The Reclaimed Rose (Annalise and Steven)

Sasha nodded. "She must! You know, you could tell me all the little things she's done for you. I bet there's some juicy details in there that show she's head-over-heels for you."

Shane was still a little dazed, but he told Sasha everything that went on between him and Yvonne nonetheless. For every detail he provided, she would nod and say confidently, "No woman would do that for you if she didn't love you!" Within moments, the doubt on Shane's face vanished. Upon seeing this, Sasha beamed. Her plan was working!

Of course, there were several variables she hadn't expected along the way, such as the possibility of Yvonne actually having feelings for Shane. However, Sasha knew the Winslows had high standards for their future daughter-in-law.

If someone like Yvonne were to marry into the Winslow family, it would be like feeding chum to the sharks. If that happened, the Winslows would be doing Sasha's dirty work for her!

The thought made Sasha giddy with glee, but she had to tread carefully. She couldn't let Shane foil her plans. "Now that you know how Yvonne feels about you, you've got to be subtle." "Why?" Shane asked, genuinely curious.

She stared at his naive expression and fell speechless. She thought about her plan to turn the tables on Yvonne and flashed him a bright smile. "It's obvious, isn't it? Yvonne has a crush on you and probably thinks she isn't good enough for you. You're like an unreachable star to her.

"She'll want to take things slow and get close to you over time. If you suddenly go all-out to show your affection for her... Well, what do you think will happen?"

Shane followed Sasha's train of thought. Comprehension slowly dawned on him. "It'll scare her off?" he guessed.

Sasha clapped her hands in confirmation. "That's right! Then she'll shy away from you and avoid you. You wouldn't want to lose someone who loves you, right?" He nodded, albeit not too convinced. "I suppose."

"Right," Sasha said with satisfaction. "So treat her like you normally would."

Shane asked, "Should I get her a present?"

Raising her cup to her lips, Sasha sipped her drink and said, "Sure, why not?"

He immediately picked up his phonenoveldrama

Pet

and scrolled through the online shopping platforms. He couldn't settle for a cheap gift, lest Yvonne thought he wasn't serious about her. Not that he could afford anything

too expensive, either.

He found something and held his phone up before Sasha. "What do you think about this 4,999-dollar present?"

Upon hearing this, Sasha choked and sprayed her juice all over Shane's phone screen.

"What the hell?" he grumbled as he quickly drew his arm back and wiped his phone screen with a napkin.

Sasha finally understood why Shane was not popular with the ladies. She snapped, "She gave you five

thousand dollars, and you're just et`

going to keep a dollar for yourself and blow the rest of it away on a present for her?"

He didn't even bat an eye as he said, "Yeah."

Sasha fixed him with a withering look. To his credit, he puzzledly asked, "Is that wrong?"

Instead of answering him, she countered, "You realize you'll have to ask her for more cash if you spend that money in one sitting?" Considering this, Shane nodded. "True."

"I know Yvonne agreed to give you

an allowance Sasha began tentatively, wincing at Shane as if scrutinizing a village idiot. "But you have to be more considerate of her е money, too. How much of her paycheck can she set aside in

savings if you demand tens of

thousands of dollars from her at a

time?

"She'll need to fork out rent and daily expenses on top of bankrolling your essentials, too. She could be penniless at the end of the day if you keep this up! Surely you wouldn't let her go broke because of you?" Alas, Shane's loose spending habits were part of his character. "So, then..."

Sasha helped him out this time. "Set aside some of that money for your savings and spend the rest on a gift for her."