The Reclaimed Rose (Annalise and Steven)

Steven hadn't expected such courtesy from Jessica. "You're welcome," he replied. "We might not be married, Jessica, but I still want you to do well."

Jessica's lips curled. She knew it was hard for any man to resist her charms. After hanging up on Steven, she called Yvonne and asked about the sum she should have Steven invest in her work. Yvonne replied, "I'm not sure about that, either. I'll ask our secretary and get back to you on this."

"All right."

Yvonne stood outside Eric's office and knocked on the door.

Yvonne stopped before him and dipped her head as she asked quietly, "How much do we need to invest in Jessica's comic before the company agrees to launch official merchandise?"

Eric said flatly, "Come in."

Eric recalled Zane's warning that Jessica was problematic. If they launched merchandise for her comic and the customers demanded a refund after learning about her true colors, the company would take a huge hit.

However, the fact that Yvonne was here and asking him about merchandising meant she was prepared to help Jessica at all costs. If he tried to dissuade her from such an attempt, she might think he was giving them a hard time on purpose.

As such, Eric had to come up with a way to help them launch their merchandise without involving Huxham Corporation.

He eyed Yvonne thoughtfully, and within seconds, a bright idea came to him. He smiled and said, "You might be able to come up with the money, but if you think about it, Huxham Corporation will be taking a huge cut of the profits if you produce and launch the merchandise under our company."

Yvonne considered this and found herself agreeing with Eric. He continued, "So I was thinking that you could keep your job at Huxham Corporation and transfer the rights to Jessica's work to another company.

"That way, you'd be fully responsible for the merchandising, and Jessica would have better resources. She would be encouraged to better her work, and not to mention, you'd be earning a lot more."

Eric could tell Yvonne was swayed by the suggestion, so he added with no small amount of satisfaction, "Perhaps you should consider this and let me know your final decision."noveldrama

"No consideration needed!" Yvonne thought the suggestion was brilliant. "I'll terminate Jessica's work with Huxham Corporation at your earliest convenience, then."

J.not

Eric stood up. Now that he had the opportunity to get rid of Jessica, he saw no point in dawdling. He had seal the deal before Yvonne changed her mind, yet he feigned courtesy as he said, "We can do it now."

"All right!" Yvonne was buzzing with excitement. "Let's get to it, then."

With Eric around, the contract termination went smoothly. It took less than half an hour for the paperwork to be signed.

Yvonne turned to look at Eric with admiration. "You're kinder than I thought."

Eric couldn't deny that. "Yes, well, I'm just looking out for my fellow employees."

When Yvonne returned to the company, she relayed Eric's brilliant suggestion to Jessica. However, she left out the part where she had terminated Jessica's contract with Huxham Corporation without first seeking the latter's approval.

Manipulative as she was, she asked, "So, what do you think? Do you want to let Huxham Corporation have control over your work, or do you want to terminate your contract with them and transfer your copyrights to another company?"

Jessica thought the latter option was more profitable than the first, so she said without hesitation, "The second. I don't want to stay with Huxham Corporation if it means having to live in Annalise's shadow. "You said it yourself that my work is better than hers. In that case, I ought to work toward becoming richer and more famous than her, right?"