Gavin felt strangely lighthearted. Ben had put him at ease the moment he’d shown up, and it turned out that there wasn’t a problem with Delicious’s numbers. On the contrary, Ben had wanted to talk to him about participating in an upcoming promotional campaign for the bank. And—in addition to giving Delicious some very welcome free publicity—it was also flattering to think that Ben had noticed him, even if it was purely for business.
“So what do you think?” Ben finally asked, the words accompanied by a charming smile that Gavin made a point not to notice.
“I’m definitely interested,” he said, feeling his cheeks heat with embarrassment as soon as the words left his mouth.
Good Lord, all the interest in his dating and sex life earlier—or lack thereof—was getting to him. Or maybe it was just the heady sense of being the object of Ben’s undivided attention after such a long dry spell.
Not that Gavin was under any illusions about that attention. As friendly as Ben was acting, the man was keeping things strictly professional. There hadn’t been anything about their lunch date so far to contradict Gavin’s original assessment of “straight,” further confirmed by the fact that Ben didn’t act like he’d heard any sort of innuendo in Gavin’s response.
“I was hoping you’d say that,” Ben answered easily, his smile growing. “I’m setting up the photo shoots over the next couple of weeks, so maybe we can compare schedules. I don’t want to interfere with your responsibilities at Delicious.”
“Don’t worry—” Gavin tensed at the interruption, instantly recognizing the voice. “—Gavin would never let that happen.”
Gavin hadn’t seen his ex in a year and a half—had barely thought of him for most of that time. How was it that the one time he needed to make a good impression, James suddenly popped out of the woodwork? James was wearing his hospital scrubs and had a take-out bag in his hand, and the face that Gavin had once thought was handsome was twisted into a sneer as his eyes darted between Gavin and Ben.
“What did you have to do to get him to leave that damn bakery long enough for an actual date?” James asked, directing the question at Ben. “Whatever it was, you’re wasting your time. Gavin may be good in bed, but trust me, outside it he’s boring as fuck.”
Gavin wanted to slap the man. A year and a half later, and he was still holding a grudge? They’d dated for nine months, during most of which Gavin had been working his ass off to secure financing and do the preliminary work required to open Delicious’s doors. James had been less than impressed with Gavin’s focused work ethic, and not even remotely patient about waiting around until he got his fledgling business off the ground enough to actually be able to take a breath. Honestly, James’s snarky resentment had made the whole process even more stressful than it should have been, and when they’d finally called it quits—Gavin’s much-overdue decision, not James’s—James had gone out of his way to make their split as messy as possible.
James smirked at him now, then pointedly turned his back to Gavin as he scribbled something on the corner of the paper sack in his hands and ripped it off, holding it out to Ben.
“If you ever get tired of waiting around for Gavin to get off work—which trust me, is not going to happen—feel free to give me a call,” James said.
Gavin opened his mouth to set his ex straight, but before he could, Ben pushed his chair back and took a step toward James. The move wasn’t exactly threatening, but with Ben’s height and the forbidding look that settled on his normally-friendly face, it also couldn’t be misinterpreted as welcoming, either.
“You misunderstand,” Ben said in a cold tone that Gavin wouldn’t have thought the affable man was capable of. “This is a business meeting. Which you are interrupting.”
James cleared his throat nervously, taking a step back and then straightening his shoulders defiantly once there was a little more space between them.
“Of course it is,” James said after a brief pause, throwing Gavin another accusing look.
God. Get over it.
James opened his mouth as if he were going to say something else, but then looked at Ben again and snapped it closed, settling for a contemptuous laugh instead. He mumbled something under his breath that Gavin was sure he was happier not to have caught, and then—thankfully—he left. Gavin let a breath out that he hadn’t realized he was holding, and as soon as Ben sat back down, he forced himself to speak through his embarrassment.
“I’m sorry about that. It was totally inappropriate. He’s my ex, obviously, and it didn’t end well.”
Now that James was gone, Ben’s face had lost the cold look that had come over it, but he still looked… odd. His eyes flickered over Gavin as if he were seeing him for the first time.
“You’re gay?” he finally asked, a split second before the silence turned awkward.
Gavin’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. He definitely wasn’t as flamboyant as his friend Danny, but his sexuality was no secret. He’d come out while he was still in high school, just after his father had died, and while being gay didn’t define him, he certainly made no attempt to hide it. Granted, to someone who wasn’t looking at him with any interest, maybe—well, okay… obviously, by Ben’s reaction—there was nothing about him that screamed “gay.” And Ben’s face still looked odd, which made Gavin’s stomach roil with enough disappointment that his answer came out more sharply than was probably smart.
“Yes,” he snapped. “Do you still want me?”
A red flush crept up Ben’s cheeks, instantly making Gavin regret his harsh tone.
“Gavin, I—I do like you,” Ben said before Gavin could apologize, sounding uncharacteristically nervous. The banker swallowed, grabbing for his water glass and taking a drink before continuing. “Obviously you’re very attractive, and I’ve really enjoyed our lunch, but, um, I’ve never been interested in men that way, and…”
Gavin’s earlier annoyance evaporated in the face of Ben’s misguided attempt to let him down easily, and his lip twitched, making him reach for his own water glass to avoid laughing. A flustered Ben was just a little too appealing, and as tempting as it was to draw the moment out and tease him a little, Gavin knew it wouldn’t be smart—either personally, or professionally.
“I meant for the bank’s promotional campaign,” Gavin said, jumping in to save the floundering banker as he put his glass back down. “Do you still want me to be a part of it, now that you know I’m gay?”
“Oh. Right,” Ben said, clearing his throat and unnecessarily straightening his silverware. “Sorry, I thought you meant… but, yes. Of course I do.” Without pausing for breath, Ben launched into some information about the photo shoot he wanted to set up, and Gavin nodded along, asking questions when appropriate and pulling out his phone to compare schedules as they set up the details.
And the whole time, he definitely wasn’t replaying in his mind the sound of that deep voice saying “I do like you.”
He was absolutely not remembering the little surge of pleasure that hearing “you’re very attractive” had given him.
As Gavin had already told Danny and Jeremy, there was no point in that. This was a working lunch, and Ben had just told him point-blank that he wasn’t interested. Ben was straight.
And that was fine, of course, because Gavin didn’t have time for that sort of thing anyway.
3
Ben
Ben’s brother, Will, ambled into his office and flopped into one of the plush chairs on the other side of his desk as Ben wrapped up his call with the photographer he’d booked for the upcoming promotional campaign. Will had a file in his hand, but Ben knew his brother well enough to recognize that whatever banking business it contained was just an excuse for Will to get out of his own office for a bit. Will ran the loan department for the bank—and did it well—but ever since they’d been kids, he’d worked best when he got a chance to stretch his legs in between bouts of focused attention. Ben grinned as he considered dragging the phone call out just to see how long it took for his broth
er’s restlessness to get the best of him, but Will easily interpreted the look on his face and tapped the file importantly to hurry him up.
Working with family could be both a blessing and a curse, but Ben wouldn’t have it any other way.
“How was lunch?” Will asked as soon as Ben hung up, setting the file aside and proceeding to ignore it completely.
Ben bit back a smile at his brother’s predictability. Will just wanted to chat.
“I expected you back earlier,” Will added, raising his eyebrows in a clear invitation for Ben to explain his uncharacteristic behavior.
Ben’s work days were usually planned down to the minute. He rarely deviated from his schedule, but somehow, today, he’d lost track of time. Even before Gavin’s ex-boyfriend had interrupted them, Ben had found himself wandering off-topic more than usual. Gavin was good company. Easy to get along with, with a quick mind and ready laugh that made the time pass all too quickly.
And then there had been the ex.
Ben wasn’t normally quick to anger, but for some reason the unwarranted verbal attack on his lunch partner had gotten his hackles up. And afterward, he hadn’t been able to stop looking at Gavin in a different light. Ben didn’t consider himself homophobic, but still, finding out Gavin was gay had definitely unsettled him. Not that he cared, one way or the other. It had just been a surprise. Like he’d told Gavin, he’d never been interested in men that way, but hearing another man talk about Gavin as “good in bed” had been… startling. It had drawn his attention to things that he wouldn’t have otherwise noticed. And despite the effort he’d made to stay on-topic for the remainder of their lunch, his traitorous brain hadn’t been able to stop picturing Gavin in the new context.
Picturing Gavin in bed.
“Ben?”
Will was fiddling with the leather cord he’d taken to wearing around his wrist, looking at him expectantly. Right. His brother had been fishing for details about Ben’s extended lunch.
“Sorry,” Ben said, feeling his face flush in embarrassment at the direction of his thoughts. Thank God Will couldn’t read his mind. “It went well. This was the last one, and everyone I’ve approached has agreed to be part of the campaign. We’ll start the photo shoots for the marketing flyers next week.”
“That’s great,” Will said. “Who did you meet with today?”
“Gavin Campbell,” Ben said, clearing his throat as he tried to banish the inappropriate thoughts that sprang to mind when he spoke the man’s name. “He’s a business client who owns—”
“Delicious,” Will threw out, grinning. “Emily loves that bakery. She wants to get our wedding cake done there, but apparently they don’t make them. It’s a solid business, though. His financials are impressive. Why did the lunch run late?”
“We were interrupted by an angry ex of his,” Ben said. The man had seemed like an asshole. Definitely not the type of person Ben liked picturing Gavin with. Not that it was his business, of course. “Someone who’s obviously having trouble letting go after a bad break up,” he added, frowning at the memory.
Will laughed, shaking his head as if he was in on some joke that Ben had missed.
“What?” Ben demanded, his frown twitching up toward a smile at his brother’s unexplained mirth.
“Of course you wouldn’t understand,” Will said, raising his eyebrows expectantly.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Ben asked, still not getting it.
“How could you? I’ve never seen you have any trouble letting go of your exes, Ben. Hell, you’ve never even had a bad break up, have you? The day I meet the girl you actually get emotionally invested in, let alone one who inspires actual jealousy—” Will snickered, as if the very idea was ridiculous, “—I’ll know love is in the air. That my big brother has finally met The One.”
Ben laughed, shaking his head. “Don’t hold your breath. You know I like the women I date, I just don’t think I’m wired for anything more intense. And maybe it’s a good thing, because I tell you, this guy today was a real douche. I’d hate to think of myself as someone who would react—”
Will’s brow furrowed in confusion. “What guy?” he asked, cutting Ben off.
“Gavin’s ex,” Ben said, an answer which didn’t clear up the look of confusion on his brother’s face. “Did you know he was gay?”
Will’s face closed down, and he shifted uncomfortably in his seat before answering with a negative shake of his head. “Gavin Campbell? Are you sure?” he asked, frowning. Before Ben could answer, he added an emphatic, “Jesus. I didn’t realize… I meet with him every quarter to go over his financials and make sure he’s in compliance with the terms of his loan. Do you think he knows I’m engaged? I mean, to a woman? He’s always been so friendly. I don’t—”
“Will,” Ben snapped, irritated by his brother’s reaction. “Get over yourself. His friendliness doesn’t mean he wants you, just because he’s gay.”
Will was right about one thing, though. Gavin had always been friendly. And thinking back, Ben couldn’t help wondering if what he’d just said to his brother was entirely true. Had there been more to the handsome bakery owner’s friendliness than Ben had ever realized? Would he even have recognized it if there had been? How did men flirt with each other, anyway?
God, he was as bad as Will.
What he really needed to do was stop dwelling on Gavin’s sexuality. He had no reason to think the other man was interested in him. Which meant that there was no need for any awkwardness between them, since Ben wasn’t interested in Gavin that way, either. And the fact that Ben kept thinking about it wasn’t surprising. Anyone would be curious when presented with new information about someone they thought they knew, and no one could argue that Gavin was an attractive man. Ben could definitely see how, if you went for that sort of thing, Gavin would be—
“I agree,” Will said, breaking into Ben’s thoughts.
“You what?” Ben asked crankily. His brother agreed that Gavin was attractive? He frowned, opening his mouth to chastise Will for his lack of professionalism if he was ogling their customers like that, but then he snapped it closed again, realizing that Will was responding to Ben’s earlier comment about Gavin’s friendliness, not—obviously—to his private thoughts.
“I made that mistake once before, and I still kind of feel like a dick about it,” Will was saying. “Do you remember Theo? From high school?”
Ben nodded. Theo and Will had played just about every sport their high school had offered together, if he remembered correctly. The outgoing boy had been a fixture at their family dinners for years.
“Are you two still in touch?” Ben asked, trying and failing to remember the last time he’d heard mention of his brother’s friend. “You were so close back then.”
“Nope,” Will said, popping the “p” sound on the word like he had when they were kids. “Theo came out as gay right after we graduated, and that pretty much ended our friendship. You were already away at OU when it happened, so maybe you didn’t hear. His family was pretty horrible about it, though, and Dad wasn’t much better.”
Ben grimaced. He could easily imagine their father’s reaction. The man probably didn’t even realize the extent of his own ingrained bigotry, but it had shown itself in a thousand little comments and unconscious actions over the years. It had always grated on Ben, and for some reason the thought of it now—even though Ben hadn’t really been close to Theo himself—made his stomach turn.
“Did Dad actually tell you to stop being friends with him?”
“No,” Will said, fidgeting with the file he’d set aside earlier. “He didn’t really have to. I admit I didn’t handle it well, but the whole thing just freaked me out.” Will looked up, going on the defensive when he saw the look on Ben’s face. “Do you know how many times we showered next to each other? And all those times he slept over? The idea that he’d been gay the whole time was just too weird.”
“So… what? Theo told you he’d secretly been in love wi
th you and you just dropped him, as if your years of friendship had meant nothing?” Ben would have expected better from his brother, and he knew his question had come out with all the censure he was feeling. But Will deserved it.
“Look, I already said I was a bit of a dick about it,” Will snapped, crossing his arms. “He never said he was in love with me, it wasn’t like that. It just weirded me out, okay? I’m sorry if that’s not PC enough for you, but it’s the truth. And anyway, if Gavin Campbell is gay, you might want to rethink using him for this campaign. You know Dad wouldn’t like that.”
Ben’s lips tightened. Even though he normally got along well with his brother, at the moment Will was coming dangerously close to pissing him off. And Ben just didn’t do pissed off. Somehow the whole afternoon felt like it had spun out of control.
“That’s not going to happen,” he said, knowing the words came out harder than he’d intended. “You’re probably right about Dad, but it’s not his call. There’s no way I’m giving Gavin up, now that he’s said yes. He’s perfect for this campaign. He’s one of our most loyal customers. He’s got all his accounts with us; business, personal, and investment. He constantly refers new business to the bank. He’s a successful entrepreneur. I have no doubt that he’s going to look good in the marketing pieces, because you can tell just by looking at him that he’s photogenic as hell. And even if none of that had been true, I would never let this bank discriminate against one of our own customers out of an outdated, narrow-minded, morally reprehensible bias.”
“Jesus, Ben, you’re pretty worked up about this,” Will said, giving a nervous laugh as he tipped his chair back, leaning away from Ben’s desk.
The move made Ben realize that he’d risen to his feet, raising his voice as he’d defended his decision.
“If I didn’t know better, I’d have to question why you’re so passionate about this guy,” Will added with a half-hearted attempt at teasing innuendo.
“And I’d have to question why you’re so fucking insecure about gay people,” Ben snapped, ignoring the way his brother’s eyes widened at his uncharacteristic profanity.
The Delicious Series: The First Volume Page 25