“Miss Elena?” Thomas, the personal assistant of young master Zachary Dawson called her, waking her from her reverie.
“Uh, yes, sir.” She answered shyly. Her smooth cheeks were flushed red, making her look even more adorable.
But Thomas cursed in his heart.
There was this very beautiful and sweet woman in front of him, but instead of feeling blushed or happy, he was so tense. One mistake and maybe his master's gun was not only pointed at him to threaten him. He might be pulling the trigger for real this time, moreover if Zachary Dawson saw like it was him that flirt with her from the CCTV.
“Have you finished reading the contract?” he asked again and this time Elena immediately nodded.
“But… do I really have to stay here?” She asked. She did live alone. Living anywhere was fine as long as it was safe. The thing is, she wanted to know or at least took a glance at her boss’s face. But considering the rumors about him hates woman, she kept her mouth shut about it.
“Ah, yes.” Thomas nodded. “That’s one of the conditions. You have to live here while you work here.”
Is this safe? She thought. She still remembered her foster mother's words when she was still in the orphanage. Mrs. Terry, who had been looking after and taking care of all of them there. Mrs. Terry was not the only foster mother in the orphanage, but Elena was the closest and most familiar with her.
“Elena, my dear, it’s hard to let you go. But you’re right, you have to continue your life out of here. You’re young, there are so much you need to explore. You need to see outside world other than this small place …” Terry shed tears, seeing the little baby that she once cared for with all her heart, now grown into a beautiful and kind woman.
“Yes, Mam. Thank you for supporting me, and for taking care of me all this time. Without you, I wouldn’t be alive…” Elena said in a trembling voice, but a sweet smile was still on her beautiful face.
She tried not to cry. In the end, she also had to leave the orphanage that had been her home since she was a baby. Apart from Elena having to work to support herself, she also wanted to help her family here even a little. This is a small orphanage where the founder was a single mother that care about abandoned babies and children. She took them in and build this place with her own money. She wanted to help. There are babies, kids who needed milk and food every day. She was them years ago, she didn’t want them to go hungry and cold.
Elena didn't want to see them fighting over food.
Even though she didn't tell Mrs. Terry, Elena had already made up her mind. They were the only and real family she had.
“Be careful, my dear. Remember to always be alert. You are a beautiful, brilliant girl, never put yourself in a dangerous position. Becareful…” Terry stroked her soft hair.
That day, Terry said many things that Elena would never forget. Advice to always be careful was something she often said. Elena was very reluctant to let go of her daughter, afraid that the world would be so cruel to that innocent child.
Terry gave her some money from her savings, even bought a cell phone which she immediately gave to Elena.
“Mam… This is too much, I can buy it myself when I have a job,” Elena was wide-eyed when she saw Terry handing her the phone.
Terry shook her head and put the phone in her bag.
“It’s not a new brand phone but it’s still good and the price was cheap. You will need it, we should keep in touch with each other. I will call you every day, okay?”
Elena remembered those times, when she agreed to always give her update about her daily life. Telling her everything she did in town and what jobs she got. Although Elena was still sad because she still couldn't help the orphanage like she secretly promised, but she still gave her foster mother news every day.
“Do you… refuse staying here?” Thomas asked, breaking her reverie once again.
Elena smiled nervously and shook her head quickly. "It's not like that, sir..."
“Oh, just call me Thomas,” He interrupted, uncomfortable when Elena called him so formally. He had a feeling that this beautiful lady in front of him would have permanent status here in the future.
Well, their young master spent a lot of time just to find out her background and even gave special order to his men to record her daily life and guard her.
Thomas suspected that he was actually talking to potential lady of the house.
Meanwhile, Elena, who was clueless about that, still busy with her thoughts.
Did they want to trick her and lock her up here? The conditions were not that strange, but the salary was so high just for a maid.
Thomas who saw the doubt in Elena's eyes began to shed cold sweat. If this negotiation failed, he didn't know how young master would end him.
“You will stay here, but don't worry, you still get two days off, Saturday and Sunday. However you must be present not later than six o’clock in the evening at Sunday.
Her bright green pupils started to show interest and this made Thomas a little relieved.
“Oh, so… can I go home at weekend then?” She asked, and Thomas immediately nodded.
“Of course. But there are some conditions,” Thomas cleared his throat and began to express his young master’s intentions in better language.
“If the young master happened to stay at the Villa during the weekend, you can only go home on Saturday and must return Sunday morning. But if not, you can go home on Friday morning.”
Elena nodded in understanding and thought about it. This was a great offer. She could visit her family at the orphanage every week!
The orphanage is on the outskirts of town, two hours away from here. Not bad. But it would probably cost a lot of money if she come home too often.
“What if… I stay during weekend instead, is that allowed?” She asked.
“Ah, that’s right, if you decide to work on the weekend of course it will count as overtime. And the overtime bonus money will be added to your salary every week.” Thomas explained and this made Elena even more interested, but also even more suspicious.
"You might be wondering why the pay is so high though your position is a maid," Thomas said as if he had finally read Elena's mind.
“...We don’t just look for anyone to take care of the young master’s needs, that’s why there are some risks that must be borne. Do you know the rumors about our young master, Zachary Dawson?” He half whispered, pretending to hide this conversation from his boss, even though he was the one who set up this scenario and spread the strange news.
“He… hate women?” Elena asked.
“Yes. And it’s not really just a rumor.” Thomas sighed and scratched the back of his head, which wasn’t itchy.
“There is a possibility that you will not meet him at all while working here..”
“What?”
Thomas pursed his lips, “Mona will explain more of the rules to you later. So, are you ready to work?”
As Elena nodded slowly and signed the contract that she had read twice, Thomas could finally breathe a sigh of relief. His neck, which had been tense even though his face was smiling the whole time, was now a little more relaxed.
He could hear Zachary Dawson saying “good job,” in the back of his head even though the vicious man was currently watching them from every single CCTV in this villa.
“Our staff will help you carry your belongings, you will return with the car that we already prepared.” Thomas said while tidying up the documents that had been signed by Elena.
Meanwhile, she was wide-eyed when she heard it.
“Wait, now? But I haven’t even spoken to my bosses where I work, I’m not resigned yet...”
“Oh, don’t worry, Miss. You don’t have to worry about that. I’ll take care of everything.” Thomas said with a polite smile. “You just need to bring the things you’ll use while staying here and Mona will guide you from now on.”
Of course it wouldn't be difficult. Just hearing the name of Zachary Dawson would make people shudder and not want to get in the way or get into the mafia Don's wrath, let alone if they knew Elena was one of his people now.
Thomas bowed politely, which was immediately returned by Elena who was still confused. Despite Thomas' strange attitude of being too formal to her, who was just a new maid in this villa, she was still surprised by all this suddenness that she neglected other things she should have asked.
For example, what does this famous young Mr. Dawson look like? Shouldn't she recognize the person who hired her better, now?
It had been two weeks since Elena had lived and worked in this beautiful villa owned by Zachary Dawson and everything had gone smoothly but odd to her.She still couldn't believe that those people could move her things so quickly and neatly. Two other women who worked at the villa also helped her pack at that time and she didn't have much stuff. So she moved in to her new room that afternoon.She thought she would do a pile of work and would be very busy, considering only two maids were here before here and that's why she had to stay over. But the reality was far from her expectations.Her work started at six in the morning to prepare breakfast for the young master whom she never even saw, then hung out the washed clothes. In the afternoon, when they asked her to prepare the young master's food, she would prepare it, but if young master Dawson was not in the Villa, then she could do whatever she wanted.Elena thought cleaning was part of her job, but when Thomas saw her mopping the fl
Oddly enough that day, the villa felt quieter than usual. This large and luxurious residence on the edge of a cliff was not usually crowded because the owner hated it. But this time was different. There was something in this silence that made her think that it was not only her who was nervous but the entire building as well.Elena's steps became heavier and her heartbeat faster.Especially when she was right in front of Zachary Dawson's office door.During the two weeks she was here, Elena had heard many rumors about this man.They say, he is an incredibly handsome man, but so cold and indifferent. Zachary Dawson is the heir of a conglomerate family, the richest man in the country, but they are not people who like to be in the spotlight of the media. Since their business was not all legal.She was surprised, but she still needed this job very much.Her foster mother asked her about it when she got home last week, about who hired her and where she worked. Elena had to lie because she d
Around half past ten, Elena returned to the kitchen hurriedly. She was going to prepare the ingredients for supper. She actually wanted to start earlier. But she fell asleep and no one woke her up.Isn't the young master hungry? She thought.Most of the lights were turned off including those in the kitchen and she was walking a little unsteadily, tying her hair into a bun.She immediately opened the refrigerator without turning on the light and stared at the food ingredients there.“Are you going to cook this late?”“Ah!” Elena jolted and screamed out loud in shock. She covered her mouth with widened eyes.She didn't realize that there was anyone else there. Elena immediately turned towards the source of the voice and saw the silhouette of a tall man who leaning on the edge of the kitchen table, looking at her.She was still in complete shock and couldn't say anything but stare wildly at the silhouette and hold on to the refrigerator door.Until finally, the kitchen light suddenly tur
Thomas almost lost his mind when he saw the scene in the villa main kitchen that night.Thomas initially went back inside after waiting in the car for thirty minutes but Zachary still hadn't shown up. Tonight they were going to the Dawson family's successful black market arms warehouse, which was off the island, about two hours away by Dawson's private helicopter.Zachary had told him to wait in the car while he checked something. Thomas had expected the hideous and perfect Dawson heir to lecture the entire villa about the new girl. How they should take care of her and many other shocking things you would never hear come out of Zachary Dawson's mouth before.But it had been too long, there was no sign of Zachary Dawson coming out of the door. That was why he got out of the car and went inside.When he walked back inside, some of the rooms on the first floor were already dark. However, there was bright light coming from the kitchen. Near the entrance to the kitchen, Thomas saw Ben and
It was Saturday and Elena's day off. She knew from ‘Jack’ last night that the young master won’t be home for a few days because he had some business out of town. And this was her chance to find a replacement for the plate she accidentally broke last night.This morning when Elena said goodbye to Ben the butler, the old man sent her away and laughed awkwardly, saying that she could replace the plate with anything she could get at the grocery store.It was strange, the plate looked so expensive and authentic. She thought it would cost hundreds of dollars just for one plate. But both ‘Jack’ and Ben said the same thing, that it was cheap, nothing expensive about it.Whatever it was, Elena felt relieved. Even so, she thought maybe her range of cheap and expensive were different to them, so she planned to buy a fairly expensive plate as a sincere apology to the young master.From the Villa to the orphanage only takes two hours, because the Villa was located in the forest on the outskirts of
When young master Zachary Dawson arrived at the villa and they all stood there to greet him, Elena did not even look at the person who had hired her. Although she was initially very curious about Zachary Dawson's face, at that moment, Elena felt more uneasy.She also felt strange, as if she was sure that she would immediately meet the young master's gaze if she lifted her head just a little. And she wasn't ready for that. Whether it was because of her guilt for making mistakes so many times a few days ago, to the point of breaking one of the plates in the main kitchen, or, because of Henry's words at that time.She still clearly remembered the expression on Henry's face when she told him where she actually worked.“Villa Dawson? You mean Zachary Dawson? Elena! You don’t really work there, do you?” Henry panicked. He stared at her wide-eyed and leaned forward as if he didn’t hear her clearly. Making her surprised by his reaction.She could only nodded in response, which immediately mad
Finally, per Zachary ‘s request who Elena called 'Jack”, she cooked dinner for the two of them.At first Ben and the male waiter were still there. Elena didn't mind having someone help her and invited the man who looked to be in his twenties to cook with her. But for some reason he was nervous and glanced at Ben for a couple of times.“Are you feeling unwell?” Elena asked curiously and approached, but the poor man who was already covered in cold sweat immediately jumped away from her.This made Elena also shocked and took a few steps back to get away from him. Her brow furrowed in wonder. Why did the man seem afraid of her? Was she that scary?The man realized what he had done and bowed several times while muttering an apology to her. Ben quickly mediated the situation so that it would not seem too suspicious. He apologized to Elena because it was true, the maid suddenly felt unwell and had to immediately rest in his room.“Excuse me,” Ben led the man and they appeared to bow slightly
After feeling more relieved, Elena could think clearly and she started to be cheerful again. ‘Jack’ was right, she should just focus on her work.He turned his head to the side to look at 'Jack' who was walking leisurely beside her, just like she was now enjoying a leisurely walk in the back garden of the villa.After finished her dinner, She was full and wanted to take a short walk to help her digestion. She was also not that sleepy and told 'Jack' to rest first.However, 'Jack', whose real identity Elena still didn't know, said that he wasn't sleepy at all.“Aren’t you tired yet?”“Hmm, no.”Elena nodded, "I want to take a walk in the rose garden behind the villa, it's very beautiful there, the air is cool too, do you want to come?"And here they were, walking slowly side by side, sometimes their sleeves even brushing against each other. Elena noticed it, and only made her blush, her heart was beating faster but she tried to act normal. If she moved away, it would make things even m
"What?" Elena squinted her eyes on suspicion to the man standing next to her, as all he did was staring at her with that stupid small smile on his handsome face. Zachary didn't say anything but instead, he kept looking at her like, bent himself to his level until their face almost touched. Only when Elena splashed some droplets of water onto his face with her fingers then he stopped and laughed."I thought you were still mad at me." He said, smirking, wiping his face with a tissue. Elena looked at him and thinned her lips to hold her smile as she saw that he didn’t angry after she did that.“I’m not mad.” Elena took a sigh. She cut the meat skillfully. “Besides, I just need to show people that I won’t be a weakling.” Elena pouted at him.“Who said you were weak?”“Isn’t that what you all mean?” She muttered."You all? Who?" He frowned at her.“Stop asking. Help me with this.” Elena handed me a small basket of vegetables that needed to be washed.Zachary Dawson, the tattooed and fier
"What?! Why??" Her green eyes widened in shock. It was not the news she was expected, nor the one she would think of when she knew who she was working for. "S-Second floor? Next to h-his room? Mona what are you talking about? she stammered in panic Mona on the other hand, tried to look calm but her wavering eyes couldn't hide her true feelings. She was afraid for her. This poor child, she prayed God would save her from the devil. "Miss Elena..." she finally said, "...Ben told me to help you get ready, and pack your things..." "But why?" "renovation..." She used the made-up excuse. She knew there is no thing such renovation will going on. At least not suddenly like this. "Really?" Elena wanted to ask why she need to move next to young master Dawson's room when she could just move to one of the maid's room, or Mona's. But her attention quickly diverted when a male servant came up and asked her which one hen Ould move first. Elena gave up and let them brought her thi
The room was almost dark, if not for the open curtain on the window, letting the bright moonlight to enter, bask in half of the bed, where someone was sleeping on it peacefully.A faint footsteps could be heard, but the sleeping beauty didn’t even hear it. She was way to far in her dreamland, didn’t even notice the devil was right there in her room, walking slowly towards her.Zachary Dawson stopped right in front of the bed. His eyes were set on the sleeping body, then looking around the room. It was way smaller than his room obviously, but she arranged it neatly. The moment he stepped in, he already pleased with how clean and neat this room was, moreover the scent it welcomed him. This room smelled just like her.Sweet, fresh, and soft. Just like those flowers she like.He walked closer, until his leg touched the edge of the bed. He sat, made the bed sunk on her side, but she didn’t even flinch.Zachary faint smirk showed up when he saw the half finish orange juice on the table side.
Zachary was already in his bedroom.Instead of taking his body to rest on the bed, he sat on the window railing, still enjoying the moonlight, with the cool wind touching his skin.After typing something on his phone, he stared at the screen for a couple of seconds, made sure Ben replied his text, He breathed out the smoke from his nose and mouth once he knew the old butler carried out his order right away.He leaned his head as his eyes were gazing to none, where his head full with Elena’s beautiful face. The night wind made the leaves and twigs rubbing against each other, and the sounds of it so peaceful to ones ears. But all he could hear was Elena’s soft voice.I am not afraid, she said. Her perfect eyebrows frowned as her soft cheeks reddened. She looked so determined with all her words but her beautiful green eyes couldn’t lie. They were wavering, but the sparks in her eyes remained there.He wondered. How would she react if she knew that he is the young master she was talking ab
They sat on one of the long park benches. Enjoying the view under the beautiful moonlight for a while longer while talking talking to each other."If I may ask since when have you been working here?" Elena spoke to Zachary who was sitting next to her.Again, this was the umpteenth time he had sat next to a woman and he didn't feel the slightest bit disgusted or uneasy.He actually felt that time was passing too quickly and didn't want it to end too quickly. He sat back, took a deep breath, and crossed his legs casually.“Since I was fifteen.” His deep voice sounded clear in Elena’s ears.The beautiful girl stared at him in amazement, “Wow! You’ve been working since then? That means you’re close to the young master, right? Is the young master the same age as you or is he older?”“Same age as me,” he answered again. He looked at her and let his mouth answer all of her curiosity. Keeping her by his side longer.Besides, he was curious, when would Elena realize that he was Zachary Dawson?
After feeling more relieved, Elena could think clearly and she started to be cheerful again. ‘Jack’ was right, she should just focus on her work.He turned his head to the side to look at 'Jack' who was walking leisurely beside her, just like she was now enjoying a leisurely walk in the back garden of the villa.After finished her dinner, She was full and wanted to take a short walk to help her digestion. She was also not that sleepy and told 'Jack' to rest first.However, 'Jack', whose real identity Elena still didn't know, said that he wasn't sleepy at all.“Aren’t you tired yet?”“Hmm, no.”Elena nodded, "I want to take a walk in the rose garden behind the villa, it's very beautiful there, the air is cool too, do you want to come?"And here they were, walking slowly side by side, sometimes their sleeves even brushing against each other. Elena noticed it, and only made her blush, her heart was beating faster but she tried to act normal. If she moved away, it would make things even m
Finally, per Zachary ‘s request who Elena called 'Jack”, she cooked dinner for the two of them.At first Ben and the male waiter were still there. Elena didn't mind having someone help her and invited the man who looked to be in his twenties to cook with her. But for some reason he was nervous and glanced at Ben for a couple of times.“Are you feeling unwell?” Elena asked curiously and approached, but the poor man who was already covered in cold sweat immediately jumped away from her.This made Elena also shocked and took a few steps back to get away from him. Her brow furrowed in wonder. Why did the man seem afraid of her? Was she that scary?The man realized what he had done and bowed several times while muttering an apology to her. Ben quickly mediated the situation so that it would not seem too suspicious. He apologized to Elena because it was true, the maid suddenly felt unwell and had to immediately rest in his room.“Excuse me,” Ben led the man and they appeared to bow slightly
When young master Zachary Dawson arrived at the villa and they all stood there to greet him, Elena did not even look at the person who had hired her. Although she was initially very curious about Zachary Dawson's face, at that moment, Elena felt more uneasy.She also felt strange, as if she was sure that she would immediately meet the young master's gaze if she lifted her head just a little. And she wasn't ready for that. Whether it was because of her guilt for making mistakes so many times a few days ago, to the point of breaking one of the plates in the main kitchen, or, because of Henry's words at that time.She still clearly remembered the expression on Henry's face when she told him where she actually worked.“Villa Dawson? You mean Zachary Dawson? Elena! You don’t really work there, do you?” Henry panicked. He stared at her wide-eyed and leaned forward as if he didn’t hear her clearly. Making her surprised by his reaction.She could only nodded in response, which immediately mad
It was Saturday and Elena's day off. She knew from ‘Jack’ last night that the young master won’t be home for a few days because he had some business out of town. And this was her chance to find a replacement for the plate she accidentally broke last night.This morning when Elena said goodbye to Ben the butler, the old man sent her away and laughed awkwardly, saying that she could replace the plate with anything she could get at the grocery store.It was strange, the plate looked so expensive and authentic. She thought it would cost hundreds of dollars just for one plate. But both ‘Jack’ and Ben said the same thing, that it was cheap, nothing expensive about it.Whatever it was, Elena felt relieved. Even so, she thought maybe her range of cheap and expensive were different to them, so she planned to buy a fairly expensive plate as a sincere apology to the young master.From the Villa to the orphanage only takes two hours, because the Villa was located in the forest on the outskirts of