by Aliana James
“Do you remember everyone who has worked for you?”
“This old mind isn’t as good as it was. I try. I’ll let you in on a secret: Mary will walk the offices with me sometimes and remind me of who’s who. A little reminder is all I need, thank God. It’ll be a sad day when I don’t know my employees.”
“But hundreds of people work in this building!”
“Hundreds? I’m sure we are well into the thousand mark. No, I don’t know everyone but if I cross paths with someone every day or even once a week, I make a point of finding out who they are. It’s always been a thing of mine.”
Projects required Alec’s focus and attention to detail. But without fail, names were never his strong suit. Maybe he just never got involved enough to remember the person not the task. Alec’s upbringing—not his business sense—could have something to do with it.
William turned toward his office. “Let’s have a seat in my office. We have several items to discuss.”
Travis followed him into his office and expected to sit by the desk. It stunned him when William gestured to the sofa.
Mary entered with a cup of coffee and handed it to William.
“Ah, my one daily cup of heaven,” he said as he sipped.
“Mr. Andrews, can I get you anything?”
“I would love a cup of coffee. Thank you, Mary.” Travis smiled as he told her how he liked it.
William waited until Mary returned with his coffee and closed the door before putting his cup on the coffee table.
“There are several projects in the pipeline, various acquisitions and mergers, some in the fact-finding stage, some over budget and in need of an influx of funds. You’ll need some time to get up to speed.”
Travis remembered everything he had to manage for Thomson and that was a fifth of what Bennett Industries managed. Several divisions, or corporations as Alec called them, were nestled under the Bennett umbrella.
“Am I responsible for budgets and funding for all the divisions under Bennett?”
“Yes, your department manages the accounting for all the different corporations under Bennett.” William stared at him. “Is it too big of a task for you?”
“No, not at all.” It absolutely was too big of a task for him.
“If you have questions, spit them out, son.”
“My department is where and how many employees? I understand you want everyone in place now. I was wondering about the best way to handle the transition. Many of them called out sick today. To be honest, they aren’t sure of their offers.”
“And no wonder you’re looking at me that way. HR should have gone over some of this with you.”
“No, they didn’t.”
William frowned. “Mary!”
Alec
In a leather jacket, ripped jeans and boots, Travis looked hot. He was having a hard time paying attention to anything he said and blamed it on the subway noise.
The bookstore wasn’t far, only ten stops north on the subway. The ride was quick, this stop a popular one with half the train leaving in a mass exodus toward the stairs. He had no choice but to fall behind Travis. But watching Travis’s ass walk up the steps in front of him was a real treat.
The cold slammed them in the face as they rounded the landing to jog up the remaining stairs to the exit. It was only October, yet winter looked ready to make its presence known. Travis glanced back to see if he was following and reached back to grab his hand in the crowd.
It was nice to hold hands, Travis’s soft and warm hand a stark contrast to his calloused hand. He noticed they were touching each other more—a hand on a shoulder as he passed Travis, Travis brushing by him in the kitchen. They shared the sofa in the living room, no longer sprawled out on separate pieces of furniture. He didn’t want to call attention to it, afraid that acknowledgment would mean the end.
A large sign that said ‘Books’ loomed into view. The storefront was nothing impressive, the exterior small. Travis held the door open, and they entered a lobby with book posters and quotes on the walls.
He started reading the signs as they waited for another couple to pass them. Confused by where they were going, he turned and saw a set of stairs.
“Come on, Alec. This way.” Travis gestured as he skipped down the stairwell.
He ducked to go through the narrow entrance. The stairwell curved halfway down and widened at the bottom to a massive space. From the stair he paused on, he could see how far back the bookstore went, shelves and shelves of books.
He stood in awe as he walked to the bottom of the stairs. Suede couches mixed with tables dotted the space over a vivid rug. It was in the center of the bookstore, lower than the surrounding aisles. A small garden nestled in the corner with a water fountain running through it. On three sides, a decorative wood fence enclosed the space but it didn’t make it feel claustrophobic.
Alec paused as a sense of peace came over him. It was as if he had left the country and ventured to a small village in Asia. In awe, he turned and grinned at Travis.
“Cool, right?” Travis asked.
“I’d have never thought this would be here,” he said as he walked down the three stairs and sat on a green couch. A green suede couch that would look ridiculous anywhere else, felt like it belonged here. He needed to ask Travis for directions, he wanted to come back.
“Ah, look, there’s my favorite accountant!” An older woman put down a stack of books and hugged Travis. She paused with her arms around him and looked him in the face.
“You look good. Rested. Better.” She patted him on the shoulder.
Travis put his arm around the woman and grinned at her. “Thanks, Ming. How’s your father doing?”
“He is well. Thank you for the medicine. You did not have to do that.” She patted him on the arm.
He looked up and Travis caught his stare.
“Ming, I’d like you to meet someone.” Travis turned her toward Alec. “Ming, meet my… husband, Alec.”
“Husband!” She gasped as she turned and poked Travis in the stomach.
“Ow!”
“How did you get married and not tell me?” She held up her hands in protest.
Travis wrapped his arms around her and planted a kiss on her forehead.
“I’m sorry.”
Alec eyes widened in surprise and he looked from Ming to Travis. The bond between the two of them showed they had a history.
“Please to meet you, ma’am,” he said.
Ming released Travis and extended her hand to Alec. “Call me Ming, please.” She placed her dainty hand inside his large one. As she gazed up at him, she placed both hands on his cheeks. Without a thought, he ducked down so she could reach him.
“You are a handsome man. You marry a good man. Take care of his heart.” She kissed his cheek then turned and hoisted the stack of books in her arms.
“Can I help with that?”
“No, you and Travis go enjoy yourselves.”
“Leave her be. Believe me, she’ll let you know if she needs something,” Travis said as he walked down the steps. He opened the bag of goodies he baked and added them to the table layered with refreshments.
Alec wished he hadn’t spent all evening sneaking samples from the kitchen. The goodies on the table smelled amazing. Everyone knew everyone else as people greeted each other all around him. The temptation to wander down an aisle and get lost came over him but he didn’t want to stray too far from Travis.
Where did he go? He spotted Travis speaking to an older gentleman in a wheelchair. He guessed that was Ming’s father, even though to him he could have been her brother.
Hands clapped behind him and silence came over the group.
“If everyone can find a seat, we can begin. I have a few housekeeping…”
Alec spotted a loveseat available and Travis joined him. The woman stood on the top step and continued to rattle off various activities happening in the next month. But he zoned out as Travis’s thigh pressed into his. The loveseat sagg
ed in the middle and they leaned into each other. Travis’s body, warm and firm, smelled of musk and cinnamon, probably from the gum he liked to chew. It was a welcome distraction. If he could maneuver his arm around him, that would be even better.
“I am so excited,” a woman said to Travis as she passed by them. Two older women waved to Travis, and he waved back.
“You’re popular,” he said. Travis laughed and sat up as an older gentleman approached the woman making the announcements. Damn, he had hoped to cuddle.
“We are excited to welcome back one of our own, Artis Malcolm. He will read an excerpt from his New York Times Bestseller, A Sinking Tide, and discuss his inspiration for the story.”
The room erupted in applause and Alec glanced behind him and saw a large group of people standing. The people in the little section had doubled in size in the last few minutes. Artis kept the crowd captivated as he broke up the readings with little jokes and side stories. While he read, Alec turned his head and glanced at Travis, who was sitting forward in his seat with his eyes locked on Artis. Now and then, his head would nod as if he agreed with what he said.
In all these years, they never spoke about books. Not that he didn’t like to read. He spent hours poring over site maps and reports daily. That didn’t count, though.
Artis put the book on the table and sat on a stool. Hands shot into the air and questions came from all over but he tuned them out until Travis spoke.
“Hi, I’m Travis.”
“Yes, we discussed Hamlet last time I was here.”
Travis smiled and nodded. “I would like to ask you about motivation. In chapter ten, Isiah doesn’t act like he has any, yet toward the end he can do so many things. I want to know where he found his motivation. I mean, the obvious choice is his mother’s situation, but that never had an influence on him up until this point in the story.”
Murmurs rippled through the group. A woman turned around and gave Travis a thumbs up. Alec watched as several people spoke to each other and nodded. Who was Isiah?
“That is a damn good question—pardon my language,” Artis said as some laughed. “Do you remember the scene in chapter two when he meets the shop owner?”
“Yes, she tells him that some things are not as they seem.”
“Right. I have an idea.” Artis pulled a stool over next to him. “Why don’t you come up here and we’ll discuss this further? It seems like you’ve touched on a part of the story that people want to discuss.”
Without hesitation, Travis got up and made himself comfortable on the stool. Artis and Travis continued to chat like they were old friends. Others commented or asked more questions.
In all this time, he hadn’t seen this part of Travis’s life. This was somewhere Travis visited on a regular basis, if the people who greeted him and his comfort level were any sign. These people were familiar with this Travis, which Alec wasn’t. How many sides did Travis have?
The group laughed and Travis smiled. He knew that smile; that one was genuine, not staged. God, he was cute, adorable even with his eyes lit up and his hands animated. It amazed Alec that something like this was such a large part of Travis’s life. How did he find time to read with his schedule?
Was there other things or people in his life that he didn’t know? Ming mentioned something about medicine for her father. It wasn’t the first time Travis had helped them. Alec garnered that much from what he had overheard.
When does he help himself? How many more people depend on him for help? Until now, if Alec wanted to help someone, he pulled out a checkbook and wrote a check. He’d been brought up thinking this was how you helped.
Travis was different, and his way of helping baffled Alec. Why get that involved in someone else’s problems? He valued his privacy, one of the key things his family had drilled into all of them.
“Alec? Did you enjoy the lecture?” Ming asked from his left. He jumped in his seat as she startled him. She sat next to him.
“He’s a looker, isn’t he?” She laughed. “I’ve been speaking to you for a couple minutes!”
“Oh, Ming. How rude of me. I am so sorry.” He didn’t want to leave a terrible impression.
She locked eyes with him as tears filled his eyes. “I wish I could repay him for all he has done for me, for my family. Your Travis is a kind man.”
“Ming, there’s nothing to repay,” Travis said as he stood over them. Alec stood and helped Ming up from the loveseat.
“Let’s get something to eat.” Travis offered his arm to Ming.
As they approached the refreshment table, they introduced him to three other couples and another author and a poet. To remember all of their names would be a challenge as he tried to juggle his coffee, his plate, and shake hands at the same time. He found some relief as everyone moved away and he leaned against the railing to enjoy the rest of his coffee.
A young lady in her early twenties came up and wrapped her arms around Travis’s waist and burrowed into his side. He didn’t stop speaking to the man in front of him, and his arms came around her and he squeezed her tight.
A strange feeling came over him and a temptation to walk over, pull the girl away from Travis, and burrow his body in her spot shocked him. What the hell was wrong with him? Was he jealous?
Travis grabbed the girl’s hand and pulled her toward Alec. From across the room, he could see she was gorgeous, with long black hair and brown eyes. Her hands slid back around Travis and she sighed as she hugged him. “You smell good,” she said as she looked up at him.
Travis laughed, roped an arm around her shoulders, and gave her a kiss on the forehead. They had some connection, and it was too close for his liking. They stopped in front of him.
“Who’s this?” she asked as she poked Travis in the stomach.
“Ugh. You want to go there? Don’t make me tickle you!” Travis replied as he shifted his midsection away from her finger. “Alec, Annabelle. Annabelle, Alec.”
Travis frowned at Alec. Annabelle held out her hand for a handshake.
“Nice to meet you, Annabelle,” he said as he shook her hand. The two of them made a striking couple, both with their dark hair and olive skin tones. He was the odd man out between his blond hair and his large frame.
“God, you suck at introductions,” she scolded him. “Mom told me to meet Alec, and she made it sound like it was a big deal…”
Mom? Ah, Ming. Now that she mentioned it, he noticed the resemblance.
“You’re Ming’s daughter?”
“Yes. And Alec, who are you? Because I know my mother too well, there’s something going on. Are you dating? Did Travis finally bring a boyfriend here?”
So Peter, the ex-boyfriend, didn’t come either. Travis paled as he answered.
“Alec is my husband,” he mumbled.
Annabelle turned toward him and laughed. “That sounded an awful lot like husband.” She looked at Alec’s left hand, reached for Travis’ left hand and yanked it out of his pocket. Travis’s hands had been in his pocket all evening. Maybe he didn’t want to explain the marriage to everyone.
“Oh my God!” Annabelle shrieked and grabbed both their hands. He watched in horror as she scaled the railing and called out.
“Everyone! Everyone!” A huge hush came over the group. Many of the participants left already but it was still a good size crowd. “Travis got married!”
Applause erupted from the whole group and they descended on them to wish them congratulations.
“Why didn’t you mention it before now?”
“Oh my goodness, Travis! He’s so handsome.”
“You dirty dog, I didn’t get an invitation.”
Chapter Sixteen
Travis
Jonas waved to him as he entered the coffee shop. Travis wound his way around the students and made his way to the back.
Jonas stood as he approached, smiled and leaned in for a hug.
“I got you a mocha latte with extra everything.”
He laughed. Jonas liked
his coffee as complicated as possible. Something they both had in common.
“Thanks.” He shrugged off his jacket because the shop was toasty and warm. He spilled a bit of coffee in the process and Jonas hopped up to grab napkins for the both of them.
So used to seeing him in tight leather pants, fishnet tanks, and black eyeliner, Travis took a long look at his friend. Jonas looked good in his hoodie and faded jeans. Their friendship went further than the nightclub as Jonas used to be the barista at the coffee shop around the corner from his job. Travis would take his lunch break some days and Jonas would flirt with him. Jonas was too young for him and it wasn’t long before they figured out they’d be better off as friends.
Imagine his surprise when he ran into him at Raven.
“How are you?” Jonas threw a pile of napkins on the table.
“Sorry, thanks.” He mopped up the mess. “Life is good, can’t complain.”
“Married life agreeing with you?”
“Yeah, never thought it would.” He took a sip of his coffee. Married life did agree with him. They had a routine that worked and moved nicely into the friends with benefits zone.
“Billy thinks you either hid your relationship really well or you guys are lying to us all.”
Billy was the most cynical person he had ever met, claimed that love was for suckers and no one would tie him down. Unless it was during sex, then he was all for it.
“I’m not surprised.” He didn’t want to talk about Billy. Or that they were lying to everyone. “So how’s school going?”
“Good. I’m close to getting all As for the semester.” Jonas was studying restaurant management so he could own his own restaurant one day. “I need to pick up another job, which sucks.”
“Why? I thought you had three nights at Raven.”
“I do, but my landlord is raising my rent starting in January. Things will be too tight with books, subway costs, and bus fares.” Jonas lived in the Bronx and commuted to school and the club. Plus my laptop is acting wonky again. I probably need a new one.” He put his hands around his coffee cup and looked at the table.