“You mean a discount?” he replied, in an affected accent that had got right up Karen’s nose. “These apartments will be snapped up at auction. They’re in a prime location, as I’m sure you know. Price means nothing these days.”
“Exceptional use of space, huh?” Shane repeated, catching her eye, and nodding towards the doorway. She followed his gaze and noticed that the interior doors were not yet installed. There was no way that even a two-seater sofa would fit there once they were hung. Karen and Jenny’s little flat in Leinster Square was bigger than this‘exceptionally spacious and tastefully decorated deluxe residence’promised by the brochure.
“If that’s what we’re up against, this is going to be an absolute nightmare,” Karen said afterwards when they made their excuses and broke for lunch.
“I think it’s probably the location,” Shane said, tucking into his roast beef dinner. “Anything around these parts will command a song.”
“I don’t fancy living too far away though. I’d hate to have to spend hours commuting.” She sighed. “Nor do I want to settle for something resembling a dog kennel though.”
“Don’t panic, that’s not an option yet. Anyway,” Shane added with a glint in his eye, “I have a bit of an ace up my sleeve.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, you know how we only qualify for a small mortgage at the moment? Jack knows a guy that can get us a bit more.”
“Your brother? How so?”
“He knows a fella who works as a mortgage advisor with one of the building societies. Jack has a house up home that he’s renting out, and he’s going to put that up as collateral for whatever extra we need. What it means is that we can get a much bigger mortgage than what the bank has offered. The salary restrictions will still apply but because there’s a guarantee, this guy can organise a bigger loan.”
Karen was stunned. “Jack would do that for us?”
Shane shrugged. “He knows the score, and how hard it is to get on the ladder. The only risk he’s taking is that we might default on the repayments, and he knows that won’t happen. I’ll have my yearly salary scale and bonuses to rely on. And of course, your job is very secure too.”
Karen was contemplative. This was very generous indeed. “So you two have it all worked out already?”
Shane speared green beans onto his fork. “More or less. Now we just have to find a place. Gives us a bit of head-start though, doesn’t it?” he grinned.
“I’ll say. Shane this is brilliant, why didn’t you say anything about it before?”
He shrugged. “I wasn’t sure what we were up against price-wise. But, after that cubby hole this morning, I knew we’d have to pay more for anything even half-decent.”
This was fantastic news, Karen thought, finishing the remainder of her club sandwich. With his brother’s kind offer, they now had extra leeway.
“Right,” Shane said then, pushing his plate away. “We’d better head on up to Harold’s Cross and see what the next place is like. Who knows,” he winked at Karen as he went to pay the bill, “could end up being the house of our dreams.”
23
Weeks later, once the paperwork was complete, Jenny visited Karen and Shane at their starter home in the thick of charming Harold’s Cross, another locality characterised by its red brick Victorian-era houses.
“It’s gorgeous!” she exclaimed, glancing around the cosy living room. An expansive bay window looked out onto a small front lawn, giving the tiny room additional character despite the dreadful seventies swirling wallpaper and nosebleed-inducing carpet pattern.
She followed Karen upstairs to the bedrooms.
“These things could have been designed just for me,” her friend said elatedly, opening a sliding wardrobe door to reveal a plethora of shoes and piles of clothes bundled up inside. “I don’t have to keep everything tidy and folded …” She promptly slid it shut again, “and poof! The mess just disappears by magic.”
Jenny had to smile. Karen was deliriously happy withher new home. She took a quick look around the other bedroom, which judging by theBarneywallpaper was previously used as a children’s bedroom.
“You’ll have to do some work on that one,” Jenny said, nodding at the dinosaur décor, “I know you have a bit of a thing for purple but ….”
She laughed as Karen pretended to push her down the stairs.
“What are you two skitting about?” Shane asked as they rejoined him in the kitchen where he was busy wiping down the insides of cupboards.
“I was just teasing your wife-to-be,” Jenny said, giggling as she sat down at a small round table. The kitchen was also compact but cosy. The units were tired and old-fashioned, but Shane had already undertaken to replace those once he had the time.
“Tell Williams to get his ass down here next time. He promised he’d give me a hand with the wooden floor.”
Roan – laying a wooden floor? Jenny was astonished. But pleased afresh that he and Shane seemed to get on so well. It often helped diffuse the once-again frosty atmosphere between him and Karen.
