Chapter 11
Eyes were on the three ladies as they strutted into the venue of the event. Nelly was dressed in an off-the-shoulder gold coloured mermaid gown, her mother was in purple short gown and on the other hand, Annalise was clad in a dark blue colored mermaid gown which had a low cut back and a little opening in front. They looked gorgeous. All Annalise could hear were whispers and she couldn't help but feel self conscious. She felt Nelly squeeze at hand and smile, reassuring her. Annalise nodded and tried to smile too.
"Oh my God chef C! You look absolutely breathtaking!" a middle aged lady who had lots of jewelry on her, greeted Callan. "I love your hair. I bet you did it at a very expensive salon."
Callan chuckled and pulled Annalise to her side, making her bow in greeting to the other lady. "She is the stylist, the brain behind this beautiful hairstyle."
"She looks so young!"
"I bet she is not the stylist. Callan is just bluffing."
"Wow. I'd live to know your salon." The ladies around whispered amongst themselves.
Although Annalise could hear negative comments from people, she felt excited to hear good comments from others.
"Good evening. I currently do not own a salon yet but I'm trying to get one started," Annalise replied, smiling. "I'll be sure to let you know when it's ready. But in the meantime, please don't hesitate to give me a call if you ever need your hair done," she told them, handing each of them a piece of paper with her number on it. Callan could not be more proud than she already was.
At the other end of the event hall, gray piercing eyes watched the woman in a blue dress as she interacted with other women with a smile on her face. Damn. She had a beautiful smile. He never thought he would ever see her smile but it seemed like luck was on his side.
"Sir, the CEO of MH wants to have a drink with you," his assistant, Evans informed the other man.
He stared at the lady one more time taking in her appearance, like he was storing her image in his head before walking away.
Annalise returned home from the party last night feeling a little bit tipsy but she was glad that she had gone to the party last night otherwise she wouldn't have found a new job for herself. She picked out a pen and notebook and began to write her plans. By the time she was done, she was already exhausted. Annalise almost had a mini heart attack while reading through what she had written. Where the hell was going to get the appliances and other important stuff? She picked her phone and dialed Nelly's contact.
Nelly picked at the fourth ring. "Hey girl!"
"Hey babe," Annalise greeted. "I've listed out everything I need to open and the amount is just- just so outrageous."
"How much?"
"About a hundred thousand dollars."
Nelly sighed. "Oh c'mon girl. Just send your account details."
Tears welled up in Annalise's eyes. "No. No that is just too much. You can just lend like fifty and I'll pay-"
"Stop rambling and send the details, Annalise," Nelly told her.
She nodded her head vigorously like Nelly could see her. "Thank you so much, Nels. I don't know what I could have done without you. I don't just-"
"Now you have me, let's work together to make your dreams come true."
"Thank you so much. I love you." She hung up.
The next few days were hectic for Annalise and Nelly as they tried to put things together for Annalise's salon. Callan used her influence to help them register her brand as a salon.
Everything was going smoothly until they began to look for a shop. It wasn't easy as the shops they always found didn't match their requirements.
Annalise decided to open a unisex salon, so she wanted a large space. She also wanted it at a very good location. It was a Friday afternoon and Annalise was still checking the internet for more places. She was tired of searching already but she couldn't stop now, not after she has gone this far. "Annie, I think I've found a place you need to check out," Nelly called out from the living room.
Annalise groaned, rising up from her bed with disheveled hair. She has been in her room for several days with her eyes glued to the computer searching for a shop. She looked haggard. She took the laptop from Nelly and started checking out the place.
"Wow." A smile made its way to her face. She had found the place that perfectly matched what she wanted.
"Nelly, could you please help put a call to the agent while I freshen up? I desperately want that place!" she declared pumped up with energy.
"Aye captain!" Nelly replied in a funny accent and the both of them burst out laughing.
Annalise sat in Nelly's car as she drove her down to the location. They got out of the car and to their surprise, the place was close to the company she had just resigned from. They both strolled to the place where a man which they presumed was the agent was standing. They greeted him before following him to check out the shop. It was just like the pictures they had seen on the internet.
"Sir, what would be the amount if I lease this place for two years?" Annalise asked, silently praying for it not to be expensive. The location of the shop was a commercial residence and so it had a high possibility of having high rent.
"It's five thousand dollars," he replied, making their jaws drop. They couldn't believe how cheap it was.
"Sorry sir but could you please repeat what you just said? I didn't get it quite well." Annalise wanted confirmation. She felt it was a fraud.
The man chuckled. "I said it was just five thousand dollars," he replied. "If you're interested, you would have to sign a legal contract with us." He told them, retrieving a file from his suitcase. Together, the best friends read the contract and signed it after making sure that there was no tricky clause.
"Thank you so much, sir," they said in unison and they both shook hands with him.
Within a week, everything was already in order at Annalise's saloon. At first, work was slow as only a few or no customers came in a week but as time went by she was able to make at least five hundred dollars a week which was progress for her.
At some point, she began to wonder if anyone was advertising her because most times, influential women visited her salon for one hairdo or the other. In her heart she owed that person for giving her salon a slight push and hoped to meet the mysterious person someday.
It was almost 10pm and Annalise was attending to the last customer for the day. "Thank you so much for visiting Anna's hair-do, I'm looking forward to seeing you next time!" Annalise smiled, watching the lady who had waved at her leave.
Annalise sighed and collapsed on the chair where the lady just stood up from. She was exhausted from the day's work and just wanted to go home and sleep.
"Tired, huh?" she heard a familiar voice making her open her eyes. She found the man who had got her into trouble at Uncle Fluffy, standing behind her. Creasing her forehead, she quickly stood up from the chair, facing him.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, anger laced in her voice.
He sat on one of the chairs, grinning. "How have you been?" he asked, staring into her beautiful hazel eyes. Her eyes always had a way of calling him.
"That's not the answer to the question I just asked!" The pitch of her voice increased. "Are you not tired of creating troubles for me?"
The man chuckled. She looked so cute when ranting. "What's funny?" she asked, feeling a little embarrassed.
"You're just cute," came his reply.
Annalise tried her best not to blush but her cheeks were burning already. "That's still not an answer to my question." she stated, finding her voice.
"Can't a landlord see who his new tenant is?" he asked, smirking.
"What?" Annalise's eyes widened as she tried to process what he had just said.
"I own this building," he told her.
"Wow. So what are you here for…." She looked at him like his name was written on him.
"It's Zayn," he said, staring at her. "What's yours?"
She glared at him before replying, "Annalise."
"You don't have to glare. I already know your name." He smirked, slipping his hand into his pocket.
Annalise hissed and started arranging her salon for the next day while Zayn busied himself with studying her place.
"Why is there space over there?" He pointed at a spot just across the room.
"It's a spot for barbing but I've not been able to employ anyone yet,"he answered. This time without glaring at him.
Zayn nodded. "Are you in for dinner?"
His question threw her off guard. Why was he asking her out for dinner?
She wanted to decline but she found herself conceding. "Sure."