Page 84 of Raging Fires

“You own this house, don’t you? Couldn’t you take out a mortgage on it and use the money?”

“I already did that.” Michael gave him a grim smile. “It was part of our capital that we started with. The house is worth more than the loan, but they won’t let me take out a second mortgage on the rest of it because the loan amount is too small! I don’t understand it, but somehow they wouldn’t be making enough money. I tried to get a business loan from the bank to keep it afloat, but they won’t do it.”

“Mike, if you need the money, I can—”

“No!” Michael straightened, glaring at Jake. “I’m not taking money from you. I didn’t tell you this so you’d feel sorry for me and bail me out. I just… it seemed like you were somebody I could talk to.”

“I am. I understand doing stupid stuff. I know exactly what you’re talking about. I wasted lots of money, and I didn’t pay attention to all the things my business guy was doing. I hate that stuff, and I trusted him. Which was completely dumb and naïve. And then I felt like an idiot for trusting him.”

“You lost all your money?” Michael gaped.

“No. Just part of it. Probably half. I still have enough that I can invest money in things. You know, like capital for start-up businesses.”

Michael sighed. “Jake, I’m not taking your money. I’m not refusing because you hurt my feelings six years ago. It wouldn’t be the same if you’re paying me. You were my friend, and I—our friendship was important to me. I don’t want to spoil that.”

“It was important to me, too, Mike. It wouldn’t change things if I loaned you the money; it’d just be a business transaction.”

“I can’t.” Michael shook his head.

Jake made a disgusted noise. “Most people would love to have someone offer them money. You and Kelli act like it’s a sin or something.”

“And that’s why you can trust Kelli and me more than the others.”

“I still think it’s just too much pride.” Jake crossed his arms and thought. “Okay. Okay. How about this? You’ve talked to this guy at the bank about a loan, right?”

“Yeah.”

“He turned you down because of no collateral.” Michael nodded. “Well, what about if I co-signed it? Guaranteed it. You know, like my dad had to do with me when I got my first car. Remember?”

“I remember the car. It was sweet.”

“Dad didn’t have to shell out any cash. And I was the one who had to be responsible and pay it. He was just back-up, so they wouldn’t get all nervous.”

“Yeah, but if you did that, you’d be on the hook if I didn’t pay it.”

“Mike.” Jake fixed him with a stern look. “Are you telling me you’re going to default on the loan? That you don’t really believe your business is going to succeed?”

“No! Of course not. I’ll pay it. And I’m not going to fail. Even if I did, I’d pay off the loan. I could still sell the house.”

“There you go, then. I’ll guarantee it. You’ll get the money. I know you’ll pay the bank. And we’ll both feel good about it.” Jake could see the hope springing into Michael’s eyes, warring for a moment with his pride and his outsized reluctance to borrow money from a friend. He was wavering. Jake gave him a nudge over the edge. “Look. I’m doing you a favor. Friends do favors for each other all the time. If I needed to jump start my car, you’d help me do it, right?”

“Yeah, except my car’s electric, so I couldn’t—”

“This is hypothetical, man. I’m just saying, doing a favor is an entirely different thing from borrowing money. Favors are what friends do.”

“Yeah. I guess.” Michael relaxed, smiling, relief all over him. “I’ll call the guy at the bank.” He dug out his phone and dialed.

Wow, he had the banker’s number in his contacts. He must have been calling the guy a lot. Maybe the man would go along with this idea just to get Mike off his case. Michael waited for a while, then talked for a while. Mike quit talking and turned to Jake, holding his phone against his chest to mute it. “Could you do it now? He said his afternoon’s booked up, but he’s free in fifteen minutes.”

“Yeah, sure.” Michael looked too happy for Jake to turn him down. Then he remembered Kelli’s mom, and he checked the time. Okay. He had two hours before he’d said he’d be home. That was plenty of time. Pop in, talk, sign, and he’d be gone. No problem. “Let’s do it.”

They took two cars so Jake could leave straight from the bank. Inside there was the usual kind of wait: see the receptionist, take a seat, Mr. Ferguson would be with them shortly.

So they sat. Jake hated waiting. He reached for his phone to check the time. Crap, he’d left it in the car. He started to go out and get it, but he’d just have to turn off the sound in here anyway—the place was as hushed as a library. He crossed his arms and stretched out his legs, leaning back and closing his eyes.

He must have drifted off a little because Michael’s voice brought him awake. “He’s ready.”

Jake sat up straight and tried to look responsible. Probably wearing his work-out clothes wasn’t the best look for that. The man walking toward them gave them a tight smile, like he wished he was anywhere but here, and led them back to his office.