Page 9 of Inevitable

A hole opened in the pit of my stomach. “Worried?”

“He’s been…different lately,” Lea said. “Withdrawn. He—well, we think he’s having a midlife crisis or something. But every time your dad tries to mention it, Jonathan shuts down.”

I nodded, hoping what she said wasn’t true. Jonathan had always been a fixture in our lives. He was my dad’s best friend, more akin to a brother. Which was why my first instinct was to say yes. To do something, anything, to help Jonathan. But I wasn’t sure what difference my taking an internship would make. For starters, I hadn’t seen the man in years.

“And you think I’m somehow going to be able to help?” I wasn’t trying to be flippant; I honestly didn’t know what they were thinking.

“Yes,” Lea said. “You’re so excited and passionate about your future. I—we—” she smiled “—think that seeing you, someone on the cusp of their career, will remind him of his own excitement, his passion.”

“For work.” I wasn’t sure whether I was questioning it or confirming it.

“Please, Sum?” Dad asked. “He means a lot to this family—to me.”

I knew this was important to him. So, despite my hesitation, despite the fact that I’d intended to work on a business plan and start developing my client base, I rushed to say, “Of course. I’ll help in any way I can.” And then I immediately kicked myself for falling back into my old habits.

“Thank you.” Dad smiled.

“If nothing else, seeing you will be a good distraction,” Lea said. “He was always so fond of you, always so sweet to you when you were younger.”

I nodded, remembering it well. Every look, every touch was firmly embedded in my memory. But that was years ago. I’d been young and naïve, crushing on a man nearly double my age. I doubted I’d be as enamored as before.

“Sumner,” Dad said, interrupting my thoughts. “You okay, kiddo?”

“Yeah.” I laughed, shaking away the memories. “Just reminiscing.”

“See?” Lea straightened. “This is why you’re perfect for the job. It’s a win-win. You get experience that looks amazing on your resume. Jonathan gets an incredible intern for the summer, and he’ll be out of his funk in no time.”

My dad smiled and stood, carrying our dishes over to the sink. When he was out of earshot, Lea leaned in. “Thank you, Sumner. Your dad’s been all out of sorts. It’s like the balance of his universe is off if Jonathan’s upset.”

I laughed but quickly sobered when I saw how serious she was. Despite my desire to help my dad and Jonathan, I had reservations. “I really don’t know—”

“Sweetie.” She patted my hand. “Just by saying yes, you’ve taken a load off your dad’s shoulders. Mine too.”

Lea and I carried the remaining dishes to the kitchen, setting them beside the sink for Dad to rinse. Why couldn’t I just say no? Why was I so afraid to share my plans for my coaching business? I’d promised myself to trust my instincts. And yet here I was, doing the exact thing I’d promised myself not to do anymore—allowing others to make plans for me.

“Now, on to my next question,” Dad said, handing me the rinsed plates to stack in the dishwasher.

Here it comes, I thought, but I bit my tongue.

“We want you to move home for the summer.”

“I am,” I said, intentionally misinterpreting his question.

“No.” He shook his head. “Here. We want you to live here—with Lea and me. We’ve really missed you while you were off having fun at MIT and then gallivanting around the world.”

I narrowed my eyes at him. “I think you mean working my ass off.”

“That too.” He grinned. “And you’ll be moving to Palo Alto in the fall.”

“Yeah, but…”

“You know how busy your mom is,” he said, already anticipating my next argument.

“She’s already disappointed that I’m not going on the tour with her.”

“True, but she’s also in the middle of writing her next memoir, and she’s leaving soon to promote her latest release. You’d be alone most of the time.”

“Or giving her more material.” Lea arched her eyebrow.