Page 17 of Coming Out at Crofton Hall

Chris grimaced. “Dara’s not my boyfriend. He’s my PhD supervisor.”

“Oh, sorry,” Alex said, mortified. “I did wonder, since you had a bit of a weird dynamic, and it does take all sorts. Usually, I’m pretty good at reading these things.”

“Don’t sweat it, Alex. Me and Chris work closely together and I guess we might give off old married couple vibes, but if we were romantically involved we’d kill each other.”

“Dara’s not my type,” Chris added, gagging.

Chris was out of most people’s league, and Alex wondered if he were single. He wouldn’t be averse to a little office romance.

“No, your type is a super patient barrister who can put up with you disappearing inside your head for hours at a time,” Dara said.

“I can’t exactly argue, Jack is super patient.”

Jack, Alex assumed, was the lucky person who got Chris, so he parked the idea of a fabulous fling with a blond bombshell. Dara seemed nice enough, but he was more the big brother type and that wasn’t his thing. Once he’d settled he thought he might sign up to a couple of dating apps but, for now, figuring out his new job would be his biggest priority.

The Red Lion was the sort of pub that had been standing for centuries, and would most likely be there for the same amount of time again. Val and Chris grabbed a table and gave their order without needing to see a menu, while Dara came up to the bar with him. “You didn’t have to buy us all dinner.”

“Least I can do.”

“Just as long as you’ll not be brassic after. I know things can get a bit tight when you change jobs.”

Dara was such a nice bloke. “I’m good, but thank you. And not having to pay rent will be a major advantage.”

“I moved from Cambridge, I might not have all the space I did in my old flat, but Crofton Hall is an amazing place to live. You’ll be settled before you know it.”

With drinks in hand, and food ordered, they joined Val and Chris at a table in the corner.

Chris was staring at his phone, wrinkling his nose. He was an exceptionally cute guy, albeit taken. He glowered at the screen, which gave him a brooding look that somehow made him even hotter. “I don’t think Robin’s going to be very happy.”

Dara peered over to see what was on Chris’s phone. “Oh, fecking hell. That’s a whole stable full of horse shite.”

“Care to share?” Alex asked.

Robin turned his phone to see a headline on a gossip website.Dorian Marsten in night out with secret ex-boyfriend billionaire trust fund businessman, Robin Flint. Is love back on the cards?

“I wouldn’t have taken you as the type to care about that sort of thing.”

“I used to be a screenwriter in LA, I got in the habit of checking the sites so I’d know who to avoid. But this is Robin,ourRobin.”

There was a Robin Flint on the list of members of the household. “The future Viscount Whetford?”

Chris nodded. “He’s staying at the hall. because he split up with Dorian. They broke up because Dorian wouldn’t come out. It was all very secret—no one was supposed to know. They were together in secret for years and this is the first I’ve seen of that being made public.”

Alex hadn’t been briefed on the history of the guests, but he had thought it a bit odd that a member of the Flint family was choosing to crash at Crofton Hall, best friends with the owner or not. “So why wouldn’t he be happy? Now this Dorian chap is out they can date openly.”

“That’s not gonna happen,” Dara said, sipping his pint. “Robin got fed up with hiding and that’s not something you can forgive. Besides that, Robin has a new boyfriend, local copper, so he’s not interest in getting back together with Dorian.”

Chris was scowling. “Seems like the fans are buying big into shipping Dorian and Robin. There’s already social media groups dedicated to their love and a TikTok song.”

Dara snatched Chris’s phone. “Already? When did that photo get taken?”

“Ben was meeting Dorian at the airport yesterday,” Alex said, sipping his pint which was an excellent pale ale. “So only this morning our time.”

Dara shook his head as he scrolled. “I hope Simon’s not seeing this. He should probably be warned.”

Chris wrestled his phone back. Alex smiled into his pint, finding their antics amusing. “I know he’s been a bit miffed lately, but he knows there’s nothing between Robin and Dorian.”

Alex was definitely not in possession of all the facts. “Simon is Robin’s new boyfriend?”

---