“This is the pool house,” Maria explained. “There is a shower just out here so you can all get clean after a swim.”
Veronica nodded.
“Whenever guests come to stay, this is where they generally take up lodging,” Maria explained.
Veronica nodded, taking in all the information.
With that, Maria locked the door again and led Veronica back to the house through another of its doors. This door opened up into what appeared to be a more informal version of a living room.
“This is the den,” Maria explained. “This is where the girls like to play and Mr. Davenport will watch football or movies or whatever.”
Veronica nodded more as they walked, and they approached another staircase, this one far less grand than the first. Veronica soon discovered, though, that they led the same place, as she could see the main one from down a hallway.
There was a large open space that led to four different hallways. In the main area there was a couch, as well a few chests and decorative boxes.
“The girl’s toys are in there,” Maria explained, and Veronica smiled as she was led to one of the hallways in each of the corners of the body of the floor.
The hallways were much longer than Veronica would have ever expected, with doors lining either side.
“And here,” Maria said with a smile. “Is your room.”
Maria opened the door, and again Veronica could not keep the look of shock off of her face.
The room was large, and it was complete with a king sized bed with a four poster frame and curtains. The room also had a vintage vanity, a small cream colored sofa, and a chair, as well as a long bench at the foot of the bed. The bedclothes were a dusty rose color, and they complimented the cream colored walls and dark wood of the furniture and floors. To offset the hard word of the floor, there was a large, soft rug that matched the color of the bedding and tied the room together.
There was also a nook surrounded by a window where veronica could picture herself curling up and reading if she ever had the time to do so.
“And the bathroom is just over there, and your closet is there,” Maria pointed to two different doors.
“Thank you,” Veronica said, more than a little shocked by the opulence of her dwellings.
“Why don’t you take a minute to unpack what you’ve already brought,” Maria suggested. “And then I can give you the whole tour.”
“That sounds great,” Veronica nodded. Maria gave her a smile and then made her way out of the room.
Ch. 9
Veronica sat down on the long bench at the foot of her bed and released a soft whoosh of air that had built up in her lungs. She was struggling to accept the fact that soon, this was going to become familiar to her, and it would be as natural as breathing to live here.
In a haze, Veronica unpacked her few belongings into the large walk-in closet. Her small quantity of clothes seemed even smaller compared to th
e size of the closet. Once the rest of her clothes were there, it wouldn’t seem quite so large, but there was no way they would fill it up either.
She put her suitcase in a corner of the closet and looked around, making sure she liked the way she had placed her clothes. She stepped out of the closet and took in the sight of her extravagant room once more, then she left and went downstairs to meet up with Maria.
Once there, Maria went through the house with great detail. She left no stone unturned, letting Veronica know what each and every room was, and which ones she was responsible for. By and large, the household staff took care of most of the things, but she was still responsible for the small maintenance items, and of course anything that the girls impacted.
“Speaking of the girls,” Veronica spoke up as they came up in conversation. “Where are they right now?”
“They’re out with the interim nanny,” Maria explained. “We just wanted to give you the chance to get the lay of the land and then meet them. They should be in at about noon, they went to see a movie.”
“Okay,” Veronica nodded. She appreciated the time she had been given to get to know the house, but her main job would be interacting with the girls, so she was eager to meet them.
“Well, that’s about all I’ve got for you,” Maria said, clapping her hands together. “Make yourself at home! Unless of course you have any questions.”
“Actually,” Veronica said, and Maria raised an eyebrow. “I do have some concerns about my moving situation.”
“Oh that,” Maria waved a hand. “Not even complicated. We have the best movers. We would just need your permission to enter the premises and we will take care of breaking the lease and everything. You don’t have to worry about any of that. And any furniture you have can either be sold or put into storage at Mr. Davenport’s expense at your discretion.”