Page 48 of The Trauma Response
“I do. If you remember, you had to convince me it was okay for Valerie to go to college. You had to talk me out of driving her to and from class every day just to keep her home.”
Whits chuckles and leans back into my embrace. “How did they grow up so fast? How didwegrow up so fast?”
I kiss the top of her head and sigh. “Time flies when you’re having fun, and I’ve had a blast with you, Tallulah Gray. You and that annoying one you call a brother.”
She bursts into laughter at the mere thought of her brother and sister-in-law and that brood of kids they have. They’re going through the same thing, watching theirs grow up and leave the house even though they are nowhere close to ready to let them go.
A soft knock on our bedroom door forces Whits to tense. I squeeze her tight and whisper, “You can do this. He needs to know his mother sees him as a man, and not just a little boy.” She nods and releases me so I can open the door.
Reid wears a sheepish grin and fidgets with the hem of his shirt. “Can I come in? I wanted to talk to Mom.”
I open the door wider and allow our son into our private space. The second his gaze lands on my wife, it forces a sob from her that I know they hear down the hallway. Reid opens his arms to his mother and she accepts his hug.
“I’m proud of you, son, I promise.”
“I know, Mom. And it’s not like I won’t visit. I think you’ll love the town, too. It’s small and has this quaint little bed and breakfast you and Dad can stay at when you visit me.” He rubs her arms and smiles down at her.
She sniffles and wipes her tears. “I know you’ll be amazing. You’ll focus and learn so much, and before you know it, you’ll be running that firehouse.”
“You know I learned everything I know about stubbornness from you, right?” Reid teases.
Whits scrunches her nose before putting both hands on her hips. “I’ll have you know, that stubbornness earned me a top position as a surgeon and then as a marketing executive.” Our son laughs. “Oh, stop. You and your father both always know how to get me going. Go spend time with your brother and sisters. I’ll be out in a minute.”
“You sure you’re okay? You’re not mad at me?”
Whits palms his cheek and smiles. “I’m not mad at you. Not at all. Now go, I’ll be right out.”
Reid kisses her cheek and passes me. I clap him on the shoulder on his way out, but I’m downright confused by Whits and her demeanor. The crying I expected, but she’s keeping something from Reid. Once he’s out of earshot, and I hear him chatting with our other kids, I shut the door again.
“Okay, out with it. What is going on with you? You’re hiding something.”
Whits bites her lip and tries not to grin.
“Tallulah, out with it.”
“Okay, be quiet before you ruin it.” She motions for me to sit on the bed with her. “I might have already known about the job.”
“What?” I ask, probably too loudly.
“I overheard him telling Jackson about it and asking for advice on how to break it to us.”
I frown and ask, “All right, but that’s not really a big deal. He’s always gone to his uncle for—”
“Cai, it’s not about the job. Heturned downthe position in New York.”
I’m stupefied. One does not simply turn down a chance to work for the New York Fire Department, and to discover that our son not only turned down a job offer, but lied about it, concerns me. “Wait, he turned down a phenomenal job opportunity to work in a small-town firehouse? What am I missing here?”
“Cai, you cannot be serious right now. Think about it for a second. North Carolina, does it ring any bells?”
I might not be as young as I used to be, and I sure haven’t put out any fires for years now, but I cannot fathom any reason why my son, a man who is crazy about the action of being a firefighter, would turn down such an opportunity and choose to move to a slower, smaller station. “I’m stumped. Help me out here, Whits.”
“Winter Morgan.”
Two words, and suddenly I understand everything. “No, you’rekidding.”
“She graduates from college in six months, and she took a job in the very same town. She’s not coming back to Denver, Cai.”
“And so he’s…”
