“I don’t know what you are implying,” she flushed. “I never even spoke to him about the matter.”
“If you had, I have a feeling he would have told you to do as you see fit.”
“And I am. I saw fit not to bring in more people at the moment if we don’t need them. It will help keep costs down.”
“Of course that makes a lot of sense, ma’am,” but there was something in her smile that made it clear that she wasn’t quite buying what she was saying.
They made their way through all the current projects, making sure everything was in order. It was only once they had established the next steps that Veronica stepped back with a sigh.
“I think that’s everything,” she nodded. “Thank you for going over all of this with me. I know you probably had other duties you should have been attending to. I appologize for pulling you away.”
She shook her head. “I’m the housekeeper. It’s my job to ensure everything is running smoothly.”
“Well, I appreciate the time and dedication you put into it.”
“And I appreciate the time and effort you put into improving the estate. I won’t lie, I was rather worried about the state the place was falling into if I’m honest.”
“I can understand why. I know you care about this place.”
She smiled. “It would be hard not to, with how long I’ve worked looking after it.”
“And you’ve done such a good job of it.”
Mrs. Carter shook her head. “I have done the best I can. I don’t know if I would say it was enough.”
“I would, and hopefully it will be easier now that I’m here to help you. I hope that isn’t presumptuous of me to say.”
“I don’t think it is. I have appreciated your efforts so far.”
“Thank you. I wouldn’t have been able to do half of it without your help.”
“I don’t know about that.”
“I do. I have never done anything like this before. I wouldn’t have had the first idea of where to start if I didn’t have your expertise to lean on.”
“I am glad to be of service.”
They continued going over preparations for a little while then Veronica sighed.
“I suppose I should try to find Christopher, let him know about their visit.”
“I think that would be wise. I doubt he would want to be blindsided by it.”
“He still might feel that way.” She frowned. “They are coming rather sooner than expected.”
“Yes, I’m afraid the post can take quite some time to arrive here. It is a bit remote.”
“That’s alright. I’m rather surprised by how much I like being this far away from everything.”
“I imagine it must have been quite a change from living in the heart of london.”
“It was. I’m still always surprised by just how quiet it can be here, but it’s rather nice. Relaxing.”
“I’m glad you think so. I won’t lie, when you first arrived, I was worried you wouldn’t adjust well.”
“I was too. Aside from the noise of the city, I was also used to the the noise of a house full of sisters.”
“Have the dogs helped?”
