Page 29 of Engineering a Love Story

“I don’t really get Gilroy, honestly. I mean, I see CIOs with your reports all the time. Don’t those guys have the balls to make decisions on their own? Would they really care what you or I do?”

“They might. If Aurelian’s competitors wave Gilroy reports in their faces, saying I’m biased. Aurelian has caused a stir, you know that. Your competitors are jealous.” I remember Russ Boyer, the IBM exec who was so keen to learn more about Aurelian. “They’ll take any opportunity to invalidate anything positive Gilroy publishes about your company. To make their play, spread uncertainty and doubt.”

“And I’m sure that would not go well for you either.”

“No.”

We’re quiet. Eventually Seth says, “Should we try to sleep?”

I place a hand on his chest. “You can. I need to leave in a bit.”

He turns and nuzzles my ear. “Maybe you should change your flight. Stay longer.”

My body is heavy beside him in the bed. I don’t want to leave but see no reason to stay. “It doesn’t make any sense. We just went over it.”

Seth is quiet. Then he props himself on an elbow and looks down at me, curls bending in all directions.

“What if we do it this way,” he says softly. “You stay. We’ll sleep. And we’ll have one day. Just for us. And the night too I suppose, if you agree to fly home at your ungodly hour on Sunday morning instead. We’ll do what we want. We won’t worry about Manish. Or your job. Or anything else. No worries, no complications. For one day.” Seth brushes hair off my forehead, tucking it carefully behind my ear. “What do you think?”

Here’s the sales guy. “And you’ll say what? To Manish. Your college roommate?”

Seth tips his head. “Sure. Why not?”

“You don’t have to work?”

“I’ve taken a total of four days off since I started at Aurelian. I don’t need to go to the office tomorrow.” He glances past me at the clock. “Or today, I guess.” He shakes his head. “I’ll send a few emails, let people know I won’t be around. And then I’m yours.” He runs a palm along my chin. “For one day.”

Seth is warm against me, and the lights of San Francisco glitter outside. I should be contemplative and careful. But I have nothing to rush home for. Another weekend rattling around in a half-empty house? Pestering Ash to come by for his bike gear? I’m not moving for another week, I’ve finished most of the packing. I wonder too about how I’ve felt in the previous hours, worried I might never feel this way again. Here’s one of those moments that doesn’t last and I want to grab onto it.

In the end, I’m an easy sell.

Seth reaches for the hotel phone and hands it to me. I crawl from beneath the covers, find my itinerary, call the airline, and switch my flight. A $100 change fee. I put it on my credit card, try not to think of that escalating balance—or anything else—put away the phone, and lower myself back into bed.

Seventeen

When I wake a few hours later, Seth is again on an elbow. “I need to go home. Get some clothes.” The clock by the bed shows it’s after ten. I’m thrilled to have slept.

“I like the suit,” I say, stretching my toes beneath the sheets.

“That’s nice to hear. But I’m not wearing a suit on my first day off in six months.” Seth rises and collects clothing from the floor. “I already called down and reserved this room for another night.” He passes me his cell phone. “Meet back here in two hours? Put your number in there, just in case.”

“You have your phone now,” I say, remembering how he’d mentioned its misplacement when Manish was needling him about his tendency to lose things. I sit forward, entering my number.

“I do have my phone, though I don’t appear to have my keys.” Seth rifles through the pockets of his suit and bends to open his laptop bag. “I might need to call Manish or Vita to make sure someone is home to let me in.” He closes his bag and rests it on the bed. “I can test out the Raf story, I guess.”

“I’ll maybe go buy a few things as well.” My suitcase holds one clean t-shirt, the jeans I flew out in, and my stuffy back-up outfit. None of that seems right for the glorious day I’m now hoping to have in San Francisco. “Should we leave separately?”

“Yes. Sorry. It’s a little James Bond, but we obviously shouldn’t walk out of here together.” Seth bends to tie his shoes and when he stands, I hand him his phone. “For that matter, I need to find a back staircase so no one sees me in yesterday’s suit and thinks I’m sleeping with one of my salespeople.” His face goes to exaggerated alarm, and he folds his coat and tie over one arm. “By this afternoon, any Aurelian people will be gone and we can do what we want.”

When I arrive in the hotel lobby a little later in search of coffee and shopping recommendations, I nearly collide with Vitalik. “Chelsea.” His voice rises in surprise. No doubt he’s wondering why I’m still in the hotel, and I think of telling him I’m staying in town to visit friends for the weekend. But really, it’s none of his business. I’m relieved when he doesn’t inquire about my plans. “Did you enjoy the day yesterday?” he asks.

“I did. I thought the mix of customer testimonials and product deep dives was effective.” This is true. The event was well done.

“Excellent.” Vitalik puts out a hand and we shake awkwardly. “Thank you for joining us.” He moves past me toward the main hotel door.

As I continue on to coffee, it occurs to me that Vitalik leaving at this hour is also perhaps suspicious. If local Aurelian people aren’t staying here, what’s he doing?

After coffee, I step outside. White puffs race across a shockingly blue sky, and I’m light on my feet, ecstatic at the prospect of the day ahead. Maybe for the first time, I feel completely parted from my previous life, and I intend to do just as Seth has asked: enjoy this day and not worry about anything else.