And she knew.
And didn’t know what to do.
“Jaak.” His name tumbled down her tongue, and when the shadow came to a sudden stop, it was as if the world had stopped turning with it.
“Ilse.”
Even though she had expected to hear it, the way the sound of his voice wrapped around her senses still made Ilse’s eyes drift close for a moment.
Jaak.
Jaak was here.
Jaak was really here.
She wanted to turn around so she could look at him, but her legs simply refused to move. She wanted to say so many things, but her throat refused to work. The only thing in her body that functioned right now was her heart, and only because it was still hurting.
Tension tightened into a painful knot in the billionaire’s chest as he stared at Ilse’s still form. He used to live his life without uncertainties, but now he knew it wasn’t like that at all. He had never hesitated on anything because he had never cared enough.
But now he did, and now he had no fucking idea what was the right thing to do.
Do I go to you, Ilse?
Do I wait for you?
Do I walk away?
But then she started to move, away from him—-
And the billionaire acted without thinking, spurred only by one simple, essential thought.
He could not lose her again.
“Wait.”The word seemed to arrest her on the spot, and he was glad for it. He moved towards her, and she remained still.
And when their eyes met, their worlds started to turn again, softly, slowly, in unison, almost as if it was the way it should be.
Jaak. Jaak. Jaak.His name played over and over in Ilse’s mind as the billionaire filled her vision. He looked as sophisticated as always, with a black topcoat over his suit and his hand-stitched leather shoes sporting fancy, intricate lines on the edges.
He looked the same, but he also looked different, his handsome face marked with unusual lines of tension.
And as she stared at him, Ilse realized belatedly that he had been doing the same. “I must look like a fright,” Ilse muttered, thinking of how she only had her old tattered parka over the nurse’s uniform and her only pair of boots. She tried not to be self-conscious about it, but it was hard. In all the days he had been gone, it was impossible not to let news of the billionaire get to her, and she had known he had been with women far, far more glamorous than she could ever be.
“Are you fishing for compliments?” The billionaire had wanted the words to come out a relaxed, teasing drawl, but he realized too late that he had overestimated his ability to remain in control.
Tension still managed to permeate his tone, and his question came out more abruptly and sharply than he intended. When he saw Ilse jerk, his fists clenched and he cursed in his mind at how he was fucking it all up.
“I’m sorry,” he said tautly. “I didn’t mean to sound offensive.”
“But you were.” Ilse’s tone was flat.
“Because you’re an idiot—-”
She gasped, and this time he cursed out loud.
He was supposed to be the most dazzlingly charming of all the de Konigh men, and yet right now all he could do was insult Ilse and say one wrong fucking thing after another.
Jaak shoved his hands into his coat’s pockets. “I’m sorry.” And still the words came out harshly.
