A Devil Boss

Chapter 4.2

Sera grinned mischievously. "Of course. You are the master of the house, and for this, there is no better navigation than you. Unless you can justify me being late tomorrow because I'm lost here," she countered with amusement. She got out to take a closer look at the house, which was lit by a few lamps on the floor.

Astarot nodded and waited for her to enter.

They came into a hallway that seemed very spacious. There was a closet for clothes, a shoe rack, and a dresser with a mirror.

Very pretty, Sera had to admit. As soon as Astarot closed the door, the staff came to greet him. 

Sera was amazed at how polite and neat they were with him. Still, the relationship between them seemed promising.

There was a gardener, a kind of janitor who probably looked after the house's condition, and a young woman who seemed to be in charge of everything else.

They also greeted Sera, who nodded at them with a smile. "Can I get you something, Mister Diabolus?" the maid asked, and Sera eyed her more closely. She was not very old yet, which made her wonder if Astarot had many employees.

"Sera will be moving in here starting today," he explained. "It would be good if you helped her find her way around a bit," he said with a wave.

With a nod, she agreed to the request and then turned around for them to follow her. Sera saw from a small tag on the woman's blouse that her name was Monica. "The rooms are a little dusty, but I can make one up for her quickly," she said, and Sera hastily waved it off. Being waited on did not occur to her. So Sera asked the woman to merely show her where she could find everything.

"Of course," the latter agreed and seemed to have no problem with Sera's approach. Then she led Sera to a room that was a cozy bedroom.

A large bed along with a bedside cabinet immediately caught her eye. The closet where she would put her clothes was right across from it. There was even a smaller dresser that stood against the wall to the right of the door. Here, she could probably store odds and ends. As Sera noted, she would also have access to the balcony, which apparently led all the way around the second floor. "Wow," she gasped in amazement.

"Very nice," Astarot agreed. "There's a study next door if you need one," he explained, opening a door that led to said one.

Spacious with a large desk, the room was furnished. What surprised Sera was that there was a modern printer here. She had one just like it in her office. "That means I can take the company laptop home and work from there too?" she asked hopefully. Whereas she had her own laptop, which she could then use to surf the Internet. But she had to get that from Phoenix first.

"Yes. But not until later," Astarot said and led her further into the large, spacious living room. It had an open kitchen and also a large table.

Typical American, but Sera loved an open eat-in kitchen. It made her feel free. "I like it here," she finally said, rubbing her nose.

"Very good, then you can stay here for now. Do you need help with your things this weekend?" he asked, settling into the armchair. Here the furniture was not covered with a protective sheet, as it was in the study and bedroom.

Sera leaned against the kitchen counter and looked in the cabinets for glasses. "Do you want anything?" she asked, though she didn't know what was actually there to drink. Nor did she know what was in the refrigerator. "And yes, I will need help. It's not very much that I have. Maybe a few boxes I need to bring in." 

"I'd love to. If you don't mind too much, I'd like to stay here tonight. It's already late," he explained and stretched.

Since there were plenty of rooms, Sera saw no problem with that. After inspecting the refrigerator extensively, she handed him a glass of red wine. She had drunk a similar one in the pub.

Astarot thanked her and asked if they wanted to order food. There wasn't that much in the fridge.

"Where are you from exactly?"

Ordering food sounded very good to Sera's ears, so she agreed. Tomorrow she would go shopping, she firmly resolved. She had to shake her head at his other question. "Did you even look at my application?" she wanted to know. After all, it had her previous address on it.

"Yes, but honestly, with all the applicants, I don't have every detail in my head anymore," he confessed, pulling out his cell phone to order.

"I'll pay," Sera said quickly. As a token of her gratitude for being allowed to stay here temporarily. I wonder how many apartments he had. "I'm from Phoenix, and I haven't actually been around much," she did finally answer his question.

"Do you have enough money for the next while?" he asked, surprised.

Sera explained that she still had money saved up. It wasn't much, but it would keep her afloat for a few months if she did an excellent job of housekeeping.

"Then we'll see in the next few weeks if I can give you an advance on your salary," Astarot said as if that were perfectly normal.

Reprovingly, Sera raised her finger. "On one condition!"

"You set conditions?" asked Astarot, amused. "In doing so, I was thinking of paying you a portion of your wages. If you were to quit work sooner than your payout would be, I would ask for the money back anyway."

Amused, Sera clicked her tongue, and her eyes twinkled. "I'll only accept the advance if you're happy with my work, and I deserve it," she said thoughtfully.

"So that's exactly what I had planned," he said matter-of-factly. "So far, after all, there's not that much to judge."

Again Sera raised her finger reprovingly. "I'm not sure where I stand with you, to be honest. It's going to take some time to be able to assess you."

"That's life," he said with a wave of his hand and handed her the phone, so she could pick something out.

She looked at the list for a while, finally wanting to know if the Chinese food was any good. "Roast duck would be great," he said.

"Yes, it's one of the best," he assured her. "Almost around the corner, therefore fast and hot too."

Then they could go there right away and eat it fresh. Just the thought of roast duck made Sera's mouth water. There seemed to be excellent restaurants here, and they were probably affordable. That made her feel satisfied.

"Unfortunately, the restaurant is almost always crowded, so delivering is the only option," Astarot sighed and sent off the order.

Sighing, Sera drank her red wine. "How long will it take to deliver? Maybe I can still manage to change and freshen up. It's getting late." Looking at the time, she knew the late meal would have an aftermath for her. Still, she was hungry and wouldn't pass up roast duck.

"I think twenty minutes," Astarot agreed. "That should do it."

Satisfied, Sera set her glass down on the counter and unceremoniously disappeared into the modernly furnished bathroom. In addition to a shower, there was also a corner tub. Perfect for a few hours of relaxation. However, Sera wanted to hurry, so she preferred the shower. Ten minutes later, she was standing in the living room, almost dressed. Only her light jacket, which she liked to wear over her top when she was cold, was still missing.

Astarot did not seem to have moved an inch. He was leaning on the sofa and drinking wine. He had turned on the music, however.

It would never have occurred to the young woman to one day share a meal in her temporary apartment with her boss sitting so casually on the sofa. The absurd situation made Sera grin as she looked in the cupboards for plates. Although the food was already delivered to be eaten quickly, Sera was not a fan of eating out of boxes. Therefore, she simply set the table without asking her boss. 

He still looked fit, despite a long day at the office and not at all exhausted.

Sera noticed that he was watching her, but he continued to sit casually.

She had just finished setting the table when the doorbell rang. She knew from Monica that she had left in the meantime. Therefore she went to the door and opened it.

Her luck because she wanted to pay anyway. Therefore it met well, and she took the hot bag after she pressed the money into the supplier's hand. She didn't want change, so she closed the door again relatively quickly and came into the living room with the loot. 

Glancing at Astarot, who was still sitting there, she grinned wryly. "Either you come to the dining table, or you will go to sleep hungry. I won't serve you dinner and will eat your portion instead."

Astarot laughed, stretched, and rose before slowly making his way to the dining table. As he did so, he emptied his glass and finally settled down.

Sera placed his food in front of him and then retrieved the wine bottle to pour for him. Then she wished him a good appetite and deftly pulled apart the wooden chopsticks that came with the meal and began to eat. 

Even the first bite was so delicious that Sera closed her eyes and moaned with pleasure.

"At that, I thought you wouldn't want to serve me," Astarot laughed. He, too, used the chopsticks skillfully but had ordered sushi.

"Not in the way you might be used to," Sera countered, devoting herself entirely to her food. There was not very much to say, so she preferred to remain silent. However, she would answer should Astarot want to know something.

The meal passed in silence, and they both enjoyed it.

After they finished, Sera wordlessly grabbed the plates and rinsed them along with the glasses. The order was a must, and she wanted to dust off her room before finally retiring. Her boss would surely go to sleep soon, so she wished him a good night's rest.