“I can’t be too disappointed when I’ll be with you.” He smiled.
That sounded … What? Practiced? No. Different. She gave herself a shake. “Let us be on our way. The sooner we can get around the Park the sooner we can have ices.”
“Never let it be said that I stood in the way of you and an ice.” Chandos placed her hand on his arm as they strolled out of the house.
Instead of assisting her into his carriage like he normally did, he picked her up and placed her in it. Theo’s breath caught. No one had ever done that before. At least not since she was a child. “Goodness.”
The corners of his lips rose. What had got into him today?
The carriage rolled forward as he started the horses. “I need advice.”
Ah. Now it all made sense. He wanted her in a good mood. “About what?”
“As you know, I must hire a secretary.”
“Did you meet with Mr. Whiting?”
“Yes.” Chandos glanced at her in surprise. “How did you know?”
“It stands to reason that you would not require advice unless you had already met with him.” She now understood what Eleanor had been talking about when Montagu had little knowledge of estate management. “What about the interview concerns you?”
He told her what he and Whiting had discussed and his recommendations.
“I think he has an excellent grasp of the situation. What concerns you?”
Chandos appeared a bit embarrassed. “I have never hired staff before. You have, haven’t you?”
“Yes. Just tell me what you want to know.” Why did gentlemen always seem to beat around the bush?
“Were you afraid to hire the wrong person?” He cringed.
Now they were getting somewhere. “Everyone hires the wrong person at some point. It could be that the person presents well but does not actually have the skills. Or perhaps they cannot manage to get on with the other staff. However, a well-written employment contract will smooth things over. Unless they are untruthful or they steal, or something like that, a good recommendation also helps.”
“Employment contract?” He sounded stunned.
Considering he had never engaged someone before, it was not surprising that he did not know a contract was required. “Yes. You write down all their duties, the salary, additional things such as, for servants, the amount of fresh tea they receive and cloth for gowns, livery. That is more for servants. An employee should be paid enough to be able to support himself and his family if he has one. You must decide if he is to live at your house or if he will have his own dwelling. You might want to discuss that with him.” Theo glanced at Chandos to ensure he understand what she had said. “Do you need to know anything else?”
“Is he the right person?” He looked so concerned her heart went out to him. He really was afraid of making a mistake.
“Only you can answer that question. However, I will attempt to help you. How does he make you feel? For example, did he ease your mind about how to handle the difficulties you are having that made you decide that you needed a secretary?”
He nodded. “He did. I was irritated that my stewards would play those sorts of games, but he did seem to know what to do.”
“Good. Did you have a good rapport with him? Did you get the feeling you can trust him? I should think that would be very important. After all, he will know about most of your personal and other business.”
Leo could trust her. He never really thought of his feelings for an employee.
When he didn’t answer, Theo frowned. “Do you not get ideas about people? I will give you an example. When you first met Charlie, what did you think of him?”
That was easy. “He was a good fellow that I’d like to know better.”
“There you are.” She nodded her head once. “What was your impression of Mr. Whiting?”
The way she smiled at him made Leo feel as if she’d given him a gift. “Competent. He has a dry sense of humor. Very focused on the matter at hand.”
“And he has a good reputation.”
“Yes.” Leo was finally beginning to think he could do this.
