Se connecterMarcus My mother looked at me with wide, shocked eyes."Did you see that?" she asked. "Did you see how she spoke to me? How she disrespected me?""I saw," I said quietly."And you're just going to let her walk out like that?" my mother demanded."What do you want me to do?" I asked. "Chase after her? Drag her back here?""Yes!" my mother said. "She needs to learn respect. She needs to understand that she can't speak to us that way.""She's always been like that, Mother," I said wearily. "We just never saw it before. Or maybe we did and we chose to ignore it."My mother opened her mouth to argue, but before she could speak, we heard a small voice."Daddy?"I turned to see Kelvin standing in the doorway of the bedroom.He was holding his stuffed bear and rubbing his eyes."Daddy, I'm hungry," he said.I felt my heart clench.My son. My innocent, sweet son who didn't deserve any of this."Come here, buddy," I said, holding out my arms.Kelvin ran to me and I picked him up."Where's Momm
MarcusI paced back and forth across our small living room, my hands clenched into fists at my sides.The rage burning inside me was so intense I could barely see straight.Serena.Serena fucking Lawrence.Or Serena Ashford now, I corrected myself bitterly.She had done it again.First, she sent my father to prison.Then she foreclosed on our family home and took everything we owned.And now she has gotten my sister arrested.My sister.Victoria was sitting in a jail cell right now because of Serena Lawrence.Yes, I knew what Victoria had done was wrong.The kidnapping. The fake videos. The extortion.I wasn't stupid. I understood that those were serious crimes.But if you really looked at it, if you thought about it critically, Victoria wasn't entirely wrong.She was just trying to get back what Serena had stolen from our family.Our home. Our money. Our reputation. Our entire lives.Serena had destroyed us systematically and deliberately.And when Victoria fought back, when she trie
Ethan Ashford "You don't deserve her," Dave said quietly.His voice was so low I almost didn't hear him."Excuse me?" I said."You don't deserve her," Dave repeated, louder this time. He stepped closer to me, eliminating what little space was left between us. "You have no idea what she's been through. What she survived with Marcus Wellington. The abuse. The pain. The way he broke her down piece by piece.""I know exactly what she went through," I said, my voice hard. "She told me everything.""But you weren't there," Dave said, his voice rising with emotion. "You didn't see it. You didn't watch her suffer for years while that bastard destroyed her. You just swooped in at the end, after she'd already rebuilt herself, and bought her like another asset to add to your collection."My hands clenched into fists at my sides."Watch your next words very carefully," I said, my voice dangerously quiet.But Dave was past caring."I've loved her for six years," he said, and there was something a
EthanSerena had finally fallen into a deep sleep.The doctors had given her something to help her rest, and for the first time since I found her in that warehouse, she looked peaceful.I sat beside her bed for a while, just watching her breathe.My hand rested gently on her stomach, over the tiny life we had just learned about.Our baby.The thought still didn't feel real.After everything that had happened today—the kidnapping, the rescue, Victoria's arrest—finding out Serena was pregnant felt like stepping into some alternate reality.But it was real.She was pregnant.We were going to be parents.If the baby survived.That thought sent a spike of fear through my chest.The doctor had been clear. The next forty-eight hours were critical. The stress and trauma from the kidnapping had put the pregnancy at serious risk.All we could do was wait.And hope.And pray.My phone vibrated in my pocket.I carefully extracted my hand from Serena's and stood up, not wanting to wake her.The cal
Ethan Ashford "Is she going to lose the baby?" I asked, my voice breaking."We don't know yet," Dr. Mitchell said honestly. "We've given her medication to try to prevent a miscarriage. Hormones to support the pregnancy. We're monitoring her closely. But the next twenty-four to forty-eight hours are critical.""What can I do?" I asked desperately. "There has to be something I can do.""The best thing you can do is be with her," Dr. Mitchell said. "She needs rest, calm, and support. No stress. No physical exertion. Complete bed rest for at least two weeks, possibly longer depending on how her body responds."Two weeks.Two weeks of not knowing if our baby would survive."Can I see her?" I asked."Of course," Dr. Mitchell said. "Follow me."She led me through the emergency room doors, down a hallway, to a private room.And there she was.Serena.My wife.She was lying in a hospital bed, covered in a thin white blanket.She looked so small. So fragile.Her face was pale. There were dark
Ethan Ashford As soon as we drove to the hospital, the ambulance doors burst open and paramedics immediately swarmed around Serena's gurney.I tried to stay with her, my hand still gripping hers, but one of the paramedics gently but firmly pushed me back."Sir, we need space to work," he said. "Please step back.""That's my wife," I said, my voice rising. "I'm not leaving her.""Mr. Ashford," a doctor appeared, a woman in her forties with kind but serious eyes. "We need to examine your wife immediately. You can't come into the examination room. I promise we'll take excellent care of her, but you need to let us do our job."Serena's hand slipped from mine as they wheeled her through the emergency room doors."Ethan!" she cried out, reaching for me."I'm right here!" I shouted back. "I'm not going anywhere! I'll be right here when you get out!"Then the doors swung shut between us.And she was gone.I stood there, frozen, staring at those closed doors.My wife was on the other side, in
Serena I walked back to my office with my head held high.For the first time in years, my back was straight. My steps were steady. No fear, no shame.This was my place now.I pushed the door open and walked in. The office was large, quiet, and powerful. It smelled like money, control, and authorit
Ethan Ashford My jaw tightened.How could a man leave his wife… and act like this in public?I knew it's none of my business but... It's annoying.“Where is your wife?” I asked suddenly, my eyes fixed on Marcus.The smile on his face vanished.The room changed.Margaret scoffed. “That woman? She’s
MarcusI woke up with a heavy headache, the kind that sits behind my eyes and refuses to leave. I didn’t sleep well all night. I kept turning from one side to the other, my mind restless and my chest tight for no clear reason.I sit up slowly and rub my face. This house has felt strange since Sere
Ethan AshfordI stood there, still smiling like an idiot, watching her walk away.I didn’t even realize I was smiling until my face started to hurt.God… she is the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.And that scares me.I’m not the kind of man who loses sleep over a woman. I’ve built my life on







