My CEO Ex: Let Me Go.-Chapter 106
“What’s the news?”
Another person responded, “I saw it! It was posted late last night, just an hour ago, and then it disappeared in an instant. Our CEO, Hawthorne, really is something else.”
“Come on, tell us what the news is!”
“Tessa, you’re going to flip when you hear this.”
The employee named Tessa gasped. “It’s not that OTP I follow getting torn apart, is it?”
The other two employees, who were close to her, knew that Tessa was a huge fan of controversial OTPs. She also worked at Vanguard Global Enterprises and had seen Isabella visit the company to meet Alexander. She’d casually share snippets on Twitter, attracting plenty of OTP fans.
“You guessed it! It’s about CEO Hawthorne and Director Vivienne from V&R... You should check Twitter; you’ll find out soon enough.”
There was a brief pause before the voice continued, “Look at this. There’s so much evidence. They’ve been spotted multiple times going home together.”
“Ahhhhhh!” A shrill scream filled the air.
It seemed Tessa had seen the leak and started shouting, “How could this happen?! How could this happen?! Isn’t CEO Hawthorne with Isabella? My heart...”
“Well, isn’t that how rich people are? The rumors about the company were definitely true. And Vivienne—she’s really something, pushing herself to be the mistress...”
“Ahhhhhhh... I’m so pissed! Voluntarily being someone’s mistress, that filthy b*tch!”
“Shh, keep it down. Someone might hear you.”
“It’s fine, no one’s around.”
I listened to their conversation, feeling speechless: “...”
“Damn it, Vivienne is disgusting. She tried to clear her name at the press conference. How could she be so shameless? Thank goodness she has a good father!” Tessa, furious, cursed loudly.
During the press conference, when she saw Vivienne working alongside CEO Hawthorne, she thought Vivienne was performing like a prostitute.
“If it weren’t for Chairman Hawthorne, no one at The Hawthorne would even take Vivienne seriously. She had to find a strong backer, didn’t she?”
“Isn’t she just Chairman Hawthorne’s adopted daughter? What does The Hawthorne’s money have to do with her? They adopted her, and yet she’s not satisfied—she wants to fight for the family’s fortune. She’s nothing but an ungrateful wolf.”
“But I really didn’t expect CEO Hawthorne to be this kind of person.”
“Do you even have to ask? Vivienne must’ve seduced him! Otherwise, after all these years at The Hawthorne, if they had feelings for each other, they would’ve been together long ago. Why would they wait for Isabella to come back?”
“That’s true! I heard Director Jaxon from the PR department got reassigned, and it seems it has something to do with Vivienne...”
“Pfft!”
“I still don’t get why CEO Hawthorne would get involved with Vivienne. He always has that cold, ‘everyone owes me money’ look on his face. I even wonder if the employees in her department get depressed just by looking at her ugly face every day. At least our manager is nice—kind and gentle...”
The sound of a toilet flushing came from a nearby stall.
The three of them continued to gossip for a while before leaving the bathroom.
I stood behind the door for a moment, then pushed it open to leave.
After this, my reputation at the company would probably sink even lower.
I stood at the sink, washing my hands, and looked at myself in the mirror. For a brief moment, I felt utterly unfamiliar.
Compared to the harmonious relationships other department leaders had with their employees, I felt like I wasn’t cut out for this.
After being adopted by The Hawthorne, I transferred to a new high school.
At that time, I did think about forgetting the past, putting away all the unpleasant things, trying to integrate into the class, get along with my classmates, and become a new version of myself.
I tried.
Two years later, it seemed like I had a lot of friends, yet it felt like I had none at all.
I appeared to be well-liked, with classmates greeting me whenever we crossed paths on the street.
But not a single person would join me in the bathroom during breaks or sit with me on the grass outside.
The friendships that seemed genuine were really just because I was the top student in the class, and classmates often came to me for help with subjects they didn’t understand.
After graduation, everything became clear.
I was alone again.
I still remember the math teacher’s gaze, heavy with sighs as he looked at me.
He told me I had too many walls up.
He said he’d never seen a student as vigilant and guarded as I was.
If I were a cat, I’d be the kind of wild cat, crouched low to the ground, breathing heavily, always ready to pounce, never showing my soft belly.
Even with Alexander, I always held back.
I couldn’t get into his heart, but I also didn’t dare let him into mine, afraid to let him know how deeply I had loved him for all these years.
Married to Alexander for three years, everything looked perfect from the outside.
But in reality, I had never fully trusted him.
I brushed a stray lock of hair off my forehead.
So what if I wasn’t popular?
I probably wouldn’t be at Vanguard Global Enterprises much longer anyway.
After leaving the bathroom and passing through a work area, I clearly noticed some employees’ gazes lingering on me, full of hidden meaning.
I walked straight to my office and got to work.
Around noon, I got a message from Sophie.
“Vivienne, Boo, have you seen the news?”
Vivienne: “Yeah, I’ve seen it.”
Sophie: “What’s going on between you and CEO Hawthorne?”
Sophie: “Damn, this news they showed me—why does it feel so real?”
Vivienne: “Well... part of it is true.”
“What???”
Sophie sent a barrage of question marks, her disbelief obvious. “Are you really with CEO Hawthorne?”
“Yeah.”
Sophie was silent for a moment.
I figured she must have been just as shocked as Julian.
A few moments later, Sophie sent another message. “Are you the one who got in between Alexander and Isabella, playing the mistress?”
Her words were sharp, direct.
I wasn’t angry—Sophie was always the type to speak her mind.
I replied, “I know what you’re thinking, but I didn’t interfere between them. The situation’s more complicated than that.”
“No way. You’ve got to tell me everything today! Otherwise, are we breaking up as friends? I don’t hang out with mistresses!”
Sophie thought I was lying, frustration clear in her tone. “I get it, CEO Hawthorne’s handsome and rich, but we can’t be doing stuff like this! Don’t you remember the drama with Isabella’s photos? CEO Hawthorne acted like a jerk, defending that bitch Isabella. They were all over each other when we were shopping—like a couple in love. Are you sure you didn’t interfere?”
“I swear, I didn’t.”
“So what’s the deal, then? When did you and Alexander start this?”
Sophie asked bluntly, without hesitation—unlike Julian.
I briefly explained what had happened between Alexander and me.
Sophie, now understanding the rough outline of the truth, flipped to another extreme.
“What are you saying???”
She sent a string of messages. “So you mean Isabella is actually the mistress?”
“F*ck, I knew it! She acts like this innocent girl, but she’s really the third wheel.”
“And her agent—he’s no good either!”
“Damn it, she knew about your relationship with Alexander and still acted all affectionate with him in front of you. How shameless!”
“I’m so pissed!”
“I’ve never seen anyone so shameless!”
“And CEO Hawthorne—what a scumbag! Cheating in marriage?!!! This is absolutely unforgivable!!!”
“Vivienne, why haven’t you divorced him yet?”
