I check my t-shirt for dirt smudges and recall the feel of his hard muscles. How his massive body covered me. He’s the biggest man I’ve ever been with, and I liked the novel sensation of feeling dainty. I am the Amazon woman. A different species from the petite girls at school and university. My dad says height doesn’t matter. One friend back home claimed that when it comes to sex, the only thing that matters is the length of the torso. Still, at university, I never relished being climbed like a beanstalk. Something that is a non-issue with a man Ryan’s size.

“You okay in there?” Ryan asks through the closed door.

“Yeah,” I answer with one last glance at the mirror.

“Trace is scratching the kitchen door. Should I just let him out into the back yard?”

“Yeah. You can let him out.”

I step into the bathroom and close the door. As I flip the lid on the toilet, I grab my phone and type out a text to Sabrina.

Me: You won’t believe my nooner

But then I delete it. How pathetic am I? Desiring to tell a friend I just had sex. I mean, I will tell her. I hear about her sex life all the time. Now I finally have something to contribute to the conversation. But texting her right after…that is low class behavior.

I wash my hands, dry them, and wipe beneath my eyes. All right. Go out there and be normal. Carry on like an adult.

Ryan is in the back yard. The storm door creaks as I open it, and he glances up from his phone for one brief second. Trace raises his leg and wets the fence.

Ryan doesn’t say a word as I approach. He’s glued to the phone in his hand. Is it the sex? Did I muck up everything? Will a nooner prove to be the ultimate mistake?

I slide my hands into my shorts pockets and waffle back and forth from my toe to my heel. Waiting. He’s engrossed in his phone. Maybe he’s avoiding me. Maybe I should just query about diseases then send him on his way.

“The meeting with the FBI team in San Diego has been confirmed. Eight a.m. tomorrow. Can you make it?”

“Do you think they’d want me there?” Agent Ryland hadn’t been exactly welcoming. The FBI has its own Behavioral Analysis Unit, or BAU. They don’t need me.

“You’re on my team. In my experience, FBI agents are accustomed to working with multiple parties. It comes with crossing jurisdictions. And in a case like this, additional manpower is a good thing.”

“I’m available.” It’s a phenomenal opportunity for me. I will absolutely be available.

“We can fly down in the morning. Jack said Wayne will pick us up from the helipad.”

Ryan drops his phone into his pocket and looks off in the sun’s direction. His shades provide cover. He’s unreadable. Which isn’t an issue for me. I do not need to read him. He is a colleague with benefits. Possibly one-time benefits.