A Deal with the Devil
Savannah was shocked at his audacity.
Was he commanding her, or the other way around? She was perplexed and felt uneasy, as if he was trying to take advantage of her and her position.
She didn't know how to handle the matter and was afraid to speak out and tell him that his behavior was unacceptable.
She wanted to be respectful and avoid making a scene, but she also wanted to ensure that her limits were followed because she just couldn't drag up what he was definitely after her money or her beauty.
Most men were always after her beauty and her rich status in society, and besides, she never blamed them for it.
She was a rich girl born into a very wealthy and powerful family that had gained a lot of respect in the city. But sitting with this serviceman made her feel a little small in his presence, as he saw himself as wealthier and greater than her.
"What do you mean that I am in or not? I'm the one who offered you this job and also the one who holds the authority here. I should be the one to ask that." Savannah retorted.
The strange man's smile expanded onto his face. Indeed, she had no idea what she was putting herself into. Just a little prey getting ready to be devoured by the big bad wolf —what an interesting lady!
"Alright, if you say so, but let me assure you, Ms. Savannah, there's no way out of this. If you agree with this, I'd advise you to make your choice wisely."
Savannah laughed, finding his statement amusing. Was there no way out? That should be her statement, not his. She was in charge here, and all decisions must be made in her favor.
But something was silently eating her insides. The service guy had so much boldness and dominance that he thought things should be done his way rather than hers. After this meeting, she was going to ask Jane where she got this person who thought so highly of himself.
"Funny service guy. It's a deal, and does that mean you're in?" She raised an eyebrow at him, he nodded his head quietly, but that didn't stop the intimidating grin on his face.
"My grandma's birthday party will be coming up this weekend, and I want you to look your best on that day. But before I carry on with our conversation, what's your name?" She asked.
The strange man adjusted his chair closer to the table and said to her, "Alex Mark."
"Alex Mark?" Savannah repeated the name but found nothing special about it. She took a look in her handbag again, took out a little notebook and a pen, and dropped them on the table in front of him.
"Write down your phone number, email address, and house address. I need to get the necessary information about you," Savannah said. She crossed her legs delicately and looked at her vanished red nails stylishly.
The man didn't hesitate to scribble down all the information and pass the note back to her.
"Since our deal is done, I should be on my way now," Savannah stated, standing up.
"How about I walk you out, Ms.?" With a faint smile, the strange man asked. Savannah turned to face him.
Was he attempting to be gentle now? Because he was behaving like the big boss here a minute ago. She was taken aback. But she cringed at the thought and smiled pretentiously at him.
"You're not required to. I may leave the same way I came. Just remember everything I told you," she whispered as she walked out. The strange man stared at her intently until she was totally out of sight.
Savannah got into her car with the help of her driver and let out a sigh of relief at the atmosphere she was suffocating inside before. She didn't understand the service guy's problem or what even gave him the audacity to speak to her with such authority and pride.
That should have been her role, but he smashed everything away from her like he was the boss while she was the servant. What insolence?
She took out her phone and dialed Jane's number. The call rang twice for thirty seconds before she finally picked up on the third ring.
"Hello, love? How did the date go?" Jane excitedly asked.
"Well, it was almost a complete disaster because the stupid guy you hooked me up with thought he was the boss!" Savannah yelled in frustration, and Jane's excitement died off immediately.
"Are you saying the guy was acting like a boss and not that he is ugly?" Jane asked again, as she was trying to be sure about the statement Savannah was making.
Savannah stopped talking and looked at the phone with a quizzical look on her face before she placed it back against her ears.
"Yes, that's what I said!" She spat.
"Oh, thank goodness. I thought you said he was not good-looking enough." Jane sighed in relief. What she thought Savannah was angry about wasn't what she was furious at. She thought the guy she picked was not good-looking enough, and Savannah was completely pissed off.
"Hello… Jane? Are you still on the line?" Savannah asked.
"Of course I am. So, what were you saying?"
Savannah felt like pinching herself. Didn't Jane understand English? She took a deep breath and tried to relax before she poured her anger on Jane.
"Jane, I said, the guy you brought for me was acting like the damn boss instead of me!" She shouted, and Jane had to pull the phone away from her ear for a few seconds before she plugged it back in.
"Well, maybe he was trying to act in character to win your heart," Jane suggested, and hoped this worked for Savannah.
"Alright... let me just conclude on that, but he was a bit rude."
Jane sighed happily when she saw that Savannah's mood was a bit lighter. Then she saw it as an opportunity to ask about the date.
"So, how did it go? Is the guy I picked good-looking enough?" Jane asked.
Savannah's mind went back to the moment she saw him; her heart almost jumped out of her chest, and she couldn't believe what strange sparkle triggered her that she felt so lightened to see him. Although she tried to delay that first spark to keep herself in check, there was something strange about the guy that made her feel eager to get to know him better.
Jane had been waiting for Savannah to answer her questions, but she didn't get anything in reply. She even looked at her phone to see if she had ended the call, but Savannah was still online.
That was surprising. Jane thought and broke the silence.
"Annah, are you there?" Jane asked, and Savannah went back to reality.
"Yeah, I'm still on the line," Savannah answered, but she saw an incoming call on her phone. It was her mom.
"Don't worry, Jane; I will call you back some other time. Mum is calling," Savannah said, and she ended the call before Jane could even come up with another question.
She had so many questions to ask about how the discussion went and how she felt when she saw the guy. Did she like him?
She wanted to ask about all this, but Savannah's mom had to call at the wrong time to ruin the moment. But she suspected, based on the silence that Savannah gave her, that there might be something that happened between the two.
It was never Savannah's style to keep quiet when she was asked about some relationship matter or precisely about the guy she went out on a date with.
Savannah has encountered so many blind dates. She ended up rejecting them, but this guy seemed different. Something big might have happened between them, Jane concluded. She smiled at herself when she noticed her wishes were about to be answered.
"Thank you, Lord!" She screamed in joy.
* * * * *
"Hello, mum?" Savannah said in a boring voice while rolling her eyes at the same time.
"Oh darling, when are you coming back home?" her mother asked. There was excitement in her voice.
"I'll be home soon."
"Okay, love, please be fast," she urged, cutting the call.
Savannah sighed the moment she saw the calls had ended. Her mother was always up to something bad, and this way, she was urging her to come home; she believed there would be something dramatic waiting for her at home.
She turned to the driver, who had been waiting for her instructions to start the car.
"You can start the car," she ordered. And the man immediately kicked on the brakes and started the car's engine.
Just as the car was taking a U-turn, she saw the service guy she just spoke to emerge from the restaurant in his luxurious suit. Her heart skipped a beat again, and she wondered what the hell was happening to her.
Why did her heart trigger at the sight of him?
Suddenly she saw him creepily waving at her with a weird smile on his face, but his looks remained unbeatable.
"See you soon, girl," she heard his voice whisper into her ears despite the distance between them.
She turned to look at the restaurant entrance again, but she couldn't see him again!
Where the hell did he disappear from? She looked around the premises but couldn't find him. Was she daydreaming or just imagining that she had seen him?
"What the hell is happening to me? I thought I saw him?" She asked herself before the car finally drove out onto the road.