The Ex-Wife's Burning Elegance

Chapter 497

Some people might prefer a carefree life, like Stella's. But she was nothing like Stella.

She was a woman with ambition, with desires that went beyond day-to-day comforts. She refused to drift through life without leaving her mark. That was why, whatever Skyler asked of her, she made sure to do it to perfection.

On the surface, men and women seemed to stand on equal footing these days, but the truth was, inequality lurked everywhere. As a woman stepping into the Williams Group, dealing with those powerful family patriarchs, she knew she'd be underestimated, dismissed before she'd even spoken. Connecting with the wives and daughters of those families, on the other hand, would be far easier-doors opened more readily in those circles.

She'd heard stories: back when her father lost his memory and no one was left to run the Williams Group, it was Mrs. Williams who steadied the ship. She rallied support from the society ladies, shoring up the company's position when it wavered.

In those rarefied circles, the influence of women was not to be underestimated.

Skyler had never let her study business or work directly at the Williams Group. The real plan had always been to have her forge connections among the city's elite women, to build a network that would be just as vital as any boardroom skill. In this era, who you knew often mattered more than what you could do.

Tonight, she was ostensibly here to pick up Raven and pay her respects to Mr. Walden. The real goal, though, was to use Mr. Burton's gala as an opportunity to deepen her ties with some of the city's most important families.

was, after all, the city's most prominent socialite-famous, well-liked, always at the center of things. But who ever complained about having too

the Watsons-every one of them mattered, and

first meeting, she'd known they were worlds apart. Stella was never a rival, not even

in life determined how far you could go. No matter how hard Stella worked, she'd never reach her

wasn't a danger

her second and third brothers not to view Stella with such hostility.

genuinely

up within the Williams family, perhaps things would be different. But she was just a girl who'd grown up on the outside, hardly someone to

a better life with the Williams family, she was welcome to come back. Her only real goal

no desire to marry anyone, let alone rely on a man. The endless scheming, the jealousy behind closed doors-that was

wish was to fulfill her own ambition, to reach the very top on her

just to back up some woman?" Sherman's eyes widened in amusement as