***
David really looked forward to poker night with his friends, and after the day he’d had he needed a drink as well. He poured a bag of chips into a bowl, and then added a selection of antipasto to the table. Poker night was always held at his place now, because his three friends were all married, and Lee even had a baby on the way.
He opened a bottle of wine to breathe and checked the time. His doorbell rang. It had to be Colin, he was right on time.
Answering the door, he found both Colin and Garth standing there.
“Randy Randall,” Garth greeted him. “How’s it going?”
David scowled at the nickname. “Cut it out and come in.” As he was about to shut the door, the elevator dinged and Lee stepped out.
“Damn, I thought I was going to beat Colin this time,” Lee said, winking at him.
“Never gonna happen,” Colin stated. “Unless of course you’re early.”
David grinned at his friends. Colin’s punctuality had been a running gag since college.
“What’s new?” he asked, handing Lee and Garth bottles of beer and pouring Colin and himself a glass of wine each.
“Mom and Dad are handing the business over to me,” Colin said and sipped his wine.
David raised his eyebrows. “Is one of them sick?” None of them ever thought Colin’s parents would let go of the accounting firm they ran.
“No. They decided on an early retirement. They’re going back to Hong Kong for a few months to visit with family and then they’re going to travel the world.”
“And they’re leaving the entire business to you?” Garth asked.
“Yeah.”
“This calls for a celebration,” Lee said, raising his beer. “To bringing the firm into the twenty-first century.”
They all laughed.
“Damn, it might mean I’ll have some decent competition,” Garth complained. He turned to David. “Want to dump your old man and join me?”
“Actually, I’ll be acting CEO as of next month.” He chuckled at the absolute shock on his friends’ faces.
“Your dad’s retiring?” Garth asked.
“He’s going into politics.”
“Shit, that can’t be good,” Colin said.
David frowned. “What do you mean?”
Colin exchanged a glance with Lee. “Your father’s not known for his political correctness.”
David laughed. “Sure, he’s conservative, and he can be stubborn at times, but he’s always got the good of the company on his mind.”
Lee shook his head. “Maybe so, but politics isn’t Dionysus. He can’t get away with that stuff in the public arena.”
David frowned.
“Lee’s right,” Garth said. “Bob going into politics isn’t going to be good for anyone, unless they’re white and rich.”
“You think so?”
“Of course,” Colin said. Lee nodded.
