Feeling unsuccessful after a party

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Hey all!

I just got home from a party and I am feeling that I didn't do well socially even though I made an effort. I do have an ability to act more NT when I have the energy, and I did well most of the night.
As the party was ending, I was having a conversation with someone about work. The conversation was going well, and I realized that the person worked for a company which has positions I was interested in. I wanted to find a way to stay in touch with the person. This is someone that I have hung out with many times (in social groups, including lunch) but I've never invited to do anything.
So, I casually said in a friendly tone, "oh, you should join us again (coed group) for lunch sometime." I was really just trying to say "Oh, I'd be interested in staying in touch." The person basically said that he wouldn't have the time. Then he told me that he had to get going, although he didn't actually leave the party, just the conversation with me.

I think I may have made him uncomfortable. I should mention that he's married and I'm single. However, I was only trying to include him in a coed group. I would never ask a married guy friend to do something one-on-one. (I do think that sometimes when the social butterfly side of me actually comes out I get really enthusiastic and possibly come on too strong, although I do think I'm being genuine when I do this.)

Or, it could be that he was just responding honestly and I assumed I made a mistake because the conversation didn't go the way I wanted. I supposed I should have been more direct and just asked for an e-mail address.

Anyway, after that I had to make a gracious exit before I turned back into my shy and awkward self.

I wanted to talk about this situation so I can learn and move on.

Some general thoughts:
Anyone else feel like acting NT is like lighting a candle? I strike the match, and can show a friendly, outgoing side of myself for a certain amount of time. (Sometimes it's five minutes, and sometimes it's months at a time.) Then, the candle burns out and I can't be outgoing anymore and I need to retreat and be alone. I feel like the autistic side of me comes and goes, sometimes without warning.

I feel like I have really good understanding of social situations and good social skills. I feel that I have trouble making connections because there is something inherent about my presence and speech that makes it hard for people to connect to me or feel at ease around me.

Thanks for reading- any thoughts welcome. I am glad I went to the party and put myself out there so I can learn and improve.

When your friend left the party and tried to get out of the conversation with you, he may have had many things on his mind that were not necessarily about you. Maybe he had another party to go to or had to be home to go to bed at a certain time. In situations like this, his rushing off may not have to do with you. I'm not sure about how to answer this though, since I was not there to see your non-verbal actions towards him or exactly how he reacted...but there's the possibility that it was nothing to do with you.