Vacation Bride: A Billionaire Marriage of Convenience (Brides of Paradise Book 1) by Loebel Vicky

Author:Loebel, Vicky [Loebel, Vicky]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Pentachronistic Press
Published: 2016-01-02T08:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirteen

Growing up, Chris hadn’t spent much time with his father’s side of the family. There’d been childhood summers in Denmark and he had assorted relatives on St. Thomas, but apart from Ryan, the only Andersens he’d been close to were the young cousins who’d died in the helicopter crash. He’d barely known their father, who left Chris money more out of spite toward the rest of the family than from any personal affection.

Still, during the last two years, Chris had come to know and respect the family lawyer, his uncle Henrik Andersen. It was Henrik who helped Chris purchase the Paradise Resort, Henrik who set up the necessary holding corporations to manage Chris’ fortune, and it was Uncle Henrik who organized the paperwork for Chris to marry Anna. Of course, Henrik also wrote the contract that landed Chris on Vacation Bride, but since he was Ryan’s attorney, too, Chris couldn’t hold it against him.

“So.” The lawyer sat at the small conference table in the Paradise Resort’s concierge office, exactly halfway between his two nephews. “I think we’ve always known the time would come when Chris’ inheritance became public knowledge. The question is, what next?”

Things had been surprisingly quiet during the twenty-four hours since Anna’s comment went live. Apart from two women who’d tried to hide in Chris’ bed and wound up—to their regret—in Doris’ room by mistake, the only fuss had been a couple of requests for interviews from local TV stations.

Chris glanced sideways at the office computer, which was streaming live video from Vacation Bride. The show was holding a sandcastle competition to eliminate four of the six remaining contestants. At least, they called it a sandcastle competition. As usual, the main point seemed to be to make a spectacle of the women.

On screen, Anna finished building a sturdy, traditional castle and went to help the struggling Jessica. The camera cut to Tiffany, scowling ferociously.

Chris ran a hand through his hair. He didn’t blame Anna for spilling his secret. Not really. He didn’t blame Captain Greta for wrongly assuming Chris had been open and honest with his bride. He didn’t even blame Ryan. The fault’s mine…. Chris stopped himself, surprised to find he no longer felt guilty about the helicopter crash. Sad, yes. He desperately missed the little cousins who used to follow him, like baby ducks, around the Paradise Resort. But not responsible. The accident wasn’t his fault.

“There are plenty of wealthy people in the Virgin Islands.” Chris turned back to his uncle. “I don’t suppose there’s a chance my story will slip under the radar?”

“It might have when you first inherited, but now….” Henrik adjusted round wire-frame glasses. “A handsome, young bachelor with a tragic family history searches for love on a reality television show—”

“Web series,” Ryan corrected.

“—web series. The drama mounts. Ratings climb. And then one day, the humble bachelor is revealed to be a secret billionaire. If the production company had arranged this deliberately, I’d be impressed.” He blinked watery blue eyes at Ryan. “As things stand, of course, it’s merely bumbling.

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