You don't marry someone you can live with, you marry the person who you cannot live without.
Author Unknown
Our office was in total chaos come Friday morning. Our big client had finally arrived from the States, and I was summoned to pick him up in the airport by our boss, beside Mark dela Cruz, who became our new sales executive just a month before. Mark had a rakish, debonair look. It had most of the single ladies in our company going gaga over him. If he was aware of this, he didn't show it. His pleasing personality had won him many friends in and out of the company.
This was his first big assignment as the new sales executive and first time working with me directly. While waiting for our client to appear, I heard him say to me brightly, "So, I heard that you're engaged. Congratulations!"
"Thank you," I replied as nicely as possible. Actually, I only told one person in the office, and that was Nikki Rivera. She was one of my secondary sponsors in my wedding. Apparently, she had a hard time on keeping the news to herself, and it spread like wild fire within an hour. I kept on receiving congratulatory remarks all day from people I didn't even know.
"So, are you doing the preparations all by yourself?" He asked with great interest as he looked into my eyes.
"No, I'm not," I shook my head, and added, "We're using Pauline Reyes from Posh Parties."
"I see; you're in good hands then. I've heard of Pauline from people I know who have used her service for their weddings. How were you able to get her service on such a short notice?"
"She happens to be the ex-girlfriend of my fiancé."
"Really?" His thick eyebrows rose. "Hey, if you should need my help, don't hesitate to let me know. I know that planning a wedding can get really crazy. I would know 'cause I almost got married myself last year."
"I will, and thanks!" I nodded seriously with a big smile on my face. It was so nice of him to offer help when we were not even close yet, and I really appreciated the genuine sincerity in his voice. I heard from Nikki last year that his fiancée had dumped him for another guy when they were about to get married. He must be okay now since he could openly talk about it. What a true gentleman!
We talked some more. That was when I found out that his parents were already deceased. He had a sister, Angela, who was also studying at the same university and the same course as my younger brother. I made a mental note to ask my brother if he knew anyone by that name when I got home.
Moments later, a brunet came out of NAIA Terminal 2 that resembled our client. I lifted the sign up high. He nodded our way, and waved his hand toward us.
Mark went forward to shake his hand and reached out to help him pull his luggage. "Hi! I'm Mark dela Cruz, and this is Aleiah Ocampo, our head interior designer at Rodolfo's. Welcome to the Philippines once again. So, how was your flight sir?"
"It was fine," he said with a deadpan voice.
"We'll go directly to the hotel first to help you get settled, and then we'll bring you to dinner afterwards."
George followed our itinerary for him without complain. Mark did a marvellous job in hosting the whole affair as breezy as possible, and I had no trouble in following his lead. I had a feeling that I would enjoy working with Mark closely for the next seven days.
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"So, what's it like to be working with him?" Nikki Rivera asked me during lunch the next day, her eyes gleaming behind her specs. She was pleasantly plump for her height of 4'11", but her confidence with the boys was even bigger than her size.
"It was okay, I guess," I said between bites. "He's very professional, and attention to detail kind of guy."
"Did he say anything about himself?" She continued to press on. She must really like him a lot.
"Not much," I paused, and then added, "But guess what? My brother is his sister's classmate at UST right now, what a small world, right?
"Really? What a coincidence! By the way, I heard from HR that he's still single." She gave me a nudge on my elbow, and continued, "Do you think I have a chance with him?"
I shrugged and said, "Sure..."
Mark gave me an impression that he wasn't a guy who was just after the ladies' looks. He struck me as someone who valued inner beauty more than the outward appearance.
"By the way, there's going to be a farewell party for James, our accountant at The Red Box KTV tomorrow evening at eight. Will you please remind Mark?"
"Sure, I'll tell him that. We're going to Batangas though the whole day tomorrow with Mr. Hemmingway to visit our factory there, so I'm not sure if we could make it on time or not."
With a huge grin on her face, she said happily, "That's okay, we'll wait for you guys. For the meantime, I'm going to search for an outfit in the mall later. Want to come?"
"Okay. But you need to wait for me 'cause I might need to work overtime to come up with new designs for Mr. Hemmingway tomorrow."
"It's a deal."
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