Like Real People Do

Black Velvet Box

The one with the ring.

///

"Is this seat taken?"

I jumped slightly at the unfamiliar voice. I'd been so intensely concentrating on poking every last piece of pasta on my lunch plate that I'd kind of tuned out everyone else in the catering room. Looking up, I tried not to seem too surprised to find Lauren standing on the other side of the table, holding her own plate of pasta and asking if she could slip into the seat directly across from me. Now that Jaxon had agreed to let her spend time with the twins and get to know them again, she was tagging along on the tour for a couple days. She was doing great, as far as I could tell, though to be fair, the twins were pretty trusting of everyone.

Still, despite her being in the same hotel and at the past few shows, I hadn't really spent much time with her. Mostly because I'd been avoiding being alone with her. I had no idea what to say or how our dynamic should be, so I figured the best way to handle the situation was just to make sure there was no situation to begin with.

"Oh, hey!" I said through a mouthful of penne, gesturing for her to sit.

Flashing me a smile, she takes a seat. "It's Cecily, right? I know our introduction was kinda rushed."

"Kinda." That was understatement. We'd barely been introduced at all. The only reason I met her was because I was in the right place at the right time. But maybe it was better this way because it would be so much more awkward to have to introduce myself and figure out what label to give myself in relation to Jaxon. I mean, we were dating, but that didn't mean he wanted his ex to know that. Of course good old Amy already blew that secret out of the water.

Not that I was uncomfortable or anything.

"How long have you and Jaxon been dating?" she asked as she speared a piece of chicken from her pasta dish and brought it to her lips.

I was little caught off guard. I knew she was told that I was Jaxon's girlfriend, but I didn't expect her to bring it up. Probably because, if our positions were reversed, I never would have brought it up. Swallowing my bite, I said. "About a month."

She nodded as she finished chewing. "And you've been the twins' nanny for the same amount of time?"

At first, I resented the implication that I would take a job and then immediately become romantically involved with my boss before I realized I couldn't be angry because that was almost exactly what happened. Sighing, I said, "I've been their nanny for about six months and I feel weird talking about this with you."

I knew Jaxon had no intention of getting back together with her, or at I didn't think he did, and as far as I could tell, all of their interactions had been perfectly friendly and about as awkward as a reunion between estranged co-parents could be, but discussing my relationship with Jaxon with his ex was a level of strange I didn't want to explore.

"It's okay, really," she laughed, apparently appreciating my honesty. "I'm not here to, like, steal Jaxon away from you or anything."

"You're not?" My eyebrows lifted in surprise because, to be honest, it would almost understandable if she did. After all, she and Jaxon were on the verge of having a lifetime together.

"No," she shook her head. "I was stupid to walk away from those kids the way that I did. I was young and naïve and stubborn and there were so many things that I wanted to do that I didn't think I'd be able to do if I was a mother, but even as I was doing those things, all I could think about was what I'd given up to be there."

"Amy did say that you'd been trying to reach out for a little while now," I remembered.

She nodded. "A few months. I just want to spend some time with the twins. Get to know them again. I won't step on your toes, I promise."