"First, let me explain that he is a really wonderful man but very quiet and keeps to himself. Some weeks I don't see him at all." She paused for a minute and watched Trina's expression. She had no problem with this, considering she was a loner herself. She gave Lee an encouraging smile and asked her to continue. "Mr. Wright leaves me lists of duties before I come in. They are not difficult jobs, particularly with our line of study but he is rather particular about how he wants things to be done. I will show you more about this later on."
Trina chuckled. "Lee, I promise you that you can't scare me off. I am pretty meticulous about my work as well, so this sounds like a good fit. I know Kylie wouldn't have recommended me if she didn't think I could handle it or wouldn't enjoy it," she assured Lee.
"I agree completely and I am relieved that you feel that way. Now, another thing. Mr. Wright is an extremely private person. If you want to keep this job, you must use discretion about him at all times. He holds a position of prominence and popularity in the community and his reputation is very important. You cannot go out with friends and talk about him in the middle of the bar. You can't talk about what you see in the house to your family or people you think you trust. I am not sure how, but he will find out and you will lose your job. Furthermore, you will be asked to sign a confidentiality agreement before you start, which is completely standard for a personal assistant." Lee's voice was serious when she said this and again all Trina could do was nod her head in agreement and express that she understood.
After this, Lee took me on a tour of the house. The downstairs parlor, a kitchen, a small office for Trina, and what seemed like a playpen. Trina peered in and was overwhelmed with the number of toys in there. The shelves were nailed to the walls and the floor, making it impossible for the dog Mr. Wright seemed to have. Seeing the heavyweight equipment, Trina was sure that it was huge.
She didn't know how she felt about that.
"Yes, Mr. Wright has a dog and you are welcome to play with it at any time. Mr. Wright thinks Dino needs more company. He gets lonely easily. Just make sure you finish all your work before you play. One time I put one of Dino's toys in the wrong place and he spotted it immediately. I swear he had hawk-eyes," she laughed.
They made their way to the kitchen and Lee opened some of the cabinets and the refrigerator which both held large amounts of food. She laughed when she saw the questioning expression on Trina's face. "Mr. Wright and his dog have a very specific and different diet. I am not sure how he finishes all this food between the two of themselves but he has asked me not to concern myself over it. You are welcome to keep coffee or tea and snacks and food in the fridge. Just remember to label them as yours. Grocery shopping, getting him food, or any housework is not part of your duties."
They went around the house and Lee promptly mentioned the spots Trina was allowed to enter and the ones she should never step foot in. During her entire time there, she had never been to his room.
"There are a lot of guest rooms and a bath down the hall if he had a visitor which happened from time to time. Other than when there are guests, if Dino slobbers all over you, you can use this bathroom to freshen up." She paused. "Follow me," she said. They finally stood in front of a door and she gave Trina a look and said. "This is the only personal task you have to handle and if you can handle this, you can handle anything else the job throws at you," she said as she gestured for Trina to follow her into the room. She pushed the door open and Trina felt her jaw drop.
It was a full-sized room that had been converted into a closet and a dressing room. All four walls were filled with shelves, drawers, and rows of hanging racks. She walked over and ran her fingers down a section of suits arranged by color or possibly season. Trina looked over at Lee and said, "This is… wow."
There were lines of shoes and shirts and coats, each with its own special drawer and shelf. It would take several lifetimes to accumulate this amount of clothing and accessories. Trina couldn't imagine the time and money required for that to happen.
As she inspected the items closer, she noticed a trend. They all looked new. All were in great condition but clearly bought pretty recently.
"Is he a shopaholic?" Trina found herself asking.
"I have always wondered that myself. You will find that he hoards food, supplies, and clothes. But he goes through them very quickly. Most of your work in this room is to look through every piece of clothing and sort through the ones that have tears in them. If they do, get them repaired by the tailer as soon as possible." She shook her head. "The ones beyond repair… Just dump them."
Lee showed her a couple more areas before they walked downstairs. They worked out a schedule for the next week since she had to give notice for her reduced hours at the vet clinic.
Lee escorted her to the door and as Trina walked out, she felt overwhelmed by the information that had been given to her. She was not sure how this man went through clothes this quickly. He was a star and needed clothes, but was he going around tearing up his clothes? From what she could gather, she would be working for the next year with a somewhat recluse who was busy with his work and rarely showed his face. He also had a huge dog and a special diet. His personal life was mostly none of her concern as long as she researched and reported properly.
She sighed. She needed the job. Who was she to turn up her nose at a perfect opportunity just because her boss had a few strange lifestyle choices?