The Indifferent Ex-Husband Heartstrings in the Mall of Fate

Chapter 2

Brandon bee-lined home.

It was his first time ducking out of work to head back

His pad, spick and span, no longer had any traces of Sophia, except for that divorce agreement on the coffee table, all mussed up by the breeze.

Brandon reached for it

The agreement was straightforward. Sophia didn’t want a thing. What was hers before the marriage stayed hers after

Her signature was already on the dotted line

Her handwriting was gorgeous, all flowy and elegant.

Brandon zoned out staring at the signature on the divorce papers.

No clue how much time had passed when the rustling sound of the door opening snapped him back to reality

Brandon whipped his head toward the entrance.

Patricia had just stepped in, and his sudden glance startled her big time

“What’s up?” she asked, puzzled, clearly noticing the flicker of hope on Brandon’s face slowly fade into dead calm.

“Nothing much, he replied coolly. “What brings you here?”

“I was worried Sophia might be bored stiff at home alone, just dropped by to keep her company, Patricia said with a smile, moving towards him, “What’s with the sudden home run today? Something up with Sophia?”

As she spoke, her brows furrowed with concern, her head turning towards the room.

“She’s fine, Brandon said, looking at her, “Do you drop by often?”

“Not really, just now and then.”

Patricia’s face was painted with awkward embarrassment, and upon finishing her sentence, she saw Brandon’s brow furrow

She quickly changed the subject to the papers in Brandon’s hand “What’s that?”

Reaching to grab them, but before her fingertips could touch the documents, Brandon pressed them down first.

“It’s nothing. Brandon said, looking at Patricia, “No need for you to come over if there’s no issue. Sophia’s got her work. cut out for her. We’ll come visit you when we get the chance.”

“She, Patricia began, almost blurting out “What work could she possibly have?” but quickly bit her tongue, “Alright then.

She couldn’t help but remind Brandon, Sophia’s been recuperating for over a year and still no baby bump. I hope she hasn’t got some lingering issues. Have her get checked at the hospital when she can. I wouldn’t want troubles with having kids later.

Brandon said. “It’s the kid I didn’t want.”

Patricia looked at him, baffled

Brandon issued the boot. “You better head back, and don’t come around unless it’s necessary.”

Patricia’s mouth hung open, wanting to protest, but ultimately, she shut it under Brandon’s icy stare, and turned to leave.

Brandon watched the door close, glanced around the house now devoid of Suphia’s presence, heaved a long sigh, picked up his phone, and dialed his assistant Kent. “Kent, set up a meeting with the lawyer, gotta sort out this divorce

Huh? Kent was taken aback. Wasn’t it just yesterday he’d sent Sophia over? They didn’t seem to be at odds.

Brandon hall aiready hung up, tossing the divorce papers on the coffee table and stepping out the door

Sophia moved back to her smell suburban house.

Chapter

She’d bought it before getting hitched, just the right size for her solo living.

and Brandon had their one-night

resist her buddy Susan Cooper’s begging and tagged along to

guy who never showed up to these things, would be

chats or reunions. They were like ships

vanished even more

he’d done. Whenever Sophia casually prodded her high school friends, there wasn’t a peep

dared to voice was swirling in her chest, but she never found the courage

it’d show, she hid

neighborly duty, volunteered to take her home after

bit drunk, she wasn’t out cold. Still, the alcohol did a number on her balance. In her tiny one-room house, she tripped over shoes left by the door as soon as she entered. Brandon, quick on the uptake, caught her and in the inertia of the moment, she ended up in his arms. The lights were

casual hook-ups. She’d never even had a boyfriend, but that night, she got

and the

to the

as green as her

was impossible he couldn’t have

a man wholly devoted to his work didn’t have the spare effort or time

also made him a

was probably the

And for Sophia, too.

life all

was looking to get some advanced training and was already getting her ducks in a row to apply to the School of Architecture of Apex Engineering University. But one unexpected night threw a wrench into all

it coming. She was

and because they let loose a

time to swing by the pharmacy for the morning-after pill. She was also kind of ng her fingers, hoping that she was in the clear since it was supposedly her safe

pregnant, she was at sixes and

marriage, having the

been in touch since. Sophia hadn’t planned on telling Brandon in the first place, but as luck would have it, she bumped into him at the hospital where he was visiting his

the test results under wraps, but it was

HCG report she was hiding behind her back, and reached out

“Let me see

it was laced with an aura that

handed over the

the report for a bit, Brandon asked her, “What’s your game

She hadn’t anticipated this baby, and its arrival had totally scrambled her life

married and having the baby, Brandon said. “But the ball’s

“Getting married?”

leg,

gave her a couple of days to mull

been sweet on Brandon for years, but she never

longing, she took two days to think it over and then told Brandon, “So, let’s tie the knot.” Just like during

they picked up

seemed absurd, yet somehow it all

never imagined that she and

Brandon to fizzle out

whirlwind start and

years felt like

house, Sophia felt an aching emptiness

the night she almost tripped over a shoe and he

could still remember the focus and the emotional turmoil in his eyes,

had thought

for many years, which led to

wasn’t the case. He was just a bit

ached with this

his father in the study a few days ago when she

married before he passed. You didn’t want him to leave with regrets, so you rushed things with Sophia. It just so happened that she was pregnant with. your child, so I didn’t say much. It gave your grandpa peace, but it’s been two years, and that

reasons. Mind your own

liquor leads to trouble, and look at you. Because of Yolanda Frost, you wouldn’t date anyone, and then you

cut off his father Daniel Crawley, his tone icy.

Every time she comes up, you jump to her defense I’m just asking, what if Yolanda comes back? Don’t

“She’s never coming back”

a bit. It was one of the rare moments she could detect a different emotion in his usually calm demeanor. Clearly, this “Yolanda girl held a

time Sophia had heard the name Yolanda, and she