Island Heat (3 page)

Ember Isle was overwhelming even for a guy who had worked in the heart of Chicago's gourmet industry. Troy was used to celebrity sightings and clients, but Kevin still wasn't sure how to handle them. He'd done all the behind-the-scenes work even at his old bakery and had decorated cakes or made custom dessert menus for renowned entertainment industry figures and sports teams, but never delivering or spending time with his clients on their turf.

This was their turf: an island designed solely for play. He could already see sprawling mansions set back behind groves of trees and teetering on clifftops. The streets were perfectly smooth and freshly paved, swept clean and washed. Main Street was just off the boardwalk, most of the windows covered in sheets as last-minute renovations were completed according to each business owner's requests and business signs were hung.

It would be a picturesque postcard scene every day. Working here might be a pleasure, but he'd never get used to it. It felt... airbrushed.

“We'll look at our place after we get set up,” Troy told him from beside him in the taxi as they were driven to their housing. “They're still putting up the sign and finishing the display cabinets, apparently.”

Kevin nodded, his anxiety already flaring up. The first rent payment was going to be a reality check, and he just hoped they were raking in profits by then. They had to meet their mentor tonight to get the details set up, and tomorrow was the deadline to order their supplies from the restaurant supply shop in order to get them in time for opening that weekend.

The pressures of time and money had never been as real as now, when he and Troy were suddenly thrown into the biggest opportunity of their lives. Their credit records were going to take a bad hit if this didn't work out. What if his creations weren't good enough for these people? They probably had world-class baking every day.

“Hey,” Troy encouraged him, reaching out to pat his knee. “You'll do fine. Hey, anyway, what was with that guy I had to rescue you from earlier?” he grinned, clearly trying to distract Kevin from his fears.

“Oh, he was hitting on me, I think,” Kevin nodded.

Troy snorted. “No kidding, he was hitting on you. If only he'd been hitting on
me
. There was this other guy in the office, though...”

“Already?” Kevin exclaimed, relaxing into a laugh. “Troy, man, we've got to pay our bills.”

“I know, I know. I'm not ditching you to go hook up every night,” Troy promised. “But that's why we're not hiring employees yet.”

That had been one of many difficult conversations they'd had over the past week as they sent in paperwork and proof of finances, talked with the Main Street rental office, and finished their business plan for approval by whichever mentor they were assigned. They both had agreed in the end that they couldn't afford the risk, but they'd be allowed to hire later in the summer if they got busy enough that they needed staff.

“Yeah, I know,” Kevin murmured. They pulled up outside their new mansion moments later and he stared. It looked like a cross between a luxury hotel and an apartment building. “This is where we're living?”

“I showed you photos,” Troy reminded him.

Somehow, Kevin hadn't believed the place would look this nice. “This is part of our rent, right?” he asked Troy, nervousness creeping in again. The rent on this place had to be more than his rent at home, not even counting the storefront.

“Relax, we're in the new business program,” Troy murmured back as they slid out of the taxi and took their bags. “It's all taken care of. We make money, we pay them back, they make money – everyone makes money. Except the billionaires, who don't care how much they're spending as long as we make them happy.”

“Right.” Kevin licked his lips, taking his bags again to walk up to the apartments. “Which one's ours?”

“We've got a two-bedroom – rare, apparently, so we got lucky. There's your key.” Troy handed it over.

A smiling man came up to greet them when they reached the open courtyard. “Hello! You must be Troy and Kevin. Oh, you're even cuter in real life,” he praised them both, reaching out to shake hands. “I'm Michel. Go get your things set up and I'll get your ID cards ready. The office is this unit here in the corner.”

Kevin shook Michel's hand with a sigh of relief. “Thanks.”
Even cuter in real life?
He glanced at Troy, then followed his best friend up the stairs to their apartment. “What did he mean?”

“Er, I had to send photos of us with our application.”

Kevin squinted and tilted his head. “What?”

“Like headshots. I've got enough photos of you on my phone, I just chose one of them.”

“You mean they hired me because I'm
hot
?” Kevin exclaimed as Troy unlocked their new front door, trying to keep his voice down.

“Don't get too full of yourself, but probably, yeah,” Troy grinned. “Everyone likes a cute straight boy now and then. Oooh, look at that kitchen...”

Kevin stared after Troy, then shook his head as he closed the door and looked around the small, yet elegant, flat. With large windows overlooking the tree-lined street and the beach beyond, the living room and kitchen were perfect for them. His growling stomach reminded him that they had to meet Michel and go over the facilities here, so he went to drop off his bags in the bedroom.

Surely they didn't expect him to flirt with men, then, did they? But it had come surprisingly easy to him when that gorgeous man in a suit had approached him, so boldly touching his hands and teasing him.

He didn't want to admit that the guy – whose name he hadn't even gotten – had caught his eye far more than he could have anticipated.

Was he straight if the first person he'd ever really taken note of was a man? Or was it the effects of traveling such a long way in one day, hunger, maybe dehydration? That had to be it, he told himself. Surely he would have noticed other men before if he weren't straight... but that didn't explain why he'd never been interested in a woman, either.

“Let's go meet Michel,” he called out to Troy to distract himself.

***

Michel took Troy and Kevin on a whirlwind tour of the facilities, including a year-round restaurant for service workers and business owners only, the supply stores and grocery store, and the post office. After all that, Michel invited them to a party that night to get to know the other business owners. Most of them had already arrived, especially those who had to hire and train staff.

Kevin decided to avoid the restaurant and insisted on dragging Troy to the grocery store to get the basics. He cooked a quick pasta dinner for them both and then spent an hour or two before the party going over the menus he and Troy had painstakingly designed.

The party was held in one of the Main Street bars that was reopening. Apparently, Troy told him, it had been around for five consecutive years and was the longest-running bar on the island. Kevin dressed up professionally in a collared shirt and trousers, already nervous about it.

“Troy and Kevin?” a man greeted them as they walked around the room, looking for a familiar face like Michel's.

Troy paused and turned to the middle-aged man with gray hairs streaked through the sides of his trendy blond cut, then stared.

Is everyone on this island hot?
Kevin wondered. “Hi. I'm Kevin, this is Troy,” he nodded, reaching out to shake the man's hand.

“I'm Rube. I'm the mentor for new bar, pub, and club businesses this year.”

“Oh my god,” Troy whispered. “Ruben Turner. I've heard of you.” Even Kevin had heard of him, through Troy. He was famous for having bought a gay bar at age twenty-one and made it one of the trendiest spots in the south. He'd moved up to New York and repeated his success, and by now in his mid-thirties, he'd probably consulted on every new world-class gay bar out there.

“Only good things, I hope,” Rube laughed. “It's a great pleasure to meet you both. Your application was perfect timing. Bill and I were just talking about getting a dessert bar and then you two applied. You looked perfect, you passed the checks... and here you are.”

“As easy as that,” Kevin commented as they lapsed into chatting about their business plan, then started to discuss the party.

“You two enjoy yourselves tonight,” Rube encouraged after a few minutes with a wink. “I'll come by your bar tomorrow to talk some more.”

Troy didn't need any encouragement to start tugging Kevin around to meet other guys, from clothing shop owners to bar managers. Kevin let him go on by himself after a few more meetings, sticking to himself by the bar and chatting with whoever came close.

Nobody seemed terribly interested in building professional relationships tonight, but many guys were dancing awfully close already. Even Troy was already dancing with a cute young blond, Alan, who ran a clothing boutique a few doors down.

Even though he wasn't interested in it himself, it made Kevin's heart race to watch pairs of men flirt, drink, and even head home together throughout the evening until he headed home alone for some sleep. Everything on this island came easily, it seemed. Kevin hoped the money did, too.

Sunrise on Ember Isle was beautiful. As golden rays of daylight streamed across the horizon, they lit up the top sides of the few clouds still lingering from the night before. The lush green hills, light beaches, and rolling blue shoals around the island glowed under the fresh morning light. Despite himself, Eli smiled as he rolled over in bed to take in the spectacular view through the walls of windows.

He and Dean had hired a housekeeper to tidy up daily and a chef to cook twice a day for them until the restaurants were open. It was still a while before lunchtime, though. He decided to get up and head to the grocery store. Generally, the staff took care of ordering and delivering food behind the scenes, but he wanted to get out for a walk.

“Mmm,” he sighed to himself as he flung his arm out to the empty side of the bed, then scooted over to take up the middle of the bed. Somehow, it felt a little less like conceding the empty space in the bed to Tom.

“What's next? Bargaining? Fuck, no, I'm not bargaining with him,” Eli mumbled to himself, then raised his hands to rub at his eyes and slowly sit up. He glanced around at the open windows, smiling at the memory of the previous night. While Dean had gone out partying, it was hard to match the peace and quiet of Eli's evening. He'd fallen asleep to the sight of stars across the ocean.

He'd fallen asleep alone.

No, I'm not going there.
Eli stopped his train of thought in its tracks. He slid out of bed and stepped into the walk-in closet to choose a light pair of trousers and collared shirt for the day. After a quick shower and shave, he was ready for the day.

He knocked on Dean's bedroom door, but since he didn't hear an answer, he figured Dean was still out with someone or else fast asleep. It
was
only around seven in the morning, after all.

It wasn't until he reached the ground floor that he realized where Dean was: outside. Dean was making out with some guy who was sitting on the patio wet bar with his back to the window.

Not just any guy, either. Troy, the friend or partner of the guy on the wharf yesterday who had caught his eye.

Eli didn't know if Dean hadn't slept yet or if this was a “good morning and goodbye” kiss, but either way, he didn't especially want to see all the details. He rolled his eyes to himself and headed through the living room to get his shoes on and head out the front door towards town. Dean would text if he wanted company, but it looked like he was fine with Troy right now.

He walked slowly along the sidewalk down from the hill where his and Dean's rental property sat and overlooked the beach, glancing left and right as he went. It was already a warm morning, and with the clouds burning off and the sky turning clearer and bluer seemingly by the minute, it was set to be a gorgeous day.

Every day here was gorgeous. He'd forgotten how much the sight of the open blue sky seemed to open his spirits up, too. It had taken a bit of a beating over the past week. Feeling lighthearted again was a wonderful change. His left ring finger felt light, too, but in a good way.

He still had a bit of a tan to work on there. Wearing a ring for a couple of months had left a faint white line there, and he wanted that gone.
I can work on that today,
he decided as he walked.

Eli's first stop was the grocery store, which was always an odd experience. He'd only visited it two or three times last summer, since Tom had preferred to have “the help” bring the groceries in. Tom had been a bit of a dick to their hired help, actually.

The oddness of the store was emphasized by the way nobody looked up and greeted him or bowed like they tended to in the other stores. It was easy to tell who was there to work and who was there to play, and Eli naturally radiated a powerful kind of presence that tended to turn heads even when he didn't want it to.

In here, though, everyone was going about their own business. He could see housekeepers stocking up on cleaning supplies, chefs buying kitchen supplies, and young hot men who were probably business owners. There was a separate restaurant supply store, he knew that much, but they looked like they were shopping for their own houses rather than their businesses that morning.

The lineups were already long, and Eli suspected they would be all day. He headed to the bakery to check out what was available, remembering what that guy yesterday had said about bribing the taxi drivers with cupcakes. It might be a good strategy, he decided as he picked up a box of croissants and a bottle of orange juice. The housekeeper and chef would supply the rest of the groceries he needed with the money he'd left out for them.

A few young men caught his eye, but Eli always turned his head away and kept walking. Not only did everyone look busy and focused on their own tasks, but he wasn't yet in the mood to be distracted by them. He knew it would take time for his heart to heal enough that he felt comfortable flirting with just any guy, like Dean could.

He paid at the counter and carried his grocery bag out to the street. Though he'd been planning to carry his breakfast home and eat there, the thought of what he might find going on in the patio made him pause. Instead, Eli headed down to the waterfront to sit on a bench overlooking the junction of the boardwalk and Main Street.

With everyone rushing about to prepare for opening weekend, he was oddly invisible for perhaps the first time on this island. He drew one leg up under himself and set the croissant box on his lap, opening it and cracking open the juice to drink straight from the bottle. It was oddly tacky for him, but nobody was even looking at him.

He slowly worked his way through the croissants and juice as he watched attractive men of all kinds calling taxis, carrying boxes, wheeling luggage along the street, and ducking into the closed-up stores on Main Street.

By the time he'd finished both and was bored of people-watching, an hour or so had passed. He bundled his trash into the bag and threw it away in the discreet can nearby, brushing his front and lips off to make sure he looked neat and clean.

He had to indulge his curiosity about one man, though – the man he'd spotted on the dock yesterday. He didn't have a clue which business he worked at or owned, but he could find out.

Once Eli reached Main Street, he walked slowly along the street and eyed the storefronts. It felt a bit like he was going somewhere he shouldn't be, since there were still men carting goods into stores, setting up window displays, and working behind and over drop cloths. The pace of activity had picked up now that it was closer to a decent hour when stores might normally open.

His eye was caught by an elegant graphic of a cake slice on a window, and he glanced up.
Sweet Nothings
had a logo and branding that seemed to suggest a dessert bar, and that intrigued him. He couldn't remember having seen one last summer.

The door was propped open, tables and chairs already set up, and the bar seemingly built. There was already a glass display cabinet, and photos of cute desserts and cocktails on the walls. It looked like they were just waiting for food.

Eli ducked into the shop and cleared his throat as he saw the shadow of a man pass by the kitchen doorway. “Hello.”

“We're closed. No customers welcome yet. Come back on the weekend.”

The brisk response took Eli aback. Even compared to the grocery store, that was rather bad service. He bristled until he saw who came to the doorway.

It was the same guy as yesterday – Kevin, with the same cute downturned lips, dark eyebrows, and beautiful brown eyes. His eyes widened and a faint blush spread over his cheeks as he saw who it was, and then he ducked his head.

Eli couldn't resist commenting, “Someone's crabby this morning. Is now a bad time?”

Kevin looked up again, clearly exasperated. “God, that's going to follow me around all summer now,” he sighed. “Yeah, I'm... everything's...” A timer went off in the kitchen and he caught his breath, quickly looking back at it. “You're not supposed to be here,” he scolded.

“I'll come back, Kevin,” Eli promised, catching those brown eyes for just a little longer than a friendly glance. He winked, just to see the blush spread further across Kevin's cheeks, then sauntered out the door again.

“I--” the man started behind him, but Eli was already walking out the door. Eli grinned to himself, his heart surprisingly light despite having just been told off twice by Kevin. This younger man had a serious and stern side that was fun to tease just a bit.

Eli shook his head to himself.
That was probably the worst customer service there, though. I hope he's just having a bad morning. Looks and talent alone won't get you everywhere.

The grumpy little pout Kevin had given him when he saw who it was stayed on Eli's mind as he slowly wandered down Main Street, glancing at but not really taking in the other storefronts.

It was much too early to crush on anyone.