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Try again

It was after 2am by the time Ryan got back to LAX and when he had last spoken to Marissa about 10pm they had decided that it made sense for him to stay at the apartment in LA. It was a good thing that Skip had made them wait and get the aircraft checked because it turned out there was a problem with the landing gear and they'd then had to wait until it was fixed. Still … 'better late than dead' as Skip had put it … and it was hard to question that reasoning.

As Ryan was driving to the apartment from the airport he knew that he wouldn't be able to sleep. All he could think about was what he had missed out on earlier that evening by not being with Marissa. Nothing else seemed to matter, so he changed his mind and took the freeway that would lead him to Newport. He'd be there before 4. With a bit of luck Emily would sleep through the night, as she had the last few nights, and then he and Marissa could have at least some time together before Emily woke. Maybe not long but at this point he wouldn't need long. Hell … he'd thought he'd been about to burst when she had been talking to him at the airport and telling him what she was wearing. As the thoughts of her played on his mind he accelerated a little more. He couldn't wait to get there. All thoughts of sleep had evaporated. He decided it was over-rated anyhow.

---

As he pulled into the garage and made his way quietly up the stairs he started to disrobe so that by the time he had reached their bedroom he was only in his boxers, the rest of his clothes were strewn along the way. The room was still in total darkness as he pulled the boxers from his hips and slipped into the bed. Moving across and reaching for Marissa his hand came across … Emily. She stirred and he let out a gasp as he quickly got back out of the bed to put his boxers back on. But he couldn't find where he'd dropped them in the dark.

Marissa heard the noise and reached for the lamp and as she switched it on she was confronted by the sight of a naked Ryan on his hands and knees frantically searching the floor. He looked up as the light flooded the room and quickly grabbed for his manhood trying to cover himself before Emily got an eyeful. "Turn the light off!" he instructed Marissa as he grabbed for his boxers and pulled them back on.

"Sorry" Marissa said as she did as he asked. "What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to see you." Ryan whispered.

Marissa couldn't help but laugh."Well, I sure just saw you. ALL of you!!!"

Emily stirred and said. "Why is everybody talking when it's still dark?"

"It's alright Em. Go back to sleep. It's not morning yet." Marissa tried to reassure her, hoping that she would do as she said so that she could spend some time with Ryan.

"But I heard Wyan. He's here some where." Emily said almost in wonderment.

Ryan had been standing quietly in the dark hoping that Emily would go back to sleep but she now sounded like she was completely awake. "I'm here Em." He said as he got back into bed.

"Yay." She said as she snuggled up to him. "I missed you." She added.

"Uh huh. And I missed you too munchkin." He said as he reached over Emily in the dark looking for Marissa.

"I missed you too." Marissa said huskily.

"The feelings mutual." Ryan sighed.

---

Marissa and Emily got up early and decided to make Ryan a special breakfast but they left Ryan to sleep in, not realising that he needed to be at work by 9. When he finally awoke he came flying down the stairs looking for his car keys that were in the pocket of the trousers that he had shed somewhere last night.

"Ry? What's the hurry? We've made you breakfast." Marissa said.

"Sorry. I can't. I don't have time. I should have left an hour ago. Do you know where my pants from last night are? My keys are in the pocket." He replied.

Marissa walked down the hall towards the laundry. "I put them in the dirty washing." She grabbed the trousers and fished out his keys.

Taking them from her Ryan leaned in for a quick kiss. "Thanks. I've got to go. I'll call you later." He said as he moved towards the garage. "Bye Em. Be good for Marissa." He called out.

Marissa stood waiting for the whirlwind to settle after his departure. Emily walked up to her.

"What about Wyan's special breakfast?" she asked Marissa sadly.

"Yeah." Marissa replied disappointed. "Maybe you should go and see if Keith is awake and invite him in. We've got more than enough to share."

---

Ryan called Annabel from the car to let her know that he was running late and to cover for him and she reminded him that he was the guest speaker at a dinner for the American Institute of Architects that evening. Ryan knew that he wouldn't be popular with Marissa. But he had made the commitment months ago. Well before he'd even known that she was coming to the country. He couldn't let them down now. It would be too late to organise an alternate guest speaker plus they had been promoting the event. He just couldn't pull out now.

He thought for a moment and then picked up the phone and called Marissa.

"Hey." Marissa said as she looked at the caller id. "What did you forget?" she knew he still wouldn't be at work yet.

"You." Ryan replied.

"Aw. Missing me already?" she asked.

"Yeah. And that's why I have something to ask you. I don't want to spend anymore time away from you than is absolutely necessary." Ryan replied.

Marissa smiled. The slight resentment she'd felt after making him breakfast that he hadn't eaten, disappearing at his words. "What can I do for you?" she asked.

"Well … I'd forgotten that I'm the guest speaker at a dinner tonight and I can't get out of it. I was wondering if you could get Sandy and Kirsten to baby-sit and then you could come with me? Just drive up to LA this afternoon. It may be boring as all hell … but at least we'd be together. At the moment I'd settle for that." He assured her.

"So would I" she replied sadly "but Sandy and Kirsten are starting their Latin dance classes tonight. Remember they were talking about it on Sunday. And then last night when they dropped Emily home … it was all Kirsten could talk about. She's so excited."

"I forgot about that." Ryan said. "Do you think maybe Keith could …"

"I'm sure he could … but I can't ask him. Remember we promised Judge Collins that we wouldn't leave her with strangers." Marissa replied.

"Yeah. I was just hoping …" he started.

"I know ... So does this mean that you will stay in LA tonight?" she asked dejectedly.

"I guess it depends on just how late I am. But maybe. As you know … I haven't had much sleep lately so I'm not sure what sort of state I'll be in by tonight." Ryan replied.

"You should have stayed at the apartment last night." Marissa suggested.

"Probably … but I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep there while all I could think about was you. And tonight probably won't be any different."

Marissa smiled. "Well if it helps, I'll be in the same boat. It's no easier for me."

"Ris I really need you." Ryan pleaded.

"I know. The feelings mutual. But there's nothing much we can do." Marissa replied.

"I guess not." Ryan replied resignedly.

"I'd better go. Emily's calling." Marissa said.

"Okay. I'll talk to you later."

---

After her conversation with Ryan, Marissa was cleaning up in the kitchen and she was feeling a little sorry for herself. She knew her days were full with looking after Emily but it seemed that she and Ryan rarely saw one another and it wasn't just that they hadn't got to do 'IT' for ages. It was more than that. She missed HIM. All of him. She knew that Sandy and Kirsten couldn't baby-sit for her that evening but … an idea started to form and she quickly went to the phone to call them. Maybe they could look after Emily for a few hours this afternoon and she would drive up to LA to see Ryan. Even if it was just for a while, at least they could spend some time together and at this point anything would be better than nothing.

In lieu of what had happened the previous evening and the fact that Ryan wasn't going to be home again that night as well, Sandy and Kirsten were only too happy to oblige. Marissa just needed to be back in Newport by 6 so they could get to their dance class; which meant, she would need to leave LA by 4 to allow for the traffic and still be back in time. Sandy and Kirsten said they would be over as soon as Kirsten finished at the hairdresser's which should be about 1. That meant that Marissa could be in LA before 3. She and Ryan would get at least an hour. She smiled thinking that they would make the most of it.

---

Ryan spent the morning in a planning meeting with his senior managers. The meeting went on and on because Ryan had missed last week's meeting because he had been in San Francisco getting Emily, so he had to be brought up to date on a number projects. They finally wrapped things up just before 2 and all Ryan could think about was getting something to eat. After having skipped breakfast, the burger that he'd eaten at the airport with Skip last night seemed a long time ago. He made his way back to his office intending to get Annabel to go and get something for him.

---

Marissa felt a bit impolite, but as soon as Sandy and Kirsten arrived she was out the door in a flash. The sooner she got to LA the more time she could spend with Ryan. She hadn't been able to think of anything else since she'd called them that morning. She'd even checked with Annabel that Ryan wouldn't be tied up in meetings. Thankfully, the meeting that Ryan had scheduled for the afternoon had been postponed. So he should be all hers; for more than an hour. And that being the case, after a little bit of thought, she had decided to wear the Victoria's Secret outfit from yesterday under her skirt and blouse. She knew that the black stockings probably looked a bit odd in the middle of the day but at this point she didn't really care. With a bit of luck Ryan may actually get to see the outfit this time. And hopefully it would have the desired effect. She just hoped he had a lock on his office door. It looked like things were finally going their way.

---

On his way back to his office Ryan stopped past Annabel's desk. "Hi. Would you mind going and getting me something for lunch? I'm starving but I've got a few things to do before my 3 o'clock." He asked.

"I don't mind at all. But Mr Hawkins called earlier and postponed to Friday. Apparently he's been held up. So you don't have any more meetings this afternoon." Annabel replied.

Ryan was surprised. "Well in that case…" he thought for a moment "I'll go out and pick up something for myself. A bit of fresh air might help to keep me awake." Ryan replied.

"Yeah. You were really late last night. Skip didn't get in until just before 3." Annabel commented.

Ryan smiled. He hadn't actually asked Skip about how things were going with Annabel recently. He knew they were still seeing one another. But it sounded more like they were actually living together if he was turning up at 3 in the morning. He thought about asking Annabel and then hesitated; maybe it would be better to ask Skip. He'd call him later. "Yeah, well it was nearly 4 by the time I got to Newport." Ryan stated. "So if I want to stay awake tonight and not fall asleep half way through my speech then a walk might do me good."

Annabel nodded as Ryan made his way into his office to deposit his papers. He thought about whether to call Marissa now or when he returned from lunch and decided to wait until he got back. He'd get something to go and then he could talk to her while he was eating it. Then he wondered about calling Seth but he figured that he would have already eaten. But maybe he'd call and check? As he reached for the phone he had an idea that was even better. He picked up his keys and phone and made his way back out the door, pausing beside Annabel's desk to inform her. "I'm going out. If you need me, I'll be on my cell."

---

Marissa arrived at Atwood Industries just before 3 and couldn't get to Ryan's floor fast enough. She stood in the foyer waiting for the lift wondering why they always took so long whenever you were in a hurry. When it finally arrived, she got in and pushed the button for the top floor, and then turned to the mirror on the back wall to check that she looked all right. She couldn't wait to see him.

As she stepped from the lift she walked up to Annabel's desk. She had been hoping that Annabel would be missing. She really didn't want to waste her time being pleasant to Annabel, she just wanted to see Ryan. But since Annabel was sitting at her desk, Marissa couldn't get to Ryan's office without walking by. But she wanted to get past as quickly as possible. "Hi Annabel. Is Ryan alone?" she asked barely hesitating in front of Annabel's desk.

Annabel looked up and smiled. "Hi Marissa. Um … Ryan's out getting something to eat. But he's been gone a little while, so I don't imagine he will be too much longer."

"Oh." Marissa replied unable to keep the disappointment from her voice.

"He did say to call him on his cell if he was needed. So you could just …" Annabel suggested.

"No. I wanted it to be a surprise. If he's been gone a while then hopefully he'll be back soon. I'll just go and wait in his office for him."