Page 6 of Branson's Promise

I liked words, liked exploring their meanings and origins, liked testing out how they felt and sounded. It had been something that had caught my interest when I was a small child. Reading,and writing had long been a passion of mine and there was a period when I wanted to write a book and be a published author.

Sadly, that was not in the cards for Noel Bennett, only son of Arthur Bennett, grandson of Ralph Bennett - businesspeople and hotel moguls. It was written in my future from the moment I was conceived that I would take over and run their empire, Bennett Properties. And that is exactly what I was doing now, following my fathers’, thankfully non-fatal heart attack. For the most part, I loved it. It allowed me freedom to travel, I liked taking charge and making decisions and to be frank, I had never wanted for a thing in my life. Money came as easy to the Bennett family as rain to the UK.

Entering the glass doors of the towering office block, I waved to the security guard - Jim - who I had gotten to know well the past few months and made my way to the elevator. With one hand holding a tray of cappuccinos, I used the other to press the button for the floor I was headed to. It had been four painstaking weeks waiting for my best friend, Caleb, to return from his extended honeymoon. Four weeks in which I had to use every bit of my willpower not to message him and ask for the one tiny piece of information I really wanted - no, needed. Because that’s what it was - a need. A frustrating itch that had been festering under my skin since their wedding.

The elevator doors opened a moment later and I stepped out and into the lobby of Manners Media. I had been visiting this office for months now since Caleb took over as managing director and they took on the marketing needs for my company. Some months I spent more time here than I did in my own office back in New York. Mostly due to the responsibilities that I had on this side of the ocean but also because of a sense of belonging - the unmistakable comfort of home - being here in the UK. Part of me wondered if it was time to return to London for good but the other part was not ready to give up the life I had in the States.Not yet anyway. Not until it was necessary. Not until he…. I rubbed the back of my neck and cleared the thought from my head. Now wasn’t the time to think about that.

Pasting on my warmest smile, I sauntered over to Caleb’s assistant's desk, waiting while she finished a call. “Daisy, beautiful. I brought you a drink,” I said once she was done and then handed her one from the tray. Daisy was a gorgeous woman. She was also efficient beyond compare, and the only person I knew besides Caleb’s husband, August, who was not susceptible to my charm. A feat which I was certain took supernatural power.

“Good morning, Noel. Thank you for the drink, it’s nice to see you. What brings you to the office today?”

“I’m heading back to New York later this week, and I just needed to see Caleb before I go. He in?” I pointed to the closed door behind me.

“He is, but I would suggest knocking before you go in. August is in there with him.”

I rolled my eyes. Those two were disgustingly attached to each other. I tapped my knuckle twice on her desk and gave her a thumbs up. “Got it, thanks, Daisy.” Then walked over to the door and proceeded to not heed her warning, swinging it open unannounced.

It’s not like I hadn’t walked into this exact scene many times before. August straddling his husband’s lap, devouring his neck like some starved animal. “Seriously? You two just spent four weeks together, can you not be apart for oh,” I looked down at my watch to emphasise my point, “half an hour?” August huffed and rolled himself off of Caleb, taking the spot next to him.

“How about knocking, Noel?” August snapped. Even now that he was happily married, he was still a moody shit at times. Next to him, Caleb wore bright red cheeks and a purple mark on his neck. He made to stand but I reached out a hand to stop him.

“No need to get up. Flying visit is all. I just need the little blonde’s number and then I will leave you to your business.” I gestured my hands wildly in their direction.

They both looked at me with a question written all over their flushed faces, so I elaborated. “The other best man, Branson. I need his number.” And then I tacked on, “Please,” remembering that being polite got you further in life.

August levelled me with a surly glare. “Firstly, he's not little. He’d scratch your eyes out if he heard you call him that and secondly, why do you need his number?”

I returned his glare with one of my own. “Because.”

I was not about to bear the truth to him - that Branson consumed my thoughts far more than any other fling had in the last…. well, ever. The truth was that since that night at their wedding, where I’d banged the cute blonde in the bathroom of one of my hotels, I had not been able to think of anyone but him. Which was very annoying and not like me at all.

I'd replayed that night in my head a thousand times since. It had started as a pretty standard hookup but soon morphed into something way more intimate.

“You want to hold it for me too?”His question had taken me by surprise, but I hadn’t hesitated to say yes because it had been exactly what I wanted to do.

The thought of holding Branson’s soft, warm cock while he emptied his bladder had my own stirring and I shook my head in a failed attempt to clear it away. Now was not the time.

I resisted the urge to groan at how the brat had invaded my life. Branson had broken me - the once easy going, playboy version of me was nowhere to be found. I figured one more night together might fix what he broke, might scratch the itch that haunted me whenever he popped into my mind. Which wasall the fucking timeat the moment.

“Becauseis not a suitable answer, Noel. So, no.” Fucking August. I should have just called them on their honeymoon and bothered the shit out of them until they relented and gave me his number. Finding him on social media had been a bust because apart from August - who didn’t have an online presence, we didn't have anyone in common, so I couldn’t make the connection that way. I relied on either one of them handing over the number or waiting until we ran into each other at some mutual get together. And my dick did not like the idea of waiting.

I cleared my throat, figuring this was the surest way to get what I needed. “Fine, if you must know. Weconnectedat your wedding, and I’d like to see him again when I get back to New York.” I felt the heat rise in my cheeks at the same time that August noticed, springing up from his seat.

“Holy shit, you fucked him, didn’t you?” August shook his head in disbelief. “That fucker, he never mentioned anything to me.”

My stomach sank involuntarily. He hadn’t mentioned me. Internally, I chastised myself for caring. It was a fling - flings at weddings were a thing. I should know: it hadn’t been my first, this year even. It had, however, been the most memorable.

By the heat radiating up my cheeks, it was obvious to me that denying it was pointless. “Yes, we fucked. And I would very much like to see him again. Now please, can I have his number?”

August didn’t answer, continuing to stare at me with a blank expression. My eyes travelled over to Caleb who was wearing a small, yet noticeable smile. He reached for August’s hand, grabbing his attention. “Babe?” Caleb’s voice was gentle, the question clear as they had a silent conversation between the two of them.

Slowly, August nodded his head, a mop of brown hair flopping into his eyes as he pulled his phone from his pocket. A moment later, my phone pinged, and I unlocked the screen to see thathe’d sent me Branson’s number. “Don’t fuck with him, Noel, or I will bury you in the foundation of one of your fancy hotels.”

Caleb pulled August back down onto his lap, nuzzling his nose into August’s neck. “I love your grumpy ass, baby.”

“Urgh, you two make me queasy. I’m leaving. Your friend is safe with me, August, don’t you worry.”

I left the office with a satisfied smile, my phone open and my fingers flying over the keypad as I typed out a message:

---