Chapter 45: Chapter 45: A Minor Punishment
Jude Sheridan had just driven to the entrance of South Garden Apartments when he was stopped.
He wore a cold expression throughout the inspection.
He was taken by the officers to a hospital for a blood test.
Fortunately, he hadn’t drunk too much that night and wasn’t over the legal limit for drunk driving.
In the end, Jude Sheridan faced a six-month license suspension and a fine.
When he had revealed his identity earlier, the officers had been completely unfazed, almost as if they had known all along that he was their target.
Assistant Zimmer came to pick him up and paid the fine.
Jude Sheridan stalked out of the station with a dark expression. The moment he got in the car, he said coldly,
"Find out if someone reported me."
Assistant Zimmer nodded. "Okay."
Jude Sheridan’s expression was grim. He stared out the window, his brows knitted tightly together, then spoke again in a low voice.
"Never mind."
Assistant Zimmer was confused but didn’t ask why.
Jude Sheridan looked away from the window, rubbed the bridge of his nose, and said in a low voice,
"Have someone tail Cecilia Croft. I want to know her every move for the next few days."
Assistant Zimmer asked, "You suspect President Croft reported you?"
’She was definitely capable of something like this, just to stop me from bothering her again.’
’Cecilia Croft knew him. She knew he would never grovel or plead with her in front of other people.’
Assistant Zimmer received no answer from Jude Sheridan, so he didn’t press the issue and simply drove on in silence. His resolve to resign as soon as possible only hardened.
This time, he didn’t ask Jude Sheridan for a destination. He simply drove him back to South Garden Apartments.
They arrived at the South Garden Apartments building.
Assistant Zimmer parked the car and opened the door.
"President Sheridan, we’re here."
Jude Sheridan, who had kept his eyes closed for the entire ride, opened them. When he saw they were at South Garden Apartments, his gaze turned icy.
’Now even his own people were automatically bringing him to Jessica Keller’s place without asking, as if this was where he was supposed to be.’
His expression darkened, and he didn’t get out of the car right away.
"Is something wrong, President Sheridan?" Assistant Zimmer couldn’t help but ask.
Jude Sheridan had no answer. He finally got out of the car, his face expressionless.
Back inside the apartment.
Jessica Keller and Mrs. Sheridan were still awake. The moment they saw him, they rushed over to him.
Mrs. Sheridan, unable to stand how Jessica Keller was clinging to Jude, put on a sour face. She stepped forward to take Jude’s coat, pointedly shouldering Jessica aside in the process.
"You have a child in your belly. Don’t get too worked up. Go lie down."
Jessica Keller could only stand quietly to the side, giving Jude Sheridan a wronged look.
But Jude Sheridan ignored her and went straight into his room.
Seeing this, Jessica Keller hurried after him. As she entered the room, she locked the door behind her.
"Jude..."
She had just started to get close to Jude when the sound of the doorknob turning came from the entrance.
When Mrs. Sheridan found the door locked, she started pounding on it.
Jessica Keller gritted her teeth in frustration but had no choice but to go and open the door.
Mrs. Sheridan stood at the doorway holding a bowl of soup to sober him up, and she shot Jessica Keller a vicious glare.
"Why was the door locked?"
Jessica Keller bit her lip and said softly,
"Mrs. Sheridan, Jude and I need a little private space, too."
Mrs. Sheridan’s face was cold. "You’re pregnant. You can’t do anything anyway, so what do you need private space for?"
"You’d better be careful with that baby in your belly. Don’t go and do something reckless."
Mrs. Sheridan shot Jessica Keller another nasty look before walking over to Jude.
"Jude, Mom made you some soup to help you sober up. Drink it and get some rest."
"Cecilia’s done very well for herself recently. You need to spend more time with her and stop running over here all the time. It’ll be a real problem if she finds out what’s going on."
Standing behind her, Jessica Keller gritted her teeth.
Jude Sheridan took the bowl and drained the soup in one gulp. The frustration on his face was impossible to hide.
Seeing his expression, Mrs. Sheridan quickly asked,
"What’s wrong? Did you and Cecilia have a fight?"
Jude Sheridan remained silent, his expression grim.
Jessica Keller was secretly pleased.
’I knew it. Cecilia Croft isn’t the type to just take things lying down.’
Only after Mrs. Sheridan’s persistent questioning did Jude Sheridan finally tell her about Cecilia Croft’s reaction.
Mrs. Sheridan had always been unhappy with how Jude used to indulge Cecilia Croft. Now that an opportunity had finally presented itself, she naturally hoped Jude would use it to get Cecilia under his thumb.
"You two are about to get married. Does she really think she can raise hell now?"
"It’s not your fault her grandmother died. You just weren’t there for her final moments. And it’s perfectly normal for a man to have a few friends. For her to try and control who you hang out with... that’s just going too far."
"I think she’s clearly doing this on purpose—trying to establish her authority before the wedding. If you give in now, she’ll be completely out of control after you’re married."
For once, Jude Sheridan listened quietly without interrupting, so Mrs. Sheridan let it all out in a rush.
Jessica Keller stood to the side, remaining silent and reaping the rewards of their conflict.
Jude Sheridan was now determined to give Cecilia Croft the cold shoulder.
And so, since that night, he hadn’t texted or contacted Cecilia Croft at all.
「Several days passed.」
Only two days remained until his wedding to Cecilia Croft.
And still, Cecilia Croft hadn’t contacted him either.
During this time, he had even deliberately been seen hanging out with Zane Keller and his crew, making sure the news would get back to Cecilia. But she didn’t seem to care. She never reached out, as if she had simply given up on him.
Jude Sheridan was furious, and he took it out on Zane Keller and the others, not giving them the time of day.
Zane Keller knew about the conflict between Jude and Cecilia, so he shamelessly sidled up to him.
"Jude."
"As long as she hasn’t canceled the wedding, it proves you’re still in her heart. But she’s an arrogant woman. If you don’t clip her wings a bit, she’ll never show you any respect."
Jude Sheridan’s hand, holding his glass, tightened into a white-knuckled fist.
’He’d tried every trick in the book these past few days, and nothing had worked on her.’
Fortunately, Assistant Zimmer had been keeping an eye on Cecilia Croft’s whereabouts and reported back to him daily.
Lately, the place Cecilia Croft had been frequenting most was the wedding planner’s office.
She was still busy with their wedding arrangements, and that was the only thing that gave him some peace of mind.
"Jude, breaking a woman’s pride is easy. You just need to hire a few guys to... teach her a little lesson. Then you swoop in, play the hero, and she’ll be completely devoted to you. And because she’s been... sullied, she’ll never be able to hold her head high in front of you again. She’ll become dependent, afraid..."
Before Zane Keller could finish, Jude Sheridan’s fist slammed into his face.
’Just imagining that scene made his chest tighten with an unbearable pain. How could he ever use such a disgusting, low-life tactic on Cecilia Croft?’
One punch wasn’t enough. Jude Sheridan grabbed Zane Keller by the throat and hammered a few more into him.
The people around them had no idea what was going on, but they rushed over to pull the two apart.
Jude Sheridan furiously yanked at his collar, then snatched a wine bottle from the table and hurled it at Zane Keller.
The bottle shattered on impact, sending glass flying and splitting open a gash on Zane Keller’s head.
No one knew what Zane Keller had said to set Jude Sheridan off, but they all thought Jude’s crazed state was terrifying.
Zane Keller hadn’t expected Jude to be so protective of Cecilia Croft. Pressing a napkin to his bleeding head, he actually managed a smile and said,
"Jude, man, I’m your brother. I’m just trying to help you out here. She’s not just any woman. Ordinary tactics won’t work on her."
"Besides, it’s not like we’d do any real harm. If you don’t want other people touching her, fine. Just a little warning, something to put the fear in her. That’s all."
Jude Sheridan lunged forward and landed a few more kicks on Zane Keller before the others managed to pull him away.
Zane Keller used the chaos to scramble out of the private room.
But he couldn’t leave it at that. He stood at the doorway and yelled back,
"Jude, trust me on this! If you feel bad about it, just make it up to her after you’ve got her back in line!"
Jude Sheridan shot him a look that could kill, and Zane Keller quickly beat a hasty retreat.
