No Place in the Sun

by John Mulligan

  Tom shook his head in disbelief. ‘I used to think Willie hadn’t a bob, working for wages for Kevin, but he seems to have come out of the whole thing very well, better than any of us.’

  Pamela poured more wine. ‘You’ve done all right too by the look of you, fancy shirts and a Rolex no less, you must be making a lot of money in Spain.’

  ‘I can’t complain really.’ Tom put down his drink on the coffee table and sat back on the couch. ‘Made a few bob the last few months, mining a particularly rich seam lately.’

  ‘I hope it’s all legal.’

  ‘Of course, just well paid sales work.’ Tom decided against telling Walter about the details of the timeshare racket, he knew that his friend wouldn’t understand.

  ‘Ever think of buying a place here? I could look out for an apartment; get you one at a good deal if you weren’t in a hurry.’

  Tom hadn’t thought about buying a place anywhere, but Walter’s idea made sense. After all, what was he going to do with all the money that was piling up in the bank in Gibraltar? He didn’t live too much of the high life, that all tended to wear a bit thin after a while in any case, and the money was just sitting there, not doing anything.

  ‘Ok, let’s do that, you find me the right place and just let me know how much to transfer.’

  ‘How much have you available, if that’s not too personal a question?’ Walter didn’t want to pry too much but he needed a guideline.

  ‘About three hundred grand in the bank in Gib, maybe a few more bob here and there, not too sure.’

  Walter looked at him in astonishment. ‘You’ve gathered up that much money since you left? Bloody hell!’

  ‘Not all since I left, I made a right few bob working for Kevin as well. How much would a nice apartment cost me then? Something in a good area maybe?’

  ‘You could buy a couple of places for that kind of money. I’d suggest you buy something here and buy one in Spain as well; our strategy guys are looking at Spain for big gains over the next few years. I can’t believe you’re still paying rent with all that cash in the bank.’

  Tom was starting to realise just how well he had been doing over the last year or so. He had been so busy working that he hadn’t really been looking at the end result, but when you converted the harvest into something tangible like bricks and mortar, you began to get a measure of the size of the pile. He was suddenly enthusiastic about the plan.

  ‘Let’s go for it so, you get me one here and I’ll go shopping in Spain, I have a friend in the business over there who won’t see me wrong, decent old skin.’

  ‘All you’re short now is a woman.’ Pamela was teasing him.

  ‘Do you want me to look around for a woman for you as well?’ Walter joined in the ribbing.

  ‘I can do that myself; don’t worry.’ Tom was able to laugh along with his friends. ‘Although I’d have to admit that you did well in that department yourself.’ He raised his glass in Pamela’s direction.

  Pamela laughed. ‘So, have you a girl in Spain?’

  ‘Not really. Well, sort of. I have an occasional girlfriend if you could call her that.’

  ‘Is she pretty? What’s her name?’

  ‘She’s called Carmen, works in the rental company, but we’re not really serious about each other.’

  ‘Is that what she thinks as well?’

  ‘I don’t know, never actually had that conversation with her to be honest.’

  Walter laughed. ‘Same old Tom. Did you ever hear from that blonde girl, the one you sold the yellow car to?’

  Tom shook his head. ‘Amanda? No, I never saved her number, I wouldn’t mind catching up with her again though; she was lovely.’

  ‘You should have written her details in your little book.’

  ‘I know, I missed out there.’

  Pamela smiled and raised a glass. ‘Here’s to the start of Tom’s property empire, and to his search for a nice girl. May you live long and enjoy it all.’

  CHAPTER FIVE

  It was hot, even for this time of the morning. It was a rare pleasure to have a day off for a change, and Tom was looking forward to having a good breakfast at La Paloma. The street was busy with crowds of people heading for the market, and the police were blowing whistles and waving drivers on past the turn to the hill. Henry had managed to hold on to a table on the terrace, and Tom pulled up a chair and ordered his coffee and breakfast.

  ‘So, you want to put down roots in Marbella. I knew you’d come round to it sooner or later.’

  ‘Not roots as such, more like dropping anchor for a while. Have you come up with a few for me?’

  Henry pointed to the bundle of papers on the table. ‘Picked you out six possible ones, including a beaut in the complex you’re in. Good time to buy, prices are starting to go up but a lot of owners haven’t realised it yet.’

  Tom looked through the sheaf of papers and pulled out one that caught his eye. ‘This one looks good, what’s the story with it?’

  Henry looked over the top of his glasses at the brochure that Tom was perusing. ‘Not mad on that one Tom, too near the main road, nice complex but might be hard to get rid of it again. Wait till we get the food inside us and we’ll go through them.’

  They tucked into the tortillas and croissants, washing them down with a couple of strong coffees. ‘So, good trip to Ireland? Did it convince you to stay here in the sunshine or do you still miss the rain?’

  Tom laughed. ‘I had a great few days, met up with some old mates and had a few good nights out. Glad to get back to a bit of decent weather though, I couldn’t imagine having breakfast outdoors in Dublin today.’

  ‘That sums it up, lad, we couldn’t eat it outside in Newcastle for that matter, so I’m definitely staying put in Spain. Was that what made you decide that you wanted to buy a place?’

  ‘Not really. Walter, mate of mine in the estate agency business, reckons that Spanish stuff is now underpriced and that it makes for a good investment. I’m buying one back home as well; he’s looking out for one for me.’

  ‘Good thinking, lad; I heard that stuff was starting to move over there as well. Definitely there’s an upwards move happening here; it’s a good time to buy, especially when you know your way around the business.’

  They finished breakfast and ordered more coffees. The café was thronged with tourists from the market, but the waitress was looking after her regulars and they got the coffees quickly. Tom gave her the money for the breakfast, and they went through the papers that Henry had brought along.

  ‘Here’s the one in your own block, looking for a hundred and forty but I know he’ll take about one-ten. Top floor, extra big terrace. He’s living in South Africa and not coming back, so he’s out of touch with the market here now. It’s furnished as well, but I’m not sure how much he wants for the contents.’

  ‘That sounds like a possibility.’

  ‘Even better, I haven’t showed it to anyone yet, told the guy that we are finding it hard to get people interested in that development. Soften him up a bit; make him grab at any offer if we make him wait long enough.’

  ‘I like your style.’ Tom turned another page round to face Henry. ‘What about this one?’

  ‘That’s on with another agency, in the complex behind your place, tidy property but I don’t have as much info on it for obvious reasons. As well as that, the other agency has to get the full commission, so I can’t split it with you like I could on the first one.’

  Tom was surprised. ‘I didn’t expect you to split the take with me, I mean, we all live on commissions, I don’t begrudge you your slice of the action on any of this.’

  Henry held up his hand. ‘Say no more, lad, there’s no argument about it, I’ll split the commission with you fifty-fifty, no more than you’d do for me.’

  ‘Do you want to walk back to those two? The traffic is crazy with the bloody market.’

  ‘I’m not as young as you, but I can manage it if you take it easy.’

  Henry g
ot up from the table and they headed back towards Tom’s apartment complex. The street was still crowded with shoppers, and a very agitated policeman was trying in vain to stop cars parking on the narrow roadway. Every time he tried to stop one driver from abandoning his car, another one stopped further along, and he rushed frantically up and down, blowing on his whistle and doing a lot of arm waving.

  ‘Crazy country in many ways, you wouldn’t see a policeman losing it in England.’

  ‘Not in Ireland either, they tend to keep the cool.’

  ‘We can come back for the car after these two and go around to the others.’

  Tom shook his head. ‘No need. I like living where I am, and if either of the two down there is any good, we’ll do a deal right now. I don’t want to spend a week house hunting.’

  ‘Fair enough, you know your own mind.’ Henry was puffing a little as they crested the hill. ‘Slow down, Tom, I’m not as fit as you are.’

  Tom let them in through the garden gate and they took the lift to the top floor. Henry tried several keys, and eventually they opened the front door to the apartment. It was dark and smelled stale, nobody had been here in a while. Henry found the mains switch; several lights came on and the fridge shuddered into life. The shutters were motorised, and sunlight flooded the living room as Tom pressed the button.

  ‘It’s quite a place.’ Tom was impressed. ‘A lot bigger than the one I’m renting downstairs, the extra bedroom makes a difference.’

  ‘Decent furniture too. He didn’t cut too many corners when he was kitting it out.’ Henry rubbed his finger along the edge of a heavy oak sideboard; this stuff was all quality, the owner had spent a lot of money on the furnishings.

  Tom rapped his knuckle on the widescreen TV. ‘Plenty of fancy toys too, that plasma wasn’t cheap.’

  They ducked under the half-open shutter and walked out on the large balcony. ‘West facing, evening sun, just what I like.’ Tom was feeling at home in this place.

  ‘Do I get a feeling that you don’t want to look at to many others? Like what you see?’

  ‘I don’t want to look at anyplace else, this place is ideal for me, just a matter of doing the right deal.’

  ‘He’s asking one forty, but I know he’ll take one ten at a pinch. He’d want a reasonable price for the furniture though, he spent a lot on it, needs to get some of it back.’

  ‘You said he lives in South Africa; will he be coming back to close a deal?’

  ‘No, can’t come back for some reason, not sure of the story, he has a lawyer here with power of attorney, the lawyer can sign the deal. It’s a fairly new development as well, so the legals wouldn’t take any length of time.’

  ‘Can you get him on the phone? Offer him a hundred, close in seven days; cash up front, no messing with mortgages and all that.’

  ‘I can’t see him doing it.’ Henry shook his head but he scrolled through the address book in his phone and called the owner of the apartment.

  ‘Mister Haas, Henry here, I have a buyer with cash, interested in making an offer for your apartment. I’m afraid it’s lower that we expected, but we are finding it hard to get interest in this development at the moment. He’s only prepared to offer a hundred thousand, but he can close in a week, or less if necessary.’

  Henry put the mobile on speaker so that they could both hear the response. He motioned to Tom to keep quiet. The seller wasn’t happy. ‘I couldn’t possibly take a hundred thousand; I’m looking for one forty. Look, I know we discussed one ten at a pinch, try and get him up to that and we have a deal.’

  ‘Leave it with me, Mister Haas, I’ll call you back.’

  ‘What do you reckon Tom, one five maybe?’

  Tom nodded. ‘Call him back and hit him with that.’

  The seller answered immediately. Henry again motioned to Tom to keep quiet, and put the phone on speaker.

  ‘I’m sorry, Mister Haas, he has offered another five, but this buyer has viewed other properties today and he intends to buy today, he’s heading back to Ireland in a few hours and I’m afraid we’ll lose him. That’s as far as I can push him.’

  The seller sighed resignedly. ‘Ok, Henry, you’re the man on the ground, I need to let it off. Go for it, but nail him down, get a deposit and see if you can make some of it back on the furniture.’

  Henry turned off the phone. ‘Congratulations, Tommy lad, that’s a sweet deal. You could turn it tomorrow for another twenty five easily, we can’t get apartments in this building; people go mad for them.’

  ‘I think I owe you dinner, how about we go up to Benahavis later on and have a good nosh?’

  ‘Sounds good.’ Henry was smiling, happy at the outcome. ‘Harry Corbett is over for the weekend, I’m playing a few holes with him after lunch. Do you mind if I bring him along as well? He wanted to meet you anyway, so kill two birds…’

  ‘No problem, more the merrier. What did Harry want me for?’

  ‘No idea, time will tell. Maybe he wants to buy a timeshare.’

  ‘I don’t sell timeshares, just fractional ownerships.’

  They climbed the steep steps to the Barbacoa restaurant in Benahavis; the small mountain village above Marbella was a diner’s paradise, with restaurants everywhere you looked. Tom liked the Barbacoa; the owners and staff were friendly and the food was always good. The smiling waiter greeted him with a handshake and showed him to a table on the terrace. ‘Welcome, Senor Tom. Nice to see you.’

  ‘Good to be back, Paco. You know Henry, and this is Harry, from Ireland also.’

  The waiter took orders for the drinks and they browsed the menus.

  ‘I heard you bought a place, you did well.’

  Henry laughed. ‘He did very well, bought a bargain. How much are you going to give him for the contents, Tom? I reckon he paid at least forty thou for everything in the place.’

  Tom smiled and sat back. ‘I thought you said he lived in South Africa?’

  ‘Yes, Capetown.’

  ‘Then why would I give him anything, I’ll go for a quick close and wait until the last minute and tell him I don’t want the stuff.’

  ‘But it’s quality stuff, best of gear.’ Henry was puzzled at Tom’s attitude. ‘You should offer him ten thou maybe.’

  Tom swilled the wine around in his glass. ‘Why would I offer him anything? Is he going to come over from Capetown and move it? Maybe I’ll give him grand at the last minute, just to confirm that I’ll own the stuff.’

  Harry shook his head. ‘I wouldn’t like to cross you, Tom, have you no conscience?’

  ‘I’m a salesman Harry; I wouldn’t have any use for a conscience.’

  They ate in silence for a while. The steaks were large and juicy, and their table gave them a good view of the street below and the strolling tourists. A babble of voices drifted up from the promenading day-trippers; it was noticeable that many were English and indeed that quite a few Irish accents could be heard.

  Tom commented on the new phenomenon of Irish people making their way to these lesser known places, away from the package holidays and a week spent close to the beach.

  ‘That’s what I wanted to talk to you about, Tom.’ Harry wiped his mouth with is napkin and folded it carefully. ‘I have a plan, and I want you to be part of it.’

  ‘A plan? Me?’ Tom was caught off guard.

  ‘Listen to him.’ Henry interrupted. ‘Harry told me about it today on the golf course; I think its well worth looking at, right up your street.’

  Tom looked at Harry. ‘I’m all ears, curious as to what you’ve been planning for me.’

  They listened as Harry told them of his idea. He had just negotiated a sole international agency agreement for a huge development down the coast. There would be a thousand apartments, two hotels, a golf course and a range of commercial outlets including a supermarket and several restaurants. This would be huge; one of the biggest projects on the coast and the launch prices would be attractive.

  ‘I think that the time has come for Ir
ish buyers to get on the international property bandwagon in a big way. I can see signs of it in my business; we are getting enquiries all the time now about Spain, and we’re selling a steady number of apartments through Henry without even trying.’

  ‘But what has this to do with me?’

  ‘I hear it from Henry, and I can see it myself; you are one of the sharpest salesmen around, and you know this coast well by now. I want you to come back and work for me in Ireland; you’re the key to making this happen if we move it up the scales.’

  Tom was surprised at the proposal. ‘I’m doing grand here though, and I like the place well enough. Anyway, I can’t see myself taking a cut in earnings just to move back home.’

  ‘Who said anything about a cut? I reckon we can both make a fortune on this. I’m having one last big throw of the dice before I retire, I want to put four or five million in the bank in the next two years, and you can do pretty well out of it too. Probably a lot better than you’re doing now, and selling stuff that you can stand over.’

  ‘Nothing wrong with the stuff I’m selling now.’ Tom was indignant at the inference.

  Harry held up his hands. ‘Sorry if I offended you, but you know yourself that real property is a step above the myths that your friend Alan is peddling. Anyway, maybe the money will tempt you, I honestly believe that you can earn a lot more than you’re earning now.’

  Henry had been staying out if it, but he turned to Tom. ‘I looked at the figures on Harry’s projections, if he hits the kind of sales that he’s expecting you’ll both make a fortune.’

  Tom was all ears now. ‘How much are we talking about?’

  Harry leaned in over the table and spoke quietly. Work it out for yourself, a thousand apartments, we have first pick at them before anyone else, so in theory we could sell them all in a year, prices about a hundred and twenty upwards, and we have eight percent of that from the developers.’