The Ex-Wife's Burning Elegance novel Chapter 1282

Foreman casually looked away. "No."

After what had happened, neither Neville nor Stella was in a good mood. Neville said his goodbyes and left.

"Star, I'm heading your way. Let me give you a ride home," Foreman offered.

Stella nodded, her mind elsewhere. She was still trying to piece together what had happened. Why would someone target Neville? Was it really just to drive a wedge between them? Something about it felt off.

In the car, Stella and Joshua sat in the back. Foreman glanced at them in the rearview mirror, his lips tightening, but he said nothing, driving them back to the estate in silence.

When they arrived, Foreman turned to Stella. "Star, can we talk for a minute? In private."

Stella looked at Joshua. "You can go on ahead and get some rest. Don't wait up for me."

"Alright," Joshua replied, leaving without another word.

Once he was gone, Foreman asked, "Star, are you and Neville just pretending to be a couple?"

It wasn't a secret worth hiding. "Yes," Stella admitted. "Neville needed my help with something, and I was tired of being set up on dates. So we agreed to pretend for a while."

"Well, after what happened tonight, you can't keep up the act anymore," Foreman said.

A flicker of worry crossed Stella's face. "The whole thing was so strange. I need to help him get to the bottom of it."

Foreman hesitated. "Star, are you sure you can trust him? What if he really did do something to Miss Vance and is just refusing to admit it?"

"Neville isn't like that," Stella said, her voice firm.

Seeing her unwavering faith in Neville, a pang of jealousy shot through Foreman. "Star, you can't always judge a book by its cover. How can you be so sure about him?"

"Foreman, you don't know him as well as I do," Stella replied. "If he had actually done it, he would have taken responsibility for Miss Vance without hesitation."

At that moment, Foreman was immensely glad he had taken Neville out of the running. With that level of trust, if it had come down to a choice between him and Neville, Stella would have chosen Neville in a heartbeat.

"Star, your birthday's next month! How do you want to celebrate?"

Last year at this time, she had been agonizing over Rachel and Haynes. Now, only a year later, looking back on that period felt like recalling a distant memory from another life. The pain was gone, leaving only a calm emptiness.

Using Stella's birthday as an excuse, Haynes wrapped up his work at Novaris and flew to Solmaris with Keen O'Brien. A dark look crossed his face when he learned that Foreman was also in town.

Skyler Williams hadn't seen his grandson in a while and missed him dearly, so he sent someone to pick Keen up directly from the airport and bring him to the Williams Mansion. Haynes, of course, came along.

When Stella heard Keen had arrived, she left work early and went to the supermarket to buy ingredients for a special dinner. Although they lived far apart, she and Keen video-called frequently. In the past, Keen had been dismissive of her cooking, but now that he couldn't have it, he found himself craving it. It was a lesson learned: even with your own child, you couldn't give everything away and lose yourself. A little distance could sometimes make the heart grow fonder.

When she arrived back at the estate, Keen ran to greet her. "Mom, you're finally home!"

"You've gotten taller, Keen," Stella said, smiling as she ruffled his hair.

Just then, Keen's eyes looked past her and landed on Joshua, who was carrying the grocery bags. "Mr. Joshua!"