Chapter 46
Sophia zipped back to her room and fired off the contract to Susan.
Susan had already hit the sack and only caught wind of the contract from Sophia when she woke up the next day. Still groggy from sleep, her eyes popped open as she got a gander at the contract, and she sat bolt upright in bed, surprise. written all over her face. She eyeballed the contract not once, but twice, just to make sure it was indeed Brandon’s handwriting. Once convinced, she shot a message back to Sophia, all excited. [Holy smokes, you actually managed to wrap up Brandon in one night! How on earth did you pull that off? Didn’t you say he was as tough as nails and never liked to pull strings for anyone?]
Sophia caught Susan’s message while riding shotgun in Brandon’s car, as he was giving her a lift to school.
She couldn’t help but sneak a peek at Brandon. The Brandon she knew was all about fair play, never bending the rules for anyone, which was why she never bothered him with anything during their marriage.
Brandon had thrown her for a loop last night. She had just tentatively popped the question, not expecting him to agree so readily, let alone seal the deal on the spot with such efficiency
Sensing her gaze, Brandon found a moment to glance her way. “What’s up?”
Sophia shook her head “Nothing major, just got a message from Susan. She’s over the moon and wanted me to pass on her thanks.”
“No need for thanks. I didn’t do it just to break my rule for her sake.”
Sophia’s heart skipped a beat at that.
She turned her gaze away slightly, her fingers still fidgeting with her phone.
“I remember you never made exceptions for anyone before,” she murmured.
“So, you never came to me for help, right?” Brandon said, his foot easing onto the brake as the traffic light flipped from green to red, bringing the car to a smooth halt before the stop line. Then he looked at her, “Why didn’t you ever think of coming to me for anything?”
“I didn’t want to make things tough for you,” Sophia said softly, not looking his way.
“Was it about not making things tough for me, or not wanting to owe me a favor?”
Sophia paused, her eyes meeting Brandon’s.
Brandon was still looking at her.
Sophia hadn’t really thought about it that way. She just genuinely didn’t want to challenge Brandon’s principles. Once she asked for a favor, whether it’s granted or not, feelings can get hurt.
She had hesitantly broached the subject with him this time because she knew Brandon had his own standards and lines that wouldn’t be crossed, so helping or not wouldn’t make much difference.
“I haven’t thought about it,” she confessed honestly, “I just didn’t want to put you on the spot before.”
Her answer seemed to clear the clouds from Brandon’s expression.
As the light turned green, Brandon fired up the engine.
“Sophia, truth be told, I’ve never minded you troubling me,” he said softly as the car pulled away, “sometimes, I even wish you would come to me with your troubles.”
Sophia shot him a surprised look.
Brandon didn’t return her gaze, just focused on driving.
Sophia kept quiet, but his words had struck a chord.
She had always been a sensitive soul, easily moved by someone’s words, especially when they came from a man she once loved deeply
They were soon at the school.
It wasn’t quite time for classes yet, but the campus entrance was already buzzing with people hurrying to their
classrooms.
Knowing Sophia was pregnant and worried she might rush and hurt herself, Brandon had made a point to come half an hour early. Still, he hadn’t anticipated the crowd, probably there for Dempsey Architects’ presentation and recruitment.
While looking for a parking spot, Brandon caught sight of Dempsey Architects’ promotional sign at the gate and remembered Sophia mentioning she wanted to attend the presentation. He gave her a quick look.
Sophia was puzzled. “What is it?”
Brandon glanced at the ad sign not too far away. “Is this the presentation you were talking about yesterday?”
Sophia looked up and nodded. “Yeah, that’s the one. Their work seems pretty solid, and the designers seem talented, so I thought I’d give it a shot.”
“Did you get in?”
Sophia shook her head. “No.”
As she recalled the incident from yesterday with Don calling Marian “Yolanda,” she couldn’t help but steal a glance at Brandon, trying to gauge from his expression whether he knew Don. But Brandon looked as calm as usual, just patiently weaving through the crowd looking for a spot to park.
“Yesterday, the head honcho from their office left me his card and said his name was,” Sophia pretended to speak casually, about to say “Don,” but before she could get the word out, a figure suddenly darted out from a side path, not looking where they were going and nearly collided with the front of Brandon’s car. Sophia yelped, “Watch out!” Just as the black Cayenne slammed the brakes, jolting Sophia back against the seat. Brandon quickly extended his hand to steady her lower back.
“You okay?” he asked, his deep voice laced with a hint of concern that was hard to detect.
Sophia nodded. “I’m fine.”
She looked worriedly at the girl who had her hands pressed against the car hood, panicked. “Quick, check if you hit
anyone.”
As she spoke, she was already undoing her seatbelt and getting out of the car.
Brandon unfastened his seatbelt as well.
“Sorry about that. Are you okay?” Sophia hurried over to the girl, apologizing profusely.
The girl, still visibly shaken, shook her head, her long hair a tangled mess, obscuring her face.
Sophia stepped forward to help her. “You alright?”
Suddenly, the girl broke free from her grasp, swept her hair back with her hand, and looked up, ready to explode. “What’s wrong with you guys? Didn’t you see me? You almost ran me over, do you realize that?”
As the girl raised her head, her face came into view.
Sophia froze-it was Marian, the one Don had called “Yolanda” yesterday.
She instinctively looked at Brandon.
Brandon seemed to do a double-take, his gaze shifting to Marian’s wrist resting on her head.
Sophia couldn’t help but glance at her wrist too, and did a bit of a double-take herself upon seeing the emerald bracelet. Just then, Brandon turned to look at Sophia and caught the stunned look on her face, which set off a storm in his usually calm eyes.
