Page 60 of Kaden & Keegan
Tuck shifted forward, pulled an envelope out of his back pocket, then placed it on the table. His gnarled fingers moved it in their direction.
“Keep in mind, this ain’t the list price. It’s the friends’ discount. If it comes down to puttin’ it on the market official-like, I’ll be askin’ market value.”
Keegan nodded at Kaden, urging his brother to open the envelope. He watched his brother’s face as he did, noticed the slight flare of his eyes before Kaden passed it over.
He held his breath, then took a peek.
The number he saw was far less than he expected based on the research he’d done. Definitely reasonable. Which meant it would come down to whether or not they could get the loan. And come up with the down payment. Couldn’t forget that.
“What about the cattle?” Kaden inquired.
“Whatcha see is whatcha get,” Tuck answered. “Only ten heads out there. Got that young’n Cassius King takin’ care of things. Might I suggest you keep the young man on. Hot-headed on a good day, but a damn fine cowboy.”
Keegan figured they’d do well to keep Cassius on. They’d need someone to help out until they got things up and running fully.
“The house’ll be cleared out,” Tuck continued, “but the equipment’ll stay. Includin’ the tractor, though I’m warnin’ ya, it’s seen better days. I’d go and get myself a good mechanic.”
“Got that one covered, sir,” Kaden said with a smile.
Keegan felt that strange churning sensation in his gut. Anticipation. The thought of owning this place was more than he’d thought possible. Not to mention everything he’d ever dreamed about.
“The information’s all there,” Tuck said, pointing at the papers. “Got the acreage, square footage, even the profit and loss for the past decade. Some of that’s my fault there. Gettin’ harder and harder to handle things ’round here and help’s not as good as it used to be.” He grinned wide. “Or as cheap. But if you’re lookin’ to buy a ranch to get rich, you ain’t in your right mind.”
No, Keegan knew most ranchers didn’t roll in dough. But it wasn’t about the money for him. It was about owning something he could be proud of, a place he could work with his own two hands.
“How long do we have to get the money and all that?” Kaden inquired.
Now Tuck frowned, his eyes lowering to the table. “I hate to put a rush on it, but I need to have everything in order by the end of the week.”
A week? Could they even get it all done in a week?
“My grandkids’ll be down next weekend to load up the rest of my things. They want me good and settled in before the holiday season rolls in. If we don’t have a contract workin’ by then, I’ll hafta leave it in the hands of the real estate gal. She’ll take care of it from there.”
Keegan glanced at Kaden, willed his brother to agree to buy this place. No way could they not.
“And don’t worry,” Tuck continued, “I’m willin’ to rent it to you in the interim so you can move in now. No sense lettin’ it sit empty when I’m gone.”
Well, that was good news. Provided they could get the loan, they could be getting things underway while they waited for it to close.
“Somethin’ you should know,” Tuck added.
Keegan’s attention shifted back to the old man.
“House needs a lotta work. It’s livable, but most of the appliances have crapped out, the floors squeak in more places than they don’t, some of the plumbin’s leakin’. The roof’s new though. Had it replaced a few years ago.”
“Anything that won’t pass inspection?” Curtis asked.
“Doubtful. Nothin’ that’d matter to the bank, anyhow.”
“Mr. Tucker,” Kaden said, his voice low, “we’re gonna do everything in our power to get you that contract by Friday. We’ll make a trip into town tomorrow, go to the bank, see what we can do.”
Tuck glanced between the two of them. “I think this place’ll be in good hands if you boys want it.”
“We definitely want it,” Keegan said firmly.
More than he wanted anything else.
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