work or how long she’d actually end up staying, so she’d tried to prepare for all eventualities. “Where do I put these?”
“I’ll show you to your room.” Her friend’s voice was pitched very low. “Just follow me. And give me one of those suitcases.” She grabbed one from where Erin had set it down.
“Why are we whispering?”
Ivy smiled. “Don’t want to wake the sleeping dragon any sooner than we have to. Come on.”
“Am I dressed okay for this?” She asked the question anxiously. She had worn slacks and a casual but neat top and comfortable flats. The clothes in her suitcases were more of the same. She figured she’d covered all the bases for her job as nursemaid/waitress/personal assistant, or whatever it actually turned out to be.
“You’re fine. Just fine. Come on.”
From the huge foyer, Erin could see a living room and dining room straight ahead. She caught a tiny glimpse of the kitchen as well. Two hallways branched off from there. The house spoke of tasteful wealth, with its hardwood floors, soaring ceilings, and carefully selected furniture and art. Whoever this guy was, he obviously had good taste and the pocketbook to enjoy it.
“Your client’s master suite is to the right,” Ivy explained and pointed.
The door was just slightly ajar, but Erin couldn’t see much of anything. She gave her friend a long look. “I’m still not sure about this, you know.”
“You’ll be fine.” Ivy gave her a smile. “This will be a piece of cake.” She started down the other hallway. “Guest rooms are down here. This will at least give you some privacy.”
The room she led Erin to was decorated in shades of green and ivory. With its queen bed and its polished wood furniture, it could have served for either a man or a woman. Idly Erin wondered if her new boss—or whatever she was supposed to call him—had women sleep over in a room other than his. And who they might be.
But Ivy was urging her along.
“Just set your stuff down in here. You can put it away later.”
“Isn’t this a little far from this guy’s room?” Erin was beginning to develop an uncertain feeling about this again. “What if he needs me in the middle of the night or something? Can he get out of bed himself?”
“He has a walker that he can use to move in a small area.”
Erin wrinkled her forehead. “No crutches?”
“No. He has a wrist injury that make crutches not feasible.”
Okay, not good. Why hadn’t Ivy told her this before? “So he’s okay at night by himself?” she persisted.
“We set up a temporary intercom system just between the two rooms while he’s incapacitated. There’s a unit on his nightstand and one on yours that are hooked into the house system.”
“Oh, great.” Erin made a rude noise. “So he can buzz me any time he wants, right?”
“Yes, but that won’t happen. He gave me his word he wouldn’t be a demanding patient.”
“Yeah, right. I’ll bet he said anything he could just to get you to hire someone for him.”
Sympathy washed across Ivy’s face. “He’s doing his best, Erin. Truly.”
Erin looked at her friend with curiosity. “If this guy is so important to you, how come I’ve never heard about him before?”
“You don’t know everything about me, sweetie,” Ivy teased. “He and I go back a long way.” She handed Erin a large envelope. “Instructions for his care. Nothing fancy,” she added hastily. “Just the stuff we talked about, his meds, and that his leg needs to be kept elevated. I e-mailed you about everything else—visitors, phone calls, his mail, stuff like that.” Her eyes strayed to the watch on her wrist “So are we good here?”
“You told me someone comes in daily to help him shower and shave, right?” Erin wanted to make doubly sure of that.
“Yes, there is. I told you.” Ivy looked at her watch again. “In fact, home care should be here in about two hours. If we’re lucky, he’ll sleep until then.”
Erin chewed
“I’ll show you to your room.” Her friend’s voice was pitched very low. “Just follow me. And give me one of those suitcases.” She grabbed one from where Erin had set it down.
“Why are we whispering?”
Ivy smiled. “Don’t want to wake the sleeping dragon any sooner than we have to. Come on.”
“Am I dressed okay for this?” She asked the question anxiously. She had worn slacks and a casual but neat top and comfortable flats. The clothes in her suitcases were more of the same. She figured she’d covered all the bases for her job as nursemaid/waitress/personal assistant, or whatever it actually turned out to be.
“You’re fine. Just fine. Come on.”
From the huge foyer, Erin could see a living room and dining room straight ahead. She caught a tiny glimpse of the kitchen as well. Two hallways branched off from there. The house spoke of tasteful wealth, with its hardwood floors, soaring ceilings, and carefully selected furniture and art. Whoever this guy was, he obviously had good taste and the pocketbook to enjoy it.
“Your client’s master suite is to the right,” Ivy explained and pointed.
The door was just slightly ajar, but Erin couldn’t see much of anything. She gave her friend a long look. “I’m still not sure about this, you know.”
“You’ll be fine.” Ivy gave her a smile. “This will be a piece of cake.” She started down the other hallway. “Guest rooms are down here. This will at least give you some privacy.”
The room she led Erin to was decorated in shades of green and ivory. With its queen bed and its polished wood furniture, it could have served for either a man or a woman. Idly Erin wondered if her new boss—or whatever she was supposed to call him—had women sleep over in a room other than his. And who they might be.
But Ivy was urging her along.
“Just set your stuff down in here. You can put it away later.”
“Isn’t this a little far from this guy’s room?” Erin was beginning to develop an uncertain feeling about this again. “What if he needs me in the middle of the night or something? Can he get out of bed himself?”
“He has a walker that he can use to move in a small area.”
Erin wrinkled her forehead. “No crutches?”
“No. He has a wrist injury that make crutches not feasible.”
Okay, not good. Why hadn’t Ivy told her this before? “So he’s okay at night by himself?” she persisted.
“We set up a temporary intercom system just between the two rooms while he’s incapacitated. There’s a unit on his nightstand and one on yours that are hooked into the house system.”
“Oh, great.” Erin made a rude noise. “So he can buzz me any time he wants, right?”
“Yes, but that won’t happen. He gave me his word he wouldn’t be a demanding patient.”
“Yeah, right. I’ll bet he said anything he could just to get you to hire someone for him.”
Sympathy washed across Ivy’s face. “He’s doing his best, Erin. Truly.”
Erin looked at her friend with curiosity. “If this guy is so important to you, how come I’ve never heard about him before?”
“You don’t know everything about me, sweetie,” Ivy teased. “He and I go back a long way.” She handed Erin a large envelope. “Instructions for his care. Nothing fancy,” she added hastily. “Just the stuff we talked about, his meds, and that his leg needs to be kept elevated. I e-mailed you about everything else—visitors, phone calls, his mail, stuff like that.” Her eyes strayed to the watch on her wrist “So are we good here?”
“You told me someone comes in daily to help him shower and shave, right?” Erin wanted to make doubly sure of that.
“Yes, there is. I told you.” Ivy looked at her watch again. “In fact, home care should be here in about two hours. If we’re lucky, he’ll sleep until then.”
Erin chewed
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