Employed At Last
by Paleface
part 1
Starting AgainYes, I’m still living at Brett’s and naked all the time, but the work is great and the money is great and, well, Brett’s pretty cool. I was never quite a prude about nudity, not like my roommates. They would go nuts trying to totally cover up if I came near their rooms while their boyfriends wouldn’t put down a beer to cover anything. I had never gone nude for any reason before and still do not care about it either way. As with most things I am pragmatic. Not unusual for an engineering student but perhaps for a woman. Now the situation is consistently strange. But it has its advantages.
It's all a little backwards but since everyone is asking the same questions it means the beginning of this journal is lost somewhere. Now things have stabilized, I’d like to get this all down, while I have a chance.
I had just finished my Masters in May. Again, I’m not saying in what subject for reasons I have explained. In August I was still living in the house with my two friends (not yet graduated) and planning what to do now that fall was underway.
I suppose I have to start with the fire, always a bore. It’s all anyone asks about. As far as everyone was concerned it’s part of my online identity (changed it, now it’s Paleface). That was all back in the fall, so give it a rest.
The short version is this; one of the housemates started a fire in the kitchen (no, I don’t know how) making a midnight snack. The three of us had strange schedules for school and work so this might have been her dinner time. A fireman woke me up and told me to get out. I responded once I was awake and could see what was happening. Out of habit I grabbed my laptop case, placed strategically next to my door ready for my usual rushing out routine, and made it down the stairs and out the front door. I noticed stepping on small hot pieces of house on the way out, but mostly I remember walking in water everywhere.
The three of us stood outside waiting for the fire to be put out, as if we would then go back in and back to sleep. The neighbors came out and were as helpful as frat guys can be in the early morning, if you count staring at our legs as being helpful. I must have looked cold, since a fireman eventually came and put a gigantic coat around me. It started to sink in about then that the house was pretty well history.
Jake finally made it over and convinced us to go with him for some breakfast rather than watch the show. We needed to make calls and start sorting out from what we could expect. Back at Jake’s we made calls and worked out our options. One roommate only reached her parents, once the sun came up. They invited us to come stay with them. I had been with her and her folks over the last break and did not look forward to returning, even in these circumstances. After a while Brett showed up to talk to Jake.
Brett’s Place
When Brett came, the girls retired to Jake's bedroom to find something to wear for the day, rather than their long t-shirt nighties. Being the least fashion conscience, I had put on a large shirt of Jake’s (which turned out to be wool) and sweat pants, also too large. The others made nifty outfits out of his dress shirts and jeans. Such priorities I still don’t understand.
Brett needs explaining. He is just a year or so older than me. He graduated more than a year ago (in my subject) and has been working hard and making serious money ever since. He is extremely sharp in technical matters but talks very little. His people skills are weak, to say the least. There are stories about how dim he can seem as he sticks to only the facts. I got along fine with him since we know the same subjects and could talk non-stop all night. Others thought he was snooty since he had no opinions (actually, no real experience) outside his particular interests. We sort of dated a few times, but it was clear to me that relationships were also not within his skill set. I don’t think he thinks about relationships at all. So we are still just the friends he thought we were to start with.
Jake had told Brett about our terrible evening and our situation and when we came in Brett looked right at me and said, “You can stay at my place.” Mind you, he was not giving this invitation to the others, just me. He’s very blunt that way. The others were shocked and made excuses about other plans, trying to save him from embarrassment, but they didn’t need to. He knows me, understood that I needed help and that’s it. No one else need apply. I said thanks and started thinking about it.
The results of the fire were this: The house would stand. The girls' things were pretty much unscathed, but smoky. But everything in my room (nearer the kitchen) was either burned up, washed away or both. Not that I had a great deal to start with, broken-in jeans and lots of t-shirts mostly. I think I had a nice dress or two, but they were too old for interviews. All of it was now a black and grey mush along with the bed and the few books I didn’t have on the laptop. I was more distraught about the library books that went up than any of my own stuff. My friends joy at still having their precious shoes and their despair over losing stuffed animals just reminded me that our life together was about over.
I'm not pleased to give a physical description of myself since it has nothing to do with these events but I'm tired of seeing the questions turn up each day, so here goes. I'm 5’ 8’’ with black hair I keep short since it curls too much otherwise. I'm slightly built, not quite athletic; I'm skinny, not scrawny, and quite healthy. My breasts are not very large but I’m told they will be when I get pregnant. My nipples are relatively small and no, they are not always erect. Such questions, really! To end the questions about my pubic area; I had a bikini wax last year which has hardly grown back at all. I probably would not bother again since it hurt and I’m not big on swim wear fashions, revealing or not. I’m used to being very pale but less so nowadays. And finally someone asked about Brett. He is precisely 5’11” which is easy to tell since his hair is very short and flat on the top. He’s pretty thin with no interest in exercise or overeating.
Again my subject area is being left out to preserve some anonymity, that of others more than myself. I can assure the curious that it is not silicon nor software nor bio-tech and probably won't be as red-hot by the time this gets posted.
I thought of visiting Brett during the summer but never of moving in. Again, Brett is very intense and private. He doesn't care, or even know that this puts off pretty much everyone. He only cares about his subject and the work it gives him. This is the same stuff he and I were working on a year ago and he has never slowed down. After talking to my folks on the phone I was pretty much ready to go. I didn't know for how long exactly but living online means you don't need much.
Brett’s place was actually several states away. Agreeing to go seemed like the logical thing to do but once we were into the long drive, Interstate to Interstate, I had decided that it was actually sweet of him to ask. Didn't know that was within my skill set either. While he drove I slept and when I wasn't sleeping I could hear him talking about all the new stuff he had been working on. It was amazing, for sure, but I had been up all night and was too wiped out.
I hadn’t been to this part of the country before, in fact never south of the frost line, and the longer we drove the warmer it got. The wool shirt I was in was comfy in the more humid North but got scratchier as the air became drier. Brett managed to drive the whole way without stopping which I could believe since I knew how focused he could be. We stopped for gas and my needs but he was far into his auto-pilot.
His place is one of four in a small complex which had only just been built, I guess, since all of them had dirt for lawns. The complex had a gate which was pretty useless because the sections of fence around the place had not been installed yet, just the posts. He drove up to the side door, got out and opened it with his key. He figured I really needed to get in and just did everything he could think of to get me to the bathroom as soon as possible. It was really hot outside. I could feel the ground hot under my feet but it was perfect indoors, nice and cool. It felt like he was leading a charge to the bathroom room. When I came out he had finished what little unpacking was there was, his own really since I had only my laptop bag and a few necessaries from along the way, then he started showing me around.
He didn't need to tell me that someone did his decorating and cleaning because this was not a bachelor pad. The furniture was spare and the rooms uncluttered. Not what either of us were used to. A few antiques seemed to be around but I didn’t bother to ask Brett about them. In his office things began to look like you would expect, very busy but still tidy. We microwaved some food and he never stopped talking. I remembered the old rumor with other students that he only spoke three words a day and thought what if they could hear him now. He was filling me in on what he had been developing over the last year. I talked too, but my year was nowhere near as interesting and he wouldn't care about mine even if it was.
It turned out to be a long session but not our longest by any means. We ended up in front of his computer going through some wicked cool stuff until I couldn't stay awake. He showed me to a guest room, quite small, just an empty closet and room for the bed. And I remember going to sleep with Brett sitting on the floor next to my head still talking away.
The Tub
The note I saw in the morning told me only the essentials, naturally. Breakfast was available in the kitchen and he would be back soon to work. This meant more than one hour, but less than 90 minutes. I took my toothbrush from my laptop case to the bathroom but saw the note on the door saying “Shower out of a service, use other”. So after a few scrambled eggs off the warmer, I set out to find the other.
I thought I must be quite a sight schlepping around in this house out of a magazine holding my sweat pants up with one hand and a toothbrush in the other. The house seemed enormous but that's only because most of it was empty. Brett only lived in his office, in the kitchen and occasionally his bedroom.
I eventually found the other bathroom, a tile room really, with a shower like in a locker room and a toilet in a cubicle. I managed to wash up, but I didn't want to take a shower in such an open area. I was finished up when I heard Brett arrive. He did not say hello, just made his way to his office to get back to work. He was back in his silent mode but did speak up eventually. “People coming this afternoon”.
“Who's coming?” I shouted.
“For a visit.” he said, back in cryptic mode again, too.
“I'm going to take a shower.” I didn't need to tell him since he was already glued into his computer. I was pretty sure he wouldn't be fazed by walking in on me taking a shower, and considering our relationship I don't think I would be either. While I was finishing in the shower I thought about just how bad my borrowed clothes were from the night’s events. They were very dried out and scratchier than ever.
From under the shower I could see another tiled wall leading to another room. I'd dried off and went very carefully around the barriers to see where it went. This was a small room that’s always bright since it faces the south. In the corner was this enormous bathtub, set into the floor. I was already clean but this looked like too much fun to pass up. Brett knew I was in the shower, and I've covered all that.
Stepping into the tub I found the water to be surprisingly hot, and bubbles that wouldn’t stop. It wasn't long before I quit looking for the soap and just sat back and enjoy the heat. “There are seats in here!” I said. The echo almost freaked me out. Quite a romantic place, but wasted on poor Brett.
I really liked it but thought I’d have to get out to cool off eventually. I was wondering how I could ever get Brett to tell me how he got into this place, and didn't think that so much time had slipped by.
About then I heard Sarah's voice. “Hello, hello.” She said. I was really surprised when I looked up to see this woman in a tiny bikini walking towards me from the shower. I say her bikini was tiny because it did not do much to cover her body, just the essentials. Yes, Sarah has generous curves and knows how to show them off, or nearly so in this case. I think I stayed surprised for quite a while as she climbed into the tub and came over to me to shake my hand, talking the whole time. This is how I first met Sarah. I'd never shared a bath with anyone before but Sarah acted as if she always did. It wasn't that long before she turned back to the shower and said “Come on guys, it's great”. I still wasn't used to the echo.
Some voices were calling back “Okay, okay.” and then two men walked out of the shower towards us. I had pretty much decided I did not know what was going on anymore, so I should just float there, cooking from the neck down, wondering what I should do next and when. And these guys are going to get it to my tub, I thought. Before they came to the edge I recognized Brett in his trunks more from the distant look in his eye than from any physical feature. Roger climbed in before Brett and shook hands with me from a respectable distance before sitting down next to Sarah.
Once Brett got in he sat apart from me and the others in the increasingly tiny bathtub. There was nothing for me to do but listen to Roger and Sarah go on and on about how glad they were to meet me, ecstatic evidently, and how much they enjoyed working with Brett. Nice of them to act as if Brett was a regular person. Brett was his regular self, distant as ever, not talking and rarely making eye contact with anyone.
Once Sarah and Roger had finished their introductions they started to relax and settle into the heat. Soon Sarah mentioned to Roger that she was feeling “Just fine.” As she said this she slipped off her Bikini top and put it up on the edge of the tub. I was a little surprised but didn’t say anything.
Roger whispered to her if she had “checked with me”.
She rolled her eyes at him and whispered back, “There’s no need.” She said, and then looked at me with a smile. Apparently Roger had not noticed my lack of a top from behind all the lovely bubbles until Sarah pointed it out. What Sarah had not noticed was that I had no clothes at all. Actually, I thought she noticed I was completely naked so I felt I had nothing to worry about. It took a while for me to believe that but I did convince myself. As my first experience with social nudity I was getting used to it alright. What I did not know then was that this was not a social nudity situation.
After a moment I did feel a bit less out of place. I calmed down and decided that the communal tub idea was something they were used to, and my various plans to escape were not necessary.
Soon I was feeling pretty well done and ready for a cooling off, if not a mad dash for the shower. Just before then Sarah said she felt great but “Needed to slow it down”, and laughed. She just stood right up from the tub and sat on the edge just like it was the thing to do. What a concept. Her breasts seemed much larger out of her top as they let all the water drain from her body and she looked rather statuesque. To answer questions, yes, her nipples were large, rather dark but never erect. Nothing could be in that heat.
I was much overdue for cooling off and thought if it was good enough for her then I could join in. It did feel rather unusual climbing out of the water naked from a tub full of people. It took me a second to navigate sitting on the edge with a bit of modesty, I wanted to cool off, not put on a show.
It was then that Roger and Susan understood my state of total nudity. I barely spotted the brief but intense surprise on their faces but I was just relieved to get out of the hot water. This was the real moment I began to feel like myself, comfortable in my skin with company around but I’m sure they read my relief as the total comfort of an old pro. I figured this based on the questions I answered while cooling off.
“So what do you do?” Susan asked.
Brett spoke up for the first time, “Same as me.”
I filled in the details of my finishing at the same school as Brett with the same degrees in the same subject all back in May. All the while Roger and Susan’s faces got more and more surprised.
“You live here?” Roger asked trying to get it straight.
I said, “Yeah, so far.”
I know now that they took this to mean I had lived with Brett since May. The rest I worked out later on.
“You have a room?” Susan asked, still working it out.
“Yeah, the little one.” I said gesturing back.
“Oh, yes, the guest room.” she said. “But where’s your things?”
Brett spoke up again. “Didn’t bring any”, he said without smiling. Only Brett could say that so matter of factly. I still did not know what they were thinking but I was amused with Brett for the moment.
“I just brought my laptop and a few things we picked up on the way here.” Unlike Sarah, I thought I was talking about the previous day.
“But your clothes, your shoes.”
“Just the ones I came in.” Seeing them looking confused I tried to clarify. “What I brought I had borrowed and they were nasty and scratchy.” I said with a shudder. I really meant it but not the way they imagined.
From this, and Brett’s silence, they got the impression I had been here with Brett for the last six months. That surprised them since they didn’t imagine Brett having a friend, let alone a lady friend. It also seemed obvious that I had been living at Brett’s entirely nude the whole time.
Once they learned my degrees were in the same subject as Brett they looked at one another and went into recruitment mode. My living conditions were fine but my knowledge of Brett’s techno world apparently made me the catch of the day.
Sarah and I took turns into and out of the tub while the guys sat there and stayed red. Yes, Sarah kept her bottoms on while many of her parts were turning various shades of red. I was pretty red all over once I got out the first and stayed that way for a while. Roger was great, he only looked at my eyes, and of course Brett never looked at anything. The more Susan kept telling me about their company the more it felt like I was interviewing for a job.
“Brett invited us over for a soak and we couldn't wait to meet you,” Sarah said. I only said, “He told me you were coming” which was the truth.
Once all of us had pruned up we got out but before looking for my tattered clothes I saw a lunch cart had been pulled up, probably right behind my naked back. This had a terrific lunch platter on it including ham and mustard, all I need, and lots of ritzy stuff. I’ve got to say it was quite weird putting together a sandwich and eating without clothes. What's the napkin for in that case?
There were also fresh towels. Susan only sat on hers so I followed suit. Being naked was new and pretty cool with the right company and I was still getting used to it being O.K. Once we were dried off a bit I just followed Susan’s lead and skipped covering up. Who was following who was not clear then, but I was in a new state and meeting new people in a bathtub.
I could tell she was working hard to get along with me anyway she could. Everyone seemed comfortable and I was finally learning about Brett's world besides his work. Apparently Brett was the main or only force behind the company they all worked for. They kidded Brett about how brilliant, but intense he could be but I don’t think he noticed, or would care if he did. The way they told it, he was the only one who knew and understood all their processes.
Their main problem, Sarah confided, was getting him to bring anyone else up to speed. She asked about several very technical points which I was thrilled to talk about. Brett had so amazed me with the new stuff that was still in my head that I’m afraid I went on at length. I noticed the look that Roger and Susan shared as I waxed technical and figured that was the moment they decided.
Once I was talked out Sarah asked me about my current plans and job prospects. She was excited about my expertise and made it clear that her company could use my help.
I did think it strange that she asked me so much about my fashion preferences, or so I thought. She was trying to understand my “philosophy” of living simply. I thought she was just trying to engage me in standard girl talk. I’m used to making it clear when meeting other women that I don’t follow trends or fashions or gossip as a hobby. I told her gently, as is my routine, that I had no interest in such things, again the truth. She took this to mean I was naked for a reason and it really mattered to me.
Brett can seem quite strange to people so I can believe that they thought I might be at least as strange. Sarah told me she would come back the next day with a prospectus of the company that I might find very interesting. I couldn’t wait.
When they were leaving Brett and I had gotten back to techno babbling again. I did notice my borrowed clothes had been taken away, to be washed I hoped, or perhaps softened, but was comfortable in a towel.
The Interview
In the office at Brett’s place he had the standard mad scientist computer complex going. Even more so with the level of techno-expertise we were talking about. After planning on it for several years he finally had an arrangement of six monitors we had always talked about. With this you could see almost enough of the process to really do the whole job. In addition to this configuration was a sub-window that stayed in the far upper left corner. I learned that this was camera number three’s view of the door in the big front hall.
On waking the next day I barely thought about getting dressed before I jumped back to the computer room. I did take advantage of the shower and noticed that there was a new towel every time I turned around. The towel was good to sit on and naked was kinda cool for now. My plate of eggs was balanced on the stack that Brett had left earlier that morning, and I was on fire. Such a setup.
At 9:30 an email appeared on the screen addressed to me. It was Brett at the office. He had remotely set me up on the computers at his home for everything he was doing at work. That was as sweet as he could get and I though it was a gas. He added that Sarah and Cindy were coming over to tell me about the company. I figured I would play here till I saw them come in the front door. I would have to explain to them about the history of my clothes and Brett.
Eventually I was really at work in my own zone. In the big chair I could sit with my legs crossed on my towel, my head back and my eyes seeing all the processes unfolding before me. What a setup. After a while the change in the front hall picture told me someone was coming through the door. It must have been Cindy as Sarah was no where in sight. This is when I started to see what they thought of my life at Brett’s.
Cindy looked around and put down a large brief case and walked to the nice dresser next to the door. Looking in the mirror behind it she opened the middle drawer of the dresser. She stepped out of her shoes and moved them together to one side. What she did then was a total surprise to me.
She untied her sun dress and began slipping it off. Now and then she would slow down and nearly stop, apparently with great thought and consideration. But she would always find the motivation and start again in a determined way. Everything she took off she would carefully put into the drawer with great deliberation. Finally when she was in just her bra and panties she stopped and really thought hard. She leaned on the dresser and looked down. I could see her eyes closed in the mirror. Then with not quite the same determination she unhooked her bra and took it off and then, more slowly, her panties. These went into the drawer with the rest. She closed the drawer slowly as if she wouldn’t see these things for a hundred years. With that done she turned and picked up the brief case and walked into the house with a standard business attitude rather dimmed by her clear discomfort in being nude. New state, new people, I still did not understand but I decided to wait and see.
She met me in the office with a nervous smile and a friendly handshake and said she was excited to meet me. I could tell it was strange for her to meet people in the nude. It was for me too but I was too interested in hearing about the company for small talk. We went to the dining room where she could spread out all the paperwork she had brought. Seeing me naked seemed to calm her down a bit or make her more confident. Having just seen her strip down for no apparent reason I decided to wait till I learned more before asking her what was up. That’s when I started to copy Brett’s manner of keeping quiet. Handling paper made her feel more normal so I let her do all the work.
Cindy was the company hiring manager and she told me that Sarah was too busy to make the trip after all. Cindy was in her twenties with no wedding rings and in very good shape. Yes, her tits were bigger than mine as was the rest of her. Her brown hair was put up to go with a business suit but still looked O.K. without any. She definitely had never had a bikini trim. I wondered for a while if she would ever get used to the nudity but thought mentioning it would not calm her down.
She began a presentation she knew well but clearly had not done in the nude before. I could see her struggling with her energy level as she forced herself to breath in and stand up straight. It was clear she was used to undergarments for support since whenever she turned she was made aware of the swing of her breasts or hips. This was a consistent distraction for her.
What she delivered was the greatest schmiel ever about the company and it’s prospects, the money, the benefits and all that would come to anyone who joined. She had me sold early on. She only needed to mention the money. The rest of the time I just thought about the logistics. Where was the office, how do I get there and maybe to a mall for some supplies and maybe some clothes. I was actually being considered for a job after all the school I could stand. I was all ears and no distractions, even in the nude.
When she was about finished she pulled a chair close to me for what I thought would be a confidential discussion. Girl talk, again, but I was patient. She was even more nervous which told me this was not part of the speech but was new to her. She was less practiced but just as determined. I could tell she was trying to lean in close to me but was nervous about her breasts swinging into my arm. I helped and leaned closer. I thought she was about to spill the Big Secret that might explain her discomfort and perhaps the nudity. I was really waiting for the end of the talk so I could take the job if there was really an offer.
She very carefully told me that they had total respect for my way of life and assured me that they would accommodate it completely. I thought, “That’s it?” She kept going on about “anything to bring me aboard”. I could take the job and did not need to change a thing. This was the first time she used the word “job” with me in mind so I did not ask her about what thing I might want to change. Once she got that out she relaxed a lot. She had finally completed her mission. She smiled and let out quite a sigh, which then embarrassed her as her body relaxed as well, more than she was used to. I honestly did not know what she thought needed accommodating but I wasn’t about to say anything that might screw up her presentation or the deal.
Then she mentioned the salary and went on to describe the offices and what hours they needed me on hand. Well, the salary was so much more than I ever expected (I can’t tell you!) I heard nothing she said afterwards. It turned out that Brett had been unusually vocal on my skills and level of expertise, good ol’ Brett. With the salary still ringing in my head I could not take in what she was saying about the where and the when of the job.
I nodded quietly to agree to the terms. She smiled as she congratulated me and we kind of celebrated together for a second. We shook hands jubilantly until I figured out she was doing this instead of hugging me as she might have done.
Then she started to move through all kinds of paper work. The agreement and paper work were more important than her nudity but she was now in a hurry. I honestly could not have guessed why. As I signed up for everything with a dull look she got happier as she felt she had won me over at last. I was not about to tell her I would have gone to work for much less but then I didn’t really get the terms straight either.
I wasn’t used to the current crop of hiring forms that are standard so I did not ask much as we filled them out. One was something about “Working from home” that she said was a cross between pregnancy leave and part time disability. I thought all this was completely standard. It was not. The only reason I remembered that form was her mentioning how surprised she was that they were able to get it together so quickly.
Once Cindy had collected all the forms she pulled out a big greeting packet that I might read to go over what she had already presented. I was feeling pretty good about all this as she packed up her brief case to go. I had the real job doing the real work, fantastic! This was the best ever! She said she would see herself out and let me get back to work.
Standing up I thanked her for coming. She was unconvincing when she said it had been interesting and only mumbled as she left, “I’ve never met a nudist before.” I thought nothing of it at the time but would later on.
I got back to the computer room and saw Cindy in camera number three getting dressed again. She was much faster getting dressed than undressed. I hoped this was not a bad sign as I had yet to work out what it was about. She had met me in the computer room so she knew I had been at work but it still didn’t sound right.
I responded to Brett’s email with the news of Cindi’s visit and my signing up for the job. I would leave the questions for later. Then I opened my laptop to look online for some local shops to get some supplies, clothes and shoes, once Brett got back.
I got an email on the main system from Sarah with how pleased she was that I could join them. She added that I should wait there till she got everyone. I had no idea what she meant or where she meant for me to wait. I told her that I would stay right where I was and kept at the computer. I thought she would email me back.
After a few minutes there was a new picture on the main monitor. This was taken at the meeting room at the office where Brett was working. I saw him towards the front with his standard empty expression. I say the front because the room was filled with people, most in business casual with a couple guys in suits. These were (nearly) all of the employees of the great company, gathered to welcome me aboard. How sweet. They were so packed in I thought it was a still picture. Then I noticed in the very back of the meeting room a picture on the wall. I recognized the lady in the picture too. It was me, naked little ol’ me, hanging on the wall like a work of art.
When I noticed Sarah in the room I realized she was waving. I waved back out of reflex but did not expect what I saw. My naked portrait waved back at me too. Apparently there were more than three cameras here.
Sarah stopped waving and started talking, saying how great it was that we finally met and could get me into the group. When she turned to the group and said. “Right, guys?” the computer boomed with the audio of a room full of people shouting, “Yeah! Hear, hear!” and “Congrats!” I gave them a thumbs up and thought, 'O.K. now I have a job and it can’t get any stranger than this.'
While I was thinking I wrote on an envelope a note to Sarah. I showed it to the monitor, not knowing where the camera was, until I could see from my picture in the room. It said, “Sarah, Please get on the phone.” She nodded and stole away from the crowd.
When I picked up the phone she was already talking. “So glad your with us now!” Was she ever not perky?
“Sarah, do I really have the job?” I asked, worried that the roomful of voyeurs was just a prank on me. She got very serious, for Sarah, “Yes! You are now an employee of the company, with the best contract I’ve seen since Brett came on board. Like I told you, we really need you to translate all that he’s done for us, and continue it. We’re really, really glad to have you!”
I thanked her and said I was glad to be working with Brett for real, but that the meeting video had kind of freaked me out. I was about to explain about still being nude when she charged ahead. “I’m sorry if we surprised you but everyone was so excited. We’ve never had a virtual employee before, and certainly never a nudist.” That was the second time I heard the term “nudist” and I made a note to ask Brett about it. In the meantime I had no other plans but to shop online and hang out, nude for now, of necessity.
A Chat with Brett
Brett came home late. We had worked the day through with me in his office and him at the plant (wherever that is) and we continued our conversation without a pause. Now that I had him to myself it was time to get what info I could from him about the whole 'nudist' business.
As I said, I’m not much for getting gossip or opinions from people, just facts. But I thought I should tread carefully around the subject until I knew what the scoop was.
I’ve reconstructed our chat as usual. I’m always reminded to keep these retellings brief. It takes a long conversation with Brett to get the facts out since he only talks about ordinary things at irregular intervals. A year ago I got the hang of how long to expect before answers to my questions could make their way back to me from his world. As it got late I was about five questions deep, each being considered and answered in turn amidst the discussion of the work we were immersed in. Such focus, I loved it.
“So when did you recommend me for the job?”
“We had a meeting at 9:00.” I could see that Brett did not like taking time for a meeting.
“Who came to the meeting?”
“Sarah and them. They watched you work the system and talked about hiring you for a long time, the whole day.” I knew Sarah was there.
“How did you recommend me for the job?”
“You know everything I know, they could tell.”
“What did they say about my working there?”
“They can’t have nudity on the premises.”
“What did they say about me doing work?”
“They can’t wait for your help. You were at the meeting.”
“Who were the unhappy faces in the meeting?” I had noticed a few.
“Ryan doesn’t believe you.”
“What does Ryan believe?”
“Ryan thinks it’s unfair that you get to work with me now after all this time.” So there actually was competition. I thought I knew which one he was.
“How good is Ryan?”
“Ryan is annoying. Ryan wants the dresser in the front hall.” He was really opening up, here.
“Why does Ryan want the dresser?”
“Says it’s French Empire, Mahogany, from 1805.” Plausible, but who cares? Evidently Ryan.
“What’s the history of the dresser?”
“The dresser is where clothes go.” Always the facts.
“This came up at the meeting?”
“That’s what I told them. Then Sarah told Cindy to make you feel comfortable.”
“Cindy was at the meeting?”
“She was, and then came over here. The presentation was on camera six. Everyone liked it. It’s really outdated but she never changes it.”
This was enough for me to deal with for the time being but we were still working at the job. A real job!
After a long while it became bedtime for both of us. Something I don’t see happen to Brett very often. I wanted to ask him if I had to be nude to have the job. As I asked I had to remind myself that Brett never ever noticed my nakedness, but then he notices very few unimportant things. I had hardly noticed myself since the day before.
He paused much longer than usual and then actually looked me in the eye. “They need your help. I need your help. Some of them don’t seem happy about it but that’s what we’ve got. You’re hired.”
This did not answer the question but it was as heartfelt and personal an appeal as I’ve ever heard from Brett since I’ve known him. There was no going back for more right now. There would be time to work out the rest as we made progress with work. For now I was hired, and working with Brett. I thought I could get used to anything else.
End of part 1
Copyright© 2012 by Paleface. All rights reserved.