Her eyes went wide. “Strawberry banana for you. Potassium.” With that, she turned on her heel and left while we both shouted, “Thank you, Lupita,” after her. She responded with a wave of acknowledgment.

Jackson turned to me. “How do I get her to adopt me?”

“Pay her an exorbitant salary to put up with you,” I said. Like Jackson, I paid Lupita and Juan very well. Given that I had no family to lean on, they were worth every penny.

“I think she’s out of my league,” he said.

“Then make sure I don’t fire you so you don’t lose access,” I said.

“You’re not going to fire me,” he said.

“Oh no?” I asked. I was surprised and a little impressed by his confidence. I could be a moody son of a bitch and had fired people for less.

“No one else will put up with you,” he said.

“Says you,” I countered. It was true, but I wasn’t about to agree with him and lose my bargaining position.

After dinner, Jackson left to go and attend one of his evening clients. With envy in my heart, I watched him grab his bag of gear and jog out the door. That used to be me. I had believed I was invincible. If I set a goal, I could achieve it. Nothing could ever stop me. Until it had. And now I was a prisoner in my own body, afraid to leave my house, afraid to walk, afraid to run, afraid of everything, and man, I hated it. But more than that, I hated myself. I hated what I’d become but I didn’t know how to change it.

I spent the evening like I always did, with no real sense of purpose. It was exhausting. I read every single page of the newspaper and watched television. For the first time in my life, I was caught up on every show I’d missed when I was busy having a life.

Before my life imploded, I’d had more life than I could handle. I’d been a thirty-five-year-old mogul on the rise. After my family unraveled when I was fourteen, I bounced around several foster homes and a group residence for boys. I’d escaped it all at the age of sixteen when I emancipated myself and started work as a carpenter, hanging drywall. I worked for local construction outfits in the brutal desert temperatures for two years. It didn’t take me long to realize I wanted more.