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Why would I want to put myself through the agony of having her live in my house as my employee when that would mean a complete and total hands-off policy?
Maybe I should rescind the offer and just ask her out.
But she seemed super happy by the live-in part of the job, and the salary appeared to be much more than she’d anticipated.
Throw in the fact that the two of us together felt as easy and natural as two old-friends-turned-lovers enjoying a chat over a mug of tea and my mind was almost made up.
Add in the bonus that Lexie seemed as drawn to and connected to Jack as I was—knowing my son would be taken care of by someone who truly adored him—and the deal was done.
Lexie and I chatted for a bit about the background check, signing contracts, when she wanted to move in, and her official start date.
By the time she left and I got a bit of work done while eating lunch, I felt as if the weight of the world had been lifted from my shoulders.
But I was also nearly giddy with anticipation over having this girl move in.
I wouldn’t cross any boss employee lines.
However, if the spark of interest I saw in her eyes ever flamed into something more, I wasn’t going to avoid the potential love match.
If we worked in an office setting with strict rules on staff fraternization, perhaps we’d have a problem.
Since we were housed in my home and I served as her boss, HR, and colleague, things seemed a bit more lax.
Maybe I was reading Lexie wrong and she was interested only in caring for Jack and having a stable, well-paying job.
If that was the case, I’d have to be content with having someone I got along with living in my home and taking care of my son.
But if my gut was right and Lexie felt the same inexplicable draw and attraction to me I felt to her, I wasn’t going to miss a chance simply because of some boss employee taboo shit.
Jack played while I worked that afternoon.
I’d set up a temporary work location in his playroom. It wasn’t super convenient, but I was able to get most of my work done while he played.
We took a nice walk and played at the park once I’d finished my work for the day.
Then, Jack watched a cute, educational video while I made dinner.
Bath time was wet and fun.
My favorite time of the day, though, was when Jack was all clean and soft from his bath. He cuddled into me as I read him a couple books. When his eyes were drooping, I rocked him, swaying back and forth on exhausted feet while I told him all about Lexie coming to live with us.
“I think she’s going to be a huge help, Jack,” I murmured against the soft hair on top of his head.
My baby—looking more and more like a little kid with each passing day—reached up and patted my cheek as if to sayyeah, Dad, me too.
For the first time in over a year, I fell into an easy sleep that night.
Lexie showing up in our life was going to change things. We weren’t struggling, but she was going to make things better, I just knew it.
Maybe our meeting and situation were unconventional, but I dreamed of happy times with Lexie, Jack, and me because everything felt right.
Exactly like it was supposed to be.
* * *
Lexie movedin the next weekend and I ordered in dinner as a celebration for our new set-up. Her job hadn’t been happy with her two-week notice and told her not to return at all—her final check would be mailed to my address.
We started the first week with her working half days so she had time to take care of address changes on all of her credit cards, accounts, subscriptions, and whatnot. She wasn’t foolish enough to think she’d get themallchanged, but I wanted her to have the time to get as much of it switched over as possible.
