1 Prologue

"Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth! For your love is better than wine;"

Song of Solomon 1: 2

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This afternoon the rain was pouring down heavily, popping water over the whole city. Not only water, but rain also brought strong winds and cold air. The road along the main route jammed, the rain also made some motorcyclists choose to pull over for a moment. Most of them did not carry a coat — even though they know that there are only two seasons in this country, dry and rainy.

At a coffee shop on the side of the road. A young woman looked preoccupied with pen and coffee bills paper. Sometimes her eyebrows frown, for some reason her pretty face looked so tense and serious. Her fingers moved swiftly when pressing the number keys on the cellphone. With the calculator application, she calculated the nominal amount listed in handwriting.

[Pay house installments, pay vehicle installments, pay this month's electricity bill, water bill, and food costs], she muttered to herself.

[There is almost nothing left, even less if I have to take my mother to the doctor.] The woman rubbed her forehead. When the others felt cold from the torrential rain, That woman got a sweat.

[Oh my God, what should I do? I even sold my rings today. The only valuable thing left.] The woman was still confused in her thoughts.

Yes, she was experiencing financial difficulties. Her salary as a bank marketing was not enough to cover all the necessities of life. Bank installments, electricity bills, food costs, and other urgent needs.

Coffee beside the cellphone looked no longer steaming. The water vapor had disappeared, and the temperature, smell, and taste were no longer the same. She hurriedly downed it, the lunch break was almost over. She had to get back to the office.

"Miss Jasmine, your order." A waiter came with a coffee to take away and placed it on Jasmine's table. Hot Americano, perfectly wrapped in a green paper cup and pliable plastic bag. They say that plastic was made from processed cassava, so it was more go green. Jasmine didn't care about the soft plastic, whether it was environmentally friendly or not, it still won't be able to change the facts about her life, which were increasingly depressing.

"Thanks," she said briefly accompanied by a smile.

Jasmine trotted through the rain, crossed the zebra crossing, and came to a private bank. Quickly her feet stepped in, making a loud sound as the tips of the heels clashed against the marble floor.

One o'clock in the afternoon, the most crowded hours, the waiting area was full of customers. All were queuing, if could, all of them want to come first. Common financial transactions at a branch office. Deposits, cash withdrawals, clearing, book printing, and management of blocked ATM cards. Jasmine didn't have time to glance at them either. She must immediately meet the head of the marketing funding department. Over it.

Jasmine had promised to meet her leader after lunch ends. There was something important that the old man wants to say. Jasmine greeted several of her coworkers as they passed along the corridor.

After tidying herself and taking a long breath as she could, Jasmine ventured to knock on the door that sigh the marketing director's written on it.

"Come in!" There was a male voice from inside the room.

Jasmine hesitated into the room, where a middle-aged man sat on a chair staring intently at the smart tablet monitor screen. His unpretentious and calm face stiffened a little when he saw Jasmine's arrival.

"Sit down, Jasmine."

"Ah, Yes, Sir." Jasmine slowly sat down in front of the luxurious oak work table.

The man stopped his work, he took off his glasses and turned his gaze to Jasmine's figure, with his old eyes he stared faintly at the shoulder-length beautiful woman. The black hair looked damp, wet with rain.

"Here, Sir. Coffee, it's still hot, suitable for the rain like this." Jasmine handed a cup of hot Americano coffee on the table, her boss liked this dark coffee. Jasmine took this as a compliment so that the old man wouldn't be too harsh on her.

Tense, the man in the gray tie was reluctant to answer small talk from his downline. Choosing to fold his arms across his chest, thinking about what words would suit Jasmine's punishment.

"W-what is it, Sir? Why are you calling me?" Jasmine asked fearfully.

"You still dare to ask what's wrong? You should already know the reason I called you today!" The man's tone rose.

"Sorry, Sir." Jasmine looked at the man with a wistful gaze as if asking for mercy.

"How long have you been working here, Jasmine?"

"Four months, sir." Jasmine lowered her head, her fingers curled up to hide her resentment.

"Four months, and in the last month you didn't get any customers at all! If this continues, it looks like early next month I will have to fire you!" scolded the man. - Less than one week before the turn of the month.

"No, Sir! Please ... give me one more chance!" Jasmine exclaimed pitifully.

"Chance? Are you asking for a chance?? Didn't I give you a chance yesterday? A big businessman who has billions of assets in this bank! Your job is simple, just make sure he signs an extension of his assets. Don't let the man withdraw his assets from this bank! So what is it?? What did you do? Instead of getting his autograph, you splashed his face with water!" growled the man, his neck veins tightening.

"Sorry, sir, but he's very rude and arrogant." Jasmine defended herself.

"Hey, Jasmine. He has money and you don't. Do you know how this world's system works? Money is everything !! At least if you can't use your brain, use your common sense. You can kneel or kiss his shoes if you need to. Because he isn't the one who needs you! You need him!!"

Jasmine tightly grasped the hem of her skirt until it was creased. Her department head didn't know what the man was asking Jasmine for. For a moment he concluded that everything was that easy.

"I have my pride," said Jasmine.

"Your pride can't fill your stomach, Jasmine. Isn't your mother still in and out of the hospital a lot? Just admit you need money, don't you? Need this job."

"You are right, sir. I need this job." Jasmine thought of her mother back home. Jasmine's heartfelt tight, she shed tears.

The man in front of him took a deep breath, got up, and approached Jasmine.

"You are indeed the daughter of my late friend but it all depends on your performance too, Jas. If your performance continues like this, even though I'm not the leader, the company will still fire you. Why pay salaries to the employee that can't produce anything?"

"Give me a chance, sir. I will look for another big customer." Jasmine pleaded once again.

"It's no use, Jasmine. You'd better apologize to Mr. Leonardo and ask him to sign an extension of his assets."

Jasmine lowered her head, her heart still rumbling when she remembered what happened yesterday afternoon. And now that the boss asked Jasmine to meet that cruel and strange man again, how could Jasmine be?

The sound of thunder again made the glass windows of the multi-story building vibrate. Raindrops adhere perfectly to the glass. Jasmine could only shrug her shoulders, her gaze blankly staring at the dissolving drops of water.

"Come out, Jas. I want you to get the contract again somehow!"

Jasmine resigned, she got up from her chair. Then when she was about to leave the room, her leader said.

"Oh, yeah. Get the coffee back. I don't like drinking coffee that already cold."

Jasmine nodded, slightly trembling, the woman picked up the coffee she had given.

A long corridor greeted Jasmine. All the eyes that passed were astonished at her swollen face. Jasmine didn't care, she quickly descended the steps leading to the exit. Jogging. She had to get away from there, maybe crying in the rain would make the tightness rumbling in her chest disappear a little.

BUMP !!!

Suddenly her tiny body bounced off as it hit someone. His hard chest was splashed with dark coffee. The plain white shirt was stained. The staff that was accompanying the man were dumbfounded. Their mouths clenched.

"Seriously !! Where are your eyes?" chided a woman who was accompanying the man.

"Sorry, sorry, sir. I didn't mean to." Jasmine swallowed hard. Regardless of her sore buttocks or lumpy head, the woman got up and took a handkerchief from her bag.

"Sorry, again, sorry." Jasmine's fingers were busy rubbing the expensive shirt.

"Well, well, looks like we meet again, Miss Marketing." The man grinned.

Hearing his voice, Jasmine suddenly turned pale, with a broken motion she raised her face. Hoping that the man before her right now was not the same in her mind. Jasmine looked up. How chaotic her heart was when her hopes were shattered.

"M ... Mr. Leon," Jasmine stammered.

— MI VOLAS VIN —