“That’s right.” His lips were curved into a sexy half smile as he swept his gaze over her, making no effort to hide the fact that he was checking her out.
Well, hell. That made her feel good, even if he was way too young for her. It felt awesome to be appreciated. She was warm with pleasure as she asked, “Are you here negotiating a deal?”
“Nope. I just moved to Premonition Pointe and started working here last week. Kevin liked that I have connections to buyers from the city. A lot of them want beach property.”
What the actual hell? If Kevin just hired this guy, he certainly wasn’t going to be in the market to hire Grace. Why did he even have her come in? To humiliate her? That was likely, but she damned well wasn’t going to go down without a fight. She suppressed a frustrated groan and forced a tight smile. “That sounds like a good arrangement for both of you.”
Owen’s smile slipped, and his brow furrowed as he studied her. “Is everything all right, Grace? You seem—”
“Mr. Landers will see you now, Ms. Valentine,” Nina said from behind them, cutting Owen off.
She whirled around. “Great. Thank you.” With a polite nod to Owen, she followed the young woman back to Kevin Landers’ oversized office.
“Grace,” the older man who was built like a linebacker said, pushing himself to his feet. He wore a camel colored suit that was already wrinkled and… Was that a jelly stain on his light blue tie? He held out his hand. “It was good of you to come in.”
She took his hand and shook it. “Thanks for meeting with me.”
“Of course. Anything for the wife—ahem—woman behind Munch’s operation.” He smirked and waved to one of the plastic chairs in front of his desk.
As Grace took a seat, Nina bustled back into the office and placed a mug on Kevin’s desk. She took a small step back and gazed adoringly up at her boss. “Is there anything else I can get for you, Mr. Landers?”
“Only if Ms. Valentine would like something to drink,” he said, narrowing his eyes at his assistant.
“Oh. Yes. Ms. Valentine, can I get you anything? Coffee? Tea? Water? A donut?” She glanced at the open door and then snapped her fingers. “But you’d probably prefer a piece of fruit, right? We have bananas and apples for those who are trying to watch their weight.”
Oh, no she didn’t. Grace gave the child receptionist a glare that could melt steel and said, “No thank you, Norma. I’m fine.”
“It’s Nina,” she said.
“Oh. Is it? My mistake.” Grace smirked at her and then turned back to Kevin and raised one eyebrow. “I think your receptionist might need better training.”
Kevin let out a bark of laughter and nodded to his assistant. “Shut the door on your way out, Nina.”
“She’s interesting,” Grace said once the receptionist was gone.
“Nina thinks sucking up to the boss will get her a raise.” He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest as he eyed Grace.
“And being rude to a potential agent is sucking up to her boss?” Grace asked conversationally. The last thing she wanted was for Kevin Landers to think this situation was getting under her skin.
He shrugged. “She knows there’s no love lost between me and your husband.”
“Ex-husband,” Grace corrected. “Whatever issues you have with Bill, I hope you realize that they don’t have anything to do with me.”
“But weren’t you the brains behind the operation over there?” he asked, his expression unreadable.
He was trying to find a reason to not hire her. That much was clear. If she claimed she was instrumental in closing a majority of their sales over the years, he’d have every reason to hold a grudge against her. But if she didn’t, then her experience wouldn’t be enough to land her the job. Grace cleared her throat and leaned forward, staring Kevin Landers in the eye. “I am good at what I do. I know how to list and show a property so that it moves, and I know how to find buyers to match even the most challenging of properties. And I do it with integrity by creating trust between me and my clients.”
“Integrity?” he asked, staring back at her. “Is that right? Is that why On Pointe Realty has been trying to poach my clients for the past ten years?”
Grace knew she’d need an answer for this question. Years ago, Bill and Kevin had gotten into it over a difficult whale of a client who’d fired Kevin and hired Bill. In the end, Grace had been the one to find him his perfect vacation home. Ever since, there’d been bad blood between the two of them with both of them trying to woo each other’s clients. “I dealt with the contracts at On Pointe, Mr. Landers. Trust me when I say I have never knowingly signed a client when they were still under contract with another Realtor. Besides, that’s not my style. After you work with me for a few weeks, you’ll see exactly who had the integrity over at On Pointe.”
Landers didn’t say a word as he continued to eye her. Then suddenly he threw his head back and laughed.
Grace waited him out, wondering what she’d said that had him so amused.
After taking a long swig of his coffee, Kevin opened a side drawer and pulled out a folder. He set it in front of him and said, “I like how you called out your ex without actually spelling out what a douche he is. And because of that, I’m willing to give you a trial run.”
“Really?” Excitement mixed with relief washed over Grace. “Thank you. I promise you won’t be disappointed.”
“I hope not.” He passed her the folder. “Here are three properties that have proven to be tough sales. If you can move at least one of them in the next three months, I’ll consider hiring you full time. If you move all three, the job is yours, no questions asked.”
Grace knew the real estate market in the small coastal town of Premonition Pointe had been fairly robust. If a property hadn’t moved, it was likely either overpriced or needed a lot of work.
No matter. Either way, she had confidence that she could convince the sellers to make the changes that would make them marketable. Before she even took a look at the properties in the folder, she said, “Sounds fair enough. I assume you’re fine with me picking up new clients while I work on them?”
“As long as they’re sold under the Landers Realty umbrella, then that’s perfectly fine with me,” he said, sitting back in his chair once more, looking way too self-satisfied. “See Nina about the agency agreement. Once it’s filled out, feel free to get to work. I’m certain Mr. Saint will want a meeting as soon as possible.”
“Good.” She grabbed the folder and started to stride toward the door. But as soon as Mr. Saint registered in her mind, she froze and then groaned. “Mr. Saint?”
“Yes. He owns all three properties.” His lips were curved into a nasty little smirk, telegraphing the fact that he fully expected her to fail.
And why wouldn’t he? Mr. Saint owned three large homes that had been on and off the market for three years.
They were haunted.
Chapter Three
Instead of heading to her car, Grace made a beeline for the independently owned café a few doors down from the real estate office. She’d been too nervous to really eat much before the interview, and suddenly she desperately needed a slice of coffee cake and a latte.