To First Meetings
Agatha was nursing her second cup of coffee as she sat at the dining room table awaiting the landscaper. After staying awake far too late on the phone with Alice, she had nearly called to reschedule the appointment. Not only was she physically exhausted, but also mentally exhausted, and she didn't think she could take much else. Nor did she think she'd have the energy to spar with a new opponent, especially when she was expecting some unwashed middle-aged man.
At 10:50 AM on the dot, the gate buzzer sounded, and Agatha groaned. She appreciated punctuality, and the landscaper showing up ten minutes early had been impressive, but Gods, she did not want to do this today. Still, she took a deep breath and squared her shoulders as she pressed the response button.
‘Can I help you?’ she asked, although she wasn't expecting anyone else. The voice that answered caught her off guard.
“Hi, this is Rio with GW Landscaping. I have an appointment with Ms. Harkness at ten.”
Agatha blinked in surprise but quickly recovered, quickly instructing Rio to follow the driveway that curved along the left side to the back of the building. This gave her a moment to gather her papers from the table and glance out the window.
She could only make out a dark silhouette in the truck's driver's seat as it pulled up, which made her huff in slight annoyance. As it came to a stop, Agatha pulled her coat tighter around herself and stepped outside into the cold mid-February air. Sure, it was a little early for gardening work, the ground was probably still frozen, but it wasn't too early for a plan.
It wasn't until she got closer that Agatha got a good look at Rio. She was nothing like who she had expected to show. No, the woman who stepped down from the truck was very much the opposite of a musky middle-aged man. Earthy green-toned overalls were buttoned over a warm-looking hoodie, the knees looking worn from work. She wore a bright orange knit hat on her head, dark brown braided pigtails peeking out from underneath, and as she approached the stairs where Agatha stood rooted to her spot, a hand reached out as the other woman's eyes met hers.
“Hi, Ms. Harkness, I presume? I'm Rio, it's nice to meet you.”
It took Agatha a moment to snap out of the slight trance, to draw her eyes from the small gap between Rio's front teeth and extend a gloved hand forward. This woman was unlike anyone Agatha had ever seen, and she was mentally signing contracts before she'd even spoken another word.
“Y-yes, hello, thank you for coming. Would you like to start with a tour of the grounds before we start?”
It began with a short walk around the estate while Agatha pointed out different plots of land where the barely visible remnants of past gardens remained. She also mentioned that in a few of the many journals she had found tucked away upstairs, Agatha had come across detailed plans of Vivian's gardens— sketches and measurements alongside lists of which plants would fare best in which locations.
The walk was pleasant, although hurried in Agatha's attempt to get out of the freezing cold. She was a writer; she didn't do well outdoors. She was just happy it wasn’t snowing. Or raining. Or any kind of weather that wasn't sunny, although that could be annoying too—especially on her extra grief-y days. Rio, on the other hand, hardly looked fazed at all, her cheeks a rosy tint of pink as she made suggestions and remarked on how much potential she saw in the land. Keeping her hands in her pockets as they approached the patio steps, Agatha glanced Rio's way, and their eyes met for an extended moment.
“Would you like to come in? For coffee? To warm up! And perhaps we could discuss things further.”
If Rio noticed the flush on Agatha's face, she didn't let on. Agatha would just blame it on the cold anyway.
They found themselves standing over the kitchen island ten minutes later, warm mugs in their hands and a smooth aroma filling the air. Rio was quiet, not being one for small talk, especially not with potential clients.
“Please,” Agatha started, clearing her throat as she tore her eyes away, “Let's have a seat at the dining room table. I can bring down some of the plans that my grandmother had sketched.” It would also give her a moment to collect herself from whatever this was.
As Agatha disappeared into the hallway, Rio headed over into the adjacent room, taking a moment to glance around. This was far from her first time in such a large estate, far from her first time of potentially taking on such a large project, and from what she had seen, she believed she could handle it. If she needed to, she knew she could ask one of her guys for help.
The dining room smelled faintly of dust and the eucalyptus wintergreen candle that burned in the center of the table, like a room that had sat uncomfortably unused for far too long. There were no photos anywhere to be found, nothing that showed this was a home. She had settled into a chair when Agatha reappeared with a few leather-bound books and sat across from her, opening them to marked pages before sliding them across the table.
Rio's jaw dropped open as she took in the sight before her, plans of nearly every garden bed they had strolled past—plans that had happened in previous years and ideas that never came to be. Vivian, as Agatha had referred to her, was an incredible planner. Most of the work, outside of the physical labor, had already been done.
“I'd like it to be as close to what she had as possible,” Agatha said softly as she watched the other woman's eyes scan across the pages. “It means a lot to me that it's done properly. The other gardens, the other land, anything else, I'd leave that up to you. You'd have free rein creatively in those spaces, however you see fit. Lilia sent me some of your previous work and I trust that you can meet those expectations.”
Rio took another sip from her coffee before she set the mug down, taking care to place it as far from the old journals as she could to avoid any clumsy accidents. “This would be a large undertaking,” she started. “Just in terms of physical labor, even. It's going to take some time, even just in preparation... even with all of this,” she gestured to the pages between them, “all of this incredible work, it'll still be quite a lot. I'll need to bring an assistant in.”
Agatha nodded once as her chest tightened, certain that Rio was trying to soften the blow, that she was about to turn the project down. However, when Rio spoke, her words were even and professional.
“If you'd let me take photos of these diagrams, I can work on a timeline and a pricing estimate and have it to you by the end of the week. Just in case you want to have someone else come out and compare.”
Getting other estimates hadn't even crossed Agatha's mind. Truth be told, she was almost willing to tell the younger woman to double whatever the costs were and she would pay it. Instead, her eyebrows raised in surprise as she snapped out of her thoughts.
“Oh! Of course, yes, that would be wonderful. Thank you.” She helped with positioning the journal pages, allowing Rio to take photos and document what she needed. It took no time at all, and once Rio made sure that she had enough detail to look through and come up with a plan of action, she was standing.
“I think I have what I need. It was very nice to meet you, Ms. Harkness.”
Without hesitation, Agatha offered her hand as she had earlier, only this time without the glove, and the warmth of Rio's hand sent a jolt through her body. “Please, it's Agatha.”
With barely a recognition outside of raised eyebrows and a handshake, Rio allowed the other woman to walk her toward the back entrance that they had come in from. “Ah, okay, Agatha. I'll be in touch.”
With that, she was gone and Agatha closed the door behind her, leaning her forehead against the cool wood. Her mind swirled with thoughts of Rio—her warm smile, her confident demeanor, the way her voice wrapped around her name. This was bound to be a distraction she hadn't planned for.
Back in her truck, Rio stared blankly ahead, her hands gripping the steering wheel before she leaned forward to rest her forehead there. She remained like that for a moment before letting out a deep sigh and straightening up. What are you getting yourself into, Vidal? She mumbled to herself, turning her key in the ignition so she could head back to her office. Visions of Agatha played in her head as she drove, unprompted.
If she wanted to keep the company afloat, she couldn't turn down this job.
If she wanted to keep her sanity, she couldn't take this job.
Fortunately for her, she was already a little insane.