Noah exhaled harshly. "I'd be Claire's manager."
Rick grimaced and put down the remote.
"Exactly. I would love to take this job, but I can't be her manager." He ran a hand through his hair. "I love her, mate. It's still new. Hell, we haven't even talked about what the future looks like." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I mean, we're still living in the now. In the 'I just figured out I have big feelings for you' stage. But this job offer… It's forcing us to talk about things that should be far-future discussions."
Rick took off his glasses and cleaned them with his shirttail. "What's the job exactly?"
Noah told him what Jackie had proposed and shared the story of the CEO and his wife. He also shared his growing ambivalence with going back to being a production manager in England. They talked for another hour about jobs, managing people, and even how Rick met Peggy and when he knew she was the one.
As Rick stood up to leave, he said, "It sounds like a brand-new position they're creating." At Noah's nod, he continued, "Which means they may not have it set in stone yet. Why don't you counter their offer with something that works for you?"
Noah stilled. "That's brilliant! Jackie sent me over a vague job description—no day-to-day details—which pretty much confirms they're still figuring it out."
He stood and snapped his fingers. "I'm going to counteroffer." He rubbed his jaw. "I just need to figure out what it should be. And I need help from someone who knows IT."
"Larry?" Rick asked.
"Fuck no!" Rick laughed at Noah's immediate recoil. "I mean, Larry would be useful—he made the same jump from production to IT—but he couldn't keep a secret to save his life. And I need to negotiate this carefully."
Noah stretched, already thinking through his next steps. "Okay. I think I know what to do. I'm calling a brainstorming meeting. You in?"
"As long as it's before this weekend."
"Right." Noah nodded and looked at the wall calendar hanging by the makeshift home office he'd created in his corporate apartment. "Looks like tomorrow is our only option with you leaving so soon. I know exactly who to invite. We'll do supper at Claire's place and talk it through."
Noah pulled Rick into a rough hug and thumped him on the back. "Thanks, man. It's a relief to share this with someone. And you've given me some ideas."
"No problem. Glad things are coming together for you. On both fronts. Not to mention, I'm always up for another homemade meal from Claire. She's an excellent cook."
"Yeah, she is."
He walked his buddy to the door, then headed straight to his computer to capture the ideas swirling in his head.
Chapter 35
Counter Moves
Noah stretched out on the bed in his corporate apartment, holding his phone against his ear as he recapped for Claire the earlier conversation with Rick. He'd promised to call after the game, so they could say goodnight, but he was wound up enough, he didn't think sleep was coming soon.
"I'm kind of excited to get this brain trust together and come up with some kind of counterproposal that will work for us."
"So you finally told Rick about us?" she asked.
Noah snorted. "Yeah, and he didn't even blink. But he's known I was attracted to you for a long time. And he's an observant fellow."
"Okay, who do you want to invite over?" she asked. "What I cook will depend on how many people are coming. Also, that means anyone else you invite over will be in on our secret."
"Yeah, just you, me, and Rick for dinner, but I'd like to invite Lucinda to join us remotely. Think she'd join?"
"Lucinda?" She sounded surprised.
"Sure. An outsider's opinion would be nice. She and Rick have seen the way other businesses run and they'll both be able to provide perspective outside my limited scope." At least he hoped so. He needed all the ammunition he could get if he were going to propose changes to a director's vision for her department.
"That makes sense." Claire yawned on her end and Noah pictured her curled up in bed, her hair spread out around her on her pillow. It made him wish he were there beside her. "What else are you thinking?"
They talked for a while about the new position, and what he expected his duties would be.
"I wish this job was in operations. Nothing against IT. My experience on the MADS project has opened my eyes to the different roles each side of the business takes, but operations is where my heart is. And ever since Jackie brought this up, I've been thinking about how much ops could use someone like this who has the bird's-eye view of all the plants. Someone other than the COO, of course. He's too busy doing executive stuff to get hands on."
