“You mean you want to go work for him?” he asked perplexed.
He didn’t get it yet. “No. I want to start up my own consulting company.”
He looked thoughtful and rubbed his chin with his thumb and forefinger. “That’s not a bad idea. You know you could easily find contract work through your network. I could help find you some. I think your main challenge is that MS is getting tighter now with contracting/vendor companies. We have preferred lists, but there are still ways to get around it.”
“Yeah, I know. I’ve heard the same thing. I’m still thinking of getting my own business license next week, though.” I looked up at him tentatively. I hadn’t shared this idea with anyone yet. He was the first. I wasn’t sure how it would be perceived, especially by someone in his position.
He eyed me suspiciously, but the edges of his mouth were slightly turned up. “It sounds like this is more than just a fleeting idea?”
“Maybe, but it never hurts to be prepared.” I shrugged my shoulders, trying to give off an air of nonchalance. The truth was that I wasn’t entirely sure it would be that easy. I’m sure I was greatly simplifying what it took to start a business. What if I failed at it? Even with Ryan, I didn’t want to show my fear of failure just yet. “I’ll try a few informational interviews for other positions at MS and see how that route goes first.”
At MS, if you want to change jobs internally, you can learn more about a prospective position by scheduling an informational interview with the hiring manager. If there’s mutual agreement that the job is a good fit, then a formal interview loop gets set up. It’s sort of like a first date.
“You know, I could really help you; if that’s the direction you want to go. I could send out some feelers and find some good vendor contract roles for you.” He seemed to have ignored my last statement, still focused on fixing the problem. “Even though technically I’m not supposed to,” he said coyly.
“I appreciate it. We’re jumping the gun though.” My stomach growled and he looked down towards the noise and chuckled. “I think I need to focus on something else right now,” I said, breathing in the scent of garlic and butter.
Ryan laughed. “All right. I know when I’m being redirected.” He kissed me on the forehead before grabbing the hot pads for our pot of clams.
I woke up with Ryan’s body pressed against me. My back was spooned against the front of his body and his arms and legs surrounded me. He was still asleep, so I listened to his light snores and felt his steady breath on my hair. I could feel his morning erection behind me, which made me smile as I remembered the night before.
After dinner last night, we had gotten tipsy and happy and singing along with Van Morrison. One of my all-time favorite songs is Into the Mystic. When I told Ryan this, he stood up in the middle of the room and held out his hand, pulled me into his body, and we danced. It was one of the most romantic moments of my life. The other most romantic moment of my life was when Ryan surprised me at Anna’s wedding and kissed me in the lobby. Twice in one week, he’s managed to top my list of best moments ever.
We took our time making love last night. I knew from the first time we had sex together, that we were sexually compatible; very compatible. I relished this phase in a relationship when all you wanted to do was explore one another’s bodies; when making love was about discovery. I wanted to know what made him feel good, what turned him on. Where were his erogenous zones? Ryan was attentive and a good listener, an excellent and giving lover. I came three times over the course of the evening and in between our lovemaking sessions, we reveled in each other’s company, talking late into the night. We shared more stories about our families, our childhoods, travel, and random thoughts about the universe. I think it was intentional on both of our parts, but we avoided the topic of Catherine.
Remembering last night made me want to stretch out my sore muscles. I instinctively did just that, waking Ryan up in the process.
“Good morning,” he mumbled in my ear. One hand reached over to cup one of my breasts. He nuzzled in closer and fit his morning erection into the dimple between my cheeks.
I pressed my ass against him in response, eliciting a soft moan from his throat.
“How did you sleep?” he murmured, his warm lips kissing my shoulder.
I started to squirm and giggle because he was lightly nipping the back of my neck with his teeth and it tickled. I turned to look at him. “Ryan, I love you.” I don’t know why I was inspired to blurt this out right there and then, but I felt so warm, so safe, so deliriously happy that I couldn’t contain the emotion. Even though it wasn’t my first time telling him I loved him, I still felt a nervous energy whenever I said it. I had bared myself to him so completely and I wanted him to know how I felt all the time.