“Not asking for too much!”
Koby comes up behind me and stands by my side.
“Bernice, this is Koby.Koby, Bernice.”
She takes a pause and looks between the two of us before outstretching her hand to Koby.“Please, call me Bernie.”
“Nice to meet you, Bernie.Your meals are amazing.”
“I’m glad they have been able to be enjoyed.Do I need to double your order?Take into consideration new allergies?”She steals a cheeky glance my way.
I laugh but then realise.“Actually, yeah, that would be a good idea.”
We head in, Koby leading the way to call out, “I’m just going to jump into the shower.Won’t be too long.”And he dashes up the stairs.
Bernie, unable to contain herself before he has even made it up the stairs, laces her arm through mine and whispers closely, “You never mentioned you were seeing someone!”
“This is an old friend.”I palm off.“He needed somewhere to stay while his place was getting fixed up after some water damage.”
She looks at me unconvinced.“Mmmm-hmm.I’ll watch this space.”She beelines to the kitchen bench.“Now, let’s get this Christmas lunch worked out with your changes.”
We settle at the kitchen bench, and Bernie goes through her meal plans.It’s something that could be done over email, but I like Bernie and insisted she come over when she was free.Everything sounds perfect, so I give her the go ahead along with a final headcount.Koby joins us and makes us coffee while she highlights some of her newer meals she is trialling, and we increase the order to accommodate Koby and Aria.She leaves with her coffee half drunk, and her phone going off for her next client.
“You know we could just make meals here?”I broach after seeing Bernie off at the door and re-entering the lounge room, approaching Koby, who's now taken Bernie’s place at the bench, leaning against the marble to face me.
Standing in front of him, he sweeps some hair out of my face.
“Yeah, but I don’t want you to do anything out of the ordinary.”
“I’m already doing plenty out of the ordinary, Rookie.”
“Well, when you put it that way.”He chuffs with a small eye roll.I playfully bat his shoulder.
The sound of his phone ringing echoes from its spot behind us on the bench.He reaches over to grab his phone.Seeing who it is, he puts it on speaker and places it next to us on the bench.
“Leni!Thanks for returning my call.How are you going?”
“Hey, Kobs.Good, thanks.Just getting Christmas ready with the family.How are you going?”
Koby catches Leni up on Aria handling the enduro business with no hitch, his house hiccup and his change of Christmas plans.
“Rayna to the rescue.What a doll!”
“That she is.”He winks at me.“That brings me to calling you earlier.While I have been here, Rayna has presented me with a problem.She has a team manager over in rally who needs some support.Going through some personal issues and she wants to give him the time he needs to focus on that.Would you be interested in helping her out and stepping into that role in that capacity?”
“Wow, I am floored you thought of me, Koby.”
“You’re a great leader, and I think you’ll be a great fit for the team and role.”
She asks a few more questions before accepting the role.
“Thanks, Leni.I’ll organise things on this end and set up a group call with us all in the next week.”
“Sounds great.Thanks for thinking about me for the opportunity, Kobs.”
Koby hangs up and places his hands around my waist.“Sooooo, that’s more staff you are stealing from me.Whatever will you be able to do to repay the favour?”
He pulls me in even closer, our bodies pressing together, crashing his lips onto mine, and I’ve missed them on me.Consuming me.Drinking me in like I’m water and he is a thirsty, thirsty man.I’ll gladly be his sustenance.
