My sister, Emily, and I have always been locked in a rivalry, with her ever determined to outdo me at every turn. She got married before I did, of course, and our parents pulled out all the stops for her wedding, sparing no expense and showering her with more frills and fizz than a royal garden party. By the time it was my turn, however, suddenly there was apparently nothing left in the family coffers. They explained, somewhat sheepishly, that all the money had gone on Emilys big day, so my wedding was a rather quaint affairone youd find in a budget TV drama, not a glossy romance.
Emily led a rather cosy life with her two children, floating between home and beauty salons, while her husband sorted out the practicalities. Meanwhile, my husband and I moved in with his gran in Birmingham to dodge a mortgage and the suffocating world of debt. Instead of monthly repayments, we invested our time and energy into growing a little business of our owna shop, which took every ounce of our determination and tea-fuelled optimism.
We eventually scraped together some success and expanded the business, which was a shock to absolutely no one but Emily. Later, disaster struck her gilded world: Emily and her husband divorced. Our mother, ever the peacekeeper, begged me to offer Emily a job at our shopShes a single mum now, darling, have a heart! Not that Mum would mention it, but I knew the split had more to do with Emilys wandering affections than any hard times.
When Emily called me, she tried to wheedle her way into a cushy position at the shop, making it clear she expected something far superior to stacking tins. Despite having all the retail experience of a retired goldfish, she requested a particular (not small) salary with none of the nuisance responsibilities, thanks.
I was honestly gobsmacked at her cheek. Politely but firmly, I declinedno way was I signing myself up for a lifetime of her whimsical demands and moods, having witnessed her poor ex deal with exactly that. I told her straight: shed need to look elsewhere for her next opportunity. As for me, I had no intention of letting my business become another one of her vanity projects.
