Prompt as always, Dylan joined him a few minutes later.
“Hey.” Alex greeted his friend and business partner as Dylan took the empty seat across from him.
“Is it just the two of us?”
Nodding his head, Alex grabbed a menu from the holder on the table. “I ordered you a beer.” Then he found himself stalling.
Earlier that day, the idea of this meeting had been a good one. The conversation had played out seamlessly in his mind while he drove to the restaurant, but now that Dylan was sitting across from him, he was beginning to have second thoughts.
The two men perused the menu, drank their beers, chit chatted about nothing significant and otherwise avoided the issues at hand. When the waiter came back around they ordered then waited for him to step away again.
“Spill it.” Dylan stated in his laid back Texas drawl so much like his grandfathers. “I know you have more appealing choices in lunch companions, so why don’t you just cut to the chase."
“Alright.” Alex said, downing the rest of his beer before signaling the waiter to bring another. Dylan was right, Alex just needed to come out and say it. “I don’t know any other way to say this, but when I asked you to come onboard, I wasn’t looking for a receptionist.”
Dylan’s reaction wasn’t one of surprise, or even anger, which was what Alex originally expected. Instead, he glanced down at the table briefly before meeting Alex’s eyes once more.
With a resigned sigh, Alex elaborated. “When I asked you to be a partner in CISS, I didn’t mean a silent partner. I didn’t need money, and I don’t need someone to answer the phones.” Alex told him, all of the pent up frustration coming to the surface. “You sit around the office answering the damn phones like it’s what you were born to do.”
“Someone has to answer the phones.” Dylan remarked without heat.
“But not you. Fucking hire someone. Or just have them forwarded to my phone like they’ve always been.” Alex told him, sitting back in his chair. “Look. We’ve been friends for a long time. I know what you went through, and I’m still so very sorry, but, Dylan, she’s been gone for eight years.”
“I know.” The sadness in Dylan’s eyes shone bright, making Alex feel like a jackass.
“Meghan wouldn’t want you to stop living. Now that the kids are older, you’ve got the rest of your life ahead of you, man.”
“Preaching to the choir, brother.” Dylan said, taking a long swallow of beer. “I’ve heard it all before, and I’ll tell you the same thing I tell everyone else. You don’t know what it’s like. You don’t know what it’s like to go from one day having the love of your life and your best friend right there beside you, only to have her taken completely away the next. She’s gone, and I feel like I died right along with her. The only thing that has kept me going was taking care of my kids. Now that they’re old enough to take care of themselves, I don’t have anything else.”
“Bullshit, man.” Alex bellowed, sitting forward in his chair, resting his elbows on the table. “You know that’s a load of shit, Dylan. You’ve got Stacey and Nate, Xavier, Ashleigh. Every one of them depends on you. Needs you.”
“I get it.”
Alex knew he wasn’t telling Dylan anything he didn’t know already, but when it came to CISS, he needed to take it to the next level. Bringing on Samantha and now Cole meant they were equipped to branch out. Something Alex had dreamed of. And he wanted Dylan to be part of that.
“Cole accepted my offer,” Alex said, changing to a less sensitive subject. “He’s officially onboard starting next week.”
“That’s great news.” Dylan stated, picking at the label on his beer bottle. “I think he’s just what we need to help divert some of the strain off of you. And yes, I know I need to do more.”
Alex wanted to hear how Dylan planned to do that.
The waiter interrupted, bringing their food and offering them a brief reprieve. Alex took the opportunity and let Dylan breathe for a minute.
When Alex finished, in record time no doubt thanks to not eating that morning, he pushed his plate away and downed more of his second beer. “What’s your plan?” He prompted.
Dylan pushed his plate away, then leaned back in his chair, propping his elbow on the empty chair beside him. “Since the residential security services are growing astronomically, I think I’m going to focus on that. I’ve got some ideas, and I want to bring on a couple of people – sales people.”
Alex noted the renewed interest in his partner’s eyes. Dylan needed something to focus on and bringing him onboard had been one of the best decisions he’d made. Once Dylan took off, there would be no stopping him, Alex knew.