Chapter 11
Quiet humming filled the room Ava worked in as she couldn't get the flowing melodies out of her mind. She made sure no one would hear her over the sound of the vacuum cleaner and stopped when she turned it off.
From the small bucket of supplies, she grabbed a duster and set to work in the lavish guest room.
Since these rooms were cleaned weekly, there wasn't much to clean but it had to be done regardless.
After looking around the room one last time she determined it to be as clean as it was going to be before gathering the supplies in her arms.
She opened the door carefully so she wouldn't stop anything but still almost did when she came face to face with Mr. Chastain. She managed to hold in her surprised gasp and hoped surprise wouldn't show on her face.
"Hi, Ava," he casually greeted. "How's it going?"
"Good afternoon, Mr. Chastain," she politely greeted back. "I'm doing well, thank you. How are you?"
"I'm good. I wanted to call you to ask if you wanted a ride to town next Friday, but I realized I don't have your number."
Fridays were her day off and the day she'd go into town to meet with Everly.
It was nice that he wanted to take her to town but she didn't want to explain how she didn't have a phone and have him think she was weird.
But she also didn't want to lie, what would she say?
'No Mr. Chastain, you may not have my number'? That would be worse.
"I don't have a phone," she admitted quietly. She knew everyone had one these days and it would be weird not to have one. Even a flip phone would be more acceptable than not having one at all.
The answer seemed to surprise him, and he didn't reply for a while. He just stared at her blankly and she felt her face grow hot from the scrutiny. "Why not?" he asked after a while. His voice didn't give anything away but she knew he was silently judging her for it. Everyone always did.
"I don't have anyone to call," she replied blankly. She'd be lying if she said that it didn't hurt to admit. Somehow she could ignore the fact she was alone in this world as long as she didn't have to say it. Everyone had someone, but she couldn't think of a single person to add to her phone.
"I'm sure that isn't true," he replied seriously. But he couldn't know, she hadn't told him much about herself because if she would have, he'd know.
She appreciated the gesture, though, as she realized he was just being nice about it. With a small smile, she directed the conversation elsewhere. "I'd appreciate it if you would give me a ride to town this Friday?"
He didn't look ready to let the conversation go and she almost thought he would keep asking about it. But he didn't. Instead, he shifted his weight into a lazy pose and leaned against the wall. After a few seconds, he nodded. "Alright."
"Thank you," she replied. Not just for agreeing but also for letting it go. He nodded again before pushing himself off the wall to walk away, leaving her alone with her thoughts.
It surprised her to see how easy he would let things go, especially since people often were so nosy they'd keep asking her all these questions while unknowingly humiliating her. She didn't have much, but she had her pride. It hurt to have that stomped on.
She watched his retreating figure for a moment longer before realizing what she'd agreed to. Another ride alone with him in his car. Friday was still a few days away but nerves were already starting to build up in her stomach at the thought.
But he actually made an effort to offer her a ride to town, which was very thoughtful of him. She hadn't quite realized it because she had been too focused on her not having a phone.
His actions continued to confuse her and she didn't know what to do with it. His motives made her suspicious yet she couldn't imagine him doing anything bad to her. He had been nothing but nice and polite to her yet she couldn't shake the feeling that he had ulterior motives.
She'd have to be extra careful around him until she knew.
The rest of the day was spent analyzing his words and actions but it tired her to know that she simply couldn't know what he was thinking. She could barely focus on her work because every time her mind would drift back to him.
At first, it would only be his actions. The way he chose to actually have conversations with her, even when there wasn't any reason to. Or the way he was kind enough to take her to the hospital when she got hurt, or give her a ride home when she walked through the pouring rain.
But it didn't take long for her mind to shift to other aspects of him, like the fact that he was undeniably handsome. She remembered the first time she saw him, his clean-shaven look and his perfectly trimmed hair.
That look had been slowly replaced by the more rugged appearance he had now.
His jaw showed a well-maintained stubble on his cheeks and jaw and she had to admit it suited him well.
He wore his hair more casual as well, it was still obvious he did something to style it but it was shaggier and a little longer than before.
He definitely took care of himself, but without overdoing it.
And the way he moved didn't go unnoticed by her either.
He was a tall man, and fairly muscular. yet he didn't move the way those super bulky gym-going men did.
He moved with seemingly impossible grace and this was only made more apparent when he played the piano the other night.
His fingers had mesmerized her and she wished she could move like that.
A thought briefly filled her mind, making her wonder how those fingers felt against her skin. But the thought itself shook her from her daydream. She shouldn't think those thoughts, it wasn't proper. And why would he ever want anything to do with someone like her?
Luckily, she noticed it was almost dinnertime, signaling the end of her shift. This meant that during dinnertime she could fully focus on George and Lauren so her mind couldn't drift back to him or his annoyingly distracting fingers.
Her prediction came true as George had enough to say about the garden and his plans for the next summer. She enjoyed listening to him even if she didn't understand half of it. Every now and then, Lauren would offer up an idea that George would then take into consideration.
Ava wished she could add anything to the conversation but she simply didn't know enough about plants. She doubted Mr. Chastain would care about the specific plants in his garden but George seemed very passionate about it.
It was still very much winter but he sounded pretty stressed about making preparations for the spring. The idea was that everything would have to be settled before summer so that garden would look pristine during the warmer days.
Ava just nodded along and every now and then she'd confirm what George had to say.
After assuring Lauren it would be no problem to clean the dishes today she bid her goodbyes to both of them.
She chose to do it all by hand because she didn't want to move the problem back to Lauren, who would have to clear out the dishwasher in the morning.
Besides, it would keep her busy for just a few minutes longer.
But even after that, she had no choice but to return to the silence of her room. She'd have to throw herself in the book she was reading to prevent her thoughts from drifting back to Mr. Chastain.
She turned off all the lights in the servant's quarters and made her way back to her room, only to have her plan fail almost immediately.
There was something in front of her door, which hadn't been there before.
She knew Lauren and George hadn't been anywhere near this hallway, leaving only Mr. Chastain.
She was a little apprehensive at the small package but also very curious. She couldn't think of anything someone would give her because she never got any gifts.
She reached her door but still couldn't see what it was. It was rectangular, she could see, but there was a note on top of it that obscured her view of the box itself.
She slowly crouched down to grab it and stood back up. The handwriting on the note was very neat and she remembered it to be Mr. Chastain's.
It read,
Ava,
You have at least one person you can call now, so I'm giving you this.
I've taken the liberty of adding my number to it, call me if you need any help with it.
-Seb
She turned her gaze to the now-visible box in her hand and gasped.
A phone.
A brand new one, at that.
New phones cost a small fortune and she knew she couldn't keep it. She briefly considered returning it immediately but remembered the unfamiliar car out front. She couldn't disturb him when he had guests over so it would have to wait.
The fact that he'd given her something like this stressed her out, it was too expensive for her to have. Things like this simply weren't meant for people like her.
So, she would have to return it first thing tomorrow.