Camellia Petre found Aldric Rainer interesting. He certainly knew how to entertain. The dining room table was a sight to behold. The centerpiece was a vase filled with flowers in autumn colors. The dinnerware consisted of ivory dishes with gold trim and crystal wine glasses. There were bowls of caviar, fresh fruit, potato pancakes, smoked salmon and white wine. It was much more decedent than what she was accustomed to.

But Camellia had been out of job for months now and it was taking its toll. She passed the first round of interviews. When she was told that Mr. Rainer would be conducting the second round of interviews personally at his house, she felt uneasy. She was not certain if it was safe to be at a strange man's house alone. However, she was desperate. Besides, she wasn't really alone. He had a household of maids, a butler, gardeners, and a chauffeur. Throughout the dinner, Camellia kept her fingers crossed, hoping for the best.

Aldric sat on the other side of the dining room table. She could feel his piercing green eyes looking at her. "Do you like the meal? I hope it's not too much for you."

She answered, "No. It's very nice, though I wasn't expecting all this for a simple dinner meeting."

Aldric smiled. "I wanted to make a good impression." Just then a server came in with another bowl and set it on the table. The server turned to Camellia. "Oysters?"

Camellia answered, "No, thank you." She was getting full from the caviar and salmon.

After the server left the room Aldric smiled again. "Ms. Petre I want to let you know that I find you to be a very fine candidate for the accounting position. And after meeting the other candidates, I have decided to offer you the job, if you want it."

Camellia's heart jumped into her throat. "Yes, Mr. Rainer I would be honored to work for your firm."

"Perfect. I know HR told you the salary starts at $85,000.00, but I believe you deserve more than that. I will pay you $95,000.00, with vacation, benefits, retirement, etcetera."

Camellia wanted to jump out of her chair, run over and kiss Aldric. But she knew that would be rude and not to mention weird. It was the salary she wanted but she was willing to take a pay cut. The fact that she was now getting everything she wanted made her heart beat even faster. "Thank you very much Mr. Rainer. I will make sure I am worth every penny."

"Of course you will be. I know the job will ask a lot of you, but I believe you will do well. Do not underestimate yourself."

Camellia was taken aback. In all her years in the corporate world, no one ever spoke such accolades towards her. Especially from someone who she wasn't even working for yet. "Thank you. I believe we'll work quite well together."

"So do I and please, call me Aldric. I insist. I hope you don't mind me calling you Camellia. It's such a lovely name. Not one you hear often."

"Not at all. It was my great-grandmother's name." She took another sip of white wine, though she was beginning to feel a bit tipsy.

"Now that we have business out of the way, I hope you will enjoy the rest of the evening."

"I've been having a lovely time so far, mister, I mean Aldric."

Aldric just stared her. Camellia felt his green eyes piercing through her. She looked away, not sure if the wine or something else.

"Tell me, Camellia do you have family nearby?"

"No. My parents are deceased and I was the only child."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"Well, in a way it made me stronger. It gave me the push to be able to stand on my own."

The server came into the room again, this time with dessert. He placed a bowl of sorbet before Camellia. She could smell the raspberries.

As she placed a spoonful for sorbet into her mouth, Aldric said to her, "I find you a remarkable woman. I also see myself in you."

"In what way?"

"Well, I too have no family nearby. Most of them died a long time ago. I do have a nephew who's currently visiting. I'm a bit of a loner and this huge house can get very quiet. But I do like company. I feel a presence about you that makes me want to know you better."

She shifted in her chair. "That is nice for you say." Camellia was hoping this conversation was going into another direction.

Sensing a change in the air, Aldric said, "I do not intend to make you feel uncomfortable, Camellia. I just like to get to know you better since you will be working for me. Of course, we can keep everything professional."

Camellia began to relax. "Yes, I would like that."

Aldric smiled. "Good. I hope we become good business partners and perhaps friends. If I offended you in any way, I apologize. It was not my intent."

"No offense taken Aldric," Camellia responded.

At that moment the server came back into the room, this time looking concerned. He leaned and whispered something into Aldric's ear. Aldric's face darkened.

"Can you excuse me for a moment, Camellia? There is something I need to take care of."

"Of course, if you need me to leave."

"No, that won't be necessary. It won't take long."

She watched Aldric walk out the room. Being in the dining room alone gave her a chance to really take a look at the place. She felt as though she was in Versailles dining with a king. Who could have guess she was just in a house in New Jersey.

She then heard voices coming from the other room. She heard a male voice shouting, "I didn't do anything wrong. You act like I'm some sort of baby."

She then heard Aldric's voice. "Quiet down. I have a guest and you're not going to ruin my evening."

Though she knew it was wrong, Camellia quietly got out of her chair and walked towards the door. Pressing her ears to the door, she listened.

"A guest? Can I meet her? Or is it a him?"

Aldric responded, "It is a lady. And I will not have her meet you in this condition."

The other man huffed. "Whatever. Are you going to have her for dessert?"

"No. She is my brand new employee. Unlike some people I can control myself."

"I have control."

"Leaving your food out in the open to be found is not control."

Leaving food out? Camellia was not sure what the heck they were talking about. A part of her wasn't sure she wanted to. She then heard the young other man say, "I'm going upstairs."

"Please do and stay up there", Aldric replied.

Camellia discreetly opened the door just enough to peek out. She saw a young man in a black leather jacket and ripped jeans stomping up the stairs. The man's clear blue eyes met hers. He grinned and winked at her. Camellia hurriedly got away from the door and back to the dining room table. She sat down just in time for Aldric's return.

"I apologize. My nephew can be a bit rambunctious."

Camellia put on the facade she had perfected in the corporate world. "It is quite all right."

Aldric smiled. "You a very humble and understanding person. I like that."

They finished dessert and chatted until it became quite late. Though Aldric welcomed her to one of the spare bedrooms, Camellia declined, especially after what she overhead. However, Aldric did offer to have his chauffer drive Camellia home, which she happily accepted after the wine she drank.

At the front door Camellia said, "I had a very lovely evening, Aldric. Thank you for everything."

Aldric took Camellia's hand into his. They felt quite cool. "The pleasure was all mine". When he kissed her hand, Camellia noticed his lips was cool as well. He walked her to her the sedan and said to her, "I look forward to working with you, Camellia. And we must have dinner again."

Camellia smiled. "I would like that."

As Aldric walked back to the house, a light from the second floor window caught Camellia's attention. It was the young man – Aldric's nephew – looking down at her with a strange look on his face that made Camellia feel uneasy. The young man gave Camellia the most sinister smile before vanishing from the window. Camellia was not sure what to think of it, but pushed it out of her mind. She had a new job with a great salary. Her boss was somewhat peculiar, but seemed to respect and believe in her. After months of unemployment and not knowing what would happen next, things were finally looking up.