President-elect Trump will hold a second meeting with Mitt Romney this week to discuss the position of secretary of state, much to the chagrin of some in his circle who have said Romney is undeserving of the top diplomatic post.

The follow-up meeting is slated for Tuesday at Trump Tower, according to transition officials, nearly two weeks after the incoming Republican president and Vice President-elect Mike Pence first met with Romney at Trump national golf club in Bedminster, N.J.

"The president-elect is really taking these meetings very seriously," the officials told reporters Monday. "He wants to be sure he's making the absolute best decision for all of these positions where folks may be joining the administration."

Trump's continued outreach to his former foe suggests Romney remains under active consideration to head the State Department, even as those closest to the president-elect have expressed sharp disapproval of the former GOP nominee in recent days.

Top Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway has made an unusual decision to go public with her criticism of Romney.

"I'm all for party unity, but I'm not sure we have to pay for that with the secretary of state position," Conway said during a Sunday interview with CNN's Dana Bash.

"It's just breathtaking in scope and intensity the type of messages I've received from all over the country ... the number of people who feel betrayed to think that Gov. Romney would get the most prominent Cabinet post after he went so far out of his way to hurt Donald Trump."

Rep. Chris Collins, R-N.Y., the first sitting member of Congress to endorse Trump during the GOP primary, described Romney as a "self-serving egomaniac" on Monday.

"I mean, there's no love lost between me and Mitt Romney. I've called him a loser for the last six months," Collins told CNN.

Transition officials declined to offer details about the meeting set for Tuesday, nor would they say whether Trump has inched any closer to announcing who he's chosen to be the nation's top diplomat.

"With the case of Gov. Romney, the two hadn't spent that much time together, so this gives them a little more time to do so," officials told reporters.

Trump is also slated to meet with Gen. David Petraeus on Monday. The former CIA director is also rumored to be a contender for secretary of state or Pentagon chief.