A Rich Couple Refused to Pay My Grandpa $6,200 for Their Renovation — He Looked Around, Smiled, and Said, "Okay" / Chapter 2 / 10

Chapter 2 - What Grant SaidThe next afternoon, Grandpa called me.

"You're not going to believe what these people just tried."

I was at work. "What happened?"

"They don't want to pay me."

I assumed they were disputing one of the change orders. "How much?"

"Six thousand two hundred."

I nearly dropped my phone. "What?"

The homeowners had walked through the finished room again. Complimented everything. Taken more pictures. Then Barrett pulled Grandpa aside. He told him they'd "gone over their renovation budget" and wouldn't be paying the remaining $6,200.

Grandpa thought he was joking. He wasn't.

"Did you show him the contract?" I asked.

"Of course."

"And?"

"He shrugged."

Grandpa sounded completely calm. That worried me more than shouting would have.

"What exactly did he say?"

Grandpa paused, then repeated it. "You're one old carpenter working by yourself. What are you really going to do about it?"

I felt my face heat up. "He actually said that?"

"Pretty close."

"Pretty close?"

"He said 'older carpenter.' I'm improving the quote for dramatic effect."

"Grandpa."

"I'm kidding. He said old."

I could picture Barrett standing there. Expensive house. Expensive watch. Convinced the man in front of him was too small to fight back.

Then Grandpa told me what Priscilla had said. She'd been nearby sipping coffee while they talked. When Grandpa reminded Barrett that the work was already installed and accepted, she smiled.

"Everything's already installed. It's not like you can take it back."

That was apparently the sentence that changed Grandpa's expression. My grandpa is normally the least confrontational person you'll ever meet. He once apologized to a waitress because she brought him the wrong breakfast. But this time, he didn't argue. He stood there for a moment, looked at the cabinets, then the shelves, then the window bench.