Page 23 of Beach Bum Billion-Heiress
Just a few hours ago I'd spoken to his gatekeeper, finally granted access to a face-to-face with him when I told them I owned the property he was looking to buy. I'm sure he expected an easy negotiation. I was just a small town boy clinging to a failing rental shop. He probably thought he was doing me a favor by throwing money at me and bulldozing the shop my dad built with his own two hands.
This wasn't my arena, but this was my town. I had every right to be here. Every right to fight for my property. Every right to tell him what I came to say. Worst case scenario: he hated me. Best case: he tolerated me. Either way didn't really matter to me. I wasn't here for me, I was here for Sage.
The door swung open long moments after my loud knock. A young man, with black hair slicked back to perfection, stuck his hand out, trying to impress me with his grip strength. Unfortunately for him, I didn't sit around pushing paper all day. I actually worked for a living, which was clear by my firm grip and the callouses that must have scraped his baby soft skin.
Arm wrestling match lost, he spun around and led me to a separate room with a long table set with eight glossy, dark wood dining chairs. He indicated I should sit, but I decided to stand, preferring to make this quick and to the point. The kid left with a shrug, off to call in Sage's father, I'm sure.
I didn't have to wait long. The door was pushed open and Mr. Vanderman bustled in, the kid in his wake, ready to do his bidding. Sage's father was older than I anticipated, his grey hair neatly trimmed, thin reading glasses perched on his nose, a sour expression carved into his hard face.
No wonder Sage's voice shook when she talked to him. There was nothing warm or kind or fatherly about this man that stood before me. A deep sense of gratitude for my own father rose up in my chest, nearly choking me.
"Mr. Stern." He inclined his head, reaching out to shake my hand.
"Mr. Vanderman." I shook his hand, relieved not to find myself in another strength battle.
He sat down at the head of the table, unbuttoning his suit jacket and settling in. I chose the seat off to the right of him and waited for him to launch into his deal, ignoring his lackey entirely.
Instead he set his papers down and just looked at me, perhaps cataloging all my features and making assumptions about me based on what he saw. And good luck to him because I could bet he had no idea what conversation we were about to have.
"My daughter has met with you already?" he finally asked.
I nodded. "Yes, she did. Almost had me convinced to sell when that's the last thing I want to do."
He harrumphed. "That's her job. Except sheissupposed to get you to sell. Not almost."
The anger was already bubbling up in my chest at his condescending tone and his implication that Sage had somehow failed when he had no idea what was really going on here.
"Well, I'm not selling, because Sage understands something you fail to see." His eyes narrowed, clearly not liking my own tone. "The Surf Shack is a landmark of Huntington Beach, built by my father in the seventies by his own two hands." I paused. "Have you ever built something with your own two hands, Mr. Vanderman?"
His face was flushing red. "Look around you, boy. You think I could afford to stay here if I hadn't built something with my own two hands? You think I don't know about hard work?"
I interrupted. "Perhaps you do. Perhaps you also know about building a legacy. About building something that can be passed down to future generations. My dad passed down The Surf Shack to me, just like you want to pass your business down to Sage."
He let out a long breath through his nose, his chin lifting.
"I'll tell you what I told Sage last week. I'm not selling. Ever."
He leaned forward, placing his folded hands on the table in front of him. "That's not good news for my daughter, Mr. Stern." One bushy eyebrow raised, the anger leaving his face. "Sage is a nice girl, don't you think?"
I paused, wondering where he was going with this. "Yes, she is. More than 'nice'."
"It's a shame you're going to ruin her entire future with your decision to leave a ramshackle building still standing. With the money I was prepared to give you, you could rebuild your shop elsewhere. And at the same time allow Sage to take over my company when I retire." He paused, a ghost of a smile on his lips. "You wouldn't want to take a multi-billion dollar company away from Sage, would you?"
Ah, so that's where he was going with it. He was trying to strong arm me into selling so he wouldn't have to destroy Sage. As if his own ultimatum wasn't to blame. It was a good argument though. One I would have probably given in to eventually had Sage and I not had our conversation yesterday. I'd told her I trusted her and this was the first time that trust was being called into question. This wasn't the time to falter. Not with this vulture in the three piece suit who was too smart for his own good.
I leaned forward, matching his stance, my gaze laser focused on his watery blue eyes. "Let's not pretend that this lies on my shoulders. You are the one who gave her an ultimatum. You are the one taking away her future. I'm the one that intends to be there for her future. The future that she makes for herself, on her own time, in her own way."
I stood up, unable to keep this conversation going without wanting to strangle the man. His assistant jumped up too, feeling the tension and naively thinking he could do something to stop me if I intended to strike. They didn't know my job, that my nature was to save lives and keep the peace.
"Sage is an incredible woman, which I'm sure you already know. She fits into any environment, immediately making friends with anyone who crosses her path. She's serious, she's playful, she's a calm force. She'll be a success at whatever she takes on professionally, primarily because of who she is, and only secondarily because of what you've taught her. She doesn't need your company or your trust fund to be happy. But I do know that any son or daughter simply wants acceptance, love, and approval. She wants only that from you, Mr. Vanderman."
I took a breath and he stood quickly, the anger back in his expression and the clench of his fists by his sides.
"Don't you tell me what my own daughter needs from me."
I leaned a fraction of an inch closer, hoping he would hear me, for Sage's sake, not mine. "I will tell you, because you aren't listening to her. I've known her for merely a week and I can see all that. Where've you been? Why haven't you seen her?" I let my questions hang in the air, his eyes murderous.
"I think it's time you left, buddy." The assistant pulled back my chair and his hand was on my elbow, pulling me in the direction of the door. I stepped away, removed his hand from my arm, and left the hotel suite on my own two feet, knowing I'd said all I could. It may not be enough to change him, or to make Sage's situation any better, but I just couldn't stand by and watch Sage be mistreated, by her own father no less.
