Page 20 of Once Upon A Valentine
“Oh…” Gibson watched him settle into the chair and frowned, “Bran, uh… do you want to move over to the sitting area?”
“No. This is fine.” He said, though he knew his voice was tight with strain.
“But you hate sitting in those chairs. In fact, you hate being in this office.” Gibson was staring at him as if he’d grown two heads. “What are you doing here, Bran?”
“We need to talk.”
“Okay, but, we’re brothers. You didn’t have to come into the office to talk to me. You could have just called.”
Bran tried not to fidget. It was true. He knew it was true that he could have called or he could have even stopped by Gibson’s house and talked to him when he got home. But that’s what the old Bran would have done, avoided the office that he hated, his father’s office, and he was trying his hardest to be a better man.
For Julian, but also for himself.
“No. I needed to do this here.” Bran straightened his tie and met his older brother’s questioning gaze. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed but, I’m trying to do better. I mean, it hasn’t been that long but I’m sober and I’m going to meeting. I’m not partying or getting photos splashed in the tabloids. I’m really trying to be a better man, Gib.”
“I’ve noticed.” Gibson sat back in his chair and nodded when he trailed off, “We all have and Bran, I didn’t want to say anything that might upset you but now that you’re here and you’ve brought it up, I am so proud of you.”
“You are?”
“Of course I am. What you’re doing, it isn’t easy. Change isn’t easy.”
“Well, I mean, I’m not doing it alone.”
Gibson’s smile was wide, easy and knowing, “Yeah, I’m aware of that too.”
Bran’s heart gave a kick when he thought about the fact that Jules worked for Gibson. Technically, since Bran was on the board and owned his shares in the company, Jules even worked for him. Neither of them had given that much thought but now, sitting in his father’s office, the office that was now Gibson’s since he’d taken over the company after their father’s death, he couldn’t help but worry that his brother might think it was inappropriate for him to be dating one of their employees.
“You’re not going to fire Jules, right?” He leaned forward in his seat. “Because he hasn’t done anything wrong.”
Gibson tilted his head, “What? No. Of course not. Why would you think that?”
“He’s an employee.”
“Wow.” Gibson chuckled, “How the tables have turned.”
“What?”
“You don’t even remember, do you? The first time you saw me with Felix, it was here, in my office. You caught us kissing and you said I was crossing the line because he was an employee.”
Bran scratched his head, “Felix never worked at Frost Financial.”
“He was our party planner for the corporate holiday event so he was under contract. Jesus, Bran. You really don’t remember?”
“I was drinking a lot then…” Bran winced, “But I’m sorry for whatever I said about Felix. Obviously, I was an idiot. You two are perfect together.”
Gibson smiled, “Thank you, and for the record, so are you and Julian.”
Bran could feel a blush heat his cheeks at Gibson’s words. He was still getting used to the idea that his name and Julian’s went together now, that the two of them went together. He liked the sound of it, really, he did, more than he ever could have imagined. But at the same time, seeing that knowing smile on his older brother’s face made him feel like a silly teenage boy talking about his first love.
He was by no means a teenager anymore and yet Julian was his first love. He was the first man Bran had ever allowed himself to open up to. He was the first man that he’d let into his life for more than a night. He was the first man that saw both the good and the bad inside of Bran and accepted and loved him in return anyway. Julian was his first love and, he hoped, his last.
“Thank you.” He cleared his throat and forced himself to focus, “But I didn’t come here to talk about my relationship with Jules.”
“Okay.” Gibson nodded, leaning back in his chair as if he needed to brace himself for whatever Bran might say next. “You’re here and you booked a meeting so please, tell me what’s going on and how I can help fix it.”
Bran felt the words like an arrow in his gut. He flinched and Gibson’s look turned worried. He braced himself, knowing that he had to explain why he’d reacted so viscerally to his brother’s seemingly innocuous offer.
“You sound so much like Dad sometimes.” He sighed and watched Gibson’s brows furrow with a mix of apology and confusion so he rushed on. “Did you know the last time I saw Dad alive was actually in this office? He was sitting right where you are and I was sitting right here, in this chair.” He glanced down and found his hands were white-knuckling the wooden arms. He slowly released his death grip and shook his head. “Well, not these exact chairs because you redecorated but, you know what I mean.”
