Page 53 of Light My Fire

Brooke is quiet for a moment, watching me pet Nugget. She scoots a little closer.

“Wow. I love that you’re doing that.”

“I have the resources. It’s something I want to do.” I shrug. “It feels good.”

“Going from zero to six is a lot.”

I nod. It is. And I really do have to think about buying a house and stuff. Soon. I’ve been scrolling the internet for listings, actually, already tonight. But if I take them back to Chicago in just a few days, I’ll need to be creative. “Yeah, but…”

I’m looking at the dogs and am surprised when Brooke reaches out and puts a hand on my leg. “What?”

Looking into her eyes, I say, “I think it’s time I do something serious.”

I don’t know if it’s the dark, the late hour, the puppies, or justher—or maybe a combination—but that came out very easily. And I realize it’s true.

She leaves her hand on my leg. “Serious? What does that mean to you?”

“I’ve been kind of just goofing around for the last few years. But I think it’s time I… change some things.”

She moves closer. “Like what?”

I cover her hand with mine and love that she turns her hand so we’re palm to palm and she slides her fingers between mine.

“Well, like maybe becoming responsible for six dogs.” I grin. Okay, six labs are a lot once they grow and I’m going to either need acreage or I’ll need to find them homes, but I definitely want to keep Henley and Nugget long term.

Brooke smiles back. “That is a lot of responsibility. But tell me about these last few years of goofing around. You’ve been having fun?”

I laugh. “Well, sure. I was twenty-four when I happened to invent something that took off and made me a bunch of money. Then twenty-six when I sold it for quite a few million. That was definitely fun.”

She actually looks interested. “But not serious? I mean, being an inventor and making millions seemsveryserious.”

I love the feel of her hand in mine. I stroke my thumb over the back of her knuckles. “Nah. It wasn’t. The app wasn’t serious—still isn’t.”

“What does it do?”

I smile. “It’s a game app. You’ve heard of Candy Crush and Angry Birds and Monopoly Go?”

“Sure.”

“It’s like those. It’s a package of word games. Anyway—” I shake my head. “It’s just fun, and I had no idea I was going to make huge money at it. It’s not like I’m solving world hunger, you know?”

“Making people happy, giving people things to enjoy and help them relax, isn’t nothing, Jackson.”

God, I really like this sweetheart of a woman.

“Thanks. And you’re right. But I know I can do more. I’m smart. I know I can do something important. I just need to find…” I sigh.

“Your passion,” she fills in softly.

“Yeah.” That’s exactly it. I feel warm sitting here with her and her understanding me. “So, in the meantime, I’ve just been goofing around. Like, who am I to take life seriously?” I smile, but I do feel a little niggle of annoyance, at myself, in my chest. “My parents are just normal middle class people. My friends, my extended family… everyone I know and hang out with are just normal people. So, they don’t take me as a millionaire too seriously, either. Which is good. They keep me grounded. They remind me that most of the world is like them, not me. Yes, I’ve taken some amazing trips, my apartment is stupidly expensive, and I really like nice things. But I also paid off their debt, bought my parents a new house—but they didn’t want to move too far or get anything too big—and I’ve invested well.”

“Your family sounds great,” Brooke says.

I nod. “They’re the best.” I take a breath. “I’ve enjoyed the money but I don’t feel like I’ve really done anythingconsequential.” I look down at the dogs. “And I’d like to. So yeah, I think it’s time for me to get serious. About something.”

“Like a new job?”

“Yeah. Or maybe more than that.” I meet her eyes. “Maybe a lot of things.”

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