CHAPTER ONE
ROYAL NIGER COMPANY
"As my worker, you have no rights to come and speak to me without speaking to my manager, then my right-hand man.
As you work here, any leak from this company and all of you will suffer the consequences.
I don't make threats. I make promises. That will happen.
Any new idea that you feel will promote the company should be given to Kevin. He is the second in command and will tell you your post in this company.
You are dismissed."
The room emptied immediately.
Behind me, the bold inscription on the wall read:
ROYAL NIGER COMPANY.
GOLDEN AND BLUE JEWEL
"You have a board meeting at 10 a.m.," Susan, my secretary, said.
"Is that the only meeting today?" I asked.
"No, sorry ma. You have a press conference meeting about the jewels by 1 p.m., and Mr. Steven will be here by 3 p.m."
"Next time I ask you for something, be fast about it," I said. "Because I don't tolerate sluggishness and slow people. You have one last chance, or you're fired."
I looked at the files Peter, my manager, just brought. I stared at the two different pictures closely and asked,
"Peter, who brought this in? Or rather, who sent it?"
"It was a new client," he said. "He says he's coming later but dropped this note."
I read it carefully.
"Hey, I hope you didn't miss me too much while I was gone. Well, I'm back, and you will be receiving a grand surprise. P.S. All the way from Asia."
"Is that all?" I asked.
"Yes," he replied.
"You may leave now," I told Peter.
I tried to think who it could be. I never really dated anyone to start with, so…
Time flew by quickly, and it was time for my board meeting.
I adjusted my hair, applied a little powder, and went upstairs to the boardroom. Everyone was already seated, waiting for me, so I started.
"Sorry for wasting too much time, ladies and gentlemen. Shall we? As far as we know, we need more—or shall I say a rare mineral—to make this upcoming jewelry the talk of the year.
Mr. Lehmann, you come from Brazil, which is among the top ten countries rich in minerals, yet we still do not have a solid mineral."
"Well, we have been working on it," he said, "and we found something, but we need to gather more proof before presenting it."
"Okay," I said.
"Miss Cora," Mr. Robert said, "suppose we provide the mineral. How do you want to make it the talk of the year?"
Murmurs filled the room. I never liked Robert anyway; he always had something against me. I just didn't know what exactly.
"Well, my team and I have been working on a new customized design that no one has ever thought of. These ideas are combined from different places—Turkey, Pakistan, Malaysia, etc.
And knowing that after the jewel has been made, it would be transferred to RNC for further processing. Till then—"
The room fell quiet.
I explained further and showed them the slides I had prepared. When I finished, everyone began to clap.
The meeting ended. Agreements were made.
Deals were sealed.
CHAPTER TWO
THE PRESS CONFERENCE
I quickly rushed back to my office to change my clothes in my emergency room. After that, I entered my car and headed straight to the press conference.
As I arrived, flashlights were all over my face. People were asking me so many questions. I was getting extremely nervous until someone pulled me out of the crowd and into the hall.
"Thank you," I said.
He left in a hurry.
I walked over to Michelle to say hi, but she was already coming toward me.
"Cora!" she said.
"Hey."
"Hurry up, we don't have much time. It will start in two minutes."
This is going to be a long day, I said to myself before going on stage.
It started fiercely, with a lot of questions being thrown at me, but I managed to make it through the day.
I rushed toward the car, hoping not to get stopped by any journalist, but unfortunately that didn't happen.
"Excuse me," one of them said. "Could your work be photoshopped like many people do and run away with our money after deceiving us like others?"
"I plan on making the country better," I replied. "And no, my work is not photoshopped."
THE LETTER
I was so tired. I wasn't even done with the day yet, but I already felt frustrated.
My phone rang. It was Michelle.
"Hey, babe."
"Hi."
"Are you busy right now?"
"Yeah."
"You're still following me to see the wedding planner, right?"
"Yeah, yeah. By five."
"No, 4:30."
"I'll pick you up from the office," Michelle said.
"Yeah, sure."
In the meantime, I made a few phone calls based on our mineral resource issues. Then Susan called, saying Mr. Steven was around to see me.
"Let him in."
As usual, he liked making his presence known by wearing the latest things.
"Miss Cora."
"Steven."
"To what do I owe this pleasant surprise?" I asked.
"I would like to invite you to dinner to discuss a business proposal."
"I'm sorry, but can we reschedule? The timing is wrong."
"It's alright."
"Thank you so much for understanding. I'll send Peter to tell you when."
"Okay. Have a great day."
He left, and I let out a breath. I was happy I didn't agree to it.
I tried to get some work done when a notification popped up on my phone: the hotel.
I realized I had left it uncompleted and would need to travel to Jamaica to finish it, but I needed another business company to invest in it.
While I was still working, there was a power shortage.
I went downstairs to see Susan.
"Call the electricians," I said.
"In the meantime, use the backup."
"Yes, ma'am."
The power came back in five minutes.
As I entered my office, I saw him.
Memories flooded back—our past, how I opened my heart to him. He was the first person I ever loved, and loving him had been a mistake.
I remembered a quote I once read:
"Love is just a dirty trick played on us to continue our generations."
I had decided to make it my favorite quote.
MALCOLM
"What are you doing here?" I asked.
"That's not a nice way to treat your guest, is it?"
"You have five seconds to say whatever you came here for, or I call security. Or better still, I deal with you personally."
"Wow, I love the enthusiasm."
"I have dinner by eight, and I need to get ready. So what are you here for?"
He stood up and walked closer to me, looking straight into my eyes. We stared at each other until I broke it.
"What are you here for, Malcolm?"
"You have a lot of confidence. You're stronger now," he said. "I came to give you a business proposal."
"What makes you think I would want to do business with you? And why?"
"I will help you with your hotel and provide the minerals you need. In return, you give me fifty percent."
"Never," I said. "Malcolm, you're one of the richest people on earth, so why would you come to me when you have better people and can earn more money?"
"Yes, I know," he replied. "But there's just something about you that draws me toward you."
"If you don't leave, I will call security."
He leaned close to my ear, sending shivers down my spine. I tried not to show it.
"You will come back to me."
He dropped his card on my desk and left.