Chapter 3

It was Yvonne's first time attending a blind date.

To show her respect, she washed her hair as soon as she got home from work. She then changed into a light blue fringed dress and put on a light touch of makeup before heading out.

Just as she got out of her car outside the cafe, she received a voice message from Lily.

Lily said, "I've checked for you, Yvvy. His name is Harold Quillan—he's 28 and about five feet and ten inches tall. He works in the marketing department of an international company and makes more than 50 thousand dollars per month.

"He's average-looking, neither fat nor thin, and has an introverted personality. Simon said he's going over after work, and the signal is a white rose on the table."

Yvonne couldn't help but laugh. Not only did Lily not give her a photo, but she even wanted Yvonne to look for a signal.

The cafe wasn't too packed at this hour. A man in a suit was sitting by the window, with a white rose in the glass of water on his table.

Yvonne felt slightly embarrassed. She took a deep breath before walking over. "Hello, I'm Yvonne Jamison."

The man had been lounging in his seat as he browsed the stock market on his tablet. His fingers paused when he heard her introduction, and then he slowly looked up.

Yvonne froze upon meeting his gaze. The man before her wore a tailored suit and sat there with an undeniable air of sophistication. His deep-set eyes held a hint of aloofness, yet there was a subtle, restrained intensity in his gaze.

Was this what Lily meant by "average-looking"? This man's appearance was clearly superior no matter how one looked at him.

Yvonne realized she'd lost her composure. The man had been staring at her in silence. Could she have mistaken him for her blind date partner? "Sorry, are you here for the blind date tonight?"

Samuel Hover subtly lowered his gaze and smiled faintly. "Yes. Please have a seat, Ms. Jamison."

As soon as Yvonne sat down, she noticed the half-empty coffee cup on the table. She then glanced at the time, noting that it wasn't 7:30 pm—their meetup time—yet. She wondered if she was late.

Samuel noticed her actions and quickly said, "I came earlier. What would you like to drink, Ms. Jamison?"

Yvonne wasn't expecting him to be this attentive. "I'll have a look at the menu."

She ordered a mocha and a slice of cake. It was unnervingly quiet.

Yvonne wasn't sure what to talk about on a blind date, and the man before her wasn't inclined to speak either. She could only sense his uneasiness from his uneven breaths. It was probably also his first time attending a blind date, and he was equally nervous.

She recalled Lily saying that he was introverted, so she wondered if she should get the ball rolling.

Yvonne glanced at the stock market on the tablet and asked, "I've heard that you just came back from abroad. How have you been adjusting? You must be busy at work."

"Work is fine. I'm just adjusting to the time difference—I've been craving coffee in the evenings." Samuel's breath evened out eventually. His gaze met hers—calm, without intrusive curiosity. He maintained a gentle, polite demeanor.

"What do you do for work now, Ms. Jamison?" he then asked.

Yvonne was surprised Lily hadn't told him of her situation.

She smiled and replied, "I'm in charge of exhibition planning in the projects department. This is my business card, but I've just resigned—I'm planning to set up a studio."

Samuel took Yvonne's business card, looked down at it, and lightly traced her name with his fingertip. "I'm sorry, I didn't bring my business card today."

"It's alright."

Her gaze was suddenly drawn to his long fingers. Only then did Yvonne realize that the watch on his wrist was a limited edition worth millions from a high-end brand. Even the suit he wore was a custom-tailored Armani suit.

It seemed a little different from what Lily had told her. She wondered if he came from a wealthy family but didn't feel comfortable asking him about it.

At that moment, the waitstaff brought Yvonne's coffee and cake. The table was full of things.

As Yvonne lowered her head, she caught a glimpse of Samuel picking up an ashtray. Albeit surprised, she politely said, "It's alright. You can smoke."

He met her gaze. "I don't smoke."

It turned out he was just naturally putting aside the items. Yvonne couldn't help but smile and nodded. "Thank you."

She really hated secondhand smoke. Her hair and clothes would often smell of smoke whenever she headed home, so she had to wash her hair before bed. It annoyed her to no end that she had to dry her hair in the middle of the night.

"You mentioned that you're planning to set up a studio, Ms. Jamison. What is it for?" Samuel asked.

Yvonne replied, "I'll be working on my childhood dream—jewelry design."

She'd expected this blind date to be incredibly awkward. He was slow to warm up, but once they started talking, he was the one asking all the questions—and they were all polite inquiries.

Samuel noticed his phone on the table lit up. He frowned before saying, "I have something to take care of, Ms. Jamison. I'll be taking my leave now."

"Alright, let's add each other on WhatsApp then," Yvonne said.

She wasn't expecting his profile photo to be of a kitten, and his name was just a simple "H". She saved his contact as "Harold (blind date)".

Samuel stood up and extended his hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Jamison. Let's grab a meal next time and continue our conversation."

Yvonne looked up and met his gaze. As they shook hands, she could feel his grip tighten briefly before loosening. "Alright, see you."

It was probably the usual procedure for blind dates. They wouldn't necessarily meet again.

A black Rolls-Royce limousine was parked by the street outside the cafe. "Did someone… just hit on you earlier, Mr. Hover?"

"It's someone I haven't seen in a long time." Samuel tucked Yvonne's business card away before he got into the car.

…

In the president's office at Ford Corporation, Frederick noticed that Jared hadn't been wearing a tie these past few days. It seemed like he wasn't in a good mood either.

After a meeting, Jared dialed the internal line for the secretarial department. "Bring me a cup of coffee."

Shirley stepped in wearing a professional skirt suit. She couldn't take her eyes off Jared, who looked captivating as he handled documents behind his desk.

She walked closer and bent down, intentionally letting one button of her shirt collar pop open. Jared would definitely notice it from his angle, yet he didn't look up.

"Oh my!" Shirley pretended to lose her balance and spilled the coffee.

Jared quickly swept the documents away. There was a trace of anger in his gaze when he finally looked up at her. "Being my secretary is more than just looks, Shirley—your skills matter too. Don't make this kind of rookie mistake in the office."

In the past, Yvonne had been efficient when handling her work and always set her personal emotions aside. She was definitely his right hand at work.

Shirley's bashful expression froze. She was surprised, as Jared usually enjoyed her clumsy mistakes and would playfully tease her.

"I'm sorry," she said with her head hung low, tears brimming in her eyes.

"I'm not scolding you. I'm just reminding you to do your work." Jared softened his tone and continued, "Button up your shirt and bring me another cup of coffee."

"Okay."

Shirley returned with a new cup of coffee and some biscuits soon after. "I've bought the best Blue Mountain No. 1 coffee beans—freshly ground and brewed—and paired it with pine nut cookies."

The coffee had a wonderful scent. Jared took an expectant sip, only to frown and place the cup down. Somehow, the taste couldn't be compared to the coffee Yvonne used to make for him.

"Are there no other coffee beans left in the break room?" he asked.

"There's none left." Shirley couldn't understand how Jared was still dissatisfied even when she'd used the most expensive coffee beans.

Jared frowned before gesturing for her to take her leave. He'd been feeling inexplicably tired and irritated without his usual cup of coffee to freshen him up in the past few afternoons. Somehow, he craved Yvonne's coffee.

He wasn't sure what was going on with him.

After a while, Jared dialed Yvonne's number for the first time since that night. The call soon connected.

He said, "Shirley hasn't been feeling well these few days, Yvonne. The position in the secretarial department is temporarily vacant, and I couldn't get anyone to fill it."

Jared was confident. This was a great opportunity for Yvonne to return to him—there was no way she would refuse it.

He continued, "Why don't you temporarily transfer back to the secretarial department to fill in for a couple of days?"