The Ex-Wife's Burning Elegance

Sherman never really posed a threat to him-he'd never taken the man seriously.

But now that Mr. Burton had publicly vouched for Stella, even Sherman wouldn't dare stand in the way. There was nothing he could say.

...

Mr. Burton's endorsement of Stella left the Watson family in the audience utterly stunned.

Florrie couldn't help but gloat a little. "Dad, looks like you're too late," she whispered, a mischievous glint in her eye. "You see how fond Mr. Burton is of Stella?"

Nicolle, however, refused to give up so easily. "Mr. Burton only said he'd take Stella on as his student. He never said anything about making her a granddaughter."

With Mr. Burton showing Stella such favor, Florrie knew it was all the more important to get on her good side.

made their way to the banquet hall. Florrie was the

called after

only then that Florrie remembered she hadn't properly greeted Aurora yet. She circled back, a little sheepish. "I'm going to find Stella. You

thinking about adopting Stella. Before that happens, I want

across her usually

together, and their bond is... something else. I heard she's had a rough time lately-she just went through a divorce. My brother's probably worried about her. Dad's afraid he'll try to marry her, so he figures adopting her is the best way to care for her, and at the same time, it'll put a stop to

the

over how to present Stella's identity to the world, the Watsons were already making plans to adopt her without a second

said carefully, "aren't you worried about what people will

your family suddenly takes in a new

Florrie understood the implication.

one lie just leads to a hundred more, and he's too tired for that game. It's not like he cheated or kept a mistress-there's nothing

born out of