My CEO Ex: Let Me Go.-Chapter 160

Alexander’s POV

Some people, who didn’t understand the situation, chimed in with agreement—especially those who had gathered information about me and appeared here for the first time, eager to make connections.

Victor thought I would get angry, but to his surprise, I simply fell silent for a moment before suddenly asking, "So, who do you think is worthy of me?"

The person didn’t expect me to respond and was visibly excited. Without hesitation, he blurted out, "Of course, it’s Miss Isabella!"

I casually glanced at the few people around him and asked coldly, "Do all of you feel the same?"

They exchanged glances and nodded in agreement.

Sitting in the shadows, my expression unreadable, I slowly swirled my glass, letting the silence stretch on for a long while.

The man, unaware of the tension, continued, "I assume Mr. Hawthorne and Miss Isabella must be about to get engaged, right?"

Bang!

A sudden loud crash echoed through the room.

Without warning, I kicked the table in front of me, sending it toppling over. The wine on it shattered and spilled everywhere.

My face darkened, my brow furrowing deeply. Without another word, I tossed the glass aside and stormed out.

The man froze in shock, staring at my retreating figure, his mouth still agape even after the door slammed shut.

The people around him turned pale, their mouths snapping shut in an instant. The room fell dead silent.

Everyone exchanged confused glances, unsure of what had just happened.

Even the people playing cards on the other side glanced over, their hands frozen mid-air, curiosity written all over their faces.

"Go ahead, continue."

Maximus’ voice broke the silence, and without hesitation, he followed after me.

In another room.

"Don’t be angry. They don’t understand anything. There’s no need to argue with them."

I held my glass, staring at my reflection in the surface of the cup. A bitter smile tugged at the corner of my lips as I quietly murmured, "I’m not angry with them. I’m angry with myself."

Why would they think that?

Naturally, it was because of my actions, which had given them the wrong impression.

I remembered a time when Vivienne had been dining with friends and happened to run into him, along with Isabella.

Victor had led the charge, making Vivienne call Isabella "Miss-in-law" and even raised a toast to her.

I hadn’t stopped it. In fact, I had even allowed it and had personally pressured Vivienne.

Though it had been three years since I married Vivienne, I had never once introduced her to my friends—except for that one time when Victor apologized.

In fact, whenever I ran into these friends with Vivienne, I would try to cover up the situation, introducing her as my sister.

I had never acknowledged Vivienne’s role in front of my friends.

So, they looked down on her, but only because they were trying to please me and align with my attitude.

The more I thought about it, the more bitter my chest felt.

In these three years, I had made Vivienne suffer too much.

Just as she had said, I had apologized too many times.

Knowing how much she had been wronged, I had still continued to hurt her, just because she was understanding and well-behaved.

She had endured time and time again, and finally, I had broken her heart. Her patience had run out.

She couldn’t take it anymore.

I brought the glass to my lips and downed it in one go, then poured myself another.

Maximus urged, "You’ve just been discharged from the hospital. Don’t drink anymore."

Recently, whenever I came to him for a drink, it was because something had gone wrong with Vivienne.

I had even taken up smoking, something I never used to do, and now I was no different than a chain smoker.

Maximus had known all along—Alexander was indifferent yet deeply emotional.

So, he had fallen completely for Vivienne!

I stubbornly replied, "I’m fine."

Maximus looked at me, his expression serious. "You still like her, don’t you? You should fight for her one more time. No matter why you hesitated, I still hope you think this through. Don’t make yourself regret it for the rest of your life."

My mind raced back to the troubling issue that had been keeping me up at night, and with each glass, I drank more frequently.

Maximus: "..."

So, it seemed that, to Alexander, Maximus was just his drinking buddy!

Maximus could only watch as Alexander continued to drink. After a moment of hesitation, he stepped outside and dialed Vivienne’s number.

Vivienne’s POV

I was waiting in the Oslo airport lounge for my flight to Tromsø. As I glanced at Sophie and Ariana, I noticed I had a call from Maximus. I stood up and walked toward the window to answer.

"Hello, Maximus? What’s going on?"

"Alexander is drinking."

At the mention of his name, my heart skipped a beat. "What do you mean?"

What did his drinking have to do with me?

"He just got out of the hospital. He’s still on medication and shouldn’t be drinking. I can’t stop him."

"Are you asking me to talk to him? If you can’t stop him, there’s no way I can. He won’t listen to me."

"Forget whether it’ll work or not, just try. He got hurt badly trying to save you. You wouldn’t want to see his condition worsen, would you? He could even die if it’s not treated properly."

Though, it probably wouldn’t go that far.

I frowned, hesitating for a moment. "Fine, pass the phone to him."

"Okay."

Maximus went back to the room and saw Alexander holding a glass, about to take a sip. He grabbed his wrist to stop him. "Don’t drink, not for now."

I furrowed my brows, unsure of how Alexander would react.

Alexander’s eyes were already a bit hazy. He looked at me and took the phone. "Hello?"

His words were slightly slurred, and I could tell immediately that he had been drinking.

I took a deep breath to steady myself. "Alexander?"

Hearing Vivienne’s familiar voice, Alexander stiffened, sitting up straight. His eyes lit up as though he were dreaming. "Vivienne?"

"It’s me."

"You... what is it? Why are you calling me?" His voice was unusually soft, as though raising it might shatter the illusion.

"Are you drinking?"

Immediately, Alexander set his glass down. "No, I’m not."

I narrowed my eyes slightly, keeping my tone steady. "You don’t need to lie to me. If you drink and your condition worsens, it will only hurt you. If you don’t care, then keep drinking. After all, you’re rich, and the hospitals are your family’s business. You can stay there as long as you want."

"I’m sorry, Vivienne. I won’t drink anymore."

Caught by my words, Alexander seemed guilty. He pushed the glass far away and whispered, "Thank you for caring about me, Vivienne. I’m really happy to hear that. Even if you’re just pretending, I’m happy. I thought you’d never speak to me again..."

Hearing this, a wave of bittersweet emotions surged in my chest.

I took a deep breath and hung up the phone without saying another word.

Though I knew Alexander was a master of acting and that his words couldn’t always be trusted, I couldn’t help but feel a pull in my heart.

But since I had already decided to let go, the best thing was to stop listening.

That way, I wouldn’t weaken.

"Vivienne, I really don’t want to divorce you. But I know I can’t keep you. I’ve hurt you too much... I don’t even have the courage to ask you to stay... These past few days without you, I haven’t been able to sleep. I miss you, Vivienne..."

What responded to him was the disconnected tone of the call.

Alexander closed his eyes, bitterness filling his chest.

He had finally gathered the courage to say these words.

But she couldn’t hear them... and no longer wanted to.