Karly nodded. ‘Yes. Has she told you much about my situation?’
‘A bit. She said your grandfather is selling the family business, a real estate agency?’
‘Yes. Pop opened it when I was a kid. He was an agent in Melbourne before moving here, so he’s been running the agency for twenty-nine years. Now he wants to retire and, because of my mortgage, he doesn’t want me in too much debt with the bank so is selling to a third party, a big chain of agencies in Melbourne.’ She pressed a hand to her heart. ‘But I love the agency. I’ve worked there since I left school and got my real estate licence, and I’d like nothing better than to own it and run it, so that’s where you hopefully come in.’
‘It sounds like the perfect opportunity for both of us,’ he said, stirring a spoon of sugar into his coffee. ‘I am interested in investing, but once Summer explained the situation to me, how about I loan you the money interest free? I can always invest in other businesses or real estate in town.’
Speechless at his generous offer, Karly could only grin like an idiot as he continued. ‘Rayne loves you like a daughter and I don’t need the money, so loaning you the capital you need isn’t a problem.’
‘I don’t know what to say.’ Excitement made Karly’s hands shake and she clasped them together in her lap. ‘Are you sure I can’t pay interest?’
She wanted to ask what he got out of this apart from helping his partner’s daughter’s bestie, but it sounded ungrateful, so she added, ‘I feel bad when you could invest that money elsewhere and earn interest on it.’
‘Karly, I want to do this.’ He smiled, the warmth in his eyes making her choke up a little. ‘So what do you say?’
Karly swallowed, hoping she wouldn’t blubber, and nodded. ‘I say yes. I can’t thank you enough for your amazing generosity.’
‘Hey, I’m not giving you the money, you’ll be paying me back.’ His mock outrage made her laugh, and he joined in. ‘If it’s okay with you, I’ll get my lawyer to start drawing up the paperwork once I take a look at the agency.’ He pointed to his muffin. ‘After I demolish this.’
‘Sounds like a plan,’ Karly said, unable to stop a grin spreading across her face.
Could it be this easy? A five-minute meeting with her best friend’s father resulting in her owning the agency she loved?
‘So Rayne’s loving life in Melbourne?’
He nodded, his mouth full of muffin, and he waited to finish chewing before responding. ‘She is, and I’ve never been happier. Which is why I want to give something back to the town that means so much to her, especially since she left it behind to live with me.’
‘I’m glad you’re both happy. Sounds like she’s cutting ties here? There’s a rumour she’s selling the shop to Heidi?’
‘News travels fast around here.’ He sipped his coffee. ‘Yeah. She’s always loved Melbourne and is keen to settle there. And Heidi’s done a great job with managing the shop so it seems like the right time to sell.’
Considering how slow selling real estate could be at times in this town, if Rayne wanted to offload her shop and Heidi was keen, it was a win-win.
Leo tipped his cup back to drain the last of his coffee before replacing it on a saucer. ‘Shall we get the paperwork for the agency now?’
‘Sure, let’s do it.’
The sooner she made this deal happen, the better.
Two hours later, Karly sat in the client’s chair opposite Pop’s desk. From the look of his folded arms and formidable frown, her grandfather wasn’t happy.
‘Are you sure you know what you’re doing, sweetheart?’
She was damn sure. ‘This is what I want, Pop. It’s always been my dream.’
‘But you’ll be tied to this town forever.’ He shook his head. ‘Leo seems nice enough and a decent bloke, but ultimately this is a business loan and you’ll be in more debt than ever.’
‘His terms are more than fair and I can handle it. Better him than the bank.’
‘True. And with a zero interest rate he’s doing you a favour.’
‘He said he wants to give back to this town because it means so much to Rayne.’
‘Good for him.’
But Pop wasn’t entirely appeased. The tension bunching his shoulders might’ve eased but he hadn’t lost the frown. ‘Before you commit to anything, have you thought this through? Is spending your life in this town what you really want?’
She hesitated, her two dreams warring: she didn’t want to spend her life in this town but she really wanted to own the agency and be her own boss. For now, she’d focus on the latter and hope that one day she’d have the money to leave. For now, running her own business would have to be enough.