The Indifferent Ex-Husband: Heartstrings in the Mall of Fate novel Chapter 274

Ivan was sitting diagonally across from Sophia, eyeing Brandon as he nonchalantly served her some veggies. His gaze was a bit tangled, to say the least.

Don, the close friend to both Brandon and Ivan, was feeling just as twisted up inside.

Seeing Brandon and Sophia finally not at each other’s throats was a relief to him as a friend.

But every time he thought of Ivan, especially after he had spilled the beans about his crush on Sophia, his relief was tinged with a sense of guilt.

Of all people, it was Marian who boldly eyeballed Brandon, a touch of bewilderment in her gaze.

"Hey, didn't you go on a blind date last night?" She blurted out her puzzlement, all smiles, "What's the deal today? You aren't trying to have your cake and eat it too, are you?"

As soon as she dropped that bomb, Don wished he could shove the bread into Marian's mouth to shut her up. She really knew how to put her foot in it, blurting out stuff without reading the room. He couldn't tell if she was just being clueless or still had a chip on her shoulder about Brandon turning down the arranged date with her but going on one with someone else.

Everyone else just looked at Marian with a mix of admiration and more convinced than ever about her royal lineage.

After her zinger, Marian chuckled and said to Sophia, "Sorry, Sophia, no offense meant. Just messin’ around."

Sophia just gave a polite smile, no hard feelings, no finger-wagging, just smiled and said, "It's only a joke if the person involved finds it funny."

Marian's smile froze for a sec before she brushed it off and said, "You guys are too uptight, you'll wear yourselves out that way."

Augus, who had been pretty quiet, couldn't tell if he was sticking up for Sophia or just kidding around when he said to Marian with a laugh, "Marian, are you bummed out because nobody's got you on their mind?"

He was totally just ribbing her.

Marian rolled her eyes at him on the spot. "If you've got nothing nice to say, zip it, will ya? Who needs you guys to fuss over me? Don't flatter yourselves."

While talking, her fork viciously stabbed a piece of steak in front of her.

She looked up, perhaps accidentally on purpose, giving Brandon a challenging glance.

Brandon just gave her a cold look.

Marian puffed up her cheeks, all huffy and pouty like a spoiled princess, a far cry from the Yolanda Don remembered.

Young Yolanda was also pampered from birth but was never bratty, instead, she was considerate and sweet, with the innocence of a little girl and empathy beyond her years.

Don couldn't fathom how someone could change so much.

Even if she had changed environments, she was still coddled growing up, so how come she was less worldly-wise and more sensible when she was young?

He couldn't help but glance at Marian, trying to find traces of the young Yolanda on her face, but the memory was too hazy, nothing came to mind.

He couldn't help but look at Brandon.

Brandon was just calmly eating, occasionally serving Sophia some dishes or chatting with her off and on. He didn't engage with Marian.

Thinking of the change in Brandon's demeanor before and after finding Yolanda, Don was even more puzzled.

In the afternoon, taking advantage of Brandon's meeting on the 17th floor, while waiting for everyone to enter the meeting room, Don took the chance to discuss work with him and couldn't help but ask, "Did you identify Marian as Yolanda by the bracelet on her wrist, or did you confirm it with a DNA test?"

Sophia just reached the office door and paused slightly when she heard that.

Brandon saw her, looked up at her.

Sophia awkwardly smiled and walked into the meeting room with her notebook, looking composed.

The others also arrived one by one.

Don's confusion remained unanswered.

The meeting went on for two hours.

At the end, Brandon glanced towards the office area, then said to Don, "Set up an office for me too."

Don didn't say anything.

He looked at him skeptically. "What do you need an office for?"

Brandon said, "The company is just getting started, I should get somewhat involved in the operations."

"Same building, an elevator ride sorts it out."

"The elevator is a hassle," Brandon said, "No place to even grab a drink of water after meetings."

He turned to Don. "Is setting up an office really that big of a deal for you?"

"Alright, alright, I'll get someone on it."

Don caved, wanted to keep grilling him about the question before the meeting, but seeing Sophia there, he swallowed his words.

Sophia was tidying up the meeting documents and stood up when done, saying to them, "I'll head back to work first," and walked out.

Brandon also casually picked up the notebook from the conference table and followed her out.

"I've still got stuff to do."

Brandon and Martin replied in unison, their voices equally chilly.

Even Don, slow on the uptake, could sense the tension between them.

The three had grown up together, always been tight.

Even when Yolanda was out of the picture, it hadn't really put a dent in Brandon and Martin's friendship. But now that she's back, things have gotten, well, awkward.

Don had no clue what went down between them, but he sure didn't like this vibe, so he tried to lighten the mood.

"How big can your problems be? Chow time's sacred, work can wait."

"You guys go ahead."

No sooner had Brandon spoken than he stepped into the elevator and hit the close button.

Don watched the doors shut, his puzzled gaze swinging back to Martin, "What's up with you and Brandon?"

Marian looked baffled too.

Martin just grinned, "It's nothing."

"I came to you today mainly for work," Martin said, "Got a design job I want to hand over to you."

As he spoke, he shook the document bag in his hand.

"Let's talk in the meeting room."

Don quickly ushered him into the conference room; Marian tried to follow but Martin waved her off.

Once seated, Martin pulled out a design proposal from the bag and handed it over to Don.

Don took it, glanced at it, then looked up at Martin, surprised.

What he'd handed him was Sophia's Zenithan-style resort project proposal.

Don was puzzled why Martin would give him this project.

"My grandpa wants to build a Romanesque pleasure garden as a tribute to his and Grandma's love story. Mrs. Crawley recommended your designer to me," Martin said, glancing at the Zenithan-style resort proposal he was holding, "She handed me this proposal, and I liked it. Liked your designer's style a lot, so I want to assign her to take the lead on this project."