Chapter 38 Roger's POV I woke up with a fierce headache , and my mouth tasted like I had licked cotton balls . I was surprised to see it was noon . I was really late for work . I had a few drinks last night . I was furious about what my mother had done , and couldn't fall asleep last night . My father even backed me up that they should never have done it . Sasha made my drinks , and by the third one , I didn't remember anything else . It was just like when we reconnected in Paris almost three months ago . My mother had been so smug when I got home last night . She really thought she had dealt with Elizabeth . She didn't even understand that filling a false police report was against the law . Add the false statements she made and the bogus deed . Mom doesn't know that she's in deep . She was smiling and laughing about having Elizabeth arrested . I had looked around the room , at the three of them . Mom , Regina , and Sasha were all acting like they had won . Because they honestly believed they had . They believed that as long as Elizabeth was on her own , they could do whatever they wanted to her . Dad was pissed . He actually yelled at Mom for what she had done . I was glad that he was backing me up on this . At least he was taking this seriously . I came into the living room , and Mom seemed surprised that I was still home . " What are you doing here ? " she asked . " Aren't you supposed to be at work ? " " Production was stopped , as I didn't sign the expired renewals . I thought we would both own the copyrights after we got married , but Elizabeth canceled the wedding . I don't know what else I'm going to do . After what you three did to her yesterday , I know she isn't going to allow me to use any of her designs anymore ," I replied . " Just make new designs , Roger . Do I have to tell you how to do everything ? " Mom huffed , rolling her eyes . " You don't get it , Mom . I have a design team , but a great design doesn't just happen because you want it to . It takes time and effort to create a timeless piece . One that speaks to people . Her latest creations were exceptional , but she didn't give them to us . It's like she knew what I was planning to do , and blocked me at every step ," I replied . " Roger , you run that company , not Elizabeth . Don't worry about it . Losing one designer won't destroy your company . Where else can she go ? Sasha was smart enough to put the word out about those stolen designs . They belong to your company , not just Elizabeth . If she tries to use them , we will just sue her . Once she calms down and realizes that she has nowhere else to go , she'll be forced to return . She has to , who would hire her after we accused her of theft ? You have Sasha now , and she's a designer , too . Elizabeth has always thought too highly of herself . She can't go against us . She doesn't have the money to do that . Just sit back and wait for her to return . She'll be back by the end of the week , I guarantee it ," Mom told me . " I hope you're right , but seeing the way she smiled yesterday has me worried ," I replied . Elizabeth wasn't upset ; it was like she had anticipated what happened . " Just go on to work . I'm sure things are going to work out just fine . You just need to give it a little time ," Mom 16 MNND 1/4 < < What Else Haven't You Told Us ? said as she ushered me out the door . +15 Points > Nothing worked out . The normally busy secretaries on my floor were quiet as I exited the elevator . There was always noise before , but you could have heard a pin drop today . Upon arriving at my office , I checked the market and saw that my company's stocks had dropped by thirteen percent overnight . When I started to open my emails , things got worse . My secretary then brought in official letters delivered from my investors , requesting their money back . They are demanding that I purchase their stocks back from them. What in the hell was going on ? I tried to work for two hours , but ended up leaving because my headache was just getting worse . Medicine wasn't even taking the edge off of it . When I arrived back at my parents ' home , I just passed her and went straight up to my room . I needed peace , but I didn't get any . My room is full of boxes . My parents didn't have anywhere to store our belongings . I changed out of my suit to get comfortable and lay down on the bed . I needed to think . I had promised Sasha I would buy us a home as soon as things settled . I needed to get the company back on track before I could make a large purchase . I couldn't figure out if this was because of what my family had done yesterday . The scene they caused in front of the company probably got the investors in an uproar . I had watched the footage , and it was exactly as bad as I thought it would be . I doubted the sudden mass exodus was because Elizabeth told the reporters , " I'm no longer with Cook Custom Jewelry . " Elizabeth had truly been the heart of the company . Without her , it's going to crumble . That was the entire reason I had expressly told my mother and Sasha that everything had to be done a certain way . I needed control of her designs . Yet Sasha and my mother , the very ones who came up with this plan , weren't following it . It seems like every time I turn around , they are trying to incite Elizabeth . They want to push her beyond her limits . It's like they can't control their actions anymore after they swore they could . I know with Sasha , it's due to jealousy . Not because she loves me , but because she knew Elizabeth loved me . She feels threatened by Elizabeth and has been acting out . Elizabeth took a chance and jumped into this with me . My parents didn't want to help me at all and were shocked by how well things had turned out for me . I admit my pride made me take the credit for our success . I enjoyed how my parents and the rest of my family were treating me now . Now that I was a verified success , I felt like I was more important to my family. But it was all Elizabeth . She took my idea and made it happen . Seeing her now , I hate that I ruined things between us . I made a mistake ; Elizabeth would have been a much better choice to marry than Sasha . I really need to look into getting a divorce . If you are reading this anywhere else by Dreame / Stary Novel it has been stolen from Kat Von Beck . I need to figure out how to get Elizabeth back . I need to marry her before my company ends up completely ruined . Once we are married , I'm sure she will give me the designs to use again . I just needed to pour on the charm . Sasha doesn't respect me for anything more than a way to get what she wants . Elizabeth doesn't spend money like Sasha does . She was clearly the better choice between the two of them . Now that Elizabeth has slimmed down , I'm more than happy to be the husband she always wanted . I'm racking my brain trying to figure out how I can get her back . I doubt she knows that I married Sasha . If she did , I know she would have confronted me about it , instead of just giving me my ring back . She loves me . She wouldn't just calmly walk away from me . She was the one who demanded we get married . Even if she were mad , she wouldn't let the company we created together be destroyed . # 000 16 3 日 2/4 O < What Else Haven't You Told Us ? +15 Points > Yet the more I think about it , I think she's fine with letting my company collapse . She mentioned a sinking ship yesterday after Mom came with the police officers . Is she really willing to lose everything she put into the company just to prove a point ? No , that's not possible . She doesn't have the kind of money to lose the millions she invested . Elizabeth was a highly intelligent woman . She wouldn't do something like that . I'm having trouble figuring things out because Elizabeth has always been the one who ran things . I was the figurehead . I liked everything to be run by me , but I appreciated her handling the more mundane details . Why now ? Why did she decide to do this ? Could it be that Sasha told her that we were married ? I wouldn't put it past her . She swore to me that she would wait , but she kept hinting at it . Sasha's always going through my phone . She could have got Elizabeth's number . She might have sent something to Elizabeth's phone , telling her what I did . I honestly wouldn't put it past her after yesterday . I had been humiliated by what they had done . I finally gave up and went downstairs . Dad was home now , and when he saw me , he frowned . " Why aren't you at work ? " he asked . " I don't feel well , I can't shake this headache . I'm also trying to figure out how to get Elizabeth to return to work ," I replied . " You don't need her son . You told me what a good designer Sasha is ; just let her do her job . That's how you run a business . Hire talented people , and let them do their jobs ," my father replied . " All of our best designs belonged to Elizabeth . If she won't sign them over to me , I'm ruined . Her design team is okay , mainly because she always helps them . The first drafts were always off , but she managed to help make them better . She has a gift to elevate any design . Sasha is nowhere near her level , " I replied truthfully . " Then why in the hell did you go off and give her job to Sasha ? That doesn't even make sense , " my father fumed . " Sasha wanted Elizabeth's job . I was going to make her step down into the Design Manager's position . That way , Elizabeth could still continue to make the necessary corrections . I had it all planned out . But Mom and Sasha can't seem to let her alone . They both knew how this needed to work out . Instead of helping me , they are single - handedly dragging my company down . We're down today in the stock market . I'm losing several investors because of the stunt they pulled yesterday ," I replied . Dad froze and turned to face me . " What did you just say ? " " I said , my company is taking a hit because of what Mom and Sasha pulled yesterday , " I replied . " Your investors are pulling out ? Why ? Is there something you haven't told us ? " my father asked . " All our best designs belong to Elizabeth . She owns them , but she allowed the company to use them . I downplayed how important she was to the company because I liked how you both started to respect me more . If I told you that we both owned the company , you wouldn't have been quite so proud of me . How could I have known this would happen ? Everything's falling apart now , and I don't know how to fix it , " I answered . " What in the hell do you mean you don't know how to fix it ? You've been running your company for the last five years . What have you been doing all this time , if you weren't the one running it ? " my Dad asked in shock . " What else haven't you told us ? " 16 MN