“Have you talked to Neil at all since the breakup? … Other than last night’s disaster, I mean.”
She sighed and stood to put her plate of barely touched eggs in the sink. “Hardly. I tried calling him a couple of times when we first got back from the reality show. But I don’t even know what to say to him. He wants to get married and I’m just not ready for that yet.”
She shrugged and finished her coffee. With a sigh, I swallowed my words. My sister was a strong, sometimes obstinate woman. I had no doubt that she attempted to talk to Neil… but I also would bet a thousand dollars that her pride prevented her from laying out her feelings for him explicitly.
But I let the subject drop. I was pretty sure Elaina wouldn’t listen to me anyway. When it came to serious things, she rarely did. Hell, she rarely listened to me when I told her to wear her hair down instead of up. “So, you’re getting a house, huh?”
She smiled into her cup of coffee and nodded. “I’m really excited about it. I think I’ll have enough money left over for a down payment after I donate the amount needed for the healthcare outreach center.”
For months, Elaina has been trying to get this health center off the ground—which would change the lives of the people here in the Lakes Region in so many ways. But in order to get the project off the ground, the town needed a larger budget than they had the funds for… so, Elaina being Elaina, decided to make it happen by entering and winning that reality show contest with Neil so she could donate her half of the winnings.
“I’ll miss living with you,” I said, honestly. It was fun having my sister as a roommate again. “But I’m really excited for you.”
“And I’m really excited for you today, too. Even if I don’t always show it.” Elaina smiled, ever the more reserved sister between the two of us.
“Awwww,” I cooed and crossed over to her, my arms outstretched. “Prepare yourself for a sister hug!” She rolled her eyes but caught me as I launched myself into her arms.
“Is this a good time to ask you to give me a ride to Beefcakes on your way to work?” I hugged her tighter, not letting her out of the embrace until she answered my question.
I felt the movement of her whole head as she rolled her eyes and nodded. “As long as I don’t have to go in.”
I pulled back from the hug, holding her at arm’s length. “You barely need to stop the car. Just slow down enough for me to do a badass commando roll. I’ll even let you give me a little push.”
Elaina snorted a laugh. “Well, now you’ve got a deal.”
We arrived at Beefcakes thirty minutes later, and there, parked out front, was our glorious food truck. I took a deep breath as Elaina slowed the car, and my heart thrummed heavily against my ribcage. What in the actual fuck did I think I was doing here? Instead of a salaried job with benefits and a 401k, I thought this would be my path?
Shit.
“Hey,” Elaina said softly, reading my mind. “It’s going to be great.”
I nodded, even though I didn’t quite believe her.
Just then, Finn shoved through the front door of Beefcakes, holding a tray of goodies with Liam following behind him, heading to the truck. “What do you mean we can’t afford to pay off Mom’s surgery in full? Didn’t Neil just win half a million dollars?”
“Finn, it’s complicated. The debt on the bakery was compounded by interest, and shockingly, five hundred thousand dollars doesn’t go that far after taxes.
“So… what? Mom doesn’t get the surgery she needs?”
“Of course she will. It’ll just take us a little longer to pay off the second mortgage. It’ll be okay. We’re still in a much better place than we were…”
Their words faded as they climbed into the truck and went out of earshot for us. I glanced over to find Elaina biting her bottom lip and I cringed. “I don’t think we were meant to hear that.”
“Clearly,” Elaina said with a sigh. “They’re right, though. The prize money is awesome and we’re both in a better position than we were, but it only goes so far. Especially knowing how in debt Neil’s mom was before her cancer treatments began.”
“Now I feel even more pressure. Like this food truck has to be successful for the entire Evans family’s sake.”
“Hey,” Elaina said, turning in the driver’s seat to look at me. “Relax. It’s going to be great. But also, be realistic. It can sometimes take a business a while to find its groove and turn a substantial profit. And don’t blame yourself. Liam knew the risks here and chose to do this just like you did. And you told me the work you’re doing to promote Beefcakes on social media is already improving their sales numbers, right? That will help their situation.”
I thanked my sister and got out of the car, my heart feeling a whole lot heavier than it did earlier. Because what Elaina just said… it wasn’t exactly true. Just like always, I barreled through and practically forced Liam’s hand into this. I bought a truck way sooner than he expected. I scheduled this soft open faster than he’d wanted. And maybe this was why. Maybe he was hoping to go slower because of everything with his mom—and I just freaking steamrolled right over him. Like I did with everybody. I gulped, my stomach feeling heavy with emotion. It was what Dan always said about me. I charged in with little consideration for anyone else and I dragged others down with me. Tasmanian Chloe.
Tears pricked my eyes as I stared up at the food truck. Not this time. We were going to succeed
