Page 2 of Twin Babies For The Grump

Edward breathes out hard but punches the name of the bar into the GPS, and then pulls out into the San-Fran traffic. “You haven’t been home before midnight in two weeks.”

“I’m not working tonight,” I counter. “That’s a step in the right direction, isn’t it?”

“I’m watching you pull the tablet out as we speak, certainly to sign into your work account,” says Edward, dryly.

He’s caught me. That isexactlywhat I’m doing.

“Just double checking that I’ve got a name in the memo for tomorrow. I’ll turn it off before we get to the bar.”

“Somehow, I doubt that,” Edward responds.

I’ve heard that tone before, mostly from my father and sister, and it never fails to both irritate me and make me feel shame.

Edward is perhaps the only other person who speaks so candidly with me. But he’s worked with me long enough that I don’t take it personally.

The guy is right; I’ve been spending a lot more time at work lately. I just can’t help it. Bale Enterprises is the only place where I feel grounded.

Everything else feels pointless. Boring. Even going out with the guys stirs no excitement in me.

I know that’s far from ideal.

At forty years old, I’ve got everything going for me. A business that I built from the ground up, an amazing sky-rise penthouse, and outings to high-end bars with my friends, like tonight.

But… It just still feels like something is missing. And since I haven’t been able to figure out what, exactly, that sensation means, I’ve just doubled down and started pushing even more numbers at work.

That’s never failed me before.

Edward says nothing else until we’re pulling into the parking lot for The Dot, a rooftop bar near the ocean.

“At what time should I pick you up, sir?” he asks.

“Before midnight, I say, already certain that tonight won’t be interesting enough to stay till late. “I’ll just give you a call.”

With a nod, Edward backs up and makes a turn, heading out of the parking lot.

As soon as I step into the bar and get hit with the atmosphere of revelry, I know that I’ll be gone long before midnight.

The music isn’t my favorite—some Hot 100’s pop song that will probably end up as the world’s most hated earworm for the majority of the country by the end of the week. I wince a little bit as I make my way through the crowd and up onto the top floor.

“The King is here,” says Carmen. “About time.”

She’s got a point. They might as well have waited for me here the whole time.

“Careful,” Jimmy warns. “Your boyfriend works for him.”

“Har har,” I fake laugh. “We aren’t at work. I’m not going to ride anyone’s ass.”

Jimmy counters, “As if you ever turn off Work Mode.”

I open my mouth to respond to that but there’s no point. Everyone has noticed that for the past few months, I’ve practically been living at the office.

Tom makes a joke and soon the conversation stirs away from work and to the upcoming wedding of one of Carmen’s employees. That’s enough to have me space out.

I take a sip of my drink and scan the crowd, indifferent faces doing the same in an effort to leave this place with company.

I’m not looking for that kind of company tonight, just for a few hours to keep my mind off the upcoming meetings. But that’s hard to do when the only friends I’ve got left are a constant reminder of the tasks I have to do.

“Anything interesting?” Jimmy asks.

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