Chapter 73
Chapter 73:
A sleek, matte-black vehicle turned the corner. It was not a limousine. It was an armored SUV, looking like a tank dressed in a tuxedo. It rolled to a stop right in the middle of the street, straddling the line between the two carpets.
“That’s her,” Sterling whispered. He straightened his tie. He took a step forward, a smug smile plastering itself onto his face. “She kept the rental,” he muttered to Isabella. “Trying to intimidate me with heavy machinery. Watch her crawl out p>
The rear door opened. A leg emerged first. Then the rest of her.
Aurora Vance stepped onto the pavement.
She was wearing a gown of midnight blue velvet that seemed to absorb the camera flashes. It was cut high on the thigh and low on the back, revealing skin that looked like polished marble. Around her neck hung the Starless Night—a cascade of sapphires and diamonds that was worth more than the quarterly earnings of Thorne Industries.
She didn’t look like a rejected ex-wife. She looked like a deity who had descended to judge the mortals.
Sterling extended his hand. He opened his mouth to say, “I knew you couldn’t stay away p>
Aurora looked at him. Her eyes didn’t hold anger. They didn’t hold love. They held absolutely nothing. It was the look one gives a parking meter.
She didn’t break her stride. She didn’t slow down. She turned sharply to the right.
Sterling’s hand was left hanging in the empty air.
Mr. and Mrs. Yates rushed out from their entrance. Mrs. Yates, a woman known for her icy exclusivity, threw her arms open.
“Aurora! My dear!” Mrs. Yates cried, hugging her. “You look magnificent p>
“Thank you for having me, Elara,” Aurora said, her voice carrying clearly over the silence.
Sterling stood frozen. The cameras clicked furiously, capturing the exact moment of his rejection. His hand was still extended, looking pathetic and desperate.
𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝘁 gⲁ𝗅𝗇𝗈ν𝖊𝗅𝘀⫶𝑐𝗼𝗺
Harper Yates, the debutante of the evening, ran out in a flurry of pink tulle. She grabbed Aurora’s arm. “You have to see the ice sculpture! Come on p>
Aurora allowed herself to be pulled toward the Yates entrance. Just before she disappeared through the doors, she paused. She turned her head slightly, looking back over her shoulder. She was not looking at Sterling. She was looking at the empty space beside him. Then she vanished inside.
Isabella watched the whole thing. She saw the way the press abandoned Sterling to chase Aurora. She saw the way Sterling’s face crumbled from arrogance into shock.
“Sterling?” Isabella touched his arm.
“Don’t touch me!” Sterling snapped. He pulled his hand back as if burned.
He looked around at the paparazzi. “Stop taking pictures!” he shouted, his voice cracking.
Lance, standing in the shadow of the doorway, looked down at his shoes. He felt a second-hand embarrassment so strong it made his stomach hurt.
“She… she just used the Yates family to make me jealous,” Sterling muttered. He was trembling. “It’s a tactic. A childish tactic p>
He grabbed Isabella’s wrist, his grip bruising. “Inside. Now p>
He dragged her into his party, leaving the laughter and the light of the Yates ball behind him.
The air inside the Thorne engagement party was thick, not with celebration, but with the suffocating weight of awkwardness. The DJ was playing an upbeat pop song, but the dance floor was empty. Guests stood in tight clusters, whispering behind champagne flutes, their faces illuminated by the blue glow of their smartphone screens.