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“I’ll ask Bella if she’d like to continue as general manager. I think she’ll be happy about it.”
“I think so too.” She hoped so, since that would make everything a million times easier. Allie wouldn’t have to worry about leaving her dad to run Fox Hill alone, or finding a replacement.
After ending the call, she fired off an email to the accountant asking when he had time to go through the books with her. It didn’t take long for Phil to respond, suggesting they have a video call the following morning.
She didn’t hear anything from Hugh that evening. He didn’t call like he’d said he would, and he didn’t reply to Allie’s messages. A feeling of dread settled in the depths of her stomach and refused to budge. Telling herself that she’d dropped a bombshell on him and it was natural that he’d need time to mull it over did little to help.
Even though she was expecting the call from Phil on Wednesday morning, she still had a moment of hoping it would be Hugh when the phone rang. Then a rush of disappointment that it wasn’t.
In his usual brisk way, Phil politely asked how she was before getting down to business.
“Your dad told me you’ve been spending time in Devon to get a feel for the club there.”
“I’ve been looking for ways to increase profits,” she said, deciding there was no need to tell him more than that.
“I’ve been having another look over the books,” he said. “And I have to say that it’s not doing badly. Given the lack of input from you and your dad, I think you’re lucky it’s doing as well as it is. You got lucky with Kevin. Admittedly, he’s well compensated financially, but it’s rare to find someone with so much dedication to a business which isn’t their own.”
Allie felt oddly reluctant to agree. On paper it might appear that Kevin was doing a stellar job, but in real life she found it difficult to be enthusiastic about him. “For now, the main thing I want to discuss is staff wages, and the possibility of hiring new staff.”
“Mostly, the pay rates are pretty standard for the industry and their roles.” He leaned closer to the screen and tapped away. “I’ll share my screen with you, though you already have access to all this information.”
She nodded. “I wanted to go through it with someone who knows the ins and outs of it.”
He clicked again, until the relevant files appeared on Allie’s screen. “I don’t see any issues with staff wages,” he said, indicating the appropriate section with his cursor. “Has there been a specific request for a pay rise?”
“No.” Allie gazed at the document in front of her. “Is Daisy only on minimum wage?”
“Yes. She’s young and not as experienced as the main receptionist. But she’s been there a few years now so if she’s a good worker, a pay rise might be in order.”
Allie frowned. “She’s the only receptionist…”
“No.” The cursor moved down the screen. “There are two. The other one is Stephanie Michaels.”
“There’s no Stephanie working here,” Allie said, staring at the screen. “That must be a mistake. But according to these files she’s well paid.”
“Yes, she is well paid. It’s not a mistake.”
Allie shook her head, annoyed that Phil wasn’t better prepared. “She must be the receptionist who was let go about a year ago.”
“No. We didn’t let anyone go. There was another woman who left. Stephanie took over from her.”
“Well, that’s wrong. I’ve been here for over a month. I think I’d have noticed if there was a second receptionist.”
“I think it would be very hard to run the place with only one. What happens on her days off or when she takes holidays?”
“Daisy doesn’t take holidays,” Allie muttered, while her stomach churned with a vague feeling of trepidation. “Something’s not right …” She squeezed her eyes closed for a moment, then tried to make sense of the information on the screen in front of her. “What about the greenkeeper? How much is he paid?”
“Here’s the head greenkeeper, Ron.” Phil scrolled down the screen and indicated with the cursor. “Then there’s the other guy, Jacob Mills … Honestly, if you were to take on someone else for the greenkeeping team that wouldn’t be an issue. Maybe someone part-time.”
“What?” Allie was completely confused. “I’ve never heard of anyone called Jacob. And why would he be paid more than the head greenkeeper?”
“The head greenkeeper job comes with the cottage, so the pay takes that into account.”
“Right. That makes sense. What doesn’t make sense is why I’ve spent so much time here and have never seen another greenkeeper. There’s only Ron. This must be the one who left. This file isn’t up to date.”
“It’s definitely up to date.”
“It can’t be. These people don’t work at the club.”
