The Merger – 10

 

This time, Josh was the first to arrive. Since the place was busy, he gave the hostess his name and his phone number so she could text when a table was ready. Then he settled on the low stone wall outside the restaurant to wait. Mike arrived a few minutes later, wearing jeans and a T-shirt that emphasized his build.

"I feel like a ninety-pound weakling next to you," Josh groused, smiling.

"A very fast one, though, so don't knock it. There's a lot to be said for speed over brawn, especially with what you do."

"In general, yes," Josh agreed as his phone vibrated. He checked then said, "Our table is ready."

The host seated them at a table for two on the covered patio. A slight breeze helped keep it cool in the rising temperature, much to their relief.

"Eggs, pancakes, waffles?" Mike asked, perusing the menu.

"Definitely." Josh grinned.

Mike lifted an eyebrow. "All three?"

"Well, eggs and one of the others, with sausage on the side. I worked up an appetite."

"I'm going for the Texas French toast," Mike said. "Maybe a double order."

"Michael!"

"Joshua," Mike retorted with a grin.

Josh huffed, glad when the time came to see that Mike didn't make it a double order, although he, too, asked for sausage on the side. Josh decided on plain pancakes with two over-easy eggs on top. Both of them ordered juice and coffee, as well.

"What are your plans for this afternoon?" Mike asked when the waitress had left.

"Going through my office to get rid of all the things I don't need to keep when I move," Josh told him.

"Seriously? On a Sunday?"

"Yep. Our appointment with the lawyer is tomorrow at eleven thirty. As soon as we've signed the contract, since I cleared my calendar for the day, I want to clean out my new office and get things moved over."

"How many things?"

"The usual, I guess," Josh replied. "My desk and chairs, file cabinets. I have a couple of storage cabinets, too, for all my gear, and a bookshelf, though I might use one of the sets of shelves already in the office instead. The question is, where will we put the things that are in there already?"

"The banker's boxes hold old files. I can find space on one of the shelves in my office for them. Unless you can see a use for ten-year-old computers, I'll take them to a disposal place."

Josh nodded. "After you remove the hard drives."

"No kidding. The biggest problem will be the office supplies."

Josh closed his eyes, picturing the reception area. "I will bring my bookshelf. It should hold them all. We can move Rosie's desk out a little and set the shelf up behind it." When the waitress set down their coffees, he thanked her before continuing with his line of thought. "I haven't seen the lavatory. Is there any room in there for the cleaning supplies?"

Mike chuckled. "If you don't want to be able to turn around. I'm kidding," he said when Josh frowned. "If we pick up one of those shelf units that go over the john, we can store them there."

"That works. Is there anything else we're forgetting?"

"Not that I can think of, as long as we come up with a contract that works for both of us."

"I'm sure we will," Josh replied. "We both want this to happen."

Over breakfast, with Josh taking notes, they tweaked and finalized what they thought needed to be in the contract. By the time they'd finished eating, they were satisfied with the results. "Barring the lawyer wanting to add something he thinks we've missed," Josh pointed out.

"I didn't plan on this being a working breakfast," Mike said wryly, sipping his second cup of coffee.

"Me either, but we accomplished a lot, so it was worth it. The only other thing we need to consider is upgrading the security."

Mike grinned. "I bet you've already done that in your mind."

Josh grinned back. "Pretty much. I'll come up with a final plan and show you tomorrow. Since I can get stuff much cheaper from my supplier than from a shop, it won't break us. Hell, I've got some of it already—basic things I keep on hand."

"The gear you mentioned."

"Yep."

"Tell you what. Since you're going to be working on your old office this afternoon and probably more than just tossing stuff you don't need, I'll clean up your new one so it's ready for you to move into."

"You're sure you want to spend your Sunday afternoon doing that?"

"I'm sure," Mike replied. "The sooner we get everything set up, the better. After we meet with the lawyer, I'll get in contact with my webmaster to have him revamp the website. Then, we'll be in business."