I am not lonely [Mystrade]

CHAPTER 126 : Surprise diner

"Gregory ! What owe me the pleasure of this call ?" Mycroft cheerfully picked up the call, recognizing his partner's number.
"Oho, how does it come that you are so joyful on a Thursday afternoon ?" wondered the policeman, quite astonished.
"Can't I be happy when my gorgeous husband call me ?" the auburn retorted, his smile hearable over the line.
"Let me see hmm ... I would say yes only if I haven't heard earlier today that a certain Simon Malvert  had been fired from the SIS ..." the detective chuckled, lazily drawing  a couple of little monsters on his note pad as he was speaking.
"Meh ... We can't even pretend ..." the official moaned, clearly not sounding that cross either. "So, what's the matter ?"
"Life is a bastard innit ?" the yarder laughed. "Well, I had Molly in my office a couple of minutes ago and she invited us for diner at her place tonight. I suppose that due to the cheerful mood of yours, you will be able to attend ?"
"Oh, nice of her ... Well, as she specified a time ?" the elder Holmes wondered.
"Seven-ish ?" his boyfriend answered, turning on his chair to face the view on the Thames his new office was offering him.
"Uhu,  I have a meeting to attend until seven at the Cabinet Office but it  shouldn't last to long over that time so, yeah, I may be a bit late, but  make it 7.30 and I'll be there." Mycroft accepted, writing it down on  his notebook.
"Brilliant ! Molly will be delighted. She said she had  something to say to us." Greg smiled as a rapid boat was passing in  front of his windows.
"Really ? Can't wait ..." the official chuckled.
"Stop  that, it's not polite to laugh at someone like this !" the DCI tutted  him, only half-serious. "Is that ... Is that a baby giggling I'm hearing in the background ?"
"A  baby ? What baby ? I'm at work, why would you want me to have a baby at  work ?" quickly replied the elder Holmes, too quickly for it not being a  lie.
"Mycroft Holmes, you are a terrible liar. Who is this baby belonging to ? Give it back to his parents now !" the yarder laughed.
"Alright,  it's Grace ..." the auburn admitted. "Her nanny is sick so Anthea had  to bring her to work and as the rest of the Diogene Club is devoted to  silence I had to let her take her space in my office ..."
"And you love that. That's why you are so happy at the moment, uhu ..." the inspector finished the sentence. "No more Malvert, your goddaughter in the same room than you for the all day, a dinner with a friend tonight. Of course, you are cheerful ...."
"And  a call of the most gorgeous and clever man on earth, don't forget that  ..." the official remarked, a small grin plastered on his face.
"Flatterer."  Greg retorted. "Well, everyone haven't got the opportunity to spend the  day playing with a baby and calling that work, needa go. See you tonight ?"
"You are unfair, I do work too." the elder Holmes chuckled. "See you tonight darling. Stay safe."
"Love  you." the policeman replied before hanging up the call and texting  Molly that both of them would be able to attend that night's diner.

"Good evening Molly." Mycroft smiled as the woman opened the door of her flat for him.
"Hello, come in !"" the young post-mortem invited him in. "So how was your day as a nanny ?"
"Oh no, he  haven't told you that, have he ?" the official sighed. "I wasn't being a  nanny, I just happened to have a baby in my office for the day."
"That looks pretty much like the exact definition of a nanny to me." Greg intervened from the nearby living room.
"Shut up you !" the auburn chuckled. "Just so you know, her mother was just the other side of the door."
"There is nothing bad in the fact of having loved spending your day with your goddaughter you know ..." Molly teased him before leading him to the living room
To Mycroft greatest  surprise, Gregory wasn't alone sat in the dark blue couch. Another  youngish, with dark blonde curly hair and chocolate eyes was sat beside  him, his leg elegantly crossed in front of him. The said man turned  around to face the official and gave him a large, polite smile before  standing up and offering his hand to the man.
"Good evening, I'm Josh. Josh Green." he introduced himself.
"Uh  ... Hmm, Nice to meet you Josh. I'm Mycroft Holmes." the auburn replied,  still a little surprised, his eyes scanning the young man from head to  toe.
"Molly told me everything about you, very impressive sir." Josh retorted enthusiastically before sitting back in the couch.
"Really ? Well thank you." the elder Holmes wondered, quite flattered. "So, what are you doing for a living ?"
"I'm a laboratory assistant at Barts hospital since a couple of months. I was in Manchester before that." the young man smiled.
"Oh, that explain the accent." Greg grinned. "Do you like London than ?"
"Terribly." Josh nodded. "Actually I always wanted to live here but after my degree I didn't found a job here immediately."
"And you've found a flat in London ?" the yarder continued, grabbing a couple of crisps from a bowl on the coffee table.
"No,  not really, I'm in Kingston-Upon-Thames actually. Can't afford a flat  in the city centre ..." the laboratory assistant sighed.
"Talk to me about that. I used to live in Croydon ... Not near either." the detective nodded.
"And where do you live now, if you don't mind me asking ?" Josh wondered, taking a sip of his wine.
"No, go on, ask away, don't worry." Greg smiled. "Thanks to this man, I've found a pretty decent accommodation in Kensington Palace Garden."
"Isn't that the most expensive street in Britain ?" questioned the young man, gobsmacked.
"The  most expensive I don't know but it must be something like that yes."  the inspector nodded before glancing a look at his partner who had  stayed incredibly silent for the last minutes.
He didn't needed a long time to understand that the auburn was deducing all what he could from the man sat in front of him in the most Holmesians manner and as much as it could sometime be really useful, there it was just very rude. The yarder discreetly swung his foot into his boyfriend's shin-bone to interrupt him.
The  auburn suddenly regain consciousness of where he was and with who and  despite what he had just deduced he tried to concentrate on what was  going on and pushed his thought away. Of course, he could read the  reproof in his husband's eyes but as soon as he pouted his lips as an  apology, he could see those same eyes shinning again.

The dinner was spent talking about mainly about Josh and what he wanted to do with his life, although  the subject of Alden was also raised a few times, mostly by Molly who  was awfully curious as always about the little boy new passion and  prowesses. Even if the toddler hadn't been baptised, it was quite  obvious to anyone who would have spent a few minutes around them than  the young woman had filled up quite easily for the part of the godmother  and everyone seemed quite satisfied with this arrangement.
As they were leaving Molly's flat and making their way back to the detective's car in the parking lot, Greg  couldn't help but remarked that his partner was back in his thought,  looking completely unconcerned by whatever was going out around him. He  waited until they were sat in the car before actually calling him back in the present.
"Hey hey, hello the moon, here is the earth ..." he gently whispered in the man's ear.
"Hmm ?" Mycroft emerged from his own mind. "You've said something ?"
"What  is going on in this funny mind of yours for you to allow yourself to be  caught off-guard ?" the policeman chuckled lightly, exiting the car  park.
"I don't have any guards up when I'm with you." the auburn tried to divert his boyfriend's attention.
"Tut tut tut ... Answer the question would you ?" the detective scolded him gently. "What have you deduced about Josh ?"
"Why  would I have deduced anything ?" the elder Holmes replied before  catching the 'bullshit' look his husband was throwing him. "Alright, he  seems to be a very nice guy ..."
"But ?" Gregory wondered, a little grin on his face.
"Do you really want to hear that ?" Mycroft moaned, apparently quite annoyed by what he was to say.
"Yep. And don't you dare not tell me the truth Mr Holmes." the inspector nodded.
"I  don't think he is the one for Molly. And deep inside him he knows it  too." the official sighed, apparently annoyed with that fact.
"I forbid you of saying it to Molly." immediately reacted the yarder. "She is very keen on him, don't spoil her happiness."
"I  wasn't going to !" the auburn protested. "I just think it's sad that  she is that keen as you say on someone that once again gonna break her  heart. She deserves better ..."
"I  know, but what can you do ? You are not able to guide her heart toward  the good boys, are you ? Lets at least allow her to enjoy a few months  of happiness no ?" Greg agreed as they were waiting at a crossline.
"Weeks." the elder Holmes corrected.
"Oh shit ... Why does it always end up like that ?" the detective remarked, seemingly concerned.
"She've  got too much of a good heart and a way too much romantic mind. But who  knows, one day she might find the good one ..." Mycroft philosophised,  looking by the window at the city's lights.
"But she is already 36 ..." the policeman remarked, still looking quite concerned.
"May  I remind you I was already over my forties when I started dating you ?"  the auburn remarked, facing his partner and raising an eyebrow as he  was doing so.
"Hum ... I suppose you are right ... Still, it annoys me ..." the DCI agreed.
"You'd be a bad friend if it didn't. Tho,  there is nothing you can do for the moment so maybe the best is just to  let it go and hope I'm mistaking." the younger man concluded as they  were pulling on Kensington Palace Garden.