Chapter 1

Jasmine Booth was well-known in circles for being quite the seductress, with lightly curved crimson lips and eyes that seemed to hook your soul. Meanwhile, Caesar Snee was the most outstanding heir of a wealthy family—an unattainable gem that sat atop a high mountain, cold and self-restrained. No one knew that these two would get entangled in the back seat of a Maybach at midnight, passionately crash against each other in a restroom of a charity gala, or collapse against the floor-to-ceiling windows of a private winery. Each time, Jasmine's legs would go weak as Caesar gripped her waist and entered her. After yet another night of indulgence, the sound of water trickled from the bathroom. Jasmine leaned against the headboard and dialed Roderick Booth, her father. When the call connected, she said, "I can marry the dying Mr. Schuman of Southmere in a wedding that would drive out death, but I have one condition." On the other end of the line came an uncontainable sound of delight. "Say it! As long as you're willing to marry him, I will agree to anything!" Despite her cold gaze, Jasmine responded with a gentle voice, "I'll explain when I get home." Jasmine hung up and was about to get dressed when Caesar's laptop on the side caught her eye. His WhatsApp screen was lit up, and the latest message was from a girl saved as "Sabrina". It said, "Caesar, it's thundering. I'm really scared…" Jasmine's fingers trembled as she read the text. Suddenly, the bathroom door opened, and Caesar walked out. Water dripped down his collarbone, and his shirt was casually unbuttoned at the top. The sight blended his usual cold abstinence with a touch of laziness. "Something came up at the office. I need to head out," he said distantly as he picked up his suit jacket. Jasmine's lips curled up faintly as she questioned, "Is it really something at the office? Or are you going to see your first love?" Caesar, who didn't catch what she said, responded puzzledly, "What?" "Nothing." She stepped off the bed barefoot, and her fair feet sank into the soft carpet. Caesar's gaze darkened slightly, and his thumb brushed across her swollen lips. "Behave. Don't cause trouble," he coaxed before leaving. The moment the door shut, the smile vanished from Jasmine's face. She hailed a cab and followed him. Half an hour later, the car stopped outside a hotel. Through the rain, Jasmine saw Sabrina, who wore a white dress, run out from the hotel entrance. Caesar quickly walked up, took off his suit jacket, and draped it over her shoulders. He then scooped her up in his arms. "It's cold out. Why'd you come out without a coat, hmm?" he asked gently. His movements were so practiced, like he had rehearsed them hundreds of times. Jasmine clenched the car door handle so tightly that her nails had dug into her palms. She stared at Caesar's back as he carefully carried Sabrina into the hotel. For some reason, she suddenly thought of the first time she ever saw him. … Back then, things were tense between Jasmine and Roderick. After she had smashed something over his head yet again, he sent her to be disciplined by his close friend's son, saying she needed to have her arrogant temper worn down. When Jasmine first met Caesar, he was sitting in the top-floor office of Snee Group, his gaze as cold as ice behind his gold-rimmed glasses. Of course, she didn't want to stay there. So, she tried every way she could to cause trouble. On her first day, she spilled coffee all over his million-dollar custom suit. Caesar merely glanced at her and said, "Ritalix air-shipped cashmere. Put it on the Booth family's tab." The next day, she deliberately fed the meeting documents into the shredder. Caesar remained calm and recited the entire agenda from memory, leaving the executives in the room stunned. On the third day, she drugged his coffee and set up a camera, ready to catch him in a compromising state and use it to threaten him. Instead, she became his antidote. The next morning, Jasmine woke up sore all over. She was seething with rage and ready to kill, only to be pinned against the window by Caesar for another round. "Jas," he murmured hoarsely as he bit her earlobe. "Be good." That one nickname completely broke her defenses. No one had called Jasmine that since her mother died. From then on, their relationship changed. Every time she caused trouble, Caesar would just carry her into his office. Outsiders thought he was disciplining her, but he was actually bending her over the desk until her legs went weak. Little by little, Jasmine realized she was becoming addicted. Was it because Caesar was so good at it? Or because she was just that lonely? She didn't know the answer. She only knew that she had fallen for him. Thus, on his birthday, she spent the whole day decorating the villa—complete with roses, candlelight, and music. She had even prepared an engagement ring. Jasmine waited all night, until the candles burned out and the roses wilted, and still, he didn't come. At three in the morning, her phone suddenly buzzed with a news alert. The headline read, "CEO of a Wealthy Family Picks up First Love at Airport in the Dead of Night." In the photo, Caesar was gently helping a girl in a white dress into a car. His gaze at her looked so heartbreakingly tender. The comment section went nuts. "Aw, a powerful CEO and a sweet young lady! Just kill me now!" "Holy crap! Isn't that Mr. Snee and campus belle, Sabrina Harding? Back in school, they were the golden couple!" "I went to the same school, so I can confirm! Mr. Snee was cold to everyone except Sabrina. If she hadn't gone abroad for health reasons, they would've been married already!" Jasmine's phone hit the floor with a loud smack. She couldn't believe what she read. If Caesar already had feelings for someone, then what was she? An on-call fuck buddy? With shaking hands, she tried to call Caesar, hoping to hear anything from him, but the call never went through. After the final failed attempt, Jasmine put down her phone and walked into Caesar's study—a room he had never let her enter. The moment she opened the door, it felt like lightning struck her. The room was full of photos of Sabrina—graduation photos, travel snapshots, and even secret pictures of her sleeping. So, the always cold and restrained Caesar was actually capable of this. Whether Jasmine got an answer or not suddenly seemed irrelevant. She suddenly laughed, the sound echoing harshly in the empty room. As she laughed, scorching tears poured down her cheeks and splashed onto the floor. She then tore apart the entire villa in a frenzy. When Caesar returned the next day and saw the mess, he calmly instructed the staff to clean it up. He didn't even spare Jasmine a glance, as if this kind of thing was expected from her. She watched helplessly as the housekeeper swept away the engagement ring she'd so carefully prepared, as though it were trash. Caesar didn't know what was in that box. He didn't know she once wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. And he would never know that the moment the ring hit the trash, she decided she would never love him again. … The driver's voice pulled Jasmine back to the present. "Ms. Booth, where to?" he asked. "Home," Jasmine said with an ice-cold voice as she opened her eyes. "Back to the Booth residence." As soon as she arrived, Roderick rushed to greet her. "Jas, have you really agreed to marry the man in Southmere?" Upstairs, her stepmother, Elvira Harding, was also watching her with hopeful eyes. Jasmine looked at Roderick with a slightly cold gaze. "Yes. But didn't I say I had a condition?" "What condition? Say it!" Roderick urged. Jasmine enunciated each word as she said, "I want to sever all ties with you." The air seemed to have frozen in an instant. Roderick's expression changed drastically, and he shouted, "Have you lost your mind? Do you even know what you're saying?" "I'm well aware. You cheated during your marriage, and to make way for that woman, you drove my mother to jump off a building. From that day on, I stopped considering you my father," Jasmine responded icily. She stared at Roderick's ashen face. "Now, the dying Mr. Schuman of Southmere is offering 50 billion dollars for a bride. You've been pressuring me for three months. If I hadn't agreed, were you planning to tie me up and deliver me?" Jasmine sneered as she continued, "If that's the case, what's the difference whether we cut ties or not? It's perfect timing to bring your mistress' daughter back and make her the Booth family's young lady." Roderick trembled with anger. "Fine! Cut ties then! But Mr. Schuman is said to have only until the end of the month. You must marry him before then!" He then laughed coldly. "As for Elvira's daughter, she returned from abroad a few days ago. She's been staying at a hotel. Since you're giving up your place, she'll move in tomorrow!" Jasmine chuckled, the pain she felt in her chest making her tremble. "Throwing yourself at another woman and neglecting your own daughter—you really are one of a kind." She turned to leave, but Elvira stepped forward with a fake show of concern, saying, "Jas, how can you speak to your father like that?" Jasmine suddenly stopped in her tracks. She slowly turned around, and years of buried hatred flooded her gaze. "What? You think once I'm married and gone, you can finally act like the real lady of this house?" She took a step forward as she spoke each word. "Elvira, listen carefully. My mother may be dead, but it doesn't change the fact that you're a homewrecker everyone despises! Even if your precious daughter becomes Ms. Booth, she will never erase the stain that her mother is a mistress!" Elvira's face turned ghostly pale as she stumbled back two steps. Jasmine turned and walked away, each step she took feeling as sharp as walking on a blade. Only when she returned to her room and shut the door did she collapse as if she were drained of all strength. She sank to the floor with her face buried in her knees. … The next morning, sounds of movement and excited chatter echoed from downstairs. "What's going on?" Jasmine yanked her door open. "Some of us are trying to sleep!" The butler stammered, "Ms. Booth… the other missus has moved in…" Before he finished, a familiar figure appeared at the top of the stairs—Sabrina, dressed in a white dress, stood there looking delicate and pitiful. At that moment, Jasmine felt all the blood in her body freeze.