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Avery props her fists on her hips. “So what does that mean? Are you bowing out? Gonna give your two weeks’ notice?”
“You know what. Screw you, Avery. Just because you want to live and breathe Spark House doesn’t mean that Harley and I want to for the rest of our lives.”
“You’re unbelievable, you know that, London. You made a mistake and now you’re putting it all on me.”
“You’re not even listening to what I’m saying. I want to be part of Spark House, but I don’t want this to be the only thing I get to do. I can’t keep going like this. I’m feeling burned out as it is. The Teamology initiative is just getting started and look how much busier we are already. If we’re going to keep expanding, we have to bring people on board who can help us, otherwise I’m going to have a nervous breakdown. And then what are you going to do?”
“London’s not wrong, Avery. We don’t have any real time off. None of us have taken a vacation in two years, and you’re going to go on a honeymoon for a week, which you should, but that means it’s going to be us running the show.” Harley motions between herself and me. “We’re already spread too thin. I know you don’t like the idea of hiring people outside the family, but we have to find a compromise. I might not be in a relationship right now, but part of that is because I don’t even have time to pursue one. Or anything else, for that matter. As it is, London and I are tackling her Etsy projects together. I love both of you, but every other relationship in my life isn’t getting any airtime.” She sighs. “I want some balance too.”
Avery glances from Harley to me and back again. “You both feel this way?”
“We’ve been trying to tell you this for a long time, Ave. You didn’t want to hear it,” Harley says.
I take the seat across from my sister. “Look, it’s not that either of us wants out. We just need to find something that’s going to work for all of us. We’re growing, which is what you wanted, so we need the manpower to grow with us.”
“But Mom and Dad were always so proud of the fact that we’d be the third generation of Sparks to run this place.”
“I understand that’s the way you interpret it. But Spark House wasn’t doing a third of the business back then as it is now. If Mom and Dad were here, do you really think they’d be doing all this themselves?” I ask. She can’t keep fixating on how things were and expect that it can stay the same. “I think Mom and Dad would be proud of everything we’ve accomplished here and how far we’ve come. Especially the fact that we had to bring in new people because we’d done such a great job.”
“But Grandma Spark put me in charge of making sure we stayed a strong family unit.”
“That’s not going to change. It will still be the three of us running Spark House,” Harley says.
“And I don’t think Grandma Spark meant that we should bury ourselves in work to keep it just the three of us,” I add.
“No. We can’t bring in nonfamily members. Then it’s not Spark House anymore,” Avery snaps. “I’m voting no. It’s not unanimous, so it can’t happen.”
“The only thing that rule accomplishes is giving you the final say about everything,” I snap back. “Looking back at all the times we’ve had a vote, how often have Harley and I made a suggestion only for you to veto it?”
Before Avery has a chance to answer, I keep going. “The answer is almost always. It is always you against us, which indirectly means you have final say.” I didn’t realize how long I’ve been keeping my frustration inside.
“I understand you don’t want things to change, Avery, but we have to start planning long-term. We should have started as soon as Holt Media added us to their Teamology initiative. It’s been months now, and we’re growing faster than we know what to do with. Something has to give. If we don’t hire someone outside the family soon, this is going to cause a rift between us, and then it really won’t be Spark House,” Harley says in an effort to back me up.
Avery pushes out of her chair and storms out of the office.
I wilt in my chair. “That did not go over well.”
“No. But give her some time to cool off and think it through. She’s more upset because she knows we’re not wrong. She just doesn’t want to face it.”
28
TEND THE FIRE YOU BUILD
LONDON
Harley and I finish setting up for tomorrow’s event before Jackson picks me up. I’m the last one to leave Spark House, Harley already having gone home. We’re not going to solve any problems tonight. Emotions are running way too high and Avery is upset. I’m not angry at her, but I’m tired and frustrated, which isn’t how I want to be when I’m spending the night with Jackson. I think we all need to be alone right now, at least for the night.
