Maid for the family

Home

All things get better, nothing stays the same. Penny had been mad, but after some thought she decided things could be worse. She had a job close to her tent and the boys seemed nice-ish.

She looked at the four guys and smiled brightly, "Thank you for the job! I will be the best housekeeper I can be. My name is Penny. It's nice to meet you."

The first guy smiled and shook her hand. She wanted to melt at his voice. It was all gravely and deep when he said, "My name is Damien. We have a spare room upstairs. You can stay there. Make your self at home, baby girl." She blushed at the nickname and wondered if he called all girls that. A part of her wanted to insist on being called by her name, but gosh his voice was nice.

The emo looking guy smirked and said, "Your wage will be five dollars an hour, minus room and board until you pay off your debt. I'm Tyler, by the way. Do you have a boyfriend?"

She shook her head no and continued to blush. She shook his hand and gasped at the warm spark from his touch. She crossed her arms, feeling too much from these attractive guys. What was wrong with her? This wasn't like her at all. She had never even crushed on a guy before. She'd been too busy with school and her mom for something so trivial.

The blue eyed devil pulled her hand away and grasped it in his. "I'm Brian, little sweet pea. I expect this house to be spotless, three meals made from scratch and a nightly good night kiss."

He winked at Penny, who blushed even harder and stared at him with wide eyes. He had to be kidding, right?

Brian was shoved and hit by the other guys while he laughed. Damien looked down at Penny and reassured her that no one would cross that line with her. There were cryptic remarks from Tyler that they didn't want to chase off yet another housekeeper.

The man with bleached hair stepped up. He was striking with his bright blue eyes and dark eyebrows contrasting with his white hair. His lips were pouty and she had a hard time not staring at them.

"My name is Caleb. I expect the help to be invisible, the house to be clean and the meals to be on time. Any questions?"

She shook her head no and he waved his hand at her telling her to get started. She walked through the entry way and gasped when she saw the front room. It was a pig sty! Food wrappers, clothing, books, shoes, video gaming equipment and dirty dishes were everywhere.

The men filed past her and informed her that they would be leaving for work and expected dinner promptly at 6pm. She nodded again and watched them leave. She wondered what they did for work and how they were all connected. They were obviously friends. They had a comradeship that only comes from a long history together. She shook her head, trying to shake loose her attraction to them.

She kicked off her shoes and tied back her hair with a band that was around her wrist. She took a deep breath and started cleaning. By the time the living room was clean, she was sweaty and her back was aching. She heaved the bag of trash out to the dumpster that was outback. The backyard was breathtaking. There were gardens that had been over run with ivy and flowers that were too bushy to fit the stature of the mansion, but still it was beautiful. She smiled at how her life was changing. This morning she was homeless and alone and now just a few hours later she had a job, a home and whatever the guys were.

She ran back up the steps and started on the kitchen, which was worse than the room before. When that room was complete she looked through the pantry and the fridge for ideas for dinner. She saw the ingredients needed for a chili and threw them all in the crockpot to cook together.

She hoped the guys liked her cooking. She'd never cooked for anyone other than her mom. Her mom's body had been wrecked by cancer, so everything she'd cooked had to be very bland. Even then, it had hurt her to digest food. Since then, whenever she cooked she added all sorts of spices- just because she could.

By the time the guys came home, she had the whole downstairs cleaned up and dinner on the table. She was standing proudly by the dining table when Caleb scowled at her. "I said invisible! As in not frigging seen. Go away before I dock your pay!"

She gasped and nodded her head quickly before dashing away. She hadn't been to her room yet and didn't really know where it was. She felt bad that she'd already disobeyed orders. Being a housekeeper was harder than she thought!

She ran blindly through the house until she found her room. It was the only clean, albeit dusty, room. She locked the door and leaned against it, catching her breath. Once she calmed down she started cleaning her new room. She stripped the bedding off and laid it by the door. She would need to sweep and dust in here, but for now it would do.

It was a simple room with a twin size bed, a dresser and a desk. It had one window that looked over a duck pond.  It was perfect, she thought with a smile. She would return to her tent after the guys went to bed, so that she would remain unseen, and get her belongings. Her tent rolled up and could be stored under her bed.

She had several hours to kill until then. She lay on the stripped bed and pillowed her head with her arms. She would just take a little nap. Soon she was asleep, dreaming of dancing with a four headed guy.

She woke up when the cold air had her shivering. She jumped up and checked outside. It was very dark out. She tip toed out of the room and down the hall way. She didn't want to get in trouble again on her first day. She reached the front door, where her shoes were. She slipped them on and went outside.

She was relieved that no one had seen her. Although she wondered how Caleb thought it would be possible for her to do all of her duties without him seeing her. And what about her free time? She still hadn't ate dinner yet because of his rule. She frowned at her complaining spirit. She was lucky to have a job, she should be thankful and not nit picking.

She jogged over to her campsite and started to pack up her belongings. She really didn't have much. Just a picture of her mom before cancer had ravished her, a backpack filled with clothing and a hair brush, her sleeping bag, lantern, tent and a dog eared book.

"What are you doing?" Demanded a voice behind her.

She looked behind and winced when she saw it was Caleb. "I'm so sorry! I'll just grab my stuff and go back to my room."

He hit her on the top of the head with his knuckles and said, "Idiot, you missed dinner." She gasped at him and was literally speechless, all that came out were noises. He smirked and grabbed the rolled up tent and sleeping bag.

"Let's go home. You can reheat the chili."

They walked back to the mansion quietly. Penny kept mulling over the meaning of his words. Did he want her around or not? Either way, her heart soared at his calling it home. Not my home, but just home, implying it was her home too. She smiled and followed him home.