Less Than Nothing

Chapter 48

Chapter 48

"I can hear your stomach you know," a deep laugh falls from Ryan's lips, while his fingers trace delicate circles on my naked back.

"Maybe I should've eaten the soup."

Wrapped up in a post-sex haze, Ryan and I have been laying in my bed for close to thirty minutes now. My stomach is indeed rumbling, but oddly enough I don't care that much. It's been too long since I've had him this close, and I missed it.

"You definitely should've eaten the soup," he corrects me. His hand, previously on my back, travels down to deliver a hard slap on my ass. "I sat in traffic for an hour to get it for you."

"I'm sorry, baby. I meant to, I just never got around to it."

"Don't apologize to me, apologize to your stomach. I'm not the one rumbling like a damn bulldozer."

This time I laugh. He's right.

"Bulldozer is a reach," I reply. "But we can grab food soon. I just want to lay with you for a bit. I missed you."

"I missed you too. You have no idea."

"I mean, I have some idea. You did tell me that you gave yourself a hand-job to our homemade porn."

"Sure did." He replies, proudly. "Couldn't help it, have you seen yourself?"

My face flushes.

"We should make another one sometime."

"We can make one right now." He perks up eagerly, and I grin.

"I'm game. And we can sell it afterwards, since I'm unemployed and all."

Ryan's smile stiffens.

"Unfunny."

A chuckle slips.

"It's a little funny."

"Oh, is it now?"

"Sort of. And this is coming from the one that's unemployed."

I've spent long enough beating myself up over the fallout with Adrienne, I think I deserve to joke about it a little.

"I don't think you'll be unemployed for long," Ryan says. "Don't you have an interview at an agency tomorrow?"

"I do. I'm hoping it goes well."

The position I'm up for is simply a receptionist job at a boutique downtown. I'm overqualified, and it won't be nearly as lucrative, or involved as my work at Adrienne's, but I needed something fast. I don't have months to waste trying to secure another dream job. I have bills to pay now.

"It will." Ryan assures me.

"I hope so. I still can't believe tomorrow is Christmas Eve."

"Our first Christmas together." He smiles. "Isn't that something?"

Between all the madness, I hadn't really allowed myself to process how far Ryan and I have come. We went from fucking on my living room floor, to this. A far from perfect, yet so damn beautiful love.

One I wouldn't trade for the world.

"Feels unreal."

"Tell me about it." He sighs. "If someone would've told me months ago that I'd be spending Christmas with Adrienne's bratty assistant who stole my office, I wouldn't have believed them."

I go to reply, but he continues.

"Actually that's a lie; I'd absolutely believe them." He corrects himself "I'd been trying to win you over since I first saw you..." his thumb runs across my lips, sending tingles down my spine. "When you looked at me, with your face full of disgust, I knew there was no way in hell I could live without you."