Episode 3

The next evening, when Vinnie came to the café to meet her friend Maya, so they could check out the newly opened bookshop in the market, she was stopped by a man she had never seen before.

Tilting her head to the side, she curiously blinked and watched him carefully.

The man was taller than all her male cousins and had a freshly shaven face. He wore thick-rimmed glasses, the one he had already pushed up his nose twice since he appeared in front of her. A sweet and spicy fragrance drifted off him. Vinnie liked the gentleness of the fragrance and the way it did not irritate her nostrils. He wore a nice suit that embraced him perfectly. A well-dressed, handsome man, one could say. His dark hair was combed and gelled to perfection. He carried a laptop bag in one hand and a tablet in the other. But there was something about his eyes, a slight redness over the glassy film. Not getting enough sleep was most likely the reason behind it.

During the time of her school, Vinnie had spent many nights writing not only her assignments but also for many other students who could pay a good amount for her efforts. Something she did to earn and support herself rather than depend on her family, who already were doing everything they could. They had two more kids to worry about, and Vinnie never felt the need to add more to their ever-growing worries. The fact that she was mute and incapable of even the tiniest task in their eyes made them look even ten years older than their actual age. They didn’t even earn that much, to be honest, just enough to bring food to the table and clothes to wear for all five of them. And of course, to feed Rex, the dog.

“You’re Vinnie Hart, right?” the well-dressed man asked, raising an uncertain eyebrow as he gave her a thorough once-over before dashing back to meet her bland brown eyes.

In response to his query, Vinnie tilted her head to the other side, her dark hair tumbling off her shoulder.

The man probably got a hint, as in the next moment, he was swiftly apologizing. “Wait. I forgot. I’m so sorry. You can’t talk, right?” he jabbed a thumb over his shoulder and took a quick glance behind the counter. “That girl over there mentioned that. She called herself your friend. It completely slipped my mind,” he shook his head before shipping his red-stained eyes back to her. “I should really consider sleeping more…” that, he muttered to himself, before giving her an awkward smile. “Anyway. I know for a fact that you’re the right person. So, I don’t see any reason to waste any more time. Let’s get to the business straight, shall we?”

Vinnie had no clue where he was going with that, or worse, what was he even talking about. She had never seen the guy before in her life. Ever. And that set off a lot of alert sirens in her head. But with everything that came out of his mouth, her curiosity had already been piqued. It seemed like he knew her well, despite their meeting for the very first time. Unless she had the horrible habit of sleep-walking and bumped into him in the middle of the night, something that could only happen in the movies. Or maybe it was possible in real life, but she had met no one with such an adventurous life. Besides, they were in a public place, a café that was owned by Maya’s aunt (an amiable lady with horrible choices in men), what worse could really happen, right?

Watching him with kind and curious eyes as he took a seat in one of the empty booths, putting his stuff to the side, and now waiting for her to join him, Vinnie flicked her gaze at the counter and pouted, seeing another long line of customers. The hustle-bustle in the lively cafe was simply as usual. If only she could get a minute to have a word with Maya. Maybe she could bring a light on what this man wanted from her and how did he even know her?

To her dismay, Maya was nowhere in sight. She wasn’t even present at the counter. Vinnie wondered where she could be. Didn’t she text her to come as soon as possible? And now that she was there, where did she disappear to?

Lost in her thoughts, Vinnie was yanked out of her bubble when someone cleared their throat.

Vinnie’s eyes found their way back to the well-dressed man.

“I won’t take much of your time, I promise,” he gave her a pleasant smile, the one Vinnie thought looked just as tired.

With another deep sigh, Vinnie shifted her feet to make a move and sat down across from him. Her feet tapped restlessly against the floor, hoping to find out soon enough what all this was about.

“Thanks,” he said once he found her comfortable enough. “My name is Alex Davies. I work for Doyle Enterprises. I’m actually assistant to the president of the company. The thing is, well, how do I say this…” he mused, pinching his lips to a corner. “I have come here on behalf of my boss, Mr Doyle.”

Vinnie gave him a confused look.

“You have met him,” he added instantly, his hazel eyes growing a tad wide, as if suddenly grasping how he should have started with that. “Yesterday? In this very café itself.”

The look Vinnie gave him this time clearly stated: “Did I?”

“He was interviewing someone—”

Oh! Vinnie opened her mouth and gasped, an adorable smile adorning her naturally pink lips as soon as she realized about whom this well-dressed man was talking. The man who looked like God.

Now that her brain had finally caught up, Vinnie could not help the way her mind whizzed back in the past, recalling how things had transpired that day. She had no clue why she did what she did. Except, nothing about it felt wrong. He was in need of something, and so was she. If they could’ve made it work in any shape and form, it would have brought benefit for both of them.

For some reason, she could tell that the man—Mr Doyle—was no bad news. It was just a feeling, something she identified too easily with people she met. Some even called it intuition…

Wait, so his name was Mr Doyle? She wondered what his first name was. Should she ask for it? Would he tell her?

The man cleared his throat again, pulling her back into the ongoing conversation.

Vinnie blinked and adjusted her focus back on him.

“This is my card,” taking something out of his breast pocket—as if he had kept it just for this purpose—he placed it neatly on the table. “If you’re still up for it, he would like to see you.”

Vinnie tugged her lower lip between her teeth, reaching over for the card and feeling the soft and expensive texture against her nimble fingertips. But didn’t he refuse to even hear her out the previous day? Didn’t he reject her because of her muteness? What could be his purpose in changing his mind now?

As if overwhelmed by such questions in her head, Vinnie turned to grab the sling bag she had casually kept next to her and brought a notepad and pen out. Quickly, she scribbled something and pushed the notepad across the table so he could read it.

Alex dropped his curious gaze on the notepad and used a hand to bring it closer to his eyes.

“Why me?” Vinnie had asked.

Alex chuckled, returning the notepad back to her. “I’m not sure if I’m the right person to answer this question. Why don’t you ring the number that I gave you and I would arrange a meeting for you?” He was talking about the number mentioned on the card. “If you’re still interested in the job, of course.”

Job, Vinnie internally scoffed. She did not know what this job entailed. At least not explicitly. But she was smart enough to know it wouldn’t involve anything related to office work. It was something more…personal. The kinds of questions Mr Doyle had posed to that woman, it was as if he were looking for a girlfriend or a wife. It couldn’t be a wife, as she couldn’t imagine marrying someone with no love in the picture. It could either be a girlfriend or a kind of contractual fuck-buddy, the arrangement she had only read in books online.

Either way, Vinnie surprisingly wasn’t repulsed by the idea. Yes, she was nervous, and sure, her family or friends could never get wind of what she was up to, but all in all, she was getting something out of this, too. Or at least she would have to make sure she did.

It had to be an arrangement with equal give and take. Or else, this was all for nothing.

Even after Alex Davies left, with a hope to hear from her, for a long while, Vinnie just sat there in the same booth and stared at the card. Her thumb traced the stylish ‘D’ embossed in the company’s logo, her heart doing a funny flip-flop in her stomach.

That day, Vinnie cancelled her plans with Maya to check out the new bookshop. Instead, she went straight to the tiny rented apartment she lived in and locked herself in her small room. Rummaging through her closet, she picked out some decent dresses and laid them on the bed. She tried them on one by one and quickly realized she owned nothing that could suit the occasion. Either the dresses were too long or too short. Too glossy or too dull.

Vinnie needed something that conveyed the message without the need to use any words.

Interested but not desperate.

Business-minded people were as cunning as foxes and advantage-seeker as any next person. That’s why they were at the top of the game, weren’t they? But now that Vinnie had a chance to deal with them, she had to make sure she wouldn’t end up making a fool out of herself. She had to act smart and be her true self. Just because she couldn’t speak, she couldn’t let anyone think they could take her lightly. If Mr Doyle agreed to give her a chance, she had to make certain she bargained a good deal.

Speaking of which, Vinnie settled for a pair of jeans and a full-sleeved black crop top. A casual choice, but only because she didn’t want to give the idea that she was trying too hard. Maya had told her once how that was a huge turnoff for many people. Vinnie might have been the one to offer herself first-hand, but that was only because he was leaving and she had a very small window to try her luck.

The same luck that had been great so far.

But who knew how it would turn out the next day? When she would finally step into the biggest and grandest office building in the city, and ask to see the president of the multi-billionaire company, Mr Doyle.