My CEO HUSBAND sign the divorce novel Chapter 267

Chapter 267: Old habits

I quickly accepted the platter.

"Thank you."

Alicia simply nodded before lowering her head and returning to her meal.

I did the same.

The shrimp looked delicious.

The only problem was the sauce.

It was served with pepper.

And I had never been able to eat spicy food.

Not wanting to disappoint Margaret, I peeled one of the shrimp, intending to eat it without the sauce.

Before I could, Margaret spoke again.

"Alicia, why didn’t you pass Chairman Blackwood the sauce as well?"

I looked up once more.

Our eyes met.

She knew.

She probably remembered I couldn’t eat pepper.

That was probably why she hadn’t handed it over in the first place.

For a split second, Alicia parted her lips as though she wanted to explain.

I spoke before she could.

"Director Alicia... could you please pass me the sauce?"

Confusion flashed across her face.

Then came something else.

Concern.

Our eyes remained locked for a moment before she silently reached for the bowl and handed it to me.

Only then did I notice everyone at the table watching us.

The tension was impossible to ignore.

I thanked her with a slight nod before dipping the shrimp lightly into the sauce.

Thankfully, it wasn’t as spicy as I had expected.

Just as I swallowed the first bite, I coughed lightly.

Before anyone else could react...

A glass of water appeared before me.

I looked up.

Alicia was still holding the glass.

She seemed to realize what she had done only after our eyes met.

Her hand froze.

So did the rest of the table.

For a brief moment...

No one spoke.

Because the gesture had been far too natural.

Far too instinctive.

As though she had done it countless times before.

Slowly, I accepted the glass.

"Thank you," I said quietly.

She withdrew her hand without a word and lowered her eyes.

But my heart refused to calm down.

She remembered.

After all these years...

She still remembered.

Alicia’s POV

We were halfway through dinner, and I was seated directly across from Alexander.

I tried my best to focus on the food in front of me, but every now and then, I could feel his gaze drifting toward me.

Anna suddenly nudged me with her elbow and leaned closer.

"I looked into Chairman Blackwood," she whispered.

I paused for a second before pretending to continue eating.

"And?"

"I found out he was once married."

My hand tightened slightly around my fork.

I instinctively glanced at Alexander before looking away.

Thankfully, Anna was too engrossed in her own discovery to notice.

"I also found out he allegedly cheated on his wife with some celebrity," she continued in a hushed voice. "Apparently, that was what led to their divorce."

She clicked her tongue dramatically.

"What a waste. A man that handsome turned out to be a scumbag."

I nearly choked on my food.

"I tried searching for his ex-wife too," she went on. "But all I could find was that she was his adopted sister. There wasn’t even a single picture of her online. Isn’t that suspicious?"

I narrowed my eyes at her.

"What are you now? A detective?"

Anna pouted.

"You’re no fun."

"Finish your food."

She muttered something under her breath but obediently returned to eating.

I lowered my gaze.

After everything that happened with Lilian two years ago, Alexander had personally ensured that every trace of the scandal was removed from the internet after Nana’s death.

As for me...

I had long deactivated my public accounts, locked the remaining ones, and stopped paying attention to social media altogether.

It wasn’t surprising that Anna couldn’t find anything about me.

Just then, Aunt Margaret asked me to pass the shrimp to Alexander.

I froze.

For a brief moment, old habits resurfaced.

Without thinking, I handed him only the shrimp.

Not the sauce.

The sauce contained pepper.

Alexander had never been able to eat spicy food.

"Alicia," Aunt Margaret called with a smile, "why didn’t you pass him the sauce as well?"

The moment the front door closed...

The atmosphere inside the dining room changed completely.

The cheerful mood from earlier disappeared, replaced by a heavy silence.

Even Anna, who had been talking nonstop before dinner, was unusually quiet.

"I’ll take Aimy upstairs," she suddenly said.

She stood up, took Aimy’s little hand, and led her toward the staircase.

I watched them disappear upstairs.

Then looked back at everyone else.

No one spoke.

But I knew.

They had all noticed the strange tension between Alexander and me.

A few minutes later, Uncle Herbert returned.

He looked around at everyone still seated in the living room and frowned slightly.

"Why are you all still here?" he asked with a chuckle. "It’s getting late. We should all get some rest."

I blinked.

I had expected questions.

Expected them to ask what was really happening between Alexander and i.

Instead...

Nothing.

They exchanged quiet glances before standing.

"Alicia," Aunt Margaret said gently, "you should get some rest too. You must be exhausted."

I stared at them.

Even now...

They were giving me the choice.

Giving me time.

They weren’t forcing me to explain.

That only made the guilt in my heart grow heavier.

"I..."

My voice stopped them in their tracks.

Everyone turned to look at me.

"I have something I need to tell all of you."

Silence filled the room.

I drew in a slow breath.

I couldn’t hide it anymore.

Even if Alexander remained silent for now, he would eventually tell them the truth.

Especially with the partnership between Blackwood Dominion and Whitemore Group about to be finalized.

There was no point running anymore.

This...

Is my family.

And they deserved to know the truth.