Erin was just finishing her feeding of the cat, and checking on the kittens when she spotted movement out the front window by the gate. The early morning sun was rising into the windows of the house and set the hard wood floors alight with its glow. Brushing her hands on the housecoat she was wearing, she moved through the drawing room and into the hall, headed for the door.

The coat she was wearing buttoned up the front and had a spattering of multicolored flowers up the front. Her hair was piled on top of her head and pinned with one of those banana clips. Really, Erin was doing a grand job of looking like a housewife. Leaning to pet the cat that was weaving itself in and out of her feet, she reached the door and pulled it open, shooing the cat back with her foot.

"He's here, Ivy, I'm gunna go let him in." Was called into the house, towards the kitchen. The only response was the clattering of pots and the shutting of a cabinet door. Erin shook her head and headed down the porch steps. She paused to reach down and grab her copy of the local newspaper, and stuck it in her housecoat pocket so that it was sticking up against her stomach. Erin moved onto the path to the gate. She wiggled her fingers through the bars as she worked the combination lock. Once the gate clicked open, she held it that way.

"Hey Jake, good morning." Then she paused to look over the dog, smiling widely. "Well look there, you brought a friend. Isn't he a cute fellow." She bent a little to get more on dog level with the dog. "Puppies are wonderful. I'm more of a cat person myself, but I do love seeing one every once and awhile." Erin straightened, leveling a three dimple smile at her new gardner. "Well, let's get you to work, eh? Have you eaten? Do you need some coffee?"

And she stepped aside to let him in.

Erin smiled and took the cup from him, holding it between her hands. She looked over the garden then, before letting her eyes rest on the dog once more. "She's a darling. Let me just run in and fill this up for you while you get a lay of the land. I'm going to be off to work soon, but if you need anything at all, Ivy is staying in the house today. Just knock on the door, or find her in the drawing room... don't worry about getting mud in the house, I need to wash the floors anyway." Erin offered him a dimpled smile before she turned back for the path that led to the door.

The garden was large, and a mess. There were lots of weeds in the garden beds that were strangling what had been rose bushes and other perennials. Trees in desperate need of pruning had cracked and heavy branches leaning on the wall. Most of the bushes that were outlining the yard looked as if they hadn't been cut in years, if not months. The place did indeed need a lot of work.

It was only a few minutes before Erin reappeared holding the cup between her hands, smoke rising up and into her face. She peered around the garden looking for Jake or his dog, hoping to hand off the drink before it burned her delicate hands.

"I know the place is a mess..." She blushed a little from embarrassment. "But after the divorce, when I let most the staff go.. it just seemed a little less important." Erin shrugged and kicked at a twig lying on the lawn. "You think you could help me out?"

At that moment Ivy appeared from behind the doorway. Stepping onto the porch, she smiled down the path at the two as they spoke. The woman was average height and had light brown hair that fell over her shoulders and onto her back. She was not remarkable looking, but her smile was kind. Ivy wore a plain grey dress that while not shapeless, did not accent her figure particularly well.

"Erin, you completely forgot to pack the green yarn you got for that sweater, yesterday. I just saw it in the drawing room." Her eyes then turned to Jake and she smiled a touch more, raising a hand to wave.

"I see you've started today." A bit of a bow of her head as she watched. "It's lovely to meet you. I'm Ivy, we'll probably be spending more time together than you will with Erin. I work at the shop, too, but I do spend more time at the house than she does." Hands were tucked into the front pockets of her almost uniform looking dress.