One week later

Keisha stood outside the Landon’s house, well it looked more like a castle she saw in England, when her Grandmamma sent her there as her college graduation gift. It is just weird to be here in ATL and have to get through the gates like you are at the Buchanan Palace. Wait until she tells her Grandmamma Mary about this, she already think this family is crazy.

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After the interview

She got back to her room and called Isa and D to let them know that Edward Landon was going to be calling them for a reference. She told them she was trying to get a job as a nanny and don’t tell him she is a singer. Isa told her that Edward had already called for the reference, and that he and D went to Stanford with him and his wife, he also told Keisha to watch her back because Elizabeth was sneaky, but he didn’t go into details.

 Next, Keisha called Grandmamma Mary. Grandmamma Mary answered the phone on the third ring. “Hello Kee Kee how is my favorite girl?” It is amazing how fast she forgive you after she has relieved her anger on you by switching you, but we wouldn’t have her any other way. 

“I am fine Grandmamma. I have a possible job lined up already. It is not singing, but it will get me closer to a well known music producer.” 

“Yep, Isa already told us that the guy Edward something went to school with him and Darrell. What’s wrong this sounds like everything you want? You get to take care of a little one and try working on that Edward fellow to help with your singing career.” 

“Yes ma’am it does sound like everything I want, but Isa told me to watch my back because his wife was sneaky.” 

Grandmamma Mary was quiet for a while thinking about what Kee Kee had just told her. “Kee Kee did Isa tell you why he think she is sneaky?” 

“No ma’am. I need this job and I will just have to watch my back.” 

“Kee Kee maybe you shouldn’t take this job because if she try something that will hurt you physical or mentally I will have to come visit with my 9 and my Bible.” 

Ok time for Keisha to move the conversation passed the sneaky wife and she had the perfect topic. “Oh Grandmamma I forgot to tell you my other duty besides taking care of Heather.” 

“You think you are slick changing the topic. I will let it go for now, but know this if she steps out of line I will be there before you can say Bob’s your uncle. You feel me baby girl.”

“Yes ma’am,” that was all Keisha could say because she knew her Grandmamma would show up if the woman looked at her wrong. Keisha told her about the suicidal dog, and got the reaction she had expected. 

“What in the hell do you mean the dog is suicidal? I have never heard no shit like that before. Excuse me Lord for cussing.”  

Keisha has always found it funny how her Grandmamma Mary cussed like a sailor and then say sorry to the Lord. You would think it would be easier just to stop cussing, but Grandmamma Mary said it was easier to ask for forgiveness because you can get that easier. 

“Keisha are you sure you’re in Atlanta Georgia?” 

“Yes Grandmamma Mary, Why do you ask?” 

“That is some sh…stuff they would say in LA and not the good ole south. LA is the only place they have shit like dog whispers, pet psychics, and pet psychologists, get the damn dog another girlfriend it is not rocket science. Excuse the cussing Lord, I can’t believe these crazy a...crazy people have me cussing for no good reason.” 

Keisha was laughing so hard at for Grandmamma that tears was running down her face. “Grandmamma…I thought…the same…thing,” Keisha took a deep breath to calm down her laughter and wiped the tears that was on her face from laughing so hard. “I was going to make that my first suggestion when or if I get the job. Grandmamma I just called to let you know I am alright. I am going to take a long soak in the tub, order some room service, and watch some TV before going to sleep. I love you and I will call you tomorrow to let you know if I get the job.” 

“Baby girl please you know you got the job with just Isa and D’s recommendations, call me tomorrow anyway. I love you Kee Kee.”

Keisha heard the click on the phone letting her know her Grandmamma Mary hung up. Keisha called her the next morning after talking to Edward and finding out she got the job.

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The cab driver sitting Keisha’s luggage on her right side brought her back to the present. She reached in her Gucci purse and gave him his fare and a $20 tip. “Thank you sir, for the ride and the help with my luggage.”

The cabby looked at his tip then her and said, “No ma’am thank you.” He got behind the wheel of his cab and drove back down the curvy driveway toward the gates.

Keisha was about to ring the door bell, when the door was answered by an older distinguished looking gentleman dressed like Geoffrey from The Fresh Prince. He was about 6’0” may be about 170lbs, brown eyes and black hair with sprinkles of grey. He looked to be in his earlier to mid forties.

George Winston looked at the lovely young woman seeing why his employer and friend seem so taken by her. Eddy didn’t even realize her fancied the woman. Hopefully she will last longer than the other nannies who happened to find out about Lady Elizabeth (he use the term lady loosely) cheating. “Hello Madam Gardner I presume,” then he took her right hand in his and kissed the back of her hand in a gentlemanly gesture. Keisha gave him the prettiest smile that lit up her whole face.

Oh, he is a charmer. Keisha liked him already. “Yes I am Ms Gardner or just plain old Keisha. Please don’t call me madam it makes feel like I should be running a bordello.”

George did something he rarely did on duty and that was laugh. Oh, yeah this one is going to last a while. “I will call you Keisha if you will call me George.”

Keisha shook his hand on it. “You got yourself a deal.”

“Let me take you to the sitting room where Mr. and Mrs. Landon is waiting for you.”

“What about my luggage?”

“Don’t worry about it I will have one of the maids take them up stairs to your apartment. For now I think it is more important for you to meet the rest of the family.” 

Before Keisha left the entry way she looked around her. The floor was black and white marble, the walls were panted white, and a huge chandelier was hanging from the cathedral ceiling. As she followed behind George she noticed the mausoleum feel continued through out the castle. All the floors were black and white marble and the walls were panted white. There were paintings on the wall and sculptures on pedestals. There wasn’t a rug in sight to soften the sterile look of the floors. Keisha was to afraid to sneeze here for fear of breaking anything, so how the hell does a 3 year old cope.

George stopped at a room that was decorated in Victorian furniture, and Keisha can guarantee they were real and not recreations. Mr. Edward and Mrs. Landon stood up when she and George entered the room. George left the room quietly after he brought Keisha to Eddy and the evil redheaded demon.

Edward took a couple of steps to close the distance between them in order to shake her hand. “Hello Keisha and welcome to our home.” Edward turned back around and pulled his wife beside him, “this is my wife Elizabeth Landon, and you may call her Mrs. Elizabeth like you call me Mr. Edward.”

Keisha reached out to shake Elizabeth’s hand and almost had a heart attack. Oh my God, Oh My God, Oh My God. What the hell is wrong with her face? Stay calm. Keisha shook her hand with a calm that she didn’t feel at all inside her head. What the hell did she do to her self? She looked like the female gremlin from Gremlins 2. Her lips were huge. You know your freaking lips are big if a black person thinks so. Is she trying to smile? It is like she had a stroke from around her eyes up. Nothing is moving. Shit I just figured it out. She has had collagen injected in her lips and Botox injected in her forehead and around her eyes. Ok focus on the pool out the window directly behind her, yeah that will work. 

Edward could see Keisha was trying not to focus on Liz’s face and he could understand why. He thought Liz was beautiful the way she was.

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Last Friday 

Edward came home and almost had a heart attack, he didn’t know the woman in the sitting room was his wife. Her lips were 10 times bigger than her natural full juicy lips and, he could see injection sites on her forehead and around her eyes. 

“Liz, why did you do this to yourself? I tell you you’re beautiful everyday.” 

“I know you tell me I am beautiful everyday, but I want to remain beautiful for you. I started to see wrinkles on my forehead and crowfeet around my eyes. I promise in a week I will be more beautiful than I was before. Don’t be upset with me. I really had to do this for myself.” 

“Liz I...” he was cut off by a high pitch scream coming from Heather. She ran out the room talking about Howard the Duck. “Liz I will talk to you after I go have a talk with Heather.” Edward left the room to go find his frighten baby girl. 

Edward found her hiding in her Dora playhouse in her room. Edward bent down and stuck his head in the playhouse, “come on Princess. Come out and talk to daddy.” 

Heather shook her head no. She motioned with her hand for him to come in and talk to her. Edward crawled in on his hands and knees until he was close enough to her to pull her onto his lap. 

“Princess, why did you scream and run away from your mum and me?” “

Daddy I didn’t run away from you.” In a low whisper, “Daddy, who was that woman in the room you were talking to she scared me, and where was mummy?”

 Whoa, now how do you tell your 3 year old that the woman who scared her was her mum? “Princess that woman was your mummy. She went to the doctors and they did that, but she should be fixed by next week. OK?” 

“So, that lady was mummy.” 

“Yes, baby it was.” 

Heather sat there on my lap in thought, and a few minutes later she was laughing her head off. “Daddy she looked like that duck from that old movie we watch Saturday, except she was the girl version.” 

Edward couldn’t help it, he started to laugh his bum off because Liz did. “Oh Baby…she…does…look like…Howard the Duck.” Edward stopped laughing and pulled his self back together. “Yeah, she does, but let’s keep that between us ok.” 

Heather giggled some more. “Ok, daddy it can be our secret. Daddy, when can me and Charlie go to the park again?” 

“Probably Monday or Tuesday at the latest, remember I told you that your new nanny will be here on Monday. I think you and Charlie will like her a lot. She is related to an old friend of mine from college. She already has fun things planned for you already.” 

“Really daddy, how far away is Monday?” 

“Well, it is Friday now. Since you know the days of the weeks, say them with me and then count them.” 

Together they said the days of the week and put a finger up for each day. “Saturday, Sunday, and Monday,” then they count their fingers, “1,2,3 days.” 

“Right you are Princess. Lets mark it on your calendar so you can cross of the days until she gets here.” They get out and up from the play house and go to her calendar on her wall and circle Monday then cross off Friday.

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Edward shook his head to clear it.

“Hello, you may call me Mrs. or Lady Landon.”

Is this woman crazy? Lady Landon? I don’t think so, just because she live in a castle doesn’t give her a title and not only that this is the U.S.A. “Mrs. Landon it is.”

“My husband told me that your cousin is engaged to our old friend Isa. She must be like you. He always did go for…beautiful woman.”

Keisha could tell she wanted to use the “N” word but held her tongue. Good thing she did because I didn’t want to have to kill a bitch on my first day at work. “Yes we resemble each other. They just got engaged.” Keisha could tell that if she could make an expression it would be a sour face.

“Well isn’t that lovely. Is that the type of clothes you will be wearing everyday you do your job?” Liz looked her up and down wondering how she could afford to wear the name brand stuff on a nanny salary. That is a real Gucci handbag, $300 sneakers, $200 jeans, $60 vintage t-shirt, and 2 carrot ruby stud earrings.

“Yes, the same style of clothes, but not as pricey. I want to be able to get down and dirty with Heather.” Yeah she thinks she’s smart trying to figure out if Keisha has more expensive clothes, well she gets no answers from her. Yep, she came from money, but that is none of her damn business. Keisha is going to make sure she watched her slick ass. Keisha didn’t like her false happiness about her cousin Tamesha’s engagement either. Keisha pasted on a false smile, “were is little…” before she could finish she was interrupted by a little girl.

Heather came running into the room yelling, “Daddy and Mum is she here yet!”

“Heather what have I told you about running in the house? Use your inside voice like a lady.”

Heather hung her head, “Sorry mum. I was excited to meet Ms Keisha.” A golden retriever entered the room just as she finished. “See even Charlie is excited to meet her.”

In walked the saddest looking dog Keisha had ever seen. Charlie had a 5x7 silver picture frame in his mouth, his head was hanging down, his tail was tucked between his legs, and every so often he would whimper. He walked right up to Keisha and dropped the picture frame at her feet and looked up at her with sad brown eyes. At that moment she decided she was going to find a way to help Charlie.

Keisha petted his head and then picked up the picture. “Charlie is this your girlfriend?” Charlie nodded his as if to say yes. “Well she was very pretty.” The picture was of another golden retriever wearing a crown and a pink doggie grown.

She placed the picture back in his mouth and Charlie left the room. Edward was amazed because Charlie has never let anyone else hold that picture but Heather and sometimes him.

Liz looked on hating that damn dog and the pretty nanny. She wished her lover had killed him when he ran over his girlfriend. They always growled at him when he came over. His girlfriend had the nerve to bit him the day he hit her with his car. Charlie still can’t stand her or her lover. To bad she had to get rid of the last nanny because she was so dumb. If she hadn’t found out about my lover she would still be here. It brought a smile to her face just thinking of how she almost killed two birds with one stone.

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 A month age

 Liz made sure Heather and her last nanny was out in the back of the estate playing. She some how caught Charlie in the kitchen and was able to feed him a bunch of chocolate, while Charlie lay in the kitchen almost dying, she had put on an Oscar winning performance.  

She heard Edward walk in the house and started screaming. “SOMEONE HELP!! CHARLIE...CHARLIE…WAKE UP!” 

Edward ran into the kitchen. “What the hell is going on here?!” He looked around and saw all the chocolate wrapping paper. “Call the vet Liz and let him know we are on our way!” Edward thought she was in shock, “LIZ MOVE YOUR ASS!! CALL THE VET. MOVE, MOVE, MOVE!”Of course, she wasn’t in shock, she was just moving slow hoping to give the chocolate a chance to work through his system to kill him.  

When Edward came home with Charlie after he had his stomach pumped, he fired the nanny. She was so dumb she didn’t even realize that she hadn’t even been in the kitchen, which meant she couldn’t have left the cabinet open. To bad she couldn’t get rid of Charlie to.

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Liz looked around and found herself all by herself. George walked in with her tea. She can’t stand him either. “George where is my husband and Heather?”

George handed her her tea, “Eddy and Heather are showing Ms. Gardner around the estate and her apartment. Will that be all Lady Landon?”

“Yeah, that’s all George, you can go.” He knew he was irking her by using Edward’s nickname and there wasn’t anything she could do about it, and the condescending way he call me lady. She hated the fact she couldn’t fire him because he grew up with Edward; however, she could find a way to fire that nanny they just got.