The Indifferent Ex-Husband: Heartstrings in the Mall of Fate novel Chapter 351

"So, what you're saying is, we get back together?" Sophia asked him softly, looking into his eyes. "Like a normal family, give her a complete home?"

Brandon looked back at her, silent, but his cool eyes said it all.

"I can't do it, Brandon." Sophia spoke gently, her voice still soft and calm, not intense, "My child is only a part of my life, not my entire life. I will give my child all my love, but I can't just give in to a life I don't want just for her."

An expected answer. Even though he saw it coming, when it came time to lay it all out on the table, Brandon still felt a sting in his heart.

He fell silent for a moment, and then said to her, "Sophia, I don't need you to cave to anything or change anything. Your life was what it was before, and it can stay that way. All I'm asking is for you to consider making some room for me in your life with Theresa."

"Aren't I doing that now?" Sophia whispered in response, lifting her eyes to meet his, "Theresa recognizes you, accepts you, likes you. You want to spend time with her, even live together - I can't say anything about that. It's your right as her dad, and you have the choice."

"That's not the kind of 'making room' I'm after," Brandon's gaze was steady.

Sophia was taken aback, instinctively looking up at him. Brandon glanced at her, then suddenly stepped closer, dipped his head, and kissed her hard.

Sophia's mind went blank for a moment. As she came to her senses and tried to push him away, Brandon's hands, cradling her face, suddenly tightened, deepening the kiss.

Only when their breathing began to falter did he slowly let her go, but his lips didn't stray far from her neck.

He nipped at her slender neck which was forced to tilt back, and whispered huskily in her ear.

"Sophia, this is the kind of 'making room' I want. I'm not pushing you for marriage, not asking you to live my way. But I hope we can give each other a chance to really get to know one another again, not just coexist politely like tenants."

Sophia didn't speak, and as she raised her hand to push him away, Brandon's lips found hers again, not giving her any time to think.

Sophia's reasoning retreated with his deepening kiss, leaving her no space to think.

Two years of marriage had taught Brandon exactly how to use his skills and advantages to combine tenderness with assertiveness in just the right amounts.

The significant difference in their heights and builds gave Brandon plenty of room to maneuver with ease.

He didn't even have to try hard to pin her against the wall, one hand threading through her hair to support the back of her head, the other wrapping around her waist, kissing her deeper.

In the quiet of the night, alone together, the collision of hormones quickly sparked intense flames.

The hand around her waist was no longer content with mere propriety.

As Brandon's hand moved to tear off Sophia's clothes, she gasped for breath and pressed down on his hand.

Brandon stopped, looking down at her.

Sophia's breath was still uneven, but she spoke in a hoarse voice, "Brandon, give me some time."

"Everything that happened today was beyond my expectations. All my plans went up in smoke the moment I boarded that plane; I really need some time to process it all," Her breath was ragged, her voice husky, and she didn't look at him.

Brandon replied with a hoarse "okay", his breath equally unsteady, his voice deep and slightly raspy.

Their conversation trailed off, and his kissing slowed, but he didn't move away, still holding her tightly, his lips still nibbling at her tilted neck, casting a shadow of intimacy on the wall in the light from outside.

Sophia saw the shadow on the wall too, so intimate, like the two of them during those two years of marriage.