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By late afternoon she had everything neatly packed up and the apartment looked spotless. Then by dinnertime she’d moved all the boxes into the car and the evening was spent with some grilled cheese and a book in bed. She’d decided to pack up the last of her things like blankets and clothes for the evening, the following morning before heading out.
That night it was harder to fall asleep. The more she thought about the next day, the more anxious Gwen became. Mr. Seavey intimidated her and the high standards he seemed to have for his employees scared her–or rather it was the thought of disappointing him. Her dreams were vivid and most parts showed her how she would fail.
Gwen woke up early the next morning, right as the sun’s first rays started shining through the windows. She tried to go back to sleep since she didn’t want to show up too early at the Seavey property, but her mind was far too busy. So, after thirty minutes of trying, she got up and ate some cereal for breakfast. Still too early to head out, Gwen hopped into the shower and forced herself to take her time and relax.
Just before 9 a.m. she got dressed and carried the last of her belongings to the car. The drive towards Rosenberg was quiet, and traffic was basically nonexistent on a Sunday morning. She drove with the radio on and the windows down, letting the warm air flow through her hair. When the GPS told her she was ten minutes away, she quickly stopped at the side of the road and fixed her hair.
Her hands were shaking as she slowly drove closer to her destination. The Seavey property was truly in the middle of nowhere, with a high stone wall surrounding it. Her GPS led her up to a massive metal gate without a bell or speaker to ring and open it. Gwen parked the car in front of the gate and leaned over to the glovebox where she found her remote to open the gate. She pushed the clicker and watched as the gates slowly opened, revealing a stone street leading up to an old, beautiful, two-story mansion.
She waited for the gates to fully open before driving onto the property. The closer she got to the mansion, the more impressed she was. It seemed to have been recently renovated. The street led up to a circle drive, with a little water fountain in the midst of it. To her left was a four-car garage and to her right was a beautiful cottage-like extension to the main house.
She parked the car furthest to the right, not wanting to block anyone in the garage. With wobbly knees and nervous, tingling hands she got out of the car and walked towards the entrance. Her hands were shaking when she reached for the bell and took a step back. The door was large and built out of a dark reddish wood.
Just a moment later she heard the door unlock from the inside and revealed Mr. Seavey as he opened the door. Even though he was in his home, he looked quite formal. He was wearing a dark blue button-up shirt with formal pants and black leather shoes. Her eyes trailed to his face and her heart started racing within her chest. He was tall, very tall, at least for her short stature. His chocolate eyes looked down on her, stone cold.
“Ms. Moore, I expected you to be here much earlier.”
“I didn’t want to be too early and wake you on a Sunday morning.”
He gave her a quick nod, turned, and walked inside. “Follow me.”
She stepped in behind him and gently closed the door. The entrance was breathtaking. The floors were the same wood as the front door and so were the large stairs leading up to the second floor. The living space was opposite the entrance. Two couches and three armchairs were facing a stunning modern two-sided fireplace that seemed to be facing outside. To her right was a small study and to her left was a door that seemed to be leading to the kitchen.
Mr. Seavey led her past the stairs and into a hallway to the right that led beneath the staircase. “You are free to move on this floor and on the grounds of our property. The second floor is strictly off limits and under no circumstances are you allowed up there.”
“Of course.”
At the end of the hallway was a small door and to her left were frosted glass double doors.
“This is the office, and that door will lead to your apartment.” He walked towards her apartment and opened the door. “Everything you need is provided for you. On your desk you will find all your work material. Tomorrow, you will familiarize yourself with all provided material and Tuesday I expect you to take on your assigned tasks.”
“Of course, Mr. Seavey.”
He stepped aside and handed her a key. “Your apartment is private. No one will enter without your permission. We don’t just take our privacy very seriously, but yours too.”
“Thank you.”
He turned and retreated into his office.
Gwen stepped into her new home, instantly overwhelmed by its beauty. It was small, neat, and seemed just like the rest of the house, freshly modernized. The living and kitchen space were flooded with sunlight and opposite of her were two open doors. One led to a small office space and one seemed to be the bedroom. The living room had a small kitchen nook, a couch, and a round coffee table. Everything was held in light colors, except the dark wood floors. To her right beside the kitchen, was another door that led to the circle driveway out front.
Tears of relief and joy started to run down her cheeks, and she couldn’t do anything to stop them. She quickly shut the door behind her, not wanting Mr. Seavey to see her like this. Her knees started to cave in, and she had to sit on the couch, taking deep breaths to calm herself. It took a few moments for her emotions to settle and she was finally able to ease her tears.
She got up and took a look around. The bedroom had a queen-sized bed, and a beautiful bathroom with a bathtub and separate shower. The office was small and functional with a desk, a shelf, and a comfortable chair to work in. On the desk she found a Microsoft Surface tablet, a smartphone, and a stack of papers that seemed to be instructions, contact lists for clients and employees, a property list, and company policies.
She had a lot to read through and decided it was best to start on it today. Before she could start, she needed to bring her belongings inside and buy some lunch. She brought in her boxes and placed them in the appropriate spaces. She didn’t feel like unpacking quite yet, so she pulled out her phone and searched for the closest grocery store.
After buying enough food that would last her to her next paycheck, she sat down on the couch. With a chicken strip salad and some caramel chocolate for dessert, she started reading through the company policies and property lists. All properties were massive and as high-end as they could come. The pictures attached to all the listings were stunning, the most shocking thing about them being the prices.
Gwen couldn’t imagine how anyone could ever afford such a property, but yet again, she was probably sitting in a home that costs just as much as the ones she was seeing on the listings. She spent the rest of the afternoon setting up the computer and familiarizing herself with everything. Mr. Seavey had given her an email which was already being flooded with mail. She slowly read them all, and tried to sort out which ones were important and which ones she could ignore for now.
With each email she read, she started to add things to her to-do-list or calendar and started to do the same with all three Seaveys too. Mr. Seavey and Rayen Seavey seemed to be the busiest ones; Silas, the third brother, was barely mentioned. She started to plan the week ahead of them, with meetings and sales that were set to happen. As she worked herself through all the emails, her schedules seemed to look more and more unorganized. So, she started to color code them, and tried to separate the three locations of their offices.
She didn’t even feel the time fly by and only noticed how late it was when the sunlight started to fade, and her stomach started rumbling. Happy with herself and all the work she’d been able to do, she got up and started to prepare herself some food. It had been a long time since she’d been able to cook. She opened her boxes and unpacked her kitchen utensils. Though once she started opening the cupboards, she saw that they were already stacked with everything a kitchen could ever need.
She busied herself in the kitchen while listening to music. Her mind kept going back to her work and new ideas sparked on how she could organize herself better. While eating her rice chicken mix, she spread all the papers on the floor in front of the couch. She’d printed out everything she thought was important and started to reassess her weekly reviews and to-do-lists.
By 10 p.m. her mind became fuzzy, and she knew it didn’t make any sense to continue. She left the papers on the floor and put her dirty dishes in the sink. In the bedroom she opened a few of her boxes in search of her pajamas, her favorite blanket and pillow. She slept like a baby through the night, knowing that she’d prepared herself well for the week ahead.
