CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR

I cried the entire bus ride home from the office, feeling completely deflated after my confrontation with Alex over Sky Park. The harsh dismissal of something that meant so much to both of us, however fleetingly, cut me deeply.

The moment I stepped into my home, the dam burst and the sobs came in billows. I laid down on the sofa, tucking myself in a ball as the tears flowed freely. Alex's cold rebuffs and corporate disregard for the sentimentality of our past replayed on a brutal loop in my mind.

I'm not sure how long I lay there, so consumed by hurt and heartache that I barely registered the outside world. But eventually, I became aware of a gentle hand on my shoulder and my mother's concerned voice.

"Sophie? Sweetheart, what's wrong?"

Startled, I looked up at her with red-rimmed eyes. "M-Mom? What are you doing here?"

She settled onto the couch and pulled me into a warm embrace. "I heard your crying voice. What's wrong, my baby?"

Fresh sobs wracked my body as the emotional turmoil c