Page 16 of Christmas with Brother's Best Friends
Honestly, I’m just tired. I’m tired of defending myself and being compared to others because I chose the non-traditional path. Maybe I don’t have a Lexus or a huge apartment, but I built my business from the ground up. That’s worth something to me.
Why can’t it be enough for them?
As I head out after saying goodbye to everyone, I drive to my apartment, surrounded by silence but filled with deafeningly loud thoughts. When this contract is finished, I want to find my biggest, best contract yet, and I think I can do it in New York City.
But should I? Can I handle staying in the place where I feel the most pressure and uncertainty?
I’ve worked my ass off for everything I have. No safety net. No family name opening doors. Just talent, grit, and the refusal to quit.
Maybe they’ll never see it. But I do. And that has to be enough—at least for now.
Maybe I should look for a clean slate away from distractions and expectations, or maybe this is the struggle that I need to face that will either make me or break me.
Chapter eight
Chapter Eight: Max
We’ve officially hit crunch time. Everyone’s heads-down, hitting deadlines and pushing through fatigue. Even the holiday cheer outside the windows feels like it’s moving faster.
“Heading into a meeting!” Josh calls as he and Ryan disappear into the glass-walled conference room.
I barely glance up from the progress reports, eyes aching. I don’t even hear Emma walk over until her voice breaks the silence.
“Dashboard mock-up’s in your inbox. Want to go over it?”
I finally look at her—sweater, snowflake, sleepy eyes—and feel something in my chest shift.
“I’ll check it after I finish these reports.”
She touches my shoulder lightly. “Max, your posture is offensive. It’s lunch. Come outside with me.”
I hesitate. “I’ve got too much to do.”
“So do I. That’s why I need a break.” She smiles like she already knows I’ll give in.
I straighten up and turn to face her, my gaze narrowing a little. “I don’t want to be gone long.”
Emma smiles, her eyes lighting up with victory. “We won’t. Come on.”
I watch her grab her tablet off her desk and tuck it into her shoulder bag. She beats me to the elevator and hits the button for the lobby, seeming much looser and more awake now.
I guess we’re all threatening to run ourselves into the ground to get this project done on time.
Luckily, it’s not as windy today as it has been lately, but a few flurries still fall from the sky as we walk away from the office. I glance around, seeing people carrying shopping bags full of presents and wearing red and green attire. Part of me is a little bummed that I’m missing out on the holiday so much, but we can’t slow down.
“Where are we going?” I ask her as we round the corner.
“Just up here,” Emma says, not slowing her pace. She crosses the street and leads me around another corner, and the sight ahead answers my question.
An ice skating rink with the exterior donned in golden lights, red bows, and garland.
“I don’t think we have time to skate,” I tell her, raising my voice a little so that she can hear me over the Christmas music playing from a few speakers.
Emma shakes her head. “I just want to watch. And one of the best hot chocolates that I’ve ever had is sold here.”
We walk next to the ice skating rink as people twirl in the middle and coast along the edge, laughter and gasps ringing across the ice. Some people look like they’re professionals, while others hang onto the rail for dear life.
I can’t exactly judge them because that would most likely be me.
