The Reclaimed Rose (Annalise and Steven)

Meanwhile, Willow was in her bedroom. Her room was huge and decorated like a princess' room from an animated movie- exquisite and lavish.

She wore a princess gown and cradled a bunny plush toy, her back facing the door as she sat on the carpet silently.

Zane was eager to lighten up her mood. "Willow, look who's here."

Willow turned around, ignored him, and stayed silent. He couldn't help but turn to me with a helpless look.

Although this was my job, I had always wanted a daughter. Besides, Willow looked like an adorable princess. As such, I started to take a liking to her.

Pretending to be grumpy, I said, "Oh, so Willow doesn't want me here."

Once she heard my voice, she quickly turned around, shot up, and hurried to me. Then, she shook her head.

I crouched down to meet her eyes. "Why aren't you talking to me? Do you dislike me? Is that why you're not speaki{

Willow was ready to shake her head again, but perhaps worried I would misunderstand her intentions, she said, "No. I like you a lot."

"I like you, too, Willow." I held her hand. "And I like hearing you talk. Would you chat with me more in the future?"

Mimicking an adult, she sighed. "Alright."

Since she hadn't spoken in a long time, it would be too much to ask of her to initiate conversations with me. Thus, I took the lead. "I heard you haven't been eating lately. Are you hungry?" Willow lowered her head, her dainty fingers patting her tummy. "Yes!"

I burst into a smile. "Let's go eat, shall we?"

She nodded initially, but seemingly afraid I'd be upset, she enunciated, "Okay!"

By then, Zane seemed to have relaxed greatly.

I held Willow's hand and was ready to bring her to the dining area when she suddenly stopped and stared at me.This text is property of Nô/velD/rama.Org.

Confused, I asked, "What's wrong?"

"Mommy..." She lowered her head and asked somewhat embarrassingly, "Can you carry me to the living room?"

I was about to say yes when Zane interjected, "No, Willow."

Immediately, Willow's big eyes turned teary.

Zane carried her, looking in stark contrast to his usual cold demeanor.

He was particularly warm before her. "Think about how she fell down the stairs just a few days ago. She bled a lot, and her body hasn't fully recovered yet. Do you know how much she will be in pain if she carries you?" Honestly, I was surprised by Zane. I didn't expect a CEO who ran a business empire to have such a thoughtful side.

Upon hearing his words, Willow cried, "I'm sorry, Mommy. I'm a bad kid. I didn't think you'd be in pain."

My heart immediately melted at the sight of her tearful expression.

I went up behind Zane, held Willow's hand, and softly consoled her, "It's okay, Willow. Don't take it to heart."

She gazed at me, uttering, "B-But..."

I wiped away her tears with another hand. "But you understood and felt sorry for me, didn't you? You didn't insist I carry you anymore, did you?" Willow choked. "Yes."

"And that's enough!" I stroked her head. "We can be kind, but at the same time, we must change after realizing our mistake. Don't you think so, Willow?

"We can't always use our mistakes to punish ourselves and make ourselves unhappy. Got it?"

Willow was taken aback, and Zane appeared surprised as he looked at me.

After a while, she accepted my words and smiled. "Got it."

"Good girl." I caressed her face and watched Zane place her by the dining table. "Let's eat."

Willow had been raised well. During meals, she didn't need anyone to coax or feed her. Instead, she sat quietly, enjoying her food. "She has school later." Zane was finally relieved to see Willow in a good mood, thanks to my help. He asked, "Could you please drop her off? At last, I averted my gaze away from Willow. "Of course."

"The thing is... she goes to the same kindergarten as Zachary."

Zane was obviously worried that I would feel awkward seeing Steven at the kindergarten gate after our divorce.