Queens gambit is townes gay

Is D. L. Townes gay? Some 'The Queen's Gambit' viewers claim that the devilishly handsome chess player and Beth Harmon were positively shippable.

My impression was that Townes was gay, but was infatuated with Beth nonetheless. I think he loved her as an incredible chess player, and I do think he thought she was beautiful and captivating and had a sort of crush on her.