Chapter 29: Celeste

Celeste Montreau sat on the edge of her seat in the core living room. On a blanket close by on the floor, Kendall Hanks carefully examined a stuffed bunny for the tenth time in as many minutes. When the baby squeezed the toy in the right way, it squeaked; an awe-inspiring feature she hadn’t discovered until ten minutes earlier.

Celeste explained, “So, when the last of their children entered the first grade, I was no longer needed unless I only wanted to work two or three hours a day or help on weekends. I thanked them, and we had a good cry over my departure, but it was time. The Wilsons gave me a sterling written recommendation that you have in front of you, and I’m sure they’ll verify all of that by telephone or personal meeting. We’re still friends, and I will want to watch the children grow up.”

Celeste was the finalist for the job of nanny for Ashley and Kyle’s baby. The fact that it was Ashley and Dave’s baby was glossed over and not yet mentioned. Dave was presented as a surrogate for the interview for Kyle who had to be in Nashville more than he expected.

Celeste had short blonde frizzy hair, a smile that dazzled everyone she beamed at, great comfort with young children, and a natural friendliness with all adults. Dave thought of her as somewhat sheltered, although he couldn’t quite put his finger on why.

Dave asked, “Where did you grow up?”

Celeste beamed, “In Morgan, Iowa. It’s a very small town just over the border from Minnesota and about two-hundred miles from Minneapolis. Life was pretty simple there, and, to my way of thinking, boring. I went to a regional high school, and as soon as I graduated about eight years ago, I left town. Oh, I’ve been back many times to visit, of course, but I just never want to live there again.”

“Why did you come to Sarasota?”

“Oh, I kind of followed my last job. I went to college in Minneapolis, but I needed money so I got a couple of childcare jobs. I had a partial scholarship and my family helped out, too. Just after graduation, I started working for the Wilsons in the city. They lived in a big condo, and she’d just had the twins. They gave me room, board, and a good salary, so I kind of moved in with them.”

“Well, it turned out that they also had a winter home in Sarasota. They didn’t get to come here all that often because of their jobs, but when they did, they brought me. I really liked the city and all the arts. After the twins were a little easier to travel with, after they a year old, Mrs. Wilson would come down here and spend a couple of months in January and February, the worst months weather-wise up there. Mr. Wilson would fly down every two or three weeks.”

Dave nodded, “Ah, so you discovered the city that way.”

“Well, Mrs. Wilson moved here. Mr. Wilson decided to stay in Minneapolis.”

Both Ashley and Dave looked puzzled.

Celeste explained, “The whole situation got very awkward for me. They were each having secret affairs. Mrs. Wilson would even bring her boyfriends home, and I was to watch the children and keep them out of her way and certainly away from the master bedroom. Mr. Wilson made several passes at me, and I told him to stuff it or I’d spill the beans. He left me alone after that, but I got a lot of lusty looks from him. That was the last year. One time, I heard him on the phone arranging a get together with his girlfriend. That time, he told me to forget what I heard. I didn’t forget, but I didn’t say anything either.”

Ashley looked at Dave and made a signal that it was time to have ‘The Chat’ about the Circle.

Dave started, “Celeste, have you watched any of the reality TV show, The Circle?”

“Errr, no. Why?”

“That’s a reality TV about this place, where you are, in Sarasota. It shows how we live and some of the things that make our lives interesting and distinctive. There’s also a book. We’re giving you a copy, as well as DVDs for seasons one and two of the TV show. The third season is just airing now on channel 618.”

“Oh, okay. Ashley told me about her music. I love country music, and have always enjoyed listening to her. I assume some of the TV show is about her.”

“It is, but a lot of it covers other aspects of how we live.” He stood and walked to one of the large windows so that Celeste would have to turn in her seat to look at him. In doing so, she glanced out the window onto the patio – the patio where about fifteen women were sitting wearing only monokinis.

Dave said, “One of the things about the Circle is our mode of dress. We are very casual, and very laid back about our lifestyle. As you can see outside on this lovely day, the women enjoy being outside in relatively little clothing.”

Celeste’s gaze shifted and her eyes flared.

“There is no expectation for you to adhere to this style of dress, but to work here you must be tolerant of the others that live here.”

Dave returned to his seat, and Celeste snuck another long look outside at the various women.

Dave said, “While you will live in Kyle and Ashley’s home down on Perimeter Drive, you will be up here in the core some of the time – both alone and with Kendall. Meals are served up here, and you will be here for most of those. The baby pool is here, too. You can even see a couple of the mothers with their young children at that pool.” He pointed.

“If you want to use the gym, sauna, Jacuzzi, the library, and so on, these are all up here, too. It just that ... well ... after dinner, people in the Circle get very friendly with each other.”

Celeste frowned, “How friendly?”

“Unlike the Wilsons, who had secret affairs going on, we believe we can openly love more than one person, and we do. We often express that love physically – meaning we have sex with them; we make love with them, and I emphasize the love. Some of that sex is public and very visible after nine or nine-thirty at night. Of course, you can easily avoid this by simply heading back to Ashley’s house after dinner.”

Celeste turned to Ashley and cautiously asked, “Do you do this?”

Ashley nodded. “I do. I love the men in the Circle and they love me. We express that love with each other in physical ways, just as a man and woman in a relationship do when they’re in love. There is no secret about it. My husband knows what I do. When he’s here, he also engages with others in the Circle in the same way. This is just part of the overall philosophy of life that we believe and that we live out in our daily lives.”

Celeste was very quiet and looked back and forth slowly between Dave and Ashley.

Dave emphasized, “You need not know about, care about the details, nor is there any expectation that you would participate in any of our activities. Our life philosophy and our attendant lifestyle is described in the book, and covered superficially in the various episodes of the TV series on the DVDs we’re giving you. I emphasize that we have no expectations of you other than exquisite child care for Kendall.”

Celeste sat somewhat stiffly, “May I take time to read and view these before we talk further about the job?”

Ashley said, “Absolutely. Please take the time you need. I ask that if you are no longer interested to let me know by next Sunday evening. If you have any questions, please call me. You may also call Dave or anybody else you’ve met here. Our business cards are tucked into the book. You are more than welcome to come back to see us, too.”

Dave stood, “I know that this may be a little shocking to you at first. The other nannies who’ve worked for people in the Circle and the people who work with the children in our home-schooling program can be contacted as well. If you call me, I will give you their contact information any time, if you want that.”

Celeste kept a neutral expression and shook both their hands. She took a long gaze out the large plate glass windows at the women sunning and talking on the patio. A few were reading. Two were just coming out of the swimming pool together and laughing.

Ashley walked Celeste out of the core to her car.

When Ashley came back, she asked Dave, “What do you think?”

“I like her and her experience. She knows what she’s doing with babies and even studies to keep up to date. I think she was shocked at the nudity and needs to loosen up her thinking. Maybe the book and TV show will help, or maybe it will just prolong the shock. I can’t predict.”

Ashley chuckled, “I do have a feeling that we’re going to be fielding some questions in a couple of days.”

Dave picked up Kendall and cossetted her, with many kisses to her baby-soft head. She loved the attention, especially when the bunny appeared in his hand and he made it squeak. Her eyes got large at the sound and she gurgled with a smile at the critter.

Dave got a call from Ashley three days later on Thursday afternoon. “Hi. Can you come back and join me to talk to Celeste about some of her questions? Three p.m., chez moi?”

“I’ll be there,” he told her.

Celeste was punctual. The three met in Ashley’s living room, again with Kendall on a blanket on the floor with some toys. Celeste greeted Kendall with more attention than the adults got, at least initially. The baby responded will to the potential nanny.

Finally, they all sat. Ashley and Dave looked to Celeste to set the agenda and pose her questions that she said she had.

Celeste said slowly, “You indicated you all had sex together, but I couldn’t imagine the extent until I read the book. Do you really have sex with a hundred other people?”

Dave laughed, “Not all at once. We seek out people we love and want to be with many evenings, especially on the weekends when people are more rested and feeling attentive to each other.”

Celeste said to Ashley, “But you’ve had sex with about a hundred men who are Circle members?”

She nodded. “Not quite all of them, but as I get to know and develop a fondness for each of them, that’s a logical next step in our relationship. We also prefer the term ‘make love’ because it is more expressive of what’s really going on. The lovemaking completes our romantic relationship, just the way a romantic relationship would be incomplete without the lovemaking.”

Celeste digested that answer and turned to Dave, “And you really have ten wives?”

“Yes. I have Alice who I legally married well over twenty years ago, and nine others, most from within the past decade that I’ve made the same level of commitment to. I then have many other women in the Circle who I love as well, and a few outside the Circle – in other related situations.”

“And you have sex with them?”

“Often.” He paused and said, “Let me try to get you to think about this subject in a different way. I would like you to think that we develop a close relationship with someone first. In that relationship we explore every facet of each other; how we think about the problems the world faces, how we grew up, our education and learning styles, the values we hold dear, our idiosyncrasies and so on. Eventually, as our relationship becomes one that can be described as loving, we consummate that love by including a physical relationship to the intellectual and spiritual one we’ve been developing.”

Celeste said, “So, you develop a relationship first and then have sex?”

“Simplified, that’s the ideal way things happen.” He nodded.

“So, there are other ways it happens?”

“Yes, but then it gets complicated to explain. Always, if it happens in some kind of reverse way, there is the potential for the end result to be the same as I just described.”

Celeste said, “None of you believe in monogamy, right?”

Dave said, “Not quite right. A better way to put it is that we think there are OTHER models for a relationship in addition to monogamy. Some people call what we practice CNS or consensual non-monogamy. Another term is polyamory. We see and practice that model for relationships since it doesn’t require you to be beholden to only one other person.”

Celeste nodded, “If I ask where you love, honor, and obey each other, what is your response?”

“Love and honor, absolutely. Mutual respect is a hallmark of our belief system. Obey, however, implies subservience and possession. We are very egalitarian, more so than outside our gates. We may not be perfect, but we strive to be, especially on this CORE value. Just because they’re in a relationship with someone doesn’t mean that other person controls you or that you control them.”

“But you do what you want without talking to your wives.”

“As do they, but again it’s more complex that it looks. We talked about how we wanted to live as a family, and that was one result. We do have some boundaries and rules, subtle though they be. We all have the freedom to be with whomever we want. If it becomes with someone outside the Circle, we want to talk about it beforehand. We want to be sure that none of us brings home an unwanted STD or the equivalent. We only want to interact with nice people. You get the picture, I hope.”

“I do. Thank you. I detect from reading the book that there is some incest that occurs in the Circle. Is this accurate?”