The Ex-Wife's Burning Elegance

Haynes froze for a moment, his whole body tensing as the truth hit him.

Even Keen could see it-Stella didn't want to be with him anymore.

She had moved on. Built a new life, one that didn't include him.

She would be better off without him.

Haynes sat there, lost in thought for so long that he didn't even notice the stage lights going out. Only then did he slowly come back to himself.

After all the ways he'd hurt Stella, it was only natural she didn't want to be with him.

But he wasn't ready to give up.

Their marriage had only happened because of the baby. They'd skipped courtship, skipped the ceremony-she'd missed out on all the beauty of falling in love. No wonder she'd lost faith in their marriage, in him. No wonder she didn't want to stay.

But he could win her back.

They'd been together for five years—no one knew Stella better than he did.

He was sure she didn't feel nothing for him.

Compared to Neville, he actually had the upper hand.

As for that mysterious Joshua...

The guy was all secrets-he didn't even dare reveal his real name. Not worth worrying about.

...

Foreman sat alone in a shadowy corner of the front row.

The seat offered a perfect view of the stage while keeping him hidden from sight.

Stella had saved that spot for him-at his request. He didn't want Haynes to notice him.

Now, with his eyes fixed intently on the stage, he no longer bothered to hide the longing in his gaze.

"Star..." he murmured under his breath.

All these years, he'd been watching over her from a distance.

He knew just how extraordinary his Star truly was.

It was Haynes who'd dulled her shine all this time.

But now, the dust had been brushed away, and she sparkled like a rare gem.

Yes, if Haynes hadn't buried her light, Foreman would never have stood a chance with Stella.

He knew he wasn't good enough for her.

But that didn't matter. As long as he could watch over her from afar, that was enough.

From now on, he would clear every obstacle out of her path-he would never let anyone hurt her again.

Mr. Burton, Neville, Marvin, and Joshua sat together in the very center of the front row-the best seats in the house, with a perfect

view of the stage. fo

As the lights dimmed, the stream of women approaching Joshua for a chat finally came to an end.

Neville couldn't help but tease him.noveldrama

"Not bad, Joshua. In just a few minutes, what, at least ten women asking for your number? I'm telling you, with that kind of luck, your future girlfriend's going to have her hands full." sŵnovel

Abby was busy backstage managing the

CConcert, and both Antoney and

Candida Fletcher were preparing for their performances, leaving the three men and Marvin in the audience.

Joshua just smiled calmly at Neville's remark. "You're hardly one to talk, Mr. Connolly."

There'd been plenty of women trying to flirt with Neville too.

But since Neville was seated further in, every time a woman came over, Marvin would beat him to it.

"Ma'am, are you looking for my dad?" he'd ask with perfect innocence.

Realizing Neville was married and had a child, the women would leave, disappointed.

Marvin wasn't about to let random women get too close to Neville.

His dad, after all, was supposed to be reserved for Stella.

Mr. Burton sighed. “Too bad none of the boys in our family have any sense... Well, never mind."

The whole SellersKarl mess-he didn't even want to deal with it anymore.

Let them make their own mistakes. If they lost their shot at succession, there were

plenty of grandkids eyeing the position.

With that thought, he glanced over at Joshua.

Ever since their first meeting, he couldn't shake the feeling that there was

something oddly familiar about this man named Joshua.