The Reclaimed Rose (Annalise and Steven)

Chapter 603

Zane said with amusement, "It's bad to go without breakfast for this long."

"I don't remember having worked for that long," I said as I picked up my phone and checked the time on the screen. I frowned when I saw that it was already 10:30 am.

The corners of Zane's mouth curled upward. "Be considerate of your health and have some breakfast, Annalise. I made granola and cut up some berries to go with it. You can continue your work after breakfast."

"All right," I said readily. I knew it was bad to miss breakfast. Besides, I was a grown-up, and I ought to set

a good example for the young ones. The last thing I wanted was to encourage them to skip breakfast, which would be troublesome.

I followed Zane down the stairs and heard him muse, "You know, I was known as a workaholic for as long as I could remember. But now, it seems you suit that title more than I do.'

I teased, "You're a great employer, and I might not get so lucky with my next job if I lose this one. I like to think of this as my calling to make as much money as possible. It'd be great if I could make enough to pay for Mom's medical treatment and have some left to do whatever I want.'

you'd

I said yes. I didn't want to keep him in the dark, so I said, "Yes. I told you about it, remember? I want to set up a company of my own where I can give my

you realize that dream right now if you want,"

me to accomplish my dream. "I'd prefer

...

admittedly stung by the rejection at first, but after some thought, he agreed Annalise could build character by working toward her dreams and learning to grasp every opportunity that came

the table, Zane began introducing me to the breakfast he made. "It's not good to have greasy food for

in the morning, cutting up a variety of nuts and dried fruits

and suddenly recalled the

to make breakfast, yet Steven and Zachary never appreciated my effort. Instead, they blamed me for butting into their diets and not letting them have the food

they were sick of my cooking and wanted to try

talk to me and let me know what they were

wondered if my cooking was indeed terrible. When I sampled my cooking and found it decent, I thought my judgment was biased because I was used to the

and Zachary gang up on me and criticize my