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He stared at me through sleepy eyes, apparently shocked to find me awake before him and already brewing the pot of coffee that he had gotten used to making. I probably should have thought about that before I did it. For anyone else, brewing a pot of coffee wouldn’t be that big of a deal. It was just stuffing the carafe into place and hitting a couple of buttons. But for my brother, it was the routine that really mattered. He was nothing if not a creature of habit. Those habits were what kept him feeling like he had some control in his life, especially now. He had to change the ones he already had and find new habits, but even in the few days he’d been living with me again, he’d latched onto certain ones.
Getting him out of the apartment and back to work would be just what Brandon needed to start feeling normal again.
“Um. French toast?” he asked.
“Is there any scientific or anecdotal merit to that, or are you just pulling out the first thing you thought of?” I asked.
“First thing I thought of. I don’t think there is an official breakfast for the morning of an interview you never thought you were going to have to have after walking away from the career you spent your adult life building because your wife had an affair and you’re getting a divorce,” he said flatly.
“You sure do know how to take the zip out of a morning with your sparkling attitude and incredibly long sentences,” I told him.
He shrugged and went about gathering the ingredients for French toast. It was a favorite breakfast of ours growing up. Our mother would make it for us on special occasions like birthdays and holidays.
“So, you remember, Quentin is the owner of the company. He took over for his father, Gus, when the older Freeman retired years ago. At least, Gus is supposed to be retired. He actually spends most of his time at the complex, anyway. His wife, Minnie, is the one who will interview you. She handles the hiring. She’s really sweet, and she bakes when she is feeling stressed, so that should give you something to talk about.”
“Yes, because nothing says I’m a responsible and reliable professional you should hire to manage the finances of your company quite like discussing mental instability and suffocating stress,” Brandon pointed out.
“Just keep it in your pocket unless the topic comes up for some reason,” I said.
As he made breakfast, I went to his room to raid the clothes he’d gotten from his old house. Like I expected, most of them were the stuffy clothes he wore to work every day at the firm. Those weren’t going to fit in at the complex. Though I was sure he would have been just fine if he did show up in a suit and want to work that way, I was getting used to the Freeman family and had a feeling they would be more comfortable with him in a more casual outfit. Still professional and put together, but not so stark. I chose a pair of slacks and a polo shirt. I laid them out on his bed and went back into the kitchen to put together a fruit salad to have alongside the French toast.
“Darren is the youngest brother. He’s the racer. Greg is their other rider who just started racing with them, but he isn’t one of the brothers.”
“How many brothers did you say there are?” Brandon asked.
“Four. Vince and Nick aren’t technically part of the company, but they’re around sometimes for specific things. They come to races and events,” I told him.
I continued the rundown on the family, the complex, and everything I’d learned about the company as he got dressed and we drove to the complex. It wasn’t until we got there that I realized I hadn’t even asked him if he was interested in the position. Instead, I came home full of excitement and informed him he had an appointment in the morning to be interviewed for the accountant position. I didn’t even really remember his reaction. Maybe I should have waited to see how he felt about it before all but dragging him to the complex and throwing him through the window of Minnie’s office to make sure he got there. At the same time, Brandon wasn’t great at change and might be hesitant to jump in if I didn’t give him that push. I knew this was the perfect position for him, and it would mean we would get to work together, which we’d never done before.
We got to the complex, and I brought him directly to Minnie’s office. The door was closed, so I led him to a chair outside and pushed his shoulders down to seat him.
