The traffic favoured her and she reached an hour early for the 3 pm meeting.
‘What am I doing here? I could have easily asked him to navigate the deadly twists and turns of the rickety road to Epicure Exports,’ she thought while sipping ice-cold coffee, the first beverage since morning. It was needed to fool her stomach’s protest.
How am I going to recognise him? His face on the professional networking account was hazy. And she found herself resorting to her college day's habit of checking out men. Suddenly, the morbid cloud of gloominess began to evaporate a bit. Sometimes, simple gazing too can do wonders to lift your soul.
Just then a man entered.
‘2/10’
She awarded the score.
Her phone rang. To her shock, the man with the worst score till then was looking around for her. He was the man she was supposed to meet today afternoon.
‘Should I duck? May be then he would go away on not finding me?’
And she did.
Her phone rang again. She put it on silent. Now the man was asking about her from the waiter.
He was moving towards her. The word ‘monkeys’ from Jain in the early morning monologue echoed in her mind.
She got up pretending to pick a book that had never fallen down.
Sid Halve, the man, who had come to meet her, called on her cellphone once again. He was in need of this assignment. Persistence happens only when needs are insistent. She didn’t disconnect the line, nor did she put the phone on silent. Rather, she waved her hand, assuring Sid that she was there.
He was relieved to see her and his face conveyed all. He strode in her direction. They shook hands.
He had a firm handshake and he didn’t let her hand linger in his even for a second more than required, Ashmi noted with appreciation. May be I could reconsider my thoughts
How is the meeting going on? Laily texted to find just when they were waiting for the café latte to come. Her second drink.
It has just started, she messaged.
'How does he look?' For her good looks were important for a successful date. Ashmi too belonged to the same school of thought.
'Can we talk later?'Ashmi wanted to focus on the moment.
‘As you say, but I wait for the dope,’ Laily wrote.
‘So, you had a chance to see the presentation, I had sent earlier,’ Sid wanted to keep the conversation flowing.
‘No, I didn’t see it, but I have done my homework and I know you are the best at what you do,’ she said candidly. ‘Still I can’t assure if you would get the business.’
He admired her honesty, but would have appreciated the business more. Right now, it meant, make or break for him. She meant the difference between going back to his father’s brass business in Muradabad or keeping his fledgling company Marksman afloat. Most of his clients had not renewed their contract with his company, courtesy cost cutting. And then, Bhavya, his live-in partner, too had departed bag and baggage with his best buddy.
‘It hurts when your best buddy steals your girlfriend. Think something fast, before this woman clutches her purse and leaves.’
‘Thanks for taking the time out and coming visiting me,’ he was making best use of the baritone. He knew it had effect on women.
‘I had to, Epicureans is kind of urgent, and it needs to be rolled out. There is a lot of thinking to be done, from layout to designing and then content,’ she got in technicalities.
‘Would you care for something to eat,’ he cut her short. It was been-there-done-that for him.
'Yes, I am famished,' she said. I haven’t eaten anything since morning, and you are the first one to ask me this.
‘What about you?’ she asked him.
‘Well, I can give you company, if you insist,’ he said with a genuine smile on his lips. Ashmi too smiled and began to loosen up.
'He seems to be an interesting person,' she observed. May be God granted him the gift of gab to compensate for looks, she thought while waiting for the sandwiches.
She is an attractive woman, but her eyes don’t exude the happiness her face does, he thought.
‘By the way, it’s quite late almost going to be three, and you didn’t have anything,’ she enquired.
‘I had a late night yesterday and I didn’t feel like eating anything,’ he said.
‘You party on weekdays,’ she was eager to know more, and totally forgot that it was a business meeting.
‘Not everyday, but yesterday I was celebrating a month of my breakup with my girl friend,’ he knew that now he had her attention.Relationships and the failed ones interested women.
‘I get your point. But if I don’t sound intrusive I would like to know, what made you breakup with her,’ she probed quite aware that it was just not an appropriate question but she didn’t care. He needs the business and he better not forget that.
‘No there is nothing to hide. We broke off because I wasn’t rich enough for her. We did live-in for a year, but then, she found someone who could take her to exotic vacations and take care of all future worries. With me this wasn’t possible, and this was the reason we broke off. Now you know why this deal is so important for me,’ he gave in the details. And the person was my best buddy
She appreciated it. ‘I can’t assure you that I will work with you only, but you have credentials working in your favour.’ Sid was hopeful.
‘Good sandwiches came, now let’s attack them,’ she suggested, trying to deviate the subject of Epicureans, for which they had met officially.
‘The brownies will follow,’ informed the waiter, though you have ordered it first.
‘Never mind,’ interjected Ashmi and her chirpy self was coming back.
Sid felt that he could get the deal, if only he was a bit careful. Pushing wouldn’t work. He kept his fingers crossed. Women are not that simple to understand as compared to men. The experience had taught him well. They chatted from weather to movies. She was careful not to talk about the ex-factor. In an hour they left.
‘How was the meeting..er blind date?’ Laily chirped the moment she reached office.
‘It was tolerable.’
‘Is he getting the account?’
‘Yes, he is because he is good at what he does.’
‘What about the harmless flirting that keeps the soul alive?’ Laily asked
‘To hell with it,’ Ashmi said resignedly.
Her Microsoft Outlook beeped. A message had landed from Sid
‘It was my pleasure meeting you. Thanks’
There was no indication on the update. This warmed Ashmi’s heart. She hated when people followed up relentlessly.
She wrote back, ‘The pleasure was entirely mine, Sid. Why don’t you send a formal quotation?’
Sid knew, she would do just the same, Deals were all about psychology, and he had cracked hers.
Before she left for the day, Sid had the purchase order for the first issue of Epicureans.
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