Ring. Ring. I answered the phone.
"Hello?"
"Hi, Amir. This is Marie. Just want to make sure you're clear on your duties for today."
"Hi, Mrs. Shea. Yeah, if I understand correctly, I have to pick up your order at the nursery and take them to your house?" I was excited for an easy day of work. The Sheas were this wealthy couple in their 40s or there abouts. They pay me to run random errands for them: Getting their groceries, driving them places, washing their car, things like that. They only call me in a few times per week but they pay me so much for the easiest things. It's great.
"Well, yes, but I also had some more I was hoping you could do," said Mrs. Shea.
"Oh... What is that?" I asked, trying to hide my disappointment.
"We were hoping you could also do some landscaping and general yard work. We left more specific instructions on the dining room table for when you get there."
"Okay, but I don't really have any experience landscaping."
"You see, we don't really trust landscapers to work while we're out of town as much as we trust you," said Mrs. Shea. "It shouldn't be too hard. Bobby will be there to help you."
"Who's Bobby?" I asked.
"Oh, you two have never met? Bobby does some cleaning around the house. Anyway, good luck, Amir!"
"Yeah, seeya..."
I hung up the phone and sighed. This wasn't the first time they sprang some new work on me like this, as if I don't have a life outside of working for them. This could be anything from raking leaves to building a patio.
I put on some good clothes for working outside in the heat, got in my pickup, and drove to the plant nursery. There I picked up their order (a bunch of different types of flowers and some tree saplings) and drove to their house.
It was a big house with a circle driveway, a view of the river, and a lot of privacy. I unlocked the front door with my spare key.
I looked around at their big TV and comfy couch. Maybe after I finished my work I could relax and enjoy the luxuries of the empty house.
There was a piece of paper on the dining room table, my instructions. I read it over. There was so much stuff. Mowing the grass, planting the flowers in certain places, cleaning the pond... The list went on and on.
Just then I heard the front door open and footsteps on the wood floors. I walked back to the front room and was surprised to see a woman there.
"Hi. You must be Amir?" she inquired. She was wearing a baseball cap, dusty boots, and a pullover with some construction company logo. Despite her manly outfit, she had a pretty face and somewhat curly, brown hair with highlights.
"Yeah... Sorry, you are...?" I asked.
"I'm Bobbie. I work for the Sheas too." I had expected Bobby to be a man, but that obviously wasn't the case.
"Oh, oh, yeah. Marie mentioned that you'd be here," I said. "They said you're gonna be working with me today?"
"Yeah, that's right," said Bobbie, walking toward the dining room. "I'm surprised we've never met, really. I do all their cleaning around the house and in the yard when they need it."
"I guess I don't come inside the house much. Mostly just dropping things off."
"I've seen you dropping things off," said Bobbie. "... I mean, probably. I've seen people dropping things off, so, yeah." She started reading the instructions left by the Sheas.
"We've got a lot to do," I said. "I don't really know anything about this gardening stuff."
"Oh, I grew up on a farm. None of this should be too tough. Will probably take all day though."
We set off planting flowers on a mound of dirt in the backyard, the first task of many. Bobbie showed me how to do it and we were almost done an hour later. The sun was getting higher in the sky and weather was going from warm to ovenlike.
"It's really getting muggy," said Bobbie, wiping the sweat off her nose and forehead.
"Why don't you take of your sweatshirt?" I asked.
"No, it's fine... I, uh, I'm gonna go inside for some water and then I'm gonna get started on the pond while you finish here." Bobbie went inside and I kept working. A minute later, I watched her leave the house and walk to the pond with a net and a bucket. The pond was downhill from everything else, in a secluded corner of the property surrounded by bushes and trees.
How she was okay in this weather with a sweatshirt on was hard to understand. My thin t-shirt was already drenched in sweat. I needed a drink too, but I was determined to finish planting the flowers first.
I planted the last few flowers and went inside for a much deserved glass of water. The cool air of the house chilled the sweat on my skin.
I looked at the list for what to do next. I decided I would prune the bushes, since that's something I incidentally knew how to do. I went into their shed to grab some shears and went to work. I started with the hedges in the front of the house, because I thought they were the most important. But for some reason curiosity compelled me to prune the plants near the pond so I could see what Bobbie was up to.
Afraid Bobbie might catch me spying on her, I started where the bushes were too thick to see through.
When they were done, I moved to a place where the shrubbery was thinner. I could barely see her through the leaves, or needles, or whatever you call them.
Justifying my behavior by telling myself I needed to prune the insides of the plants too, I pushed myself into the bushes until I had a clear view of Bobbie. I quietly lopped away branches as I watched her.
She was fishing leaves out of the pond with a pool net, with her sweatshirt sleeves were rolled up. With her freehand, she grabbed the sweater by the hem and pulled it up and down to get air underneath.
It looked like she was wearing no shirt underneath. I guess that's why she didn't just take it off earlier. I continued to absent-mindedly prune the bushes, but all my focus was on Bobbie.
She reached her hand up her sweatshirt to scratch her collar bone. The hole thing lifted up and I could see most of her torso and the bottom of one breast. Her body looked healthy, with a nice amount of meat on her bones. She was absolutely dripping with sweat.
