“He’d prefer it,” Daniel answered for him.
A snort sounded from the far end of the bar, but Mack ignored it.
“Michael, I’d like to introduce you to Roy Watson.”
Mack nodded at the other man.
“Roy deals with commercial real estate,” Daniel explained. “I wanted to see if he could do a market analysis on the place, so we’ll have an idea of what we’re looking at from a financial perspective.”
Mack stared at Daniel, slightly confused by the reference to “we.”
“Would you mind if I look around, Mr. Schwartz?” Roy asked.
Mack motioned for the man to do as he pleased. If he was hoping to get a personal tour, he was going to be disappointed.
Chris stepped up to the bar. “Do you happen to have seltzer water?”
Well, of course he had seltzer water. It was a fucking bar.
Not that Mack told him as much. Instead, he grabbed a clean glass, started for ice only to hear Chris decline. Using the sprayer, he filled the glass, passed it over, then glanced at Daniel.
“Nothing for me, but thank you, Father,” Daniel said. “I was hoping to borrow your keys so I can take Chris to look at your house.”
“Actually,” Chris interjected, smiling at Daniel, “I did a market analysis based on the information I obtained online, so it’s not necessary just yet.” His blond head turned toward Mack. “Once we agree, I’ll gladly walk your house and give you my suggestions on what needs to be done for us to get the best possible price for your property.”
Mack noticed Travis was listening intently, though he wasn’t looking directly at Chris.
“You can see here,” Chris explained, laying a manila folder on the bar and opening it, “this is your property, and these are a few that’ve sold recently in the area.”
This time, Travis did show interest, glancing over at the paper, making no effort to pretend he wasn’t.
Chris glanced to his left, frowned, then peered over at Daniel.
“Would you mind relocating somewhere else?” Daniel prompted Travis, his voice stern.
“I would, yes,” Travis said easily, offering an amused grin. “I’m quite comfortable here.”
Son of a bitch. Last thing Mack needed was a pissing contest between Daniel and Travis, and no doubt, it was coming.
“This isn’t any concern of yours,” Daniel continued, then peered over at Mack. “Father, I think it’d be best if we did this in private.”
“I’ll take another beer,” Sawyer said, drawing Mack’s attention.
“Me, too,” Brendon called out from farther down. “I can get it myself if you’ve got other things to deal with.”
Mack narrowed his gaze on the man before snagging two more beers from the cold box and passing them down. He didn’t bother to remove the caps, simply tossed a bottle opener. He could play this game, too.
“Anyway,” Chris noted. “Mr. Schwartz … Michael.” He smiled, flashing pearly whites. “As you can expect from me as your Realtor, I did my due diligence looking into the property values in this town before bringing you the information.” His smile fell, but it was clearly for effect. “I’m sad to say that the market’s taken a turn in recent months. Not exactly at a high point right now, but Daniel has informed me it’s urgent that you sell, so I took that into consideration.”
Another snort from down the bar. Brendon or Braydon. Maybe Sawyer.
“I’m not sure you’re aware of the resort that’s a few miles down the road,” Chris said, looking disappointed, “but I believe it’s dragging down values in the area. Add to that the fact there isn’t much being sold, considering the inconvenience to Austin, we’re looking at coming in right under one hundred thousand.” His steady gaze lifted. “I’d like you to keep in mind, that’s on the high end. Good thing is you own the house outright.”
“Why’s that a good thing?” Travis asked, shifting his body so he was facing Chris.
The Realtor’s eyes widened as he glanced over.
“I’m sorry,” Travis said, “it’s just I have a great interest in real estate. I’m curious about the process.”
