Chapter 7 Kiss Her

“What do you wanna do after you leave prison, Jane? I wanna go to Erhai. It’s beautiful in a clear and clean way. The waterfowl there are adorable, and the fish and shrimp there are fresh. The sky is bluer, the water is clearer, and even the sunlight is warmer than here in this city. “I wanna work hard to earn a ton of money, then I’ll go there and start a little homestay. I don’t wanna make money there. I just wanna see Erhai every day, see the tides come and go. Money isn’t my main goal, as long as I have enough to eat. Occasionally I’d see the backpackers come and go. “Jane, I think I’m dying. What should I do? I haven’t even seen Erhai with my own eyes yet.” Jane would never forget that melodic yet tragic voice. She held that girl, trying constantly to warm up the girl’s gradually cooling body with her own heat. As she lay dying, the girl’s bright eyes remained filled with desire. She looked at the sky outside the prison’s tiny metal window, saying, “Jane, to tell you the truth, I’ve never been to Erhai. I saw it’s beauty on TV and in magazines. I know that even after I get out of here, I won’t have the money to go to Erhai and start a small homestay. I just wanted to dream an impractical dream before I died, that’s all.” Until now, Jane still remembered the yearning in the girl’s eyes as she died. The memory hurt so badly that Jane’s eyes moistened with tears before she realized. She reached out her hand to wipe away the tears stealthily. As she lay prostrated on the floor, she reached one hand toward her lower left back. It was completely empty there; she had one organ less than most normal people. That was the reason she could not drink alcohol. She had to live. She owed a debt that she had not repaid! She had a sin that she had not atoned for! No! She could not die yet! Jane raised her head and looked at Sean, shaking her head. “Mr. Stewart, as long as it’s not drinking, I can do anything.” Anything… was it? The man’s hawk-like eyes narrowed, and his lips curved slowly. “Anything at all?” There was a hint of danger in his tone. Had the young heiress of the Dunns thrown away all of her self-confidence and pride? He wanted to see if the Miss Dunn he remembered had really changed so utterly. “As long as it’s not drinking, I can do anything.” “Very well!” A hard glint flashed across the man’s face where he sat on the couch. He snapped his fingers and on cue, a figure slowly walked out of the shadowy corner. “Sir.” The man was dressed in a black suit, with neat closely-trimmed hair and his head bowed at a respectful 45-degree angle. He was probably Sean’s bodyguard. Jane looked at Sean in confusion under the dim lighting. The man’s perfect gold-tinted face gradually spread into a smile like a beautiful yet ominous red spider lily. His thin and elegant lips moved, saying, “Kiss him.” Jane’s gaze followed his slender finger and froze when she saw that wordless bodyguard in black standing behind him… Then all of a sudden, her eyes widened! “What? You can’t do it?” She heard Sean’s intrigued laugh at her ear. “Either drink the vodka or start performing, right here and now.” Splash! It felt like she had a basin of ice water poured over her head. Jane was frozen all over, without a hint of warmth left. Her ears rang, and she raised her head, looking dazedly at the man sitting on the couch like a king. ...What did he say? Performing, was it? Oh… He wanted her to perform like a hooker, huh? She slowly pursed her dry lips. So her first kiss was so cheap. Although all she felt for him now was terror and fear, although she had hidden away all of her feelings for him in the deepest graves of her heart, she still could not stop herself from feeling a hint of bitter pain. She looked at Sean slowly, her eyes void of cold, hatred, or love. All he saw there was a deep bottomless despair! Sean savored the despair in her eyes happily. This woman… was probably going to reject his absurd demand, right? Between drinking vodka and publicly making out with a man she did not know like a jester, any woman would easily choose the former, no? Besides, she used to be Miss Dunn. Proud Miss Dunn. “Are there any other options?” After all, this was her first kiss. It meant nothing to him, but it was very important to her. She did not want to lose her first kiss just like that. She had nothing else left. The man raised his wine glass and drained it. “You have no right to haggle with me.” His lips curved pleasantly. He wanted to see just how demeaning and lowly Miss Dunn of S City could make herself! “I see. Understood.” Jane stood up stiffly. Her legs were not in very good shape, and a sharp pain shot up her femur after all that kneeling. It nearly sent her crashing back onto the floor. She raised her hand and hammered her thigh heavily a few times, loosening up her nerves before she limped over to that bodyguard in black. Since she hammered her leg like that, the men in the room assumed her leg was only numb because she had been kneeling for so long. Only Susie knew that the limping woman was suffering an unspeakable pain right now. Susie was starting to regret her actions. She had gotten Jane involved in her mess. “Jane…” Susie could not help but speak, but cocky Ray Sierra gave her a warning look. She hurriedly shut her mouth, her gaze filled with remorse. All she could do was look at that pitiable woman as she limped across the room. Jane’s expression was blank as she walked up to the bodyguard. She quietly took a deep breath and released a long breath. After a long pause, she forced herself to stay calm while she lifted her arms and grabbed the bodyguard in black’s shoulders. She looked very composed, but the person closest to her, the bodyguard whose shoulders she was holding, could clearly feel that Miss Dunn was trembling. He knew Miss Jane Dunn too, but even now, the bodyguard still could not believe that this lowly and humiliated woman was the same heiress of the Dunns, the girl with so much pride and lively energy. Jane stood on the tips of her toes, her shaking white lips approaching the bodyguard’s… It was just her first kiss, she would not feel any pain losing it. If she drank all that vodka, her chances of survival were almost zero. She wanted to live, so what did her first kiss matter? Sean’s expression was complicated. She had chosen the latter, after all. The man on the couch narrowed his eyes, but he had barely opened his thin lips when he suddenly heard a voice from the door. “Oh, it’s you? Why are you still here?” The moment that voice spoke, everyone in the room looked toward it. Before they knew it, a tall man was standing at the door to the room. Jane gave a jolt and turned her head toward the door. “It’s you…” Ray looked at the tall man at the door before turning back to Jane. His sexy eyes narrowed as he grinned, saying, “Yo, Haydn. You know here?” That was weird. Why did the Haydn Soros know a mere cleaning lady? Ray rubbed his chin. This was going to be fun. Meanwhile, Sean looked at Haydn too, a shadow deep in his eyes. Haydn did not really mind that everyone was staring at him. He just looked at Jane oddly… What was this woman doing? Why did it look like she was going to forcefully kiss Sean Stewart’s personal bodyguard? He blinked casually and curved his lips into a smile. “That’s strange. I stepped away for a second, but now it looks like things are heating up here.” Haydn put one hand into his pocket and sauntered over to Jane, asking, “What are you doing?”