The Indifferent Ex-Husband: Heartstrings in the Mall of Fate novel Chapter 147

By the time Sophia fully snapped back to reality, she was already sitting in the HR office.

Two employment contracts were laid out in front of her, both already signed by her hand.

Brandon was standing right beside her, handing one copy of the contract to her while tucking away the other.

Sophia glanced hesitantly at the contract now in front of her, then back at Brandon.

"Welcome to Star·Dempsey Architects," Brandon said, looking at her, his demeanor back to its usual cool composure.

Sophia managed a tight-lipped smile. "Thanks."

She took the weighty contract with a bit of hesitation, still feeling like she was in a dreamy daze.

Her mind was all muddled.

Brandon's cell phone chose that moment to ring.

It was Kent on the line. [Mr. Crawley, do we need to introduce the new Design Director to the guests? Don's struggling to keep up on stage.]

He was still at the event diligently blocking the door, clueless about what was going down with Brandon and Sophia.

Don on stage was also doing his best to keep the show running, equally in the dark about the current situation with Brandon and Sophia.

Was Sophia's new role as the Design Director set in stone? Would she be coming back? Should he take the chance during the design team introduction to officially announce Sophia?

His head was swimming with question marks, but with Brandon having already ditched the scene, he couldn't just bail like Brandon and had to stay on stage, trying to signal Kent with desperate eye gestures to call Brandon.

Luckily, Kent was on the same wavelength and caught on to Don's predicament straight away.

Brandon didn't give Kent a straight answer but instead turned to Sophia. "Don is up there introducing the company's design team right now. Wanna make an appearance?"

Sophia glanced subconsciously towards the reception hall.

"Do I have to?" Sophia was still a bit spaced out, the contract signing had happened so fast, she couldn't even remember when exactly she had signed it.

"I'm not some big-name designer, nor do I have any standout pieces to show off. My experience and age don't carry much weight either. If I go out there now, I might just lower everyone's expectations of the company."

She looked at Brandon and added, "Maybe we should keep it under wraps for now, and let my work do the talking later on."

Brandon studied her for a moment before nodding lightly, then told Kent on the phone. "No need for introductions."

Kent got the message, hung up, and mouthed "It's over" to Don on stage, who seemed visibly deflated for a moment before Kent added an "OK" sign with his hands.

Don got it in a second. His spirits, which had just started to sink, leaped back up.

With years of experience running the show, he left the guests with a teaser, "Our candidate for Design Director is a graduate of the renowned Apex Engineering University School of Architecture and has a portfolio of well-known architectural designs. She has a unique vision and solid strength. We look forward to her joining us," and wrapped up the grand opening ceremony perfectly.

The opening ceremony had already been done at an auspicious time while Brandon was still around.

After the opening ceremony, it was time for the guests to dine and mingle.

Don made his way through the crowd of well-wishers towards Kent, who was still guarding the door.

"What's the deal here?" he asked, since he couldn't get much from just exchanging looks earlier.

"How should I know? Mr. Crawley just brushed me off with a 'no need for introductions'," Kent replied, equally in the dark but couldn't resist trying to sneak a peek outside the door. "But relax, Mr. Crawley sounded pretty chill, he must've sealed the deal with Sophia."

"Are you sure your gut's reliable?" Don frowned, not entirely trusting Kent's intuition. "Hope it's not another false alarm."

"Don't worry, no one knows Mr. Crawley better than I do," Kent bragged as he opened the door wide, not forgetting to turn back to Don with a boastful, "I dare say, I even know him better than he knows himself."

His bragging came to an abrupt end when he saw Brandon and Sophia standing outside the door, and he respectfully greeted, "Mr. Crawley!"

Brandon glanced at his hand on the doorknob. "Why close the door?"

Kent was left speechless.

Don's gaze shifted from Kent's face to Brandon, then to Sophia, his evaluative look making Sophia a bit awkward, but she still politely greeted Don. "Mr. Dempsey."

Don, ever so sharp, didn't pry but just gave her a big smile. "You're back."

Sophia responded with a polite smile. "Yeah."

Seeing Kent's deflated look and his indecisive hand on the doorknob, remembering Brandon's kiss from earlier, and guessing Kent might have seen it too, her embarrassment grew.