Like Pieces of the Jigsaw Puzzle

Chapter 1“Do you have a date for the party this Saturday?” Harrison Cooke glanced up at Henry, his younger brother, and shook his head before refocusing on his laptop. More accurately, he was concentrating on the financial report that he had been reading for the past ten minutes or so. He didn’t wish to talk about the party, which was held to celebrate the successful collaboration between his company and a couple of others. “Is it necessary for me to bring somebody to the party?” “Duh!” Henry exclaimed, sounding totally exasperated. “You’re the creator of Lovebug, one of the most popular dating apps, and I know many people out there have been seeking for the opportunity to talk to you because they wish to—” “My company already has plenty of investors,” Harrison interrupted without bothering to look at Henry. “I know that, but there’s no such thing as too much money. If those people are willing to throw money your way, you should accept them with open arms.” “No, thanks,” Harrison retorted while continuing to browse through the report. “My company has expanded way too fast over the past one and a half years. I don’t want to bite off more than I can chew. For the time being, I need to stabilize the growth of the company.” Henry sighed, and Harrison pretended that he hadn’t heard that because he was hoping that his brother would drop the subject and move on to something else, preferably a much lighter topic. He had many things to deal with that morning, along with a meeting and a couple of video conferences later that afternoon. Monday was the worst and busiest day of the week for Harrison, but as much as he hated it, he was also thankful for his success. At the ripe old age of thirty-five, the company that he had built up from scratch was now valued at around four billion dollars. He was a self-made billionaire and probably one of the richest people in the world. He was definitely one of the most affluent people in Austin, Texas. “Fine. Forget about that for now. Let’s get back to my earlier question.” “Which one?” Truthfully, Harrison hadn’t forgotten it, and when he briefly peeked in Henry’s direction, he could tell that his younger brother wasn’t fooled. Not at all. “You know exactly what I’m referring to.” Harrison suppressed his amusement. Henry might be thirty-three years old now, but he was still so easily riled up. Harrison knew well which of Henry’s buttons to push for the maximum effect because most of the time, he was the one who had taken care of his younger brother from the time when they were still toddlers until their high school years. They had aunts, uncles, grandparents, and even neighbors watching them, but Harrison was the one Henry had looked up to. Their parents, Michael and Catherine, had to work multiple jobs each in order to pay for rent, food, and other expenses. Money had been really tight back then, but Harrison was aware that his parents were doing their best, and they really loved him and Henry. “I don’t have a date,” Harrison admitted. “Happy now?” “No,” Henry replied, and he seemed annoyed. “Bro, you must get someone to accompany you to the party.” “Why?” Judging by Henry’s facial expression, he was mere seconds away from snapping at Harrison. “Bro! Are you f*****g kidding me?” “Language,” Harrison chided. It was automatic. Harrison couldn’t help it. He had been more than just an older brother. He had also been Henry’s substitute guardian and protector for many years. Even though the two of them were adults now, Harrison would unintentionally slip into his previous roles every once in a while. “f**k! f**k! f**k! f**k you!” Henry half yelled while rolling his eyes at Harrison. “Childish,” Harrison shot back while doing his best not to laugh at Henry who was obviously irritated at him. “Come on, man!” Henry’s tone of voice was slightly whiny now, and Harrison decided he should stop teasing his younger brother before they ended up fighting for real. They were both adults, and they didn’t have to resort to using their fists to settle an argument. If they came to blows, Harrison knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that his office would be destroyed. He was six feet and five inches tall while Henry had two inches over him. He weighed two hundred and fifty-eight pounds, and the last time he asked, Henry was nineteen pounds heavier than him. With the amount of muscles they were packing, the consequences of a brawl between him and Henry would be beyond terrible. “You should be my date for the party then.” Harrison couldn’t resist. He had to take another jab. Henry didn’t seem amused. At all. “Bro.” Harrison chuckled. “Okay. I’ll stop playing with you.” Henry huffed. “Not funny, man.” “It is to me,” Harrison retorted with a grin. “Anyway, must I really have a date for the party?” “Yes, and it’s because you’re the boss. Lovebug is famous because a few surveys out there claim that people who meet through the app have a success rate of seventy-three percent. Imagine how bad it will be for the image and reputation of your company if you turn up at the party all by yourself.” Harrison sighed. Henry had a valid point. “You’re right, but where am I supposed to get a date?” “A bar maybe?” Harrison snorted. “Impossible. I have a ton of things to do every day. By the time I’m done, it’s usually ten or eleven at night. I’ll be too exhausted then, and all I wish to do is to return home and lie down on my bed.” Henry was quiet for a moment. Then, all of a sudden, he beamed widely at Harrison. “Do you have an account on Lovebug?” “Yeah. Why?” “You can search for a suitable date on the app,” Henry replied. “And what if I fail?” Henry appeared to hesitate about something for a second or two. “Well, what do you think about hiring somebody to be your date for the party?” Harrison wasn’t impressed by Henry’s response. “I’m not desperate enough to pay for a gigolo.” Henry chortled. “You kind of are.” Harrison flipped Henry the bird, and to get his point across, he raised both of his middle fingers. “f**k you!” Henry snickered. “Not interested. Besides, are you sure your d**k is still functioning? When was the last time you got laid? Was it when the dinosaurs still roamed this earth?” “Slightly more than a year ago,” Harrison answered while simultaneously feeling irritated and embarrassed. “Not that it’s any of your business.” “Do you at least clear the drain every once in a while?” Henry asked while grinning and making the universal gesture of jerking off with his right hand. “Don’t be a nosy pervert.” “I’m concerned about your well-being, man.” “f**k off. At the very least, I’m not a slut like you.” Henry didn’t appear to be offended by Harrison’s remark. In fact, he seemed amused. “I’m a man-w***e, and I’m proud of it.” “I hope you had the common sense to wear condoms while having indiscriminate s*x with every random person out there.” “Always,” Henry said. “And for your information, I haven’t received a single complaint from any of my partners. Some of those men and women are actually dying to have s*x with me again.” “Oh, wow! I’m so impressed.” Harrison didn’t bother to conceal his sarcasm, and Henry chortled. “You should be.” “Whatever. On a more serious note, do you have a better suggestion for me other than a gigolo?” “No, and what’s wrong with a gigolo? Nothing wrong with using one’s body to earn some money.” “I have nothing against gigolos,” Harrison explained. “But I don’t need to pay for sex.” Henry nodded. “Fair enough. Do you have any friends who…uh, never mind.” Harrison felt slightly humiliated. He had many acquaintances, but he didn’t have any friends. Not even the casual type. From a very young age, Harrison had vowed that he would become successful someday. Hence, he had always been focused on working toward his goal. He didn’t have time to make friends with anybody. Every person he encountered was put into two separate boxes inside his head. If they were useful, he would keep in touch with them. If they weren’t, he couldn’t be bothered with them. After years of doing that, he no longer knew how to make friends with anybody without mentally listing that person’s pros and cons. “Is any of your friends available?” “Unfortunately, no,” Henry answered. Then his eyes widened. “Hold on. I think I know of somebody who may be able to help you out.” “Who?” “Camden Barrera. He works in the art gallery that I frequent.” “Is he a painter like you?” Henry shook his head. “He’s an accountant in the finance department of the gallery.” “How old is he?” “Thirty years old. Gorgeous green eyes. Dark blond hair. About six feet tall, and he probably weighs somewhere around one hundred and ninety pounds. Maybe a little heavier than that. Muscular and sexy.” Harrison grimaced in disgust. “Please don’t tell me he’s one of your f**k buddies.” Henry snickered. “No, he isn’t. He’s incredibly handsome, but I’m not interested in him that way.” “Is he into you that way?” Henry laughed. “I don’t think so. At the very least, he has never given me any hints that he wants to be more than friends with me.” Harrison was relieved. “Glad to hear that. Can you get in touch with him as soon as possible? If he can make it this Saturday, I’ll pick him up from his place. I’ll pay for his tuxedo if he doesn’t own any.” “Okay.” “Thanks.” “Sure. By the way, are you almost done with your report?” “Not yet,” Harrison replied. “Why?” “Can you put it aside for a bit? Let’s have an early lunch. I haven’t seen you for a while because you’ve been busy, and I miss my big brother.” Harrison honestly had many things to deal with, but he couldn’t say no to Henry. It was nearly impossible for him. “Of course,” Harrison agreed before pushing his chair back and getting up. “Do you want to go to the steakhouse as usual? Or are you craving something new?” “The steakhouse will be awesome.” The two of them walked out from the office, and Harrison informed Stacey, his personal assistant, that he would be out for about an hour or two, but she could contact him if it was an emergency. After that, he and Henry made their way to the elevator. Henry talked about what he had been up to lately, and Harrison listened attentively even though there was nothing exciting going on in his brother’s life. It was nice to catch up with Henry in person because chatting over the phone felt different. Less intimate. Henry also reminded Harrison to go back to their parents’ house in Houston and visit, preferably during the weekend. Harrison promised that he would do that as soon as possible, but not this coming weekend because he had to attend the party this Saturday. Before that, he still had that issue of finding a date for the party. Hopefully, Camden had time to spare so he would be able to accompany Harrison to the party.