Page 19 of Fake Bride's First Love
I leaned back in my chair while nodding. “Ria is very conniving, Ginger. The longer she’s in my life, the more she’ll make it a complete hell. If I gave this to my lawyers, we’d be tied up for months or years with a court case. This way, I can just get rid of her.”
Ginger seemed to understand my point but was apprehensive. “Yeah, but just be careful and document everything. I’m no lawyer, but…anyway, do what you gotta do.” After finishing her coffee, we kissed, and she went back home to get ready for work.
But before I started work myself, I picked my phone back up and called Chase.
“Dude, why are you up so early?”
“I told Ria that I know she’s been embezzling money, Chase, and it did not go well.” I overheard Margo ask who was on the phone before Chase’s feet made their way downstairs.
“Of course it didn’t because she’s crazy. So, what’s going to happen now?”
“Well, I offered to just pay her to leave the company because getting my lawyers involved would only drag this out. Plus, she has so many connections in the diamond industry that she could royally screw me over.”
I heard him pouring water into his coffee machine. “That’s a good point, although it’d be easier on you if the lawyers handled it.”
“Anyway, she started telling me that none of this would be an issue if we were married.”
“What the hell difference would that make?”
“Because we’d have joint bank accounts, and I could track the money myself.”
Chase let out a long whistle. “God, Jorge. You really dodged a bullet with this one.”
“Not exactly. Ria threatened to fly to Miami as soon as I called her out. I told her that I was in love with another woman and that I’d moved on.”
“Ha, way to lie. Like you could ever be in love with a woman.”
Don’t be so sure about that, Chase.
“When she didn’t believe me, I told her that I was engaged and getting married next week. But she didn’t believe it, and now she’s flying out here! What the hell am I going to do? I can’t exactly avoid this woman, either. She knows where I live and work.”
I listened to Chase pull out a chair and sit down. “Leave it to you to get wrapped up in something this insane, Jorge.”
“I’m serious! I’m freaking out right now! When Ria sees that I’m obviously not getting married, she’ll refuse my offer to buy her out of her partnership, and then I’ll be tied up with legal crap for who knows how long. Oh, God!”
“What?”
“The De Veers Diamond Group. She’s still in charge of negotiations with the unions and will use that as leverage against me. When she sees that I’m not engaged, the second I hire lawyers, she’ll be all over that and really screw me over! What am I going to do, Chase?”
“So, you’re saying that unless Ria actually sees you getting married, that she’ll find a way to basically force you into bankruptcy?”
Sweat was now forming on my forehead. “Yes. Please, Chase. You’re a smart man and one of my best friends. What do I do?”
“Two words, Jorge—fake bride.”
9
Ginger
Two Days Later
We had a staff meeting at work that day, and if I hadn’t set my alarm clock, I would have been late. Not that Guadalupe would have minded, of course. She would have suspected that it had something to do with Jorge and demanded to know all of the details, which would entail worrying my ass off about him sleeping with Ria again. As much as I tried focusing on what Guadalupe was talking about, my mind kept going back to Jorge’s phone conversation the previous day.
I was up all night, tossing and turning as I wondered how Jorge would ultimately end things with Ria. I kept picturing him picking her up at the airport, taking her back to his penthouse, and having sex with her.
But every time I woke up, I reminded myself of what I’d overheard Jorge telling Ria on the phone the day before: he was in love with someone else. Unless I had been dreaming that part.
Of course, you were because Jorge is a womanizer.
