Chapter <b>69 </b>


    At the restaurant’s entrance, Edward confirmed his reservation, and the waiter led him to his table. As he walked, he absentmindedly turned his head, scanning the room. His steps briefly faltered.


    His gaze locked onto a woman at a nearby booth. But just as he focused his sight, she lifted a menu, obscuring her face. For a split second, he could have sworn that he saw Macie.


    As he followed the waiter, he kept looking in that direction. Just as he was about to glimpse her profile, arge pir blocked his view. When he looked again, he could only see the back of her head.


    He saw that the woman had short hair. With that, he concluded that it wasn’t Macie and she had long


    hair.


    Moreover, he assumed that she was still in the hospital. So, there was no way that she could be there.


    Edward finally withdrew his gaze, expressionless. He figured that he must have been seeing things.


    Or perhaps he was just too fixated on her. She had blocked him, and he had spent the entire morning sulking over it instead of working. Now, he was so on edge that every woman reminded him of her.


    At the booth near the entrance, Macie slowly lowered the menu, her heart still racing. Even though she sensed that he had walked away, the panic in her chest hadn’t settled.


    She didn’t know why she was hiding. After all, she and Edward were divorced. So, he had nothing to do


    with her anymore. <fnf026> Find the newest release on </fnf026>


    But she hadn’t told Alice or Julian about her marriage. To her, that part of her past was nothing but a disgrace–something she never wanted anyone to know.


    So, for now, she would keep it buried. She wasn’t afraid of Edward. She was just afraid of the humiliation.


    “Macie, are you okay? You look a little pale,” Julian asked with concern.


    “I’m fine. I skipped breakfast, so I might have low blood sugar,” Macie replied smilingly.


    Alice, sitting beside her, instinctively replied, “Didn’t you-<b>” </b>


    Before she could finish, a sharp pain shot through her thigh. Someone had pinched her.


    Macie turned to her and whispered, grinning, “Don’t expose me. Let’s just say I skipped breakfast, or else


    I’ll seem like a total glutton.”


    Alice smirked and rubbed her leg. “Oh? Worried about your image in front of Julian?” she teased.


    Macie just smiled, letting her joke. She thought that it was better than them realizing that she had been acting strangely.


    Across from them, Julian chuckled. “Eating well is a blessing. Besides, Macie, you’re too small. You should eat more. Lunch is on me.”


    Macie smiled but said nothing. All she wanted was to finish quickly and leave before Edward saw her.


    A few booths away<b>, </b>separated by three rows, Sharon swirled her wine ss and looked at Edward.‘ Edward, was your morning busy? Are you tired?”


    “Not too busy,” Edward answered absentmindedly, sipping his wine.


    “1


    “Then why do you seem so distracted? You’re not secretly worrying about me, are you?” Sharon joked.


    Edward snapped out of his daze and focused on her. His mind had been filled with Macie ever since he stepped into the restaurant.


    “Have you been to the hospitaltely?” he asked.


    Sharon’s smile stiffened for a brief second before she quickly masked it. She wondered why he was suddenly asking her about that.


    On the contrary, he was actually asking if she had gone to see Macie.


    “Not yet. Rehearsals have been keeping me busy. I get homete, wake upte, and then head straight to work,” Sharon casually answered.


    Edward pressed his lips together and fell into silence. He had hoped that Sharon would check on Macie so that he wouldn’t have to<i>. </i>


    “What’s wrong, Ed?” Sharon prodded, feigning ignorance.


    “Nothing. I just wanted to ask if you’ve had your follow–up checkup,” Edward said before downing the


    rest of his wine.


    Sharon smiled without exposing his lie. Why had he been so lost in thought if he was only asking about her checkup? And why drink alone like that?


    Her fingers curled into a fist under the table, her nails digging into her palm. She felt an impending crisis and knew that she needed to act fast.


    She smiled sweetly as she poured ore wine into his ss. If he wanted to drink, then she would just get him drunk. And then, she would take him straight to a hotel.