He'd been working on the Jones estate for a few weeks now as a laborer, landscaper and handyman. It paid decently well, and Mercedes Jones was in the habit of making sure the people who worked for her husband were well fed on hot days. She often fixed them lemonade or coffee and brought pastries out on breaks. Mark liked her well enough (more than well enough, really, which was a distraction), but her husband was another matter entirely.
Short-tempered, picky and very much a micromanager while he was at the house, he didn't seem to believe that anyone he'd hired could do the job he wanted of them. Mercedes (or Merry, as she preferred to be called) always tried to talk him down if he was being nasty, but he didn't seem to listen to her much either. Mark never saw him raise a hand to her, but his biting remarks often left Merry shaken. She put on a brave face but Mark could see she wasn't happy while he was home. Fortunately, he was often away on business trips. Mark detested him, but not only for those reasons.