The Wright Mistake(27)

“Well, thanks.”

“Anytime. Now…if you could put in a word with Patrick for me,” she said with hopeful wide eyes, “that would be really great.”

I knew there was no chance in hell that was going to happen, but I nodded anyway. If what she had said was true, she had rescued me from a much worse situation. I was just fortunate that Maggie Hooper was not in town. She was probably the last person I wanted to deal with at the moment.

I called an Uber to take me back to my house and promptly flopped back down in my own bed. But, no matter that I needed so much more sleep, my mind wouldn’t shut off. I’d gotten so wasted that I told complete strangers about my problems. All because Julia had struck a nerve. Jensen and the rest of my family and the company had all tried to tell me something, and I’d refused to listen.

I didn’t want to fucking listen. But, if I had, then I might not have ended up at Mindi’s apartment. I wouldn’t be hungover and regretting my actions from last night. Would I have yelled at Julia like that if I’d been sober? Would I have pushed Jensen’s buttons if I’d been sober?

For the first time in a decade, I wasn’t sure what the hell I was doing with my life. Everything felt muddled. Usually, when I got frustrated, I would have a drink, and suddenly, it would be better. Today felt different.

I shook my head to clear the cobwebs. Maybe I’d know what the hell was wrong with me when the hangover cleared.



Nothing really helped.

I’d felt off all weekend.

By the time work rolled around on Monday morning, I knew I needed to do something. I stared down the bottle of whiskey after I changed into a suit for work. My mouth went dry. I reached for it and then set it back down. Then, I reached for it again. I pulled the top off, pouring myself a shot into a whiskey glass. Then, I walked out the door without it.

When I made it into work, I skipped my office entirely and went straight up to the top office floor. I knew Jensen would already be in. He was a bit of a vampire. Insomnia had always been his curse. And I wasn’t disappointed when I stepped into his office. It was strange to think that, one day soon, this would be Morgan’s office, and someone else would occupy the room down the hall.

Someone who was not me.

Jensen glanced up from his computer at my approach. “Austin. To what do I owe the pleasure?”

My brother looked tired. It couldn’t be easy, stepping away. He wasn’t the type to lay this all on Morgan and walk. He was a fixer by nature. I was sure he had been working day and night to make everything would run smoothly in his absence.

“I came to talk about the CFO position.” I shut the door behind me and eased into a seat in front of Jensen’s desk.

Jensen pinched the bridge of his nose. “You want the job.”

“Well, of course I do,” I said.

“Look,” he said, finally glancing back up at me again, “I want to apologize for the conversation that we had over Memorial Day weekend. I was so excited for Morgan and disappointed about what had happened with the board in regard to you. I shouldn’t have said the things I did. You know I hate when we fight.”

I nodded. “Yeah, well, maybe I needed to hear it.”

Jensen’s eyebrows shot up his forehead. “Come again?”

“I don’t know, man. I just think things aren’t going how I expected them. And I didn’t have a drink this morning.”

“When was the last time that happened?”

I shrugged. “No idea.”

“All right. So, where do we go from here? How can I help you?”

“I don’t want this to be a big thing,” I said, immediately deflecting.

“Does this have something to do with Julia?”

I narrowed my eyes. “Why would you think that?”

“I live with Emery,” he reminded me.

“She say something?”

“She might have mentioned that y’all ran into each other at the First Friday Art Trail.”

“Yeah, well, Julia wants nothing to do with me. It’s probably better that way anyway.”

“Who are you trying to convince?”

I flipped Jensen off, and he laughed.

“I’m here for you, no matter why the sudden change of heart. You know that we all worry about you. The last thing we want is for you to spiral and end up like Dad. I’d hate to see this damage your health and ruin any chance at a normal relationship with a girl like Julia.”

“You really think I’m far enough gone that I could be like Dad?” I asked, shuddering at the thought.

“If you’re talking to me about it right now, then no. And I’d like it to stay that way.”

“All right.”