Desperate for Love

by Aliana James

  “Is this about helping me? I told you it’ll be fine. Tyler’s okay.”

  Alec shook his head. He wanted badly to argue that point. Tyler was not fine. Travis was not fine. Neither would accept his help.

  “So, I have a problem.”

  Travis relaxed and gestured for him to continue.

  “Remember this morning when you asked me why I got hammered last night?”

  Travis nodded, a weird look on his face. Before he could ask what was wrong, the waitress came with their entrées. The smell of bacon and french fries made his stomach growl. He grabbed the ketchup and poured a glob on his fries.

  “You gentlemen need anything else?” she asked.

  “No, thank you,” Alec answered. He studied Travis, his face in his food. “So, I met with my grandfather yesterday and he’s changing the way we handle the business.”

  Travis picked up his glass and paused before he took a drink. “Oh, God, what did your father do now?”

  Alec took a huge bite of his burger. The flavor burst on his tongue, and he groaned.

  “Huh, funny you should mention him. He got arrested by the Mexican government as part of some sting operation.”

  Travis slapped a hand over his mouth, eyes wide. “Sorry. What?”

  “You heard me. No more access to the family funds or properties. In fact, grandfather cut off everyone’s access not just my father’s.”

  Travis caught the eyes of the waitress. “Can I have more soda, please?”

  “Sure thing, sugar.” The waitress left to refill his drink. Travis dug into his sandwich and finished half of it before she returned with his refill. Hard to imagine sitting around a hospital all damn day could work up an appetite. Alec took another bite of his burger and dipped his french fry in ketchup.

  “Just like that? So what does that mean for you?” Travis asked.

  “That doesn’t bother me too much. I don’t need my trust fund or additional shares in the company. That’s not the worst of it though.”

  Travis pushed his plate away. “I’m about to lose my appetite, aren’t I? Please tell me you don’t have to reconcile with your father or any bullshit like that.”

  It didn’t occur to him that there was a worse punishment. Funny how getting married looked more promising by the hour.

  “I have to get married otherwise I can’t work for Bennett.”

  “Damn. What is he thinking? You’ve done so much since you took over construction. You love that job. I remember you telling me about the community center project.”

  The community center would rival the best and hold a computer center, an Olympic-size swimming pool, and various meeting rooms for group activities. It would be an amazing place for kids to go after school, to be with their friends or to make new ones. If he didn’t manage the project, it wouldn’t get completed.

  “My father for the win, once again! No other way around it except to get married.”

  Travis’s eyes opened wide. “So you’re actually thinking about going through with it. Makes sense, I guess, since that job is your whole life.”

  His grandfather had said the same thing. He looked around the diner and almost laughed. Not the fanciest place for a marriage proposal. Truthfully, this didn’t qualify as a proposal. More like a business proposition.

  Tyler needed his help, and that didn’t give him time to wait or to sugarcoat his request. Best to lay it all out and see what happened.

  “Definitely considering it. I need someone to marry me until my grandfather retires or God forbid dies. But it has to be someone believable.” He leaned forward and lowered his voice. “Grandfather won’t live forever, and let’s face it, there are perks to marrying into the Bennett family.”

  “What do you mean someone believable? You’re not talking about marrying a woman. You’ve been out. Wait, were you?”

  “No, I want a husband. It has to be someone already in my life, who’s been around my family that way no one would contest it.” Alec raised his eyebrows and looked at Travis. Travis paused and scrunched up his lips. He saw the minute Travis figured out what he was suggesting.

  “No, not happening. No way.” Travis waved his hands in front of his face.

  “Wait, listen.” Alec grabbed his hand and held it. “It would only be for a year or two. I can help you and Tyler.”

  Travis snatched his hand away, grabbed the check off the table, and fumbled through his wallet. “Oh my God, you really don’t think I can handle this,” he stated as his hand knocked into his glass. Alec reached out to right it before it spilled.

  “You wouldn’t have to work two jobs.” Desperation started to creep into his voice. “I would protect Tyler from whatever mess he’s involved in with his gambling. It’s for Tyler, Travis.”

  Travis threw two twenties on top of the check on the table.

  “Alec Bennett to save the day. Why am I not surprised? Have you lost your fucking mind?” Travis’s voice rose as he slammed the glass on the table. The people in the neighboring booths turned to stare at them. Travis lowered his voice. “We’d have to act married, Alec. What would we do then?” His face turned a shade of pink as a blush formed on his cheeks. “This… this suggestion or whatever you want to call it wouldn’t work.” Travis slid out of the booth and walked out of the diner.

  Of all the reasons he expected Travis to give him, what he mentioned was one of the best ones.

  Act married? Not a problem for him. He could do that.

  Chapter Six

  Travis

  The seclusion of his office brought him a sense of peace on most days. It was where he could shut the door on all the crap that took place daily on his floor. But peace eluded him today.

  People ran in and out, dropped various files on his desk, asked questions, demanded answers. His head hurt. Hell, his whole body hurt. He hadn’t slept all weekend. He thought he’d have a couple hours on Sunday to review his presentation. So far, he had all of about two seconds.

  Cynthia rushed through the cluster of associates gathered in the doorway.

  “Do you need them for anything?”

  He glanced away from his laptop and at her. “Me? No.”

  “Okay, people, take this somewhere else, please.” No one moved. Cynthia took the book she had in her hand and slammed it on the table. That got everyone’s attention.

  “Out! Now!” She herded them through the door and shut it. “Sorry, I know you have the board meeting. I ran downstairs to get some copies and when I came up…” She shrugged.

  Cynthia handed him a stack of paperwork. He didn’t know what he’d do without this woman. Cynthia didn’t question his requests and took care of tasks before he asked. She had figured out his sexuality on her second day of her employment and had never wavered in her support. It was more than what anyone else in this building had.

  He didn’t hide that he was gay at work; he chose not to make it common knowledge. People found out because that was how office gossip worked. And there were a couple people who made his job as hard as possible.

  “What do you want to bet Douglas sent the herd of people to my office this morning?” he asked. This morning’s presentation might be a hot mess but he had written a list of bullet points he knew he needed to hit. He knew his figures and could recite them at will. So if any of the board members needed data to back up what he said, he was ready.

  Staying awake during it all, well that was the challenge.

  Cynthia stared at him and sighed. “I’m sure he did. He complained about the way you handled the reports, something about if he were in charge, blah, blah, blah.” She waved her hand in dismissal. “You look exhausted. How many hours did you work this weekend?” Not only did she organize his life at work but with some superpowers had gotten every horrid detail about Tyler out of him.

  “I worked Friday and Saturday night.” He cringed, knowing full well he’d have to tell her about Tyler but he didn’t have time now.

  A knock on the door saved him from answering
further. Cynthia walked over and opened the door. Jane, the executive assistant from upstairs, lingered in the doorway. She smiled at Cynthia and then at Travis. “Hey, you ready? You should head up now so you can get settled in before the hoopla starts.”

  “Good idea.” He stood and grabbed the folder from his desk. Cynthia picked up another stack of folders and followed him to the elevator. Jane slipped inside just before the doors closed.

  “You’ll be fine.” Jane winked at Travis as she reached up to straighten his tie. When he first started at Thomson, she asked him for drinks and he declined. He guessed she hadn’t heard the rumors that women didn’t do it for him. Jane touched his tie again. Cynthia coughed behind him. That may have been a laugh.

  The doors opened, and they proceeded to the boardroom. Clusters of men in suits stood on either side of the hallway. No one wanted to enter first.

  As he entered the boardroom, he noticed the CEO off to one side, gazing out the window. That explained everyone hanging out in the hallway. He couldn’t wait to finish this meeting.

  “Mr. Thomson? Everything okay?” He hoped he wasn’t interrupting something, but he needed to set up for this meeting. Thomson had always been a pleasant man to work with, when he had the opportunity. If only he could work with him, instead of dealing with his demanding executive staff.

  “Travis. Yes, yes. Looking forward to you speaking this morning. I looked over the preliminary report you sent to my office last week. Figures look good. Hopefully, the board agrees to sell.”

  “Sir, why sell? Why not let one of your sons run the company?”

  Thomson laughed. “My sons don’t want this company. I wish they did.” The door opened and members of the board entered. “Well, that’s my cue to meet and greet. Good luck today, and thank you for all your hard work.”

  Travis placed his materials on the end of the table while Cynthia placed copies of the reports in front of each chair. As she walked over, his phone buzzed in his pocket.

  Worry warred with fear as he pulled the phone out of his pocket. He forgot to check in with the hospital before he left his office. Alec sent him a message.

  Just called the hospital. Tyler is resting. Good luck today.

  He typed a quick reply.

  Thanks for the update and the good luck. Talk soon.

  Cynthia touched his arm to get his attention as he placed his phone in his pocket. His worry must have shown on his face. “Is everything all right?”

  “No. But I can’t get into it now, not with the meeting starting. Later?” He needed her opinion on Tyler’s situation. Alec’s offer… well, he wished he could ask someone for their opinion. It had been so unexpected that he was still in a state of shock.

  Alec’s position at Bennett mattered to him. Alec worked his ass off to get that division back to something that he could be proud of after his father and his uncle nearly killed it. In college and even in the service, he remembered any time there was a request for volunteers to build something, Alec was the first in line.

  Another position like the one Alec held wasn’t available. That position gave Alec the leeway to decide, to steer the division toward his projects. Not the ones that made money but the ones that meant something to Alec. Travis offered to volunteer at the community center once it opened. He had been impressed by Alec’s vision for the project and how it helped the youth, especially those in the LGBTQ community.

  But to get married? Travis didn’t know if he could handle being married to Alec. He had a crush on the man. A big one. What happened if they got married and Alec didn’t like him that way?

  At this point, he didn’t want to make any more decisions based on Tyler. He had wasted years of his life doing so. And for what? For Tyler to end up right back in the hospital.

  If he married Alec, and that was a huge fucking if, it had to be because it worked for him— not for Tyler, not for Alec. Could their friendship survive intact? If they went into it with a set of rules, guidelines of sorts, maybe that might work.

  The scraping of chairs brought his attention back to the room and the people in front of him. The last of the participants arrived and filled in the remaining seats. He took a deep breath and pasted a smile on his face.

  Travis

  Travis shut his office door behind him and breathed a sigh of relief. Running into Jackson, one of the executive assistants, in the elevator had done nothing for his mood. He exited the elevator on the next floor to avoid talking to the man.

  But walking down ten flights of stairs had him questioning his own sanity. This position wasn’t worth it anymore. He hoped that, after today, the board would agree to sell and the new owners would offer a severance package. Any offer that came across his desk, he would take. The long hours, the homophobic assholes on the executive floor, and the idiot associates who worked in his department all made him miserable on a daily basis. Life was too damn short.

  If you married Alec, he’d pay off all your debt and you could quit now.

  His secretary, Cynthia, breezed in with a stack of messages. The paperwork he brought from the meeting sat in front of him. It hadn’t gone as he hoped. She sat still and waited for him to finish his notes.

  “These are your messages. I prioritized them for you. There’s a message from an Alec Bane. He says it’s very important that you contact him about a family matter.”

  He gave Cynthia a small smile. “Thank you.”

  He didn’t bother to question Alec’s use of a different last name.

  Alec picked up on the first ring.

  “Hey, Alec.” He sat and braced himself for news. “Shit,” he mumbled. He still had to check in with his parents. They went to a wedding yesterday, and he told them not to bother trying to make it into the city. With the time difference between New York and California, he hoped he’d be able to speak to Gracelyn later that evening.

  “Hey, you okay?”

  He didn’t bother answering the question. “How’s Tyler? Any word from the hospital? My secretary said you had news.”

  “Tyler is still resting. Kane’s people checked on him this morning. He wanted to get some information on what happened.”

  “Damn it, Alec. I told you to keep Kane out of this.”

  “You did.”

  He rolled his eyes. Alec never listened. “I’m trying to get out of here early so I can go see him.”

  “How’d the board meeting go?”

  Travis leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. There was a pain in the back of his head running down into his neck. And another sharp one between his shoulder blades. Any time he ran without sleep the pains came on and got worse. He needed to lie down and sleep.

  “Travis?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I was asking if everything went well this morning?”

  A beeping noise and a huge machine drowned out the sound of Alec speaking to someone.

  “I guess so. I can’t get into it. You know that.”

  “I know.” Alec paused. “I wanted to apologize for last night. I’m sorry for dumping my problems on you.”

  Cynthia sat in front of him with her eyebrows raised. “No worries. I have to go.”

  “I’ll meet you at the hospital later today. Text me when you’re on your way over there.”

  “Okay, bye.” He hung up, clueless as to why Alec called. Was it to apologize? Or was it to update him on Tyler?

  “I have to leave early today.” He had trouble focusing as he stared at the paperwork he held.

  Cynthia leaned forward and took the paperwork out of his hand. He grabbed a pen and tapped it on the desk. She grabbed that next.

  “Spill it. What has got you so fidgety? And did I overhear you say that Tyler is in the hospital?”

  Cynthia was a mother. Her oldest son was around Tyler’s age.

  “Yeah. He got attacked outside my apartment building—”

  “Oh my God. How bad was he hurt?” she asked.

  “He’s stable. They broke three ribs, his righ
t arm and his leg.”

  “Holy shit, Travis.” Cynthia covered her mouth. “Sorry, that was unprofessional.”

  “It’s okay. I’ve said worse.”

  Her lips pulled into a small smile as she stood. “I’m sure. I’ll clear off your desk and reschedule your appointments so you can go.”

  An hour later, she opened his office door. “I’ve moved everything that you had late this afternoon to tomorrow. But Douglas is—”

  Someone said ‘excuse me’ and forced his door wide open.

  Douglas walked into his office and threw himself into the chair in front of his desk.

  “Thank you, Cynthia.” She rolled her eyes, and he tried not to smile.

  “What do you want? I have work to get done.”

  “I heard you rescheduled all of your meetings and a few of them ended up on my calendar. Do you need to go get your nails done? I have enough work to do without picking up your slack.”

  The minute Douglas opened his mouth for the first time, Travis hated him. Douglas whined that Travis got his job. Travis had restructured the finance department just so he didn’t have to work with him.

  Buddies with Jackson, one of the VPs, spread their hatred of anyone not white, straight, and male. Their treatment of women appalled him. It baffled him that Thomson turned a blind eye to their behavior. He needed his job to pay off Tyler’s debt, so he kept his mouth shut. One more reason for Travis to get the fuck out of here.

  “Was there a purpose to your visit?” Travis got up and grabbed his suit jacket. He had one meeting left with John from acquisitions which he would do in John’s office.

  Douglas stumbled as he tried to keep up with Travis. If he wanted to harass him, let it happen in the hallway in front of everyone.

  “Tell John, I’m on my way.” Travis stopped at Cynthia’s desk and glared at Douglas. “Are we done? I’m on my way to a meeting.” Two other associates stopped at Cynthia’s desk and stared at Douglas.