Chapter 146

"Are you seriously going to peel shrimp with those claws?" Adrian scoffed, eyeing Vivian's manicured hands with obvious disapproval. "Do you have a death wish? That polish is practically toxic."

Vivian dramatically fluttered her fingers. "These are organic gel extensions, darling. Completely harmless. Don't they look fabulous?"

He leaned back in his rickety chair, the plastic creaking under his weight. "After all the money I've spent on you, this is what you do with it? Covering your hands in tacky rhinestones like some teenage pop star?"

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "When I was playing housekeeper, I didn't have time for manicures. Now that I'm free, I'm enjoying the little luxuries."

The lie came easily. She didn't mention these were for her upcoming role as a socialite - not that it mattered anymore.

Adrian deftly peeled the first shrimp and dropped it into her bowl. "You insisted we didn't need staff. I didn't marry you to turn you into domestic help."

Vivian stared at her lap, the weight of unspoken regrets pressing down. All those compromises she'd made to be the perfect wife now seemed so pointless.

Maybe this was inevitable. They were always too different - like champagne and cheap beer trying to mix in the same glass.

The pile of peeled shrimp grew steadily in her bowl, a bittersweet reminder of their first date here. Back then, she'd been the one peeling while he ate, content just to watch the way his strong hands moved with surprising delicacy.

She mechanically speared a shrimp with her fork. This felt like playing house one last time before their divorce finalized. The shrimp tasted sweet yet strangely hollow, like their marriage - all surface, no substance.

"I'm done," she murmured, setting down her fork.

Adrian popped the last shrimp into his mouth. "Tastes exactly like it did fifteen years ago," he mused.

Vivian froze. They'd only discovered this place last year. Was he thinking of...Serena?

The name hung between them like an uninvited guest. Everything Vivian knew about Serena came from tabloid scraps and whispered gossip.

She forced a smile.

Adrian wiped his hands with a paper napkin, then caught her staring. "What?" he asked, his tone carefully neutral.

Had he brought Serena here? Was this their special spot first? Had those same skilled hands peeled shrimp for another woman with the same tenderness?

The questions swirled like storm clouds. The irony struck her hard - she'd blamed Serena for every crack in their marriage, but the truth was, without Serena, there would have been no marriage at all. That realization left an ache deeper than any betrayal.

Adrian returned from paying the bill, his expression unreadable. "Clear night," he observed. "There's Sapphire Springs near the night market. We could walk by the water."