Chapter 53

I was sitting on a park bench with Lilly, the girls were playing on the equipment. It was an enjoyable afternoon there in the sun as they yelled and screamed and did this and that.

“I’m hearing things?”

“Voices in your head?”

“Little snippets and rumors. I think we’re slowly being outed in our escapades.”

“It’s been nearly three years now. Since Rachel and Mandy almost four since we opened the marriage.”

“I don’t think closing the marriage will stop the rumors.”

“What are you thinking?”

“Moving?”

“Moving?” I asked.

“If we’re not here there is nowhere to go with it and the others are not at risk.”

“Makes sense. Where are you thinking of wanting to live?”

“I thought we could try the Pacific Northwest. You know rain and green for a while.”

“Oregon or Washington?”

“Either works, which has a better business climate for you?”

“Don’t know, have not looked at it.”

“Can we go on a road trip and scout it out?”

“Road trip as in taking the girls with us?”

“They are going to live there too so it’s best if we take them along.”

“Hard to leave them home by themselves now.”

“Goof.”

“When are you thinking of wanting to go road-tripping?”

“A couple of weeks.”

“How long?”

“A couple of weeks”

“How long are you going to love me for?”

“More than a couple of weeks” and she laughed and kissed me.

We drove up the 101 and took the time to enjoy seeing the ocean after a while the ocean was the ocean of course so we cut inland and took the I-5. Oregon and Washington were both green and rainy at times. Each had pluses and minuses as we toured around.

We had stopped overnight just inside the California border. The girls were asleep, and Lilly had her head on my shoulder.

“I really liked Seattle.” She said

“If you liked it that’s good enough for me. I can see having a business like mine there.”

“You’re happy moving?”

“Only constant in life is change they say.”

“What about the girls.”

“They are young, it’s a new adventure and they will make new friends.”

“I was thinking...” I cut her off.

“Always a dangerous thing.” I quietly laughed.

“We talked about more children when we were first married.”

“We did and we agreed to just the two.”

“New start moving. Want to add to our brood?”

“We have a brood?”

“Be serious.”

“Okay, I’m serious.”

“Stop it, I want to have more children.”

“Then we are going to have more children.”

“Just like that?”

“Just like that?” I replied.

“I was always so worried you were...” My turn to cut her off.

“Lilly I love you more than life. I love the life we have opened or closed. You want more children in your life. I want more children in our life.”

“I only want your children; we move to Seattle we close the marriage.”

“It was your choice to open it and yes, I agreed. You want to close it I am with you and the girls and any more children we are blessed with.”

“You continue to amaze me. I was worried about all you have and whom you have there it would be so difficult to close again.”

“I have had so much more than I ever thought I would. Everyone knows that this was not a forever thing. I do have a commitment to lizzy and it’s about the right timing for their last one. I have everything and everyone else sorted. Once lizzy is pregnant, we will close it up. I’ll sell the business; free the slaves and we will move. Once we are settled there, I’ll get busy building a bigger family with you.”

The girls are pretty sound sleepers we could get busy if we were quiet now.”

We got busy and the kids slept thrrough the night.

I was sitting with Craig at the 19th hole I had told Tiff, Carol, and Penny that I was going to sell the business and we were moving north. They were worried about me and them and their futures, we had a good thing going and now they saw the wheels coming off. It was a somber mood for a couple of days and then Tiff came to sit in my office and closed the door.

“You know about Craig’s trust funds.”

“I know.”

“What would you think if we made you an offer for this?”

“I think you need to find a way to have the four of them as equity partners in it with you.”

“Great minds think alike.” She smiled.

“You’re the one to beard the lion?”

“We have the funds to make it happen and the others know you would look after their interests. Not like I was going to abandon them or just make them employees.”

“I’ll do what you want obviously. This place is built into what it is because of all your and their hard work.”

“And what we all have is because of your being hard.” She smirked.

“How did you want to do this deal?”

“It’s Craig’s money separate from our community assets. He’s your best friend so discuss it over lunch and make a deal we can all live with. We’ll have an employee morale and enhancement weekend before we sign any papers for it.”

“You drive a hard bargain.” I laughed.

“I expect to be driven hard all weekend. Actually, we want to close the doors to the office, and all do some driving.”

“When have I ever stopped you from doing just that?” I said as I stood and started to remove my clothes.

The door opened and Tiff was naked over the desk as I was behind her driving in. Carol, Penny, and sasha just laughed and went to the couch.

Graig was seated at the table with our food then. “You spaced out there for a minute.”

“Lots happening.”

“Yeah, I heard how you sealed the deal.” He laughed.

“This is where we get to the nut cutting,” I replied.

“Nah, I’m happy with just the cage.”

“You know I’m going to remove it before I leave.”

“You can and Tiff will put it right back on.”

“You’re marriage, not my business.”

“No, what’s your business is that I want to help them buy your business. I thought to own it all and was informed I was simply the investor for the four of them to own it.”

“Happy wife, happy life.”

“What am I going to do with all of that cash anyways.”

“Let’s see. Three kids, a bigger house, nicer cars, college.”

“Right because your telling me to keep it how it was rather than go blow it like I did the other two parts. Was not good advice.”

“How not to make a large fortune into a small one.” I laughed.

“So what price are you thinking of?”

“Well, you have what fifteen million.”

Ha, I pick up a few tips on the golf course you know. I’m over eighteen and change.”

“Deal” I stuck out my hand.

He left it there and looked at me. “Not at that price. Carol thinks the management side is worth three to five times the annual income. And then the houses and buildings need to be appraised.”

“Settle at four times the annual net management.”

“No, you’re not going to cheat yourself for me. That’s gross, not net. She told me what you would try and do.”

“I don’t know the gross.”

“Good thing that Carol does. Your gross has increased over the past three years to over $600 and change. So, four times that is $2.5.”

“If you say so.”

“You mean you don’t know?”

“It was all part of freeing myself from the day-to-day operations. Tiff did that on the tenant side and Carol with her expertise.

“I get it, now the foreclosure business what foreclosure business I only have expenses.”

“Bull shit, Carol says that Consuelo is ready now to run that. You have her completely trained to make it work for you. I’ll offer a cool mill.”

“Are you nuts?”

“Yes, I still have them, and look at this from my point of view. That business with my backing in the trust is going to explode.”

“Well, if it’s going to explode maybe I should get five.”

“You didn’t miss the art of having my trust to back it. Just take the damn million and be done.”

“Three point five and you own it all.”

“Like hell, I am not taking the houses and building for that price too.”

“Why not?”

“Because you’re my best friend, you helped Tiff and me plus we would have none of this. It wasn’t the reason but all the same, it’s reality. You get 3.5 and keep all the other properties. They will manage them for you or buy them on whatever deal you make with them.” He stuck his hand out and I shook it.