A nanny who was almost fired for a passionate relationship has opened up about her controversial marriage and her children have shared why they were against the idea in a very candid conversation.
Krystle Romano, 30, met her now-husband Ben, 50, in 2014, when she was 23 and working as a nanny for their three children.
In a segment on Truly’s Love Don’t Judge, the blended family talked about what it was like for Krystal to go from being a contract employee to being the young stepmom to her boss’s kids, and why they hated him at first.
Ben said that when his children found out he was dating Krystle, they initially didn’t know how serious it was and saw her as “just another girl that dad is dating.”
“My dad brought a lot of women home, so I thought he’d bring home another 23-year-old girl,” said Ben’s 19-year-old son, Sal.
A nanny who was on the verge of being fired to having a passionate relationship has opened up about her controversial marriage and her children have shared why they ultimately opposed the idea.
In the honest conversation, the children, especially Sal (left), shared their true feelings about this unusual relationship. Pictured on the right is Krystle reacting to her candid assessment.
Ben said his father’s serial dating affected his eldest daughter, Frankie, the most, noting that she was more than seven years younger than Krystle, and was furious when she found out.
“But we’re fine now, so it’s okay,” Krystle interjected.
In the honest conversation, the children, especially Sal, shared their true feelings about the unusual relationship.
“I think my dad and Crystal are good together because the age difference is big, it attracts a lot of attention, Crystal likes attention,” Sal said cheekily.
He continued: “A lot of people say she’s a gold digger, obviously, with my dad’s money; I don’t disagree.”
His stepmother is heard saying: ‘Come out… stop!’
Krystle’s son Kash admitted that he didn’t like Ben when he and his mother started dating.
“I think Ben and I get along well now, but when I was eight or nine I just didn’t like him and resented him because I knew he wasn’t like my biological father,” she said.
“But now I think we have a good relationship.”
Krystle, who was a single mother of one at the time, became a hit with Ben’s children and eventually fell in love with their father, pictured with children Frankie, 22, Sal, 17, and Julianna, 19 and Krystle’s son, Kashton.
The father of three initially thought Krystle was a bad babysitter, but changed his mind after Krystle came to work one day dressed and made up.
The couple still hire nannies to care for their children at home, although Krystle did not allow Ben to speak to them, saying she did not want to “lose him the way she got him.”
Even though they didn’t like each other when they met (and divorced Ben even thought she was a “terrible babysitter”), the father of three changed his mind after Krystle showed up to work one day dressed in makeup.
“He couldn’t stop looking at me,” Krystle said sheepishly. “So I think that’s when he fell in love with me.”
For Krystle, seeing Ben playing with her then three-and-a-half-year-old son Kashton was what made her fall in love with him, describing him as “such a good dad.”
The couple have now merged their family, but their children have admitted they had reservations about their new stepparents.
“Everyone thought he was crazy. This man is 20 years older than you, he has three children, what are you thinking?” Krystle admitted.
Although they receive a lot of negative reactions on social media, they say the negativity has brought them closer.
“We really don’t care about living our lives with our kids and our family and whether you like us or not, we’ll keep doing what we do,” Krystle said.