The Ex-Wife's Burning Elegance

Stella shot Haynes a surprised glance. "You know about this?"

He shrugged. "When I was younger, I spent a few years racing."

Fast cars-every man's dream, Stella thought. Not one of them could resist.

From what she knew, all three of her brothers had a thing for racing. She'd seen Skyler's old trophies and photos from his racing days lining the shelves in his study.

At the Williams estate, Skyler's garage looked more like an auto show, packed wall-to-wall with cars-an almost ridiculous display. And Jonathan, Israel, and Coleman? Their collections could rival a museum.

Compared to them, Aurora didn't own as many, but every car she drove was top- of-the-line.

It seemed the whole Williams family had inherited Skyler's love for racing.

Stella used to think she wasn't interested. But after dabbling in it for a while, she had to admit-genes were a powerful thing.

Still, if given the choice between the violin and fast cars, her heart always belonged to the violin.

After Haynes's answer, Stella didn't ask any more questions.

But Haynes, unusually chatty tonight, wasn't finished. "So, you're into cars too?"

He wasn't talking about knowing how to drive he meant racing.

Stella replied, "I know a little."

Haynes remembered the rainy day her car stalled, the way she'd popped the hood and checked the engine at first, he'd thought she was just going through the motions, probably didn't really know what she was doing. But now, it seemed she was far more capable than he'd given her credit for.

He glanced over at Stella. The streetlights outside painted broken patterns across the window.

In the dim, shifting light, her delicate profile seemed almost unfamiliar. For a moment, it was as if he didn't know the woman sitting beside him at all.

She spoke several languages, played the violin, knew her way around race cars...

What else was there about Stella he'd never discovered?

A strange feeling stirred in Haynes-curiosity, and an unexpected thrill. Like he'd just stumbled on hidden treasure.

He asked, "How come you never mentioned any of this before?"

Stella's hand paused on the steering wheel. After a moment, her voice broke the quiet inside the car.

"Did you ever ask?"

Haynes had to think back over their five-year marriage. He'd always been working, hardly ever really talking to her.

His voice sounded rough. “But why didn't you bring it up with me?"

Stella almost laughed. "You barely cared about Keen's problems. What makes

you think you'd have been interested in anything else?"

She'd probably called his assistant, Benson, more times than she'd talked to Haynes himself.

Haynes went silent for a few seconds. "I'm sorry."

His apology meant nothing to her now. The words didn't touch her at all.

They hadn't been divorced for long, but it felt like another lifetime. Alkthe sleepless nights, the heartbreak and turmoil they seemed so far away now it was hard to remember how much it used to hurt.

She wasn't sure if that meant she'd healed, or if she was just the kind of person

who never forgot a slight.

Then, Stella suddenly asked, "Rachel can't do any of this?"

She rarely played the instigator, but

in this moment, she couldn't helone hasy for Haynes and Rachel.

so

. She didn't want things to be

Haynes answered, “Rachel's health isn't great. She doesn't do anything that strenuous."

Stella arched an eyebrow. "Really? Was she always so delicate when you were together?"

He nodded. "Yeah, she was often sick back then too."

Stella laughed inwardly. Probably just another excuse for Rachel to get close to Haynes. That trick never failed her.

In the past, Stella would have hated

even hearing Rachel's name. But now, with her feelings for Haynes

gone, she found she didn't mind it so much in fact, knowing her enemy better only made her more determined to hit them where it hurt.

She asked, "I heard Rachel say more than once that you two met while she was

practicing piano in the back garden. Is that true?"noveldrama