

Darry laughed. “Wow. Love the new vocab! You will be fine. Sex Symbol Angie, remember? Feisty, sexy, gorgeous, powerful! Go, girl!” Darriene served her some bacon and tomato sandwich. “Eat.”

“I’ll just have coffee.”

“Hey, you need to eat. You didn’t eat last night.”

“I can’t. I’ve no appetite.”

“Just a bite. Come on.”

She sighed and bit into the sandwich. Her stomach recoiled but she forced herself to swallow the food. After the second bite, she put the sandwich down.

“So, what’s your plan now? Are you gonna talk to Jordan?”

“I thought you were paying attention? I publicly broke up with him last night, remember?”

“Oh. That was really a break up? Seriously?”

“You don’t call slapping the mighty Jordan Lavega in the face in front of Manila’s crème de la crème serious?”

Darry shrugged. “Why would you break up with him? Granted he behaved like a Neanderthal last night, but I think it was plain male jealousy. You should be flattered.”

“Jordan doesn’t love me, Darry. He will marry me only for business reasons. He told me so.”

“He really said that?! The cad!”

“It’s okay. I don’t love him either.”

Darry looked at her sadly. “I know.”

“I thought I could do it, you know, marry him even if I don’t...even if I don’t love him that way. I thought that if he loves me at least, I could learn to love him back over the years, because I care for him. I truly do.”

Darry nodded, listening.

“But I couldn’t do it, Darry. I couldn’t bear the thought of marrying for money, for business. It’s common enough among us, but it’s not for me. I’d rather be alone.”

“And what about Jaq?”

The mere mention of that name set her off in a flash.“That good for nothing son of a bitch? I don’t ever want to see him again!”

“Okay. Hey, relax.”

“He’s done nothing but mess up my life from the beginning! He’s like a plague that won’t go away!”

“Hmm, you sound like you’ve seen a lot of him lately. Did you by any chance go to bed with him like the tabs are saying?” Darry asked her shrewdly.

She sipped her coffee.

Darry nudged her leg under the table.

“Yes! But no more! Never again!”

Darry peered at her. “Tell me, how many times did you see each other recently?”

She sighed. “A lot of times, okay?”

Darry clucked her tongue. “Girl, I have the feeling it isn’t over yet.”

“It is over!”

“Nah. Not when the sex is still hot.”

Yes. Hot sex. That was the only thing she would ever share with Jaq. Nothing more. And it wasn’t enough. She wanted more in a relationship. She wanted love, loyalty and faith. She wouldn’t get those from Jordan and she would never get them from Jaq.

“Since you’ve broken up with Jordan, why not carry on with Jaq? I know you still love him.”

She glared at her bestfriend. “How can you even say that?!”

“Well, now that you’ve admitted sleeping with Jaq again– not that I condone cheating, okay? Cheating is bad. But since it’s with Jaq, I’d take that as an exception. He’s not some random guy. He was your first love and he’s my friend so I’m inclined to side with him, you know. All these years I knew you were still pining for him but I just didn’t want to aggravate the situation by torturing you with stories about him when I knew it was an impossible situation. But now...you’re free, Ange and Jaq is still single.”

She shook her head and smiled sadly. “You’re really my bestfriend, aren’t you?”

“Jaq isn’t that bad, you know. I’ve known him all these years. My parents adore him, too. He’s a good guy, Angie.”

But Darry didn’t really know the depth of the chasm that divided her and Jaq– the hate, the distrust, the bitterness. Nobody really knew the pain she had carried inside her all these years. She had hidden it well for everyone’s comfort. “Can you imagine the headlines when that happens? Jaq and Angie are back for Sex Vid number 2.” She gave a short, hallow laugh.

“The press will have a feeding frenzy, for sure. Not that they’re not having one right now. Manilasocial’s running a video of last night’s incident. It’s viral now.”

She groaned and covered her face with her palms.

“You’ve covered all media, TV, print, radio and the internet. You and Jaq are so hot together!”

She sniffled.

“Oh dear, I’m sorry. Didn’t mean to…”

She wiped her tears with her palms and stared at her friend. “Darry, I want you to promise me that you will no longer mention Jaq in any of our conversations.”

“There you go again. Just when things have become less complicated and you have more freedom to do what you want, you’d go back to your old, uptight self.”

“Darry, I’m serious. I wanna move on. I’m so tired. So tired of living a lie. So very tired of being used by people. No more men from now on. I want to be really alone, to find myself again. I want a new life. My own life. Do you understand?”

Darry gripped her hand tightly, her eyes going misty. “I’m sorry, Ange. Okay, I won’t mention him anymore. I’m here. I will help you. I love you, you know that.”

“I know. Thank you, Darry. I wouldn’t know what to do without you.”

She silently finished her coffee.

“I need to go home, Darry.”

“Are you sure? You can stay with me for as long as you want.”

“No. I need to face them sooner or later. Might as well get it over with today.”

Chapter Thirteen

SHE USED TO DREAD MOMENTS
like this, but this time, she was looking forward to it. she knew she didn’t make a mistake. She knew in her heart, her decision was right.

She entered her father’s study.

They were all there, her father and brothers, a tribunal waiting to mete her punishment.

“Dad?”

Manolo stood up from his chair. He grabbed a handful of tabloids lying on his table and threw them at her. She just closed her eyes.

“You have gone too far, Angelina,”

She opened her eyes again and met her father’s condemning stare. Tears rolled down her cheeks. “Yes, Dad. I have gone too far and I can’t go back. I won’t go back.” She didn’t know how she was able to speak without her voice cracking.

“How many times will you embarrass this family? How many times will you hurt us, Angelina?”

She could no longer be strong for this family, not in the way they wanted her to. “And how many times will you hurt me, too Dad? How long will I have to regret my past mistakes? How many times will you remind me of that?”

Her father fell quiet.

It poured out of her like a broken dam. “I made a mistake. I fell in love with the wrong man. I have regretted every day that I hurt you, Dad, that I betrayed our family. I loved him so much but I walked away from him because I loved you more. Even if I wanted to die, I endured it because I’d rather lose him than lose you, because I wouldn’t have survived if I lost you, Dad, if I lost my family.”

She paused to breathe deeply and ease the tightness in her chest and throat. “You always measure my love for you. You always question my loyalty to this family. I tried so hard to make up. I tried so very hard, Daddy. I did everything you told me to do. I never ever wanted to hurt you again. All I ever wanted was to make you happy, to have your approval and your blessing in everything that I did, even if I was hurting inside. I love you so much, Dad.”

Her father remained silent. He stared at her, a hooded expression on his face.

She turned to her brothers. “I love you both, so much, you know that. Even if it hurt me that you hated Jaq, that you didn’t like him for me, I accepted that, too. I chose you over him. I said to myself, he was just a boyfriend and no matter how much I loved him, he can be replaced. But my brothers, no, I can never find replacements if I lost them.”