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CHAPTER TEN
Kara
"Hey Mom," I answer my cell, holding it between my shoulder and cheek. She always calls at the worst times. Like right now? I have a sink full of dishes to wash, and I am up to my elbows in it.
"Hi Kara."
Her voice is low and I'm having a hard time hearing her. It won't help for me to ask her to speak up, she fully believes women should be seen and not heard. "What's going on?"
"Your dad and I watched your show last night."
I roll my eyes. I took the food truck downtown for a few hours and live streamed. "It's not a show," I remind her. "It's just what's happening at the moment."
"You should really be more careful. Some of those people looked drunk."
That's because they were, but she doesn't need to know that. "I mean it was a Saturday night in the entertainment district. People were having a good time. There's plenty of people around, and I'm perfectly safe. Look Mom, I have a lot going on," I sigh, trying not to get my clothes wet. "Do you need something, or did you want to talk?"
"Your dad is going to be away on a business trip for a couple of weeks."
I know what's coming. "Mom, I can't come stay with you. I have a lot going on right now, and I can't take the time off work."
"You work for yourself, Kara. You can take whatever time you want off," she argues.
My stomach clenches as I think about the disagreement we're about to have. "That's not how this works, Mom, and you know it. I still have to work, even if I do so for myself. I have bills to pay, and this job is like anything else. The more I do it, the louder the buzz is, and the more buzz I have, people are willing to give me a shot. You're going to be fine on your own, and if there's an emergency, I'm only a phone call away."
"It's three hours, Kara. It's a long way."
I close my eyes and count to ten. "Keely is fifteen minutes down the road," I mention my older sister. "She'll be there in case you need her."
"She has a family. If she's doing something with the kids, I don't want to interrupt her."
My stomach aches again, because she doesn't take what I do seriously. I'm self-employed and to her that means I can do whatever she needs me to do, when it suits her. "Mom, I love you, and you know if you absolutely need me, I'll be there for you. However, I'm busy, and missing the time away isn't something I'd prefer to do without it being necessary." I choose my words carefully, completely aware it's word salad. It's what I have to do with her, otherwise she accuses me of not wanting to deal with her.
She sighs heavily. "I guess I don't need you to come stay here with me, but if something happens, it'll be on your conscience."
"Understood. I love you. I have to go, but I'll talk to you later."
She hangs up before saying it back, something I've come to expect. Since I started standing up for myself with her, she's had less patience with me.
There's a knock at the back of the truck. "It's me, you busy?"
"Please come in," I yell toward where Alexis will enter. When she does, I want to run over and wrap my arms around her. Because she's here, I won't spiral into thoughts caused by my interaction with my mom. "I'm so glad to see you."
She eyes me critically. "There's only one person who puts that look on your face. What did you and your mom talk about?"
I tilt my head back, before looking up at the ceiling and groaning. "Dad is going on a business trip and she wants me to come stay with her. I told her I can't."
Alexis' gaze softens. "You know you can. You have two trucks now and fifteen employees. You can take the time off, if you want to."
Therein lies my problem. I don't really want to. I've never felt fully seen or respected by my family when it comes to my job with the food truck. They don't know I now have two, because they've never asked. They don't know that I have employees. Again, because they've never asked. "I know, but I don't want to. They always minimize what I've accomplished."
"Because you probably still haven't shared all of it with them. Look, Kara, I love you, but you have to be willing to meet them halfway. Which means tooting your own horn so they know to toot it, too." She crosses her arms, before leveling me with a stern look.
"Why are you doing this?" I sink my hands back into the soapy water.
"Because you have options, you're just being stubborn. Let one of your afternoon employees do this and come with me."
I'm intrigued. "Where are you going?"
