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“It just seems like you’re doing really well,” Debbie went on, “and I think I would learn so much more if I was part of an even smaller brokerage and working directly with someone who seems to really know what she was doing.”

“Thanks!” Rachel said. For some reason, the compliment meant more to her coming from an older woman.

“Seriously, though,” Debbie said. “Think about it. I’d definitely consider being your first associate if you do it.”

Rachel thanked her again and promised Debbie she’d let her know if she decided to go that route. Debbie then went into an empty stall while Rachel exited the restroom. Checking her watch, she knew she’d have just enough time to make it from this part of Carlsbad over to where La Vida Mocha was.

As she drove, she replayed her conversation with Debbie.

My own brokerage…

Originally, back when she was a brand-new agent like Debbie, Rachel had hoped to be able to be an independent agent by the time she was thirty-two. But with her success over the past year, could she possibly move that timeline up?

Not only did she have the proper licenses, but she had a really robust list of leads and clients now and it seemed like every time she sold a house, she was recommended to potential new clients. What’s more, because of her popularity with doctors, most of her clients nowadays were high earners, able to buy expensive properties. And, Rachel was learning, doctors tend to have high-earning friends even outside of the medical field. The house she sold in Del Mar yesterday for $2.2 million, for instance, was to a woman who was a lawyer for the San Diego Padres but who had been referred to Rachel by one of her doctor clients.

The point was, not only was Rachel quite busy but her income had soared over the past year, which also allowed her to grow her personal savings.

The more she thought about it as she drove to La Vida Mocha, the more she was certain that she could go it alone now.

She wouldn’t rush into anything, though. She’d do some research first in order to discover exactly how to go about doing this but she considered that it wasn’t beyond the pale to imagine having her own brokerage by the year’s end, at the latest.

***

Her phone chirped with a text message from Ainsley just as she was about to walk into La Vida Mocha.

At the title company. Guy just brought in a mountain of papers! I’m feeling like I’m about to sign my life away!

Rachel chuckled. Buying a house did feel that way, considering the number of documents one needed to sign. She remembered the experience of buying her current home and being intimidated at the sheer volume of paperwork.

LOL! she tapped out in response. Watch out for the one about selling your soul to the devil! They sometimes slip that in there.

Thanks for the warning! Will you be completely free by the time I’m done?

Probably not. But I’m just at LVM with Amy. Why don’t you plan on meeting us here?

Podcast Amy? I want to meet her! But first…LVM?

Rachel smiled.

LOL! LVM=La Vida Mocha. You need to start learning the local lingo if you’re moving here! EVERY lesbian in C-bad knows what LVM stands for!

“Who were you texting so intently?” Amy asked after they embraced. “I was watching you through the window.”

Rachel blushed.

“That’s what I want to talk to you about,” she said. “But first, coffee!”

“My turn to buy,” Amy reminded her.

“Hey, you two! I haven’t seen you two together in here for a while.”

The greeting came from Vanessa, the owner of La Vida Mocha. After the events of the past few days, Rachel was suddenly assessing the woman in a whole new light. Like Ainsley, Vanessa was almost supernaturally beautiful but with jet black hair instead of blonde. Also, like Ainsley, Vanessa’s body was almost too good to believe. She wasn’t as tall as Ainsley but she was incredibly fit, and the curves she possessed…

Rachel had to shake her head a bit to pull her mind out of the rabbit hole of daydreams she was starting to fall into. It was unbelievable, really. She had been to this coffeeshop countless times; encountered Vanessa countless times, yet never spared the woman a second thought—well, except beyond wishing she had Vanessa’s cheekbones. And, for that matter, Vanessa’s long and tapered fingers. Not to mention Vanessa’s incredible eyelashes. And, if she was being totally honest with herself, she had, on occasion, been envious of Vanessa’s at-least-one-cup-size larger breasts.

But other than that, Rachel hadn’t spared the woman a thought.

Yet now, Rachel was considering that if Vanessa offered her more than coffee…