Hi Josie ~

Thank you sooo much for doing this. I’ve worked for this family before. Sadly though, I think I told you, it was when Monsieur Pascal’s wife Arriette was alive. Such a terrible tragedy. Their daughter, Dauphine, is scrumptious! She’ll be around ten years old now, I think. I can’t imagine how sad it’s been for her to lose her mother. Apparently, it’s still tough two years later.

Normally, I’d take you out to lunch to have a frank discussion about the family. But it was all a little crazy yesterday, I have to email it all to you.

Okay, standard rules apply for the girls I position - I’m just pasting these in. I know you and know this won’t be a problem. But I have to cover my ass.

1)Follow the family’s rules for care, don’t make up your own (mealtimes, bedtimes, routines etc).

2)No friends (romantic or otherwise) on an employer’s premises without written consent from employer. (Best idea is to email employer and cc me, and then we have it in writing. Actually, best of all idea is just to avoid visitors for the length of the contract.)

3)No smoking, drinking alcohol, or drug taking.

4)No fraternizing in any romantic capacity with any of the employer’s family, friends, or acquaintances. You should mostly be invisible.

5)No using cell phone except during personal time or expressly to be in touch with employer if out with child(ren). He’ll probably give you a local phone.

You are allowed two days off per week. Actually, a work week in France is maximum forty hours, but you can make the arrangement with your employer.

In your case, since it’s mostly going to be on a yacht (sorry! I just found out. I feel awful. You’ll be okay, right?), I imagine you’ll have to work it out with Monsieur Pascale. I’ll check in with you at the end of the first week, third week, and then your final (sixth week) to see if they want to extend to eight. If anything comes up in the meantime, please don’t hesitate to call.

Best of luck for the best job in the world—being a guardian angel to a small soul!

Tabs xo

I blew out the long breath I’d been holding as I read most of the email. I loved the invisible part. Invisible was exactly what I needed. But was it possible to be invisible when you were going to be sharing a tiny space, like a boat? And what about if we all ventured off the boat? I had a horrible feeling that came with a shit ton of very close scrutiny. Remembering how traumatizing it had been when my family had been in the news, I gave a shudder.