“That’s right,” Bella said. “But now I do.”
“Again, no one said that.”
“Because she’s the boss and he knows it,” Blake said, smirking. “No way Egan and I could work together. He’s just too laid back. I need structure.”
“I’m the boss of my division,” Bella said. “And Eli and I bump heads all the time, but we work it out. I’m just here to tell you that you can work with someone you’re in a personal relationship with. It’s possible and we do it. These Bond men, they like to be in charge. They like to call the shots even if the shots are wrong. With Eli, once I showed him another way and that it worked, he was on board, the trust grew, and we flowed better.”
“Eli and Ethan are very similar,” Janet said.
She appreciated the advice they were giving her. Everyone was being more helpful than she expected.
“It’s working for us.” There was no comparison in her eyes though. She and Ethan were just dating, not married. “Do you work full time now with the kids?”
“No,” Bella said. “I deal with the entertainment part of the casino and have staff under me, but I have a nanny. Not full time, but someone to come in and watch the kids in our place while I’m working in the building.”
“Nanny here too,” Blake said. “I work remotely on the island though my office is in Boston. I have to go over at times and when that happens, we stay in Egan’s condo. Though it’s only two bedrooms and the nanny doesn’t have a room. We make it work and get her a hotel room for the nights and she comes for the days. It’s not often.”
“You all seem so normal,” Nora blurted out before she could stop herself. Everyone laughed. “I didn’t mean it that way. My mother didn’t work when I was younger. My father didn’t want her to and she didn’t need to. You know my father works for Mitchell, right?”
Bella and Blake nodded their heads. “I haven’t worked since Eli was born,” Janet said. “Traditional roles aren’t the same anymore. I’m not sure there are traditional roles. I think you do what works for you. Do you want children?”
“I do,” Nora said. She didn’t know if she wanted to admit this part though. “I just think when I’m ready, I don’t know that I want to work fifty or sixty hours a week. I’d like to have something of my own, a goal or purpose more than being a mother, but I want to be with my children too and watch them grow. My mother worked when my parents divorced and I think she did a great job raising me and balancing it.”
“One thing about my boys,” Janet said. “I raised them to be open-minded. You and Ethan, you’ll figure those things out as they come.”
“Not to get ahead of things,” Bella said. “Because Janet can. She’s not trying to put pressure on you.”
“No,” Janet said, smiling. “Just being truthful. I didn’t have to put pressure on Blake, she got pregnant before the engagement.”
“I can’t help it your son has some strong genes that found their way out,” Blake said, laughing.
Nora wasn’t too worried about that. Ethan wore condoms. She was on birth control. She hadn’t shared that and wasn’t sure when she would. They hadn’t had the children talk either, as it seemed way down the line in her eyes.
“It was meant,” Janet said, nodding her head. “Things happen the way they are supposed to.”
“I’m believing that.”
27
THE BIGGEST CHANCE
“Sorry I left you with my mother and sisters-in-law for so long,” Ethan said when they were back at his condo.
They’d landed ninety minutes ago, got to his place, changed, gone for their run, then showered and were finally sitting on the couch. He figured now might be a good time to chat and see how it went while he was talking business with his brothers.
“Don’t be sorry. It was great. I like Blake and how outspoken she is, but she’s not mean with it. Just honest.”
“Egan needs that in his life to keep him on track. But you can tell he actually enjoys her giving him shit. In a nice way. I’m not sure I’d want that myself. But I’m not Egan either. He gets on my nerves, so living with him with two kids... God bless Blake.”
She laughed. “I can see where his antics could be over the top. He’s almost like a big kid himself. And speaking of kids, I see your nieces and nephews adore you.”
He puffed his chest out. “There is a lot of me to adore. Kaden and Adrienne are night and day, but I enjoy them both. The babies are the best. They don’t give you lip back.”
“Not yet, but they will,” she said, laughing.
“What did you think of Bella? In my mind, your personalities are much closer.”
“I think so too. Though I doubt she’s ever gone through what I did as a kid. Worrying about acceptance or anything like that.”
