that?”
“Because you were the one who pushed her into it. You owe it to her not to let her fail.”
“What makes you think she’ll fail?”
“The fact that she equates asking for help with weakness. We both know that running a business is a steep learning curve. The more you ask, the faster you learn. My sister has turned independence into an art form. She is never going to ask. So you have to offer.”
No way.
Jake tapped the desk with his fingers. Nudging her in the right direction was one thing; getting personally involved was another. “She won’t want my help. You heard her last night.”
And he knew it wasn’t simply a need to be independent that would prevent Paige from asking him for help.
Neither of them mentioned it but the past simmered in the background, coloring every interaction.
She guarded herself around him and that suited him just fine.
“I don’t know anything about running a concierge service or events management.”
“You should. You attend enough events.”
“To network, get drunk or get laid. Sometimes all three. I don’t plan them.” It was like standing on the edge of quicksand knowing that if you stepped in the wrong place you were going to be sucked in too deep to escape. “You have as much business experience as I do. You help her.”
“She thinks I’m overprotective, and she’s right. I try not to be, but I get it wrong. Every damn time. Remember when she was learning to drive?” He saw Jake wince and nodded. “Yeah, that time. I’m too worried about her to be objective.” Matt stood up and walked to the window. “Great view,” he said absently.
“I’m usually too busy to look at it.”
His friend didn’t take the hint. “To me she’s still that little girl with a heart problem. I can still see her in the hospital, blue lips, struggling to breathe.”
“If you’re going for emotional blackmail, don’t. It’s not going to work.”
Except the words conjured up images Jake had worked hard to forget, along with a ton of other stuff he never wanted to look at again.
“It’s not emotional blackmail—it’s the truth. I want to cover her in bubble wrap and fix everything. I always have. Right from day one.”
“That’s because your parents gave you the responsibility.” Jake stood up and joined his friend by the window. “They trusted you to keep an eye out for her. That’s a hell of a burden.”
And he’d always thought it was a tough deal for his friend.
Matt frowned. “It isn’t a burden.”
“Maybe it’s time to let Paige live her life and make her own mistakes. Instead of trying to catch her before she falls, you could wait until she does and then pick her up.”
“I don’t want her to be hurt. I don’t want her to fail at this.”
“You’re too afraid of failure. I guess that comes from having overachieving parents. Failure is part of life, Matt. Success teaches you nothing, but failure teaches you resilience. It teaches you to pick yourself up and try again.”
Matt dragged his hand through his hair. “You used to be as protective as I was. Hell, you once spent an entire night sitting by Paige’s hospital bed when I couldn’t make it. Or maybe you don’t remember.”
He remembered every moment. “I realized that protecting her doesn’t do her any favors. She doesn’t want to be protected.”
But he did protect her, didn’t he?
He protected her from himself.
He knew he was capable of hurting her. He’d done it before.
Neither of them mentioned it, but he was well aware of the pain his rejection had caused. He knew it had changed her. Gone was the openness he’d found so refreshing. With him she was always slightly guarded and he made it easy for her to be that way by ensuring their relationship always skirted on the edge of antagonistic.
Matt turned away from the window. “Maybe she doesn’t want to be protected, but I want you to help her. I’m asking you as a friend.”
And their friendship was the
“Because you were the one who pushed her into it. You owe it to her not to let her fail.”
“What makes you think she’ll fail?”
“The fact that she equates asking for help with weakness. We both know that running a business is a steep learning curve. The more you ask, the faster you learn. My sister has turned independence into an art form. She is never going to ask. So you have to offer.”
No way.
Jake tapped the desk with his fingers. Nudging her in the right direction was one thing; getting personally involved was another. “She won’t want my help. You heard her last night.”
And he knew it wasn’t simply a need to be independent that would prevent Paige from asking him for help.
Neither of them mentioned it but the past simmered in the background, coloring every interaction.
She guarded herself around him and that suited him just fine.
“I don’t know anything about running a concierge service or events management.”
“You should. You attend enough events.”
“To network, get drunk or get laid. Sometimes all three. I don’t plan them.” It was like standing on the edge of quicksand knowing that if you stepped in the wrong place you were going to be sucked in too deep to escape. “You have as much business experience as I do. You help her.”
“She thinks I’m overprotective, and she’s right. I try not to be, but I get it wrong. Every damn time. Remember when she was learning to drive?” He saw Jake wince and nodded. “Yeah, that time. I’m too worried about her to be objective.” Matt stood up and walked to the window. “Great view,” he said absently.
“I’m usually too busy to look at it.”
His friend didn’t take the hint. “To me she’s still that little girl with a heart problem. I can still see her in the hospital, blue lips, struggling to breathe.”
“If you’re going for emotional blackmail, don’t. It’s not going to work.”
Except the words conjured up images Jake had worked hard to forget, along with a ton of other stuff he never wanted to look at again.
“It’s not emotional blackmail—it’s the truth. I want to cover her in bubble wrap and fix everything. I always have. Right from day one.”
“That’s because your parents gave you the responsibility.” Jake stood up and joined his friend by the window. “They trusted you to keep an eye out for her. That’s a hell of a burden.”
And he’d always thought it was a tough deal for his friend.
Matt frowned. “It isn’t a burden.”
“Maybe it’s time to let Paige live her life and make her own mistakes. Instead of trying to catch her before she falls, you could wait until she does and then pick her up.”
“I don’t want her to be hurt. I don’t want her to fail at this.”
“You’re too afraid of failure. I guess that comes from having overachieving parents. Failure is part of life, Matt. Success teaches you nothing, but failure teaches you resilience. It teaches you to pick yourself up and try again.”
Matt dragged his hand through his hair. “You used to be as protective as I was. Hell, you once spent an entire night sitting by Paige’s hospital bed when I couldn’t make it. Or maybe you don’t remember.”
He remembered every moment. “I realized that protecting her doesn’t do her any favors. She doesn’t want to be protected.”
But he did protect her, didn’t he?
He protected her from himself.
He knew he was capable of hurting her. He’d done it before.
Neither of them mentioned it, but he was well aware of the pain his rejection had caused. He knew it had changed her. Gone was the openness he’d found so refreshing. With him she was always slightly guarded and he made it easy for her to be that way by ensuring their relationship always skirted on the edge of antagonistic.
Matt turned away from the window. “Maybe she doesn’t want to be protected, but I want you to help her. I’m asking you as a friend.”
And their friendship was the
Similar Books
