All Chapters of COMING HOME TO YOU: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

Wren froze, staring at her, lips slightly parted, her eyes wide."The board of directors wants to see me?" Wren asked, her voice shaking."Yes, ma'am," replied the woman standing at the door."Now?""Yes, ma'am. In the boardroom."Wren swallowed hard. She slowly set her bag down on the table and folded the reassignment letter into her blazer pocket before she could talk herself out of it."Lead the way," she said, her voice steadier than she felt.The woman nodded and turned, walking briskly ahead. Wren followed, her heart pounding with every step down the long hallway.By the time they reached the boardroom, her palms were damp, her heart racing, sweat covering her entire body.She paused, trying to steady herself in front of the already-open doors, she released a heavy breath, and stepped inside. The room felt colder than usual.Everyone turned toward her.It wasn't just Elliot this time. The long table was full, board members on either side, papers and laptops open in front of them

Theo froze, watching Isabelle walk toward him, each step slow and sure.She reached him and smiled."You look amazed. Why?" she asked, still smiling."What are you doing here?" Theo asked, his voice low and dangerous."Relax. I came to check on our secretary, to see if she's feeling better," Isabelle replied.His jaw tightened."Aren't you supposed to be having dinner with our dads?" Theo asked, his tone sharp. "Look, if you're here to start a commotion, you'd better leave." He pointed back the way she'd come.Isabelle let out a strange laugh."Don't worry, sweetheart. We'll still be having dinner together, you, me, and our dads." She smiled. "I'm just here to check on Wren." She walked past him.Her eyes moved over every face in the hallway, then stopped, freezing in place."Marcus!" she said, her expression twisting with surprise, her breath catching.Theo turned quickly."Boss!" Marcus said, straightening fast, his arm slipping slightly away from Wren.Wren blinked, looking between

"The CEO is missing."Wren rose quickly from her chair, her phone still pressed to her ear, while Margie watched her daughter's face change more and more."What do you mean?" Wren asked. "When I left, Theo was in his office.""He was in his office when I checked on him twenty minutes ago," Cole said. "Then I went to bring him some documents, and he was gone. His jacket's still on the chair. His phone's still on his desk. We've searched the whole company. He isn't here, and the CCTV didn't catch anything."Wren swallowed hard.Margie leaned forward, watching her daughter's face. "What is it?" she whispered.Wren covered the phone for a second. "Theo's missing," she said. Then, back into the phone: "Cole, has anyone checked with his father? Or Isabelle?""Elliot says he hasn't heard from him. Isabelle isn't picking up either." Cole's voice was tight, worried. "This has never happened before. The CEO doesn't just leave without telling me.""Calm down, Cole. Have you checked his house? Hi

The noise of the lobby faded slowly.Wren stared at the door, her heart seeming to skip a beat, her eyes widening at who she saw standing there."Mom," she said, her voice low, almost to herself.Margie walked into the lobby, and right behind her was Marcus."Margie!" Elliot said, staring at her, his voice carrying the weight of shock, his hands tightening slightly at his sides.Margie stood staring back at him."Mr Ashford." Her voice was flat. "It's really been a long time. You still look the same - rigid, just as you did fifteen years ago."Elliot straightened, a mocking smile appearing on his face and vanishing almost instantly."Mom!" Wren called, her voice louder but shaking. "Babe!"Margie's eyes moved from Elliot to Wren, and her expression changed, the sharpness from a second ago replaced by fear."Baby." She rushed forward, reaching for Wren's hand through the officers surrounding her.Marcus pushed forward too, passing Priya, who still stood frozen, and took his place prote

Wren sat alone at a corner table in her mother's diner, her chin resting on her hand, staring at nothing. Marcus had dropped her and Margie off and headed back to work, promising to pick her up that night. The diner buzzed around her, Margie moving between tables, taking orders, laughing with regulars, customers chatting and laughing, the smell of coffee and fried food filling the air. But Wren wasn't really there. Her mind was somewhere else entirely, still picturing Theo's face in the lobby, the way he'd looked at her, the way he'd tried to say something and just looked away instead, following Isabelle. Something twisted inside her. She covered her face with her hands. You asked him to stay away, she reminded herself. This is what you wanted. You're trying to protect yourself from being hurt a second time. But it didn't feel like a victory. It felt like watching someone drown and choosing not to reach for them, because she was the one who'd pushed them into the water in the