Page 49 of The Interns

“And you must be Reed’s partner. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

Maya brought her hand to her face, unsure exactly how embarrassed she should be depending on how up to date his information was.

“All good things,” Emmett said in his southern drawl that was a bit deeper and more pronounced than Reed’s. “So what are you two up to today?”

“Just showing her the sights of Clayville, then we’re gonna head down to Dev and Willa’s place to watch the football game,” Reed shared. “You should join us after your shift.”

“I appreciate the invite, but I’ve gotta go grocery shoppin’ and get the house in order since the girls are with me next week.”

Maya felt relieved and disappointed all the same. As much as she wanted to pump Emmett for stories about Baby Reed, hanging out with friends and family on the same day would be a lot, so it was probably best to stick with friends first. Anyway, if his friends were anything like hers, they probably had their own choice stories about Reed.

“Well, I’ll stop by and help when we’re done,” Reed said.

His brother waved him off. “Nah, you don’t need to do that.”

“I can. It’s no problem.”

“How about you give me a call tomorrow if you’re up to havin’ dinner with us? You two go enjoy your afternoon.” He turned to give his full attention to her again. “It was nice to meet you, Maya. I’m sure I’ll see you around again.”

She tried not to read too much into that. It was just something people said to be polite, and his manners were not in question. “Yeah. Nice to meet you, too, Emmett.”

He placed his hat back on his head and walked down the street to continue his patrol.

“Wow, that was some real small-town stuff there,” Maya teased as she turned to Reed. “Your old stomping grounds, huh?” she asked as they started to walk past the sheriff’s office.

“Yep.”

“You really used to wear that? Hat and all?”

“Yep,” he said again.

“Hmm.” She looked him over in his light denim shirt and dark jeans topped off with a tan suede jacket that fit him like a glove. The thought of him wearing that uniform or hiding those curls under an oversized hat seemed like a crime to her. “I can’t see it at all. This is a much better look for you. No offense to your brother.”

He looked at her in the same curious way, this time his cheeks appearing slightly flushed. Yes, she’d done it again. No point trying to hide her attraction anymore considering they’d already kissed. He cleared his throat and kept moving, like he was embarrassed or something. She had hoped for some kind of flirtatious response, but he seemed distracted.

“You okay?” she asked.

“Yeah, I just worry about him. He and his wife divorced recently.”

Maya slowed to a stop and her face fell. “Reed. I’m sorry, I didn’t know.”

“Yeah, I never talked about it, but they separated over the summer. I think I was in denial that they’d actually go through with it.”

“Do you want to talk about it now?”

He hesitated for a moment, looking around almost like he was afraid of who may overhear their conversation. “Emmett was ten when I was born—I wasn’t exactly planned in case you were wondering.” One side of his lips curled as he explained the obvious age difference between him and his brother.

Maya grinned. “Plans can be overrated.”

He huffed a small laugh. “Yeah. Well, my oldest brother moved away for school and never came back, but Emmett stayed. And I idolized him. I was eleven when he and Cammie got together. I spent so much time with them and then my nieces, Grace and Lily, when they were born. They were my second home, so it’s been especially hard.”

She didn’t know what to say, but she felt his pain and wanted to ease it somehow, so she reached for his hand and held it tight as they began to walk down Main Street again.

“That’s the place I’ve got my sights set on,” he said, changing the subject as he pointed at the two-story brick building across the street.

She smiled as she read the sign: Carter County District Attorney’s Office. She moved her hand up his arm and wrapped her fingers around his bicep. As if his reasons for staying in Clayville weren’t compelling enough, she now understood why the stakes were so high for him after meeting Emmett and seeing how much he cared for his family and this town. “You’ll get there. You know you’d have my vote for district attorney.”

He chuckled. “I’m not sure that’d be possible without some major voter fraud.”

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