Chapter 2: His choice

Charles Alejandro was at his hotel when he received the report that his chosen bride had arrived home. 

He was eager to see Nancy, as his parents had been pressuring him to settle down, being their only son and the likely future president. He had many enemies, both current and inherited.

Earlier that morning, Charles had been at his company before deciding to visit his hotel in the afternoon and entertain any attractive lady there in the evening. 

It was no secret that he loved the company of women, being a powerful man in AJ City, and many young ladies were eager to get intimate with him.

Charles is a 30-year-old Black man, tall, masculine, and with short black hair. His mother wouldn't let him rest, constantly disturbing him about marriage and showing him photos of potential brides she had selected. But Charles wasn't interested in any of them, preferring his promiscuous lifestyle, much to his parents' disapproval.

"Charles! You need to stop hosting different ladies and bringing shame to our family. You're the president's son, and you need to act respectable for once. Or how do you feel when almost half the city's ladies have seen your nakedness?" his father asked him sternly, seated on a black couch in the second-floor sitting room.

Charles smiled and replied, "Not half, Father. How can I possibly sleep with almost half of the pretty ladies here? They're too many for me alone, and you know this."

Seeing that his father wasn't amused, Charles quickly turned his expression serious as well.

His father replied, "Then you need to marry, Charles. Or else, I will seize every right you have and find someone competent to take over my wealth."

"Hmm..." Charles frowned as his father warned him with blazing eyes and exited the sitting room to meet his guests downstairs.

His mother then stepped out of the elevator and walked into the sitting room to be with him.

She asked, "Charles... I don't understand why you're afraid of marriage?"

"Hmm, I'm not afraid of marriage, Mom," Charles replied, taking out a cigarette from his trouser pocket, lighting it, and taking a puff. The truth was that he hadn't yet found a woman he truly loved. 

Most young ladies struck him as cheats and gold-diggers. He had seen plenty of them eager to get intimate with him, even forgetting their boyfriends or fiancés. He didn't want a cheap woman to become his wife, and finding the right match had been difficult.

"Then what's the problem, Charles? You haven't accepted any of the invitations your father or I have offered. Do you want us to go ahead and choose a bride on your behalf, marry her, and bring her here for you?" his mother asked.

"No, Mother. I'm not interested in an arranged bride. Most young ladies are cheats and pretentious. Once they realize I'm the one who wants to marry them, they'll pretend to be nice and jump at the offer. So no," Charles shook his head, taking another drag from his cigar.

His mother frowned and replied, "No, Charles... That's when you leave a responsible young lady to marry a person like yourself."

"Mom..." Charles stared at his mother in shock, shaking his head as he met her smiling gaze. She was a 65-year-old Black woman, standing before him in her long blue native gown, a traditional woman.

First Lady Kira approached the couch where Charles was seated and said, "Here, Charles... I have these three photos of cute women whose families are well-respected and under your father's political party."

"Mom..." Charles couldn't believe his mother was already holding three women's photos, ready to show them to him.

His mother approached him again and showed him the photos. "Here, Charles, take a look."

"Hmm..." Charles finally accepted the photos from his mother's hands.

He held his cigar to his lips, dressed in a black top, black leather trousers, and black boots - his preferred all-black attire.

Charles stared at the first lady's photo, a cute Black woman with a round face, flat nose, and big brown eyes that shone seductively in the outdoor selfie she had taken, wearing a simple pink crop-top and blue jeans.

He frowned, then slid the photo to the next one, and his eyes fell on a pair of blue eyes. She was cute, with a round face, sharp pointed nose, blue sparkling eyes, and rosy dimpled cheeks. Her full lips and long, golden, glittering hair captivated him, and he couldn't help but admire the exposed skin of her slender neck and bosom in the white singlet top she wore.

Staring at her photo, Charles felt his muscles tense, longing to kiss and caress every inch of her beautiful skin. He was lost in his trance until he heard his mother ask, "Charles... Do you like her?"

"Mom..." Charles finally snapped out of it, meeting his mother's smiling gaze.

He slid the photo to the last one, a beautiful, chubby yellow-skinned woman, but she didn't captivate him the way the second lady had.

Charles slid the photo back to the second one and handed the other two to his mother, asking, "Who's she, Mom?"

First Lady Kira smiled and replied, "She's Nancy Marlon, Senator Logan Marlon's only daughter."

"Hmm..." Charles hummed, finishing his cigarette.

His mother said, "I see that you like her, Charles. Don't worry, I'll have my assistant arrange to send a marriage proposal to her family at once, letting them know you've chosen to marry their daughter."

"Okay, Mom, but is she around? I'd like to see her in person, as you know most young ladies these days know how to edit their photos to look more attractive," Charles asked, still staring at Nancy's photo.

His mother smiled and replied, "I don't know, Charles, but I'll call her family to find out if she's around. Once she is, we'll proceed with the wedding ceremony."

"Okay, Mom," Charles smiled, not rejecting the idea of marriage.

He wanted Nancy, every fiber of his being desired her. Her lips, he longed to kiss, but he had to suppress the urge and let his mother leave first.

Charles stood up from the couch and went upstairs to his third-floor bedroom, taking Nancy's photo with him.

A month later, Charles visited his luxury hotel over the weekend, hoping to find a cute lady to distract him from thinking too much about Nancy as he awaited her return. 

But none of the pretty, hot ladies he encountered could captivate him the way Nancy had.

"Boss, our security men embedded in Nancy's father's security team have just called to inform us that your chosen bride had returned to the city and is at her family home," his personal assistant, Dennis Richard, informed him over the phone. Since he was in the presidential suite of the hotel.

Charles replied, "Prepare the car. We're leaving now to her father's mansion."

"Okay, boss," Dennis answered.

Charles immediately dismissed the pretty lady who had been pleasuring him, feeling irritated and unsatisfied. His heart and mind were solely focused on meeting his chosen bride. He exited the hotel, dressed in a black suit and red inner shirt, and headed to the parking lot, where his car and security team awaited.

Charles got into his car and left with his convoys. They drove straight to Senator Logan Marlon's resident.