Sidney steeled herself and walked into the café. Alondra spotted her from afar, first widening her eyes in surprise, then frowning, looking at Sidney with confusion.
Sidney sat down at the seat opposite her, while two bodyguards stood stiffly behind her, their arms crossed in front of them.
"What's going on?" Alondra silently mouthed the words.
Sidney lowered her head, shaking it slightly as she whispered, "Jayson sent them."
Alondra raised an eyebrow and teased, "Wow, is he always this protective?"
Sidney shook her head again with a bitter expression. She had no idea how to explain the situation.
With two burly bodyguards watching their every move, the two who had arranged to meet didn't know what to say next. Alondra took out a paper bag and handed it to her. Sidney thanked her, accepted the gift, and asked how she had been.
"Sigh! Nothing much to say, it's the same as always. I was planning to ask you to go shopping with me later, but now…"
"…"
"However, these past few nights, I've seen Jayson staying late at Opal Lounge! You don't mind? Don't care?" The last sentence, Alondra whispered into Sidney's ear, covering her mouth.
Sidney mimicked her, leaning in to whisper in her ear, "It's hard to explain!"
They kept exchanging words like this for a while. Eventually, both Alondra and Sidney were getting tired of the posture. Alondra returned to her seat, massaging her shoulders, and said, "Alright, I'm going to go shopping for clothes. Are you coming?"
"I won't go. You have fun shopping!" Sidney said with a weak smile.
After bidding Alondra farewell, Sidney finished her coffee. She had originally planned to linger for a while and not return so soon, but unable to resist the curious gazes around her, she stood up and followed the bodyguards back to the car, heading home.
She really couldn't understand why Jayson was treating her this way. Was he trying to monitor her? Or had he offended someone and needed to protect her for safety reasons?
Returning early to the Finnegan's place, the butler wasn't surprised. He immediately went into the kitchen to prepare dinner. Sidney followed him and cautiously asked, "Why does Mr. Nixon have so many bodyguards following me?"
"I don't know, Madam. You might need to ask Mr. Nixon yourself."
"Does Mr. Nixon go out with such a large entourage as well?"
"I'm not sure, Madam. You can ask Mr. Nixon yourself."
"Has Mr. Nixon asked you to report anything about me?"
"I don't know, Madam. You can ask Mr. Nixon yourself."
"..." Sidney felt like she was dealing with a human tape recorder.
The thought that this could become the norm for future outings drained her appetite. She hastily ate a bit of dinner before heading upstairs to dig out the business card Jayson had given her the first time they met. She stared at the phone number, hesitating whether to call him. After thinking it over, she decided she had to clear this up and understand what he meant. Gathering her courage, she dialed the number.
The phone rang for a long time, and just as Sidney was about to give up, it was finally answered.
"Hello?"
"This is Sidney."
Jayson was silent for three seconds before replying, "What's the matter?"
""Why are they sending so many bodyguards after me?"
"There's no reason. You just have to get used to it."
"They follow me, and it makes me feel trapped."
"Feeling trapped is just your subjective perception. I don't think it's a problem. You can still go out and go wherever you want, can't you?"
"…Are you spying on me?"
"You're overthinking it."
"Then tell me, why?"
"I told you, marrying into our family means this is how it is."
"…" Sidney felt like no matter what she asked, she wouldn't get an answer. If Jayson didn't want to speak, he simply wouldn't.
"Is there anything else?"
"No, nothing." Sidney wanted to hang up the phone immediately to show her anger, but after a second of thought, she dismissed the idea.
"Hang up." Jayson said, and immediately hung up the phone, leaving only the busy signal for Sidney.
Sidney slumped her shoulders, helplessly putting her phone away. She rolled around in bed, frustrated, and grabbed Jayson's pillow to hit it a few times in anger.
Since that day, Sidney had stopped hoping to go out. She quietly spent her days at the residence, like a bookworm.
One day, she was lying on the sofa in the study, reading a novel. Her reading had increased recently, and she felt her eyes becoming more and more blurred. Rubbing her eyes, Sidney leaned over her book, closing them for a moment. She heard footsteps on the stairs and assumed it was just the butler cleaning. But when the sound grew closer and stopped right in front of her, she opened her eyes. She was about to speak, but froze when she saw a pair of men's shoes in front of her. Startled, she quickly stood up. With him so close, she had to tilt her head back just to see his chest. She couldn't bring herself to look up any higher, feeling an inexplicable nervousness wash over her. Every time their eyes met, it made her uneasy, like she was being drawn into something she couldn't control.
