"As far as I know, the head of the Quinn family is a woman," Ste continued. "And since you''ve met her, Mr. Lerman, there''s an eighty percent chance that the person he''s with is her."


    A flicker of appreciation crossed Leonard''s eyes.


    He looked down at Ste. "The head of the Quinn family is named Laurel Quinn. She''s twenty-seven, a year older than you. Her resume is impressive; like you, she skipped grades and took over as head of the family at twenty-four.


    "For a young woman to lead a family of that stature is proof that..."


    He met Ste''s eyes and said, "She''s every bit as ruthless and sharp as any man you''ve ever met. You should know that for a woman to rise to the top, she has to work much harder than a man. Do you think she''s a simple woman?"


    Ste didn''t for a second believe that Leonard was being kind enough to warn her about Laurel Quinn''s dangerous nature.


    She nced at the people at the party and suddenly smiled.


    "Then what do you think? How does Aurorapare to Laurel Quinn?"


    It had been a long time since Leonard had heard Aurora''s name. After blocking


    everyone associated with her, his world had be blessedly quiet.


    Hearing her name so suddenly, Leonard took a moment to register it.


    It wasn''t until he followed Ste''s gaze and saw the smiling Aurora, arm-in-arm with Sellers, making a graceful entrance into the party, that it clicked.


    Aurora had a reputation as the top socialite, and she was known even in some foreign family circles. She rarely attended parties hosted by them, so her presence here spoke to the importance of the event.


    Leonard nced at her for only a second before looking away, his face expressionless.


    However, whether she noticed Leonard or Ste, Aurora looked their way. She said


    a few words to Sellers, who nodded slightly. Then, Aurora started walking toward them.


    She approached them with a smile.


    Her gaze shifted between them as she asked, a little uncertainly, "Star, Leonard, did you twoe together?"


    It wasn''t surprising she would think that. It was no secret that Ste was the artist Summer, and Leonard''s favorite artist was Summer Nowe that Ste''s identity'' was public, it was usible she might use her artistic persona to gain Leonard''s help.


    But Aurora wasn''t worried. Leonard had told her that Summer would never be more important than she was Ste was just a painter he happened to admire.


    Ste nced at the smiling Aurora, then at the stone-faced Leonard. She had no interest in being a pawn in their games.


    "No," Ste said. "I came with Joshua."


    At her words, Aurora''s eyes flickered. She didn''t look surprised, but asked with a smile, "What were you and Leonard talking about just now? Art?"


    Ste looked at Aurora. "Art?"


    Aurora smiled. "You don''t know, Star? Leonard has bought many of Summer''s paintings. His most admired artist is..."


    Leonard''s face suddenly changed. He cut Aurora off in a low voice.


    "Aurora!"


    Aurora looked at him, surprised. "Leonard, what''s wrong?"


    Leonard''s expression was stormy. "Come with me. I need to talk to you."


    Over the past six months, Leonard and Aurora had asionally run into each other at parties. Aurora would always greet him, but Leonard''s response was always cold For the first time ever, he was the one who reached out to talk to her.


    Aurora smiled and agreed. "Alright."


    She turned to Ste apologetically. "I''m sorry, Star. Leonard and I have something to discuss. Please excuse us."