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I don’t care if I still look like a mess considering I’m just leaving bed. Well, the person at the house will have to deal with it. I quickly turn the locks. I open it to find two women standing on the porch. I give them a puzzled look, wondering what they are doing here.
“Good morning, ma’am!” they greet with a bright smile. I frown at them in confusion before I force a smile.
“Good morning. How may I help you?” I ask, trying to sound as polite as possible.
The two women exchange looks before returning their attention to me.
“I’m Taryn, ma’am. This is my colleague, Rose. We were Mr. Landon’s housekeepers,” the first woman who introduced herself as Taryn says.
“Oh,” I say, unable to form another word.
“Yes, we worked for Mr. Landon for fifteen years. God bless his soul,” Taryn says as her smile drops.
“Yeah, God bless his soul,” I reply. I assumed that John had let go of all his staff, especially with the information my uncle gave me yesterday about his bankruptcy. Apparently, he is used to that luxury lifestyle. Taryn and Rose must have been employed after I left Sausalito.
“We were happy when we heard that the house now belongs to his daughter,” Rose says with a broad smile.
“Yes, we were. We have always been worried about what would happen to the house, which holds lots of memory for Mr. Landon. Now that you are here, we are glad you will keep it the way Mr. Landon wants,” Rose says with a sad smile as she looks around. Their words start dawning on me.
“How are you sure that I’ll want to stay here?” I ask. Obviously, nothing much has changed in Sausalito. Apparently, the news still travels fast in the small town.
“Oh, ma’am, we assumed it’s part of the reason you came,” Rose explains. Just great; everyone in town knows I’m here. I feel uneasy at the thought of Jeffrey getting wind of the news. Hopefully, I won’t run into him during my stay.
“I hope we haven’t said anything wrong?” they ask. I snap out of my thoughts and focus on the women giving me worried looks. They seem pleasant.
“No, no. There is nothing wrong. I had no idea he had new housekeepers. The last one I knew died, and he didn’t get someone else to replace her before I left,” I tell them. The last housekeeper was Jeffrey’s mom. I still really like how broken he was during the incident. John didn’t even deem to give her a proper funeral. We had to make do with the little savings Jeffrey had.
“We understand, ma’am,” they say, and I can’t help but smile. My smile drops when I realize I’m keeping the older woman standing.
“Forgive my manners; please come in,” I tell them as I step back to let them in. I want the women to state their business. I wonder if this is a courtesy visit or something else.
“Thank you, ma’am,” they say as they step inside. I close the door to find the women glancing around the large house.
“Please, have your seat,” I tell them as I walk to the couch and sit. I watch them take their seats in the other chairs.
“What would you like to have?” I ask. I can make a quick tea or coffee for them.
“We are okay, ma’am,” they say with a smile.
“Alright, is there something you need from me?” The earlier I settle these women, the earlier I can start preparing to leave this place.
“Yes, ma’am. We thought that since you are here, we could continue with our jobs,” Rose says, and I freeze. I can see the hopes in their eyes. Their words catch me off guard. I’m used to doing everything myself without assistance for the last Nineteen years.
I watch Taryn and Rose, and they obviously dread what I will say. They seem like they really need this job.
“Ahem,” I clear my throat and watch the women sit up.
“Honestly, I haven’t had time to consider all of this. I only came here for the funeral, but if there is a need to keep this place, maybe you will continue to care for it once in a while,” I tell them, watching their facial muscles relax.
“We understand. We are sorry we came here early; we assumed that you would need hands since it’s been weeks since we last cleaned the house,” they say.
“Thank you for that. If I’m being honest, it has been stressful, but I don’t intend to stay here for long,” I tell.
“I was wondering about the kind of housekeeping arrangement you had with John,” I say. Maybe, I can put Ina’s word for them with John’s lawyer.
“We come around seven days a week, but it’s on shift. Mr. Landon liked having one of us around,” Mary explains.
“That’s great. How does he pay you?” I ask.
