Chapter 2

The festival prep was chaos, and I managed to find another, less ideal, chili supplier at the last minute.

My signature dish wouldn't be perfect, but it would do.

Later that evening, my phone rang again, Kevin this time.

His voice was tight with anger, Brittany no doubt whispering in his ear.

"You really pissed Brittany off, Sarah."

"I asked you to pick up some chilies, Kevin. She's the one who blew up."

"She's sensitive! You need to apologize to her."

I laughed, a short, bitter sound. "Apologize for what? For working?"

"Yeah, you do. And you need to make it up to her. She was really hurt by your attitude."

"Make it up to her how?" I asked, already knowing this was going to be ridiculous.

"You're going to buy her that designer handbag she wants, the red one from that boutique downtown."

I almost dropped the phone. That bag was over a thousand dollars.

"Are you insane, Kevin? I'm not buying her a handbag because she threw a tantrum over a text message."

"It's a peace offering! And," he continued, his voice rising, "you need to post an apology on your food truck's Instagram page, tell everyone how great Brittany is and how excited you are for our wedding."

This was beyond belief.

"Publicly acknowledge Brittany? The woman who just called me a lonely workaholic and a bougie bitch? No."

"You have to, Sarah! Or she might call off the wedding!"

"That sounds like a 'you' problem, Kevin, not a 'me' problem."

"You don't understand! Mom's counting on this!"

"I understand perfectly," I said, my voice hardening. "I understand that I'm already covering the five-thousand-dollar deposit for your wedding venue, a deposit, I might add, that you two haven't contributed a single cent towards."

Silence on his end for a moment.

Then, "That's different! That's for the family!"

"And this handbag and public humiliation, what's that for, Kevin? My amusement?"

"You're being selfish! You always have to make everything about you and your stupid truck!"

"My stupid truck pays your bills, little brother. Don't forget that."

"You'll regret this, Sarah," he snarled.

"Is that a threat?"

He hung up.

I stared at my phone, a cold knot forming in my stomach.

He wouldn't. He couldn't be that stupid.

But then again, with Brittany winding him up, Kevin was capable of anything.

I had built "Sarah's Sizzle Stop" from nothing, pouring my blood, sweat, and every last dime into it after Dad's death. It was more than a business, it was my lifeline, and it supported us all.

The thought of him harming it made me physically sick.