The Ex-Wife's Burning Elegance novel Chapter 1413

He might even... demand her shares as a wager. A chill ran down Aurora's spine at the thought. Wasn't that exactly what Leonard had done to Stella?

If she acted rashly and fell into his trap, she could imagine Joshua using his status as the head of the Gardner family to pressure her and the Williams family. A bodyguard was easy to deal with, but a family head was another matter entirely.

Aurora took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Father. This all happened so suddenly, and my mind is a mess. When Joshua confessed, I let my emotions get the better of me and assumed it was really him."

In other words, she had no proof it was Joshua. Could she claim he had manipulated Simone? Simone's phone call made it clear she believed Joshua was sending her a gift out of guilt over the Dawnlight incident. Could she say he spread the rumors? The source of the gossip hadn't been found.

At this point, Aurora was ninety percent certain Joshua was behind it all. Though he publicly claimed it was a joke, he was essentially playing with his cards on the table. His confession had been real, and the retraction was just to spite her. For the first time, a thought crossed Aurora's mind: had Stella felt this same burning hatred when Leonard destroyed her precious hands? Was Joshua now destroying what she held most dear—her reputation?

...

Harold, who had seen his fair share of human nature, was also at a loss. The "evidence" they had provided was meant to prove Aurora and Leonard were in a room together while Sellers caught them. How did that morph into Aurora being promiscuous? For the first time, things had gotten out of their control.

While the two of them racked their brains for a solution at the bar, the Williams family was grappling with an equally massive headache caused by Joshua's unpredictable tactics.