And it would be nice to leave the office early once in a while so that I could go home and have dinner with the two of them, or take Lexi on dates in the evenings without making Janice stay over too late.
But of course, I wasn't about to tell that to my executive board. They would think that I was getting soft, or that I was putting my personal life ahead of my work. I couldn't have them thinking that.
Even though the more I thought about it, the more I realized that that really was the truth of it. For the first time in my life, there was something that I cared about more than my work or making more money. I wanted Orinoco to continue to thrive, but I also wanted my relationship with Lexi and Emma to thrive.
I stood up before they could ask any more questions. “I trust that you'll all let me know if you have any troubles with the new arrangement,” I told them, even though I had a hard time believing that they actually would. I had never strived to be an approachable boss, and that could come back to bite me in the ass now.
So let it, I thought. If things went bad, we'd reassess in a few quarters, just like I'd told them we would. We'd figure out where to go from there. But for now, it was time I did something for me.
I nodded at them and adjourned the meeting. I returned to my office just in time to receive a call from Katherine.
I smiled as I picked up the receiver. “Hey, sis.”
“Hey!” Katherine said, sounding surprised. “You sound happy.”
“So do you,” I countered.
“I'm in Paris; what's your excuse?” she asked. I could practically hear her rolling her eyes.
“Actually, I just told my executive board that I'm going to be working fewer hours, and that they're going to have to start managing on their own more often,” I admitted, knowing that she'd be pleased to hear that.
“Oh, wow!” Katherine said, sounding every bit as surprised as I'd expected her to. “What prompted that?”
“I just figured it was time,” I lied.
She didn't buy it for a second. “It's because of Emma, isn't it?” she asked. “Your daughter, whom I still have yet to meet.”
I sighed, even though her quick diagnosis of my real reason was amusing, more than anything. “I'll be glad to have a little more time around Emma,” I admitted. “Lexi as well.”
“Wow,” she said again. “So, things are going well between the two of you?”
“Yeah.”
She wanted details. Details that I wasn't sure I was ready to give her. It wasn't embarrassment, I told myself. But she was my little sister; she didn't need to know that I was sleeping with Lexi.
And other than sleeping with Lexi, I wasn't entirely sure how to describe what we were doing. We'd been on the one date the other night, of course, but we weren't exactly dating in the traditional sense.
I decided the best course of action was to change the subject. “So, how's Paris?” I asked.
Unfortunately, that only made Katherine burst out laughing. “Oh, no,” she said. “Paris is wonderful, but you can't just change the subject on me. Are things getting serious between you and Lexi?”
“We have a kid together,” I pointed out. “And both Lexi and our kid are currently living with me. It can't get much more serious than that.”
“Bullshit,” Katherine said succinctly. “When she first moved in, you were still with Renée. Now it sounds like you're making serious changes in your life, all for Lexi's sake.”
“They're not all for Lexi's sake,” I protested. “They're for my sake as well. The way that I've been living hasn't been very healthy. You know that. You've been telling me that for years.”
“And you never listened to me.”
I was quiet for a moment. “We're dating,” I finally admitted. “Things have been a little strange because usually when we go out, Emma's there as well. But we went on our first real, adults-only date the other night.” I ran a hand back through my hair, pushing away from my desk and spinning a little in my chair. “I don't know what it means, Kate, so don't start pressuring me to put labels on things. I don't know if we're getting more serious. But I like the way things are going.”
“That's good,” Katherine said gently. She paused. “Like I said when we got on the phone, you sound happy. I'm happy for you.”
“Thanks,” I said.
“Of course, I still haven't met either of them,” Katherine said pointedly.
I laughed. “Well, funnily enough, Lexi asked recently if she could meet you. I told her she could, once you were back in town.”