“Good evening. Welcome to The Imperial Courtyard. My name is Christine. Do you have a reservation?”
Camden briefly gaped at Christine in bewilderment. Henry had given Camden’s phone number to Harrison. Harrison had contacted Camden, and they had sent a few text messages back and forth. They agreed to meet up prior to the party so they could get to know each other. Camden knew what kind of a restaurant The Imperial Courtyard was, but he had never eaten here before. He was a little uncertain about what the proper procedure was at the restaurant.
“Uh, I’m supposed to meet up with Mr. Harrison Cooke, and I’m not sure if he has made any.”
Christine beamed widely. “Yes, he did. You must be Mr. Camden Barrera. Mr. Cooke is waiting for you at his usual table. Please come with me.”
“Okay.”
Camden followed Christine obediently while glancing around the restaurant. The furniture, lighting, and decorations looked expensive. The ambience was different than that of the cheap diners Camden often frequented. It was more high class or something. Camden was glad that he had put on a tie before leaving the art gallery and driving to the restaurant. His clothes weren’t branded items, but at the very least, he was suitably dressed up for this venue. He was so preoccupied with his surroundings, he almost bumped into Christine’s back when she abruptly stopped walking.
“Mr. Cooke, Mr. Barrera is here.”
“Thank you, Christine,” Harrison said before standing and smiling at Camden. Then he extended his right hand forward. “Hello, Mr. Barrera. I’m Harrison. Thank you for coming at short notice. I appreciate it.”
Camden was stunned as he shook hands with Harrison while gazing into the man’s eyes. He quietly wondered if Harrison and Henry ate bodybuilders for every single meal because they were incredibly tall and muscular. They resembled mini giants. Harrison and Henry had the same eye and hair colors, and they were handsome. Camden wasn’t attracted to Henry, sexually or romantically, but he was definitely interested in Harrison. He was curious why Harrison needed to bring him, a total stranger, to the party this Saturday. A man as sexy and good-looking as Harrison should have dozens of men and women clamoring to be his date.
“You’re welcome, and please call me Camden.”
“I’m Harrison then.”
Camden nodded. Then he was astonished when Harrison pulled his chair out for him, but he was also delighted by the gesture. It was nice to be the sole focus of someone’s attention without having to fight for it.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” After that, Harrison returned to his seat before accepting a couple of portable tablets from Christine, who walked away immediately afterward, and offering one of them to Camden. “Shall we order now?”
“Sure,” Camden replied.
Then he gasped softly as he scrolled through the electronic menu. He expected the food and beverages at this restaurant to be pricey, but he was still shocked. The tuna nachos cost fifty bucks. That was fucking insane. Granted, the ingredients listed sounded fancy, but Camden thought the nachos was overpriced. He was even more flabbergasted when he got to the soup section of the menu, and if he wanted a grilled chicken taco salad, he must cough up eighty-five dollars. That was daylight robbery. Camden grew more nervous as he browsed through the rest of the menu. One hundred and thirty-seven dollars for a plate of twelve-ounce Boursin pork chop. Camden had no idea what Boursin was, but he would never pay that much for something he wasn’t familiar with. Even more ridiculous was the grilled bacon double cheeseburger. A whopping ninety-five dollars for a burger.
“Have you decided on what you want to eat?”
Harrison’s question startled Camden out of his reverie. He wondered if he could ask for a glass of tap water only, but he couldn’t say that because that would be so damn mortifying. Besides, he didn’t see any option for tap water on the menu.
“Not yet. Give me another minute, please.”
“Sure.”
Then Harrison smiled, and he looked even more handsome than he already was. Life was fucking unfair. Not only did Harrison have a great body, but he was also incredibly good-looking and obscenely wealthy to boot. Camden felt as if his breath had just been stolen or something as he stared at Harrison. For a second or two, he thought his heart had stopped beating.
“T-thanks.”
“Get whatever you like from the menu. It’s my treat.”
Camden was hit by a mixture of embarrassment and surprise. “You don’t have to do that.”
“I insist.”
“But—”
“I’m the one who chose this restaurant,” Harrison interrupted gently. “And you’re kind enough to take the time off your busy schedule to meet up with me.”
“Nothing like that at all. Originally, I didn’t have anything to do this evening. It’s no trouble at all.”
“Regardless, you’re here because of me. Let me take care of the bill later.”
“But—”
“Please.”
At that moment, Camden realized Harrison and Henry had one other thing in common. The brothers were obstinate, and for some reason, Camden thought that was hilarious, so he ended up chuckling loudly while nodding at Harrison.
“All right then. Thank you.”
Harrison grinned. “My pleasure.”
Camden hastily averted his gaze and focused on the menu because his heart was pounding like crazy. Harrison was devastatingly charming and sweet, and it made him that much more irresistible. As a result, Camden found it difficult to concentrate on the menu, and when he glanced at Harrison, he was taken aback because the man was staring at him. He gulped a little while struggling to get the words out.
“I’m not sure what to order. Any suggestions?”
“I love the ribeye. The filet mignon is delicious, too.”
“I’ll have the filet mignon then. What about you?”
“Same. Should we get a bottle of wine, as well?”
Camden shrugged at Harrison. “Sure.”
While Harrison was clicking away on the tablet, Camden checked out the menu. He was curious about the price of the filet mignon, and when he saw it, he almost choked on his spit. Two hundred and fifty dollars for the filet mignon. That was crazy. He wondered if Harrison was, for some unknown reason, trying to impress him or if the man had another ulterior motive. It was unnecessary, though. Camden had already promised Henry that he would be Harrison’s date to the party. Besides, becoming the companion of someone who looked like Harrison posed no hardship at all. Nevertheless, Camden enjoyed the fact that Harrison was paying him so much attention. Most importantly, he didn’t have to share Harrison with anyone. Growing up with an older sister and a younger twin brother, Camden always felt like he had to say or do more than his siblings just so their parents would notice him.
“Do you want dessert?”
Camden shook his head at Harrison. “No, thank you.”
“The blueberry-lemon buttermilk cake is to die for,” Harrison said. “It has a lemon cream cheese frosting, almond crumbs, citrus curd, plus chocolate ice cream.”
Camden was tempted, but he hesitated because he didn’t know how much it cost. “That sounds good, but—”
“We can get one and split it between us,” Harrison interrupted. “If that’s okay with you.”
Camden quickly nodded. “Yeah. Of course.”
Harrison looked delighted. “Awesome.”
Camden waited patiently for Harrison to finish ordering the dessert via the portable tablet. He didn’t mind because it gave him the opportunity to ogle Harrison, and he did his best to be discreet. Harrison had taken his suit jacket off. Camden could see the visible outlines of Harrison’s bulging muscles because the man’s shirt seemed a tad tight. The view was nice, so Camden had nothing to complain about.
“All done.”
Camden hurriedly glanced up and smiled at Harrison. “Great.”
“What did Henry tell you about the party?”
“Not much,” Camden admitted. “He only informed me that you would need someone to accompany you to the party. Aside from that, the details were sparse.”
Harrison sighed. “That’s so Henry.”
Camden chuckled. “I found out about that the hard way after my first meeting with Henry. He had sold a painting to Bradley, a new client of the gallery, without exchanging contact information. Bradley couldn’t get in touch with Henry, and he had a question for the painter. Nathan, the sales manager at the gallery who was in charge of that transaction, was hospitalized that day, and in the end, I had to become the middleman between Bradley and Henry. Unfortunately, I couldn’t reach Henry by phone, and he didn’t respond to my text messages until late in the evening. Bradley was impatient, and I frankly wished I could have just given him Henry’s number, but I couldn’t. Not without Henry’s permission. Otherwise, if something went wrong between Henry and Nathan, I might have to shoulder part of the blame. It was such a mess that day.”
Harrison laughed. “That’s Henry all right.”
Camden grinned. “Yeah. Anyway, can you explain more about what the party is like.”
“I can do that,” Harrison agreed with a smile.
“I’m all ears.”
After that, Camden listened attentively. Apparently, it was a party to celebrate the successful collaboration between Lovebug and a few other companies, which made it easier for the users of the application to reserve tables at restaurants and buy movie tickets, among several other perks. Aside from the convenience, people who utilized those additional services would feel safer because their whereabouts could be tracked. Their families and friends could check up on them as long as their Lovebug accounts were connected with one another. As the founder of Lovebug, Harrison couldn’t attend the party as a single man because some people would definitely point out how ironic it was that the person who invented one of the most popular dating applications didn’t have a significant other by his side.
“I need you to be my date for the party,” Harrison concluded moments later.
“That won’t be a problem. Will there be reporters at the party?”
“A few,” Harrison replied. “It’s important for us to meet up as often as possible prior to the party. We must get to know each other well.”
“What should I do if I don’t know how to answer some of the questions from the reporters?”
“The two of us will be stick close together for the duration of the party so you have nothing to worry about in that regard. I’ll take care of everything.”
“Glad to hear that.”
“Do you have a tuxedo?”
“No.”
“It’s fine. I know of an excellent tailor who can make you one. I’ll contact him later.”
“Okay.”
After that, Harrison switched the topic of conversation. He admitted that he didn’t have much spare time because he was always busy with work. The only relaxing thing he did was exercising, which he routinely did at least six days a week. Camden believed that because Harrison looked incredibly muscular. He was quite built himself, but he wasn’t as bulky as Harrison.
“What about you? What do you do for fun?”
“I’m at the art gallery from Monday through Friday,” Camden replied. “During the weekend, I have to catch up on laundry, groceries, and some other errands. I love to exercise, but not as much as you. Obviously.”
Harrison grinned. “You look great, man.”
“Thanks. I think I’m all right.”
Camden enjoyed chatting with Harrison, and he found himself opening up to the man without really intending to. Harrison had a subtle way of pulling information out of Camden. However, Camden wasn’t offended. He didn’t mind it at all. He told Harrison about Richard and George, his adoptive parents, Charlotte, his older sister, and Charles, his younger brother. Richard and George owned a diner, and they were both amazing chefs.
“Are you, Charlotte, and Charles related by blood?”
“Yeah,” Camden confirmed. “Our fathers decided to get all three of us so we wouldn’t be separated.”
“That was amazing.”
“It was. Anyway, Charles is my twin. I’m five minutes older than Charles.”
“Are the two of you identical? Physically, that is.”
“Yes, we are,” Camden confirmed. “The only way to tell us apart, aside from our personalities, is by the big mole on the back of our necks. Mine is closer to my right shoulder. Charles’s mole is located right in the center.”
“Wow! Many people must have mistaken you for Charles, and vice versa.”
Camden nodded. He had been annoyed by that at first, but after a while, he got used to it. The two of them paused their conversation when the food and wine were delivered to the table. Once the server had left, Harrison shared a bit about his family. Camden knew some of the details through his friendship with Henry, but he didn’t mind listening to Harrison talking about them. Harrison’s voice was deep and husky. There was a hypnotic quality to it, and Camden liked it a lot. By the time dinner was over, he wished he could spend more time with Harrison. Unfortunately, it was already thirty-seven minutes past nine, and he was certain that the restaurant would be closed soon.
“Thank you for dinner and the amazing conversation.”
“It’s my pleasure,” Harrison said after paying for the meal. “May I walk you to your car, please?”
“Yes, please,” Camden answered while smiling at Harrison.
The distance between the restaurant and his car was quite short, and a part of him wished that he had parked much farther away. Being the sole focus of Harrison’s attention was addictive. Camden certainly enjoyed it.
“I’ll call you once I’ve made an appointment with the tailor.”
“Sure.”
“Thank you again for meeting up with me for dinner. I had a wonderful time getting to know you.”
Camden was honestly flattered. “I had an amazing time, and I should be thanking you for the meal.”
Harrison beamed widely. “You’re welcome. Have a safe trip home.”
“You, too.” Then Camden unlocked his car, and he was taken aback when Harrison opened the door for him. He glanced at Harrison and smiled. “Thank you.”
Harrison simply nodded. Once Camden had gotten inside the car, Harrison gently shut the door. Camden switched on the engine and buckled up before waving at Harrison and driving away. His heart was pounding like mad when he recalled the last few minutes that he had spent with Harrison. The two of them had stood really close, and Camden could smell Harrison’s aftershave and cologne. The fragrance was intoxicating, and Camden loved it. However, the most memorable part was Harrison’s intense gaze when their eyes met. It was as if he was diving deep into Camden’s soul, filling it with warmth. Camden would always remember that sensation for the rest of his life. He definitely couldn’t wait to meet up with Harrison again.