로그인“Are you married?” I bit my tongue at the question that I have been dreading since I saw him in the boardroom. “Answer me!” His angry yell startled me. I couldn’t fault him for being mad. How do I begin to explain it? If I tell him the truth, we will lose the deal and if I continue with the lies, he will see me as a cheating woman. Either way, I am going to lose so I picked the better choice for me and for my company. “Yes, I am married.” ***** For Maeve Fitzgerald her night with Alessandro Marchesi was pure passion and the best night of her life that can only be one night. For Alessandro, it was so much more. Maeve was sure they will never cross paths again but fate has a different plan and it’s about to change her life forever.
더 보기"Rian, umur kamu itu 22 tahun, masih aja jadi beban buat ibu kita. Uang bulanan yang Kakak kasih, pasti dikasih buat kamu. Kamu laki-laki bukan, sih? Ada otak kan, ga malu apa numpang idup!'" sergah Amran, kakak laki-laki Rian.
"Sudahlah, namanya belum rejeki. Rian juga usaha cari kerja, kok," sahut Rukmini, ibunya Amran dan Rian. "Ibu jangan bela dia terus. Nanti jadi gak tau diri, mau sampe kapan dibela terus? Liat, dia aja sekarang tidur-tiduran, pegang hp terus, tapi gak kerja," balas Amran. Rian menarik napas, yang dikatakan kakaknya benar adanya, tetapi dia juga sudah berusaha keras mencari pekerjaan. Namun, selalu saja ditolak dengan alasan kurang pengalaman, wajah kurang menarik padahal termasuk tampan, kurang kemampuan dan berbagai syarat tidak masuk akal lainnya hanya untuk mendapatkan gaji minim. Bukan rahasia jika tuntutan pekerjaan semakin berat, dengan syarat yang juga tidak ringan. Terkadang persyaratan yang menyeramkan itu hanya diberi upah tidak sepadan, kerap di bawah standar upah. Bagi pengangguran, asalkan mereka bekerja, tidak masalah gaji rendah. Terutama bagi kaum pria, yang sebagian besar menganggap bahwa pekerjaan adalah harga diri. "Orang kalo milih-milih kerjaan yah kayak kamu itu. Apa salahnya sih kerjaan apa aja diterima? Ujung-ujungnya jadi beban aja. Aku ini punya anak bini yang harus kunafkahi, tapi liat keadaan Ibu, aku gak tega gak ngasih uang bulanan. Kamu tuh benalu, tau gak," lontar Amran kesal. Rian merasa sakit hati karena kakaknya mengungkit semua yang pernah dia beri, mulai dari hal kecil hingga yang besar. “Tiga bulan yang lalu sok-sokan ikut kelas programmer, beli e-book segala. Hasilnya apa? Nol, tetap aja pengangguran!” teriak Amran marah. "Cukup, Kak! Apa salahnya cari ilmu? Lagian itu tuh menjanjikan, Kakak tau kan aku udah usaha cari kerja apa aja, jadi tukang sampah, dagang bakso keliling, teknisi di konter hp, kuli bangunan, ngumpulin botol bekas juga pernah, Kak!” “Apa kakak puji aku waktu aku kerjakan itu? Yang ada malah aku diejek, disepelekan. Maunya Kakak apa sih? Nuntut terus taunya." Rian meninggalkan ruang tamu dan masuk ke kamar sambil membanting pintu. “Gak usah banyak bacot, mending cari kerja sana. Biar gak jadi sampah di rumah ini!” hardik Amran tidak mau kalah. Di dalam kamar, Rian membuka sebuah aplikasi yang menyediakan berbagai lowongan pekerjaan, sebuah notifikasi dari perusahaan yang dia lamar dua minggu yang lalu, memintanya untuk datang untuk wawancara satu jam lagi. Tanpa membuang waktu, Rian bergegas mandi dan memakai kemeja serta celana kain, lalu membersihkan sepatu hitam yang sedikit lusuh. Ibunya heran melihat putra bungsunya yang tampak tergesa-gesa. "Aku ada interview, Bu. Di daerah Kemangi di perusahaan mainan dewasa," kata Rian. “Mainan dewasa? Itu yang alat bantu itu, kan? Kamu itu apa gak bisa cari yang bener? Jijik banget kerja di tempat begituan,” celetuk Amran. “Nganggur salah, dapet kerjaan juga salah. Lagian ini pasti bukan alat bantu gitu lah, kan mainan dewasa itu kayak robot-robot mainan orang kaya gitu. Posisi aku jadi QC kalo diterima, aku cabut dulu,” balas Rian santai. Rukmini melerai keduanya, lalu memberikan sejumlah uang kepada Rian dengan senyum tulus. "Makasih, Bu. Doain, ya. Ini gajinya UMR, lumayan kalo langsung diterima, ada mess." Rian mencium punggung tangan ibunya. Rian tiba di alamat yang diberikan kepadanya, langkah penuh percaya diri terayun, masuk ke dalam ruangan sejuk disambut dengan dua gadis cantik sebagai reception. "Maaf, Kak. Saya Rian Sanjaya, ada janji interview sama Pak Erlangga," ucap Rian sopan. "Oh, langung ke lantai tiga, di ruangan paling ujung yang tulisannya HRD Manager," sahut reception tersebut. "Makasih, Kak," balas Rian. Rian mengikuti petunjuk dan menemukan ruangan yang dicari, proses wawancara dimulai. Tidak banyak pertanyaan, dan menjelaskan tugas sebagai Quality Control yang bertanggung jawab atas produk mainan yang akan mereka pasarkan. Rian yang senang dengan upah yang ditawarkan, tidak bertanya apa jenis produk mainan tersebut, karena dia yakin tidak seperti dugaan kakaknya. Kontrak kerja selama enam bulan percobaan pun sudah ditandatangani, Rian diantar menuju mess yang bersebelahan dengan tempat dia bekerja nantinya. Rian mengirim pesan kepada ibunya bahwa dirinya sudah bekerja mulai hari ini, dan tinggal di mess. Pukul 22:50 seorang supervisor menjemput Rian, dan membawanya ke tempat produksi mainan. Mereka tiba di sebuah tempat seperti gudang yang sangat besar, kemudian masuk ke dalam. Beberapa operator mesin berada di sana, sebagai rekan kerjanya malam ini. Namun, Rian tidak melihat mainan apapun di sana, tidak seperti yang dibayangkan. Dia mulai merasa ragu. "Maaf, Pak. Mana mainannya? Robot, mobilan atau apa kek gitu?" tanya Rian heran. Tanpa menjawab, supervisor membuka sebuah pintu, di dalamnya berjajar ratusan prototipe dengan tulisan Smart Toy pada bagian kotak yang terpajang di bagian sudut kanan. Kemudian menjelaskan pekerjaan Rian sebagai QC dari produk dewasa. "Loh, katanya produk mainan? Ini bukan mainan, Pak. Ih ... jijik bener aku, serasa liat diri sendiri!" protes Rian dengan wajah tidak senang. Supervisor tersebut menjelaskan bahwa Rian sudah menandatangani kontrak, jika mundur maka akan dikenakan denda sebesar 200 juta. Rian sangat kesal, dia menatap benda di sana dengan tatapan jijik, dirinya merasa ini adalah pekerjaan yang menginjak harga dirinya. Sebagai QC dari mainan produk dewasa yang tentunya kemungkinan besar diminati wanita, karena prototipe adalah gambaran pria. "Sinting kali yang beli kayak ginian. Tinggal pesen brondong aja beres. Kan banyak tuh cowok yang jadi lon-thea, hiiy ... jijik," gerundel Rian. Mau tidak mau, dengan setengah hati Rian menjalani pekerjaan yang baginya menjijikkan, daripada akan dihina oleh kakaknya lagi. Rian menuju sebuah meja kecil dan membaca catatan serta buku petunjuk yang memuat aturan tentang pekerjaannya, lelaki itu membaca dengan seksama hingga kini pukul satu dini hari, berbekal ilmu dari kursus programmer dan buku elektronik yang dia beli, Rian dengan mudah memahami pekerjaannya tersebut, mencoba untuk memeriksa prototipe yang siap diuji esok hari. Langkah kakinya terhenti pada sebuah prototipe, yang berdasarkan catatan di mejanya yang memiliki kendala gagal uji sensor. Rian memeriksa dengan seksama, tetapi tidak menemukan ada yang salah pada benda itu. Semuanya sama persis dengan yang lainnya. "Ini apanya yang salah? Sistem? Aku cek dulu lah, hidupkan sistem," ucap Rian. Ketika menekan tombol yang berada di bagian leher, suara halus terdengar, Rian segera berdiri di depan prototipe tersebut, sebuah hologram biru muncul di depannya. Ding! Sistem Inisialisasi : Processing ... Sinkronisasi Biometrik: Processing ... Sinar biru memindai retina Rian yang sedang menatap hologram biru tersebut, dia tampak bingung dengan keadaan yang sedang terjadi. Sistem Sinkronisasi Sensor Biometrik : Berhasil. Sistem Aktif Sistem Inisiasi : Aktif Tugas : Ganti produk rusak Target : Pelanggan setia - Ratu Es Sistem berjalan, waktu berbatas. Tiga hari. Kemudian suara dan hologram tersebut menghilang, Rian mengucek matanya untuk menyakinkan apa yang dilihat barusan adalah nyata, tetapi ternyata tidak ada apapun. "Lah, gak ada apa-apa. Efek stres kerjaan gak bermoral, otakku jadi halu kurang oksigen. Kayaknya hari pertama kerja, mentalku mulai terganggu deh," gumam Rian.Alessandro“What do I do?”I asked Nadia, who looked sympathetic at me after I explained what happened to her.Eve already warned me that she can get very sensitive, but I didn’t expect it to happen so fast. I only asked her what I could do to help, and that somehow pissed her off.I waited outside my room for a while, hoping that he would call me back, but she didn’t.I heard her sobbing and wanted to go to her, but I didn’t want her to yell again, so I stayed there listening to her sob.When I couldn’t take it anymore, I went to look for Nadia since she had experienced the same thing.“Unfortunately, nothing for now, but I am sure she will call you when she feels a little better.”Nadia told me.“It has been over an hour, Nadia. She has only been sobbing.”I don’t even know if it was because of the pain or if she was just emotional.“Just let her be.”My sister insisted. I turned to Theo, who was pacing around.“Quick pacing and help me here!”I told him, and he stopped pacing.“He
Maeve“Say what?”I let out.“Yes, she is married, and she was just telling me about her kids doing exactly what Lori and Luca were doing at the table.”Now I was even more embarrassed.“But did she have to lean close to you to tell you that?”I decided to embarrass myself even more.“She didn’t want to be rude. Seriously, Eve, she wasn’t trying to flirt with me, and I definitely wasn’t flirting back.”He explained. I sighed deeply, suddenly feeling like the biggest idiot in the world.“Can I blame my period for this?”I asked him, and he laughed.“Yeah, let’s blame that.”I am glad he played along because it made me feel less embarrassed.“What are you two whispering about?”I didn’t hear Theo until he spoke.“None of your business.”Andro said and pulled me to his side.“Right, anyway, can I take her?”He asked Andro while pointing at me.“Why?”He asked, not ready to let me go.“I just want to talk to her, Ales. I am not taking her away. You can take Nadia as collateral if you thin
Maeve“You are welcome,” She mouthed back.I slowly lifted my shirt and wrapped the heat pad she placed on my lap around my waist.Another person joined us, someone I didn’t know. I found Andro at the other end of the table and looked at him with questioning eyes.“That’s Sonia, she is the one who will take the sample.” He revealed as he stood up and helped the lady with her chair.I won’t lie, I felt a little jealous of the attention he gave her, but I pushed it aside and focused on eating my breakfast while praying that I don’t end up throwing everything up.“Thank you for having me and for inviting me for breakfast.” The Sonia lady said after she finished eating. I felt a little irritated by the way she was looking at Andro, but I chalked it up to me being on my period.There’s just no way she was flirting with him right before my eyes.Okay, maybe she doesn’t know that he has a girlfriend.“It’s a pleasure having you with us on such a beautiful Sunday morning.” I resisted
Maeve“Are you okay?”Andro called out to me.“I am okay, just need a pad! I got my period.”I shouted back to him, and he went silent for a moment. I knew he was up to something, so I wasn’t surprised when he showed up a minute later.“Seriously? Are you okay?”I nodded.“I might get hit by a nasty cramp soon, but I am okay, I guess I can’t escape some pills now.”I joked even though I knew my day was about to be hellish.I have the worst period cramps that ruin my whole day.Andro looked so worried.“Don’t look so worried. I am not going to die. I might come close to dying, but I assure you, I won’t die.”My words seem to scare him even more.“What can I do to help?”He asked with so much concern, lacing his voice.“Let’s get me a pad so that I can quickly bathe and go say hi to my brother again now that I am sober before I become the meanest person ever.”His eyes widened.“Trust me, it’s bad.”I just can’t help it. I feel like shit on my period and end up being so mean to anyone w
Maeve “I am out of here.” I let out but Evans clearly hasn’t noticed what I have noticed because the bastard refused to let me go. He yanked at my hand. “Let me go!” I told him through gritted teeth. “I am not done talking to you!” He let out. “And you think this is the place to talk to m
Maeve “I don’t think your grandson will like a woman like Eve.” I glared in his direction at his stupid words. “Why not? She is beautiful, obviously smart, and business-minded. She is every man’s dream girl.” I smiled at the old man’s compliment. “She is my girl.” I resisted the urge to yel
Maeve“Are you sure the old man is coming?” I asked Evans for the hundredth time today. We have been here for over an hour now and still no sign of the old man we would be working for.The meeting was scheduled for today and I got the confirmation email from Evans three days ago.“Calm down, Eve.
Alessandro“That’s the hundredth variant that we are trying! I think it’s time for you to give up.”I glared at my supposed assistant in anger.How dare he say something like that to my face, even while knowing how desperate I am to find the right contact of the one woman who rocked my world and le






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