My CEO Ex: Let Me Go.-Chapter 17

I returned to the bedroom to rest for a while.

Around three in the afternoon, Alexander came back, looking worn out from his day. He headed straight for the kitchen, poured himself a glass of water, and briefly glanced at the pile of gifts in the corner.

“Maggie, has anyone been here today?”

Maggie answered truthfully, “Mrs. Hawthorne’s friend stopped by.”

She hesitated, her words trailing off.

Alexander narrowed his eyes. “And then?”

“Mrs. Hawthorne asked me to refer to her as ’Miss’ in front of her friend.”

Alexander frowned. “Vivienne’s friend is a man?”

“Yes.”

A cold premonition stirred in Alexander’s chest. The friend who had come by today was the one I liked.

I had pretended to be single around him. Clearly, I must have liked him very much, probably because I was afraid he’d be put off by my status as a second-time bride.

Alexander took a sip of water before asking, “What about the man? What does he look like?”

“He seems like a celebrity from TV.”

Maggie didn’t watch many new TV shows, but she recognized Julian’s face, even if she couldn’t recall his name.

A celebrity.

Alexander’s mind flashed back to the last time he saw that man outside the studio. Fully covered, with a face mask and cap, looking every bit the celebrity.

It was him—the man I liked.

Alexander took another sip of water, set the glass down, and went upstairs.

I had just woken up, lying in bed, too tired to move. Staring at the ceiling, I suddenly heard footsteps outside the door. I looked toward it as Alexander walked in.

If this were yesterday, I would’ve been thrilled to see him return. But today, after everything, his presence barely stirred anything in me. Instead, it felt like the weight of finality was settling in.

He was probably eager to finalize the divorce tomorrow.

It seemed like he couldn’t wait any longer.

“Did you just wake up?” Alexander asked, sitting on the edge of the bed.

“Mm,” I murmured, sitting up. I was about to ask why he hadn’t come home the previous night or the one before, but then I noticed his clothes—disheveled, his shirt particularly wrinkled. At the collar was a faint, unmistakable lipstick stain.

I leaned in, sniffing the air. There was still a trace of a woman’s perfume lingering on him.

I’d interacted with Isabella before, so I knew exactly what perfume it was. It was the one she always wore. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

In that instant, it felt like lightning had struck me. My mind went blank.

I had suspected that Alexander and Isabella might have something going on, but seeing the evidence made it impossible to accept.

My nose tingled, and my eyes filled with tears.

My Alexander...

That lipstick stain on his collar—it stood out now, like a slap in the face.

Without thinking, I shouted, “Don’t come any closer!”

Ugh—

Suddenly, my stomach churned, and I bent over the bed, dry heaving.

Alexander quickly grabbed a trash bin and held it out to me.

But as he moved closer, I recoiled even more.

Realizing what was happening, Alexander sniffed his shoulder and then said, “I’ll go change.”

I stayed bent over, gagging for a few more minutes, but nothing came up. Instead, I broke down in tears.

Alexander showered, changed, and came back to the bedroom. Seeing that I had regained my composure, he tried to explain. “You misunderstood. I don’t have anything with her...”

“Alexander, I have something to say to you.”

I interrupted him, my voice calm but firm.

I had finally managed to calm myself. I knew, with Alexander’s personality, that he wouldn’t have been with Isabella before the divorce was finalized. If they’d been intimate, the lipstick stain wouldn’t have been on his shirt, it would’ve been on his body.

But now, I didn’t want to hear his explanation.

Since we were already divorcing, what was the point?

He would eventually be with Isabella.

It was only a matter of time.

“You tell me,” I said.

“After the divorce tomorrow, I want to resign.”

The room fell into a heavy silence after my words.

A long pause. Then, Alexander asked, “Vivienne, are you sure? You want to resign?”

“Yes.” I nodded, my expression serious.

“What are you going to do after resigning? Isn’t being the brand director of V&R good enough?” Alexander asked, his brow furrowed in confusion.

“What I plan to do is my business. With the money you’ve left me in the Divorce Settlement Agreement, why should I keep working?”

Alexander chuckled, clearly surprised by my answer.

It was unexpected. After all, Pop-Pop and Nana had treated me like family over the years, and the allowance they’d given me was more than enough to live comfortably without working. But I had always been the hardworking type, far from someone who would just give up.

“If you don’t explain your plans clearly, I won’t agree to your resignation. Don’t look at me like that, even Pop-Pop wouldn’t let me agree to it.”

“I don’t have any grand plans. I just feel a bit tired after all these years. I want to take this opportunity to travel abroad and relax. We’re getting divorced, and if I stay here, we’ll still have to pretend to be a married couple in front of Pop-Pop and Nana. That’s a burden on you.”

Alexander raised an eyebrow, scrutinizing me. “Is it because you’re tired of working with Isabella?”

V&R was my creation, and he knew how much effort I had put into it.

Things were fine before—how could I suddenly want to give up?

I bit my lip in acknowledgment.

"Hang on just a little longer. Once Isabella’s brand endorsement campaign is over, I’ll give you some time off."

I paused.

"I don’t want time off. I want to resign."

"Vivienne, don’t be ridiculous," Alexander said, his voice low.

"I’m not being ridiculous!"

Alexander fell silent for a moment, then asked, "Does traveling abroad really require resignation? Or have you already made plans with him?"

"Huh?" I didn’t understand.

"Who is ’he’?"

"Did your friend come by today?"

"Yeah, I hurt my foot, so he came to visit me."

"You’ve been making so many excuses to quit. The real reason is you want to run off with your lover, isn’t it?"

I finally understood. He was talking about Julian.

I couldn’t help but laugh. "What nonsense are you talking about? It has nothing to do with him. I want to resign because I want to."

"It has nothing to do with him?" Alexander smiled faintly. "I heard that in front of him, you let Maggie call you ’Miss.’ Are you worried he’ll find out you’re married?"

Seeing me stay silent, Alexander continued, "People who like you won’t stop liking you just because you’re married. And people who don’t like you, even if you’re single, still won’t like you. If he cares about that, Vivienne, you need to seriously think about whether you’re really suited for him. Don’t let yourself be deceived or trust the wrong person."

At his words, I couldn’t help but tug at the corner of my mouth.

His tone was helpless, almost like a parent trying to convince a rebellious child.

How could he say something like that so calmly?

When it came to being deceived and trusting the wrong person, no one was in a worse position to speak than he was.

"I’ve already told you, it has nothing to do with him!" I said, more sharply this time.

"The facts are right in front of you, and you’re still defending him. Do you like him that much?" Alexander’s face showed disappointment, as though he couldn’t understand.

In that moment, I realized I should never have mentioned resigning the day Julian came over.

"I just want to resign!"

"I don’t agree with you resigning."

I was so furious that my blood rushed to my head. Without thinking, I blurted out, "Yes, you guessed it right. I want to run off with him! What right do you have to control me? You’re allowed to have your Isabella, but I can’t have someone I like?"