Chapter 6: Ethan Prince
One year later
Violet stayed at PrinceSoft after the prototype was completed. I made her the lead developer on the app, which we named Soulmate. The app launched to rave reviews and the instantaneous success stories drove it to he top of the charts. Three months after it launched in the United States, we had to release it in Japan, purely based on demand.
Not everyone was able to find their soulmate when they used the app. The algorithm didn’t always lead people to true love. Violet and I knew the truth behind it. We had specifically programmed the app to avoid wrecking families. Thankfully, Soulmate had more success than failure, and we were content in our choices.
“Ethan, you’re not even dressed.” Violet walked to the door in a beautiful dress. “They’ll cancel our reservations if we aren’t on time.”
“Yeah, just a minute. I’m checking something.” I leaned forward to stare at my laptop.
“It’s our anniversary, you can’t work through it. You worked straight through Thanksgiving and I barely saw you at Christmas. We deserve one night together.” She let out a sigh and sat down in the chair across from me.
Violet was my soulmate. There was no doubt about that. It might have started out as lust after a kiss that blew me away, but it had become real love over the course of the year we were together. Unfortunately, the same problems I had with other relationships started to manifest. Work pulled me away and it was impossible to get a break sometimes. Holidays were a busy time for PrinceSoft with so many people getting new electronic devices and downloading the apps. On the eve of our anniversary, a major news outlet ran a story about Soulmate and it had created a spike in sales. As much as I wanted to spend a quiet evening with my beloved, work threatened to pull me away.
“I’ll be on the balcony.” Violet stood up after ten minutes went by without me moving from my laptop.
The balcony was her escape. She would go out there and just listen to the city while she enjoyed a glass of wine. She still liked the constant chaos the city offered since she grew up in suburbia. I had grown numb to the noise. It barely even registered. When I finally closed my laptop and looked at my watch, a couple of hours had passed. It was too late for dinner. I felt my stomach churn when I stepped out on the balcony and saw her wiping away a tear. The anniversary dinner meant the world to her and I had blown it. There was no use in apologizing. She had heard all the excuses before. Promising her it wouldn’t happen again would have been a lie that we both knew wasn’t true. Instead, I just held her and tried to cherish the moment we had.
“I NEED THE ORIGINAL algorithm for Soulmate.” I sat down next to Dawson, one of the guys that was on Violet’s team.
“Yeah, we have it.” He nodded and loaded a program on his computer.
“No, I need the one Violet designed. The first prototype.” I pointed at a different folder. “It’s on her personal drive.”
“We’re not supposed to mess with that.” Dawson looked at me and raised his eyebrows.
“Who pays your salary?” I narrowed my eyes and tilted my head.
“Right.” He nodded quickly. “I’ll email it to you.”
“Thank you.” I smiled and stood up.
There was something missing from our life and I was pretty sure I knew what it was. I loved Violet, but she needed more than I had to offer. I didn’t want to lose her, but I felt like our relationship was headed in that direction if I didn’t do something. I loaded the original algorithm when I got back to my office. I wasn’t Violet’s only soulmate. Nobody else had gotten more than one match, but she got seven. It had to mean something. I ran it, collected the six other names, and started making plans. A few days later, the background checks came back. All six of them were single, living alone, and I was anxious to meet them. I wasn’t sure what would happen, but I felt like I owed it to her to find out.
“WHERE ARE YOU TAKING me?” Violet looked over at me, but it was mostly symbolic because her eyes were blindfolded.
“I told you, it’s a surprise.” I reached over and squeezed her hand. “It will all make sense soon enough.”
Probably the biggest one ever.
“If this is something kinky, I’m into it, but at least tell me what I’m about to walk into.” She giggled and let her hand rest in mine. “You did buy me a very fancy dress.”
“Okay, we’re here.” I parked my car and pulled off the blindfold.
“Did you buy us a house?” Her eyes opened wide when she saw the enormous mansion we were parked in front of.
“Something like that, but what you really need to see is inside.” I exited the car, ran around to her side, and opened the door.
Behind the doors of the mansion was something that would change both of our lives. It was a chance to figure out why the algorithm had originally matched her with seven guys instead of one soulmate. I felt like it was the only way we could salvage our relationship before we lost each other. I took her by the hand and led her up the stairs. When the doors opened and we walked into the living room, I saw confusion all around me. It was etched on her face and echoed on the faces of the six guys that were waiting on us.
“Ethan, what is this?” She raised her eyebrows and then started looking around the room again.
“Yeah, I think we’re all wondering that.” One of the guys stood up and stared at us with confusion.
“Please, take a seat.” I led Violet to an empty chair and held her hand as she sat down.
“How many of you have heard of Soulmate?” I looked around the room and saw a few hands go up.
“That bogus app?” One of the guys scoffed. “I tried it and it said I didn’t even have a soulmate. What a crock of shit.”
“Yeah.” Another guy nodded as he spoke. “I tried it too.”
“The seven of us share a common bond.” I walked to the middle of the room as I spoke. “That bond is my gorgeous girlfriend, Violet.”
“Yeah, she’s hot.” One of the guys nodded and shrugged. “But what does that have to do with your stupid app?”
“I’m sure none of you know this, but Violet is the one that originally designed the algorithm which helps people find their soulmate. I guess you could call her a digital Cupid.” I pointed to Violet. “I asked all of you to come here today because there is something you don’t know about the app. Every single one of you was matched with someone when we first ran the algorithm.”
“Ethan...” I saw Violet’s face get even more confused. “Are these the guys?”
“They are.” I nodded in confirmation. “All of you were matched with a soulmate, just like I was, but we were all matched with the same woman—Violet.”
“Wait, she’s my soulmate?” One of the guys tilted his head. “But she’s your girlfriend.”
“Yeah, and if she’s his soulmate, how the fuck can she be my soulmate?” Another guy spoke up with a reflection of bewilderment on his face.
“Ethan, we need to talk—privately.” Violet stood up quickly and stared me down.
“Excuse me folks, we’ll be right back.” I held up my hand to try and calm the roar that was filling the room as they asked questions.
I knew it wasn’t fair to spring the situation on Violet without telling her about it, but I also knew she would have never agreed to it if we talked it through. She was devoted to me, and I loved her. We had just reached that point in our relationship where my flaws were overwhelming the passion we had when we first got together. I could feel the separation in my soul and I didn’t want to lose her. If the other guys weren’t really her soulmates and it was just a bug in the algorithm, then it meant our relationship was founded on the same error. If that was the case, then she deserved to know it. If they really were her soulmates, then she deserved to know that as well. Either way, she deserved more than what I was able to give her.
“What the hell, Ethan?” Violet turned to me in anger the second we closed the door to one of the side rooms. “Why did you bring all of those guys her
e?”
“I love you, Violet.” I walked up and took her hands, but she pulled away. “We both know I’m not giving you everything you need in this relationship.”
“We’re making it work.” She folded her arms across my chest when I tried to take her hands again. “No relationship is perfect.”
“But shouldn’t it be?” I tilted my head. “If we’re really soulmates, shouldn’t it be everything we need?”
“Is this some fetish? Are you into cuckolding or something?” Her eyebrows came together as she spoke and I could see her face turning red.
“No, it’s nothing like that.” I shook my head back and forth. “This is all about you—this is all about us.”
“So, you expect me to what—sleep with all of these guys?” She tilted her head in confusion. “Are you breaking up with me? I don’t understand.”
“If the algorithm worked, then every guy in there is your soulmate. If it didn’t work, then the relationship we built was founded on a mistake.” I regretted those words the minute I said them.
“A mistake?” She took a step back and stared at me like I had slapped her.
“I don’t believe it is a mistake. I’m not saying that our relationship is a mistake in any sense of the word. I’m just saying that if your algorithm worked, then I’m not the only soulmate you have. I don’t want to break up with you at all. I want you to have everything you need.” I moved closer and put my hand on her arm. She didn’t pull away.
“What I felt when you kissed me was no mistake.” She unfolded her arms and slowly took my hand. “I still feel it every time we are together—when we get those moments.”
“That’s my point. We don’t get those moments very often. My life will never be uncomplicated. PrinceSoft will dominate my days, control most of my nights, and take me away from when you need me. You’ve seen that. It’s been our life for the last year. I know you need more.” I squeezed her hand.
“You would be willing to share me before you would be willing to lose me?” Her face tensed up and I saw a tear in her eye.
“I’d be willing to do anything not to lose you.” I felt a tear in my eye as well. “This isn’t easy for me. You know I have a very dominant personality. Put me in the room with anyone and I’m always going to be the alpha male. It’s just who I am. This feels so different. I can’t even explain it. I cherish the time we have together, and if this arrangement works, then we’ll always have those moments.”
“I believe this is the point in a relationship when most guys would get down on one knee and try to knock their girlfriend up to lock them down.” Her lips slowly turned into a smile. “Your approach is rather unorthodox.”
“What about us has ever been orthodox?” I exhaled sharply and smiled.
“Okay.” Violet nodded and walked to the door, pulling it open slowly until there was a crack of light. “I’m willing to give it a shot, but we need some rules.”
“Name them.” I walked up behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist.
“First, I’m not just going to walk out there and start fucking six other guys. I want to spend time with each one of them and figure out if we have a connection.” She leaned back into my embrace.
“That makes sense.” I nodded and kissed her neck.
“Second, if I do decide that I want to take things further, it can’t ruin what we have. If you’re not one-hundred percent onboard with this, then you have to let me know now. If I feel like it is getting weird or things between us have changed, I’m walking.” She sighed and I felt her shiver beneath my lips.
“That’s fair.” I nodded again. “I want what is best for you.”
“I want to meet the guy in the black t-shirt first.” She pointed through the crack in the door. “He looks rough. That might be an interesting change.”
“Oh, am I not rough enough for you?” I smirked and gave her a smack on the ass.
“You know what I mean.” She smiled and turned towards me.
“Yeah, I see what you’re saying.” I nodded and stared at the guy. “Okay, I’ll bring him over.”
Chapter 7: Boyd
Ten months ago
“Yo, Boyd.” I heard a voice behind me and I looked over my shoulder. “Check this shit out. Have you seen this Soulmate app?”
“No, I don’t really mess with that online dating shit. I get all the pussy I need without any help.” I put down my wrench and stood up.
“Well we can’t all be six foot seven with good genetics.” My co-worker, John, turned his cell phone screen towards me. “It matched me up with some rich bitch in Beverly Hills!”
“I’m going to guess she doesn’t want a mechanic from Kentucky.” I chuckled and pulled a pack of cigarettes out of my pocket. “You should stick with the meth-mouth whores that don’t have any teeth. At least you know what you’re getting with them.”
“No, I’m telling you, Boyd.” John shook his head back and forth. “This shit is supposed to be legit. Like, it’s all over the fucking news.”
“The news said Hillary Clinton was going to win the election, too.” I lit a cigarette and shoved my lighter back into my pocket. “Now look who’s running the country.”
“I don’t know, man. I’m going to message her. I could be a kept man. Just think about it. This bitch has probably never had a real dick inside her.” John started tapping on his phone.
“Yeah, why don’t you send her a picture of it. I hear that works great.” I walked outside and leaned against the wall.
I had pretty much given up on love, soulmates, and all that shit. I had a good girl once and I planned to marry her, but then she ran off with my best friend—well, my former best friend. I spent several months tracking them down and I would have killed them both if she hadn’t told me she was pregnant with his baby. That soured love to me. It was nothing more than weakness that could be used against you.
“Boyd, bro. She messaged me back! She wants to meet.” John walked out with a smile on his face, still staring at his cell phone. “She already used the app and saw that I was her soulmate, but was too scared to make the first move.”
“Sounds like love.” I rolled my eyes and took a drag off of my cigarette. “I guess you’re going to need some time off?”
“Yeah.” John’s smile got wider. “She can’t come out here, but she offered to fly me out to California so we can meet.”
“Great...” I nodded and sent my cigarette flying towards the parking lot with a flick of my fingers. “I guess I’ll be doing your work while you’re gone.”
“This is like—destiny, man. You should try this app!” John walked back inside, rapidly typing on his phone as he did.
Destiny—yeah, fuck destiny.
John left for Beverly Hills and I expected him to be on the first plane back once the girl he matched with realized he was just some poor redneck wanna-be thug from Kentucky. I didn’t think a rich girl that spent more money in a day than John earned in a month was going to have much use for him. I was wrong. A few days after he left, I got a phone call from him letting me know he wasn’t coming home. He was staying in Beverly Hills and had never been happier. They were already talking about marriage. I wished him the best, but when I hung up the phone, I was cursing. John was the best mechanic in the shop next to me and it wasn’t going to be easy to keep things going without him.
Now I have to find another mechanic that isn’t hooked on crack or meth. Fuck!
I spent a few days looking for a replacement, but the work piled up faster than I could manage on my own. I started missing deadlines and a few people took their business elsewhere. Money definitely wasn’t plentiful. One night, after I closed up and sat alone in my office with a beer, I decided to load the app and see what the fuss was about. I wondered if it would match me with some rich girl as well. If John was able to a get the fuck out of Kentucky that easily, maybe I could get in on that as well. I downloaded the app, put in my information, and asked it to find my soulmate. The response was a b
lank screen.
Well, that fucking figures.
PRESENT DAY
“Boyd, you have a phone call.” The girl that I paid to answer the phone part-time during the busiest part of the day motioned for me to come over to the front desk.
“I pay you to handle the customers.” I walked over and took the phone from her.
“Sorry, this guy says it’s personal.” She shrugged and started typing on her computer.
“Yeah, this is Boyd.” I pushed the phone against my ear.
“Hello, Boyd. My name is Ethan Prince.” He spoke with a confident tone, but I didn’t recognize the name.
“Do I know you?” I raised my eyebrows and tried to place his name, but it wasn’t familiar.
“I’m the guy that created Soulmate. I believe you’re familiar with it?” Even though he spoke with confidence, I could sense a bit of apprehension in his voice.
“Yeah, I used it.” I nodded even though he couldn’t see me. “It sucks. It matched one of my friends up with some rich girl. Now they’re married with a kid on the way. It didn’t match me with anyone.”
“I believe that was a mistake.” He sighed. “In fact, I’ve been doing some research and I believe I did find your soulmate.”
“Is this some sort of scam?” I leaned the phone against my shoulder and dug into my pocket for my pack of cigarettes. “I’m not going to spend any money on this shit if you’re about to try and sell me something. I already bought your shitty fucking app.”
“No, actually I’m the one that wants to pay you. I want to fly you to New York and introduce you to your soulmate. If things work out, I think you’ll be very happy. If they don’t, I’ll give a hundred thousand dollars for your trouble.” His words made me immediately perk up.
“A hundred grand? Just for coming to New York?” I lit my cigarette and smiled. “Do I get this in writing?”
Seven Soulmates_Reverse Harem Romance Page 4