The Ex-Wife's Burning Elegance

"Maybe it's just some overblown misunderstanding-someone thinking they saw the wrong person or something dramatic like that? But honestly, none of that matters. As long as they have an agenda, they'll slip up sooner or later.

Whoever loses their patience first is the loser. All we have to do is wait."

When Rachel returned to the field, she saw Joshua already challenging Keen to a horseback riding contest.

Joshua's skill with horses-and archery, too—was in a league far beyond Simone's.

Keen was absolutely enthralled. His adoration for Joshua was written all over his face, impossible to miss.

Watching this, Rachel felt a flicker of alarm in her chest.

She'd spent so much time and effort winning Keen over, slowly getting him to like her. Yet Joshua, after meeting Keen only a few times, had completely won the boy's admiration in record time.

And then there was the matter of Joshua deliberately sending her over to greet Aurora earlier. What had that been about? Was he suspicious of something, or was it just a casual gesture?

With Joshua, Rachel knew better than to rely on luck. She wanted to ask him directly, but he kept busy with Keen all afternoon, never giving her a chance to approach.

Rachel grew restless, so unsettled that she couldn't even bring herself to bother with Haynes as usual.

Haynes, she could always pester him later. But without Joshua's support, she'd be cutting off her own arm-no, both arms.

Joshua might be dangerous, but the help he gave her was real and tangible. Without him, there's no way she could have kept her "illness" a secret for this long.

Not far away, Stella noticed Rachel hadn't come to flirt with Haynes. Instead, Rachel seemed laser-focused on getting closer to Keen.

Stella arched an eyebrow. "Looks like your precious Rachel might have her eye on someone else, Haynes."

She could see Rachel's attention was glued to Joshua. As for her motives... who could say for sure?

But knowing Rachel-always eager to charm, never quite accepting or rejecting anyone—maybe she just wanted to keep her options open.

Haynes caught sight of this and his gaze darkened slightly.

He'd never figured out how to get Joshua away from Stella. But now, watching Rachel's antics, he had an idea.

Rachel had always clung to him, which led to Stella's constant

misunderstandings. Joshua, meanwhile, was clearly up to something around

Stella.

So why not... pair them up?

But the moment the thought

crossed his mind, Haynes rejected it.

That would be too underhanded

What if Rachel didn't actually like

Joshua? He couldn't use hergust to

solve his own problems.

If Rachel needed someone to look after her, Jasper would be the obvious choice -not some mysterious newcomer like Joshua.

Still, if Rachel found someone else, maybe she'd finally stop obsessing over him. Noticing Haynes lost in thought, Stella turned to study his face.

He was staring in the direction of Rachel and Joshua, his expression unreadable -dark and deep as a midnight lake.

There was no warmth in his gaze. If anything, it felt cold, as if he was quietly scheming.

...

The rest of the afternoon, Joshua

never once tried to steal Stella's attention. Instead, he devoted- himself to playing sports with Keen-horseback riding, soccer,

anything the boy suggested.

By the end of the day, Joshua had completely won Keen over. They even made

plans to hang out again soon.

Stella couldn't help but be impressed by Joshua's athletic talent.

Haynes, on the other hand, looked positively grim.

All his careful precautions, and he still hadn't managed to stop Joshua from showing off like a peacock.noveldrama

To Haynes, Joshua's behavior was just shallow and attention-seeking. He looked at Joshua and saw no difference between him and those charming hosts at a nightclub, always performing to please the crowd.