The Indifferent Ex-Husband: Heartstrings in the Mall of Fate novel Chapter 148

"Uh, kinda, yeah," Sophia piped up before Cindy could get a word in. "Last time I was back, I ran out of juice on my phone during dinner and didn't have any cash on me, and she covered the meal for me."

She kept her composure and tone casual, and after she finished, Sophia coolly turned to Cindy. "I really owe you one for last time. I didn't get around to adding you on WhatsApp to pay you back. Let's swap numbers, shall we?"

Whipping out her phone, she opened WhatsApp and went straight to add Cindy's contact.

Cindy was totally thrown off by Sophia's pace, puzzled at first but then totally focused on adding each other on WhatsApp. She happily nodded, "Sure thing!" and quickly pulled out her phone, flipped to her WhatsApp QR code, and turned her screen towards Sophia.

Cindy's eyes were lit up with excitement and admiration, just like someone who's had the surprise of bumping into a stranger and later finding out it was their boss.

Kent chuckled and chimed in, "It's a small world, isn't it? Fancy you two having such a twist of fate."

As Sophia scanned Cindy's WhatsApp, she replied with an easy smile, "You bet."

Casually glancing at Cindy, who was buzzing with the excitement of a new connection, Sophia's gaze then seemingly drifted unintentionally to Brandon. Their eyes met, his gaze calm yet unreadably deep.

Sophia felt her heart pound wildly, her palms sweating as she clutched her phone.

She never imagined that the girl she casually chatted with at the police station would turn out to be a colleague, giving her such a big surprise right after signing her employment contract.

Feeling a bit rattled under Brandon's intense stare, she was saved by the arrival of guests coming to congratulate him, momentarily drawing his attention away with a "Mr. Crawley."

Sophia forced herself to stay composed, exchanged smiles with Cindy, and then turned to the others. "Let's all add each other on WhatsApp, shall we? Looking forward to working with everyone. Please forgive any shortcomings on my part."

She showed her QR code to them, and they all whipped out their phones to connect. The atmosphere quickly shifted to work mode, and Cindy's initial surprise was soon forgotten.

After everyone had added her, Sophia pocketed her phone and stole another glance at Brandon. He was standing side-on, engaging politely with a client, his expression cool and detached but with that effortless control he always had. His attention didn't return to her.

As people began mingling again, Sophia felt out of place. She wasn't one for schmoozing, and the long flight and jet lag were taking their toll. She didn't join the crowd but drifted towards the dining area, messaging Cindy. [Sorry for the trouble, but could you keep the other day's incident under wraps? It's a bit too much for some folks to wrap their heads around.]

After sending the message, she watched Cindy glance down at her phone as it buzzed, then promptly replied with a [No worries, I get it. Your secret's safe with me.]

[Thanks,] Sophia sent back, then after a moment asked, [Could you delete this chat, please?]

Cindy looked confused and a bit puzzled as to why but after spotting Sophia in the crowd, she replied with a quick [Sure thing] and deleted their chat history.

Sophia saw Cindy delete the messages, feeling a weight lift off her chest, though she was still somewhat uneasy.

Running into Cindy was totally unexpected and threw her for a loop. She didn't really know Cindy and whether she could keep her promise of confidentiality.

Sophia was just there to work, to push the Zenithan-style resort project forward, not to stir up any complications, especially not after Brandon's unexpected kiss had caught her off guard, and now Cindy.