This brings our living arrangement to a whole new level of difficult.By lunchtime, I’m completely engrossed in payroll. Our new system is completely efficient and saves a lot more time than using timecards. Each employee signs into the computer system and does the same when they leave. It jives with the schedules that Chase and the assistant managers create, and shows discrepancies easily, like if an employee stays over their scheduled timeframe, one of the assistants has to sign off on it and state why. The program itself was costly, but it was something Harrison insisted on. It makes my job a lot easier, that’s for sure.
“Lunchtime!” my sister hollers as she breezes into the office, my niece seated securely on her hip.
“Hey,” I reply, saving all my progress and logging out of the system. “What brings you here? I thought Harrison had a client over the lunch hour today.”
“He does. I came to steal you away for a little bit. Miss Crabby Pants and I were desperate to get out of the house for a bit, so we thought we’d surprise her favorite aunt and take her to lunch,” Gwen says, a wide, yet very tired smile on her face.
“Awww,” I coo, getting up and taking my niece. “I was working on payroll, but I could probably slip away for a short lunch break.”
“Good.” Gwen huffs, blowing her hair out of her face. “I was going stir crazy. I’m desperate for adult interaction,” she confesses.
“I’ve got all the adult interaction you need,” her husband says, coming up behind her and wrapping her in his arms. “Hey, baby,” he whispers, kissing her temple before turning her in his arms and devouring her lips with his own.
“Gross,” I mumble. “Don’t look, Sophia. Mommy and Daddy are being all icky again.” Sophia just continues to blow bubbles and coo as she tries to stick my dangly necklace in her mouth.
“My princess,” Harrison says as he comes over to kiss his daughter on the forehead. “I only have a second, but I wanted to say hello. I’ll be home by six tonight,” he tells his wife before stealing another kiss.
Sophia and I turn away so we don’t have to watch them swap spit.
“Maybe we can get the princess to bed early tonight,” Harrison mumbles, his voice all deep and dirty.
“I’m still here, you know,” I argue, refusing to turn around and watch them maul each other in my office.
“Yes, I know. If I had more time, it would actually work out perfectly. You could babysit.” Harrison chuckles.
“Early bedtime sounds divine,” Gwen yawns.
“It’s a date then,” her husband says, placing one more chaste kiss on her lips. “See you later.”
Gwen waves goodbye while I grab my purse from my drawer. “You two are so mushy,” I tell her, throwing the strap over my shoulder and still juggling my niece. I’ve given up on stopping her from chewing on my necklace.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Someday, you’ll find someone who makes you all mushy too,” she says, leading me down the hallway and through the gym. My mind instantly goes to Chase, the only man who has the ability to make me weak in the knees with lust and smoke billowing from my ears in anger… at the same time.
We walk down the sidewalk, enjoying the gorgeous sunshine, to a nice little sandwich shop on the corner. They have amazing Rueben sandwiches, which is one of my favorites. Top that with homemade potato chips and a chai tea, and it’s heaven in my mouth. Again, Chase flashes through my mind.
As we order, Gwen tells me all about her summer plans, including a short vacation she and Harrison are planning for July. “I’ve always wanted to visit the mountains, and I think a cabin in the Smokys is a great getaway. There’s so much we can do and see, even with a baby.”
“You’re going to miss the Strawberry Festival.” I pout as we head over to an empty table and await our food.
“I know, but it was the easiest week for Harrison to get away. Everyone cancels their sessions that week since they’re all so busy with the festival. Plus, shortly after that, I’ll have to get back into teaching mode and start working on my classroom.”
I can see the struggle raging in her eyes and hear it in her voice. Gwen is having a hard time deciding if she wants to go back to work or not. She’s a preschool teacher, and while she loves her job and is amazing at it, she took months off at the end of last school year to stay home with Sophia. Now, she’ll have to decide if she wants to stay home full-time or if she’ll be returning to the classroom this August. I know where her husband stands on the issue; he’s confided in me at work. He’d rather she stay home and spend her day with Sophia, but he also knows that may not be what she wants to do. If she wants to return to work, then he won’t stop her. In fact, he’ll encourage her, like always. But I can tell Gwen is having a hard time making the decision.