Brandon looked up to find Harvey Ferber already standing on the deck, clad in a sleek black suit, casually leaning on the railing and looking down at him.
Brandon shot him a chilly glance and bolted up the stairs two at a time.
Harvey Ferber turned and followed suit.
They arrived at the top deck of the cruise ship, the same spot Harvey had shown Brandon last time he was here.
Emerging from the staircase and making a turn, the sight of the hospital they'd visited before was unavoidably in view.
A storm brewed in Brandonâs eyes, and he spun around, ready to burst through the hospital doors.
"There's no one in the hospital," Harveyâs timely words echoed from behind.
Brandon halted in his tracks, turning to glare at him, "Where is she?"
Harvey just stared back, silent.
"Where the hell is she?"
Brandon's voice suddenly roared, his eyes reddening, his usual composure gone.
Harvey gave him a steady look, "Mr. Crawley, you're not in the right state for negotiations."
With that, he turned and strolled through the opulent corridor, taking a seat at the same table where they'd negotiated last time.
Brandon watched him from a distance, his Adam's apple bobbing violently several times before he forced himself to cool down and approached the table, taking a seat across from Harvey.
A contract concerning Z-Z Wharf slid across the table towards Brandon.
"Mr. Crawley, fancy signing the contract first?" Harvey's voice was calm and measured.
Brandon glanced at him, snatched the contract for a quick read, and grabbed the pen, ready to sign. Kent, arriving just in time, called out, "Mr.
Crawley, think it through."
He wasn't trying to stop Brandon from signing the contract; it was just that signing it without seeing the person in question would seem a bit rash.
Brandon knew all too well how reckless it would be to do so, but the thought that she might be Sophia, and his urgency to see her, outweighed everything else.
Harvey caught Brandon's pen pause and his lips curled slightly, "What's up, Mr. Crawley? Can't let go? Seems she's not that important to you after all."
"I want to see her first." Brandon managed to rein in his emotions, throwing the contract back on the table and staring down Harvey with a determined stance, "Now, immediately!"
As he spoke, the contract and pen were pushed back to Brandon, Harvey's eyes still fixed on him.
Brandon's gaze didn't stray from Harvey's eyes either.
Beneath the seemingly calm stare-down lurked a silent battle of wills.
"I won't sign without seeing her!" Brandon finally spoke, his voice steadier than when he'd first boarded.
"Or," Harvey's voice sharpened, "does she mean less to you than a wharf?"
"You're twisting my words," Brandon pointed out bluntly.
The calm was now threaded with threat.
By not signing, he was essentially telling others that Sophia wasn't worth a wharf to him.
What others thought might not matter, but wasn't he afraid that Sophia would be disappointed, hurt?
Brandon clearly heard the threat in Harvey's words, his lips curling slightly, "Is that a threat, Mr. Ferber?"
"Just a friendly reminder," Harvey retorted, "after all, I'm the one holding the cards right now."
"Is that so?" Brandon echoed, subtly smirking.
He then gestured with a flick of his finger to Kent standing behind him.
The Indifferent Ex-Husband: Heartstrings in the Mall of Fate ï¤Chapter 625 The Imposter Bride (Natalia and Magnus)
ï¤Chapter 590 Forgive Us, My Dear Sister ï¤Chatper 494