She wondered if he thought about her even once after that night. Probably not, she assumed. They'd met at the bar, as both of them often met strangers at the bar. She didn't recognize him as a regular there, but that wasn't surprising -- the bar had a lot of...

To say Mrs. Dempsey was stereotypically beautiful would be an understatement. She was stunning. Even Norah, who considered herself self-confident and was rarely ruffled by other women, found her intimidating. The sounds of Greg and Mr. Dempsey laughing carried down the hall from Greg's office into the lobby, and Mrs....

Norah, their resident client services genius, was not only beautiful and smart but could turn any customer crisis into a calm oasis.

"I heard all of that," Norah said as she entered.

"Just the usual," Howard said, trying to play it off. He was embarrassed that she had heard his minor freak-out....

Greg took the offered Coke and started walking towards the office bar just across from the conference room.

"It already has some in it," Dempsey called out. Greg stopped walking and shot a devious look at Dempsey, then tipped the bottle up, taking a big swig.

"One of your many virtues," Greg...

It had been too long since Dempsey had been in a good, old-fashioned street brawl.

"It's been too long since I was in a good, old-fashioned street brawl," Dempsey thought as he spun to connect his elbow with the man's face. Blue Collar Man had sucker-punched Greg, who was just now...

Dempsey stared at Greg. He didn't have to say anything.

"I get it," Greg said, and they returned to their silence.

When the waitress returned to their table Dempsey ordered a whiskey on the rocks. He wasn't thinking about his wife when Greg asked, but now he was. Contemplating their relationship immediately...

In the last 12 hours, I both updated my Windows computer to Windows 11 and received the new Gmail update. They’re both disappointing, although Windows 11 is on another level of bad. Within minutes of using Windows 11, I had experienced so many jarring UI transitions and UI elements that...

_why’s poignant guide to Ruby, Chapter 4, from one of his famous sidebars:

So this new book. The Scarf Eaters. It’s a coming-of-age novel. But it’s also a beginner’s guide to Macromedia Flash. It’s like Judy Blume crossed Praystation. It’s like 0sil8 starring Hillary Duff.

I don’t want to give away the...

“You did it again,” Max’s partner said as he slapped him on the back. “I don’t know how you always manage to get us out of these scrapes but somehow you always do. I just wish my blood pressure could understand.” He took another long drag off his cigarette. “Early...

It turned out his replacement barber that day was better than his regular. Maybe his blade was sharper. Maybe his hand was steadier. But there was hardly any sensation as the metal ran across his neck. There was something about that feeling that exhilarated Dempsey. The other man behind him,...