Thank you so much Incredimeters, for all your help with editing my work. I hope you enjoy this story.
The Caretaker
Aidan Williams sat at his desk bright and early on a Friday morning. Aidan was in his forties. He was Jamaican by birth with bronze skin. He was 6'1", 190 pounds with very short black curly hair. He had brown eyes and a short well-groomed black beard. He was wearing his typical grey business suit and was looking over the many reports and receipts for the Mi Deh Yah resort, of which his family was the owner.
He had just spent the last hour watching the video of hut 10 and he was growing more upset by the minute. The bad news about his mother Aalya's medical condition that he had just received was not helping and he was just itching to take out his frustration on someone. Aidan was not a vengeful person but it was only a matter of time before someone messed up and he let them have it.
The Mi Deh Yah resort was a small hotel that consisted of a main building that housed the hotel's kitchens, offices, ballroom, and spa. Aidan and his mother lived in a smaller 6-bedroom house on the resort's grounds. The hotel's main attraction was its dozen or so private hut-like cottages that were scattered across the beach. Hut 10 was where Ceilidh "Kayley" Walsh, his mother's nurse, had been staying for the last 2 months.
Kayley was originally from Ireland. She had come to Jamacia a little less than a year ago with the family she was working for at the time, the Stevens. Kayley had been taking care of Mrs. Stevens, the elderly matriarch of the family and the two were very close. When Mrs. Stevens passed away suddenly in a car accident, it hit Kayley very hard. Seeing that she was in no state to travel the family had let her stay at their beach house. After two weeks Kayley had been going stir-crazy and looking for something to do. She saw Aidan's ad for a nurse and decided then and there that Mrs. Stevens would be very upset with Kayley for not getting on with her life. Kayley would never forget the women but, it was time to stop moping and get back to work.
Aidan still remembered fondly the day Kayley had come in for the interview. He had totally mispronounced her name and she had said it was pronounced Kayley. She was 30, only 5'6, and maybe 140 pounds. She had long red hair, like a summer sunset, and skin that was as pale as fresh milk. She had green eyes and a face that need little if no makeup. Her laugh and smile brightened the room and she had the most beautiful accent he had ever heard.
Her credentials were impeccable. Her letter of recommendation from the Stevens song her phrases. Aidan's only concern was her size. Mrs. Stevens, he knew, as they had attended more than one party at the resort, was a small thin woman, his mother was not. He had said she could not possibly do the physical work required for the job and Kayley had got very upset. She had proceeded to the hotel gym and shown him she could do the work, by doing a workout that made him tired, impressed and he had to admit a little aroused.
Aidan was brought back to reality by a knock on the door. He quickly admonished himself for thinking about his employee that way and said, "Come in."
"You wanted to see Mr. Williams?"
"Yes, come in sit down." Aidan motioned to a chair.
"I have been going over your pay stubs and comparing them with other records," He didn't want her to know he had been watching hours of surveillance tape of her comings and goings, "And I don't think your hours are correct. What do you have to say about that?"
"Well, I am a nurse, not a bookkeeper so I am sure," She said meekly, "I'm sure they are off by a little but I try to be close."
"A little," Aidan said raising his voice. He grabbed her time sheet and shook it at her. "You are off by more than a little Kayley."
She stood and slammed her hands on her desk leaning over it. Trying to get in his face but she was too short. She only came halfway across the desk. "Do you have a problem with the care I am providing?"
"No," he stood and slammed his hands down on the desk too. Two could play at this game. "But you put in over 60 hours last week and only got paid for 44. That's just not right."
They were face to face now and the only thought that kept running through his mind was that scene from the little mermaid, with the song
kiss the girl
. He flinched first and sat back down. She remained standing.
"I have a solution." He offered meekly
"I'm listening." She said the alpha male as ever
"As of this moment, you are a salaried employee vs an hourly employee. And your new salary is this."
He handed her a folded piece of paper. Kayley almost choked. "This is twice what I make."
"Keep it up and I will make it three times," he grind. "I checked. Its fare- market rate for the services you provide."
"But you give me everything, clothes, food, and lodging." She explained. "I'm not worth this much." She countered.
"You take care of momma. Which Lord knows is not easy especially when she can't remember who you or anyone else is. You are worth ten times that." He pointed to the card. "She loves you and I..."
"You what..." Kayley asked.
"I need you." Aidan had wanted to say something else but chickened out at the last moment.
"Oh. Ok." She responded slightly dejected. "I have been meaning to tell you those spells of forgetfulness are getting worse. Do the doctors have any ideas?
