The Reclaimed Rose (Annalise and Steven)

Jessica never expected Casper, who had always unconditionally sided with her, to betray her like this.noveldrama

She chewed on her bottom lip. After a long pause, she snapped, "Casper, you're broke! You don't have a penny to your name, and you should be grateful that I'm even talking to you at all! You should know where you stand!" Casper cried uncontrollably. "Consider yourself absolved from having to spare me your charity, Jessica. This is a win-win situation."

An intense roaring filled Jessica's ears. "You useless, incompetent moron! How could you even mess up a simple job like this? Casper-"

He hung up before she could let loose another torrent of abuse at him. She stared at her blank phone screen and threw her phone to the ground. "This isn't fair!"

She went after Steven for his money, so it didn't matter if he didn't love her. She wanted Zane but could not have him, so she could overlook the fact that he couldn't care less about her.

However, Jessica would not stand for Casper betraying and abandoning her like this. He used to love her so much that he would give her the moon if she asked, so what right did he have to leave her hanging now?

She plopped down on the couch and glowered at her cracked phone screen. Some time passed, yet her rage would not quell. If Casper wouldn't help her, who else could she rely on?

When Steven returned home, he did not turn on the lights. He shuffled into the living room and sat in the dark.

The lights were always on back when he was still married to Annalise. He had a wife who loved him and a child who was obedient in all the ways that counted. He also

came home to a hot dinner on the table.

And now, all that surrounded him was darkness.

No one was home to make his favorite dinner, and the living room was devoid of a child's laughter and lively chatter.

Steven had made a huge mistake

and now paid for it with his solitude.

He reckoned there was no better punishment than this. He stared ahead as he turned his psychiatrist's words over in his head.

How did he feel when Jessica got tangled up with another man? He had felt resentful and betrayed. They had come so close to officially being together, yet she chose to leave him for someone else.

At the time, Steven wondered what

he had done wrong to make Jessica betray him. It took him a while to realize her cheating had nothing to do with him at all. She had always loved money, and that was something he did not have when she left him.

After that, Steven worked hard to rebuild his fortune just to prove to Jessica that leaving him was the biggest mistake of her life.

But when he and Annalise separated, all he felt was anguish. He was overcome with the fear that he would never get back together with her again.

Dazed, Steven stared at the ceiling. He pondered on the times he had been stingy with Annalise. Had he truly seen her as a free nanny and nothing more?