Page 11 of The Interns

“Willa, you heard the man, he’s full. All that caviar and fwar grar,” Dustin teased in his terrible attempt at a French accent. “Right, Reed?”

Reed remained tight-lipped and shook his head.

“You did not.”

“I might have. They were just puttin’ things in front of me, and I had no clue what half of it was. The only things I could make out were the steak and potatoes.”

Willa dropped her head into her hands. “He’s not coming back.”

“He’s coming back!” Dev placed a comforting hand on his wife’s back. “Right, Reed?”

“I am. I swear.”

* * *

After saying his goodbyes, Reed walked a few blocks off Main Street to a small white bungalow with green shutters that had been his second home growing up. He peered through the glass panel on the side door, catching the eye of the willowy brunette in the kitchen. She smiled and waved him in.

“Hey Reed.” She opened her arms and greeted him with a hug.

“Hey Cammie.” He glanced around the kitchen that looked in more disarray than the usual post-dinner mess. All of the cabinets were open and a pile of old newspapers and a couple open cardboard boxes sat on the dining table. “How are you?”

She shrugged as her eyes followed his to the boxes. “I’ve been better. I don’t think I realized how hard this part would be.”

“I’m sorry.” It was woefully inadequate, but it’s all he could think to say. He was sorry to see his brother and Cammie splitting up after so many years together. He hated seeing the woman who he loved like an older sister looking sad. He hated seeing the beloved brother he had looked up to his entire life looking like a shell of himself. And most of all, his heart was broken for his nieces.

“I know,” Cammie said with a sigh. She grabbed another mug from the cabinet and started wrapping it in newspaper.

“Are Gracie and Lily here?”

“No, they’re with your parents for the night. I didn’t want them seeing all of this.”

Reed agreed. It was hard enough for him to see the dismantling of their family home, he couldn’t imagine how it would be for the girls. He lifted the white paper bag in hand and offered it to her. “Well, Willa sent over some cookies for them.”

“That Willa.” Cammie took the bag from him and shook her head. “She gave the girls chocolate milk and cake when we stopped by for lunch the other day. It took me an extra hour to get them to bed that night. When she and Dev have babies, she better watch out. I’ll spoil those kids rotten like she does mine.”

The thought earned a small smile. “That’ll be a site to see…is Emmett here?”

“Yeah, he’s back in the bedroom.”

Reed patted Cammie’s shoulder as he left the kitchen and walked toward the hallway that led to the bedrooms. The family pictures that lined the walls were still in place, thank goodness. He made a mental note to make sure that Emmett had a similar gallery wall at his new place. As he came to the door of the primary suite, he found his brother in front of his dresser, drawers all ajar, some emptied and some still full. The bed had a few open suitcases and duffel bags on it.

Emmett was ten years older than him, but their resemblance was strong. It was clear that they were brothers, even though Emmett’s light brown curls were now peppered with gray hairs and the plump cheeks of his twenties had given way to sharper lines and angles in his late thirties. Emmett’s life had always seemed ideal to him. A hometown boy getting it right by sticking around, serving his community, and having a beautiful family. Reed always felt like there was something wrong with him that he couldn’t make that same life work for himself, but now the illusion was shattered because even Emmett couldn’t make it work.

“Hey.”

Emmett glanced up and caught him in the mirror before turning. “Hey. Lookin’ like a lawyer if I’ve ever seen one.”

Reed looked down at his now creased slacks and tieless white dress shirt. It was a far cry from this morning’s buttoned-up look, but still not his typical attire. “Fake it ‘til you make it, right?”

“Don’t I know it,” Emmett huffed.

Reed walked into the room and now saw the full mess with cardboard boxes lining the floor on the other side of the bed. “How’s packing going?”

“Good.” It didn’t ring true coming from his mouth. “I’ll take a few small loads over to the new place this week, and then if you could still help me move the big stuff with your truck this weekend, I should be moved out by Sunday.”

“Of course. Anything you need.”

“Thank you,” Emmett said as he moved a pile of clothes from the dresser to the nearest suitcase. “It never fails to amaze me that it’s the baby of the family who has his shit together.”

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