Mom called: “New Year’s Eve is elite only. Your brother’s boss is a tech billionaire. Don’t embarrass us.” I said nothing.
At midnight, Bloomberg dropped their updated billionaire index. I was #673. My phone exploded because…
The call came 3 days before New Year’s Eve while I was in a video conference with my Singapore office.
I saw Mom’s name flash on my phone and almost declined, but something made me answer. “Emma, I need to talk to you about New Year’s.” Her tone was the one she used when delivering news she expected me to accept without argument. “We’re doing something different this year.”
I muted my laptop microphone.
“Okay.”
“Your brother Marcus has been invited to his boss’s estate in the Hamptons. Jackson Reed. You’ve heard of him?
Surely, the tech billionaire founded Nexus Systems.”
“I’m familiar with Jackson Reed.”
“Well, Marcus has been instrumental in their new AI division, and Mr. Reed is hosting a very exclusive New Year’s Eve celebration. He told Marcus to bring family.
But Emma, these are serious people, billionaires, tech executives, venture capitalists, the kind of people who shape industries.”
I waited, already knowing where this was going. “So, we think it’s best if you sit this one out. Nothing personal, sweetheart, but you’re in academia.
These people operate in a different stratosphere. Marcus needs to make the right impression, and having his sister there… well, you understand. Someone might ask what you do, and ‘I teach business ethics at a state university’ isn’t exactly impressive enough.”
“I—”
“I know you’d understand.
We’ll do something with you in January. Maybe brunch.”
“Sure, Mom.”
“Marcus will be so relieved. He was worried about having to explain your career situation to people who’ve built billion-dollar companies.
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