Chapter 2
Two Days Later: Wednesday
After dropping Cormag off at the museum mid-afternoon, Lachlan headed for the café around the corner, where Monroe had agreed to meet him for lunch. His brother-in-law had no clue what Cormag was fussing about, so he hoped to get some information from him about the true situation, not the panic of an over-protective brother.
Monroe was sitting at a window table when he arrived, dunking a roll into his soup. Lachlan smiled as he made his way over and sat opposite him. Almost immediately the waiter headed over and asked for his order. He took a peek at what Monroe was chomping on; a hot, crusty roll with tomato and basil soup. It looked amazing.
“I'll have what he's having,” he asked. The waiter scribbled in his notebook before bobbing his head and leaving them to it. “So how are you?”
“Fine. Busy,” Monroe said, wiping his fingers on his trousers. “We've got this big deal in the works. The boss is thinking we might have to travel to Dublin to settle it,” he explained with an excited smile.
“That would be nice,” he agreed, since Monroe had never really travelled anywhere. He was glad he'd brought it up first; the trip to Dublin was what he presumed Cormag was so worried about. “So when will you go? Is it a wait-to-see thing or just a matter of making the reservations?” he enquired, trying to be casual with his questions so that Monroe didn't feel like he was being quizzed.
“I think Tyrone wants to have confirmation first. The buyer says he'll view the portfolio online, but he might want to see the 'official' portfolio and meet Tyrone in person before he makes his decision,” he explained, with a nod as he went back to eating.
The waiter appeared, interrupting his thought process. Lachlan watched his soup being placed in front of him, then watched him leave. That was when he remembered what had popped into his head with Monroe's explanation. It wasn't everyone who could walk around and call their boss by his first name. But did it mean anything?
“I see. Cormag tells me you've been getting noticed by Tyrone recently. What's going on there?” Lachlan asked, deciding to be blunt since subtle wasn't getting him anywhere.
Monroe smiled and shrugged, staring into his soup as they both took a minute to eat and avoid the conversation a little longer. He decided not to speak until Monroe explained what was going on between him and his boss. It took a few minutes, but eventually he pushed his plate away and let out a sigh.
“Cormag says he's been flirting with me. I don't know if he is. All I know is that he's been really nice and we've been spending time together outside of work,” he claimed, looking shy.
Lachlan wasn't even that surprised to hear it. That shy look spoke volumes about how he was feeling; Monroe had a crush on his boss. “So how do you feel about that? About Tyrone flirting with you?”
“Okay, I guess. I don't mind and he's really nice. We have a nice time when we're out. He took me to dinner the other night and he didn't talk about work once.” He shrugged to show how uncertain he was.
Lachlan could only think that was a good thing. By rights, Tyrone was young to take over his father's business and still manage to keep it as popular as it used to be. He had only taken over a year before he hired Monroe and had every reason to keep his mind focused on work twenty-four-seven. The fact that he didn't bring it up at all when he was with Monroe, even before they were dating, meant that he was pretty serious about whatever it was he was feeling.
“Are you going to do anything about it?” he asked, curious about whether Monroe would finally step into the world of dating. He understood why he kept putting it off, but didn't see any reason why he couldn't have any fun.
“Not yet. I want to go on this trip with him and tell Cormag he was a complete gentleman. Then maybe I'll think about it,” he said, with a smile that said he knew fine well how much Cormag was freaking out.
Lachlan laughed and changed the subject. As long as Monroe was clued in about his big brother then he didn't see any problem letting him take his time. He had a big decision to make and he needed some breathing room to make it. But what really comforted him was the firm belief Monroe had that his bosswouldbe a complete gentleman. He trusted the kid to know what and who he was dealing with. That was all he needed to know.
