CHAPTER 376: CHAPTER 376: TOO GREEDY

Susan Wilde reached out and tapped the door, making a sound, and the voice-activated light in the hallway turned on, revealing the man outside the door clearly.

What is he doing here so late?

Susan Wilde stared at the screen image, hesitating whether to open the door or not.

On closer inspection, she noticed something was off about his condition; his gaze was drunkenly hazy, and he was having trouble standing steady.

His body swayed and leaned against the wall by the door, head lowered, and it seemed he was muttering something.

Susan Wilde pushed the door open, leaving a small gap, and looked at him standing by the door.

The smell of alcohol on him made Susan Wilde frown. She looked him up and down and said, "Running here in the middle of the night to act drunk?"

When Shawn Rhodes heard Susan Wilde’s voice, he turned to glance at her and gave a silly drunk smile.

Susan Wilde froze; she had never seen him like this. This version of him seemed harmless and naturally less annoying than usual.

As he gave her a silly grin, he softly collapsed toward Susan Wilde, who barely caught him, struggling to support his body. Just as she was about to push him away in disdain, he suddenly murmured in her ear: "...Skylar."

Susan Wilde’s entire body stiffened. Then she thought he must be pretending to be drunk; otherwise, he wouldn’t call out her name while drunk.

Moreover, he had never called her name so gently before.

Susan Wilde pushed his heavy body away and had no intention of helping him inside.

After pushing him away, he slid down the wall by the door and sat on the ground.

Not knowing whether he was truly drunk or faking it, Susan Wilde, afraid he might fall, bent down and carefully grabbed his arm, releasing him only after she was sure he was seated steadily.

"Shawn," Susan Wilde uncertainly patted his face.

Only then did she realize his face was burning hot; he had a fever.

Susan Wilde frowned, straightened up, and looked at him in a daze, not knowing what to do.

Calling Rowan Alder would only likely bring unnecessary trouble for herself.

She bent down, thinking of dragging Shawn Rhodes inside. But recalling his past wrongs against her, Susan Wilde steeled herself and simply left him by the door.

He had never treated her well, and there had been several times when he beat her into the hospital; no need to pity someone like that.

Susan Wilde convinced herself with those thoughts, turned and walked back inside, moving his hand away from the door and closing it.

Anyway, drunk as he was, he probably wouldn’t remember anything upon waking up.

She would pretend she was asleep and unaware of him being outside.

Susan Wilde turned off the living room lights and returned to her room.

Her heart was hardened toward him, yet thinking of his fever, she felt somewhat reluctant.

When she started feeling sympathy for him, Susan Wilde forced herself to recall his previous abuses, and her conscience seemed to ease a lot.

She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and told herself, it’s just a fever; he won’t die. He’s almost thirty, not a child, so he can take care of himself; there was no need for her to worry.

Susan Wilde awoke suddenly from her sleep when the sky outside was already faintly light.

The worries she had before sleeping came immediately back to her mind after waking.

She sat up in bed and looked at the time on her phone.

Almost six o’clock.

She lifted the covers, got out of bed, and walked to the door to take a look.

The monitor showed only high-angle footage; his sitting posture by the door last night happened to avoid the view of the surveillance camera.

Not sure if he was still outside, she cautiously pushed the door open a crack.

Peeking in that direction while crouched, she saw there was no figure there anymore.

Only then did Susan Wilde fully open the door, looking around and confirming he had left.

A sigh of relief escaped her; if he had died at her doorstep, she might not have been able to explain herself.

Actually, Shawn Rhodes had only left recently, and there was an unfinished cigarette stub still smoldering in the corner by the door.

Downstairs, Shawn Rhodes drove away, heading straight back to his and Susan Wilde’s marital home.

Whether due to the lingering effect of alcohol or the cold, his head felt terribly dizzy.

Pushing open the door without changing shoes, he naturally didn’t bother to shower, and collapsed directly onto the couch.

His mind and gaze blanked out when he heard the sound of footsteps descending the stairs.

His gaze shifted toward the stairs, where he saw Laura. Shawn’s eyes held no emotion nor expression, returning his gaze to the ceiling.

Laura descended the stairs and approached the sofa, looking down at the somewhat desolate Shawn after his bout of drinking, "You were with her last night, right?"

Laura’s tone was no longer accusatory but carried a trace of sobbing, sounding a bit aggrieved.

Shawn glanced at her again; her eyes were swollen red from evident crying, and her large pregnant belly made Shawn feel somewhat guilty toward her.

He explained, "Drank too much last night, stayed at a hotel."

Laura’s lips twitched as she stared at him with tearful eyes.

Shawn took a deep breath, reached out to pull her hand, drawing her to sit beside him, "I’m sorry. I wasn’t in a good mood yesterday. I shouldn’t have said those things to you."

Worried and overthinking all night long, Laura suddenly burst into tears, "I thought you really didn’t want me and the baby anymore. You have no idea how scared I was when I couldn’t reach you."

Shawn’s hand rested gently on her bulging belly, touching it softly, "It’s my fault."

Laura said, "I was wrong too. I reflected on it last night—I haven’t cared enough about you or considered your feelings. After work, you’re always tired and I haven’t been empathetic about how hard it is for you, always adding to your troubles. I’ll be more considerate in the future."

Shawn chuckled softly as he wiped her tears dry, "I also shouldn’t bring work emotions home."

Laura replied, "Could you please share with me if you have anything bothering you? Don’t keep things bottled up by yourself."

Shawn nodded, "Alright."

Laura’s lips twitched, "Please don’t ever say those hurtful things to me again. When you say them, I feel really scared. I’m afraid you don’t love me anymore..."

Laura leaned over into his embrace, and Shawn wrapped his arms around her, saying nothing.

The two held each other quietly for a few seconds before Laura sat upright and said, "You should go shower; you smell like alcohol, it’s awful."

As Shawn sat up, Laura stood and headed upstairs, "I’ll go run the water for you."

Shawn chuckled softly, feeling slightly better, yet there was always something missing in this kind of life.

Sitting on the sofa, he thought about moving back to live with his parents. He could refuse but somehow didn’t want to.

At this moment, he didn’t know how to bring it up to Laura.

He was too greedy.

The things he wanted to have increased.

But one can’t have both what’s ideal and what’s attainable.