?
?Oh and one more thing,” Carmela said, stopping her in her tracks. “Try not to say anything to mess it up.”
Rhiannon glanced over her shoulder. “Oh gosh, I can’t make any promises, but I’ll try not to blow the whole deal over a mistaken mold assessment,” she added with an infuriating wink.
“Brat,” she grumbled, biting back an involuntary grin as she pulled the phone from her pocket to see two missed calls, six text messages and several emails.
HOURS AFTER SUNSET, Rhiannon was depleted. Unable to deal with her sister at dinner after having spent the last eight hours hustling hard to open more networks, including showing up at a very awkward chamber of commerce meeting where she was the only new face under seventy, she decided on eating alone.
The little Cuban food place on her way home was exactly what she needed. After picking up a pressed steak sandwich from the cafe window, Rhiannon kicked o her shoes, shrugged o her jacket, and chowed down after parking her car in a far corner of the lot. She didn’t need an audience or the possibility of more human interaction. As an introvert constantly fighting her nature, she’d had enough for one day.Mindlessly scrolling through a quiz purporting to guess her astrological sign based on her favorite ice cream toppings, Rhiannon was close to relaxing when her phone rang. Washing down the mouthful she’d been chewing as quickly as she could without choking, Rhiannon cleared her throat and answered.
When the brief phone call was over, Rhiannon tossed the rest of her food into the white paper bag and collapsed into
the backrest.
Damn it.
Her stomach churned, and she regretted getting onions on her sandwich. Disappointment and failure never agreed with her gut.
A moment later she pulled out her phone and texted Carmela.
RR: Heard from the buyers. It’s a no go.
CB: Did they say why?
Rhiannon sighed. She could hear Carmela’s tone through the phone. All sharp and judgmental.
RR: Didn’t want to shell out so much cash without direct beach access.
CB: Ha! Do they have any idea what something like that costs on that side of the bridge???? They’re delusional.
Rhiannon smiled. Whether she’d intended to or not, Carmela had managed to make her feel a little better. It wasn’t her fault if what the buyers wanted didn’t exist. It was a long time before Carmela texted again.
CB: Here, send them this.
As soon as she opened the link, Rhiannon laughed. It was a beachfront property and more than three times the asking price of Yeardsley’s place. The next link was for a waterfront property in the general price range, but it was o the island and not on the beach.
CB: Sometimes you just have to redefine a client’s expectation with a dose of reality. Tell them you’ll be happy to schedule an appointment for either or both if they’re interested.
Is she trying to cheer me up? How does she even know I’m bummed?
RR: I’ll try that. . .
Ugh, why did I use emo ellipses?
CB: I know that being an agent for all of twelve minutes . .
. and having had some luck to start. . . may have given you false hope. Houses like this take a long time to sell. It’s a marathon, not a sprint. Very glass slipper. Buck up. We have tomorrow’s broker’s open to focus on.
Rhiannon smirked. She is trying to cheer me up.
RR: Why are you being so nice to me? Isn’t that against the rules of your coven or something?
CB: I can take a day o from stealing the souls of children every once in a while. I’m overdue for a vacation.
Rhiannon’s laugh bounced o the interior of her dad’s car. She hadn’t expected Carmela to roll with the joke.
RR: You’re giving me Anjelica Huston in The Witches realness. Hot.