Chapter 18: Ethan Hale

Ethan stopped beside Serena and placed a hand lightly against her back. His gaze remained on Freya. "Mrs. Stone." His tone was polite, but there was unmistakable caution beneath it. Freya returned the greeting. "Mr. Hale."

Serena looked between them. "We happened to meet while shopping." Ethan nodded, though his expression suggested he didn't believe coincidences easily. Freya couldn't blame him. Louis had spent years competing against Hale Corporation. Seeing Louis's wife beside Serena shortly after his downfall probably looked suspicious.

Freya picked up her shopping bag. "I should go." Serena unexpectedly stopped her. "Wait. I hope there aren't any hard feelings between us." Freya considered the question carefully. The original Freya had barely interacted with Serena, and Freya herself had no personal grudge against her.

"There aren't," she said. "What happened between your husband and mine was business. I wasn't involved then, and I don't plan to become involved now." Ethan's eyes sharpened slightly at the word husband. Serena seemed relieved.

"I'm glad," Serena said. "I always thought things became too intense between them." Freya privately agreed. The novel had turned ordinary corporate competition into something resembling a battlefield. Still, she wasn't going to discuss Louis with the people who had defeated him.

After a brief goodbye, Freya left the store. She had barely reached the parking area when she called Louis. He answered after two rings. "What happened?" "Nothing happened. I just met Serena Wells and Ethan Hale." Silence followed.

"Where?" Louis asked. Freya told him. "It was accidental. Serena recognized my name, then Ethan arrived. We talked for maybe two minutes." "What did they say?" "Mostly nothing. Serena apologized about your bankruptcy."

Louis gave a quiet, humorless laugh. "How considerate." Freya leaned against a pillar. "I told them I don't hold grudges and that whatever happened between you was business. I hope that's fine." "Why are you asking me?" "Because you're the person who lost billions, not me."

That answer silenced him for a moment. Then Louis said, "It's fine. You can speak to whoever you want." Freya relaxed. "Good. I just didn't want you hearing about it from someone else and thinking I was secretly meeting your enemies."

"Freya." His voice became slightly deeper. "You don't have to report every person you meet to me." "I know. I'm being considerate." "You reported Clement too." "Because he grabbed me." "And now Ethan." "Because he bankrupted you."

Louis couldn't argue with that logic. Freya heard what sounded suspiciously like a sigh before he asked when she would be home. She told him within an hour and ended the call.

Back inside the stationery store, Ethan watched Freya disappear through the glass doors. "She's different," Serena said quietly. Ethan looked at her. "You've met her before?" "Twice at events. She barely acknowledged anyone who couldn't help her socially."

Ethan frowned. Louis's wife changing after the bankruptcy shouldn't matter to him. Yet something about the encounter bothered him. Louis Stone had accepted defeat far too quietly, and now his notoriously materialistic wife was calmly standing beside him instead of leaving. Ethan had learned long ago that when something involving Louis didn't make sense, ignoring it was usually a mistake.