Bound by Variables

Chapter 2

Two weeks had passed since Paul first tossed the absurd idea into the apartment living room, and William found himself sitting across from him at a dimly lit bar. The week had been long, tedious, and filled with family lectures and endless business pressures.

"Hey, Herb, I'll have a Moscow mule today. It's been a shitty week at work," Paul said, leaning back in his chair.

"And what would you like, Mr. Oswald?" Herb asked politely.

"Whiskey, neat. With lemons," William replied, letting out a tired sigh.

Herb nodded and left to prepare the drinks, leaving the two friends alone for a rare moment.

Paul grinned as he watched him. "Heard your grandfather gave you a sermon again today."

William frowned, looking up sharply. "How did you even hear that?"

"Who do you think?" Paul replied casually.

William shook his head, a smirk tugging at his lips despite himself. "Sometimes I think you're her son rather than me."

Paul laughed. "You can't blame Linda. I have better fashion sense than you."

William chuckled, but the sound faded quickly under the weight of the week.

"Seems like it was serious this time, huh?" Paul asked, leaning forward slightly.

William let out a long breath. "You know how he is. He thinks I need to be the perfect heir because my father ruined our reputation when he was alive. I can't wait to take over and get out from under his thumb."

Paul nodded sympathetically. "Whew. Sounds stressful."

Herb returned with their drinks, setting them carefully on the table.

"Here are your drinks, gentlemen," he said.

"Thanks, Herb. Tell little Sarah I said happy birthday!" Paul added with a grin.

Herb smiled. "Will do, Mr. Dennis."

William shook his head slightly, amusement flickering across his face. "Your social networking is really something. How do you remember all these things?"

"That's a gift I was born with," Paul said with a shrug. "And let's be real, that's the only reason I could convince you to be my friend."

William laughed outright this time, the tension easing a little.

"Now that I've lightened the mood," Paul continued, his grin widening, "what do you think about my proposition?"

William raised an eyebrow. "What proposition?"

"The one where you and Leo get married."

William blinked at him. "I thought you were joking..."

"All jokes aside, I don't think it's going well for her in her office," Paul said seriously. "That Steven guy really seems to like latching onto people he doesn't agree with and making their lives hell."

William whistled softly. "Yikes. That bad, huh?"

"Yeah. And honestly, I think you two will be good together. Even platonically."

"You're kidding, right? Have you seen that woman? She's so stiff and rigid that sometimes I wonder if she's a robot impersonating a person."

Paul rolled his eyes. "Oh, please. Let me be the dramatic one in our relationship. And that's just because you don't know her that well. I agreed to room with her, remember? And she's survived living with me for three years now. That should tell you something."

William was silent, contemplating, his eyes lingering on the amber swirl in his glass.

Paul leaned back, softening slightly. "And... honestly, you can trust her. I know how much you hate the idea of marriage after the dog-shit show that was your dad, but I think you'll be okay if it was with her. Again, I'm not going to force you into this, but don't rule it out."

William sighed, swirling the whiskey in his glass. "I'll consider it. For your sake, at least. Anyway... you watched the match last night?"

Paul smirked, the topic already shifting away from heavy discussions and back into their usual banter.