They had moved into the tin house three weeks ago, Olivia and her mother. She had been looking for work as a receptionist for two weeks, and then as anything, really, for two more. A girl she knew from college was working as a cleaning lady at the Shore Breeze hotel, which was a two hour drive from their house, said they had an opening.

One of the girls had been caught offering the guests some extra services. She had been doing this for the past year, had made nearly $4500 in addition to her salary but Jane said that she must have gotten lazy, less careful.

On a Tuesday evening, Frank had come to stay at the hotel as he did every month; he worked at the head office of the local fishery, which was no longer in the same town, since it had been bought out, and as they had done every month since September — it was now February — she knocked on his door and said 'cleaning' really loudly. Now, saying 'cleaning' really loudly is what she did at every door, but doing this at his meant something different. As had become custom, he opened the door and she pushed her cart with the clean linens and the dirty sheets she had collected from the night before, further from the door. She stepped closer to him and ran her hand under his robe. She wasn't looking up at him because she was taking in the smell of his chest while pushing him further into the room with her head. Maybe she was less careful because Frank was the only man she looked forward to seeing, the one she thought about for the rest of the day, coming in and out of rooms, sometimes having sex, sometimes whipping sheets and dust through the air and onto the beds. This time though, he stood rigid by the door, heaving is weight against her, not letting her further into the room.

Leave, he mumbled, pushing her back out into the hallway.

What’s wrong? I have a break now.

She moved closer to him again, grabbing onto the collar of his robe, straightening it out, something you only do with lovers. The door opened wider and beside him now, was what she presumed was his wife. She thought this, not because she knew he was married but because she looked like a mother and his age, which seemed older than him. She was also wearing a robe with Shore Breeze embroidered on the right side of her chest, which was larger than she had imagined.

Who the fuck are you?

The woman edged closer to her. She realized she was still holding onto his collar.

So this is how she had been caught. As she stood in the hallway, with the quiet sounds of televisions and love making finding their way through the plaster walls.

Olivia got ready for her first day at work.