The Reclaimed Rose (Annalise and Steven)

Zane had checked into the issue beforehand, so it didn't take him by surprise.

"Yeah," he replied.

A voice came through the line. "In that case, Willow's guardian has to own property within the school district."

Zane could feel a headache starting to set in. He wasn't Willow's legal guardian, after all.

"Is there any way around that?" he asked.

"There is. Buy a house for Willow and put it in her name. Since she's a local resident, that'll work."

Zane smiled. "Alright, let's do that. I'll send you the money, and you can take care of the rest. Sounds good?"

"Yeah." The other person agreed right away.

Zane looked up. Out of nowhere, he felt grateful for having money. Money could fix everything.

He chuckled. This, he thought, was what it really meant to have money. He'd always be the one to step in whenever Willow needed help.

...

Julia held off until I was a good distance away, then made her way over to Gary. "Annalise is in, so get a plan ready, fast. What if she backs out?"

Gary's expression turned grim. "We can't just pull something together at the last minute. You think coming up with a plan is that easy?"

Noticing the seriousness in his voice, Julia eased up. "I'm just getting impatient. Don't you want to hold your grandson as soon as possible?"

Gary chuckled. "Of course I do. Cody was such a sweet kid when he was

younger. I remember when he was just a little guy. He'd run straight at us when he saw us, all wobbly and barely able to stay on his feet, just so we'd pick him up."

His voice grew more strained, and Julia felt her mood sink with it.

"It's such a shame we never really appreciated him back then. We never held little Cody or treated him the way we should have. He

ive

probably hates us now and wants nothing to do with us," she said.

Gary let out a deep sigh. "It might not be as bad as you think. Give it some time,

and he'll probably come around and forgive us."

Julia's voice was flat. "I hope so."

Gary glanced over at her. "How about we pick Cody up from kindergarten tonight?"

"Can we even do that?" Julia asked.

Gary flashed a grin. "Why not? I heard Jessica hasn't been picking him up herself lately. She's been sending a driver. Cody might be excited to see us if we show up!"

Julia was eager to give it a try after hearing that. She said, "Let's give it a

go. We'll figure somethingnoveldrama

it doesn't pan out." Content Belongs to

"Ready to go?"

if

"Sure!"

"The house's all sorted."

Zane had just finished going through a contract when he got the update. A smile crept onto his face.

"Thanks," he replied.

"No problem," the other person said, sounding laid-back. "By the way, you overshot the budget..."

"You can pocket the difference," Zane said. He had always been generous to those who worked for him.