Three months later, September at Corporate

"David, good morning!" greeted Alan Brand, grinning broadly as the two men encountered each other in the elevator. "Going up to my office, I presume? Our meeting's in ten minutes."

"Of course. I've got all the updates on the third quarter," David patted his briefcase.

"More good news, I hope?"

"I'd say so. The shareholders should be happy."

As the elevator doors closed, Alan lowered his voice. "I'm sure they will, but they won't be joining us today."

"They won't?"

"I'll fill them in later. For now, it's just you and me," winked Alan.

"I see," David said with uncertainty. Then, some wheels appeared to spin in his mind, and his self-assurance returned. "That's actually perfect, Alan. I've been meaning to tell you about some good news of my own."

"Is that so? Well, I look forward to hearing it! And here's our floor," announced Alan, letting David off first.

In the conference room, David wore a nervous grin as he shuffled papers in and out of his briefcase. "If I may say so, sir, you seem to be in an exceptionally good mood this morning," he told Alan.

"Well, I have every right to be! The sun is shining, our numbers are great, and best of all, I'm retiring at the end of the year."

David's grin vanished. "Did I hear you correctly? Did you say you're retiring?"

"You got it!" Alan exclaimed.

"Am… I the first person you've told?"

Alan cocked a finger at him and clicked his tongue. "You're on a roll."

"Wow, this is unexpected. I thought you said last year that you still had four, maybe five years left in you."

"Eh, that was before my first grandkid was born this summer. Patrice and I are pretty smitten," admitted Alan, pulling out some wallet photos. "Have you seen him yet? Here, take a look."

David rifled through the pictures, most of which were blurry or dimly lit. "That's great Alan, congratulations."

"That little bugger sure is cute," grinned Alan. "But I'll tell you what, he's high-maintenance too. Doesn't give his parents any rest some nights. So the missus and I figured it'd be nice to go visit more often. Maybe travel in-between to see some landmarks too, who knows?"

"That really does sound great. I'm happy for you."

Easing back in his captain's chair, Alan folded his hands and smiled knowingly across the table. "And I'm happy for you, too."

David's brow furrowed. "You are? But how could you have possibly known…"

"How could I know who I want to replace me?" chuckled Alan. "You have a strange sense of humor, Wallace."

"Are you saying I'm one of the candidates?"

"Well, no. You're not one of the candidates."

David pursed his lips, disgruntled but trying valiantly to hide it, ever the consummate professional.

A sly smile crossed Alan's face. "That's because you're the only candidate!"

"Oh!" David laughed breathlessly.

"Surely you suspected this would happen someday, didn't you?" Alan pressed.

"Well, it's always been on my radar, but I didn't want to presume anything."

"Always so modest! No giant ego to tame, I like that. I just have a couple questions for you. Are you familiar with the Scofield Mills merger?"

David nodded. "Familiar enough to dive in, I think. Wasn't Jan working on that before she left?"

"Yes. She and I laid some excellent groundwork with them. And when I say 'she and I,' I mostly mean I," Alan rolled his eyes. "She was going to work on closing the deal sometime next year, but obviously it never got off the ground. We need someone with enough energy and focus to make it happen."

"Absolutely. Understood."

"Which leads me to my next question: your kids are a little older, right? Coming up on college soon?"

David's voice caught in his throat. "Y-yes," he coughed.

"Good. That's perfect timing, with your schedule opening up relatively soon. Our next leader needs to devote themselves totally to this project. The future of the company depends on it almost exclusively. I know you won't fumble it."

With his face drawn tight, David managed to nod convincingly enough.

"So it's settled then. You'll officially take the reins on Christmas Eve - my little holiday gift to you," Alan said proudly. "Now, what was the good news you wanted to share?"

That evening at the Wallaces' back yard terrace

Their teenage kids are at friends' houses for dinner

"So, after waiting all this time to tell him, you didn't?" Robin frowned as she chewed her dinner salad.

Sighing, David put his fork down. "You weren't at the meeting. He basically said I'd be unfit for the job if I had younger children. If I had told him, I'd have been summarily disqualified."

"He said that? 'You'll be unfit for the job if you have young children'?"

"He strongly insinuated it."

Robin shook her head reprovingly. "That doesn't sound like Alan. Do you really think he'd threaten to do something so unethical?"

"He already crossed some sort of line asking about my kids' relative ages, so I don't know what he's capable of anymore," David pointed out. "Look, I know this sounds paranoid, but I'm just not comfortable telling anyone until Christmas."

"Christmas?!" scoffed Robin. "How in the world do you expect me to hide this for three more months?" she pointed to her round stomach.

"With big shirts and sweaters?" he shrugged. "We'll have to limit your visits to my office."

"And I'd miss the company softball game next month. You know how much I enjoy watching you being so athletic," she said suggestively.

He suppressed a smile. "Mm, a necessary sacrifice. Just think of it, Robin - haven't you always wanted to be the wife of a CEO?"

There was an unmistakable gleam in her eye as she pondered his words.

"It's just for three months, not forever. I know it's a hassle but we have so much to gain," he reached across the table to squeeze her hand. "Plus, I promise we'll hire the nanny of your dreams. Deal?"

Robin nodded slowly. "Deal."

Three days later
The Wallaces' driveway, 8:11 am

The warm Indian summer days were swiftly fading, and Robin rushed out her front door wearing a thick sweater cardigan. In one hand she clutched a manila file, and in the other she held her cell phone pressed anxiously against her ear.

"Yes, I'm getting into the car right now!" she huffed, fumbling with the keys. "I'll be there as fast as I can."

She wrenched the driver's door open and turned the ignition. "Oh no David, this is not my fault, just because I wanted to discuss baby names until midnight. You're the one who forgot to set his alarm and grab these papers in your haste this morning!"