NovelEnglishWhen Theresa heard the front door open, she slid right off the couch and scampered up to greet us with a cheerful "Daddy,
Mommy!"
She was already used to the life of having both her parents around; her joy was pure and direct, shining from her eyes.
Brandon didn't say a word, and just shot Sophia a glance.
His eyes were eerily calm yet filled with an unspoken demand and accusation, as if saying, "How could you stand to see our kid
upset?" It was a calmness bordering on cruelty.
Sophia pressed her lips and slightly turned her head away.
Theresa, puzzled, softly called out, "Daddy? Mommy?" Her voice took on a gentler tone.
Brandon cracked a smile at her, scooped her up, and asked softly, "Did you have dinner yet?"
Theresa's attention was instantly diverted.
She nodded, "Yep, | did."
But she couldn't help but cast a worried glance at Sophia.
Sophia managed not to let Theresa see her being upset and smiled at Theresa, "What did you do at htoday, sweetie? Did you
go out and have fun with Grace?"
"Yeah, we went out." Theresa said, "She tookto the park in the morning, and my godmother tookshopping in the
afternoon.”
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt"Is that so?" Sophia replied with a smile, reaching out to hug her, "Did you have a good time?"
Theresa nodded, "Yep, | did."
But then she couldn't help but look at Brandon and back at her and added, "But, I'd really like to go shopping with mommy and
daddy. We've never done that before."
Sophia's smile slightly stiffened.
Brandon looked at Theresa and said, "Tomorrow after work, we'll take you shopping."
Theresa's face lit up immediately, "Really? Yay!"
She was genuinely happy and looking forward to it.
Sophia, silently stroking her hair, suggested, "How about we go take a bath now?"
Theresa nodded, "Okay."
Sophia took Theresa to bathe.
"Mommy, are you unhappy?" During the bath, looking at Sophia scrubbing her hair with care, Theresa asked softly.
Sophia replied with a smile, "Not at all, why would you think that, sweetie?"
Theresa shook her head in confusion; she didn't know why she thought that.
Sophia felt a pang of heartache as she touched her head, feeling just as lost herself.
That night, Sophia didn't sleep in their usual room; she went to the adjacent stuinstead.
Theresa was an early sleeper and usually slept soundly, so Sophia's absence wouldn't disrupt her rest.
Sophia had just settled in the stuwhen she heard the rustling of the door opening.
Turning her head, she saw Brandon, fresh from a bath and in his PJs, leading a sleepy Theresa who was rubbing her eyes.
"She woke up right after you left, insisting on finding you," Brandon said.
Theresa sleepily called out, "Mommy," and let go of Brandon's hand to walk over to Sophia.
Sophia had no choice but to pick her up.
"Mommy, why aren't you sleeping?" Theresa mumbled, her voice heavy with sleepiness, and promptly dozed off in Sophia's arms.
Sophia had to place her on the bed.
"I'll just sleep here tonight with Theresa." Sophia whispered, tucking Theresa in, "Just close the door on your way out, will you?"
Brandon gave her a look but didn't say anything, heading to the bathroom.
As the sound of running water started and Sophia turned off the lights, she lay down next to Theresa.
The moment she settled down, the door opened quietly, careful not to wake Theresa.
Sophia couldn't help but glance over at him. Brandon didn't look her way, simply closed the room door, and walked to the bed.
As usual, he lay down beside her, and when he turned to face her, his hand expertly wrapped around her waist.
Sophia raised her hand to push his away, but as soon as her fingertips touched his, his hand gripped hers tightly.
Sophia tried to pull away, but he held on firmly, with an undeniable force.
Even without a word, the tight grip in the darkness betrayed his determination; even without looking at him, Sophia could feel the
anger seething within him.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmIn the end, under his assertiveness, Sophia gave up resisting.
Brandon's hand still clutched hers, but now he was holding her from behind. Throughout, he said nothing, not until the shallow
breathing indicated he was asleep did he utter a word, just holding her in an affectionate embrace.
Sophia knew he had fallen asleep, but she couldn't.
She glanced at her phone beside the bed, and then paused.
Daniel had messaged her out of the blue, "It waswho had Yvonne set up the meeting with you. When you get a chance, come
to the hospital. Let's talk."
Apparently not seeing her reply, he sent another half an hour later.
"Your folks have been to see me. Sold story with them. Don't think you can just hide behind Brandon and everything will be
fine. While I'm still kicking, let's have a heart-to-heart and clear up everything once and for all, including issues with your family,
you and Brandon, and the child custody. We can't keep dragging our feet on this."
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