Page 28 of Fireworks at Pennycress Inn
‘It will do. I have great faith in you.’
‘Umm, thanks.’ As excited as she was, she just couldn’t shake the feeling that if this event fell flat for them, then she’d not only be letting herself down but the reserve too.
‘Is that your phone?’ Vicki pointed to Polly’s bag stashed beneath the desk as her cheerful ringtone filled the office.
‘Oh, yes.’ Shaking herself from her thoughts, Polly leaned down and picked up her bag before rummaging through and pulling out her phone. It was David from the estate agents. ‘Sorry, I’d best take this.’
‘Yep, catch you later.’
Polly watched Vicki wheel her chair back to her desk as she jabbed the Accept Call button and held the mobile to her ear. ‘Hi, David. All okay?’
‘Hi, Polly. And yes, all is okay. Thank you for asking. In fact, it’s more than okay…’ He took a dramatic pause.
Polly tried to quiet the flicker of excitement in the pit of her stomach. Had the flat been sold? Even a few days ago, she would have been torn as to whether to accept an offer or not, but now, with things looking up and finding out she still had a chance at the promotion, it would be a weight off her mind. ‘It’s sold!’
David’s voice grew hesitant. ‘No, no. We’re not quite there yet, but I do have a viewing booked in for Monday morning.’
‘Oh, right.’ She ran the pad of her finger along the edge of her notebook, tracing its outline. Another viewing, another disappointment to follow. They’d been here before. Numerous times.
‘Don’t sound too disheartened. I have a good feeling about this one. The couple viewing are new developers building a portfolio who have recently bought up several other properties locally.’
‘And you really think they might take on my grandparents’ flat?’ She glanced across at Zac, who was seemingly busy tapping away on his laptop.
‘I think if we go about this the right way, there might just be a good chance.’
Go about it the right way? ‘What do you mean?’
‘I mean, I think we should take the necessary steps I suggested to increase our chances of success.’
Ahh. ‘So, to declutter a little?’
‘Nope. To declutter a lot and to redecorate.’ David took a sharp breath in. ‘I’m not talking about putting up wallpaper or painting woodwork or anything. I’m just suggesting we paint a few walls white or magnolia, that’s all. Focus on the living room and the master bedroom, give our buyers a chance to see the flat’s potential.’
Declutter a lot? Paint? And what did he mean by ‘we’? The royal we, that’s what he meant. ‘I don’t know…’
‘I know it’s a family home, the one you grew up in, but sometimes that level of someone else’s stuff puts off buyers. They don’t have the ability to be able to see what could be.’
‘I thought you said they were investors? They wouldn’t be living in it, so why would anything put them off?’ As great as it would be for the flat to be sold, she really needed to get organised for the upcoming event at Meadowfield’s Bonfire Night. A week, that’s all they had. A week to organise the stall, leaflets, competition prizes. Leaning forward, she pinched the bridge of her nose.
‘They’re new to this. Inexperienced. We don’t want to give them any reason to walk away, do we?’
‘No, I guess not.’ Polly drew a small circle in the corner of her page. The phrase chicken and egg sprang to mind – if the flat didn’t sell, she wouldn’t be able to relocate, but if she spent the weekend prepping for the viewing at the expense of organising her first fundraising event, she might not even get the promotion, anyway.
‘Good, good. I’ll leave it all in your capable hands, then.’
And then he was gone.
Polly pulled the mobile from her ear and stared at the blank screen. She knew he was right; she knew she needed to do the work he suggested, but how was she supposed to fit it all in? How was she supposed to declutter, paint and source prizes, design and organise leaflets, all in one weekend? Two days, that’s all she had. Two days to complete two tasks which had the potential to shape her future. Yes, she had next week to work on the Bonfire Night fundraising stall, but if she was going to have time to source prizes, print leaflets and everything else that needed doing, she had to make a good dent in the preparations as soon as she physically could. She needed to know what she had to source, what was being included in the leaflets…
‘Polly? Can I have a quick word?’
Twisting in her chair, she watched as Declan entered the office and pointed towards the meeting room. Wasn’t he supposed to have had meetings all day? He wasn’t even going to be in the office, he’d said. ‘Coming.’
‘Vicki, can you join us too, please?’ Declan called across the room towards the other woman, who stood up slowly, her hands scooped beneath the fabric scarf.
Standing up, Polly picked up her notebook and pen before looking longingly at Zac’s coffee mug, still steaming with the hot, delicious liquid. Making her way into the meeting room, she crossed her fingers beneath her notebook.Please don’t say the whole thing is off.She’d worked so hard today to get things in place for the Bonfire Night event. She didn’t know what she’d say if he backed out now.
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