The Ex-Wife's Burning Elegance novel Chapter 1436

Leonard's gaze shifted, landing on the painting of the vibrant flowers.

"The Williams family… those selfish, cold-blooded people could never create something so full of emotion. The artist must have visited the Williams estate's back garden at some point."

Simone Lerman knew nothing about art, so she couldn't glean much from the painting. "Fine," she said in a low voice. "Let's say Summer isn't from the Williams family. But that painting of the woman's back is clearly Aurora Williams. What if he's just another one of her admirers?"

Leonard stared at the painting. "I have a feeling the person in this painting isn't Aurora. Also…"

He trailed off, lost in thought. "That silhouette seems familiar, like I've seen it somewhere before."

Simone was adamant. "That's because it is Aurora. That's why she looks familiar to you! Leonard, if you really like her, it's not like we're completely out of options…"

She was about to press her point when a notification pinged on Leonard's computer.

He saw an unread email in his inbox and immediately forgot about Aurora, moving to his desk to open it.

It was a reply from Summer.

Simone noticed Leonard's expression soften considerably as he read it. That ridiculous feeling crept over her again. It clicked into place: he was using this faceless, genderless stranger online to distract himself from the dead-end pursuit of Aurora.

What if Summer was a man? Would her brother come out of the closet? If word got out, people would assume Leonard had been so devastated by Aurora's rejection that he'd completely given up and spiraled. The thought of Leonard with another man sent a shudder down Simone's spine.

However, Leonard was paying her no attention at all. He was completely absorbed in an email exchange with Summer. It seemed Summer was online, because the replies were coming quickly.

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