The House Maid (completed)

Chapter 1

Daisy had always started her workdays in the main room of the house as Missus Smith, the head housekeeper, explained the daily duty to her and any extra help that was needed for household chores on that particular day. Today was like any other. It was only her and Missus Smith who would be taking care of the house, no extra help needed today. Lady Archer was at her sister's for the next two days (and what a relief to hear that the Lady of the house was out - she was a stickler for perfection and even though Daisy was good at her job, no one was ever good enough for Lady Archer) and Miss Archer (the youngest Archer child) would also not be home for the next two days.

Daisy's duties began with tidying up the bedrooms on the second level of the house. The house she worked in was not a manor, nor a mansion. It was a large house, with a large garden and nearly three acres of land to tend to, but the family of the house didn't require, nor could they afford, more help than they already had. The occasional extra help was called in, but it was rarely needed. The Master of the house owned the local accounting shop. He prepared taxes and performed audits for the wealthy gentlemen of the town and made a decent living in doing so. Sir Cyril employed his two sons; Mister Johnathan and Master Bradley; as well as three other accountants to help with the books, audits, and taxes for all the local shops and families.

Master Bradley was still in his room fast asleep when Daisy began her rounds. She and Bradley were on good terms and could even be considered friends despite their class differences. He would often tell her all about his scandals and his dreams (which were also scandalous as he wished to one day be a fashion designer). When Daisy creaked the door open she wasn't too terribly surprised to find Bradley splayed out on his bed, mouth wide open and snoring off the previous night's activities. What she was surprised to see was another man laying on the bed next to him, naked as the day he was born. Both completely out cold. Bradley was the odd one out of the Archer children. He had light brown hair, grey eyes, a compact nose, and was short and a bit pudgy, while the other two were tall and thin with dark hair, pronounced noses, and dark eyes. And of course there was the fact that Bradley preferred to keep the company of men than women (though, that's not to say Bradley didn't experiment with women from time to time). Daisy quietly retreated, slowly pulling the heavy oak door closed with the intention to return to his room later to finish the chore of tidying the youngest son's room.

She moved on to Connie's room, Miss Archer, as she addressed her by. Connie was to return in two days and requested fresh linens, flowers, and new curtains (her old ones were too drab and cheaply she decided). Miss Archer was the youngest of the children, the same age as Daisy, 22. She and Daisy rarely spoke but Miss Archer was usually kind, if not a bit pretentious and picky like her mother. Though she didn't have the underlying bitter anger that Lady Archer had, not yet at least.

Daisy was a tiny bit jealous of Connie. Connie was the same age as Daisy but the different classes they each came from meant that Daisy didn't have the opportunities that Connie afforded. While Connie's parents weren't extremely wealthy, they were comfortable and had privileges that Daisy's family did not. Connie was able to study and travel abroad, while Daisy was stuck within a half day's train ride from her family home, probably for the rest of her life. It was doubtful Daisy would ever be able to travel anywhere much further than that from home. Connie was tall and lithe, with dark hair and big brown eyes, but by most standards she was plain - not ugly by any means, but not a standard beauty with her large nose. She'd never had a true suitor, something her mother seemed to be endlessly worried about. That was the one thing Daisy didn't envy Connie; the idea that a woman must be married before the age of 25 and Lady Archer's unforgiving and overbearing expectations that she held onto for her daughter.

After freshening Connie's room and removing the old "drab" curtains from their pole tightly hung over the window, she moved to Mister Johnathan's room. Throwing the old curtains into the bin near the door, along with the old linens, Daisy entered Johnathan's room to find a flower and a note lying on his writing desk with a small candy atop the note. Daisy's grin couldn't be contained and she felt her heart rate hasten. She knew that this was meant for her. Johnathan was usually up before sunrise and working during the day at his father's accounting shop. Johnathan was tall with lean muscles and long limbs, dark hair and dark eyes like his father. He had a long broad nose and a handsomely deep voice. He always smelled clean and never held back a bright smile when he saw Daisy. Daisy's crush was a secret but Johnathan made it hard for her to pretend she wasn't interested. It was forbidden, after all. Johnathan often gave Daisy small gifts when he saw her in person and would occasionally leave gifts for her to find when he wasn't around to give them to her in person. He was generous and thoughtful, but never overstepping boundaries by giving her anything of monetary value that could be seen as immoral. He'd usually give her a flower, a note with kind, neutral words, candies or pastries - things of that nature.