Although Jessica didn't interact with Annalise much, she could tell Annalise was a very decisive woman from the fact that the latter hadn't contacted Steven at all after their divorce.

She most probably wouldn't go back to a past relationship. On the other hand, Steven was deeply in love with Annalise, even though he didn't realize it. So for now, she felt safe. Jessica had originally planned to drop Cody off at school and then seek Steven out. That way, even if Steven realized who he truly loved, she could guide him. She could make him believe that the person he loved was her.

But now, she couldn't be bothered to go after Steven. After all, she had the card he had given her. She could buy whatever she wanted with it. Her life now was carefree and easy. There was no need to find Steven and make things complicated for herself. As Jessica thought about this, she glanced at her cup of coffee.

She couldn't tell if it was the coffee she'd bought or something else, but it seemed unusually rich in aroma.

...Belongs to (N)ôvel/Drama.Org.

Steven sat in his office, trying to focus on work, but Annalise's face kept floating into his mind. He stopped his work and leaned back to stare at the ceiling.

His friends had all told him that he didn't love Annalise and that he only had possessiveness toward her. But was that true?

If it were, then why did he always think of Annalise when he was alone?

Steven looked around the room.

When he first moved into this building, he had taken Annalise and a two-year-old Zachary to tour the place. At the time, Annalise had held Zachary's hand as they marveled at the details of the interior. Her voice had been full of admiration for him as she said, "You're really amazing, honey!" Her praise had felt so genuine.

Inspired by her, Steven began to see endless possibilities in life. He was motivated in his work.

But now, Zachary was at Chloe's, and Annalise was no longer by his side. Both of them were gone.

Just thinking about it made Steven feel as though his heart was being squeezed painfully. He even began to question whether his feelings for Annalise were really just possessiveness.

If they were, he should have gotten used to losing Annalise after all this time. Seeing her again should have been something he could handle calmly. So, why did it hurt more every time? Steven couldn't understand, so he called a friend. "Want to grab a drink tonight?"

"Sure."

...

"Is Sasha Weston here?" A delivery man shouted Sasha's name as he brought over the flowers. "Your roses are here!"

Holding her head high like a proud swan, Sasha quickly walked over to the delivery man. "That's me!"

She took the large bouquet of roses from his hands and dramatically sniffed them. "Smells so good!"

Her colleagues crowded around, asking, "Who sent them?"

Sasha replied proudly, "My best friend, Annalise Jamison!"

Joanna noticed the flowers in Sasha's hands as well. They were much larger and clearly more expensive than her own. Annoyed, she remarked, "It's not even from a man. What's there to be so proud of?"