Hired a Gigolo, Got a Billionaire

Chapter 208 Nathaniel's POV I tossed enough cash on the table to cover the bill and went after her. I couldn't let things end like that, not when I finally understood why she'd spent the whole evening acting like some corporate robot. I found her on the sidewalk outside the restaurant, staring at her phone with a frustrated look. "Uber says fifteen minutes," she muttered, not even glancing at me. "Annabelle..." "Please don't." She shook her head, still avoiding my eyes. "I already said everything I needed to say." "But I didn't." She exhaled slowly and finally looked at me.

Tears clung to the corners of her eyes, and she was clearly fighting to hold them back. "What else do you want from me, Nathaniel? I told you I need distance. This is for my career." "I want you to understand one thing." I stepped closer, but kept a respectful space between us. "Just because we slept together on that plane doesn't mean I don't take you seriously." She gave me a doubtful look. "Nathaniel..." "Let me finish." I lifted a hand.

"It's actually the opposite." "What does that mean?" "Annabelle, I take a woman very seriously when she refuses to let society dictate who she's allowed to be. A woman who takes what she wants because she wants it. Someone honest enough to own her desires." She blinked a few times, clearly thrown by that. "You were on a plane, convinced you were about to die, and you still stayed true to yourself. You didn't pretend to be someone else. You didn't hide behind fake morals. You were real." I ran a hand through my hair. "That didn't make me respect you less.

it too." Annabelle went quiet, studying me with an expression I couldn't fully read. "Listen," I continued, "I would love to get to know you better. Not as an employee. Not as Christian's sister-in- law. As... Annabelle. The woman I met on that plane." "Nathaniel..." 1/3 Chapter 208 "But if you think that's bad for you, then I'll back off." The promise came out harder than

keep things professional if that's what you need." "And what do you get out of that?" "The peace of knowing you're not hiding behind some robotic version of yourself because of me." I gave a faint smile. "Because honestly, that performance tonight was starting to scare me." She almost smiled. "It was kind of robotic, wasn't it?" "A little. You said 'appropriate professional conduct' so many times I thought I was talking to an HR handbook." This time she actually

know. Normal colleagues. Friends, maybe?" "Friends?" she echoed, as if trying the word on. "Friends. Two people who work together, who respect

sister-in-law. You're not here because of what happened between us on that plane." She watched me closely. "You're here because you're good at what you do. Because you're smart, dedicated, and you bring insights that impress Franconian investors. Because you can make those same Franconian investors laugh and still take you completely seriously." "Really?" "Anyone who tries to diminish what you've earned by suggesting you're here for anything other than your

of that. Because of the professional you are, and because of the woman you are." She nodded slowly, as if letting it settle in. "Friends, then?" I asked again. Annabelle studied me for a few quiet seconds, then extended her