by Tina Martin
When A Champion Wants You
(The Champion Brothers)
Tina Martin
Copyright © 2015 Tina Martin
WHEN A CHAMPION WANTS YOU
Smashwords Edition
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, photocopying and recording, without prior written consent of the author.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, businesses and products are used fictitiously. Any similarity to actual events is entirely coincidental.
Other books by Tina Martin:
His Paradise Wife (The Champion Brothers)
Accidental Deception, The Accidental Series, Book 1
Accidental Heartbreak, The Accidental Series, Book 2
Accidental Lovers, The Accidental Series, Book 3
What Donovan Wants, The Accidental Series, Book 4
Dying To Love Her
Dying To Love Her 2
Dying To Love Her 3
The Millionaire’s Arranged Marriage (The Alexanders, Book 1)
Watch Me Take Your Girl (The Alexanders, Book 2)
Her Premarital Ex (The Alexanders, Book 3)
The Object of His Obsession (The Alexanders, Book 4)
Secrets On Lake Drive
Can’t Just Be His Friend
All Falls Down
Just Like New to the Next Man
Vacation Interrupted
The Crush
For more information about the author and upcoming releases, visit her website at www.tinamartin.net.
When A Champion Wants You
Prologue
He couldn’t take his eyes off of her.
Dimitrius sighed, mumbling words of frustration to himself. Had he known Melanie would be here at Dante’s house, he would’ve gone home instead. Now he had to see her, and that irked him. Why? Because he liked her and since that was the case, he preferred avoiding her, like he had managed to do for an entire year, but now, here she was – in his line of vision.
The only reason he’d stopped by Dante’s place, to begin with, was to see Desmond’s new Ducati. Desmond had just purchased the motorcycle and wanted to get his brother’s opinions on it, but he had yet to show up.
So while he waited for Desmond to arrive, Dimitrius kept his eyes fixed on Melanie. The more he watched her, the more annoyed he became. Melanie was laughing it up with his sister-in-law, Emily, sitting at a patio table, sipping on iced tea and having a good time while pretending she hadn’t noticed he’d been standing in the driveway for close to twenty minutes.
Another sigh escaped his lips. He needed to leave, but where was Desmond?
“What time did he say he was coming again?” Dimitrius asked Dante, glancing at his watch, then settling his gaze back on Melanie.
“He should be here any minute now,” Dante said standing up, brushing off his pants. He had been kneeling down, checking a tire on Emily’s car.
“Well, he needs to hurry up,” Dimitrius said testily. “I have better things to do.”
Dante smirked. He knew Dimitrius was a stickler for punctuality and time management, which made him excellent at his job, but a pain outside of work. However, this time, Dante got the feeling that Dimitrius was feigning annoyance, because Desmond’s tardiness had given his petulant brother more time to admire Melanie.
Dante pretended not to notice how Dimitrius had been gawking shamelessly, staring at Melanie like she was the drink of water he needed to quench a two-day-old thirst in ninety-five-degree weather. Even when the rumble of a motorcycle sliced through the air, signaling that Desmond was close, Dimitrius hadn’t taken his gaze off of Melanie.
“Whoa. Now that’s a thing of beauty,” Dante commented, watching Desmond drive up on the red motorcycle.
“Tell me about it,” Dimitrius said, but had he even seen the motorcycle? With his eyes still fixed on Melanie, he took his time beholding the beauty of her.
“You are talking about the bike, aren’t you, Dimitrius?” Dante said, looking mildly amused.
Dimitrius snapped out of his trance, then looked at the bike. “Yes. Of course I’m talking about the bike. What else would I be talking about?”
Desmond shut off the engine and got off of the bike. Then he pulled the helmet off of his head. “Well? What’s the verdict?”
“This is a hot motorcycle, man,” Dante said impressed, walking over to the bike, throwing one leg over it and wrapping his hands around the handle bars.
“Go ‘head and take it for a spin, bro,” Desmond told him.
“Sounds tempting, but I think I’ll pass, Des. I’ve never ridden a motorcycle in my life, and Emily would probably have a stroke worrying about me on this thing.”
Desmond chuckled. At twenty-nine, he was definitely the risk-taker of the family – the one who loved to have fun. The one who lived life without limits. He was smart, but he was also, free-spirited. His brothers were the complete opposite, especially Dimitrius. “Hey, what do you think, Dimitrius?” Desmond asked.
Dimitrius didn’t respond. It’s not that he wasn’t impressed by the thirty-thousand dollar beast of a motorcycle. He was just fascinated by something else more remarkable – how a woman could be so beautiful.
Every movement of hers seemed to be graceful. Elegant. When she flicked her hair away from her face and exposed those high cheekbones, it seemed to have been happening in slow motion. She even had one of those bright, impeccable smiles that solidified her appeal.
Amazing…
“So what do you think, Dimitrius?” Desmond asked again.
Dimitrius heard his brother say something, but whatever it was, it wasn’t important enough to make him to take his eyes off of Melanie. She was dangerous for a man like him – had him thinking about things that frightened him – things he could admit to avoiding all his life, but she was the type of woman to make a man reconsider his entire life plan. To make a man change. That, he didn’t like. He hated feeling like he was losing control. He couldn’t give her any sort of power over him. And he wouldn’t.
“Dimitrius?” Desmond said to get his brother’s attention. “You here with us?”
“Oh, sorry man,” Dimitrius said, dipping his hands in his pockets.
“I don’t think it’s the bike that Dimitrius is interested in right now,” Dante quipped, then tilted his head in Melanie’s direction.
“Oh. You feelin’ her?” Desmond asked.
Dimitrius frowned. “Not at all,” he said, slightly agitated. “Something’s wrong with Dante’s neck apparently.”
Dante laughed. “Dimitrius, it’s okay, man. If you like her—”
“I don’t like her,” Dimitrius heard himself say and knew it was a lie before the words even left his mouth. He liked her. He just refused to act on that like.
He managed to dodge her for a year – an entire year – completely dismissing the notion of wanting to get to know her. But today, he couldn’t avoid her.
To make matters worse, he knew he couldn’t escape her, especially since Dante had his eyes on Melanie for the new marketing manager position at The Champion Corporation. Her interview was in a week. How could he continue to dodge her if she would be working in the same building as him? It would be virtually impossible.
Dimitrius shook his head. While his brothers were busy discussing the motorcycle, he looked at Melanie, giving her one last stare-down, hoping it would be his last. “I have to get out of here,” he grumbled to himself then said, “The bike is nice, Des. Sorry I can’t stick around. I have to run.”
“Alright,” Desmond and Dante said together. Neither were surprised by Dimitrius’ quick departu
re. Dimitrius had been progressively becoming more and more agitated and grumpy in the last few months and neither knew why.
“See you later, bro,” Dante said, but eventually he’d planned on finding out why Dimitrius had been acting so strange.
“Yep,” Dimitrius responded, wasting no time walking towards his car. Before sitting on the driver seat, he took off his suit jacket and laid it on the passenger seat. Then he got into the car and just sat there, trying to get his hammering heart under control. Gosh, he had to get this woman out of his life, and for good. He didn’t know how he would do it, especially since Melanie was best friends with his brother’s wife, but he had to avoid her like the plague, even if it meant convincing Dante and Desmond that Melanie wasn’t the woman for the marketing manager position. He didn’t care how qualified she was – she could not work for The Champion Corporation, and he would do everything in his power to make sure that she didn’t.
Chapter 1
A week later
“Emily I don’t know if I should take this job or not,” Melanie said, sitting on her bed with a laptop resting on her thighs, browsing over interview tips while the eleven o’clock news aired faintly in the background.
“Why do you say that?” Emily asked.
“Well, for starters, I don’t know if I have the expertise your husband is looking for in this managerial role.”
Emily smiled. Being his wife, she knew Dante was a perfectionist when it came to organization and details. He would carefully select the right candidate for the position, to keep The Champion Corporation thriving. After all, he hadn’t built a multi-million-dollar empire by being a sloppy businessman.
To set her best friend’s mind at ease, Emily said, “Trust me, Mel. If Dante hand-picked you to come in for an interview, then you must be the person for the job. Give yourself a little credit, woman.”
Melanie sighed. Unbeknownst to Emily, there had been another reason why she was hesitant to take the job – a six-foot-three tall, handsome reason – Dimitrius Champion. Melanie wasn’t sure if she could work with him. She couldn’t deny how fly the man was. She could only imagine that being in the same room with him was sure to give her heart palpitations.
Five years younger than his brother Dante, Dimitrius attended several functions at her hotel with his brothers and representatives from their company. There had been a few times Melanie caught herself locking eyes with him, and he didn’t hesitate to hold her gaze. He’d given her that look, the look a man gives a woman to let her know he’s interested and waiting for her to emit some of those same signals back. And he was downright sexy, as all the Champion men were, but something about him was different from the others. Dimitrius seemed to have a chip on his broad shoulders. Even when he looked at her, she noticed he had a serious, mysterious, stoic look that was cold enough to freeze water in an ice tray – a look that confirmed he wasn’t for play. His no-nonsense, confident attitude classified him as the type of man who, not only never smiled, but didn’t take the time to relax – not even a little. The word fun was probably foreign to him. He was all about work.
Work. Work. Work. And more work…
He stayed rocking thousand-dollar suits. Stayed in business mode. He probably didn’t own any casual clothes. Did the man really work 24/7?
Even at Emily’s house a week ago, when the brothers had gathered to check out Desmond’s motorcycle, Dimitrius had on a suit. And Melanie did everything in her power to avoid him, even pretending she hadn’t see him.
Then there was the time at the business summit a year ago…
Dimitrius had been on his way out of the hotel, toting his briefcase and eyeing her as he walked by the receptionist desk with a proud, unmistakable swagger, demanding the attention of every woman nearby.
Refusing to lock eyes with the man again, Melanie doodled on the notepad next to the phone, pretending to be busy. She was busy alright – busy getting her heart rate under control as she avoided the likes of Dimitrius Champion.
“Mel, you there?”
“Oh…yeah. I’m here. I was just reading over some interview tips, in case I decide to go.”
“You should go, Mel. When is it anyway?”
Brows furrowed, Melanie asked, “You don’t know? Your husband is the C.E.O. of the company…”
“Dante doesn’t talk business when he’s home. We’re busy doing other things.”
“I bet you are busy doing other things,” Melanie joked.
Emily laughed.
“Anyway, the interview is tomorrow. Nine o’clock sharp.” Melanie folded her laptop shut and set it on the nightstand, releasing a nervous sigh into the expanse of her bedroom.
“Okay, so get your butt to bed so you can be ready. I know for a fact that Dante wants you for this position, Mel.”
“Oh, but I thought you didn’t discuss work-related things at home,” she playfully mimicked.
“We don’t. I know he wants you because he chose you, Melanie. Dante is definitely a man who knows what he wants. Now, I’m not so sure about his brothers, especially Dimitrius. He can be extremely picky, meticulous and just, ugh…”
Melanie felt a knot form in her stomach at the mention of Dimitrius’ name. And it didn’t help to settle her at all that Emily characterized him as being picky. Would he be the one to give her a hard time at the interview?
She didn’t know much about Dimitrius – only things she had heard – things she really didn’t want to pay attention to, because you can’t believe everything people said. But sometimes, rumors had merit. Sometimes…
She knew Dimitrius hadn’t been married and had no plans to marry. She’d also heard he was a straightforward guy, highly unapproachable and he unintentionally came across as a jerk when he conversed with people. But he was loyal to his family – to his brothers and the business that they were building together.
“You know what, Em…I think you’re right. I better get this butt to bed since I’m going to be triple-teamed by the Champion men tomorrow.”
Emily grinned. “You’ll do fine, Melanie.”
“Yeah, thanks,” she said, unconvinced. “I’ll call you tomorrow after it’s over…that’s if I make it out alive.” Melanie listened as Emily laughed.
She chuckled too.
“How about we meet up for lunch tomorrow?” Emily asked. “Sherita is working at the boutique with me tomorrow, so I can get out of there for a little while without having to rush back.”
“Alright. I’ll meet you at the boutique and then we can go from there.”
“Perfect. I’ll see you tomorrow then.”
“Okay, Em. See you tomorrow.”
Melanie set her phone on the nightstand, pulled her thick, curly hair into a ponytail then, after flicking off the lamp, she slid beneath the covers. Tomorrow was a big day and she wanted to be well rested and ready for whatever the Champions had to throw at her. And she hoped that Dimitrius would be on his best behavior.
Chapter 2
It was so quiet, you could hear a pin drop – or in this case, the aggravating taps of Dimitrius’ pen against the tabletop as the brothers sat in the executive conference room on the tenth floor. They had been waiting for Melanie to arrive so the first interview for the day could begin.
Dimitrius noticed that Dante and Desmond didn’t seem to be bothered by the fact that Melanie was four minutes late. They were busy on their laptops, probably checking email or in Dante’s case, reviewing the revised business plan for the re-launch of eRoll, the website company he formed three years ago. Its purpose was to specialize in providing outsourcing to companies who didn’t want to do their payroll in-house. Like Grieving Hearts Connect, eRoll was also a million-dollar venture, but it still hadn’t gained as much momentum as Grieving Hearts Connect had. The potential was there, but its visibility in the market was not. That’s why there was an urgency to hire a marketing manager. The role would free up a lot of Desmond’s time to travel, especially since they would be re-launching eRoll in Vegas in a month
.
Dimitrius suspired and checked his Seiko watch once again. Now she was five minutes late. Where was she? “Am I the only one who realizes that this woman is five minutes late?”
Desmond didn’t respond, almost as if he hadn’t heard a word Dimitrius had said.
Dante didn’t respond either. He’d been on cloud nine since returning home from Paris, two weeks ago, where he and Emily had a late honeymoon.
Plus, the brothers learned to ignore the idiosyncrasies of Dimitrius a long time ago. So what she was five minutes late. They could easily recoup five minutes off of the back end of her interview to make sure all the others stayed on time.
“Hello? Am I talking to myself here?” Dimitrius said, frowning.
Dante hid a smirk. “Calm down, Dimitrius. Phyllis pinged me to let me know that Melanie is in the lobby getting badged up. She’ll be up here in a few.”
“Well she should’ve messaged all of us to say that,” he snapped.
Dante shook his head. After notifying Dimitrius that Melanie was on the way up, Dimitrius still seemed bothered. If only Dimitrius would stop pretending like he didn’t have a thing for Melanie, then maybe she could end up being the woman to calm his spirit. He certainly needed someone to do it.
Dimitrius checked his watch again. When it came to promptness, he was strict, even on himself. If he told you he would be somewhere at five, then he was there – at five. He noticed that his brothers were more lax about their time now, especially Dante. Seemed that since Dante had married Emily, he was more relaxed, less uptight and calm.
Dimitrius sat up straight when he heard voices outside of the door – one of which he recognized as Phyllis. He knew the other must’ve belonged to Melanie.
Phyllis opened the door and said, “Good morning, gentlemen. This is Melanie Summers, here for your nine o’clock. I’ll let you guys take over from here.”