When a Champion Wants You (13 page)

“Not much. We did a little
shopping and tonight, we’re supposed to be going to a
movie.”

“That’s nice. Well,
listen, since I’ve been gone most of the day, I’m over here washing
clothes and cleaning, so I’m going to go, but I’ll talk to you
later.”

“Okay. Later.”

Chapter 16

Dimitrius had to
do something to help curb his appetite for
Melanie. She was heavy on his mind since they parted ways this
afternoon. Leave it up to him and he’d spend the whole day with
her, not just a portion of it. He wanted to go back to her place
right now, but she’d already told him she had things to do and a
few errands to run. Still, he had to fight with himself to resist
the urge, and what better way to do that than in his home gym. He
jogged for thirty minutes on the treadmill then lifted weights –
all of that after a mile and a half hike with her this
morning…

When he finished his
workout, he walked to the kitchen, took a bottle of water from the
fridge and poured himself a glass of wine. He sat at the island,
watching Gino work. Gino was the cook he’d hire a few times per
week. He’d been working for him close to a year now.

“So how’s work,
Dimitrius?” Gino asked, as he tossed green and peppers with onions
in a hot skillet. In another skillet, he was pan-searing chicken
breasts.

“Business is good. The
corporation is on target to have another outstanding
year.”

“Good. I’m glad to hear of
your success, my friend. Your success means my success.”

Dimitrius raised his glass
of wine to him then took a sip. He reached for a copy of
Business World
magazine,
flipped to the article on The Champion Corporation and felt a sense
of pride and accomplishment that he was a part of such a successful
business. And with the success came loneliness. What was the use of
having the world when you didn’t have anyone to share it
with?

“Gino, how’s the family
doing?” Dimitrius asked. Gino was married with two little
girls.

“They’re doing well. My
daughters actually wanted to come with me to your house.” He
laughed.

“You could’ve brought them
over if you wanted.”

Gino laughed. “You make a
funny, Sir.”

“No, seriously. You could
have.”

“I don’t know, Sir. I
don’t want to bother you with noisy kids…it would mess up your
concentration.”

“No it wouldn’t. I like
children. I’ve always wanted at least three.”

Gino laughed again. “Are
you sure about that, Sir? Once they’re here, you can’t ship them
back. Sometimes you might want to, but, eh…”

Dimitrius
grinned.

“And besides,” Gino
continued, “You have to find a woman first. I don’t recall seeing a
woman here.”

Dimitrius stood up and
said, “Trust me…I’m working on it.” He turned the bottle of water
up to his mouth and finished it. “I’ve been seeing someone. Her
name is Melanie.”

“Ah…does she live here in
Asheville?”

“Yes. She lives
here.”

“Has she ever been by, you
know, for a little rendezvous?”

Dimitrius smirked. “No.
Not yet.”

“Then why not invite her
over?”

“I plan on it, one
day.”

“One day? What about
tonight? I’m making my famous southwest chicken.”

“Nah, not tonight. I was
with her most of the day, and I’m sure she’s tired. Plus, she’s
busy this evening.”

“How long have you been
seeing her?”

“A week.”

With furrowed eyebrows,
Gino said, “A week?”

“Yes. A week.”

“Are things going good so
far?”

“It’s going great, Gino.
After all, she is the woman I intend to marry.”

“Marry? Did I hear you
correctly, Sir?”

“You did. It’s time for me
to settle down, Gino…time to put a wife and some children in this
house.”

“That would be good for
you. Children are good for the soul. My girls…they drive me crazy,
but I couldn’t imagine my life without them.” Gino took some bread
from the oven.

“How long have you been
married?” Dimitrius inquired.

“Fifteen
years.”

“Man…that’s a long
time.”

Gino nodded. “I met her at
a party…one of my friends was hosting it.”

“Did you spot her right
away?”

“Oh, almost immediately.
She had on this cute little summery dress, and her hair was
bouncing all over the place…finger lickin’ good, my
friend.”

Dimitrius
grinned.

“Before I knew her name, I
knew she was the woman who would be my wife.”

Dimitrius nodded. “That’s
the same way I felt when I first laid eyes on Melanie, and looking
back now, I realize how much I wanted her. I wanted her so bad,
Gino, I was willing to avoid her for an entire year.”

“Wait…so you did the
opposite. Instead of jumping at the chance to be with her, you
avoided her.”

“Yeah. Now let me tell you
why…you know how men can read women…how you know if a woman is down
for whatever.”

“Right.”

“Well, Melanie wasn’t that
type of woman and I knew it by the way she carried herself. I knew
she was better than that…had morals and respect for herself. So I
avoided her because I knew I wasn’t ready to be with a woman like
her. I wasn’t good enough to approach her. I wasn’t where I needed
to be in my own life.”

“I get that.”

“Then, when a position
became available at The Champion Corporation, Dante suggested we
interview her and she got the job. Since I knew I couldn’t avoid
her any longer, I decided to be upfront with her. So I told her I
wanted to marry her.”

A look of disbelief swept
across Gino’s face. “You’re a brave man, Dimitrius.”

“You have to be bold when
you know you want something. And she, my friend, is the woman for
me. I’m convinced.”

“Are you sure about
that?”

“Positive.”

“Then call her up and tell
her to get over here. The food will be ready in about thirty
minutes, and I’ll be out of here.”

“You know what, Gino,”
Dimitrius said. “I think I just might do that.”

Chapter 17

Melanie was sitting
on the sofa with a basket of clean clothes on the
floor in front of her. Holding the remote, she turned the channel
to BET, then began folding clothes. A few folded pieces in, her
cell phone rang.

When she looked at the
display, a smile came to her face. She answered the call and said,
“No, I’m not going on another hike, so you may as well get it off
of your mind, Dimitrius Champion.”

Dimitrius chuckled. “Why
not? You did good out there on that trail.”

“Yeah, and now my feet
hurt.”

I would love to massage
your pretty feet
, he thought. “You can
shake that off, Melanie.”

“No I can’t. I had to rub
my poor little toes back to life,” she said, then
laughed.

“Hey, what are you up to
this evening?”

“I’m folding clothes right
now. You?”

“I just
showered.”

Melanie lost herself in
steamy thoughts, imagining Dimitrius naked in the shower, water
splashing against and meandering down his pecks to his lengthy,
muscular torso, his powerful thighs and…

“So what do you think?”
Dimitrius asked.

“About what?” she asked,
too lost in her daydreams of him to realize he had asked her
something.

“About coming over to my
place for dinner.”

“Oh…ah…tonight?”

“Yes. Tonight.”

“Okay,” she responded. She
wanted to be with him, just as much as she knew he wanted to be
with her.

Satisfied, Dimitrius said,
“Excellent. You have my address, don’t you?”

“No.”

“Oh…thought I gave it to
you. I’ll text it to you right now.”

“Okay, but first, what is
the dress code for this event?” she said, withholding
sarcasm.

“Dress code?”

“Yeah. I know how you like
to be all GQ’d up.”

“Sweetie, we’re going to
be at my home. Dress as comfortable as you would like.”

“Alright, but when I get
there, you better not be wearing a three-piece suit.”

He grinned. “I may not be
wearing anything at all.”

The visual had all kinds
of sensations swirling around in her stomach. She’d seen a naked
man before, but she imagined Dimitrius’ body would put all the
others to shame. The man was built. Ripped. Cut. And that, she
could tell with his clothes on. With them off, he must’ve been an
eyeful of eye candy.

“I’m kidding, Melanie,” he
said when she grew quiet.

“I know that.”

“Then why were you so
quiet?”

“I just…um…never
mind.”

“Well, I’ve already texted
my address to you. Are you coming right over?”

“Yes, once I change
clothes.”

“Or you could wear what
you have on now.”

“Nah…I have on an old pair
of shorts and a T-shirt.”

“Sounds perfect,”
Dimitrius said, thinking about the full view of her legs he would
get if she wore shorts over to his place.

“I don’t think so,” she
grinned. “I can’t leave out of the house like this.”

“Okay,
sweetie.”

“Would you like for me to
bring anything?”

“Nope. Just bring
yourself, baby. The rest is taken care of.”

“Okay. See you in a
few.”

Chapter 18

The moment she
arrived at his place, her mouth fell open in awe.
She thought Dante and Emily’s house was huge…Dimitrius’ house
looked more like a castle than a home. It had to have been over
seven-thousand square feet, in the prime, upscale Biltmore Park
neighborhood. Variations of stone and brick made up the outside
walls. His Maserati was parked in the horseshoe driveway which made
her wonder if the three-car garage was occupied with
vehicles.

She parked, got out of the
car and began walking to the door when he’d come out.

“
Wow! You live here
alone?”

“
For now…when I get you to
marry me, I won’t be here alone.”

“
You’re funny,” she told
him, stepping into his embrace, sinking her head into his chest,
taking in his essence.

“
I’m glad you came,
Melanie.”

“
Me too,” she said,
removing her arms from around him. “And look at you with a T-shirt
and a pair of jogging pants on. Wow! You look like a different
man.”

“
Is that good or
bad?”

“
It’s amazing, Dimitrius.
Looks like I’m getting you to loosen up a little after all,
huh?”

“
If you say so,” was his
response, but he knew she was right. Since he’d started spending
time with her, he had loosened up a bit. “Let’s go inside so we can
eat. I have the food warming up in the oven.”

When Melanie stepped
inside, all she could do was marvel at how immaculate the place
was. His home was the most exquisite home she’d ever been in. Shiny
marble floors were all throughout the place. A grand entrance that
included an oversized, crystal chandelier and a winding staircase
really made the home fancy. She could see the living room as she
followed Dimitrius to the kitchen. It too was grand, with
antique-styled furniture that must have cost a fortune and a
fireplace that was definitely the centerpiece of the
room.

The plants. The wall art.
The lighting. The built-in water fountains. The home was a dream –
an oasis.

When they stepped into the
kitchen, he pulled out a bar stool for her. Instead of eating at
the table or in the dining room, he felt that the island countertop
would be more casual and comfortable for her. Besides, she hadn’t
dated in a long time, and he didn’t want to do anything to scare
her off or make her feel uncomfortable in is home.

“
Let me help you with that,
Dimitrius,” she said, watching him take a tray from the
oven.

“
I got it, Melanie. You’re
my guest. I didn’t invite you over here to work.”

“
Okay. Okay,” she said,
palms up. “This is your castle.”

Dimitrius took plates from
the cupboard and prepared plates for the both of them, then came
walking back to the island, placing their meals on the granite
countertop.

“Chicken, peppers, peas
and mashed potatoes…looks good,” Melanie said. “And
healthy.”

“I like healthy, but I
didn’t cook this if that’s what you’re thinking,” he said, finally
sitting next to her. “I have a chef come by at least three days a
week.”