Friends and Family Series

The Lloyd King Story

By: Ron Robbins
(© 2011 by the author)
Editor: Frank Perry

The author retains all rights. No reproductions are allowed without the author's consent. Comments are appreciated at...

Chapter 10

Lloyd and Randy were having breakfast next to the pool in their enclosed inner courtyard. The villa was designed after a Spanish villa with a large inner court surrounded with high walls. The court contained a good sized swimming pool, and a spacious area that was completely landscaped with exotic tropical plants and palm trees. The surface was covered in smooth white tile. The inner walls facing the courtyard were a combination of sliding glass doors interspersed with solid partitioned walls that served as pockets for the sliding glass doors. The courtyard was completely covered with screening preventing any insects from invading the house.

They spent most of their time in this lovely setting where they could sunbathe in the courtyard and walk around naked most of the day. They had complete privacy from the staff due to the steel safety shutters that covered the windows.

This morning they were having a late breakfast on the patio. "This is heavenly," Lloyd said. "These have been the most relaxing two days. I feel like a new person, this is truly a Paradise Island. I never knew that an Island like this existed. I love the idea of sunbathing in the nude, my tan never looked better."

"Your body always looks terrific to me, my beautiful baby. This is really our honeymoon, my love. The last one didn't count, because you were not at your full powers. Would you object if I did a little business for Cavanaugh & King while we're here?"

"Heck no, I think it's safe to let you out of my sight for a least an hour. Who do you know here?"

"Who said anything about going alone," Randy said. "Alex Savage, my architectural consultant told me to get in touch with his business partner, Mac Stevens, while we were here. He said Mac might be a good bet for our services. It seems that MacDonald-Stevens Corporation owns this island and Mac visits here on a regular basis. I thought I'd give it a shot."

"By all means, we can sure use some new clients at this point."

"I thought we could take a ride over to their office complex and find out if he's in residence this week," Randy said. "One thing's for sure, he'll know who we are, since we are members of his exclusive club."

"What do you mean by that?"

"My family owns this villa, and you had to be approved as a member of our family before you received your pass. That's why you had to show your pass when you came through airport security. No one is allowed on this island unless you are investigated in advance by their own people. That was one of the first things I did after we married. Your card arrived two months ago."

Lloyd got up and walked over and sat next to Randy. He kissed him tenderly. "I love you so much." He kissed him on the neck and forehead and tenderly on his lips.

Randy got up, put his hand around Lloyd's shoulder and led him into their bedroom. Without saying a word they slipped into bed and made love.

They ended up laying in each other arms. Lloyd was snuggled up next to Randy, their heads touching. Randy's arm was wrapped around Lloyd lazily making circles with his fingertips up and down Lloyd's back. "I never thought love could be this marvelous. I loved my brother and we had great sex, but I was never in love with him this way. Our lovemaking is so beautiful and satisfying. I wish we could have children together. That would be the ultimate gift we could give each other."

"I wish I had the proper equipment to make your wish come true, but that's the way it is, my love. You know we have other choices. We both want children, but there are other ways. I was talking to my good buddy, Scott Purdy, and he said his spouse used surrogate mothers to have their children. Why can't we do the same? Give it some thought, Baby."

"I will. Let's shower and take a run by Mac Stevens' office and then do a little shopping. We can have lunch in town today."

"Sounds like a winner," Lloyd replied.

The MacDonald-Stevens offices were in a charming office park tastefully landscaped. A very attractive receptionist greeted them. She asked them to have a seat while she found someone to help them. A few minutes later another very attractive woman appeared and introduced herself as the Director of Public Relations for MacDonald-Stevens, and escorted them back to her office. Randy explained the reason for their visit and hoped that Mr. Stevens would see them if he was on the Island. He told her that Alex Savage suggested they contact him. The PR director was smooth and non-committal. She said that she had not seen Mr. Stevens and would be happy to make sure he received my message. Randy left his card and thanked her for her help.

They spent several hours shopping in the quaint boutiques and purchased some unique casual wear. The salesman was helpful and made arrangements to have their purchases delivered to their villa. They had a delightful lunch at one of the outstanding French restaurants and headed back home after chartering a sailboat for the next day.

They were relaxing by the pool when their housekeeper, Raymond, announced that Mac Stevens was on the telephone. Randy took the call and spoke for ten minutes before hanging up.

"We have an appointment for eight tomorrow morning at Mac Stevens' office to discuss our services," Randy said. "Do you think you feel up to it, sweetheart?"

Lloyd had a big grin on his face, "Only if we get to bed early tonight. Remember you promised to shave me tonight, my love."

Randy smiled, "I'm looking forward to that," Randy said. "I'll have Raymond fix a cold supper for tonight and we'll eat later. I want you to shave my body also. We can begin the fun now, what do you say, Baby?"

Lloyd smiled, "You talk to Raymond, and I'm heading for the bedroom to get everything ready."

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They arrived at the MacDonald-Stevens offices at 7:45 the following morning. A security guard was sitting at the reception desk this time. "Good morning, are you gentlemen here to see Mr. Stevens?"

"Yes," Randy said.

"I'll ring Mr. Stevens and let him know you're here."

A few minutes later a tall handsome man walked up to them and extended his hand. "I'm Mac Stevens; thank you for being so prompt." Lloyd and Randy introduced themselves. "Follow me to my office, gentlemen; I'll buy you a cup of something." Mac led them into his office and over to the lounge area. "What will it be, tea or coffee?"

They both asked for tea.

"Tea is my drink of choice also," Mac said. "My secretary in New York is the only one that knows how to do it right, so I'm forced to make it myself," Mac said. "Alex spoke very highly of you, Randy, and suggested that we meet. Alex's division is our latest addition. He has done well and we are all proud of his accomplishments. He was impressed with your new marketing concept and I thought I should hear what you have to offer. So, gentlemen, please tell me about your company and how you can help MacDonald-Stevens."

Randy laid out their services and how their unique project would help any large corporation. At first he gave an overview of their program, and then followed up with a detailed description of how the company would handle an account like MacDonald-Stevens. After finishing his presentation, he asked Mac if he had any questions.

"I have one. Am I correct in assuming you have no track record in this business, Randy?"

"That true, but we are confident that we can complete any assignment you give us. It's true that I'm new to this industry, but I'm experienced in running other businesses. Lloyd has the experience in the creative end of this business. He is winding up a project now and that will allow him to take on any new assignment."

"Well, Lloyd, why don't you tell me how you would handle the MacDonald-Stevens Corporation if we were to use your services?"

"I couldn't possible tell you that, Mr. Stevens," Lloyd said. "Each client is unique and must appeal to different markets. You tell us what you wish to achieve and we will put a package together that will meet those objectives. Our job is to take your goals and objectives and present them in a pleasing and artistic manner that will motivate your clients, your employees, or the public. You establish the parameters. If it is your intention to hold a national sales meeting for all your divisions two years from now, we will do that. The same would hold true with any convention you wished us to plan. We work with your advertising agency, or we will provide you the services of our own in-house agency staff, if that is what you want. But you must tell us what you want. Then we will come up with the answers.

"We are not like any other company in this business; we won't charge you any upfront fee for our creative proposal. Quite frankly we don't care how many bidders you bring to the table, we feel confident you will be selecting us in the end.

"If you want to know how I handled another customer, then I will be happy to tell whatever you wish to know. Of course I must remain within the limits of confidentiality.

"Randy and I have started this firm because we believe in our ability to deliver creative presentations for our clients. We feel there is always room for a new player in this industry, especially a player who is inventive and creative. We're confident in our abilities and are committed to doing our best for each client. Don't feel that you will be risking your money on us, because we plan to post a performance bond to assure you of our capabilities."

"You've convinced me," Mac said, "I feel we can do some business together. How long do you plan to be staying on the island?"

"Until next Sunday," Randy said.

"Good, I'd like for you to join us for dinner this evening if you're free; we can chat some more then. We can kick a few ideas around over the next few days and see if you're ready to take on my account. I think you will get a good idea what I'm all about and maybe you can tell me what's doable. If you like, we can do some sailing. Drew Stevens, my partner, has been bugging me to get some sailing in this week and I know he would welcome the company. We'll be doing a little island hopping and be gone two days. You two talk it over and let me know tonight."

"Randy loves to sail. As a matter of fact, we even chartered a sail boat for today," Lloyd said. "We'll be delighted to accept your invitation, it will save us a bundle in charter fees."

Mac laughed, "Sure you're not Scottish, Lloyd?"

"How did you guess," Lloyd said. "My mother is half Scottish and all Canadian."

"Oh God, not another Canadian," Mac said. "One of my division presidents is a Canadian and a Scotsman to boot. He is thrifty to the nth degree. You two would get along just fine. I'll call you later today and give you directions to my part of the island, and please, call me Mac. Well, men, it's a shame to be wasting this beautiful day indoors. I'm off to the beach." They shook hands and left.

Randy and Lloyd walked down to the yacht club office and canceled the charter then drove back to the villa. "I think we have our first project," Randy said. "I was impressed with your presentation. I was about to hire you myself. Tell me something: how do you stand the itch from all those hair bristles. My boxer shorts are driving me up the wall. I'm between the rock and the hard place, I want to scratch on the one hand, yet I like the sensation of having a smooth body. It gives me an instant erection."

Lloyd laughed, "You'll get used to it after a while, but it will take time. I don't mind shaving you every week; in fact, I find it sexually stimulating."

"That's for sure," Randy said. "I had an erection the entire time. I was so turned on I thought I was going to come."

"I know, dear, it was a delightful two hours. Think you can stand it every week?"

"For you, Baby, I'd do that and more. You can shave me as often as you like. It gives me the chance to feel that beautiful body of yours."

They returned to their villa, stripped and lay out on the patio. Lloyd made sure Randy had applied the sun block to the sensitive areas where he was shaved. He had no intention of letting sunburn spoil their lovemaking.

Later that afternoon, Randy made a conference call to Alex Savage. They thanked him for his praises and asked him to give them a brief rundown on the MacDonald-Stevens Corporation. The brief rundown took almost a half hour. Randy just shook his head and listened. Lloyd asked a few pertinent questions about the medical group and about the Scotsman Mac mentioned. They both thanked Alex and invited him to visit them on his next trip to Manhattan.

They hung up the phone and returned to their lounges by the pool, "My God, it's hard to believe that Mac is that powerful. The guy does not come across as a giant of industry. In fact he looks and acts like a promising young lawyer," Randy said. When Alex mentioned Yale Law School, it rang a bell. What threw me off was the name. I remember seeing him at Curtis's graduation. His name was Duncan MacDonald then. That's what threw me. He was a dynamic speaker, not to mention his scholastic achievements at Yale. They still talk about him."

Mac called and gave them the time and directions. The dress code was informal.

"That means casual elegant," Randy said. "Now aren't you glad we did a little shopping yesterday? We have some smart tropical duds to wear tonight."

"It's unusual that Mac would change his name to Stevens," Lloyd said. "According to Alex, the MacDonald-Stevens Corporation is Mac's baby."

"That's simple," Randy said, "Drew Stevens financed the deal and owns a big chunk of the stock."

"True, but why the name changes, that's the strange part. Oh well, we'll find out one day. I still find it hard to believe that Mac is a multi-billionaire. Do you realize if we land the MacDonald-Stevens account we could be busy for years to come without taking on any new business? That account would make the Telecom project look like chicken feed. I'm getting excited just thinking about it."

"Drew Stevens comes from old money," Randy said. "My folks are friends of the Baldwins. I may have met Drew Stevens, but I don't remember. The Stevens Company is a well respected old line company that goes back generations, whereas Mac is the new kid on the block. The Stevens family was old line New England businessmen. Mac's Company was considered a flash in the pan. Of course Dad disagrees, he feels that Mac will be around for a long time."

Randy drove up to the gate house on Mac's estate. They gave their names and were passed through. Once through the gates, they drove through the thick barrier of trees and tropical foliage. Once beyond the foliage, there was a sea of green. They stopped to admire the most breathtaking view. The overall setting looked more like something from a story book. The grounds were absolutely beautiful. Lush green lawns that stretched as far as the eye could see. Beyond that was the jade green water of the Caribbean. The manor house sat on a rise with an unrestricted view of the sea. The lawn stopped short of the sea, exposing a border of white sand. To the right was a wide concrete dock that stretched into the water. To the right of the dock stood a modern boat house, in the same style as the manor house. Tied up to the dock, were two sailboats, a large yacht and a smaller sloop.

The manor house was a two-story mansion of smooth white stucco. It had a light-reddish tiled roof, as did all the smaller buildings that nestled around the manor house. The design was a classic Mediterranean style, with several terraced levels extending from the main structure. The brick lane that led to the large circular drive was bordered by stately royal palm trees and beds of exotic tropical flowers.

Randy drove into the circular drive and parked the electric golf cart. They both walked up to the broad marble terrace and rang the doorbell next to the large wrought iron and glass entrance door. The houseman opened the door that led into a large marble tiled entrance foyer. "Mr. Stevens asked that you join him on the patio; let me show you the way, please."

The foyer floor was covered with the most unusual patterned white marble. The interior walls were white and decorated in warm bright colors that set the tone for the rest of the rooms. A large gold metal mobile hung from the center of the vaulted ceiling two stories above. The mobile was similar in size to the one hanging in the Metropolitan Museum in Manhattan. The walls were decorated with a mixture of modern and impressionist paintings. Directly beneath the mobile was a large brass table with intricately curved legs supporting a thick, round, beveled glass top. Centered on the top was a large bouquet of fresh flowers in a cut crystal bowl.

They followed the houseman through the open French doors at the far end of the foyer which opened out onto the patio. Mac saw them coming and walked over to greet them, welcoming them to his hideaway.

"Come and meet the family before they take off for dinner," Mac said. He led them over to where Drew and the children were seated. "May I have your attention for a minute, I want you to welcome our special guests, Lloyd King on my left and his partner Randy Cavanaugh."

The children turned and said, "Welcome and thank you for coming." Drew and Lance stood and walked over to greet their guests.

"This is my partner Drew and my son, Lance," Mac said. They shook hands.

"Thank you for joining us on such short notice, gentlemen," Drew said. "Mac has told us that you have some novel ideas to help us with our next convention."

"Why don't we all sit down and have something to drink?" Mac said. "Our little angels will be taking off in a few minutes to eat their dinner." The five children were playing very quietly together.

"Drew and I have six children between us," Mac said. "This handsome young man sitting next to me is Lance, my eldest son and our pride and joy. The twin girls are Drew's and the other three are mine. They all happen to be beautiful and brilliant. Isn't that true, son?"

Lance smiled a warm friendly smile, "It sure is, Dad," Lance said. "My father always tells the truth, so it must be so."

"Randy and I are startled with the beauty of this estate. It's breathtaking. We sat in the car and took it all in," Lloyd said. "We were admiring the paintings in the foyer also, they are marvelous. I could spend a day admiring those alone."

"Aren't they beautiful?" Mac asked, "Drew is very artistic and has a knack for making everything blend just perfectly. They are from his private collection and I feel that they blend in so nicely."

"Lance would you round up your brothers and sisters and see that they find their way to the morning room?" Mac asked.

"Sure, Dad," Lance said. "Excuse me, gentlemen, I'll see you at dinner." Lance walked over to where the younger ones were sitting and led them off into the house.

"Before I forget, what time would like us to join you tomorrow morning for our sailing adventure?" Randy asked.

"Captain Stevens is in charge of that," Mac said. "What do you say, Drew?"

"How about you plan to meet us here around eight tomorrow morning?" Drew asked. "My sister and brother-in-law will be joining us also. Lance and his cousin Brian will be tagging along with us in Lance's sloop, it should be fun. The weather should be perfect."

"I know I've met you both before," Drew said. "But I don't remember when. Perhaps you could help me refresh my memory?"

"I met you at the Bluité's Christmas party last year," Lloyd said.

"Your family attended my brother's funeral three years ago," Randy said.

"Thank you, now I remember you both," Drew said. "My mother said you took your brother's death quite hard, Randy. Didn't you also go through a tough divorce as well?"

"It was a difficult time for me. I was in a sanatorium for over two years," Randy said. "Lloyd was responsible for my rapid recovery."

"How did you happen to meet Alex Savage, Randy?" Drew asked.

"Actually, Stonewall Engineering was my client at Cavanaugh & Cavanaugh. Terry Stonewall was my client before he passed away. Alex asked me to continue as his attorney. We also use Stonewall Engineering for all our construction work. Terry's death was a terrible shock; he was a great guy and a close acquaintance; I mourned his passing. Alex has taken hold and is doing well. He and I have also become good friends. He is a true friend. He was one of the few people who visited me in the sanatorium when he was in town. I thought that was considerate of him."

"Alex took Terry's death very hard. The children helped him through some bad times. It would have taken him much longer to recover if he didn't have the children to consider. He is devoted to those children," Mac said. "Well, I see it's time to move into the dining room. We can continue our conversation later. My delightful in-laws will be joining us for after-dinner cocktails," Mac said. "We thought this would give you the opportunity to beg off if you didn't want to be confined on a yacht with them for three days."

Drew didn't miss the quick glances that pasted between Lloyd and Randy. Drew smiled, "I assume Alex has told you Mac and I are a couple?"

"No, he neglected to mention that," Randy said. "Lloyd and I are newlyweds ourselves. We've only been married eight months. Alex is not aware that I'm gay. That's something I discovered when we found each other after seven years."

Mac smiled, "I had a feeling you were a couple after our meeting this morning," Mac said. "We try to cultivate bright young people on both a professional and personal level. I felt you two had a fresh new approach to your presentation and that you should meet the family. If Drew likes your approach to our problem, we plan to use you if you can tailor your concept for our corporate needs. Drew and I need to cut back on our travel and work load. We feel your concept could allow us to do that.

"I've explained your concept to Drew and he thought it should work for our corporate dog-and-pony presentations. We want to hear more. I thought we could use this cruise to your advantage. We can give you an over-view of our operations. I think it would give you some ideas on how to approach our needs. I was thinking along the lines of a quarterly video report for the regional meetings. Maybe you can suggest something after our discussions. It is essential that each division is kept informed of what we are doing at headquarters. We are at your disposal and will be happy to answer any questions you may have.

"My brother-in-law, Charles King, is a super guy and sits on the board of directors of both our corporations. Drew's sister, Claudia, is a lovely lady as well as a stockholder in Drew's firm. Lloyd, is Charles King a distant relation?”

“Not that I’m aware of Mac, but you never know. There are a lot of Kings around, Lloyd said with a chuckle.

"We will definitely be able to give you our thoughts before we leave for New York next Sunday," Lloyd said. "We will need to know how many divisions will be involved, the number of locations involved and the complexities at each location. I'm sure Randy and I can arrive at a rough schedule and a ballpark figure in two weeks."

"Great! Now that we've settled that, we can relax and enjoy our evening."

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Aboard the yacht, Drew assigned everyone their chores after reviewing his ground rules for safety. Mac was responsible for breakfast, Charles and Randy — lunch, Claudia and Lloyd — dinner, and Drew — official bartender. Each couple was responsible for their own cabin. Mac and Lloyd spent several hours the first two days discussing the project. Claudia and Lloyd were a huge success with their gourmet dinners. The two of them hit it off right away and had great fun planning and preparing the meals. Charles and Drew took turns at the wheel. All were good sailors so they knew the basics on a sailboat. They kept a close eye on the sloop Lance and Brian were sailing. The boys anchored next to the West Wind every evening. The powerful security cruiser also anchored next to them each evening. The security cruiser kept their distance during the day but with their powerful engines they could be next to the yachts in a matter of minutes. The power cruiser also had a small helicopter and landing pad built on the after deck. The boat itself was heavily armed and had enough firepower to take care of anyone that gave them any trouble.

They sailed back to Paradise Saturday night and had dinner at the Love Nest.

Mac insisted that Randy and Lloyd fly back to New York with them on their 737 Jet. It would give them a little more time to talk. Lloyd and Randy accepted and headed back to their villa after dinner.

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To be continued...

Posted: 10/05/12