The firm did fine.
Better than fine, actually. The story had done something I hadn't expected. It had made people curious. Client inquiries went up. New contracts came through. The Q4 numbers were the best we'd ever posted.
I should have been happy. I wasn't.
The office felt different after Carter's story ran. Not because anything had changed, but because I had. I'd spent ten years building a wall between my work and my family, and the wall had come down, and what was left on either side was empty.
I started staying later. Coming in earlier. Taking on projects I didn't need to take on. I told myself it was because of the growth. I told myself it was because I was dedicated.
Diane called me out on it in November.
"You're working yourself to death," she said.
"I'm fine."
"You're not
