The Indifferent Ex-Husband: Heartstrings in the Mall of Fate novel Chapter 455

Brandon had actually rocked up to the hospital room door just as Sophia and Daniel started their chat, so he caught the whole thing about her being dead set on taking their daughter, and also how she brushed him off without batting an eye.

Knowing this in his head was different from hearing it with his own ears. It felt like someone was carving his heart out with a knife, leaving it raw and bleeding.

He barely caught a wink of sleep that night.

Come the crack of dawn, Brandon rolled out of bed and when he swung by next door, Sophia was already up, fixing breakfast for Theresa.

They locked eyes for a sec, but words were MIA.

Brandon's gaze slid from her face to the eggs she was frying, and without a peep, he moseyed over and took the spatula right out of her hands.

Sophia had no choice but to sidestep out of the way.

Brandon took over the breakfast gig, still not muttering a single word.

Sophia eyed his frosty profile, her lips twitched like she wanted to say something, but in the end, zilch – she left the kitchen to help a just-woken Theresa get dressed and freshen up.

By the time Brandon served up breakfast, Sophia had wrapped up her morning hustle and was leading Theresa out of their room.

Theresa caught a whiff of the fried eggs from a mile away and let go of Sophia's hand, bolting to the table with a "Yum, that smells great!"

Brandon scooped her up into her high chair and dished up her breakfast before plunking himself down beside her to join in.

Sophia pursed her lips slightly and eventually made her way to the table to eat solo.

They had breakfast in silence, each to their own, no chit-chat.

It kind of took Brandon back to their marriage from a couple years ago, but not quite the same vibe.

Back then, even though they often ate in silence too, it wasn't this heavy.

Brandon was just busy then, flipping through the newspaper during breakfast, speed-reading the day's financial and political news, his aura all cool and collected.

But that extreme chill came with a "keep out" vibe so strong, Sophia didn't dare interrupt.

Now, Brandon was wrapped up in a "don't mess with me" kind of cold, which had Sophia feeling all kinds of awkward.

She finished her breakfast in silence.

Brandon was still helping Theresa, so he was lagging behind.

Seeing him preoccupied, Sophia hesitated as she put down her utensils but then looked over at Brandon and softly broke the silence, "Let me do it."

"No need."

Brandon cut her off with an icy snap.