I grimace. “I’ll find a local guest house.” Called my van.
I gather my senses and pour the tea into the cup. The jug is light enough for Helen to add her own milk. She also drops a lump of sugar in and gives it a stir.
She nudges the brownie toward me. “Help a girl out and half that for me.”
I use the fork to part the treat. She picks up one half and nods at the other. “Eat.”
“Oh no, that’s okay.”
She scowls at me. Helen is scary. I grab the brownie and take a small bite. It tastes like heaven.
“The job requires you to stay on my property.”
I cover my mouth as I cough. “What?” That wasn’t in the ad.
“If you’d prefer to not be in the house, I have an empty two-bed poolside villa out back I can accept as a compromise.” My mouth flops open. How is she making it seem like I’m doing her a favor by living here? “I can pay you cash, weekly.”
My mouth snaps closed and for the first time in a month, I’m almost brought to tears. By kindness. “Are you sure?” Why am I trying to talk myself out of a perfect job?
“Don’t think this is an easy ride. I need help with cooking, cleaning, and shopping, among other things. I’ll expect you in my kitchen by 7 a.m. preparing breakfast, and some nights you won’t clock out until after dinner.”
“That’s okay.”
“You’ll have one day a week off.”
“Also acceptable.”
“But I will pay you by the hour, so be assured that you’ll be well compensated for your time.”
“I never doubted it.” Not when stuck up Mary Poppins was my competition.
“Excellent. Now pour yourself a congratulatory cup of tea, eat the rest of that brownie, and I’ll show you where you’ll bestaying. You can have the day to move your things in and get acquainted with the property.”
“Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me yet, Cleo. Let’s do the week and see how we mesh.”
“Right.”
“Last question before we commit to this, and it’s make or break, so don’t lie to me.”
I fist my hands in my lap. “Yes?”
“Do you like dogs?”
CHAPTER 13
HONOR
JULY 29th
Heartbreakers and charmers need not apply.
Ishoot up in bed and grab the gun from under my pillow before aiming at the shadows in the bedroom. The nightmares have returned. Fully-formed demons wearing Gideon’s face invade my nights, and when I open my eyes, they take a hot minute to recede into Hell where they belong.
I drag in a breath, click on the lamp, and check the clock. 4:40 a.m. Good enough. I tuck the gun under my pillow and get up. Attempting to go back to sleep now is pointless; I’ll only get frustrated. Today is Tuesday so I have plenty to do.
I grab a red bikini from the bottom drawer, a sneaky purchase Helen added onto my order. She guessed I can’t buy anything directly, so she’s taken to asking me if I need anything when she places an order with a well-known online company. She deducts the cost from my weekly wages, and even then, I’m earning more money than I know what to do with.
