Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 80892 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 404(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80892 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 404(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
“Are you okay, Will?” I urgently needed some business advice, or some relationship advice, or… something. But it was clear that whatever Will was going through was pretty damn important, too. “You don’t sound so good.”
“No, I’m really not okay.” Will barked out a short, harsh laugh, but there wasn’t a trace of humor in his tone. “I’m not okay at all. Jamie left me. Or… I guess I left her. Whatever. She cheated on me, Brady. I didn’t even see it coming.”
Will’s voice broke on the last word, and even though the sound was muffled, I was pretty sure my friend had started crying.
Fuck.
I didn’t know what to say—I’d called to talk about my own fucked-up relationship, after all. I certainly wasn’t in any position to give out dating advice.
I could still be a good friend, though.
“That fucker,” I shook my head as I spat the word.
Will was one of the nicest guys I knew—not to mention the fact that he was a good-looking and successful man in a town that wasn’t exactly overflowing with them.
“You’re too good for her anyway, Will. I mean it. Do you want me to go talk to her? Rough her up? Break her legs?”
Will laughed, but his voice was so full of pain that it didn’t seem like my sort-of-joke had helped much.
“No, I don’t want to even think about her again. It’s just not fair, you know? You think everything is going great. Everything is wonderful and perfect, and then… bam. Right out of the blue, it all goes to hell.”
I sighed and nodded my head, then remembered that Will couldn’t see me, didn’t know just how close to home his words had hit. “Yeah, buddy. I know exactly what you mean.”
“Well, anyway,” he sniffled and cleared his throat. “I didn’t want to put all that out there, but I guess I do feel a little better now that I’ve vented. So, tell me what I can do for you. I assume you weren’t calling just to check up on me.”
I knew Will didn’t really mean that last statement as a dig, but I felt a pang of regret anyway. I should do a better job of staying in touch with my friends, of calling them “just because,” rather than just when I needed something.
I winced as I reminded myself that I still did need something from Will this time. Something important. But I needed to make sure my friend knew I was there for him, too.
“Just so you know,” I said, hoping it wasn’t too little, too late, “I’m here for you if you ever need someone to talk to. Day or night. Anytime.”
“I appreciate that, Brady. I really do. But you said whatever you called about couldn’t wait, so… tell me. What’s up?”
I hesitated for a moment. Now that it was time to talk business, I wasn’t exactly sure what to say. Maybe it would be best just to lay all my cards out on the table and hope that Will could find a solution.
“I’ll be honest with you, man,” I shoved a hand back through my hair and exhaled a breath I’d been holding in. Asking for help had never been something I was good at, but I’d never been in a situation like this, either. “I know that the last time we talked, I was getting all the paperwork ready to eventually sell the shop.”
“Right. I remember. Did you ever find a buyer?”
“Yeah, and that’s the problem. I’ve got someone who is really eager to buy, but… I don’t know if I wanna sell anymore.”
“You’ve gotta be kidding,” Will snorted. “What? Did you decide to settle down and start a family here while I wasn’t looking?”
I winced. Again, Will’s words were closer to the truth than he could possibly have known.
“No, nothing like that. Well…” Yeah, maybe something like that.
But Will didn’t need to know all the details of how I had fallen head over heels and wanted to stay in Castle Falls—especially considering he had just been forced to end his own relationship. “No, not that. The only person I’d really be happy to sell the shop to would be Joanne, and—”
“That’s gonna be a hard no,” Will said, cutting me off. “And you’ll have to forgive me for being unprofessional, Brady, but my nerves are shot. There’s just no way I can make a loan work for Joanne. The numbers just don’t add up.”
From what Joanne had told me about her past credit issues, Will’s statement wasn’t exactly news to me. Still, it effectively crossed one potential option off the very short list of possibilities for fixing my current problem.
“I’d take out a loan myself if I could, if I thought it would help,” I said. Then, just in case, “Would that help?”
“Maybe. Do you have any assets besides the flower shop and the attached apartment?”