Chapter 22 #3
I don’t see anything at all about the house in Brookline, and since Sophia seems to post on social media a lot, it makes me hopeful that she didn’t own any part of it.
I know that only Josh’s name was on the deed, otherwise Lauren wouldn’t have been able to get it transferred into her name after his death.
According to Woody, Sophia was the one who had met with him most often about the renovation.
Josh was only there for a few of their meetings, though he was the one footing the bill.
What I don’t know is whether she had any money tied up in the house, and that feels like it should be an immediate concern here.
Lauren has worked so hard to build a new life for her and her girls in that house, and the thought that Sophia might have any stake in it is unbearable.
I close out of my social media app and rest my head back against the padded headboard of the hotel bed, thinking about how in November, Sophia posted a selfie saying she had the flu and was going to miss out on an epic ski trip to the Pacific Northwest.
So, she was supposed to be there—on the “epic” trip that killed the other seven skiers who went.
The rabbit hole of images and information I just went down has left me famished, and I must have been scrolling for a long time because it’s already dinner time.
I contemplate going out somewhere, but I don’t want to be around people right now.
Instead, I order room service, then sit there staring at Sophia’s cell phone number that Derek sent.
And that’s when a text from Lauren comes through.
Lauren
Miss you so much, but I’m too tired for a call tonight. I’m going to bed early. I’ll need all my energy for the charity game tomorrow night, and seeing you afterward. Your flight better not be late. If you miss this game, I will kill you.
It’s not even 9:30 p.m. in Boston, so she must be exhausted.
I know she was at work late tonight making sure everything is in order for the event tomorrow.
Since marketing practically runs this event every year, it’s been a huge amount of work for her.
But I know she’s feeling really good about it, and it’s great to see her back to being herself—kicking ass at her job, confident about herself, happy.
I hate that I hold information that threatens that.
Jameson
I can’t control the airlines, but I’m taking the earliest flight possible. I’ll be back in Boston midafternoon.
And I miss you too, and can’t wait to see you. And touch you. And taste you. Go get some sleep so you’re well rested tomorrow. I plan on keeping you up all night.
Lauren
Not me, already in bed imagining you here with me . . .
Jameson
Not me, with my thumb hovering over the icon to video call you right now so you can show me how much you miss me . . .
Lauren
Okay, I really need to go to sleep or this is going to go in a direction that will keep me up. I will be well rested for you tomorrow. Promise. XOXO
Jameson
Sweet dreams.
I’m torn between being sad to not hear her voice tonight, while simultaneously being relieved that I don’t have to make sure I don’t bring up anything about Sophia, because that is a conversation to have in person.
I wouldn’t tell her any of this right before the charity game, anyway. It’s her first big event at work, and I’m not going to ruin that for her by dropping this news on her before her big night.
I really hate that there’s no way for me to fix this for her—not that she’d want me to.
But I’m dreading the way I know it’s going to break her heart, and have her questioning everything: her marriage, her home in Boston, her ability to trust her own judgment.
The least I can do is go to her armed with as much information as possible so she can decide what to do with it.
I enter Sophia’s phone number into a text message and hope I don’t regret what I find out.
Jameson
Hi Sophia, my name is Jameson Flynn. I was Josh Emerson’s sports agent and the executor of his will and trust.
I don’t expect an instantaneous response, but I get one.
Sophia
I know who you are.
Jameson
Okay.
I didn’t know about your relationship with Josh until a couple days ago, or I’d have reached out sooner.
Sophia
I was kind of hoping no one knew about that relationship, to be honest. But I’m not surprised that it’s gotten out.
Jameson
So you knew that he was married?
Sophia
No . . . not until this past November.
Wait, what? How could she have known him for two years, since before his girls were even born, and not known he was married?
Jameson
That brings up a lot more questions.
Sophia
Do you want to call me? Seems like it’d be easier to talk about this over the phone?
I hit the call icon on my phone screen and then put it on speakerphone. I’m already up and pacing around my hotel room.
“Hey,” I say when she answers the phone. “I’m sorry to contact you under these circumstances.”
“I’m sorry that I’m involved in this at all,” she says following a heavy sigh.
“The reason I’m reaching out is that when I executed Josh’s will and trust, I didn’t know he was involved with someone outside his marriage.”
“I didn’t know he was still married. I’d only been with Josh for about six months before he died,” she says, “but we’d known each other for a couple years through mutual ski friends.
We’d done a lot of trips together, and when he and his wife separated—or at least, that’s what he told me at the time—he made his move. ”
“So you thought they weren’t together anymore?”
“He told me they were separated and getting divorced. We kept everything between us a secret because he was still in the middle of divorce proceedings and didn’t want his wife to be able to use our relationship against him in the divorce.”
I don’t know if this makes it better or worse?
Certainly I don’t think as badly of her if she was duped by Josh, but maybe it makes it even worse for Lauren—this isn’t a case of her husband being lured away by another woman, this is him intentionally going out and finding someone else while lying about his relationship.
“I’m sorry he put you in that position. It sounds like he was lying to a lot of people.”
She huffs out a scoff. “Yeah, you could say that. I figured it out right before his last trip in November, and I broke things off with him.”
“I’m guessing you knew the other skiers on the trip?”
“Yeah.” Her voice wavers. “I lost a lot of friends that day.”
“I’m really sorry.”
“The survivor’s guilt is real,” she says. “But I don’t think that’s what you called to talk about.”
“The main reason I called is that I want to make sure I didn’t make any mistakes when I executed the will and trust, especially regarding the house in Brookline.
” I decide not to tell her the house wasn’t in the trust, because I don’t want her to consider litigating this.
“I know you weren’t a co-owner with Josh, but did you have any money tied up in that house before he died? ”
“No.” She lets out another sigh. “He owned the house, and I did most of the work. I met with the contractor, picked out the cabinets and other finishes, took care of ordering everything for him—because I believed him when he said he was remodeling this house because he wanted to live closer to me. We didn’t have any concrete plans for me to move in or anything. ”
“Why did you do all this work for him, then?” I ask. It’s none of my business, but the question just slips out.
She coughs out a laugh. “Because he had me fooled. I believed the things he said, believed that he cared about me, so I wanted to help him. The reality is, Josh didn’t care about anyone but himself.”
Isn’t that the truth?
“I’ve been thinking,” she says hesitantly, “about reaching out to Lauren. I have a good amount of money that truthfully should go to her—refunds for all the deposits I put down for house stuff using a debit card that Josh gave me for that purpose. The money’s all been refunded and is just sitting there in a bank account with his name on it.
I didn’t know if Lauren knew I existed. If she did, I was pretty sure she wouldn’t want to hear from me.
And if she didn’t know I existed, well, did I want to be the one to tell her the truth about her husband after he’d already died? ”
“There’s no way for her to avoid knowing, now,” I tell her. “I have to tell her.”
“I’ll send you the bank info to share with her.
Would you also tell her that I’d be open to talking to her, if she wants?
I’m guessing she’s living at that house now, because Woody didn’t know I’d broken things off with Josh, so he told me you ended his contract.
Out of a morbid sense of curiosity, I drove by one night—I just wanted to see if there was a for sale sign, but instead I saw the Utah plates on the SUV in the driveway. ”
I shouldn’t feel a pang of sympathy for the woman who was sleeping with Lauren’s husband, but I do. I’d spent the last thirty-six hours thinking she was the villain. Now I know that she was just another casualty of Josh’s narcissism.
“Okay, I’ll let you know.”