Chapter 5
Of course, he remembered her as she stood inside his office. She appeared to be in a temporary trance, seemingly clueless that he was staring at her.
He was not surprised to see her. Truthfully, he was more curious why it took her this long before she came to confront him.
It had been years, but she was still the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He supposed it was no wonder his brother fell head over heels in love with her. But not him.
Unlike his brother, who had his head floating with the clouds, he had more sense than to fall for superficial things.
"You are not seriously considering marrying her." He remembered telling his younger brother when he told him about his plan. "Dale, wake up. You barely know that girl."
Of course, he was against it. He had no clue who this woman was, where she came from, or her family's history. He doubted his brother was any better.
Dale was a good-hearted man who always saw the goodness of the people around him. And when it came to her, he was blind, unable to see her faults, believing she was incapable of doing wrong.
"I know enough. We love each other. That is all that matter." Dale stubbornly ignored his warning. He was determined to push through with this wedding.
His brother claimed it was love at first sight. And the moment he saw her, his heart skipped a beat, and everything around him stopped.
Of course, for him, that was full of crap. He never believed in such things. Love was just an illusion that many used to take advantage of another person's weakness.
"Less than two months is not enough to get to know someone." He tried to reason with him, finding his brother's behavior immature and irresponsible.
But Dale was still young and naive about the world. He had no idea the world was a jungle where only the strong survive. And it was also full of predators just waiting for their prey.
"I love her. I can feel it in my heart. I don't need more time to know that I want to spend the rest of my life with her." He declared, uncompromising.
This situation was exactly what his father was talking about. That was why he was so concerned about his well-being.
"All I am asking is for you to wait." He exasperatedly said, feeling frustrated with his too-trusting brother. "Let me dig into her background, and if she clears, then marry her for all I care."
He had to protect his brother and his interest, remembering that he had sworn an oath to his father's dying wish.
"No, don't you dare?" Dale shouted, appearing to be outraged. "You will not have her investigated as if she is a criminal."
"Then, at least sign a prenup." He suggested, making his last effort to protect him.
In this way, if things did not go according to his plan, he could still safeguard his interest, meaning his money, properties, and shares in the company.
"No, I don't want a prenup." Dale shut down his recommendation. "I love her, and I fully trust her." Then, his brother stormed out of his office.
The next thing he knew, his brother announced their wedding in a few days. Of course, he could not help but suspect something was wrong with this picture.
What was this girl hiding? Why the rush? Was she pregnant? But he seriously doubted that. So, he was more determined to have her checked out, despite his brother's opposition.
He was not going to sit and let this girl manipulate his brother.
"What was that all about?" His reverie was interrupted when his friend entered his office. "But should I say, who was that beautiful babe?"
Of course, his friend would notice his previous guest. After all, despite her worn-down clothes, she was still beautiful, and her figure surprisingly remained in shape.
That was if she was telling him the truth that she had a child. Or they had a child. But that remained to be seen.
"That is my fiancee." He casually answered him while returning to his desk. "If she agrees." Then, he grabbed his phone and dialed a number.
"What? Fiancee?" His friend asked, looking dumbfounded as his brows knitted together. But he silenced him, asking him to wait and be quiet.
It only took a few rings before another man answered the other line. "I want to know everything you can dig about Jules Morgan."
He could see that his friend was watching him like a hawk. His eyes were full of curiosity and bewilderment while his foot tapped on the floor, impatiently waiting for answers.
"I don't want you to leave no stones unturned. I want everything you can find about her since she left my brother at the altar." Then, he hung up the phone and turned to his friend.
"Damn! I knew she looked familiar." His friend said, finally realizing who the girl was.
Some of their friends might recognize her since her face had covered many newspapers and tabloids when his brother announced their wedding.
But many might not since she did not belong in their social circle. She was a nobody who had a minute of fame and nothing more.
"What are you doing here, Travis?" He asked, ignoring his friend's remark. "Are you sick and tired of searching for the perfect girl?"
Like his brother, his friend believed that there was a woman designed only for him. However, he was confident that his friend only used that excuse to bed every attractive woman he met.
"No, I know she is still out there somewhere, waiting for me." Travis playfully said, fixing a drink at the small bar in his office.
"Yeah, right." As usual, his immature friend still needed to grow up. But he guessed he was him a few years ago. Before he decided he was tired of the same old game.
"So, that was Dale's ex-fiancee. What does she want?" His friend returned his attention to the woman who had exited his office a while ago.
But as Travis drank his first sip, he suddenly started choking. He quickly placed the glass on the table and stared at him, still looking like he was catching his breath.
"Wait!" Travis still held on to his chest as he struggled to speak. "Wait!" He waved his hand. "Did I hear you correctly?" He asked, still sounding a little hoarse.
"You plan to marry Dale's ex."