‘Here,’ Salman says, appearing next to me while Sadia fiddles with his laptop, a plaster and an antiseptic wipe in his outstretched hand, the way he used to when we were together, when he was well aware of my antsy hands, that sometimes pulled a little harder than they should have.
‘What are you, a paramedic?’ I mock. ‘You got a whole first-aid kit in your bag or something?’
He rolls his eyes. ‘Come on, Pops, don’t be a pain.’
I consider not taking them and just sucking my thumb until it stops bleeding, but with the way my day has been going so far, it’ll probably get infected so I reluctantly take the wipe and the plaster from him, trying to ignore how the gesture makes me feel.
When that doesn’t work, I hiss the question that’s on my mind now I’ve found out he’s going to be my colleague. ‘Why did you have to land a job here of all places? Couldn’t you have got a job at like CEX or something? Or your parents’ flower shop?’ But as soon as I ask it, I realise that I don’t actually care. I sink into my chair and swivel so I’m facing the screen, and my empty mailbox. ‘Just stay out of my way, OK? You do your job and I’ll do mine an—’
‘Actually,’ Sadia says, appearing next to us, ‘while your roles are indeed separate, I’m expecting you to work together. Although I’ll be your primary focus, Poppy, you will be the central communication bridge between me and the other teams .?.?.’
Sadia keeps talking, but all I hear is: I am going to have to work with Salman. Every day. All summer.
I try to calm my breathing and tell myself it’s not the end of the world. Sure, things ended badly between us, but that doesn’t mean we can’t work in the same office, right?
Oh screw it, who am I kidding? This is going to be a disaster!
4
‘Sorry, that took a bit longer than expected,’ Sadia says as she comes to a halt by mine and Salman’s desks. She jumped onto a call with a vendor pretty much straight after delivering the news that Salman and I were going to work together this summer. Since then we’ve sat at our desks, not saying a word.
Well, Salman had tried.
‘Long time no see, Pops,’ he’d said, his voice teasing. ‘What have you been up to?’
I didn’t respond.
After a beat, he smirked. ‘Well, that sounds mighty interesting. And how nice of you to ask. I’m on the football team now – go Wolves! I’ve started hitting the gym four times a week – I know, shocker for me, and –’
‘Can we not?’ I asked, halting his rambling. I was being rude and I knew it, but I couldn’t stand the way he was looking at me. That mischievous smile, like he knew he was getting under my skin. Almost like he was enjoying it.
‘Just, please. Leave me alone.’
Salman looked hurt at my tone, and it reminded me of the day six months ago when he cut things off, when he broke my heart and pretended that our relationship never happened.Good.He should feel pain. That’s the least he deserves.
‘Wh—’
I cut him off immediately. ‘Why are you even here?’
He sat up, looking glad that I’d asked him something. ‘Youknow I’ve always been into photography. I wanted to see if I could make a career out of it.’
I raised an eyebrow. He got a camera for his birthday a few years ago and is always experimenting with it, the sound of his camera shutter the soundtrack to our relationship.
‘Did you need to put it to the test here?’ I seethed.
Luckily for him, Sadia came back then. ‘As I was saying before,’ she says now, pulling me back to the present, ‘while your work may seem separate, there’s quite a bit of overlap between your roles, and I want you to work closely in your first few weeks as you get to grips with how the agency works. Then, during the dates themselves, I’ll need you both on location working together to ensure our clients have the time of their lives.’
Great, I’ll have to watch people enjoying themselves on dates, with my ex next to me. Seriously, who is writing the script that is my life? Whoever they are, they arenotgetting a raise next season.
‘To start with, you’ll both be working on the matchmaking process to understand the ethos of the agency. We’ve just signed up a batch of new clients I want you to work with. Then once you’ve understood what Eternally Yours stands for, your tasks will become more tailored to your departments.’
OK, that sounds fine. Maybe we won’t be working as closely together as I thought.
‘But before you can do any of that,’ Sadia says, ‘to know what a client wants, you need to put yourselves in their shoes.’
I twist my brows in confusion at the same time as Salman asks, ‘Sorry, what?’
Sadia holds out two folders, one in each hand. ‘You’ll both take the questionnaire that prospective clients fill out when they apply to Eternally Yours. It’s the only way you’ll truly understand the mindset of the people you’ll be working with.’
