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But following his third attempt to lift his hand, his arms collapsed, and he grew frustrated.
“Oh, good try, Rhys,” I declared.
Banks decided not to make his son wait any longer. He moved into the room, lifted Rhys in his arms, and stood as he held his hand out to me.
Banks hadn’t ever touched me before, and though this was just a simple gesture to help me up off the ground, it caught me off guard. For that reason, I hesitated briefly, but ultimately, I placed my hand in his and was immediately surprised how he’d just been outside in the cold and had hands that warm.
As soon as I was on my feet, I let go of Banks’s hand, but my eyes managed to find their way to his. He had a strange look on his face, something I couldn’t begin to read.
Following an awkward silence, he cleared his throat and asked, “Did everything go okay here today?”
Grateful for the distraction from whatever was happening in that tense moment, I nodded. “Yes, we had a great day today, just like every other day this week. He’s such a joy to be around.”
Banks smiled at me. “I’m really glad to hear that, Lamise. And I’m not sure I’ve said it enough yet. I don’t know if it’d ever be possible for me to thank you properly for the way you’ve made this whole transition so painless. Rhys is very lucky that you’ve come into his life. We both are.”
God, was I going to start crying right here? Why was he saying things like this to me now?
I mean, I realized it was the end of my first official week, but I wasn’t sure I was up to receiving a performance review already. I needed more time before I was prepared to hear such good news.
Blinking back the tears, I swallowed past the tightness in my throat and rasped, “Oh, Banks, it’s nothing. Honestly,I’m the lucky one. Rhys is the best little boy in the world. Truthfully, this doesn’t even feel like a job.”
“Well, I’m happy to hear that. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t worried you might get through this first week and change your mind about this, since it wasn’t what you’d originally hoped to find in a job,” he shared.
Shaking my head, I insisted, “I’d much rather be here with him instead of in an office doing anything else.”
“Really?”
“Absolutely.”
Banks turned his attention to Rhys and said, “Do you hear that, buddy? Lamise likes being here with you, so you must have been on your best behavior.”
My lips tipped up in a smile at hearing Banks talk to his son like that. “You should probably reward him with something special this week,” I teased.
“Oh yeah? Like what?”
I shrugged. “I’m thinking he might like a visit with his grandma.”
Banks lifted a brow and assessed me. “Have you been talking to my mom?”
Licking my lips, belatedly noticing Banks’s eyes dropping to them, I answered, “Rhys and I might have had a video chat with her this afternoon. I hope that’s okay.”
I’d assumed since Banks had indicated he was okay with me sharing photos or videos of Rhys with his mom, that he wouldn’t be upset if I’d gotten on a video call with her. But when he made no move to speak, I started to think I’d crossed a line I shouldn’t have.
Granted, I wasn’t in his line of work, so I couldn’t be sure, but perhaps there was some reason related to safety and technology that I was unaware of. Too concerned thathe was going to fire me for doing something he hadn’t approved of, I started to panic.
“I’m sorry, Banks. I didn’t mean to overstep. I should have asked for your permission before doing something like that. I just… I just assumed that since you were okay with me sending her pictures or videos of him that you’d be okay with this, too. It was wrong. I’m sorry. Please don’t fire me,” I begged.
Wow.
It had become more and more clear throughout the week how much this job was helping me, how much I needed it. But I wasn’t sure I understood the full magnitude of it until now, until it was on the line.
Banks tipped his head to the side, and his features softened. “I’m not going to fire you, Lamise.”
I nodded my head furiously as I shifted back and forth on my feet. The relief was so immense, tears filled my eyes. I tried to blink them back again, but two escaped and spilled down my cheeks.
“Why are you crying?” Banks asked, his voice laced with concern.
I swiped away my tears, feeling completely mortified, and couldn’t think of anything to say other than the truth. “I love this job,” I rasped. “This week has been one of the best weeks I’ve had in months, and I didn’t want to do anything to screw it up. If you fired me, I just… I don’t know what I’d do. I know it’s only been a week, but I adore your son already. I’d be devastated if I only ever got just this one week with him.”
