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In other words, she realised I’d forgotten about the early start and prepared this to save herself a headache.
I tapped in the passcode and as she said, a document with our schedule appeared on screen.
“We’ll be meeting with the owner of Pete and Sons Construction when we arrive. He and his eldest son are personally heading up this big project, and they’ll walk us through the site and show us each cottage. I believe they’ve already started work on cottages one, two, and four, if I remember correctly.”
“Why four?”
“I believe they all have the same layout, sir,” she said. “They also have the most bedrooms.”
“All right. How long will we be there?”
“Mr Andrews’ receptionist said it could be anywhere from one to three hours, so I scheduled two, so they don’t dillydally and waste our time. They’re not being paid to talk, after all.”
She was cold.
“The electricians and plumbers are all a part of their construction company, so we’ll also have a chance to meet them all while we’re there. Cottage five needs extensive rewiring, so I believe they’re focusing there while the other, lighter renovations are underway.”
“All right.”
“At ten-fifteen a reporter from the local paper is paying a visit to the site for a short interview. I informed them you’ll be available for no more than thirty minutes.”
“A reporter?” I pulled down the sun visor and checked my hair in the mirror. “Why didn’t you say that before?”
“You’ll find a small box on the backseat with a spray bottle, hair wax, and a comb in, sir,” she said without batting an eyelid.
I looked to the back of the car.
Yep. There it was.
“How did you know I’d need it?”
“It’s part of my war chest,” she answered simply. “So please fix your hair before we arrive and, next time you want to have a lie in, shower the night before so there’s enough time to do your hair in the morning.”
Did she have fun scolding me?
It felt like she had fun scolding me.
“I’ll keep it in mind. Did the questions get approved beforehand?”
“Harvey and I personally vetted them, and he jotted down some answers for you to work from. You’ll find them on the next page.” She tucked her hair behind her ear and pulled onto the dual carriageway. “Many residents seem concerned about lake access, and that looks to be a big focus for the reporter. Lake Buckley was once a stocked fishing lake that required a permit, but after the previous owner stopped enforcing trespassing notices, some people took it upon themselves to fish without the proper documentation and the stock has been completely destroyed.”
I scrolled down, scanning the questions. “So, the people who fished there previously want to know what the plans are. It says here that we plan to restock the lake and bring back the permits. What are they concerned about?”
“It appears the lake was open to the local residents. They want to know if that will be the case.”
“This says we don’t know.”
“We don’t know. I emailed Jordan Baldwin last night to confirm and he said we can’t guarantee access outside of those who are renting the lodges. Perhaps in the off-season, but we’re building this to be a true peaceful escape.”
“And if you’re paying a premium for that escape, you don’t want to be dealing with locals fishing next to your lodge at the height of the season,” I said, nodding slowly. “Perhaps we can consider it for the offseason when prices will be considerably lower. Is there an area of the lake where there aren’t cottages we could use during that time?”
“Yes, but we may have to request that they pay a small membership fee during those months to gain access.”
“All right. I’ll read this over and let you focus on the road.”
“Thank you, sir.” She reached for her tumbler in the cup holder and picked it up for a quick sip, and I took it to put it back in when she struggled. “Oh, thank you.”
With that, I let it be the last words and focused on the documents on the tablet in front of me. I’d already known it would take some time to adapt to this new way of working, but I hadn’t expected it to be like this right off the bat.
