Ethan's POV When I got back to the room, she was sleeping already. Her face was relaxed, nothing like the person who was arguing on whether she wanted to get treated or not.I still find it hard to believe that she wanted to cover up an injury as huge as that, it was too deep to be ignored that it might have gotten infected if not treated today.I gently picked her up, careful to not touch her stomach at all. Her dress rode up but I looked away so as not to look like a pervert.That dark ink on her thigh peeked out again but I was only opportuned to see it for a millisecond, I could swear that I've seen that somewhere before.I walked out of the room with her in my arms then continued down the hallway.“Ethan….” She mumbled in her sleep that I halted almost immediately.I can't even remember the last time I heard her call my name, it's not like we've even talked, let alone calling each other names.My jaw clenched once more as I realized that this too might just be a facade. I'm conv
Ethan's POV I ran out of the room with so much force as though I was being compelled to, or could it be because it was Anastasia who screamed?I burst into the room through the doors which I pushed with a lot of force that it was as though the door would fall off.Angela was in the room too, she was on the floor on the other side of the room while Anastasia was on the far edge of the bed, her chest was heaving up and down.“What happened here?" I asked, looking at Anastasia in particular.“I was trying to take off her clothes then she freaked out and kicked me really hard away from her.” Angela replied."Why did you switch off the lights, and your hand was roaming my body, you weren't taking off my clothes.” Anastasia countered."I- I turned off the light because I thought it would be better that way.” Angela stuttered.She just keeps doing things that makes her look more suspicious as each day passes by.“Better in what way, Angela? The light issue aside, why were you touching her i
Ethan's POV “I'm here to see you concerning your wife, or who you think is your wife." I stared at her blankly, “You mean, Anastasia, your sister?" I asked.“Yes, and she's only my half-sister, more reason we don't look alike. She's not who you think she is. I noticed that you both have been somewhat close and you might have even started falling in love." She started.Though I have tons of work to do, it's going to be somewhat interesting too if I allowed her say her mind.“She's very wicked and a bully. Trust me, you don't want that kind of person as the mother of your children, you deserve better." She said."If you could explain more on how I deserve better, do you think there's anyone in particular that's the ‘better’ you're talking about?” I asked.“Not really, I just think you need to read the signs before you and you'll find just the right person.” Now I see where this is going….“Like I said, she's a big bully. She's still acting all nice and good in your front now because
Ken's POV“Ken! Are you even listening to me?" Thomas's voice brought me back to realityI flinched at the sudden interference, I was so deep in thought that I didn't even remember that he's here with me.“Yeah, what were you saying, I was lost in my head for a while." I said.“You were lost in your head for a long time actually. What are you up to though? All you do in here is work all day, there's nothing fun going on at all, no hot chicks too." He said."You know what I'm up to. I'd be really busy with it for a while too.” I replied, focusing my attention back to the paperwork before me.“Yeah, right. The contract and all, but can't we just pull some strings like we always do?” He asked."No, Thomas. This isn't some trivial things we do and both you and Timothy pull us out from. It's the government we're talking about here and not just some other person.” I answered with a long sigh.I went back to the work I was doing while he just focused on his phone. Timothy, his twin brother h
Annelise's POV I thought he was only joking till I got downstairs and the door was locked, there was no one in sight too. It's so certain that the key is with him.I stormed back upstairs with anger in me.Ethan had gone into his room before I could reply him after giving out that ‘order’ since we were directly in front of his door.I banged on his door really hard that he came out immediately, "What is it?”His chest was bare and if it was any other time, I might have admired it or other sh*ts, but I'm really pissed right now.“You can't just control me like I'm your daughter, I'm not some puppy you can order around!" I screamed behind him.Ethan just kept staring at me and that pissed me off even further."What gave you the right to think you can hold me up here? I'm your wife, not your maid!" I got even more angry as each second passes by.“Like I said earlier, that's your punishment. Besides, what's a married woman looking for outside at this time of the night?” He replied.“That
Annelise's POV“That is beautiful, Anne!" Esther exclaimed.She said she'd just settle with calling me Anne as it's the first letters of my real name and somehow sounds like the name I'm forced to answer now.We're face timing and she kind of saw my artwork and begged to see it.That's the only thing I've been practically doing for a while now, it's not like I have any other thing to do in here, painting is one of the things I do that makes me forget things.When I'm painting, I practically just forget things I'm worried about. Esther called to check up on me earlier this morning and we've been talking on the phone for one hour.“I wasn't even paying attention.” I mumbled, looking at the painting of sunrise I drew this morning while sitting on the window pane.I was so deep in thought and was interrupted by Esther's call.“You’ve always been a wizard when it comes to painting and I wonder why you didn't pursue it as a career, you'll sell so well.” She said,"Now that you said it, I th
Ethan's POVHeavy pants eluded my mouth with my whole body glistening with sweat. I had pushed myself past my normal limit this morning in the gym. All I knew was that I needed something that would exert a lot of energy from me and I got it.Surprisingly though, A whole lot of sh*t went down in my life in just a matter of two weeks than it has in years.Sleeping now looks like a very gruesome thing to do, it's not like I sleep that much before though, it's just that it's now so hard.The only time I slept sound and woke up the next day without waking up in the middle of the night due to nightmares was the day Anast-.No, I can't think of her, I can't say her name from my mouth.The craziest thing about all these is that despite what went down with her, i find myself even thinking about her more, it's like i can't do anything without seeing her face or anything at all that would just make me start thinking about her.The last time I heard her voice or saw her was the night I told her
Annelise's POV I flinched away from the bed, I stood upright from the window pane. Ethan looked so furious that I could practically feel the anger rolling off him in waves.“I always knew you weren't to be trusted, you're just a lying b*tch!" He yelled with his eyes shining in anger.I was dismayed by what was happening, I had no idea what was going on.“You lied up to the extent of lying about your name?" He growled.The raspy breathe that was coming up on my throat stopped, I couldn't breathe anymore. The phone in my hand fell to the ground as Ethan started approaching me.It had definitely gone off with how hard it fell to the ground. It was after my back hit the wall that i started panicking.“I-i did- I” I stuttered.His pupils were almost completely dark, the anger rolling off of him made my legs shake in fear."What now? You want to tell me another lie? The one you've done Isn't enough right? Go ahead, lie all you want, that's the f*cking only thing you're good at afterall.”
Chapter One Hundred and Seventy-Five: AnneliseOne Month LaterMy life had finally returned to how it was in the beginning before everything started, but now it felt more peaceful. I remembered the discussion I had with my mom when I asked about my real father, and she finally told me the truth.My biological dad had passed away, and she had remarried to avoid bringing disgrace to her family. She hadn’t told me because she thought everything was fine. I sat on the kitchen counter, enjoying kiwi and peanut butter. I hummed excitedly, swinging my legs gently. It was the most delicious thing I’d eaten.“Want some?” I offered Ethan, who looked at it with disgust.“No, I’m good.” Suddenly, tears welled up in my eyes. Ethan’s widened in panic.“I was just kidding. Of course, I want to eat it, but I’m worried it’s not enough for you,” he said hastily.I narrowed my eyes at him. “Are you sure? Or do you just not want any?”“Of course, I’m sure,” he replied, his face breaking into an uncharac
Ethan's POV Lucas had called me urgently this morning, informing me to be at the company. He didn’t elaborate much, and I was left wondering what was happening.I stood in the elevator, which was taking me to the top floor. I don’t know why, but I felt something was about to change. The soft chime of the elevator door sounded, and as it stopped, the door slid open. I stepped out and walked down the hallway into the conference room.Opening the door, I was greeted by the eyes of the board of directors, including Amanda’s. What was she doing here? I saw Lucas come forward to meet me.“What is happening?” I gritted out.“I don’t know either. Madam Amanda called me this morning, telling me we should be present at this sudden conference meeting she had called.” I nodded at him and walked to the front where an empty seat, clearly meant for me, awaited. I sat down.“Most of us know why we are all here, and we have all heard about the scandal. Now, I want to transfer all my shares to Ethan,
Annelise's POV I caressed my bulging stomach gently, with love shining in my eyes. Suddenly, I felt a soft kick against my belly and giggled at the sensation. I could feel my baby's feet pressed against me.Pulling up my top, I exposed my stomach and smiled at the tiny feet. "Naughty baby," I scolded gently. I heard chuckling behind me and turned to see Ethan staring at me with love and admiration in his eyes. I blushed at the sight—it was overwhelming.“Why are you chuckling?” I asked.“It’s beautiful seeing you scold our little one with such love,” he answered, sitting beside me. His gaze shifted to my stomach.He placed his large, cold hand on my belly. As if recognizing it was his father’s touch, our baby kicked hard, causing me to flinch. I shot Ethan a glare. He chuckled sheepishly before sighing. I sensed immediately that something was wrong.“What’s wrong?” I asked, taking his hand in mine.“Amanda has been calling me. I haven’t picked up because honestly, I have nothing to s
Annelise's POV “What are you saying, Annelise?” Ethan asked me.“I'm saying that it was the sex we had that night that made me pregnant. I was confused at first because I didn't remember what really happened that night.”“You're saying that the sex that night led to this pregnancy?” he asked, with a shocked expression on his face.“Yes, Ethan,” I replied, assessing his face to gauge his reaction. He had been happy before at the idea of us having a baby, even though he initially thought it might not be his.The confused look on his face quickly turned into happiness, which was contagious, and I smiled brightly too.He hugged me tightly and showered my face with kisses.“Thank you so much for this beautiful gift, Annelise,” he said."You're welcome. Now give me my food; I'm famished,” I commanded him with a strict look on my face.“Right away, your majesty,” he said as he opened up the plate himself. He started feeding me, and I happily ate the food.I finished everything on the plate
Annelise's POV I jumped on Ethan the moment I saw him at the entrance. His arms were waiting for me already, though my big stomach didn't let me hug him as much as I wanted to.“I missed you so much. When did you get back? Why didn't you tell me that you were coming?” I bombarded him with questions as tears streamed down my face out of happiness."I don't have my phone, remember?” He chuckled close to my ear."Yes, but still,” I trailed off, hugging him even more. I had to break the hug when someone cleared their throat behind us—it was Lucas and Rex.“Welcome back, man,” Lucas said as he patted Ethan on the back.“Thanks, and I appreciate you for helping out with everything,” Ethan replied, and they did that weird men hug.“You don't even know if I helped her out with it or not,” Lucas chuckled.“I know you'd always turn up for things like this. I don't need to hear it before I do; you're a real one,” Ethan said to Lucas."You're always welcome,” Ethan replied, and Rex greeted him t
Annelise's POV It's Monday now, and I have everything I need for revealing the truth ready. I was assisted by both Lucas and Esther, and I just want the DMZ meeting to be over so I'll have Ethan back.It's time for the event to start, and I didn't bother to disguise to enter the building even though paparazzi were outside in abundance.It's just a plus that I decided to come with both Max and Lucas, and since they're both registered in the company, they were allowed to go through the backdoor.It's afternoon at the moment, and I have anxiety churning in my stomach. I kept reminding myself that I was doing this for Ethan, and I didn't need to think about the crowd that I'd face.“I'll be there with you in that conference room so you'll have a familiar face with you. You don't need to be scared of anyone; just do your thing and let the media do the rest,” Lucas said before we got out of the car.“Thank you so much for everything you've done, Lucas. I really appreciate you, and I'm sure
Ethan's POV Annelise and I woke up to news about me flying around. It's the same thing that Ken has been using to threaten me before. It was the cuss word from my mouth that woke up Annelise.Though it's still afternoon, we both slept off hours after coming back from the hospital as we didn't sleep overnight normally.She sat up on the bed almost immediately after I cussed out loud, with her eyes still partly closed. She used her hand to wipe her eyes as though she was trying to wipe the sleep away.“What happened?" she asked as her eyes came clear.“Uh, it's… nothing. You can go back to sleep. I'm going to take care of it now.” I rushed out of bed, and she rushed behind me too.“Ethan, did anything happen with anyone? That didn't look like nothing back there at all,” she said behind me, successfully following me into the bathroom.I sighed out loud. "It's Ken. He released the news about me hitting someone, and it's everywhere on the internet now," I rushed out the words to her.“He
Ken's POV I've been reeling with joy since I was announced as the new highest shareholder of the company, automatically making me the owner of some sort.I honestly expected more from Ethan in terms of competition for the contract and all, but he seemed to be focused on another thing other than anything concerning the company these days, and that worked in my mercy.It could be because he's now separated from his wife, but I didn't care. All that matters now is that I'm way higher than him in rank, and he's below me.I've been trying all my life to achieve that, but he always manages to be one step ahead of me each time I try to surpass him.He was married to someone I like, and he's known by more businessmen and people as the one with the brains for business, while I'm the trophy grandson.I wonder how he feels right now with his most prized possession not with him anymore; he's probably about to commit suicide.A cruel smile came up on my face at the last thing I thought; dying is
Annelise's POV I was able to get to the hospital in no time, signed the final documents for the transfer, and it was all processed quickly.It wasn't that stressful because my father had already signed me on as one of her guardians, so it wasn't hard for me to arrange her move to another facility.All that's left is the actual moving, which is scheduled for tomorrow. I was told it couldn't be done today as all the paperwork needs to go through the final stages to reach the desired hospital.When I was done at the hospital and had spent some time with my mother, I went to the car dealership as I had told Ethan. I've been keeping him updated on everything that's been happening.He was replying to the messages up until the last one I sent, which I took as him ignoring it because of the argument we had about it last night.I went there and made inquiries on some of the budget-friendly cars they had. I ended up with a nice car that had some great features and was within my price range.Th