The Indifferent Ex-Husband Heartstrings in the Mall of Fate

Chapter 36

Sophia just gave a slight nod.

“If I’m not around here, I’ll make sure someone else takes care of you, so don’t sweat it, Brandon said, as he helped her lug her bags into the master bedroom. Glancing at his watch, he added, “It’s getting late, you should hit the sack.”

Sophia nodded silently again.

“You too get some shut-eye.”

Brandon let out a soft “Hmm” and on his way out, he kindly closed the door behind him.

Sophia had already freshened up back at home, so she turned off the lights and got into bed.

The mattress in this five-star hotel was comfy and plush, but sleep just wasn’t coming to Sophia.

In just half a day, it seemed like everything had looped back to square one.

Not a great feeling, to say the least.

Her hand instinctively rested on her flat belly, knowing full well that the heart of the matter was the child inside her, just like it was two years ago.

The thought of retracing her past life steps was something she instinctively pushed against.

In the dead of night, amidst this resistance, she drifted into a fitful sleep, caught between dreams and reality. Every time she closed her eyes, she was besieged by dreams. In the bizarre dreamscapes, Sophia felt like she was back in Brandon’s West district house, living there alone year-round, a place vast and empty, devoid of life and, contrary to her expectations, free will. Patricia, with her graceful and proper demeanor, appeared in her dreams, her words laced with hidden barbs, waking Sophia in a cold sweat. When she looked out the window, the sky was already bright.

ran her palm from her forehead through her hair to the back of her head, feeling the dampness at the

beauty of the room. Just one night, and she was already missing

en-suite bathroom stocked with

of washing up and getting dressed with a wooden

door to

adjacent bedroom

the living room,

in casual home wear, lacking the usual sharp aura he

he was pretty darn good at it, something Sophia had always

get to taste his cooking or

domesticity were never part of his world.

and they were both home, Brandon would occasionally whip something up, but it was rare. Sophia wasn’t sure if it was because he wasn’t into it, or because she had already taken

long stretches of unemployment, she had developed a Pavlovian response to cook meals on

Sophia had always despised

last time she had seen such a scene. The last memorable occasion was

she was pregnant. Back then, cooking had become

had come full circle,

then turned around to find Sophia staring at him,

and at ’em?” he asked, turning off the

a gentle nod.

looked kind of out of

walked over to her and

hesitation, Sophia candidly nodded

not your cup of tea?”

shook her

her a deep look but didn’t pry