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Novel Catalog
Chapter 81
Shawn stopped talking and continued drinking in silence. The bottle was empty before he knew it, his mind slipping into a haze of alcohol.
Joe, noticing how much he’d had, tried to stop him. “Hey, hey, slow down… You’re drunk, and I have to take you home!”
But Shawn wasn’t listening. His focus was entirely on the alcohol.
Just then, a familiar voice interrupted the tension. “Mr. Wood!” Susan rushed toward him, her eyes wide with exaggerated surprise. “It’s really you. I thought there was something wrong with my eyes.”
Joe, who never really liked Susan, ignored her and turned his attention back to Shawn.
Shawn glanced at Susan, a brief look of annoyance crossing his face, before he took another swig of wine.
“Stop drinking. Drinking too much will hurt your health,” Susan added, her tone sweet but insincere. “You can tell me if something’s bothering you.”
Despite her words, she didn’t move her hand away from the bottle, and when Shawn went to pour himself another drink, she was right there to help him.
Susan’s plan was simple: get him drunk, and then she could seduce him. Drunk men were always the easiest to manipulate. She had to seize the opportunity before it slipped away.
Shawn, however, was fed up with her persistence. “Go away!” he barked, pushing her aside.
Susan stumbled back and landed on the sofa beside him, her lips curling into a pout. “Mr. Wood, it’s me. You don’t even recognize me?” she said with a feigned innocence. “Let’s go to the hotel. You need to rest.”
She was getting bold now. If she could just get him to the hotel, she’d remind him of who she was, and then everything would fall into place.
As she tried to help Shawn, he was really starting to feel the effects of the alcohol. His vision was blurry, and his movements were unsteady.
“Mr. Wood, I will always be with you,” she whispered, her voice laced with false sweetness.
Shawn squinted at her, barely able to keep his eyes open. “Be with me?”
“Yes,” she purred, leaning in closer. “I won’t leave you. Never will.”
Shawn’s words were slurred. “You can’t leave me in the first place…” He looked at her with possessiveness, his gaze unfocused but intense. “Gale… you’ve been my woman all your life.”
He was so drunk, he thought the woman in front of him was Gale. His mind was completely consumed by thoughts of her.
As Susan moved closer, her red lips inches from his, his body’s response was immediate, igniting a burning fire inside him. Her soft voice drifted into his ears. “Mr. Wood, let’s go to the hotel.”
Shawn, still lost in the haze of alcohol, lifted Susan’s chin with a heavy hand. “You want to seduce me again?”
Susan’s heart skipped a beat. She had been exposed too soon. She hadn’t even had a chance to take control of the situation.
She was shocked. He was obviously drunk, but he still saw her as Gale. His confusion worked in her favor.
“Okay, Gale,” Shawn muttered, as though to himself. “Since you think so… then I… I will give my all to you tonight.”
Susan’s stomach twisted in fury. He thought she was Gale.
“Mr. Wood, I’m Susan. Take a good look at me,” she snapped, trying to make him see her.
“Su… Su what?” Shawn mumbled, his head still spinning.
“Susan. It’s not Gale.”
Shawn blinked, his expression blank for a moment. Then, as if waking from a trance, he pushed her away. “If you’re not her, then get out now!”
The force with which he shoved her sent Susan crashing to the floor. She bit her lip, holding back the surge of anger that threatened to explode.
She had never felt so humiliated. Gale… that woman had somehow made Shawn think of her even when he was this drunk. Susan’s jealousy boiled over.
“Mr. Wood, what’s so special about Gale?” she spat, her voice dripping with venom. “The woman you want to marry is me. She’s just a puppet. She’s nothing compared to me.”
Shawn froze, his expression darkening at the mention of Gale’s name. He grabbed Susan by the collar with surprising force, pulling her close. “You dare to insult her?”
Susan’s eyes widened in shock. “Mr. Wood, I…”
“No one talks about her,” he growled, his voice menacing. “Not even a single word. Only I can bully her. None of you can.”
His eyes were filled with a fierce protectiveness that sent a chill through Susan’s spine.
“Okay, I… I got it,” she stammered, realizing that she had crossed a line. Shawn wasn’t just angry—he was consumed by something more.
Finally, he released her, letting her slump back onto the sofa.
Seeing that Shawn was still in a bad mood and clearly intoxicated, Susan saw an opportunity. “Mr. Wood, did you drink because of Gale?”
Shawn didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he sat in silence, the tension in the room palpable.