be afraid of them. Dogs feel fear, more precisely, an excess of adrenaline in the blood, but they do not distinguish feelings, so they take it as a sign of aggression. If you are friendly, they will feel and respond to you in the same way, – brown almond-shaped eyes looked friendly and soothing.
The girl thought: «Thanks a lot, my kind boss! The last thing I would like is for a pack of killer dogs to decide that I am an enemy for them!», but she said out loud: «I really love animals!».
Mr. Mellone’s smile at these words became downright unrealistically wide. And Mellie decided that this is how an alligator smiles in anticipation of a hearty lunch.
The wheelchair smoothly rolled down the ramp and stopped in the middle of the yard. There was a soft, barely audible whistle, and they turned out surrounded by a cheerfully bouncing flock. Each of the dogs tried to lick Mr. Mellone’s hand or face, and he laughed merrily and ruffled their necks. But as soon as he spoke, everyone, as if on command, stopped jumping, sat down in a circle and stared at him with devoted eyes. The boss introduced Mellie according to all the rules, just like at a social event. Each dog took turns coming up and sniffing Mellie, and she in turn had to pat the animal on the head.
Finally, the introduction ceremony was over, and they returned to the house to work. As on the previous day, Millie plunged into the most exciting travels and barely broke away for lunch. She ate lunch very quickly and returned to the cabinet. The day again flew by unnoticed. In the evening, giving the updated catalogs, Mellie suddenly had like an electric shock, and she couldn’t help but ask: «All these places… You were there yourself, weren’t you?».
– You are not only very talented and efficient, but you are also a very perceptive girl! Yes. That’s exactly how it is. And if it’s interesting to you, I can somehow share my impressions with you, – Mr. Mellone’s voice was as stringy as white honey, and the same transparent, and his cat eyes shone from the inside.
«Do I want to? Yes, of course I do! And not ever, but right now, right now I wouldn’t refuse!», – Mellie flashed through her head, but she politely thanked aloud and said that the idea was just wonderful. Then she said good night to Mr. Mellone and left.
This time the girl slept much worse, she couldn’t sleep for a very long time. She was haunted by the thought that something was wrong. Or rather, everything was wrong. She really worked; moreover, the work brought her great satisfaction. Inquisitive by nature, Mellie absorbed information like a sponge. And she really wanted the boss to share his emotions with her. And she, in turn, wanted to share her emotions with him. All this was more than strange, because the priority should have been her main job, her goal, for the sake of which she was doing the work. And the details of the execution were just an addition to the overall picture. But it was the opposite. Only two days had passed, and the girl did not want everything to end faster. She managed to understand that her boss was an extremely interesting, even one might say, unique person. She had never met anyone like him before, and she wanted to get to know him better, she wanted to hear what he would tell in his velvety voice, she wanted to share her opinion.
Cold reason stubbornly insisted that he didn’t like everything that was happening, but the adventurous streak blithely waved away, they say, we have a lot of time, why not spend a little for your own pleasure.
Reassuring herself that it was just a period of adaptation, and everything, as always, would fall into place, Mellie was able to fall asleep after all.
Chapter 13
The days filled with interesting work flowed. Mellie no longer thought that something was going wrong. She gave herself completely to life on the estate. As rivers and streams have a current, so this house also had its own current. Slow, measured, but very powerful, it captured imperceptibly, so there was no strength to turn back or get out, and, to be honest, there was no desire either.
«I am on vacation! – Mellie repeated to herself every time common sense gave voice. – And really, why not? I have no time limit, and to impress Mr. Mellone, looks and youth alone are not enough at all!». The girl realized this the very next day after her arrival. Therefore, she needed time to do the main work. This is how she calmed her professional «I» when this «I» began to scream hysterically from her inaction. In fact, she simply enjoyed a calm, measured life in the house, with very interesting and complacent people. And she wasn’t going to rush. Because even time went differently in this place. Everything here was different. And everyone here was different. And it was all so interesting!
The week was coming to an end, and Mellie could not wait for the weekend to climb everything up and down. In fact, she had not seen anything yet, only the house, and even that was not all. However, on Friday evening, at the end of the working day, Mr. Mellon announced that tomorrow morning they would go to the house in the mountains, and in the evening they would go down to the mountain lake and spend the night there.
– Do you have the right clothes? If not, contact Mona, she will pick up something for you, – the boss did not take his brown eyes off her, in which a cheerful chuckle splashed. – Or did you have other plans? In any case, I strongly do not recommend refusing, it will be very interesting! – his quiet voice murmured.
Looking into his eyes, Mellie thought: «I wonder if anyone would dare to say «No» to you, especially after the words «I strongly do not recommend refusing»? Mellie was sure that such an abnormal person would not be found, not only in the house, but throughout the entire globe.
Mr. Malone had an amazing ability to subdue everything and everyone, and without any effort on his part. He smiled sweetly, kindness itself shone in his eyes, but any more or less sane person immediately understood that insubordination could lead to consequences and, possibly, very unpleasant. «I’ll have to investigate everything another time… Yes, well, God help him, tomorrow promises to be very interesting!», – she sedately left the cabinet, but as soon as the door closed behind her, she galloped into the kitchen to discuss everything with Mona.
The morning plunged the girl into despondency. The sky was covered with powdery white clouds that hung so low that the treetops tickled their thick sides. There was no sign of the sun. «Well, that’s what a fun weekend is about to come…», – glancing longingly out the window again, she trudged to the kitchen. But, to her surprise, there was a cheerful animation in the kitchen. The driver, a middle-aged man, tall and sturdy, who was also a gardener and a housemaid, was putting groceries in a backpack, joking with Mona. After greeting, Mellie expressed her bewilderment about what was happening with a look. Without interrupting her studies, Mona explained that the weather was just what they need to visit a house in the mountains, and indeed for long walks: the sun was not very active, there was pleasant coolness and humidity in the street. «Aha! And it will be absolutely wonderful if the downpour kicks in and we all get wet to the skin!», – the skeptical mood did not want to leave her, but, pushing this mood into the farthest corner, Mellie gladly joined the fun commotion.
Mr. Mellone was already waiting on the porch when the merry trio fell out of the house. There was no limit to Mellie’s amazement again – he looked stunning even in a tracksuit and a baseball cap, and his hair was still carefully arranged in a ponytail. The boss wore glasses only while working with papers, the rest of the time he did without them, so she could see the cheerful rays of wrinkles in the corners of his eyes when he looked at all three of them, smiling. «How does he do it? Be sure to figure it out! How does he manage to immediately attract the eye to his person, having an outstanding appearance and figure? So much so that it is impossible to look away. How does he manage to look like a victorious king with his inability to move?», – Mellie added another note to her piggy bank of questions and found that there was almost no spot left. But the piggy bank of answers was absolutely empty.
Конец