12. Wear A Pair Of Jeans Well
WEAR A PAIR OF JEANS WELL
“ W hat’s this I hear you had a date?”
“When?” Phoebe asked her mother the next day. Her mother blurted that question out before she even could say hi.
“On Friday,” her mother said. “Or is there another time you had one?”
Since she didn’t have a lot of people to talk to about this, she might as well use her mother as a sounding board.
“I had another yesterday.”
“Now I need to pull up a chair and hear this. With the same guy? Elias Carlisle that is working with Ben?”
At least she knew how her mother found out. Not that there was any doubt.
“Yes, the same guy,” she said.
“Tell me about him,” her mother said. “First impressions and how you met.”
Guess her brother didn’t give all the details. She could be thankful for that, but she’d be honest with her mother.
“Don’t tell Matt this,” she said.
“Why?” her mother asked. “Ben seemed to think Elias was a nice guy. Comes from a good upstanding family.”
“So you know about his family?” she asked.
“Just who his older brother is,” her mother said. “I will confess I did a quick search and saw there are multiple kids, most working for West.”
“Yes,” she said. “What I don’t want you to do is tell Matt how Elias and I met.”
“Why are you laughing?”
She couldn’t help it. She was even holding her side while she tried to catch her breath.
“I slid into him. My car hit his truck.”
“Are you okay?” her mother asked quickly. “How come I’m just hearing about this now?”
She took a few deep breaths to stop the laughter. Guess it was going to be one of those embarrassing things to look back on.
“I’m fine. It was the snow day earlier in the week. We were the only two people that I saw on the roads.”
“Of course you would try to go in that day,” her mother said.
“I have a practice to run,” she argued.
“That wouldn’t have suffered if you went in late. I’m sure your staff didn’t come in on time.”
“No,” she said, waving her hand and putting her feet up on the couch. Not that her mother could see her relaxing or brushing off the fact her staff weren’t as reliable as her.
“Don’t sound annoyed over that,” her mother said. “Considering you got into an accident it was a safety concern.”
“It wasn’t much of one. He was at a stoplight and I was braking.
I wasn’t even going that fast, but my car didn’t stop in time.
I slid and just barely kissed his bumper as I turned the wheel.
He’s got this big truck and all it did was leave a scratch.
Not even a big one. I’ve got a bigger one on my car, but that’s it. ”
“I’m glad to hear it,” her mother said. “You would have given him your card.”
“I did. I only knew his first name and nothing more. First impression was he’s very attractive.”
“And nothing at all like the men you normally date,” her mother said. “Not from the pictures I saw of him. There are a lot in terms of him with his business.”
“Don’t be snobby, Mom,” she said, frowning.
Her mother snorted. “I’m offended. I’m one of the least snobby people I know. I don’t live off of sushi or need a fancy espresso machine because there might have been some whining going on.”
She rolled her eyes. “I didn’t whine over that. Matt made more out of it.”
“Your brother is known for making more out of things, but we know you do like some of the finer things in life. Some might think you’re snobby.”
It was not the first time it’d been said to her. “I’m not though,” she argued. “I do like nice things, but that doesn’t mean I want to be with a guy who is the same way.”
Not when the guy looked like Elias.
And kissed like him.
Oh man. The thought of his lips on hers again had her squirming on the couch some.
They’d had dinner. A simple one that no one could accuse her of complaining about. She didn’t, nor did it occur to her to do.
She was just happy to be spending time with Elias.
They talked.
They laughed.
Then he kissed her senseless and had her fanning her face before she could stop herself.
Of course he smirked over it. She didn’t know many men who wouldn’t have.
Yanking her in for another one to see if he could get the same reaction might have just turned the dial on her arousal button causing the shifting on her couch thinking of it again.
“Point taken,” her mother said. “But your past men have proven otherwise.”
“And look at how well they all worked out. Maybe it’s nice to have someone that isn’t part of my world.”
“Phoebe, that sounds snobby right there.”
She threw her hand up in the air. “I’m not being snobby. I’m saying that it might be nice to not have to worry about a man that I’m competing with. Someone who knows the world I work in and is going to pat me on the head or mansplain things to me.”
Her mother laughed. “Got it. You didn’t say how you feel about Elias.”
“Mom, it’s been two dates.”
“In a short period. You said he’s good-looking.”
“He is that,” she said. “In a rough and rugged way. Man, does he wear a pair of jeans well.”
Her mother burst out laughing. “I’ve never heard you say anything like that before.”
“I’ve never thought it. I’ll be serious. Mom, he’s really nice. Dedicated to his career and proving he has what it takes and is thankful for his brother’s help. But I know he wants to be on his own.”
“Sounds like someone else I know,” her mother said.
“Yes. We have that in common. He probably works a lot more than me so he’s not going to complain when I’m working.”
“But are you going to complain if he is?” her mother asked.
“Nope,” she said. “I need to learn the ropes here. I have to meet people. I have to make a name for myself and Kelly Law. That is going to take time and I don’t want the pressure or the stress of any guy I’m spending time with to think I’m not giving him enough attention.”
Because that had happened in her life before too.
“I know you hate that,” her mother said.
“With a passion. I don’t like needy men. We are keeping this light.”
She didn’t think she was needy in the least and the last thing she wanted was to be with someone who wanted more than she could give.
Which was why she said she didn’t know how long she was going to be here.
Might as well put it out there so no long-term plans were being plotted on either end.
“I’m not sure of many women who do like needy men,” her mother said.
“You’d be surprised. I’ve had a few friends who think it’s great. It’s like a compliment to them that a man needs and wants them so much.”
“To each their own. When is your next date with Elias?”
“Not sure,” she said. “I’ve got things to do today and I’m sure he does too. Then we’ll be busy with work. I’ll talk to him at some point.”
She was still debating if she wanted to reach out to him today or not.
He reached out on Saturday so if they were keeping score, it was her turn.
She didn’t want to be one of those people who had to keep score either, but she didn’t know where to land on the map of frequency in a situation like this.
“I guess it’s best not to overthink it,” her mother said. “Like you’re doing.”
“I’m glad you’re finding amusement in this,” she said. She was smiling though.
“You have a lot of changes going on at once. You’ve always been hyper-focused on your career.”
“You too,” she said.
“No, Phoebe. Not my whole life. I started that way and then fell in love with your father. I found my balance. I put my family first but still was able to have a great career.”
She knew all about it.
Her mother had a lighter caseload at times so one of them was home with the kids more when they were younger.
When they were older and in sports, her parents were splitting their time running around to events with all their kids.
But once she was old enough to drive herself, her mother’s career picked up more. At least from what she could see.
Guess sometimes you just had to compromise.
It’d be nice to find that in her life, but she wasn’t searching too hard because she didn’t want to face disappointment.
“You have managed it better than anyone else I know. My hero. I look up to you for that.”
“That’s very sweet,” her mother said. “I’m glad I could provide a good example for you.”
“The best,” she said. Her phone was buzzing and she looked down. “Mom, I’m getting a call for work.”
“The office is closed,” her mother said.
“But there is a line people can call after hours. Let me take this.”
“I’ll talk to you later,” her mother said and hung up.
“Kelly Law,” she said, answering the phone.
“Hi. Um, I need an attorney. I just got arrested and I’m in jail.”
“What’s your name and the charges?” she asked.
“Regina Weber,” Regina said. “They said I’m under the influence and I’m not. I’m a diabetic. My sugar was low. I tried to show them, but they said no. I refused a breathalyzer. Was that a mistake?”
“No,” she said. “I’m on the way. Tell them your attorney will be there and answer no more questions.”
“Thank you,” Regina said, sniffling.
Phoebe changed out of her jeans into a pair of nice pants, put on shoes and grabbed her purse and jacket, and was out the door.
With her job at the forefront of her thoughts, she was calmer. More in her element.
Men...yeah, they always confused her.