Chapter 14
Since finding the root of the problem, Stuart had no further use for Morwenna. In a hasty move, he pushed her aside.
Groggy from sleep, Morwenna nearly tumbled to the floor.
Rubbing her eyes, she looked at Stuart, puzzled and disoriented.
"Out," Stuart commanded, his voice deep and stern.
Morwenna was bewildered. After all, Stuart had arranged for her to sleep there as per their agreement. And at the time, he was dismissing her with such hostility.
What was with the attitude? She felt like punching him again!
…
Morwenna had thought sharing a bed signified a step toward a closer relationship, that perhaps she and Stuart could start to get along peacefully.
But contrary to her expectations, Stuart seemed to dislike her more after spending a night in the same bed. He began to make life increasingly difficult for her, inventing endless chores that kept her busy well into the day.
Even when she'd finished her task, Stuart always found more stuff to keep her occupied. Just yesterday, he had her replace all the drapes in the house, a task that kept her up until midnight. Today, he had scattered beans all over the carpet and demanded she pick them up.
Even a fool could see Stuart was deliberately making things hard for her.
Morwenna reminded herself to be patient. Norbert had been kind to her, and no matter how terrible Stuart's attitude was, she had to rise above it.
“Keep your cool. Don't hit Stuart.” She kept reminding herself in her heart.
Wanting to avoid conflict, Morwenna called Zoe and carefully reviewed every detail of her duties at Windcharm Villas, taking everything down in her notebook.
The notebook entries were detailed, like cleaning daily, changing Stuart's bed linens every three days, having the carpets professionally cleaned weekly, and handling Stuart’s laundry, suits, shirts, and ties, with dry cleaning, while materials like silk and cashmere needed hand-washing. Stuart disliked parsley, broccoli, sausage, and more. He was too picky!
No matter what Stuart threw at her, Morwenna gritted her teeth and got on with her work.
Stuart had many ways to make someone's life miserable without getting his hands dirty, but with Morwenna, he resorted to the simplest forms of harassment, hoping she would give up and leave.
But Morwenna was not one to give up. For Norbert’s sake, she could endure a little hardship.
But her latest experiences made one thing pretty clear to Morwenna. Stuart was a nuisance, and he particularly disliked her.
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Their standoff continued until the weekend.
They had previously agreed that Norbert would come over for lunch that day. Morwenna decided it was time to talk with Stuart.
She didn’t mind keeping up their current arrangement, but she didn’t want Norbert to sense the tension between her and Stuart.
Once again, Morwenna made breakfast and waited for Stuart to wake up. She had planned to go upstairs and wake him by ten if he hadn’t gotten up to avoid having Norbert arrive with Stuart still asleep.
But at nine, Stuart came downstairs, looking as irritable as ever.
Seeing Morwenna, his frown deepened.
The usually cheerful Morwenna managed only a stiff smile. “Stuart, breakfast is ready.”
On the table, Stuart’s side featured a sandwich and milk, while Morwenna had opted for some oatmeal for herself.
After Stuart had once complained that even a dog wouldn’t eat her cooking, Morwenna had stuck strictly to preparing foods that Stuart typically enjoyed.
As Stuart had his milk, Morwenna looked at him earnestly. “Stuart, you know, Norbert is coming over for lunch today. Can we pretend to be a normal couple just for today?”