THE MOMENT I walked into Sedotto, the bar my best friend Tucker owned, I was wishing I had opted to stay home. If it hadn’t been for my younger sister Morgan’s birthday celebration tonight, I would have done just that.
“Nash!”
I had barely walked into the door when I heard her call out my name. I smiled when I saw Morgan rushing over to me.
“I was worried you wouldn’t come.”
“And miss your birthday? What kind of a brother would that make me?”
Her smile had me returning the gesture. “Even if you had decided to stay home, I would still say you were the best brother ever. Did you work today?”
“I did, but I’m actually supposed to be on vacation, but Dad wasn’t having that.”
“You deserve it and just need to take one.”
She was right. I did deserve it. After busting my ass along with my crew, we finished Tucker and his wife Charlie’s house in four months—a feat that would normally take nine months to a year. The damn thing was more than nine thousand square feet. It was a miracle we got it done when we did. It was worth the hard work to see how happy they were. There wasn’t anything I wouldn’t do for Tucker though. Or Charlie. Any of my friends, for that matter. We all went to college at the University of Texas and had remained friends since. Over the years, it had been a roller coaster of emotions with this bunch. After years of denying their feelings for each other, Tucker and Charlie finally tied the knot last December. Terri and Jim, another couple from our group, had been dating for years and were finally getting married in December. Blake, the wild one among us, had moved to New York City but came back to Austin last year. Tucker’s sister and my ex—Lily—was also part of the group. Of course, when she admitted to cheating on me and getting pregnant by another guy, she quietly stopped hanging out with us.
“Dad’s pissed I gave up a job to build Tucker and Charlie’s house, so he’s had me busting my ass the last few months.”
Morgan rolled her eyes.
“So, who else is here?”
She glanced over her shoulder. “A few friends of mine from college and work. Oh, and Kaelynn.”
With a frown, I replied, “Kaelynn?”
“Yeah! She’s the girl I met last year on my mission trip. I’ve talked about her a lot. We really connected and have become good friends. She moved here to Austin to help me with my start-up.”
My eyes widened in surprise. “She moved here to help you?”
Laughing, Morgan wrapped her arm around mine and led me toward the private room that Tucker rented out to groups.
“Yes! It’s her job, Nash, and she loves Austin, so it was a no-brainer for her to move here. She’s from Utah, not Mars, for crying out loud.”
“Very funny, Morgan. So she’s a consultant of sorts?”
“Sort of. She helps with start-ups, setting up foundations, scholarships, things like that.”
“Morgan, can you afford to hire someone like that? It’s not a good idea to get in over your head before you even make the first dollar.”
Her smile faded some, and I felt like a jackass questioning her judgment. I didn’t want to see my sister get in over her head with this new venture she had going on.
“I appreciate you worrying, but she isn’t charging me. She owns her company and it’s a nonprofit organization. She mostly deals with people who are doing something associated with veterans. So when she heard what I was wanting to do, she offered to help. For free, as a friend.”
I frowned. “Wait, so she isn’t getting paid to be here? She’s helping you out of the kindness of her heart? That doesn’t sound suspicious at all.”
She sighed then looked away for a moment before steeling her eyes back on mine. “I’m not stupid, and I actually know what I’m doing. Like I said, I’m not paying her; she owns her own company. When we talked last year and I told her my plan, she was the one who really helped me get things going. She has already helped me so much, Nash. I couldn’t have gotten this far without her help and encouragement.”
My heart dropped knowing that I had made my sister think I doubted her business acumen. Pulling her into my arms, I hugged her and spoke against her ear over the loud music.
“I know you’ve got this, sis. I’m so proud of you for doing something you love and making it come to life. You’re going to do great.”
She drew back, tears in her eyes as she replied, “Thank you for your support. I know Mom and Pop want me to keep working for Barrett Construction, and Dad never really knew why I chose the career I did, but I can do this. I will make this a success and help people in return.”
“You will. I know it.”
Throwing herself back into my arms, she squealed. “Oh my gosh! I can’t believe I’m going to be helping people while doing something I love!”
With a smile, I hugged her tighter. My parents had given Morgan a hard time when she went to school to become an art therapist. She had finally earned her master’s degree after busting her ass working for my father and going to school full time, nearly year-round. I was proud as hell of her. My folks were as well; they just never got why Morgan picked the path she did. What they didn’t know was that Morgan had fallen in love in high school, and her first love, Mike, went off and joined the army. He was in special forces, and once he came home after
serving a few years, he had changed, Morgan said. He committed suicide at the end of Morgan’s freshman year of college. That was the catalyst for her to go into art therapy. It was also her way of dealing with her grief over his death. She was determined to help veterans like Mike.
“Morgan! We’re doing shots!” someone called out. My sister jumped back and grinned from ear to ear.