Page 10 of Love's a Script
“Old building,” he said. “It takes a moment.”
They waited, not making direct eye contact. Ruben didn’t try to fill the silence in case his mouth undid their undeveloped goodwill. He swore it was the longest the doors had ever taken.
“Your outfit’s fine, by the way,” Mary said after a bit.
“Yeah?”
She nodded. Smiled. “It’s clean and it fits. It does skew a little too university RA or man with a hot sauce review blog for my taste, but that’s only something I’d say if I was being undiplomatic.”
A spirited laugh left Ruben just as the elevator door finally appeared and slid shut.
Mary studied the collection of glossy headshots spread out across her desk. The smiling women in the photos were all—to varying degrees—compatible with Ruben. In her search, she’d prioritized outspoken women. Women who lived their lives on their own terms. And those who valued authenticity as much as Ruben.
Only a novice matchmaker would expect to hit a home run with a first match. It happened occasionally, but matchmaking with that sort of intent was limiting and didn’t leave room for pairings that were a little offbeat.
There was a knock at the door, and Mary called out for the visitor to enter.
“Your caffè mocha and pastry,” Eden said, stepping into the room with long strides that could’ve appeared on runways if Eden had been the sort.
“Thank you,” Mary said, moving for her purse. “How much do I owe you?”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“You sure?”
“I’m sure,” Eden said, joining her behind the desk. “New client?”
“Yeah, the radio show host. I did his onboarding yesterday.”
“How was that?”
“It went surprisingly well.”
The dynamic Mary had with Ruben was unfamiliar, a bit tense, and far too direct. Typically, with other clients, she went to great lengths to present herself as ceaselessly positive and benevolent. But donning her Energizer-Bunny-on-caffeine persona for Ruben after how their first interaction had gone would be such obvious pretense.
“This is an eclectic group,” Eden said, sifting through the photos. “Have you narrowed it down?”
Mary considered the photos and pointed to one. “Imani was my first choice,” she said, “but I don’t know if the timing will work because I have a short window with Ruben and she’s out of the country for a month.” Mary tapped another photo. “I like Trisha, and I think she and Ruben could get along. My only concern is Ruben’s a vegetarian and she grew up hunting. Neither has a preference for a partner with a specific diet, but again, because there’s so little time, I don’t know if I want to risk it.”
“So nowhere close,” Eden said.
“No, but I’ll get there. I just want to make sure I’m making the best choices.”
“It’s a lot of effort for a reluctant client.”
“He told me he was open, so I’ve decided to take him at his word and also look at this experience as a personal challenge to make a believer out of a nonbeliever.”
“If you’re successful in changing his perspective,” Eden said, “you’ll have earned a medal.”
“Cruise lead would do,” Mary replied offhandedly.
“It’ll be the most dignified bid for the role then,” Eden said. “I literally saw Sienna almost trip headfirst into the reception desk because she was rushing to hold the door open for Cassidy when she got in this morning.”
“Oh, wow,” said Mary.
“It’s embarrassing,” Eden continued. “Especially since we all know she sees cruise lead as a vacationing opportunity.”
Mary nodded but knew more than likely Eden would find her own motivation for the role gauche as well. Desperation laced Mary’s desire for professional acknowledgment. Oh, she wished for indifference. She assumed it simpler, less exhausting to not regularly need assurance on where she ranked in others’ esteem. But such was not her reality.
