Chapter 5

Helena could barely keep her eyes open.

Since the drive to the mansion was forty-five minutes away from the motel she was staying at, she had to wake up at three and then leave at four in the morning while it was still dark . After stopping at 7/11 for a small coffee, she sped right over to the mansion in uniform.

While on the freeway, Helena tried to take a sip of it. but someone slammed on their brakes really hard in front of her. She panicked trying to stop in time, accidentally squeezing the cup in the process and spilling most of it on her lap. She let out a frustrated groan, praying that it wasn't too bad. Unfortunately, when she looked down, it made a giant round black stain on her white apron.

"Oh great." She groaned.

When she arrived and parked across the street from the mansion at 5:00 am, she tried to use napkins from her glove compartment to dab out the blotch.

As Helena pushed open their gate, she saw Mrs. Daville heading out the door.

"Good morning Mrs. Daville." She waved out, trying to sound cheerful and hide back her yawn.

Her employer gave her a quick look over, saw the stain on her dress and scoffed. "Your shift hasn't even started. How do you manage?" She didn't allow Helena a response. She held up her hand in front of her to stop with any excuses before heading out the gate to a waiting limo.

Helena rolled her eyes as it drove away, but when Mr. Reider opened the door and greeted her in nothing but a giant red robe and bear slippers, she brightened up instantly.

"Good morning." He smiled at her, sounding preppy even for this hour.

"Good morning to you too." She responded with a smile of her own.

"Hope it's not too early for you. We have coffee and muffins inside if you want it."

As Helena entered the mansion, she could already smell the freshly baked goods with the strong aroma of brewed coffee. The entire room was warm from a heater too, making her feel all warm and cozy but drowsy all over again.

"No thank you," She denied politely. "I'm afraid of getting any more on me." She showed him the stain mark and he chuckled.

"That's alright. Today my wife requested for you to train with Madame Lidiya for nine hours. You will have lunch in between of course." He paused and winked at her. "I'm sure somewhere down the line we'll find time to get that off you and wash it."

"Right, of course." She smiled. His wording is so out there. She thought.

To her, it seemed like he chose his words perfectly just to see if he could get a reaction out of the person. But Helena wouldn't allow it to affect her. She had her mind set to working all day, making the money back for Mrs. Daville and then some for herself. Maybe even make enough to afford a dorm at school for once instead of that crappy motel near it.

"Madame Lidiya should be in the laundry room. Do you remember how to get there? Or would you like me to show you?" He offered.

"I remember how to get there." She told him, which she did, she made mental notes of the entire tour yesterday. That and there was no way she could spend another minute alone with him looking this delicious in his bright red robe and bear slippers. Even though he was covered almost head-to-toe, Helena knew she would lose it if she saw the knot around his waist happen to loosened up a little or if she saw his calves, despite how ridiculous it sounded.

"Splendid." He said, presenting her with another smile that made Helena suck in her breath.

She pointed down the hall to her left. "It's this way right?" She asked, already heading in that direction.

"Right. Try not to get lost now little lamb." He teased her.

Helena's face turned red as she bolted down the hall and quickly opened the door leading to the laundry room.

"Everything alright myshka?" Madame Lidiya asked, surprised when she came in.

"Yeah, um, yes ma'am. I...just thought I was running late. I didn't want to keep you waiting." Helena said nervously.

"Well no need to rush, Helena. Your face is turning pink! Here, let me get you some water."

"N-No it's fine. Thank you though." Helena smiled and joined her side. "Now, where should we begin?"

Madame Lidiya spent hours going into details on what her duties were going to be and what the family was strict on, what to avoid, the whole know-how. She learned that the misses absolutely hated the smell of lemons so they couldn't use any cleaning supplies that were even remotely close to it. However, she loved it in her food.

Strange woman.

Helena also learned how the couple likes their pillows fluffed and stacked specifically. Mrs. Daville loves hers with one giant pillow in the middle with two little ones on the side while Mr. Reider prefers two long pillows stacked behind each other. She never met such complicated people but it oddly intrigued her to know more about them.

As they traveled around the house going into each room that she was assigned to, ever so often they would cross paths with Liam and he would catch her eye. He showered, switched out of the robe, and was now wearing a long sleeve sky blue dress shirt paired with khaki shorts. His hair was dark and damp but curly on top of his head and as they passed him to his bathroom, Helena's knees almost gave up on her.

The shower smelled clean of which type of soap he was using mixed with the scent of his cologne. It was overpowering, like an intoxicating tease and it wasn't fair. He kept it pretty tidy too. No hairs on the sink or overflowing trash. Thank goodness there wasn't much to show in there; her thoughts were running wild as Madame Lidiya described how to properly clean the shower and the only thing on her mind was his muscles flexing as he scrubbed his entire nude body from the top of his neck, down to his toned back...

They left pretty quick before her mind ventured too far.

Madame Lidiya spent the whole time talking without Helena saying much. She nodded her head when her trainer pointed out the chores here and there and answered the occasional question when she had one. But as the time ticked by, she found her eyelids drooping.

Pulling out her cell-phone, Helena checked the time to see that it's only been five hours. There were still four more to go. A yawn escaped her mouth when Madame Lidiya came over and sat down a tray of salted chips and a sliced turkey sandwich in front of them as they sat in the dining room. After thanking her, she took a bite, greedily chomping down on the juicy part with the lettuce and tomato.

"I must of talked ear off. Sorry about that myshka."

"Don't worry about it." Helena yawned again. "Sorry, please ignore that. I swear it's not you. I guess I'm not used to waking up so early."

"You will need to get used to it soon." She took a giant bite of her sandwich and talked as she chewed. "It might be normal time to clock in next few weeks."

Helena nodded, only half hearing what she was saying while toying with a loose piece of tomato.

"Well we've gone over laundry, cooking, the master bedrooms and his bathroom. That leaves living room, offices, guest room and misse's bathroom."

"Got it..." Helena replied wearily.

"Bosmo myshka, look at ya. You look, how you say, out from it." Madame Lidiya swallowed her food and wiped her mouth. "Look, I live on property with other maids in boarding rooms. You should go take nap in my room for rest of lunch."