FEIGNED FAMILY CONNECTIONS weren’t his only in, as I discovered once the married couple stopped bickering. Luke told the Smythewhites straight up that hiring two employees rather than one would allow us to take shifts rather than leaving Clarence to his own devices after hours. He touched ever so lightly on his hefty donation to the leukemia-research foundation, then used that to segue into his own pro-bono status...contingent upon me being hired also, of course.
Basically, by the time Luke was finished, the Smythewhites were falling all over themselves to invite us both into their family. We were less employees than we were long-term house guests. Within the hour, we’d been moved into adjoining guest rooms.
But we didn’t start working immediately. Our official job was delayed by Clarenc
