The Reclaimed Rose (Annalise and Steven)

Shane's team stayed focused on their work, even without him constantly keeping an eye on them. He was satisfied with that.

People had always told him employees would feel responsible for the company's success if they were paid well enough. Shane could step back and trust them to get things done, knowing they'd be too worried about losing their jobs to take any chances.

Even the ones with the lightest workloads were bringing in over 100 thousand a month, and the highest earners were making millions. Everyone was convinced they'd never find a better deal anywhere else.

Shane didn't look at it that way. Zane's and Annalise's companies were offering decent pay, too. He was just thankful his employees hadn't gotten wind of it yet. Otherwise, they'd most likely leave for a better deal.

Shane turned away, settled back with a cup of coffee, and felt that his life was pretty good. Suddenly, his phone rang, and he answered it. "Hey, Dad, what's up?"

"Do you still have a decent amount of capital left?" Carlisle asked.noveldrama

Even though Shane's company was making a lot of money, he still had to cover payroll, share profits with Sasha, pay taxes, and so on. So, the amount left for him wasn't as much as it might've looked.

Still, he said, "I'm good. What's up? Is your company in trouble again? If so, I can send some cash your way."

"No, it's not that," Carlisle answered. "Things are finally starting to get back on track at my company. I just wanted to see if you were tight on money. I was thinking about sending some your way."

When Carlisle's business was in real trouble, Shane had transferred tens of millions to help him out. His generosity deeply moved Carlisle. It showed how much Shane cared, especially when compared to the rest of the younger Winslow family, and it made Carlisle want to fix their relationship.

He'd thought about cutting Shane out and had even started grooming other members of the Winslow family to take over. But in the end, he realized they were only after his money.

It wasn't easy to backtrack on his offer to them, without stirring things. up, but Shane had stepped in and helped him fix the mess. That whole situation had softened Carlisle's heart, though he still hadn't figured out the right time to sit down with Shane and repair their father-son bond.

Shane caught on fast to what Carlisle was saying.

"I'm fine, and since I've been learning from Sasha, I'm not spending like I used to.

You don't need to worry about me, Dad," he said.

It was only then that Carlisle spoke up again. Alright, one more thing I heard your ex, Jenny, found out you've been raking in money, and now she's kicking herself for dumping you.

"My bet is she's gonna try to worm her way back in. How you handle that is your call."

Shane could tell Carlisle was giving him a heads-up. He asked, "So if I decided to take her back, would you have a problem with that?"

That was what Carlisle dreaded the most.

"Of course not. Worst case scenario, if she ends up marrying into the family, we'll just keep our distance. No reason to make a fuss over it."

Shane felt his mood lighten when Carlisle eased up.

"Don't worry. I'm not taking her back. She screwed me over once, and I'm not the type to just forget that. Even if you wanted her around, I wouldn't go for it," he said.

Carlisle finally let out a deep breath. "That's a load off."

Shane hung up, figuring it was time to think about his future.