“So what,” I replied firmly, surprising even myself with unwavering conviction. “Achievement forged through resilience deserves admiration rather than condemnation.”
Patrick’s gaze hardened with contemptuous curiosity.
“Are you defending her from obligation,” he asked bitterly, “or from something far more personal.”
“Because he loves me,” Isadora answered quietly.
Silence enveloped the room completely.
Later, when tension dissolved into honesty, she whispered softly, “I should not have said that.”
“You merely spoke what I already felt,” I replied gently.
Months later, another wooden box appeared upon my desk, containing nothing but a handwritten note declaring a truth beyond negotiation.
“The most valuable thing I possess,” it read simply, “now stands directly before me.”
From that moment forward, nothing required pretense again.
Nhân vật:
Evan Richter. Nhân vật chính, nhân viên phân tích.
Isadora Klein. Nữ CEO, người giữ bí mật.
Patrick Harlow. Đối thủ, cựu người yêu.
Miles Donovan. Bạn thân của Evan.
