A few dayster, Leonard waited quietly in a room.


    After what felt like a long time, the sound of a door opening came from the entrance.


    Leonard turned his head, and when he saw who it was, he was momentarily stunned.


    "Aurora, what are you doing here?"


    Aurora slowly walked in, wearing a long ck dress that entuated her curvy figure with every step.


    Her makeup was wless, her lipstick a stark, blood-red.


    She was no longer the cool, arrogant woman she once was. Instead, she resembled


    a worldly temptress, exuding a sensual and bewitching aura.


    Leonard looked at her for only a second before frowning and averting his gaze.


    He instantly guessed what had happened. "Did McCoy set this up?"


    A short while ago, he had received a message that Lauretta wanted to meet with him.


    Back when he was buying the paintings, his investigation had led him to Lauretta, and he had put pressure on her. In response, Lauretta had contacted Summer and sent him three paintings.


    Recently, Leonard''s assistant had ryed a message that Lauretta wanted to talk to him about Summer.


    Although Leonard suspected it might be a trap, the thought of getting news about Ste—knowing Lauretta had been her ssmate—won out, and he hade.


    He had considered that he might be walking into a meeting with an enemy or an assassin.


    He never expected it to be Aurora.


    Aurora glided gracefully to Leonard''s side, a strange smile on her face.


    "If I had asked to meet you under my own name, Leonard, I knew you wouldn''t have


    "I had no choice but to resort to this."


    Leonard''s expression was cold. "You went to all this trouble, having McCoy use Lauretta''s name to lure me here. What do you want?"


    Aurora looked at him. "I just want to know if you deliberately misled me and got me kidnapped just to clear the way for Ste.


    "And then, did you make a big show of searching for me, only to im


    your cat was missing to waste.


    my family''s time so they''d miss the best window to find me?"


    Leonard''s expression deepened. He realized she had misunderstood, but he had no intention of exining himself.


    Instead, he said tly, "If you have a


    score to settle,e after me. I'' give you a chance to get your revenge, but you are not to touch Ste.


    "Unlike Joshua, I don''t have rules about fighting women.


    "Unlike Joshua, I''m not a gentleman. I don''t care about your gender-you''re either an ally or an enemy. Don''t test me."


    Aurora''s lips curved into a smile, but her eyes were ice-cold.


    "Leonard, you look just like you did back when you were in love with me, promising to protect me.


    "Now that you don''t love me anymore, you can turn your guns on me.


    "One day, when you''re tired of Ste, will you be the one to kill her, too?


    "Oh, that''s right, I forgot. You were the one who crippled Ste''s hand for my sake.


    "I guess you''re always very good to the person you love, aren''t you, Leonard?"


    Leonard frowned. "The way you are now is repulsive."


    Auroraughed softly. "But you once said you would love me no matter what I became, Leonard.


    "Do all those old promises count for nothing now?"


    She stepped toward him until she was standing right in front of him Slinking toward him with practiced grace she pressed against his chest and began tracing circles on it, her breath soft against him.


    "Are you still angry that I rejected you when you were drugged?"


    Almost as a reflex, Leonard shoved her away.


    Aurora stumbled and fell to the ground, deliberately exposing arge patch of pale skin on her leg.


    In the past, aside from linking arms with him when she apanied him to parties as his date, the two of them had never crossed any lines.