All Chapters of RIGHTFULLY MINE : Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

ZOE’S POV “Austin” I said catching his attention. Owen and I had been invited to meet with a group of local business owners last minute. I wasn’t expecting to see Austin here of all places. He was standing at the back of the room his face looked worn and his eyes darker beneath. It was more than just tiredness. It was something deeper. The meeting had just ended and I walked straight to him. He looked back when he heard me call his name and his eyes met mine. “Chloe” he said with a nod and his voice weary. “How is Zoe?” I asked, already bracing myself. “She’s… recovering” he replied hands tucked into his pockets. “Still unconscious but stable now. Out of danger. The doctor said we made the right call. They had to terminate the pregnancy immediately to save her.” My breath caught. I nodded slowly. “I’m glad she’s okay. That's the most important thing.” Austin met my eyes and there was a quiet moment between us. “Thank you Chloe,” he said quietly. “For telling me. F

AUSTIN’S POV ‘How could she trick me like this? Why on earth has she been deceiving me?’ I thought to myself as I sat by the bed staring at her—at Zoe.Her face was so pale under the hospital light, almost fragile-looking. Her chest rose and fell with quiet, steady breaths. She looked peaceful now but all I could see was the storm she left in her wake.I was heartbroken and it wasn’t because she was hurt but because I was starting to understand the kind of pain I had been living with without knowing.I rubbed my hands together slowly trying to make sense of everything that had happened. I was supposed to come here wanting to be by her side when she woke up to hold her hand and tell her everything would be okay. But now… all I had were questions.So she’s not Jamie’s mother.She never was.That lie alone knocked the wind out of me. But the implications—God, the implications. I looked at her again and felt a bitter ache in my chest. I remembered the way she would smile at Jamie, how s

AUSTIN’S POV “How the hell does someone just vanish from a hospital?” I asked, raising my voice slightly at the hospital staff standing at the front desk.I couldn’t stop pacing. My heart was pounding. I’ve asked the nurses, the security guards and even some random patient’s relatives if they had seen Chloe. No one had.My thoughts were spiraling—what if Jamie was crying? Scared? What if he thought I abandoned him? What if she’d already—“Austin!”I spun around at the sound of Zoe’s voice. She was running toward me, her face pale with panic written all over it. Owen was right behind her glaring down the hallway like he was ready to throw himself into a fight.“Have you heard anything yet?” Zoe gasped coming to a stop in front of me.I shook my head, my voice tight. “Nothing. No one’s seen anything. It’s like she just—disappeared.”“We need to check the cameras” Owen said quickly. “She couldn’t have just walked out without being seen.”A guard took us to the surveillance room and I wa

ZOE’S POV “Can mommy come with us?” Jamie asked. That question took us by surprise . Austin looked at me not sure how to respond at first. Then he looked at him “Of course buddy. If mommy is okay with that.”Owen’s voice cut in, calm but laced with something sharper. “Maybe it’s better if Zoe takes him to her place instead. Somewhere quiet. Safe. Neutral.”“He’s been through too much already,” Austin said, trying not to snap. “He needs the familiarity of home. His own bed. His toys. He’s more comfortable there.”The tension between them was instant—heavy, almost suffocating. I stood, still holding Jamie, my heart caught in the middle. Austin’s protectiveness. Owen’s concern. Both valid, both rooted in care—but there was something else underneath. Something personal.I saw the tension in Owen’s body, his jaw clenched.“This isn’t about comfort” Owen said carefully. “It’s about making sure Zoe—”“Zoe is his mother,” Austin cut in, sharper now. “She can decide what’s best for her son.”

AUSTIN’S POV It’d been a few days since the night Chloe kidnapped Jamie. The fear and panic still hadn’t fully left me. But what had kept me sane through the chaos was seeing the light return to my son’s eyes.Zoe had been visiting him every day since we brought him home. Taking him out to get ice cream, helping with his homework and playing those silly board games he always begged for. And for the first time in a while I saw Jamie smile like a kid again. Like someone who wasn’t carrying a weight too heavy for his age.It was her.It was having her—his real mother—back in his life. There was a difference in him I couldn’t deny. A brighter spark. The affection in his voice when he spoke about her. He was genuinely happy in a way I hadn’t seen in months. And honestly? I was grateful. No matter the past. No matter how it all unfolded. Zoe loved him. And Jamie loved her.Now I was in the car with Jamie, driving toward the address Zoe had sent me. I had a business trip out of town and wou