Love's Redemption (Chris and Maddie) novel Chapter 1044

When Brandon returned, Yvonne and her daughter had already left. I already went back inside to soothe the baby.

"The staff said you met someone just now," Brandon said as soon as he walked in.

Even though he had been out, he was always aware of what was happening in the courtyard. I wasn't surprised. He did this because he cared about me.

But I still teased him. "Mr. Howell, are you worried I'll cheat on you?"

"Cheat with a woman?" He quipped back.

Brandon had brought me haggis and roasted potatoes.

He placed them on the small table, peeled the potato skin to reveal the soft, glistening flesh inside, then wiped his hands with a disinfecting wipe before finally reaching out to take the baby from my arms.

"A friend of yours?" Brandon asked, referring to Yvonne.

"No, I don't know her." I deliberately held back the details, just to keep him guessing.

"Yet you talked for so long?" Brandon didn't seem in a hurry.

Right now, we had plenty of time.

There were many things we could talk about at our own pace. I knew that this kind of slow, uninterrupted time together would only last during my postpartum recovery.

Once my confinement period was over, he would definitely have other things to do.

Even if he stayed with me, it wouldn't be like now—where he was by my side almost 24/7.

People think they were close to their loved ones, but when you really broke it down, sometimes you spent more time with coworkers or even strangers than with the people who mattered most.

"Exactly. Since I didn't know her, we had to talk more to get to know each other," I said while eating the haggis. It was soft, smooth, and perfectly chewy.

Yesterday, I had casually mentioned while watching a food show that it looked delicious. And today, he went out and bought it for me.

"So, did you find anything out?" Brandon, of course, knew that I wouldn't spend so much time chatting with a stranger unless there was a reason.

"Mmm, I heard a love story about a hero and a beauty. There's also a child involved."

That caught my attention. "How are you so sure? He…" I wanted to tease him and say he didn't have the ability.

But before the words left my mouth, I swallowed them back. After all, he was gone now. And he had left as a man devoted to a life of self-discipline and introspection. It wasn't right to joke about it.

I even silently prayed for him in my heart.

"He wasn't that kind of man," Brandon said, giving Chris a rare and high praise.

Only unprincipled men let their desires control them, leaving seeds of affection everywhere they went.

Even though Chris had let me down back then, in the end, I understood that he had his reasons—he had been manipulated. And there was nothing going on between him and Jewel.

"If he could hear you say that, he'd probably feel comforted in the afterlife." I sighed, a touch of sorrow welling up. I couldn't help but think—if only he were still alive.

The past grievances between us were long resolved. Maybe Brandon and he could have become occasional tea-drinking friends.

And perhaps, somewhere down the road, he might have met someone with whom he could spend the rest of his life.