His Paradise Wife Read online

  “Will do. Talk to you later.”

  Chapter 2

  “So I trust your meeting here has been pleasant, Mr. Champion,” Melanie said, putting on her professional hat. Even though she knew Dante in passing, she still wanted to maintain a level of professionalism that a man of his caliber would expect, especially when conducting business. Therefore she didn’t use his first name when interacting with him.

  “Yes it was. Thank you.”

  He was looking fly as always, smelling good, clean shaven and had a voice that demanded attention. Mercy.

  Quickly blinking and coming to her senses, she said, “Um, you’re welcome.”

  He smiled briefly.

  That small act of him smiling nearly took Melanie’s breath away. She thought he’d be on his way by now, but he hadn’t moved. He remained standing at the desk as if he needed something else? Did he need something else? Had she forgotten to give him something? A receipt perhaps?

  Dante recalled the last conference they had here two months ago, he’d caught his brother, Dimitrius, ogling Melanie, staring her up and down but he noticed that Dimitrius hadn’t said anything to her. Just from interacting with her on a business level, Dante knew Melanie wasn’t one of those easy-to-get women. She didn’t seem like the type to let a man use her and toss her aside. She had morals and was looking for something deeper, same as her friend Emily. And Melanie was professional, well-dressed and courteous. He wondered what her career background was. She would be a good fit at his corporation.

  “Um...” Melanie swallowed hard. “Is there anything else I can help you with Mr. Champion?”

  Dante wanted to ask her about Emily, but resisted the urge. Besides, if his plan worked, he’d have Emily Mitchell in his life soon enough. “No, I’m good. Again, thank you for your assistance. It was greatly appreciated.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  Gripping the handle of his briefcase, Dante walked away from the desk and out of the gold-trimmed revolving glass doors.

  Melanie watched him get into the backseat of a black Escalade and closed the door.

  Dante was a successful entrepreneur of various internet companies, but his corporation’s most profitable venture was, Grieving Hearts Connect, an online community dedicated to helping and supporting men and women who’d lost their marital spouses in death. As a part of it, he formed a five-star, resort on Pleasure Island, North Carolina, where widows and widowers could meet and talk with therapists, deal with their issues by comforting each other and using their time in paradise as a springboard to return to their real life in their home towns with a new perspective and outlook on life.

  He formed the company after relocating to Asheville, North Carolina from San Francisco seven years ago. He made the move the same year his wife had passed, convinced his brothers, Dimitrius and Desmond, to come on board with his idea for starting a group of web companies and now, they’re all millionaires.

  Helping other people who were suffering helped Dante to deal with the loss of Anita – the only woman who had every physical attribute as well as inner qualities that made him want to settle down. He was twenty-eight when they married, but five years later, Anita passed from breast cancer, a disease that her mother had also died from.

  After her death, Dante couldn’t bring himself to stay in California because everything there reminded him of her – the landmarks, their friends, their house...everything. So he quit his executive position at a top marketing firm there, sold his home and moved away in search of a new beginning.

  Once he was settled in Asheville, he and his brothers were the talk of the town. They basically took over the social scene and partygoers knew that if the Champion men weren’t at an event, then it wasn’t the place to be.

  After that partying phase of his life, which he also understood as being the denial stage that Anita was truly gone, Dante began to clean up his image. He missed what he had with Anita and it wasn’t until he got his head back on straight that he knew he desired what he’d lost. Unlike his brothers, he wanted love, marriage, a woman to grow old with. Someone to share his life with. The problem was, after all the women he’d met and casually dated, he hadn’t run across a woman who could make him want to pursue her – someone who could take his breath away.

  Then he saw her, Emily Mitchell, showcasing items from her boutique at a community festival. She was one of the vendors there, laughing it up with a customer when her eyes locked with his as he stood a few feet away, admiring her. He was there alone, checking out all the vendors and their products, but when he saw Emily, he stopped and stared, particularly at her full, red lips as she smiled and interacted with customers.

  When he noticed her customers were gone, he stopped by her booth and bought a turquoise stone necklace. He told her it was for his niece but he had no such niece. It was just a ploy by him to get her name and number. She handed him a business card that had the name of her shop, Emily’s Boutique, as well as her business number, but he wasn’t able to get her personal number. He had also been unsuccessful at getting her to go out with him.

  Then something amazing happened, almost as if by divine intervention. His brother Dimitrius, head of the accounts department, informed Dante of a new account that had been set up on Grieving Hearts Connect, a woman by the name of Emily Mitchell.

  Right away Dante logged into the site, looked her up and sure enough, it was the same Emily he’d bought the necklace from, the woman who declined his request for a date. Had he communicated with her online as himself, she probably would not talk to him, and would easily dismiss him the same way she did when he asked her out. That’s when he decided to take on a new persona, to create a profile under the name ‘Armand Hill’. He uploaded a fake picture – some man’s picture he found off of an image search – created a profile and began chatting with Emily.

  Over the course of three months, he’d learned pretty much everything about Emily – things that made him even more enamored by her. But he’d grown tired of late night chats and shorthand typing with her. That had gotten old real quick. He needed to see her laughing out loud. He wanted to personally tell her, goodnight, seal it with a hug and kiss and not by typing ‘XO’ and logging out of a chat window. He wanted his tongue buried in her mouth while his arms encircled her body. He needed his lady by his side.

  So, using his lethal power of persuasion, he devised a scheme to get a ring on her finger by coming up with a first ever, GHC mass wedding at their resort on Pleasure Island. All along, his plan had been to make her fall in love with his online persona, Armand Hill, and he thought he was doing a pretty good job of doing just that – persuading her that he was the man for her, the one who could heal her broken heart. If she accepted his proposal, she would meet him at Pleasure Island. Then and only then would she learn his true identity – that the man she had fallen in love with had been him instead of Armand. In his mind, she’d forgive him for pretending to be someone else and fall hopelessly in love with him. That’s how he hoped it would play out, but now he wasn’t so sure.

  Chapter 3

  “Sherita, you may as well go home. It’s pretty slow today.”

  “You sure? I don’t want to leave you here by yourself.”

  “It’s fine, Rita...won’t be the first time I’ve been left alone between these four teal walls and I’m sure it won’t be the last. I’ll survive.”

  “All right, Emily. Oh, and if the roads ice over tonight, I will be a little late tomorrow.”

  “That’s fine. I’m sure I will be too. This April snow is killing me.”

  “Girl, you and me both. Anyway, hopefully I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  Once Sherita was down the sidewalk, Emily took her laptop from the glass countertop and walked quickly to her back office. She logged into her Grieving Hearts Connect account and signed into messenger.

  Armand was online as indicative by the bright green dot next to his name. That brought a smile to her face. He told her that he stayed online since he spent
every day of his life on a computer, describing himself to her as a serial workaholic. That’s something he told her he wanted to change about himself. He wanted to settle down and not work so hard, now that he didn’t need to.

  The thought of him being online and ready to talk to her instantly gave her a feeling of elation. That was a good sign – to feel a level of excitement and a release of endorphins at the mere notion of talking to a potential boyfriend. But was he her boyfriend? Were they in an exclusive online relationship? Those were questions that had never been asked, although they needed to be answered.

  Emily rubbed her eyes and wondered how long it would be before Armand noticed she was online today. She didn’t message him first because she didn’t want to seem desperate and needy. Besides, workaholics, by definition, usually had work to do. However, she didn’t want him to think she wasn’t interested and excited to jump at the chance to talk to him.

  Hmm...what to do, she pondered, balling a fist and resting her chin against it. Then she saw a message window pop up on the screen.

  Armand: Hey, you.

  The smile that came to her face made her glow more than the bronzer she applied on top of her foundation this morning. She instantly felt her worries ease away.

  Emily: Hi, Armand.

  Armand: How are you?

  Emily: Okay...at the store, bored. It’s been dead in here today

  Armand: Probably due to this crazy weather.

  Emily: I think you’re right. How are you today?

  Armand: I’m well, dear. Thanks for asking.

  Emily leaned back in her chair. She knew it was about time that they met face-to-face, talked on the phone or called it quits. She didn’t want to admit it at the time, but Melanie was right. There was no sense falling for a computer.

  Armand: You are especially quiet today.

  Emily: Sorry. Just have a lot of things on my mind.

  Armand: Like my proposal?

  The proposal! How had she forgotten that? Emily clicked over to her email so she could reread the flier that Armand had sent to her. Grieving Hearts Connect was hosting a mass wedding for online lovers who knew they loved each other and was ready to make a commitment. It was taking place this weekend in Pleasure Island, North Carolina at the GHC resort there. After the ceremonies, the newlyweds were to remain at the resort for two weeks where they would receive free marriage counseling, participate in couples grief counseling and group therapy sessions where they would help each other cope with grief, share their stories and learn from each other. A week ago, Armand had asked Emily to take a leap of faith and attend this event with him, in essence asking her to marry him. Today, he was seeking an answer.

  Armand: Emily, are you still there?

  Emily: Yes.

  Armand: The proposal?

  Emily: Yes, about that...don’t think it’s a good idea...

  Emily cringed when she typed those words, knowing that they would disappoint him. Her heart raced, awaiting his response.

  Armand: Why not?

  Emily: Because we haven’t met face-to-face, nor have we spoken to each other on the phone.

  Armand: And that bothers you?

  Emily frowned. Was he for real? Of course it bothered her! What woman would just marry a man she hadn’t even laid eyes on?

  Armand: Emily?

  Emily: Yes, it does bother me, actually. You know my story...know I have no intentions on remarrying. You know how much Melvin meant to me. We’ve talked about those things.

  Armand: Yes, we did.

  Emily: Yet, you’re asking me to marry you in a passive way and I’ve never met you in person. Before I would even consider marrying you, not that I want to get married, but if I did, I would at least need to meet you in person, talk to you...get to know you, Armand.

  A minute passed. Then two. Three.

  Emily tapped her nails against the desktop, waiting for Armand to respond. She’d told him straight up what was on her mind and wasn’t holding anything back. Maybe he was not the kind of man who could accept the truth so bluntly but she needed to be open and honest about this.

  Armand: Considering all we’ve been through, I think we owe it to ourselves to give this a try. I like you. A lot.

  Emily: I like you too, Armand, but I can’t just up and marry you.

  Armand: Then you have no faith in us or this process.

  Emily: It’s not that. It’s just the fact that I don’t know you.

  Armand: You know me very thoroughly, Emily, as I know you. We’ve spent hours communicating about almost every aspect of our lives. You know things about me that my family doesn’t know.

  Emily: But it’s just not the same as talking and interacting in person.

  Armand: So you want to end this?

  Emily threw her head back in frustration staring up at the ceiling, feeling a sour feeling at the pit of her stomach. She didn’t want to walk away from her computer casanova, but she really didn’t know him that well. How well can you know someone you’ve never met? Never spoken with? And why was he pressuring her to get married, knowing her desire never to do so again?

  Emily drew in a deep breath, gathering the courage to do what she knew she needed to do – to type the words she needed to say to him.

  Emily: Yes. I think that’s best. Goodbye, Armand.

  Armand: Emily

 

  Emily folded her laptop closed and buried her face in her hands. She hoped what she had done was for the best, but why did she feel so bad about it?

  Sitting at his desk, in his presidential size office on the eleventh floor of the building, Dante formed a steeple with his hands and rested his chin on them while staring at the computer screen, at the last words Emily had typed: I think that’s best. Goodbye, Armand. He should’ve stopped while he was ahead and gave Emily a little more time to warm up to him, to Armand rather, but he was rushing things because he knew she was the woman he wanted. The quicker he could convince her of that, the better. His plan, however was falling apart and the woman his heart desired was slipping away.

  Chapter 4

  As soon as Melanie walked into Emily’s living room, Emily immediately handed her the flier that Armand had sent her about the mass wedding. Melanie silently looked it over as she sat on the couch.

  “So what do you think?” Emily inquired.

  “I think it is the absolute, craziest, most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard of. Now, with that being said, it may be just the thing you need.”

  “What?” Emily couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She was sure Melanie would have her back on this, especially since she was against online dating.

  “Hear me out, Em. According to this flier, you would get married at this resort with other couples, you spend two weeks there, practically in paradise, and then you go home. So you get a man, a marriage and a honeymoon all rolled up into one neat little package.”

  “Yeah...but there’s a problem. Two actually.”

  “Those being?”

  “I never want to get married again, ever, and I don’t know this guy.”

  “Oh, now you don’t know him, but you’ve been defending your relationship with Armand for weeks.”

  “I have, but when you said what you said the other day about how Armand and I have never spoken on the phone, I got nervous. So I brought it up to him again just to see what would happen and he just glossed over it.”

  “Well, you have been talking to him online for three months. You’re just getting cold feet, or shall I say, cold fingers.” Melanie grinned.

  Emily blew a distressing breath. “I feel like I know him, but I don’t really know him. And no one could ever replace Melvin. He’s my heart and will always be my heart.”

  “Yes, sweetie, I know but Melvin has been gone for two years now.”

  Emily’s eyes brimmed with tears. “So I’m just supposed to forget about Melvin? Is that what you’re telling me?”

  “No.” Melanie scooted closer to Emily and re
sted her hand on her forearm. “You’ll never forget Melvin. None of us will. He was a good man, but he’s gone, Emily. I know it’s been hard on you, sweetie, but you have to let Melvin go and move on. I’m sure he wanted you to be happy. Do you believe that?”

  Emily nodded.

  “Then this may be the leap of faith you need to find that happiness.”

  “But what if I don’t like Armand in person as much as I like him online?”

  “That’s just a risk you have to take.”

  “A pricey risk...if I’m going to do this, I have to sign a contract, Mel, before I even meet him.”

  Melanie snapped her head back. “A contract?”

  “Yes. That’s supposedly how they make you stick to your commitment. So if I change my mind, get cold feet and decide not to marry him, I have to pay thirty-thousand dollars.”

  “To who?”

  “To the Grieving Hearts Connect company, and I don’t have that kind of money. I’m just barely able to cover the lease payments on the store and business has slowed down drastically—”

  “Emily, stop panicking. All you have to do is not back out. Do it.”

  “Gosh...you’re such an enabler.”

  “I’m serious, though. Do it.”

  “Why? Why should I do this when everything inside of me is telling me not to.”

  “Because you need this. You need a man, girl. And, not only will you get your groove back. You’ll get your parents off your back in the process.”

  “Well, that’s true,” Emily agreed, because, as it stood, she couldn’t get on the phone with her mother without hearing about how they wanted grandbabies. They were so insensitive to her feelings for Melvin, so much so that they had been trying to set her up with a guy three months after Melvin passed. Three short months!

  “Sure is,” Melanie said. “If I hear one more conversation between you and your mother about grandkids, I’m going to scream.”