1000 Words

Page 16

IAN WAS INTENSELY BUSY his first week on the job. Anderson already had vetted resumes of a dozen candidates that were scheduled for interviews. In the wake of Jack and Georgia leaving, several others had decided it was time for a change rather than stay to get dismissed. He had writers, designers, graphic artists, photographers, and videographers to interview.

In the midst of that, he began making subtle changes in the work environment. He kept the open design, but let the staff choose permanent workstations. Some resources were left as common to the group, but computers, cameras, and art supplies were considered part of a person’s personal space. Lee’s photos hit the wall on Friday morning and people started exclaiming about the new look of the office.

Ian also had to assemble the team he wanted to work with for Restore Youth. He met with the account manager and they spent an afternoon going over the RFP and the company’s previous campaigns. The immediate focus would be on a new line of facial cremes, body lotion, and anti-wrinkle treatments. But if all went well, the company was interested in a complete rebranding that would stretch across all their products, including a chain of health resorts, fitness products, massage oils, and adult toys.

“Okay, people, this is the kickoff for the Restore Youth project,” Ian said. “I’ve looked through everyone’s portfolio, talked to each of you individually, and discussed the team requirements with Rick, our account manager. I expect this will be a project that keeps us busy for months if all goes well. Since some of you are new to the company, let’s start with a round of introductions. I’m Ian Marx. This is our account manager Rick Davis. And you?” He pointed at Penny.

“Penny Liston, artist and all-round creative genius,” she laughed.

“And on this project, Penny will take on the role of art director,” Ian said. Penny looked up in surprise. Ian nodded at the next person at the table.

“Jill Soderman, graphic artist.”

“Lee Williams, photographer.”

“Drake Mallard, and stop laughing. I’m designated as associate writer.”

“John Smith, and you can all laugh at that, too. It’s my real name. I work in collateral.”

And so the intros went. In addition to being the creative director, Ian would also function as the chief writer to launch the project, but hoped to hand off the bulk of the writing to Drake as the project progressed and they got in sync. They ordered in pizza for lunch as Rick gave the client briefing and they started brainstorming.

“It seems backwards to me,” Penny said. “I don’t think we’ll succeed with the product and then the brand.”

“Tell me what you’re thinking,” Ian said.

“We’ve got lots of examples in the industry of companies that were one product and built a brand around that product but were unable to move into an expanded product line without completely rebranding. I think we need a concept for the entire brand and then build the product campaign within it.”

“But the company only wants the product campaign right now. They won’t decide on a brand management until after they are convinced we can deliver on a single product,” Rick said. “It could be a lot of wasted effort.”

“Penny has a point, though,” Ian said. “I’m not sure we could consider it wasted effort if we do a good enough job on the product that they want us to expand to the job. We’ll only show them the product campaign, but we’ll have everything waiting in the wings for the brand.”

Ian and Penny sat next to each other at the conference table in his office as they discussed the direction he wanted to take the campaign. He enjoyed meeting with her and was finding excuses for the two of them to have meetings. He’d been focused on his computer with the copy when he looked up a few minutes previously to find her standing in front of the windows. The light silhouetted her and showed the shape of her legs beneath the flowing cotton skirt she wore.

One of the things Ian had done was encourage people to express their own personal style in their workspaces and in their clothing. He’d stressed that they needed to be prepared for professional client meetings, but that normal working days should not require suits and ties. His own suit hung on the back of the office door. He had a fresh white shirt and tie in his desk drawer. But he wore a golf shirt and slacks while he was working. The morale and productivity had gone up in the office since Ian had come in as manager.

Looking at Penny made Ian sigh and she turned to face him.

“Am I distracting you?” she asked.

“Pleasantly. Do you have a minute to go over the concept?” That had started their intense impromptu conversation at the conference table.

“Their original branding worked great for the resorts,” Penny said. “It was all about finding the Fountain of Youth. But when they got into physical products, it was harder to stretch the analogy.”

“Part of our problem is getting something that bridges the range of products they currently have,” Ian said. “And hopefully allowing for an expanded product line. Here’s what I’ve got in mind.” He reached for a pad of paper and started to sketch out an idea as he talked. Penny reached over a put a hand on his.

“Don’t draw, Ian,” she said softly.

Fuck! This was just what he needed. Did she think she had better ideas than his already?

“Talk. Tell me,” she continued. “Words are your strength. Images are mine. Let me be the bridge from your words to the images we need.”

He looked at her and saw that she wasn’t attempting to overrule him, but to become his fingers. He painted with words. She spoke with pictures. He launched into the concept he’d been working on all morning. Occasionally, his fingers itched to draw something, but he was amazed as what he said took shape on the paper under Penny’s fingers.

“What about the adult toys aspect?” she asked.

“I think they should expand to have their own retail outlet. Online presence first and then exclusive shops at the resort. They might even expand to a clothing line. How about ‘play clothes for adults?’ It’s the one thing that says more about youth than anything else.”

“Play clothes,” Penny mused. “How about positioning everything as a playground?”

“I like that. What’s in your toybox? Where is your playground? Who is your playmate? What games do you play? What play clothes will you wear? I like it a lot. Can you develop something to go with the idea of an adult playground that is equipped with everything you need to have fun? Fun is the name of the game,” Ian said enthusiastically.

“I can develop some rough ideas based on this, but you’ll have to provide me with more words for the individual products so I can figure out where on the playground they go.” Penny pushed her chair back and stood, leaning forward to kiss Ian on the cheek. “Thank you! This will be so much fun!” She ran out the door and took up one of the art stations where there was a good supply of markers. Ian watched her go, a little bemused at still feeling the kiss on his cheek.

“I think we can safely say that you’ve captured what we want for this product line,” Ms. Phillips, the CEO of Restore Youth, said. “I love the playfulness. It’s something we lack in our previous imagery.”

“Thank you,” Rick said. “Ian has a team ready to launch production on this with the magazine ads, television, and billboards. The proposal you have in front of you contains the details and budget.”

“There’s one issue before we start production,” Ms. Phillips said. “I don’t want to be trapped with a product campaign that is a one-off. How soon could I see a brand campaign for the entire Restore Youth line?”

“Tomorrow,” Ian said. Rick kicked him.

“Seriously, give us a week,” Rick laughed. “Ian’s enthusiasm is based on his words. He forgets that people actually have to produce the materials to go with them. Let’s set it up for a week from Friday.”

“We’re so close we could have been ready to present tomorrow,” Ian said to Rick after the meeting.

“You have a brilliant mind for copy and creativity,” Rick said, “but you lack something in the business department. If we came back with the entire brand proposition tomorrow, they’d think it was too easy and not worth what we want to get paid. You and your staff are going to work ‘around the clock’ for the next week preparing materials and showing our client that we’ll move mountains to fulfill our obligations to them. We might even need to extend the deadline by a day or two. And remember, great looking art but absolutely nothing but storyboards. Do not go giving away the idea that we might have film and finished art already.”

“That’s why I manage creative and you manage the client,” Ian laughed. “I’ll keep my mouth shut. Our team is so excited about this, though, that I might not be able to keep them from literally working around the clock whether they need to or not.”

The celebration the following Friday’s presentation to the client was epic. Floyd Anderson held an open bar for his employees at O’Malley’s. He also saw to it that each employee had a travel voucher and would not be driving.

“Congratulations,” he said to Ian. “You’ve just ensured a happy retirement. This client is going to keep us going for years to come.”

“I hope so, but it was really a team effort. We’ve got great collaborators in our group.”

“Speaking of which, are you going to be able to continue managing the group with the amount of writing that will be necessary for this one project?”

“Drake did a great job with the scripts for the ads. He’s got a natural talent and is also a good collaborator. I’m going to turn the bulk of the writing over to him and focus on being the creative director and idea generator. Not that I won’t be reviewing the writing to make sure it is within our style and voice, but I won’t be staying up all night trying to choose the right word,” Ian laughed.

“Now if we could just find you a good woman,” Floyd laughed. “She’d make sure you didn’t stay up all night. Looking for a word.”

“I’ve got a good description of her,” Ian said. “Just need to get the picture that matches.”

“Hey! Pictures are my specialty,” Penny laughed from nearby. She reached in an oversize bag and pulled out a sketchbook and pencil. “Give me the words and let me make a picture out of them.”

“You two go have fun,” Floyd said as he moved to intercept Rick.

“You want to draw my dream girl? What are you drinking?”

“Macallan 10. Can you afford me?”

“Floyd’s footing the bill,” Ian laughed. He ordered two drinks and they found a table.

“Well?”

“Really?” She nodded. “Okay then. A picture can only show how she looks, but what’s inside is even more important. Yes, she’s pretty. She’s fit. She’s youthful in appearance and action. When she smiles at me, I feel like I’m the most important person in her world. And her body reflects that joy. She’s smart. She has a broad view of life with experience to back it up. She can see past the petty issues that crop up and not get distracted from the big things.”

It wasn’t the same thing he’d written a couple of months ago, but it had the same points. He’d recited them in his head as a nearly daily mantra. While he talked, he dreamed. While he talked, she sketched.

His new version was more than a thousand words. He talked a lot about the way she made him feel and the things they would do together. Occasionally, he mentioned something about how her hand felt in his or the sensation of her lips against his. More and more, he found he was looking at her as he talked, describing Penny’s laugh and the way she walked. At last he wound down.

Penny looked at the sketch and then back up at him. She closed the sketchbook and started to put it away.

“Wait! You haven’t shown me,” he said. “How am I supposed to recognize her?” She hesitated.

“How long ago did you put this dream of yours together?” she asked.

“A few months. While I was on vacation,” he responded.

“What would happen if you found you already knew her?”

“I’d be overjoyed. And probably tongue-tied. I don’t know that many people unless I work with them.”

She sighed, still hesitating with the sketchbook almost in her bag. Finally, she opened it again and looked at the picture and again at Ian. He held out his hand and she gave him the drawing.

“Penny,” he said, “this is… Oh, wow. This is you. Are you really the woman of my dreams?”

“How would that make you feel?” she asked grinning at him.

“Like a million bucks.”

They didn’t rush to his apartment (or hers) and fall into bed that night. They did, however, have a little too much to drink and shared a deep and sensuous kiss before the cars Floyd had called swept them away to their homes. She’d finally given him the drawing after he’d begged her for it.

“Okay, but no masturbating to it,” she laughed. “Tonight.”

They talked on the phone the next afternoon and met for a walk along the lake on Sunday. They held hands and talked.

“We can’t let dating each other interfere with our workplace,” he said. “The last manager had an affair with an artist and it affected his judgment on projects. It was the worst-kept secret in the building. I don’t ever want people thinking you are advancing because of our relationship.”

“I think we should tell them,” Penny suggested. “I don’t think anyone would object. Floyd wasn’t even objecting. Did you see how he blocked Rick from interrupting us Friday night?”

“The issues of nepotism are always a problem, but when two people click together, it’s hard not to want to go further.”

“Floyd and I have had to deal with that,” she said.

“What? You’re involved with Floyd?” Ian said. He stopped dead still and stared at Penny, not sure if he should yell at her or just walk away.

“He’s my grandfather,” she said simply.

“Your… Oh, my God! That sneaky old bastard.”

“He didn’t put me up to it,” she defended herself—and her grandfather. “But one office secret is all I’m capable of. I’ll keep romance out of the office, but I won’t keep a secret of the man I love.”

“Do you, Penny? Do you know enough about me to say you love me? I’ve been falling for two months now and resisting because I didn’t want to be that kind of a manager.”

“Well, I still have to find out if you’re as good in bed as you are on paper,” she laughed.

They decided to wait until after they had informed the staff they were dating before they rushed to find out.

“Wait! You mean you haven’t been dating all this time?” Jill asked. “Damn! I missed my chance.”

“Yeah, me too,” Dennis sighed as he batted his eyelashes at Ian. Everyone laughed.

“Let me just say I’m a little dense about these things,” Ian said.

“Single-minded focus on a project,” Lee said. “It’s what we love about you.”

“Well, if any of you decide at any time that my judgment is being affected by our relationship or that it is interfering with our work, my door stays open. Walk in and tell me. I expect it of you,” Ian said.

“That’s new,” Drake said. “Jack and Georgia always closed and locked the door. We could hear them anyway. Now we get to watch, too.”

“There won’t be anything to watch in the office,” Penny said. “Though, if you haven’t taken advantage of his open door to go look out the window, you are really missing something.”

Ian and Penny dated for two more weeks before they found themselves sharing a drink on Ian’s balcony Saturday night.

“Where is the original list of things you described?” Penny asked after she’d kissed him thoroughly.

“Burned,” he said. She cocked her head as she looked at him. “After I wrote it, I visualized her—you—and burned the list right here on the grill. I let the wind pick up the ashes and carry them out to find my dream girl and bring her to me.”

“And now the girl has materialized on your balcony,” she said with another kiss. “Make love to me, Ian. I want you.”

He swept her up in his arms and carried her to the bedroom. She was in an outfit he’d found was her favorite style. Mid-calf full cotton skirt in a bright geometric pattern and an embroidered pull-over top with a scoop neckline. It was easy for him to kiss from her cheek down her neck and onto her shoulders. The color of the blouse reflected the indigo of her eyes. She tugged at his shirt and got it off over his head, then removed her own top. She wore no bra and he bent to kiss softly around her breasts before lightly caressing her nipples with his lips.

They lay on the bed exploring each other and kissing, feeling the warmth of skin against skin.

“What do you like, Penny?” he asked.

“Really? You really want to know what I like?”

“Is that so strange?”

“Yeah. Yes, it is. Guys just sort of figure they know what a girl wants. Kiss, suck nipples, lick clit, fuck.”

“Excuse my ignorance,” he laughed. “Is that what you like?”

“No. I… I like having my shoulders kissed and my back rubbed. I have tight muscles at the base of my neck and want them loosened up so I can turn my head to kiss you. I like to have my buns rubbed and my toes sucked. Then I like to be kissed, sucked, licked, and fucked,” she giggled.

“How about we deal with that sore neck first?” he asked. “I don’t have any massage oil. Will this lotion be okay?”

“Oh, Ian. Yes. Just your fingers would be okay. Thank you. Oh! That feels so good!” She lay on her stomach and he gently kneaded her sore muscles, liberally sprinkling kisses along her shoulders as he worked. She had incredibly beautiful shoulders. He explored her back, her arms, and her sides. As he moved down her body, he dragged her skirt and panties down so he could pay attention to her bottom. Extrapolating her love of being kissed where he was rubbing, he spread kisses across her cheeks as he smoothed the lotion into her skin. Rather than skipping down to her feet, he kept working down her legs, dragging her clothes the rest of the way off. He worked the lotion into her feet and finally began kissing and sucking her toes. Penny moaned.

“Am I getting all the right spots, love?” he whispered.

“Oh, Ian. So wonderful. I promise I’ll ask what you like soon. But now could we move on to kiss, suck, lick, fuck?”

“Your wish is my command,” he answered. She turned toward him and tugged at his belt until she managed to unfasten and remove his slacks and shorts. And then they came together in a full-body naked hug for the first time. They started with the kissing part, and Ian did nibble at her breasts a little, but they were both too impatient to bother with licking before fucking. Penny rolled to her back and beckoned Ian between her legs. He was painfully erect and she was extremely wet. They slid together quickly and easily, not stopping until Ian was fully inside her.

“I could get used to this full feeling inside me,” Penny said. “I could feel you all the way in. You touched the walls of my vagina all the way to my cervix. I never knew I had so many nerves inside me that had never been stimulated.”

“Stimulated is a good word. Everything is being stimulated. The whole length of my cock is being consumed by your pussy. Penny, I won’t last long. But I promise I’ll make it up to you.”

“I’m so close, Ian. Stroke in and out again. I’m on edge. You won’t have anything to make up. Yes. Right there.” She grabbed his hips and moved them left and right a little, stimulating her clit with his pubic bone. Ian got the message and withdrew to thrust in again and gyrate side to side. “Yes. I can feel it. Almost. One more time, lover. Do it one more time.” Ian closed his eyes, panting and trying to focus on her pleasure while his cock was determined to take its own. He thrust one more time and as he moved side to side with his cock fully buried, semen rose through his system and began pumping into her. “Yes!” she screamed. Ian moaned as Penny clamped down around him. His hips jerked involuntarily, trying to drive farther into her depths. He collapsed forward seeking her lips but unable to hold them as he continued to pulse in time with her convulsions.

Aware that he was about to collapse on top of her, he rolled to the side, pulling her with him so they could stay joined as long as possible. She clamped her legs closed to hold him inside. He moaned and at last they found each other’s lips again.

“How long do I have to wait before I can tell you how much I love you without having it sound like the sex talking?” he whispered.

“Better not wait. There isn’t likely to be enough time between.”

“I love you, Penny. You are she for whom I’ve been searching. I know it’s too early to talk about long-term plans and building a life together. I’d like to build a now with you. I love you now and it will always be now.”

“I love you, Ian. I’ve waited all my life for someone who cared enough to ask what I wanted. That what I want is what you have wished for makes my heart sing. I am here now. Love me now.”

Art can be painted, sculpted, perhaps sung, and yes, even written. And in their art, the artists release not only their creativity and their vision, but also their deepest desires. When those desires find the perfect match, a miracle occurs. Galatea emerges from the cold stone and embraces her Pygmalion.

Aphrodite, blessed is love.

The End

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