“Hey, you don’t know if you like it until you try it. I’ll put some on mine and you can have a taste before you decide.”
He eyed me suspiciously. “If you say so.”
Once it was out and buttered, all hot and gooey in the center, he took a big bite and surprise! He loved it. “Want one with butter now?”
“Yes, please, Daddy.” He shot me a cheesy grin, and I couldn’t help but laugh at his antics. “It’s yummy hot ciminimy.”
When we were sitting at the table with buttery treats and coffee, Gilly tapped his fingers on the table. “I have something I need to talk to you about.” He sighed. “My uncle’s company.”
“Oh?”
Gilly scrunched up his nose. “Yeah. But I think it’s going to be more than a two-minute conversation.” His Little was nowhere to be found. It was time for Gilly to make some grown-up decisions.
“Let’s find a time that works for both of us where we can talk, uninterrupted.” I pulled my calendar up on my phone. “What days are open for you?” I’d take a day off, if necessary. I knew how important this was to Gilly, and in essence, for us as a couple.
“Actually, early this afternoon would work for me. My last job should wrap up by one.”
“Hmm…” I had something at three, but nothing earlier. “I can reschedule my afternoon appointment. It’s with a vendor, so not a big deal.”
“You sure? I don’t want you messing up your business for me.”
“I’m not messing up anything, and I’m sure. Let’s meet at the park and spend the afternoon together.”
“The same one we went to last time?”
“Yes. Do you think you could get there by two?”
“Yes, I can.”
“Good. We can eat a late lunch while we talk. Daddy will bring it with him.”
After we finished breakfast and got ready for work, I kissed him goodbye. His first appointment was early, and he didn’t want to be late. I sent a text off to my assistant to reschedule my vendor meeting. This was going to be a heavy conversation, and giving Gilly my undivided attention was key. After that, Gilly could play or even just run around the park and forget about his troubles for a while. That would help ease whatever stress came out of our discussion. I packed the bubbles and frisbees as well as lunch in my truck before heading to the office. It was going to be a long day, even with the afternoon off.
17
GILLY
As soon as I saw Daddy at the park, it was like I could breathe again. Instead of spreading a blanket on the ground, we ate at a picnic table by the big field. While he pulled out food stuff, I opened my laptop because I wanted to show Nate the ledger again, including the last few months, and what I had in my savings.
He handed me a sandwich, and I ate while he examined the business stuff. “Mmm…PB and J.”
“Yep. Grape jelly, as you like.”
I swallowed my bite and took a drink of the fruity punch juice box. He thought of everything. “Thanks, Daddy.”
“You are more than welcome, sweetheart.”
I waved my hand at the laptop. “So, what do you think?”
“First, I’m wondering about what other assets you have. Or the company has.”
“Me, nothing. But I’m not sure about the company. There is a van, but it’s old and could hardly be worth much. It’s paid for, so we just have the insurance bill. Also, some equipment and supplies, like a big paint mixer and stuff like that. Like I mentioned before, my uncle runs the business out of his garage, so no office or warehouse overhead. If I did buy the business, it wouldn’t include that space.”
“What about a customer list?”
“We have a pretty good one. Here.” I leaned over and pulled up the database I’d helped set up that included all our past and present clients. It gave us a total number of customers and repeat jobs as well as any referrals they sent our way.
“This is all great information, Gilly. Good job compiling all of that. We can use this to figure out a valuation and make an offer if that’s what you want.”
