Both of them clapped their hands excitedly, to which I could only roll my eyes. I suspected that despite their best intentions, the hold set up would be unavoidably awkward, or maybe I was overthinking things.
At least I would have a reprieve from worrying about my finances for a little while.
4
Gavin
Ipulled into Mr. and Mrs. Truman’s driveway with only a minute to spare. All I could think about on the way over was the beautiful woman whose car I bumped into, and wondering if she’d call me about getting a new car. I thought that by the time I got to my meeting I would figure out why she was so angry over a little scratch, but it still didn’t make any sense.
It was time to put those thoughts on the back burner, though. Mr. Truman had sent me over to Spain to conduct business, and I couldn’t wait to hear his feedback and to give him mine on what I had accomplished.
Mrs. Truman greeted me at the front door and wrapped her arms around me. “Welcome back, Gavin! I’ve missed you so much. Did you eat enough in Spain?”
She was always trying to fatten me up. I patted my six-pack abs. “Oh, yes, ma’am. I ate a bit more than I should have.”
“You don’t look like you did. You still look skinny to me. Please sit down on the couch. I have some coffee and cookies for you. Now tell me all about your trip!”
My hands were still jittery from the coffee I had gulped down before I left home, but I didn’t want to offend her. “Thank you so much! The trip was amazing. You would have loved it there, too. There were so many beautiful, romantic places that I could see you enjoying. The main streets are full of outside cafes and quaint little shops.”
She clutched her heart with her hand. “You mean like downtown River Valley, dear?”
“Yes, but so much better. There was always music coming from small bands or just a single person playing a violin or singing along the sidewalks. I told Richard that he and Annie should go to Spain sometime, maybe on a couple’s trip with Jake and Julianna. I know they say that France is for lovers, but I think Spain is a very close second.”
Mrs. Truman had always been a romantic person, something that Mr. Truman was not. “I would have loved to have gone with you. Oh well. Maybe I can convince my husband to take me some time.”
I couldn’t believe how many of her cookies I was consuming. “You would love it! Almost as much as I love these cookies. I can tell they didn’t come out of a bag unless you’re selling baked goods now. I’m sure you’d make a lot of money doing it, Mrs. Truman.”
She blushed with excitement at my compliment. “I’d tell you that it’s a family recipe, but that’d be a big lie. I got it from Martha Stewart. The secret is to use a fresh vanilla bean. You should have seen my husband’s face as I scraped it into the mixture. He thought it looked like ants!”
As I washed the cookies down with some coffee, Mr. Truman walked in and reached out to me. Unless he hadn’t seen you in a long time, he wasn’t a very affectionate person.
I wiped my mouth clean and hugged him. “How are you, sir?”
“I’m doing wonderful, especially since Richard told me the trip was a success. Are you ready to discuss it, or do you need a nap after my wife’s cookies?”
Mrs. Truman rolled her eyes in disgust. “Relax, dear. I didn’t put him in a diabetic coma. By the way, Gavin loves the cookies that you refuse to eat!”
I laughed as we walked upstairs to his office, where Richard was waiting for us. Just like his father had, Richard pulled me in for a hug, like being with my brother. The Truman’s had always been like my second family, and just walking into their house made me feel relaxed. “Glad to see you again, man. I’m going with you next time, though. Some of those pictures you sent me were breathtaking.”
Mr. Truman seemed pleased about my visit as he took a seat at his desk. “Based on everything that I’ve heard so far, I’d say it’s safe to say that you’ll be going back to Spain again. I don’t know how you did it, Gavin, but it looks like you got us one hell of a deal.”
I pulled out my tablet and opened up the business plans. “As you can see right here, the villas are located on the water in Andalusia, Spain. Normally such an elite property would cost significantly more than the deal I made.”
Richard’s mouth fell open as he looked over the numbers. “I don’t understand how you talked them down so much, man. Did you have to give up anything in return?”
“Not at all, bro. As you can probably guess, all of these villas had been independently owned, but Spain is desperately trying to increase its tourism revenue. So, a company in Barcelona bought them with plans to turn it into a tourist destination.”
Mr. Truman rubbed his chin, clearly impressed with the pictures of the property. “If I were visiting Spain, this is the kind of place that I’d want to stay during my vacation. Which makes me wonder why the original deal fell through in the first place.”
“Unfortunately or fortunately, depending on how you look at it, there’s too much political turmoil going on in Spain right now, and therefore they were unable to move forward with that project.”
Richard was starting to seem skeptical, though. “I can see why we could acquire it for such a low price, Gavin, but what about the rules and regulations for international ownership? I’m sure it can’t be as easy as just purchasing the property. I need to read up on this.”
I pulled up another document on my tablet. “If you take a look right here, gentleman, there are no regulations on property purchases from foreigners. While that may seem odd, keep in mind that Spain is desperately trying to make more money from tourism.”
Mr. Truman’s eyes were starting to light up now. “I like the sounds of this, Gavin. How’d you get them to agree to this deal so quickly?”
“I did a little research to find out what they paid for all of them, and then used that to my advantage. You get seven fully-furnished, well-maintained luxury villas for what the company would have paid for just three. But we only have a few days to sign the paperwork. Is this something you want to invest in, gentleman?”
