Chapter 411:
Alan stared at the message, curiosity gnawing at him. When he sat down for a meeting with Kristian later, he couldn’t help but let his gaze wander toward the man.
The day’s meeting was just to iron out a few minor details of a previously settled partnership. Normally, Chaz and Richie would’ve taken care of it, but Kristian had decided to come in person—perhaps hoping to run into Freya.
“Mr. Briggs, Mr. Shaw is speaking to you,” Alan’s assistant, Toby Green, leaned over and discreetly nudged him.
Alan blinked, shaken from his thoughts. “Apologies, I got caught up reviewing the collaboration details and missed that.”
Gerard cleared his throat, his expression a bit odd.
Kristian frowned slightly.
The meeting didn’t last much longer. Once they wrapped up the remaining points, Kristian began to leave, but then an idea suddenly popped into Alan’s mind.
“Mr. Shaw, if you’re free, would you like to stay for dinner?”
“Sure,” Kristian replied without hesitation. He figured that since Alan also had the Briggs surname, there was a decent chance he was related to Freya. It couldn’t hurt to make a good impression on her family.
Toby raised an eyebrow and whispered in Alan’s ear, “Are you… into Mr. Shaw?”
Alan blinked in shock.
Gerard’s heart skipped a beat.
“You really ought to keep your feelings in check at work,” Toby continued, oblivious to Gerard’s reaction, assuming he was speaking quietly enough. “Mr. Shaw’s a pretty big deal.”
If Alan had been confused before, now he was practically fuming. When had he ever implied he liked Kristian?
Just as Alan was about to scold Toby, he noticed Gerard glancing their way with a strange look on his face.
In that instant, everything clicked.
“Please wait in the reception lounge for a moment,” Alan said to Kristian, without further explanation. The more he tried to clarify, the worse it would get. “I’ll handle a few things, and then we’ll head to dinner.”
Kristian’s eyes narrowed, and his sharp lips parted as he replied, “Alright.”
Alan offered a tight smile before turning and heading back.
Once he returned to his office, he rounded on his assistant. “What nonsense were you spouting just now? Are you thinking straight?”
“I didn’t expect Mr. Shaw’s assistant to have such sharp ears,” Toby coughed, clearly uncomfortable.
“That’s not the issue here,” Alan snapped, his brow furrowing in frustration. “How could I possibly have feelings for Kristian Shaw? I’m into women!”
Toby stood frozen, not daring to say a word. If Alan’s mother hadn’t dropped by to give Toby a little heads-up, he never would’ve suspected anything.
“Your mother was the one who told me to keep an eye on how you interact with men,” Toby confessed. “I saw you staring at Mr. Shaw throughout the meeting, barely hearing what he said. So, I just thought… Would a straight man look at another guy like that? Especially a boss like Alan, who’s normally laser-focused in meetings and never distracted. Didn’t it make sense to suspect something?”
Alan’s lips twitched in frustration. He rubbed his temples, trying to calm the storm brewing in his mind. Just because he was thirty and still single, did his mother really have to start questioning his orientation?
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