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“The guy I was dating said I was a buzzkill and no fun, and he didn’t need that in his life.”
“He just told you that after you’ve had one of the roughest weeks ever?”
“Yes. So I’ve been a bit out of sorts. Tess has dealt with a bunch of paperwork all by herself, and now she’s exhausted.” Her voice wobbled on every third word. I prided myself on being a relaxed, take-life-as-it-comes guy. I’d been that way for as long as I could remember, and my strategy had helped me deal even under stress. That strategy didn’t work when shit hit the fan in the family. I went from being calm to wanting to punch the window in front of me.
“Where do you want to meet?” I asked.
“The viewing deck on the Empire State?”
My sister loved viewing decks. She always had.
“Sure. I’ll be there in half an hour.”
“Ryker, you don’t have to do this,” she said, almost as an afterthought. “I’m a big girl.”
“Still my sister. Come on, don’t argue with me. Just meet me there.”
She chuckled. “Yes, sir.”
After hanging up, I ordered an Uber. On the way to the building, I tried to calm down. The problem with being in a rage was that I couldn’t think clearly. It was the reason why I’d lasted so long on Wall Street, why I was so good at what I was doing. I compartmentalized anger and fear easily to focus on finding solutions. But I couldn’t compartmentalize jack shit when it came to family... or Heather. I was still processing my conversation with Owen, trying to foresee the ramifications of his decision and any preemptive measures I could take, anything to protect Heather. I was far too upset to come up with anything.
After buying my ticket, I went to the deck. Skye had texted me that she was already there, and I spotted her immediately. Years ago, it used to be very crowded, but now there were so many viewing decks in New York that you actually had some space to move around here, admire the view. It was still a major tourist attraction, but it wasn’t too full currently.
“Remember the first time we came here?” Skye asked.
I chuckled. “Yeah. Gave Mom a scare and we were grounded for a month.”
“It was worth it though.”
“Every minute of it.”
We’d just moved to New York, and we were dying to explore the city. Skye had pleaded with all of us to come here.
So one evening, when Mom was supposed to be working late, we’d all snuck out here. Once we found a corner to ourselves, we celebrated by drinking soda from the cans we’d brought.
We made a pact. It was a silly, childish adventure, but the memory was branded in my mind. We’d promised to always stick together, have each other’s backs. I remembered feeling all powerful and protective... right until the police showed up. Someone had reported four minors to the authorities. They escorted us back home. Mom was in tears when we arrived. She’d left work earlier than anticipated and had panicked when she’d found the house empty.
We made another pact the very next day: not to give Mom more headaches. She’d had enough on her plate already.
Glancing at Skye, I was trying to decide the best course of action. My goal was simple: get her to let me help. Amazing how I could decide over million-dollar portfolios in a matter of minutes by only factoring in several key performance indicators, but despite knowing Skye my entire life, I still couldn’t tell what strategy would work best. Women were complicated.
“You do remember the pact, right?” I asked.
“The one where we promised not to give Mom any more headaches?”
“No, the one before.”
She elbowed me, grinning. “Of course I do. Our family lives by rules, pacts, and policies.”
I’d found my angle.
“You and Tess always hold the no-secrets policy over my head. I’m going to pull the brother card here. We made a pact. Always look out for each other. I want to cash in on it.”
She smiled, touching my cheek. “You do that constantly. Remember all those shelves you put up?”
“I’m serious, Skye. Investors are my job—”
She dropped her chin to her chest. “Jeez, you’re stubborn. We told you that we don’t want you to risk your reputation with us.”
