(7 November 1969 - 31 March 1977) (her death)
Branden then met and fell in love with a young model, Patrecia Scott (née Gullison). The two began a secret affair in 1964. In the summer of 1965, Nathaniel told Barbara of the affair and the two separated (and subsequently divorced). Despite Rand's romantic involvement with Nathaniel, her close intellectual collaboration with him, and her strong public endorsements of him, both Brandens kept Nathaniel's affair with Patrecia secret from Rand, fearing her reaction. In 1968, four years into the affair, Barbara Branden informed Rand of it. In response, Rand morally condemned the Brandens and dissociated herself from them in an article for her journal, The Objectivist, which, without revealing the existence of her romantic involvement with Branden, accused him of "deliberate deception" and financial misdealings in their business partnership.
Branden at this point moved to California with Patrecia; the two married in November 1969. In March 1977, Patrecia died in a freak drowning accident, falling into a pool after presumably suffering a mild epileptic seizure.