“I think the word they use is, umm, ‘transsexual.’” She looked about her, wide-eyed. “I’m not sure what that means. Do any of you know what it means?”
Hands shot up, with almost every guy in the group looking eager to impart his knowledge to her.
“You, sir. Please tell me what a transsexual is,” she implored, her eyes fluttering.
“It’s a guy who got himself boobs and a pussy.”
The men laughed, but Ilse clapped her hands over her mouth, looking properly shocked. “Oh deargawd,how can that be?”
And so it went on.
And everything gradually became clear.
Ilse. Ilse. Ilse.
The tension slowly eased from the billionaire’s powerful frame, and Jaak had the strangest urge to laugh.
Ilse, Ilse, Ilse.
How could he have forgotten this was Ilse, and that she was different?
He watched Ilse proceed with the tour, acting exactly as requested and without a hint of discomfort on her face.
According to Gloria, all these boys had once been Ilse’s friends, and most of them had huge crushes on her. But when push came to shove, all of them had turned their backs on Ilse. When Natalia had begun spreading lies about Ilse, making her seem like she was a manipulative bitch intent on leeching off everyone—-
All of Ilse’s friends had chosen to take the easy way out.
All of them had chosen to believe Natalia.
And yet—-
Even though Ilse had every right to call them a liar to their faces—-
The moment the tour ended, the guys begged for a chance to have their photos taken with her, and Ilse graciously acquiesced with a sunny smile, still very much in character.
Thank you, Mr. Grant, and you’re quite handsome, too.
Oh no, Mr. Morley, you flatter me too much.
She was neither proud nor humble, her tone friendly but professional at the same time.
She gave them no chance to feel guilty or ashamed about the past, but neither did she act like she found her line of work an embarrassment.
This is me, and this is reality, her every look, gesture, and word said.
He watched her, and he had never felt prouder or humbler.
He watched her, and the billionaire thought, Ilse was right.
They weren’t for each other...because he couldn’t possibly deserve her.
Ilse was right, but he also knew it no longer mattered.
Because he also knew he could never let her go now.
She was the only woman for him.
ISSAC WAITED UNTILthe last of their friends left before hesitantly approaching her. “Ilse?”
