26. Dating Her Boss

26

DATING HER BOSS

C rystal opened the door from the garage and heard laughter in the kitchen. Guess Phoenix’s meeting didn’t last that long.

She came around the corner with the box of food she picked up at the restaurant.

“That’s your nanny?” a woman, who she was assuming was Laken, asked, laughing. “Jesus, Phoenix. I asked if she was a grandmother.”

“What did I miss?” Crystal asked.

Phoenix was looking a lot more relieved than when she left. She hoped that was a good sign. “Laken was groaning over your cookies and asked if a grandmother made them. I told her she’d find out when you got here.”

“Sorry,” she said. “I’m a long way from being a grandmother. I’ve got another box of food. I’ll be back.”

“We’ll help you,” Phoenix said. “West is in my office on the phone. These are my cousins, Laken and Braylon. Crystal Winston, my nanny.”

She had set the one box of food down and moved over to shake their hands. She wished she’d had something better on than jeans and a fleece jacket. But she hadn’t thought they’d see her. She thought they’d be in Phoenix’s office in the front of the house. That she could come in and set the food down and run upstairs until they were gone.

“It’s nice to meet you both,” she said.

“Phoenix and I can get the rest and Laken can get the food out. I’m starving,” Braylon said.

Crystal knew West was a billionaire and she was assuming these two siblings' worth was higher than most could dream of too, yet they seemed down to earth.

She shouldn’t look at them any differently than they were Phoenix’s cousins.

Last night when she’d gone to bed alone, she’d looked up on the internet more about West and his siblings. They were pretty much spread out from what she could see other than the two in Manhattan. Actually there wasn’t much on some of them. One brother had a brewery in North Carolina and another did something with surfboards in California. The rest she didn’t know what they did or where they were from her quick search other than their names from the engagement pictures.

She did see Abby Sherman as West’s fiancée. She wanted to ask Taylor if she knew her, but if she did that, she’d have to explain why she was asking and Phoenix didn’t want anyone to know.

When the three of them brought in the rest of the food and her groceries in one trip, she started to put the food away while Laken got the lunch ready.

West walked in. There was an air to him that had him just commanding the room.

But he had a smile on his face. “I heard the laughter from Braylon and assume you’re the nanny?”

“I’m Crystal,” she said, putting her hand out. “Nice to meet you all. I’ll get out of your way.”

“No,” Laken said. “Stay. I mean it. You can tell us what it’s like working for Phoenix. I should know these things when we are setting staff up to find the best match.”

Crystal didn’t know what was going on. She didn’t want to ask either. It wasn’t her business and she was positive none of it would make sense to her.

“They are being funny,” Phoenix said. “I’ll explain more later.”

She saw the smirk on the three cousins’ faces over that comment but didn’t know what it was about.

“Let me get the plates down,” she said.

She moved over to the cabinet and Phoenix was right behind her, taking them out of her hands and putting them on the island, so she got the silverware.

They all started to eat. “Hope you can make it for the wedding,” West said. “It’s going to be Friday before Easter. Might not be a good time for everyone, but I’m going to fly most in on the jet from North Carolina if you want to get there first.”

“I’d like to,” Phoenix said. “I’ll have to see what is going on with Elsie’s break with school then and figure things out.”

“Bring her,” West said. “I know you won’t want to leave her even though you’ve got someone here.”

Crystal glanced up from the lunch she was eating. It would suck if Phoenix was gone for the holiday, but she could try to go home and visit if she wanted.

No, she wouldn’t. She’d assume she could stay here. It was technically her home too.

“I’ll let you know,” he said, then turned to look at her. She smiled and went back to her lunch.

After thirty minutes, they started to clean up and she knew they were going to drive by the plant and look at a few things. Laken and Braylon would go in without West from what she’d heard. “I’ll clean up,” she said. “Go. It was nice to meet you all.”

“You too,” Laken said. “I’ll be seeing you soon, I’m sure.”

She frowned, again not knowing what that was about, but then started to clean the kitchen and put the leftovers away. There was enough there and a variety, so they might as well have it for dinner too and it’d save her from cooking.

Once the kitchen was back in order, she went upstairs to her living room and called her sister.

She wouldn’t say anything about Phoenix or his cousins. Nothing about work.

But she wanted to let Taylor know that she was dating her boss.

They’d never said it was a secret and she wasn’t sure how much longer she could keep it in.

“Hi,” she said when Taylor answered. “I’m not interrupting anything, am I?”

“No,” Taylor said. “You don’t normally call during the day. Is everything okay?”

“It is,” she said. “I wanted to tell you I’m dating someone.”

“Oh,” Taylor said. “That’s nice. Is it hard to do living there? I know you said you can’t bring anyone over.”

She cleared her throat. “It’s Phoenix.”

There was silence on the other end. “Is that smart?”

“Probably not, but since you married your boss I thought you might be a good person to talk to about this.”

Taylor laughed. “Good point. And I fought it for a while. I was new to the area and needed my job and didn’t want to have anyone in Angie’s life.”

“I’m not new to the area, but I don’t want to mess this up. He doesn’t either. It means too much for Elsie.”

“Tell me how it happened.”

“I’m not so sure myself,” she said. “I was attracted to him from the moment I met him but said no way. I’m not going to blow this and he was off limits. But then the more time we spent together and I got to know him, I just fell for him.”

“Are you falling in love with him?” Taylor asked.

“I don’t know. I think so. I’m not sure how to tell. I love Elsie and I don’t want to do anything to hurt or upset the dynamic either. But then, don’t I get to be happy? Or Phoenix too?”

“You do,” Taylor said. “But you have to keep in mind that Elsie needs to come first. Are you okay with that?”

“I am,” she said. “Maybe because I’m living here anyway and I’m caring for her. She’s been through so much.”

“I’m glad you see that,” Taylor said. “And I’m not one to make another comment about dating the boss because, as you said, I married mine and it worked out fine. You didn’t tell Mom you’re dating Phoenix, did you?”

“God no,” she said. “Please don’t. It’s only been since Christmas.”

“Oh,” Taylor said. “So really new.”

“It hasn’t been long, but the feelings are there. It’s hard not to be when we live under the same roof.”

“You make a good point,” Taylor said. “Just be careful.”

“I will. Thanks for not lecturing.”

“I wouldn’t,” Taylor said. “Been there and done that. You’re an adult. You’ve made a lot of decisions in your life as we all have. And we have to live with them too.”

“That’s right. I’d rather keep it from Mom as long as I can. I need to see where it goes. He hasn’t told anyone either and it’s not like we’ll tell Elsie.”

“Things you’ll have to work out at some point. I understand it now, but always keeping something a secret from everyone could cheapen it.”

She sniffled a little. “I know. I thought that too.”

“Do you think he only wants to be with you for sex?” Taylor asked. “You’re getting upset and you don’t normally do that.”

“I don’t think so. I mean, it might have crossed my mind after we had sex and I had one of those ‘oh shit what did I do’ moments. But then he started to think I only wanted to have sex with him. He had doubts too. We talked it out. I was the one that made the first few moves.”

Her sister laughed. “Sounds like you are in a good spot while you navigate things then. My best piece of advice is not to stress.”

“Easier said than done, but I’m going to try.”

“What is it you want?” Taylor asked. “What are you looking for? Do you know?”

She laughed. “Hasn’t that been my problem most of my life? I never plan and don’t know what I want?”

“True,” Taylor said. “But what about now? Don’t you have dreams and goals or wishes?”

“Don’t we all?” she said.

“Now you’re sounding like the Crystal I grew up with,” Taylor said. “Don’t go back to her.”

“I’m just kidding,” she said. She knew she was a wise ass and on the flighty side as a kid. “Truthfully, I like being a nanny. I like caring for the house and Elsie. I never thought in a million years I’d want to be a housewife.”

It even felt funny saying that in this day and age.

“There is nothing wrong with it,” Taylor said. “Not everyone likes it or wants to do it. If you enjoy it, be happy that you are and get paid for it.”

“You’re right,” she said. “I’m not sure it’s a dream, but I do enjoy it.”

“There you go,” Taylor said. “We all need to have something to dream or wish for. Focus on that and see if it’s realistic. If not, then don’t worry either. Dreams are there to give us hope, but not always to come true. At least that's how I look at it.”

“Thanks,” she said. She hung up after that and thought about what her older sister said.

Crystal always needed hope in her life. She wasn’t someone to wish on anything. She just did what she had to do to get by.

Maybe she didn’t want to just get by.

What she wanted was to be loved and accepted for who she was.

Was that a dream? Maybe a wish?

Yeah, more like a wish to be loved.