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“Kid, you know you offered me ten k over asking?”
“I do,” I confirmed.
“Do you have any idea what you’re doing?”
“Mr.—” I started to say, but he cut me off.
“Geoff.”
“Geoff, may I speak freely?”
“Please, kid, I think I’ve made it clear I’m not one for pretenses.”
“I like it here. I recently left the military?—"
“Navy, right?” I frowned, and he chuckled. “Kid, I’ve been around the block, and just like you asked around about me, I did my own due diligence.” He paused and then sighed. “Abel says he knows you. He vouched for you.”
“You should know he’s also my best friend, so he might be biased.” That made Mr. Bennett chuckle some more.
“I like your honesty. I was in the Marines myself,” he shared. “I was in for ten years and left because I fucked up my arm.”
“I’m sorry about that.”
“Shit happens. We both know that.” I nodded because he wasn’t wrong. It was a miracle I’d done what I’d done for as long as I had and had mostly gone unscathed. “SEAL, huh?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Hot stuff,” he mumbled. “You really think the shop is what you wanna do? There isn’t a lot of guts and glory in the business.”
“Not looking for that, Geoff. I like the idea of waking up, walking down to the shop after catching a couple waves, and renting boards and selling merch.”
“Hmm,” he grunted. “You know when I opened the shop, I didn’t know shit about the equipment.”
“Yeah?”
“Oh, yeah, I didn’t wanna do anything with it. But I couldn’t sit around and not do shit.”
“Right.” It was a relief to know I wasn’t alone on that boat.
“Met a girl,” he shared. His voice softened. “She loved surfing, loved the beach.” He paused, and I felt a knot form in my throat. “I couldn’t stand the feeling of the sand on my feet, but women have a way of changing your life… turning shit upside down.”
“I hear that,” I muttered, my eyes pinned on the stairs. My heart was full knowing my Kare Bear was upstairs sleeping in my bed. “Well… long story short, I fell in love with all of that, too.”
“Sounds familiar,” I shared since he had.
“Hmm, I heard that.”
“Jesus.” I chuckled softly. “Abel likes to run his mouth,” I teased, and he chuckled.
“He does, but like I said, he’s a good kid. From what I gather about you, you’re friends for a reason. I’d like to take up your offer to buy me out, but I have one condition.”
“Oh?” I asked, trying not to give anything away, but Jesus Christ, I would agree to almost anything at this point. I knew what I wanted, and I would make a success at it.
“My grandson, he loves working there. If the kid was older and didn’t have the potential to take the world by the balls, I wouldn’t have put the shop up for sale. He’s a good kid. Knows the ropes and the locals. If you keep him on, I’ll knock twenty k off the bid.” Relief washed over me, and I relaxed against the kitchen counter.
“You got yourself a deal,” I agreed. We set up a meeting for Monday, and when I hung up, I felt reinvigorated. I had a plan.
But more importantly, it felt like I had a future. I finally belonged somewhere, and it was with Karol.
