Chapter 9

NINE

"Miss Rao,I'm Bradley. Dr. and Mrs. Ivory are seated in the Orchid Room." The man in front of me eyed me carefully with his bright green eyes and neatly brushed platinum blond hair.

"Thanks." I nodded. The Orchid Room? What the hell was that? Who named rooms in their homes?

I picked up my pace as Bradley moved swiftly down a long hallway. My eyes kept darting around in every direction. I didn't get to absorb it all, but the one thing I noticed was everything I had seen so far were in shades of white—cream, white, ivory, and the lightest beige. It was the strangest house I'd ever seen, though still gorgeous in an off-setting way. Taking a quick right turn down a narrow hall, the walls felt as if they were closing in on me. Both sides were lined with perfectly placed picture frames containing black-and-white images that weren't clear faces or people, but rather blurred images I couldn't make out. I slowed down in order to study one.

"What is?—"

"It will be in your best interest to come now," Bradley fired at me with irritation as he halted in front of a closed door.

"I'm sorry, I just… What is…?" I pointed at the image in front of me. It looked like a person running away, with light hair flying around their face, but I couldn't be certain.

"Listen, Miss Rao, there are no questions to be asked. Dr. and Mrs. Ivory will ask you what they need to, but beyond that, you mustn't be a meddlesome nuisance." He shook his head and widened his eyes at me.

"Okay." Who was this guy? What was his role here? Some butler who thought we were all in a game of Clue or something?

I had to bite back the smile that was growing on my face. With two hands, Bradley gripped the door handles and slowly opened them.

"After you." His eyes ran down my entire body in this creepy way that made me really want to gouge his eyes out.

Right as I walked in front of him, he let out this satisfied sigh that made my entire body tense. Asshole.

I squinted as soon as I walked into the room. The sun was beaming brightly through the vast windows directly in front of me. But it was the couple in front of me that made me stumble back slightly.

They stood from the couch they had been seated on and smiled simultaneously. The woman's eyes drifted to Bradley, who was still hovering too close to me.

"Bradley, you aren't needed," the woman said softly with a small nod. He immediately turned away, but something caught my eye and I turned to look at him.

His shoes… They were the same thick-soled white shoes that Jax wore. Completely silent.

"Miss Rao…" The woman's voice in front of me broke through my thoughts and I slowly turned back and looked at the couple in front of me.

They could have been on a cover of Architects Digest. Both of them were completely, unnaturally beautiful.

Mrs. Ivory was wearing a cream-colored dress, light pink lipstick, and her blond hair was cut in a short, neat bob; while Dr. Ivory was tall, with broad shoulders, and blond, almost white, hair. He was slightly more tanned than Mrs. Ivory, which wasn't a challenge considering the woman looked like she never saw direct sunlight. They could easily be Edward Cullen's biological parents.

"Hi." I licked my dried lips and rubbed them together nervously.

"Come, take a seat, dear," she said with a smile that showed no movement on her face.

Walking slower than imaginable, I took a seat in the accent chair across from the sofa the couple sat back in. A porcelain teapot and assorted baked goods were neatly lined in front of me.

"Miss Rao, I'm Daphne Ivory and this is my husband, Ian Ivory—" Her husband cleared his throat and she fidgeted her hands. "Dr. Ian Ivory," she corrected.

"It's really nice to meet you both. You can just call me Demi, though." I clasped my hands together to help buffer the shaking.

"And you can just call me Daphne." She smiled and poured a cup of tea, lifting it toward me.

"This is a beautiful blend our chef Margot makes right here with herbs from our garden." Daphne let go of the delicate teacup once I gripped it. I really didn't want to drink the dark tea while wearing all white and sitting on an all white chair, but they were watching me intently, so I said a quick prayer and took a sip.

"Mmm… wow. This is actually really good." I was surprised how sweet the tea was.

"I'm so thrilled you like it." Daphne smiled over at her husband, who kept his face mostly stoic.

"Demi, we'd like to ask you a few questions." Dr. Ivory straightened his back and brushed the light beige pants he wore. I was grateful for the hints of color in their clothing or else I'd have thought I was in the middle of some kind of cult.

Sometimes I would catch those six-episode crime series on the motel T.V., so my mind would always jump to worst-case scenario, and because, well, my life always became the worst-case scenario.

"Of course." I crossed my leg over the other and carefully placed the teacup on the mini plate.

"Please state your full name and birth month." The question seemed so strange to me, especially how it was presented.

"Demi Rao and my birth month is June."

Nodding, he looked at the stack of papers in his hands. What was on them? I had no records. I mean, for the past four years, I wasn't even Demi.

"Where were you born?" Dr. Ivory asked with zero emotion.

"Well, I was actually born in India, but we moved here when I was young, so I really don't even remember much." I shrugged.

"Where is here?" Dr. Ivory furrowed his brows as his piercing green eyes seared into me. I always thought green eyes were rare. But Bradley, Daphne and Ian all possessed them.

"I grew up in Gatlinburg, Tennessee."

"Oh, we adore Gatlinburg. Such a scenic mountain town." Daphne offered a smile in my direction.

"Yeah…" I added before looking back at Dr. Ivory, who was still staring at me as if he was trying to figure out a puzzle.

I'm here for the position of a housekeeper; I'm not trying to be your surgical partner.

"What brought you to Charlotte?" He set the stack of papers down and laced his fingers together.

"Tennessee didn't feel like home anymore," I answered honestly. Well, somewhat honestly. Truthfully, it hadn't been home for four years. Instead of providing the comfort of home, it was the place that held the most treacherous memories for me.

It was the place where I fought for my life and barely survived. Hell, survive may not even be the right word since I didn't even feel alive most days.

"Tell us about your family…" Daphne glanced at her husband before looking back at me.

"Oh…" I didn't know how any of this was relevant to this job position, but then again, I'd be living here, in this colossal mansion with them, so I suppose I'd be careful with who I allowed inside, too.

"My parents are… Well, they both died. And I don't have any siblings." I bit my tongue, feeling a sting in my eyes that had my stomach tumble.

"Oh dear, we are so sorry to hear that." Daphne slapped her hand across her heart, as if she physically felt the pain of a stranger's past she just met.

"Thanks." I began peeling at my thumbnail and kept my eyes down. I couldn't sit here, crying in front of my literal last hope.

"Demi, we run a tight ship here at The Ivory House." Dr. Ivory spoke crassly. "Privacy is the number one most important aspect of this position. You will be expected to clean certain areas of our home, which are never seen by anyone besides our immediate family. You would live with us, be given a room, a private bathroom, and food, along with a stipend. You'll be asked to sign a document and an NDA. If you share anything, and I mean anything, we will take legal action. Do you understand?" Dr. Ivory and Daphne were both staring at me intently.

"Yes, of course." I nodded eagerly.

"Do you have experience in housekeeping?" Daphne interjected as her husband was opening his mouth.

I swallowed the lump in my throat. "Y-yes."

It was somewhat true. I was forced to clean and cook and do things according to someone else. "Anything else, I can learn. I'm a quick learner, and…" I stammered anxiously.

"Demi." Dr. Ivory held his hand up. "You must learn to speak lower. And you'll be given a uniform, along with… Well, you are a bit…"

"Different from who we'd normally hire," Daphne filled in and lifted a plate of cookies.

Were they implying that because I was Indian or had brown-skin that stuck out abnormally in their safe haven of all-white?

"I'm sorry… I don't understand?" I questioned.

"Demi, how badly do you want this job?" Dr. Ivory asked as his eyes darkened.

"Dr. and Mrs. Ivory, I will do anything you ask of me… because I need this job. I really need it."

"Well, it's settled. You're hired, Miss Rao," Dr. Ivory said quickly, which completely surprised me.

"Wait? Really?" I titled my head and glanced between the couple in front of me.

Daphne stood and opened her arms. "Dear, Dr. Ivory and I never joke. Bradley will escort you to the drawing room to go over our non-disclosure agreement, and then he will take you to obtain your belongings. We'd like for you to move in right away so you can begin work in two days. You may tour the estate tomorrow."

Non-disclosure agreement? What was that? I looked around the room and back at the couple in front of me. Their eyes felt piercing as I began peeling at the chipped black nail polish I had stolen from a drugstore. I had forgotten that they expected bare nails. Suddenly, Dr. Ivory's eyes fell to the light wood floors beneath us. His cheeks began to fill with red, and Daphne's eyes darted between him and the ground.

What's happening?

"Bradley!" he shrieked so loudly, I stumbled back.

"Ian…" Daphne grabbed his arm as the door behind me opened, and Bradley rushed inside.

He shot me an angry look before he turned to his employer. "Yes, sir?"

Ian swallowed and let out a hard exhale. "Fix it," he gritted, pointing to the floor by my feet. His face was bright red as he shook with clenched fists.

Bradley looked at me and then the floor by my feet. Within a moment, he dropped onto his hands and knees and began crawling. Crawling. A grown man began crawling toward me like a fast predator in the woods. My heart was pounding and my ears started to buzz. I didn't know what was going on. I clutched my hands together and took a few steps back until my legs crashed into the accent chair.

Bradley hurriedly began to pick up the shreds of nail polish off the floor and piled them into the palm of his hand. My eyes felt like they'd swell out of my face.

His platinum blond hair didn't move—obviously, it was carefully coiffed in place with a hefty amount of gel. His fingers were trembling after he rubbed them repeatedly across the floor to make sure there were no remnants of my polish.

In that moment, I felt like I should have run through the doors from sheer embarrassment. But I couldn't.

So instead, I stood there until Bradley got back up, clasped his hands together, and spun on his feet to face the Ivorys.

"Anything else, Dr. Ivory?" He bowed his head slightly.

Dr. Ivory's face was beet red, and Daphne lifted her hand and patted at her head.

"No," Dr. Ivory hissed and wafted his hand at Bradley as if he were a peasant.

Bradley nodded and sped out of the room. Releasing the breath from my puffed cheeks, I licked my lips, feeling so uncomfortable.

"Dr. Ivory, Mrs. Ivory… I'm so sorry. It's a nervous habit?—"

"Nails must be kept clean. You must be kept clean." Dr. Ivory cinched his brows and looked at his wife.

"I hope you're right about her." He shook his head and began to walk away. Except he didn't leave through the main door, he went through a side door and when the door shut, I saw him cut through a meticulously maintained backyard.

"He's going to the serenity garden. You must learn quickly, Demi. You absolutely must learn the rules of the Ivory Estate quickly… as if your life depended on it." Daphne pursed her lips and just as I processed the words that left her mouth, her lips tipped upright into a smile.

"Welcome home, darling." She opened her arms wide, and at that moment, I wasn't sure what the hell I just signed up for.

But my life quite literally did depend on it.

I just didn't know the magnitude of it all yet.