“Well,” I say, keeping my voice even. “I suppose the first thing to do is figure out what to wear.” Her T-shirt is not much proof against the cold. She’s got bare feet beneath a black tulle skirt. I agree with Mr. Rochester in theory. But if I demand long sleeves and pants and socks and a sweater, we’re never going to leave this room. I might as well insist she turn lead into gold while I’m at it. Instead I head over to the dresser where I find a bunch of colorful clothes all jumbled together as if they came in a trash bag and were dumped out. No attempt at folding or organizing has been made. I suppose it’s good that they seem clean.

I dig around and find a thin Gucci hoodie. “How about this, as a compromise? You can keep what you’re wearing, add this, and then be comfortable around the house?”

“You smell bad,” she says to me.

Great.

Mr. Rochester raises his eyebrows. “Ms. Mendoza, can I speak with you a moment?”

I follow him into the hallway.

“Do you have this under control?”

Under control? No. “We’ll be fine.”

“Right. That’s how it seemed in there.” His voice is sardonic. Light streams through the doorway, casting his handsome face in sharp lines. His expression looks stern. It’s scary, enough to make my stomach turn to knots. And also somehow hot.

Warmth floods my cheeks. “I’ll figure it out.”

His lip quirks as if he knows what I’m thinking. “She’ll walk all over you.”

I lift my chin. “You hired me to do a job. Let me do it.”

His dark eyes flash. He likes me strong and defiant. For a moment it looks like he’s going to reach for me. Touch me. His hand actually rises. It’s inches from my face. Then it drops. “I’ll be in my study if you need me.” He pauses with a hard look. “Don’t need me.”

Then he’s gone, leaving me alone.

I walk back into the room with a small child who probably hates my guts.

This is not precisely a new situation for me. I helped the younger kids in foster care. That, along with a very nice letter from my social worker testifying to that, allowed me to get this job.

However, I only had to get them dressed and onto the school bus each morning. And get them fed after school and into bed. I didn’t have to actually teach them their lessons each day. And they were probably going to move to another home in a few months. It would be rare to stay together an entire year. The bar was a lot lower there, basically.

I examine the hoodie. It looks like it’s never been used. “This is the same color as community chest. That’s cool, isn’t it?”

“Nice try, lady.”