Marriage Contract

by A J Sherwood

  Aleks was either oblivious to the vivid blush or was choosing to ignore it. “Kizomba—actually most samba and tango—is all about the hips. So loosen up, don’t be so stiff. Now, step back, good, right, forward, there you go. See, it’s a box shape. No biggie, right?”

  Oddly enough true. Harris had felt sure if he ever stepped on a dance floor, he’d prove to have two left feet, but it hadn’t happened. He put it down to Aleks—the man led with confidence and Harris followed instinctively, not having the time to overthink or second guess things.

  Aleks led them in half-turns, shifting perspective as they moved, and his hands drifted down to Harris’s hips. “Shift those hips, there you go. Take half-steps around my feet, use your hips to turn yourself back to me. Yeah, exactly like that.”

  He grew in confidence as one song passed and he didn’t step on the man’s feet. With the basic steps learned, Aleks drew him closer, so their cheeks were pressed together, the man’s stubble creating tingles with every brushing movement. Harris felt every breath against his ear, heard every whispered instruction, all with the man’s hips brushing against his stomach on a regular basis. He still felt nervous, sure he’d screw it up, but at the same time the whole dance turned dream-like. It felt like, for once, he was in a space where nothing could go wrong. Harris could enjoy the man in his arms, the dance itself, and it would all be alright.

  Harris caught from the corner of his eye another girl also doing the kizomba style with her partner. She hooked a leg in between the man’s for a moment at a sharp angle, then pulled it back to do a rather sexy hip twist. Harris had no confidence he could pull that off, but the leg hook looked doable. He tentatively tried it, then paused, startled as Aleks caught his ankle and lifted it a few inches higher, sharpening the angle.

  “Yes, good,” Aleks murmured, sounding infinitely pleased. “You’re picking this up quickly. Who said you can’t dance?”

  “Me,” Harris answered honestly, pulling back a few inches to smile up at him. “But I’d never tried before tonight, either.”

  “You should have. Alright, you feeling comfortable?”

  Something about the mischievous way Aleks asked sparked his suspicions. “I’m not sure if I should answer that…why?”

  Aleks grinned down at him, expression all devil. “Because the guy who was hitting on you is staring like he’s trying to figure out how to cut in. Let’s sexy this up a bit.”

  Sexy…uh…Harris had no confidence he could do that. “Um, how?”

  “Hips,” Aleks purred in his ear. “Put those hips right against mine and make it clear you can’t be peeled off me.”

  That was a tall order. Harris gulped and did his best, leaning in a little more even as Aleks slowed them down a half-beat. Each turn and press of their chests became that bit more sensual. Heat poured off Aleks, burning Harris wherever they touched, and his forehead pressed against the man’s jaw, a strong arm wrapped around his back and lingering near his waistline. From the outside, it must seem a strong gesture of possession. To Harris, it only felt like protection.

  Well, and affection. Aleks hummed under his breath, a sure sign he was quite pleased. Harris didn’t spy the guy from earlier in the crowd. He honestly wasn’t looking too hard for him, either. He was perfectly willing to keep dancing and not break the moment. A smile slowly bloomed over his face as he sank more fully into the dance, enjoying the occasional spin Aleks turned him into.

  Aleks tilted his head and Harris looked up automatically. He almost froze at the look in those dark eyes. There was heat there. Heat and curiosity, as if Harris had just done something unexpected, and Aleks didn’t know how to react in turn. He almost pulled back, stopped the dance altogether, but Aleks firmed his grip on him. Pulled him back into the beat of the music.

  “Dance with me, Harris,” Aleks breathed above his mouth, and the words felt like a kiss. “Just dance with me.”

  Swallowing hard, Harris gave an almost imperceptible nod. And danced.

  Now

  Aleks

  Aleks frowned down at his phone. Harris was late—a rare thing—and it worried him. It never boded well when Harris was late. He’d called twice now and not gotten a response and that was worrisome, too. Harris always had his phone on him.

  His business partner sauntered into the office and set her hip against the edge of his desk as if she owned it. “Where’s our wunderkind?”

  “I’m not sure,” Aleks answered, frown deepening. “I can’t reach him.”

  Connie tapped her nails against her thigh, lips pursed. “That’s not good. Last time he went MIA, he was down with the flu for two weeks. Surely he’s not that bad sick again?”

  “No, even then he’d sent a text in,” Aleks corrected slowly. “A text that didn’t make any sense, granted, but something. This time, nothing. And it’s nearly nine. I think I’m going to head over to his place.”

  “You wouldn’t do that for any other employee,” Connie noted in that irritating manner she had. On the surface, it was non-judgmental, just an observation. In truth, she was judging the hell out of him.

  Aleks lifted his eyes to meet hers, not in the mood to put up with her shit. “I think it’s very obvious by now he’s not just an employee to me.”

  A smirk lifted her mouth at the corners. “I wondered if you’d admit to it.”

  He never won an argument with Connie. Aleks wasn’t about to start one now. He left his desk and headed for his jacket. It was cold enough to warrant one at the moment, an unseasonable taste of winter biting. One sleeve on, his phone rang and he lifted it immediately, relieved to see Harris’s name on the screen. He thumbed accept and answered, “Harris. Where the hell are you? You okay?”

  “Aleks.”

  That one word and Aleks froze, alarm barreling through him. Harris was breathy and panicked sounding. Not good. “Talk to me, Harris.”

  “He’s found me. I’m not sure exactly how.”

  Merda. Aleks had half-feared this day would come. He’d never gotten the full story out of Harris about what he was running from. Now seemed a terrible time to realize he didn’t have any of the facts. “Harris, can you come to me?”

  “I don’t…I don’t know if I can. He hired a PI, so I put an alert on the PI. The man just touched down in Nashville. I don’t know how much he knows. He could have my address, the office’s address, I don’t know, Idon’tknow—”

  “Shh, breathe. Breathe. You tell me where you think it’s safe to meet. I’ll come get you, okay? We’ll work through this.”

  “Aleks.” Harris sounded on the verge of tears. “You don’t know how much trouble this will bring on your head. I ran for a reason. He’s…he’s worse than a bulldog. He doesn’t know how to give up and he’ll beat at you until he gets his way. I don’t want him to hurt you, and he will, I know he will.”

  “Bem,” Aleks soothed. “Trust me. I knew you were running from your family the first day. I suspected this day would come. I still took you on. Trust me, please? Tell me where you are.”

  Harris breathed, the sound rough and harsh, part-panic, part-tears.

  “Please,” Aleks begged. If Harris disappeared now, it would be nigh impossible to find him again. Aleks knew it in his gut. He liked him too much to lose him.

  Another taut moment of silence as Harris thought, and then he sighed gustily, “I’m parked in front of the Floor & Décor off Bell Road.”

  Aleks blinked, thrown for a momentary loop. “Why the hell are you there?”

  “Last place anyone would look for me,” Harris answered dryly.

  He had him there. Aleks barked out a short laugh even as he juggled phone, jacket, and office door. “I’m coming. You stay there. We’ll figure this out.”

  Connie followed hot on his heels and leaned over his shoulder to say towards the phone: “I’m coming too, Harris. Whatever is chasing you, we’ll get it to stop.”

  “Tell her thanks. And I’ll stay put, promise. I’ve got a short window, I think. Maybe an hour until
he starts knocking on doors.”

  “Stay on the phone with me while I drive. Just in case.” Aleks felt Harris was a flight risk right now. He didn’t want to risk losing contact with him at this juncture.

  Nashville traffic at nine in the morning wasn’t too bad. Most people were at work with only the stragglers still making their way in. It meant he wasn’t crawling while trying to navigate to Antioch and reach the store just off Bell Road. Aleks was incredibly grateful, as he’d be sure to fall into road rage in his current mood. He absolutely had to get to Harris now.

  Harris drove a Honda Civic, white, like a million other Honda Civics on the road. It was a practical vehicle and Aleks had known from the day Harris drove up in it that the choice of car had nothing to do with the gas mileage. Harris did everything he could to be anonymous, to blend right in with the scenery. Part of it was likely his own introverted personality. Aleks lay the rest of it on the man’s fear.

  The car was parked at the back of the lot, under the tree-lined side. Aleks parked next to it and wasted no time in getting out. Harris slid out as well, both arms wrapped around his chest as if he were trying to hold himself together. There was absolutely no color in his face, his normally animated body language locked down tightly. Mannequins had more expression compared to Harris just then.

  Aleks knew American culture didn’t really hug all that much, but he’d grown up in a Brazilian community, and he frankly didn’t subscribe to this whole personal space thing. Especially now, when Harris needed comfort so desperately. He went right up to him, gathering him up into a strong embrace, and didn’t let go. Harris sighed, breath jittering, and sank into the hold by degrees.

  Connie came up to stand next to them, her own hand on Harris’s shoulder. She gave them a minute, although the way she watched Harris hinted she knew at least part of what was going on.

  Drawing back a little, Harris met his eyes, then hers before he swallowed hard and stared somewhere off to the left. “You said you knew from day one I was running away. Did you ever figure out my real name?”

  “I didn’t look,” Aleks admitted frankly. “I was waiting for you to tell me.”

  Harris laughed and there was no humor in the sound. “It never would have happened. I wanted that past dead and gone. I wanted to be Harris Jones, and nothing more.”

  If he needed to look away, if that was easier to do than face Aleks, he’d let him. Aleks couldn’t cast any aspirations against him. He still didn’t know what Harris was running from. “Who are you, bem?”

  “Elliott Vanlandingham.”

  It took more than second to click. Connie whistled lowly, getting it instantly. Vanlandingham…Vanlandingham… “VanTech?”

  “Yeah.” Harris finally met his eyes and there was so much pain there, such resignation, Aleks almost wished he hadn’t. “I’m Robert Vanlandingham’s son. Before I left, I was the main coder for all his security programs.”

  A cold fury seeped into Aleks’s blood. He could do the math in his head well enough. VanTech had come out with the ultimate security software roughly six years ago. That’s when he’d first been pestered by Larry to buy it, at least. Four years ago he’d finally caved. “It’s entirely your program? You’re telling me you’ve been working on this since you were ten?”

  “More like twelve. I really am eighteen. But yeah.” Harris—Elliott? Aleks didn’t know how to address him now. He looked already half-resigned, as if this news was enough to turn Connie and Aleks somehow against him.

  “That’s why he’s desperate to have you back. There’ve been no updates and limited support on that program since you disappeared. No one else could take over for you?” Connie inquired. She had her thinking cap on. Aleks was a little scared to ask what plan she was concocting.

  “He pays his programmers shit,” Harris explained on a long exhale. “Only new college graduates or shitty programmers take interviews with the company. Anyone trying to touch my coding will just screw it up. It’s why he locked me into working for him. He wrote a contract when I was fourteen, saying I had to work exclusively for him until I was twenty-five.”

  Aleks spluttered a protest. “Contracts for minors aren’t legally enforceable!”

  “They are if the parents sign on behalf of the child,” Harris denied hollowly. “And my mother certainly isn’t going to protest it. I was the cash cow. It’s why I had to run. I was locked into working for that maniac without any way to legally fight him. I had no money, no way to hire an attorney, and I was seventeen when I bolted. I couldn’t fight him on my own anyway.”

  “You’re still in a position where no one can legally fight in the courts for you,” Connie observed, and she stared at Aleks as if he somehow hinged in her plan. “At least, no one in the right position is willing to.”

  Technically, Harris could fight for himself now. He was eighteen, able to fight that contract. Aleks knew he wouldn’t be able to do it. He didn’t have the right personality for a long, drawn-out fight. He’d rather run, avoid conflict altogether. He was already half- convinced he’d lose any court battle. And maybe he would. It would take a very, very good lawyer to get past the army of legal counsel VanTech likely had on staff.

  Harris needed someone solidly in his court. Someone who legally had the right to fight his battles with him, someone who could support him when his will flagged, someone with the financial means for a protracted battle.

  The answer came to him in a blazing rush and Aleks gave himself three seconds to really think about it. Three seconds was all he needed. “Connie, give us a second.”

  “Sure.” She smiled at him, smug as the Cheshire cat, and sauntered over to the other side of his truck.

  He had a suspicion she knew what he’d say next. Aleks decided to deal with her later and focused on Harris. He cupped Harris’s face with both hands, tilting his own head down slightly to meet Harris’s eyes. Harris still looked entirely too pale. “Harris. I’ve got an idea. You’re going to think I’m crazy.”

  Harris smiled, and for the first time during this conversation, it was a real smile. “Aleks, I normally think you’re crazy. Hit me.”

  “I think we should get married.”

  Harris’s hazel eyes shot wide. His jaw dropped so fast it was a miracle it didn’t dent the pavement. After a long second, he croaked, “That’s a new level of cray-cray even for you.”

  “Hear me out. I think this will work. It’ll give you a person in your corner. I can legally help you fight your father off if I’m your husband. I can afford a good attorney, too. You’ll have the support you need to stand your ground.”

  His jaw slowly came back to its socket as he stared searchingly at Aleks. He studied him as if he’d never seen the man before. “And what do you get out of it?”

  “You. I’m not letting you go without a fight,” Aleks answered, then cleared his throat as that’d come out huskier than he’d intended. “You’re dear to me. You know that. I won’t let you go back to that monster.”

  Harris’s eyes turned bright with unshed tears. “You really are crazy.” He closed in abruptly, hugging Aleks tightly around the waist, his hands clenching in the back of his shirt. Against Aleks’s shoulder he whispered, “Thank god for it, too.”

  Aleks held him firmly in return, feeling like his heart had grown three sizes too large for his chest. Harris’s slight form shook, just a little, from fear or nerves or something else. He never knew he could feel so protective of a human being until this moment. Against soft, ashy brown hair, he asked softly, “Is that a yes?”

  “Yes.”

  Knowing how he felt when trapped in a situation, Aleks felt it only prudent to add, “After this whole thing is settled, we’ll annul it. But live with me in the meantime, okay?”

  Harris froze for a split second and then forcibly relaxed, nodding against Aleks’s chest. “Okay.”

  He didn’t sound entirely happy, for some reason. Well, there was little about this situation to be happy about. “Answer two questions for
me. Harris Jones, is that a legal name or…?”

  “Legal. I changed my name. I kinda had to hide it in the system, though, so he couldn’t track me down.”

  “Can you get married under that name?”

  “Yeah, but won’t it look odd if I do that and then we file against him in a court of law?”

  “It probably will. But that’s your legal name, so I say we get married with that name. We’ll get a lawyer to straighten it out when it comes time to start the lawsuit.”

  Harris nodded and drew in a deep breath. “What about your family?”

  “They’ll understand when I explain it to them. What have you got on you?”

  “Essentials: paperwork, ID, laptop, and three changes of clothes.”

  That sounded like an EVAC bag. Aleks’s heart bled a little more with the realization Harris had always been ready to run. For the past year. “Good enough for the moment. Let’s go get married.”

  Harris

  The phrase ‘felt like I was on a tilt-a-whirl and fell off’ was an understatement in Harris’s case. He’d been on the tilt-a-whirl. Then someone put a supersonic jet on it, forgot to lock down the platform, and he went spinning off into unending space. Harris would not be surprised if he woke up from a coma, that’s how out-of-body this whole experience had been.

  He was married. To his boss. One of his closest friends. He even had a simple gold wedding band, because Aleks had maintained it wasn’t right to be married without the rings. And his backpack and duffle were now in Aleks’s apartment, on the coffee table, as Harris stared dazedly down at them.

  He was married.

  He was. Married.

  Married.

  Nope, didn’t matter how many times he said it, still wasn’t sinking in.

  It didn’t matter that it wasn’t real. It didn’t matter that Aleks had every intention of annulling the marriage when it wasn’t necessary to protect Harris anymore. He’d been crushing on Aleks for months now and he was suddenly married to the man and…and…Harris blew out a low breath.