Chapter 6: Southern Lady

Becky's POV 

I couldn’t believe my prospective employer was Phillip Dale, the Adonis who had gotten me fired. Seeing him, I thought I would be angry, but all I was imagining was his lips on mine.

And his apology surprised and pleased me.

Maybe he wasn’t such an ass after all. I thought. I was contemplating forgiving him till he said,

“You should have controlled your temper though, when dealing with customers you have to be polite no matter the provocation.”

I was wrong. You are still an ass.

Then he talked about my not having a college degree as if it were a crime.

But despite my dislike of him, I couldn’t help the way my heart beat by merely looking at him. He was handsome and I was already falling for him. 

"Behave yourself Rebecca, he doesn’t notice you," I told myself.

Throughout the interview he treated me as if he were doing me a favor talking to him, like I was too socially inferior to him and it annoyed me.

But I needed the job, and luckily I had been able to persuade him to give me a try. 

I had restrained myself from dropping my jaw when he had mentioned the salary. $3000 was a fortune. 

I was determined to keep the job, at least for a while. I would control my temper no matter the provocation. And I will save enough money to even start college. But if I wasn’t retained, he promised I would still get the $3000, so it was a win-win.

I followed Ms. Bright into the hallway.

“I will explain the workings of the place to you first, then we will go to see Ms. Dale,” she said. 

We entered the living room and sat down.

“I don’t know how much Mr. Dale has told you, so I will probably start from scratch. You are to look after Ms. Anna Dale, she is Mr. Dale’s grandmother. She is in a wheelchair and has health issues. You are to give her medicine, look after her, make sure she takes her meals, and take her to see her doctors. She likes reading, so you read to her often. I’ll show you how and when to give her medication. You get her meals from the kitchen. I’ll explain her diet to you too, and give you all the dates of her doctor's appointment. You start work by 9 am, that’s usually when she wakes up, and close by 9 pm when she goes to bed.”

“I work every day?”

“Except Sunday. It’s your free day.”

“Who looks after her then?”

“Mr. Dale. He prefers it that way. If he can’t, and you have to work overtime, you’ll be paid for it.”

“Do I sleep in her room?”

“No, I will show you where you’ll be staying. It’s a bungalow nearby.”

I nodded, “sounds easy.”

“It is, but there are rules you’ll have to keep to. No lateness, which would be easy to keep because you will be living next door; no stealing, that's instant dismissal; no disrespecting of Ms. Dale; no destruction of property and no visitors. Understood?”

I nodded.

“You will have all your meals here. I know you'll enjoy working here. Come with me, I’ll show you your living quarters.”

We went outside and I looked around. There were trees planted on either side of the house. The well-kept garden was colorful with flowers. There was a patio at the back and a swimming pool with lounging chairs and small chrome tables. She led me to a small bungalow on the right a few feet from the house, shaded by a cinnamon tree. We went inside.

There was a furnished living room, a kitchen, and a bedroom.

“This is where you’ll be staying. There is the intercom,” she pointed to it. “I have moved my things out so it’s all yours.”

“It is beautiful,” I said, impressed.

“Let’s go meet Ms. Dale.”

“What’s she like?” I asked, worried, remembering what the cab driver had told me about how awful the residents of Garden Estate were.

“A real Southern lady. Very sweet. You will enjoy working for her. The three years I have worked here have been my happiest.”

“Why are you leaving?” I asked cautiously.

She smiled. “My daughter is going back to school for her PhD. So I want to help her look after my grandchildren. As much as I enjoy working here, family comes first.”

We entered the house and went through a door on the right leading into the main house. And into the hallway. Ms. Bright showed me around, introducing me to the housekeeper and cook, and showing me where the elevator was.

“We use it to get Ms. Dale up and down, but if I'm on my own I prefer the stairs.” She explained. “Or would you rather we use the elevator now?”

“No. Stairs is fine.”

We climbed the stairs to the second floor.

“Where do the remaining stairs lead?” I asked as we walked down a long corridor with rooms on either side. The opulence and size of the place reminded me of a five-star hotel.

“The rooftop. That is where Mr. Dale has his own private swimming pool. Off limits to all but the housekeeper.”

From nowhere the image of Phillip Dale nude in a swimming pool swam into my mind. 

"Stop such thoughts," I warned myself.

We stopped in front of a door and she knocked.

“Come in.” A soft, rich voice called out.

We entered. Anna Dale was sitting on an easy chair by the window reading a book.

She didn’t look a day older than fifty. She had a beautiful round face with intelligent brown eyes, hidden behind horn-rimmed glasses. Her gray hair was cut short and well styled.

“Anna, this is my replacement, Rebecca Richards.”

“Good afternoon Ms. Dale,” I greeted politely.

She removed her glasses and stared at me. Then smiled broadly.

“Wow! You look a lot like my younger sister Carol.” She held out her hands to me. 

Blushing, I went over to meet her. 

“The resemblance is uncanny, don’t you think so Jane?” She asked Ms. Bright.

Ms. Bright nodded. “Yes I do.”

“Sit down dear, tell me about yourself.” She pulled me down gently on the footstool beside her. “You really are beautiful.”

“Thank you Ms. Dale,” I said.

“Anna. Call me Anna. Ms. Dale sounds like an old woman. Am I an old woman?”

I laughed. I liked her already. “No, you are not,” I responded.

“So tell me everything about you,” she said.

“I will go see your lunch,” Ms. Bright said.

“Tell the chef to prepare something special. We have a visitor,” she told her.

She nodded and left us.

“Me? But I am not that important,” I blurted out.

“Nonsense. You are beautiful and special. Now tell me everything about you, every single thing.”

I told her the basics. Where I was from, where I lived and where I had gone to school.

“Won’t you like to go to college?” She asked kindly.

“I hope to some day. I am trying to save money for it. My dad died a couple of months ago. He suffered a stroke. There wasn’t much left after we had settled his hospital bills.”

“I am so sorry about it, dear.”

I held back the part of my family losing our home and mom leaving me to my fate.

“We must talk about your future. But for now, I am going to make sure you are happy here. Has Jane shown you where you will be living?”

“Yes, it's beautiful.”

“It’s nothing. If you ever need anything, anything at all, just ask me.” She frowned suddenly. “Jane mentioned the toaster was faulty. I can’t remember if I gave her money for a new one. I will ask her. I didn’t want Phillip to know, he makes such a fuss over little things. I hope he treated you well during the interview?”

I smiled slightly, remembering my first meeting with Phillip Dale.

“Yes, very well.”

“Never mind his brooding face, he really is a dear. The poor boy has had his heart broken. I really wish he'd find love.”

“That is so sad. What-“

Jane came in.

“Lunch is ready everyone,” she announced.