Too Late for Regret (Annalise and Roger) novel Chapter 150

Charlie’s POV

Liam is a month old now, and we fall more in love with him every single day. He loves bathtime, splashing us both as he kicks his legs and arms. After Ana feeds him, I take him to be changed so he can sleep. I love watching them together. We had to start setting a schedule once we realized how popular he was. My parents, her parents, our grandparents, our friends, and her brother Seth couldn’t get enough of him.

It worked out well for us, a we were exhausted. Now that Ana has been able to pump some breastmilk, they have been coming over to watch him. We were taking care of him while the other showered, but we needed naps. Neither of us realized how tiring it would be to have a newborn. My mother and Alicia had both hinted at it, but I thought we had it under control. I was wrong.

I was looking forward to getting to sleep with my wife and not having to keep an ear out for the baby monitor. We both woke up throughout the night. I couldn’t feed him until now, so Ana was the one who had to feed him. It all worked out for us, as our families took turns watching over him, so they all got time with him.

Samantha called a friend to deliver a message to me at the company. I hadn’t attended her trial, as we didn’t need to. They had a clear text chain between her and the Vaughns. They didn’t know what the money was for; Tiffany had just asked them to transfer it. Samantha had been given fifty thousand dollars to lure me away, under the guise that I was unhappy with Ana.

Tiffany told her that I wanted to get back with her. She didn’t know what Tiffany was planning, but it didn’t matter. She was still an accessory to what they had done. She pleaded ignorant of the crimes and swore that she only helped because she was still in love with me. She still believed, despite my shutting her down, that I still cared about her. She was wrong. But I was tired of her sending me messages. I was stopping this today.

Ana knew I was going to the prison, with special permission to visit Samantha. I wasn’t filling out paperwork for her to have any of my contact information. This was going to be a quick visit. I was brought to the visitors‘ room and sat at a table. She was led in and immediately headed to hug me.

I held my hands and said, “Don’t touch me. I’m only here so you understand that you were lied to. I have no interest in you; I haven’t for a long time. Everything I knew about you was a lie. You pretended to be someone you weren’t, and I don’t want you to continue to harass me anymore. You’re lucky you only got five years. When you get out, leave my family and me alone. I will not hesitate to deal with you in the future.”

“But I came back for you, Charlie. You loved me, and you could again if you’d just give me a chance. Please, Charlie, we were good together. I feel terrible that I lost you. I want us to go back to how we were at the start of our relationship,” Samantha begged.

She tried reaching for me again, but I stepped away from her and said, “I’ve already told you once, Samantha, don’t touch me. You disgust me. You have no idea what loyalty is. I’m married. I love my wife. I don’t want anything more to do with you. We’re done. No more contact, no more messages, no more letters.”

“But I lost my husband by coming to help you. He divorced me over it. Doesn’t that matter?” she sobbed out.

“I spoke to you at my company when you came to hire me to escort you. I rejected you then and made it clear that I was happily married. I won’t work for you. I don’t know how I could have been any clearer, but I came here to make sure you understand. We’re done. Your choices are just that, your choices. You fell for their lies because you wanted to believe them. But you knew I never wanted you back. I left to join the military, just to get away from you. Don’t attempt to contact me again. I don’t want anything to do with you,” I replied.

Samantha cried and then started shouting at me as I walked away. I already filed for a restraining order. I know she would never stop on her own. She believed I wanted her back, no matter what I said. I had her red–flagged for me so I would get updates on her as well. I wanted to know when she gets out, too. Now that she had lost her husband, she was going to try to come crying back to me. I’m going to make sure that she never reaches me or my family.

Regina and Joyce were also in the same prison, but they had cut ties with Sasha. Joyce had filled Regina in on how Sasha had led them here and then tried to flee. Regina was furious with Sasha. Joyce wasn’t planning to do anything more than give Ana a hard time by being arrested. Sasha was the one who kept telling them that if they couldn’t get the designs back, Roger’s company would go bankrupt. Roger wasn’t talking to his mother, so Joyce didn’t know if it was true. She was just trying to protect her son.

She just went about it the wrong way. I heard she caught Sasha in the restroom about two months after she had the baby. Sasha now gives both Joyce and Regina a wide berth. Joyce had come from a poor family. She changed everything about herself in order to fit in with other wealthy ladies. But you couldn’t survive in prison like that. Joyce knew how to fight, and she was training Regina on how to fight to protect herself. She needs to know how, because in prison, if you don’t know how to fight, you’re always going to end up being a victim.

I don’t know if Samantha got my message today. I had already told Mark that if Samantha sends her friend back with another message for me, to have her arrested for trespassing. I’m sending a clear message, and I was starting with Samantha. I already know that if her friend gets arrested for bringing another message. She won’t be bringing any more of them for her. No one’s willing to get a record for doing their friend a favor.

The closer I got to home, the more excited I became. I hadn’t been away from them this long since the baby was born. My grandparents came today to help Ana. I knew my grandfather was probably holding Liam, as that was his new favorite thing to do. I walked into our home, and it smelled wonderful. Ana was making a salad for us, and I walked over to give her a kiss before kissing my grandmother. I was glad to be home.

My grandmother was pulling out a large tray of lasagna and then a pan of garlic bread from the oven. The table was set for six, and before I could ask, my parents were coming in the garage door. My father has been spending much more time with us these days. I’d like to think that it’s because he finally realized that he doesn’t want to miss more time with us. That has been the best change of all, and I’m glad to see him more often. My father and grandfather had worked so hard because that is how they were raised. Reid and Alicia had done the same. I’m glad that they’re prioritizing time with family more than they ever did before.

My day ended with laughter and love as Liam was passed around between his grandparents and great–grandparents. I sat with my arm wrapped around Ana as we watched them dote on our son. I truly don’t know how my life could be any better than this.