All Chapters of Owned by the Wrong Man: Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

Ethan slowed the car as they pulled into the quiet street lined with new houses.Tasha leaned forward slightly in her seat, scanning the houses with interest. “This area is nice,” she said.“Quiet. Annie would like this.”Ethan nodded, though his mind wasn’t fully present. Ever since Annie had woken up in the hospital, fragile but alive, his thoughts had been split between relief and fear.Relief that she was breathing, smiling weakly, still here. Fear that danger hadn’t really passed it had only changed shape.He parked near by as the Realtor stepped out of one of the houses ahead. Just as Ethan opened his door, something made him pause.Across the street, reflected faintly in the glass of a large window, he saw her.At first, he thought his mind was playing tricks on him. But then she turned slightly, and the light caught her face.Clara.She stood beside another car, dressed neatly in a fitted beige coat, her hair pulled back in a way that looked effortless and intentional.She was

Clara sat by the window, holding her phone.“Stop pacing,” a voice said from behind her.She turned.Marcus standing behind her, holding a drink, watching her with mild irritation. He was calm in the way only men who believed they were untouchable could be.“You’re nervous,” he added. “That’s unlike you.”“I don’t like loose ends,” Clara replied, moving away from the window. “And Great was always a liability he’s dead.”Marcus smirked. “Was?”“If he was smart,” Marcus said lightly, “he wouldn’t have picked up that phone or be dead.”Clara froze. “What do you mean?”Marcus took a slow sip. “Ethan Gray is not a man you taunt. If Great called him directly, that’s a mistake he won’t recover from.”Clara’s jaw tightened. She crossed her arms, nails digging into her sleeves. “He wasn’t supposed to make contact. The plan was pressure. Fear. Distance.”“And now?” Marcus asked.“And now,” she said coldly, “we adjust.”Marcus set his glass down and finally straightened. He was tall, well-dresse

Ethan stood alone in his office, staring at the city through the glass window like it had betrayed him.The sun was setting, but he barely noticed. His phone lay on the desk behind him, face down, like a threat waiting to be picked up. Every vibration, every sound in the building made his anxious.His reputation was everything.Not just money. Not just power. His name.And now it was slipping through his fingers.The document sat open on his laptop. He had read it at least ten times already, hoping the words would rearrange themselves into something harmless. They didn’t.Transaction records. Dates. Amounts. A signature that looked dangerously close to his.Payments linked to hard drugs.It was fake. He knew it was fake. But the problem wasn’t the truth.The problem was how real it looked.His jaw clenched as anger surged through him, sharp and suffocating. Clara. It had to be her. No one else had both the access and the cruelty to do this.And she hadn’t acted alone.Ethan turned awa

Annie woke to the gentle sound of wind moving through the trees, the soft rustle of leaves brushing against one another.It was different from the loud sounds she remembered, no neighbors arguing through thin walls.This place feels like paradise, like it existed just outside the reach of danger. The curtains moved gently as a breeze came in, carrying the faint scent of something floral.For a moment, Annie let herself pretend this was peace.She stood up to get a glass of water and accidentally knocked her arm against the large plant vase.“Ouch” she exclaimed.The ache pulled her back into her body, into memory. The gunshot. The chaos. The blur of hands, voices and fear. She inhaled slowly, grounding herself, the way the doctor had shown her. In. Hold. Out.Tasha was asleep on the couch nearby, curled on her side with a blanket half-fallen to the floor. She’d insisted on staying close, even when Annie told her she didn’t have to. Even when the doctors said she was stable.Tasha had

The boardroom felt colder than usual.Ethan noticed it the moment he stepped inside, the way the long glass table reflected his face back at him like a stranger.Everyone was already seated. Men and women he had shaken hands with for years. People who once smiled easily at him.Today, no one stood. No one smiled.The door closed softly behind him.“Thank you for coming on such short notice,” the chairman said, folding his hands together.“Please, sit.” He said.Ethan pulled his seat slowly and sat.He had received the email barely an hour ago “Emergency Stakeholders’ Meeting”.No explanation. Just urgency.Now he knew why.A woman across the table slid a folder towards him. It stopped just inches from his hand.“An email was circulated to all shareholders early this morning,” she said. “We assume you’ve seen it.”Ethan didn’t touch the folder yet. “I have.” He replied.The room went quiet.Another man cleared his throat. “The allegations are… serious.”Ethan finally opened the folder.