The Reclaimed Rose (Annalise and Steven)

I barely had time to reply before Eric groaned from the side. "You two are always so lovey-dovey. Have you ever thought about how I feel?"

I glanced at him. "You still don't have a girlfriend?"

Eric laughed out loud. "I'm with Mr. Huxham practically every day, working non-stop. Obviously, I have no time for a date."

I glanced over at Zane. "Once work slows down, maybe we should give him some time off to find a girlfriend."

Zane didn't argue. "Yeah, sounds good."

Eric thought about it for a second, then shook his head. "Nah, forget it. I'm all about making money right now."

Zane didn't ask why and simply said, "Having more money gives you that extra confidence, no matter what you're up to."noveldrama

Eric showed a sheepish smile.

Steven had an appointment with a psychiatrist. He sat in the office, staring at the psychiatrist, who was in the middle of eating. They made eye contact, and they both felt a little awkward. The psychiatrist spoke up first. "I didn't expect you to be here this early."

"I just want to figure out if there's actually something wrong with me. I need you to confirm it," Steven said. Right now, he couldn't even tell what he was feeling or what he wanted.

The psychiatrist looked at his meal. "Do you mind if I finish eating first?"

Steven shook his head. "No, go ahead."

The psychiatrist started eating without saying anything. Once he'd finished, he set the lunchbox aside and asked, "So, what do you think the problem is?"

"I think I'm in love with Annalise," Steven said. He couldn't turn to anyone around him for help on this issue since they all kept saying he was in love with Jessica.

"But everyone else thinks otherwise. Even Annalise doesn't seem to think I'm into her at all," Steven added.

The psychiatrist seemed to understand the heart of Steven's issue. He handed Steven a set of questions to fill out.

After Steven finished, the psychiatrist asked him a few more questions before saying, "From what I can tell, it's not really a psychological problem. It's more like a distortion in how you're seeing things.

"You seem really hung up on your pride. Jessica was your first love, and she's still your friend. You want to prove that you're doing well and show her that her choice back then was a mistake.

"That's why you act so flashy around her. But that's not really about love. It's more about struggling to let go of the past and wanting to outdo her.

"As for Annalise, she stuck by you from the beginning, through all the tough times, and you've gotten used to her being careful with money. Even now that you're doing well, all you can think about is how Jessica left you because you didn't have any."

The psychiatrist paused, choosing his words carefully before going on. "Look, deep down, you're scared of going broke again, so you're holding on tight to all your money. And you expect Annalise to keep loving you and never walk away.

"Before the divorce, you took everything she did for you for granted. You didn't really love her. When people have money, they usually want to make sure their wives are living better, too, and

they're willing to spend on them."

But with how tight-fisted Steven was with Annalise, it was clear he didn't really love her. He couldn't deny that the psychiatrist's words struck a chord. "So what about after the divorce?" Steven asked.