Review: The Intern, Volume Three by Brooke Cumberland
Volume three in The Intern series is much longer than the first two. Secrets are exposed, sex is had, trust is broken, and mysteries are solved. A lot goes on in this third installment, and it is separated into ‘parts’ that span over a few years.
Ceci’s lies have finally caught up with her and everything begins to unravel. Bentley is livid, feeling hurt and betrayed. He loves Ceci, even though he has never told her, but he knows he needs to walk away.
Ceci is aware of what she’s done. She knows even after explaining her reasoning behind everything she did, she’s going to lose Bentley. She’s devastated, silently praying that he’ll stop her. But he doesn’t.
Fast forward and Ceci has now completed her first year of college and Bentley has gone back to modeling, making quite a name for himself. When their paths conveniently cross again, that familiar heat rises and the sexual tension in the air thickens. Even though they’ve technically carried on with their lives, you know neither one has really moved on.
When they finally hash some things out, Ceci points the finger at Bentley more than once, as if their being apart was all his fault. She said things along the lines of “Why didn’t you come for me?” or “You left me, you let me walk away.” I grew exceedingly frustrated with her. I sat there thinking to myself, Lay off. You’re the one who’s the big liar. Take some responsibility. Own your HUGE part in f’ing up your relationship.
In the first two volumes, much of their relationship was focused on sex. By the end of part three, there still wasn’t enough growth to make me believe they were deeply in love, or a potential long-term couple. They had great sex, the chemistry in the bedroom was passionate and hot, but that’s as far as it went for me. So, while I liked them individually and their romps were certainly sexy, it didn’t matter to me if they ended up with each other in the long-run. I didn’t feel their emotional connection.
As for the mystery surrounding Ceci’s father’s death, the investigation felt somewhat unresolved. The reveal was a surprise and not one I was expecting, so I appreciated that, but it was also kind of anti-climactic. Don’t get me wrong, it was good, but I would have liked to know more about what happened after i.e. confronting her mom, who was her father really? etc. etc. I still had questions in the end.
Overall, the conclusion to the story was somewhat satisfying. There were parts I enjoyed and there were parts that didn’t quite work for me. The complete series was intriguing, enough for me to want to read the whole thing, and I would recommend it to those who enjoy quick, short, heavily steamy workplace romance novels.
-Colleen
