26. Oakley
Oakley
Oakley paced the front lawn that Saturday, her whole body buzzing with nerves.
Every spare moment that week had been dedicated to research: local laws, permits, the cost of equipment. Now they were just waiting for Noah to declare the building safe and sound.
It looked perfect to Oakley: a big old house with a welcoming lanai. She couldn’t see anything wrong with it. But termites were a plague in Pualena, and there was no knowing what sort of damage might be hiding deep within the walls.
Minor remodels they could handle, and it was a safe investment because they could always sell at a profit down the road.
Major structural damage, on the other hand, might push the entire project out of reach – and in a small town like Pualena, there was no guarantee that another house like this one would come on the market anytime soon.
She had hovered at Noah’s shoulder through every step of the inspection before he finally snapped and told her to go outside.
And so she paced.
The yard was already gorgeous. Established hibiscus bushes grew all around the house, glowing vivid red and sunset orange.
At the edges of the property, bordering the lush green grass, more hibiscus bushes bloomed with white flowers the size of her face.
It was an ideal property for family vacations, a quiet street and a lawn where kids could run and play.
The location was perfect for a boutique hotel, less than a five-minute walk from Pualena’s tiny downtown.
Oakley already had a vision in her mind’s eye of a cute hand-drawn map that would highlight local businesses and hiking trails. They would be just around the corner from the coffee shop and book store – one more point on the map of Kalama family businesses that were taking the town by storm.
Their dad would be so proud.
Just seeing the five of them together again would have delighted him, but their contributions to the community would have been the icing on the cake. She could just hear him bragging to everyone he knew about Laurie’s book shop and Akemi’s brilliant business idea.
It grieved Oakely that their dad wasn’t around to see what his daughters had accomplished the past couple of years. But the grandkids were there to see what their mothers could accomplish, and that would have to be enough.
Kimo would have loved to see them all together again – and more than anything, he would have loved to see the Aloha sisters working in tandem to revive their home town.
Anne and Noah walked out hand in hand, and Oakley jogged across the lawn to meet them.
“So?” She peered expectantly at Noah. “What’s the verdict?”
“She’s solid.” He patted the nearest post with his free hand.
“I can put in an offer?”
“I don’t see why not. There’s nothing really wrong with her – no structural damage or expensive fixes. It won’t take long to spruce the place up.”
Oakley turned to Anne. “Are we doing this?”
“Let’s do it,” she said with a grin.
She squealed and threw her arms around both of them together.
“So you’re going to live together and run a business together,” Noah said when she finally released them.
“Yep.”
“Won’t you get sick of each other?”
“Never!” they said in tandem.
He shook his eyes and smiled. “The dynamic duo. Annie Oakley.”
“I’ll put an offer in,” Oakley said.
“What are we going to call it?” Anne asked.
Oakley looked around at the flowers blooming all around the property.
“I have an idea…”
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