Billionaire Alpha Romance: The Proposal (Mature Gentlemen Book 2)

by Maurice Bedard

  John was a copywriter that always envisioned himself as the “New age Shakespeare”, this was something that Helen didn't see in John, in-fact she found his poetry uninspiring and downright boring to the ear. Not that she ever told John that, but instead she always supported his dream of writing the best collection of poems. Which for John has been an ongoing project for many years, or more of a project that has been talked about—but has yet to see the light of day! Helen is a florist, she runs her own flower shop that is a five-minute walk from home, something she enjoys almost as much as tending her home garden. Sitting back enjoying a nice herbal tea on her back deck while surrounded by the peace and calm of her garden is something she gains much pleasure from. But it does not fill that void in her life where she aches to be touched and held in a passionate embrace. Her mind wanders as she looks back into her past, to a time when she was full of love and passion, and felt that she was desired in a sexual way. These days she can't remember the last time she had an intimate connection with another person. It has been too long that she has gone without love and affection in her life. She wanted to have that back in her life, but had she left it too late—was she too old or too late to find her soulmate?

  Helen and John have a daughter, Forest, she is 19 and is in her first year at UC Berkeley College of Environmental Design, she is hoping to become an architect. Forest is living in Berkeley, California a long way from her hometown of Woodstock, Vermont with a population of just over 3,000. So now Helen finds that she is living in an empty nest, if she didn't have her three close friends Rita, Lily, and Val, she doesn't know what she would do. She also loves that she has Skype on her computer that she can chat with Forest on, at least once a week. Recently she had her three friends over for a girl's night at her place. Helen enjoyed the company of her friends, while sitting out on her back deck—barbecuing chicken kebabs, and sipping on some long island iced-teas. Soon after, Rita started mentioning an online dating site called “Golden Dates.” Rita suggested to Helen that she should check it out, that she should try to meet a nice male companion. Rita has been a widow for seve9n years, after her husband Ray dropped dead in their garage from a heart attack. Rita had decided to move forward with her life after seven years of widowhood, no more dreary dark outfits was the beginning of Rita's coming out, so to speak. Rita is always dressed to the nines, wherever she goes. She was going on a date on Saturday with a man she had met on this “Golden Dates” dating website. Rita had explained that the people on this site were like themselves, in their golden years, looking for companionship. After some coaxing from Rita, over the past three years, Helen finally decides to check out the dating site, and this is her “Golden Dates” story...............

  Chapter 1. New Member of “Golden Date”

  Helen sits down at Jenna's Java shop where Rita has been waiting for her to join her for lunch. She makes her order of a Chi tea, a mushroom omelette, and brown toast. Rita is sitting almost ready to explode, she bursts out as the waitress walks away from the table—“well did you do it or did you chicken out?” “Yes, I did it last-night after watching the Jimmy Fallon show, you are looking at a new member of the Golden Dates site. I can't believe I am on a dating site.”—“Hey just because we are in our golden years doesn't mean we are dead, we golden girls need some lovin, just like everybody else” replied Rita with a chuckle. “Just think about it Helen we might be able to go on a double date, how fun will that be?”

  “Rita this feels so weird—but at the same time it does have a bit of excitement to it, I have to admit” replied Helen with a grin as she thanked the waitress for her tea. “I haven't put a picture or any major details about my past just my birth date, how old I am kind of thing, just basic info. I was wondering if you could come by on Sunday for lunch, and help me to spruce it up a bit that is if you are not too done-in from your big date Saturday night.” “I would love to come over on Sunday and tell you all about my hot date—and get your profile spruced up, so you too can find yourself a hot fella. I am going over to Sara's boutique shop after lunch to get myself a sexy outfit for Saturday night, a new dress, some sexy lingerie, and maybe a new pair of shoes too” replied Rita as she took a sip of her coffee.

  “God Rita the last thing you need is a new pair of shoes, you have a whole closet full of them, in every color and shade known to humans!” “I know I do Helen, but you know I love to shop, especially for a new outfit for a date—I am feeling like a young school girl—I am so pumped up about Saturday.” “Where are you meeting your date—what was his name again?” “His name is Stan Barton, and I am meeting him at Claiborne’s Steakhouse in Rutland at seven. I have booked a hotel room at the Stanton Hotel for Saturday, because I plan on having some late night fun—so I won't be driving back that night” Rita replied with a catlike grin towards Helen.

  “Did Val seem okay to you the other day—she seemed a little on the quiet side I thought—is everything alright with her and Brian?” replied Helen quietly over the table to Rita. The waitress placed their lunches on the table, the women thanked her, and she went on her way. “Well Helen now that you mention it she was not her usually happy and yappy self” replied Rita as she took a bite of her Turkey sandwich. But, keep in mind Helen that Val is not one to talk about her troubles. It is like pulling teeth trying to find out what is going on with Val. I just hope that Brian is not out screwing around on her again—she should have left that useless man a long time ago. I would have kicked his sorry butt to the curb” replied Rita with a look of disgust on her face, as she took a sip of her coffee.

  “Val forgave him and he promised to smarten up, but I just wonder if maybe he is back to his old tricks” I hope not for Val's sake. It would break her heart, she is such a sensitive soul. I'll give her a call and see if she wants to come over too, on Sunday for lunch. I'll invite Lily as well and make it a girl's luncheon” Helen replied just before taking a mouthful of her omelette. “It looks like Lily was the smartest of the bunch of us—not getting married or having kids. Her life has been built around running her bed and breakfast, she seems happy enough” replied Rita as she took a bite of a pickle. “But not all of us are meant to be living a life of solitude” replied Helen. “Lily always has people around her at the bed and breakfast, she enjoys her moments that she can spend alone. But I know I want to find a lover, friend, companion all wrapped into one hot sexy body!” Rita laughed.

  Helen headed back to her flower shop after lunch with Rita, finding herself wondering if she could indeed find that special companion—maybe her soulmate is waiting to meet her on Golden Date. Miracles do happen, so she figured the only way to find out if there is someone out there waiting for her is to get off the sideline and into the game—beginning with setting up her profile on Sunday. There was this little bit of warm excitement in the pit of her stomach as she began to look forward to trying her luck on Golden Date—after-all it found someone for Rita—she certainly seems to have an extra spring in her step! This was not Rita's first date, but she had dated numerous men since she joined the site three years earlier. She was enjoying meeting new and different men. Rita was just looking to have some fun and excitement in her life. She was happy that the site had opened a whole new social scene for her. Helen wondered if she would fare as well with the dating site as Rita has.

  “Hi Miss Patton, how are things going today? So, you have four deliveries for me to do today?” asked Kyle, who was Helen's delivery man for her flower shop. He was a long-haired, happy go lucky seventeen year old that was working doing deliveries for Helen part-time after school, usually. But now Kyle was off school for the summer break, so he was available to come into the shop earlier to pick up the deliveries. “I can't complain, my day so far is going pretty good. Here are the addresses for the four deliveries, and I have them all ready to go in the back storage room.” Kyle picked up the note with the addresses, and headed into the back. “Is Forest going to be coming home to help you with the flower shop this summer?” he replied as he stroll
ed into the back storage room.

  “She is going camping with a group of girlfriends at a beach in California for a week, then she is going to stay with her dad and Dana. They are taking her to Hawaii for a week, she can't wait to go there. She has booked her flight home for August 2nd. It will be so nice to have Forest home again” replied Helen. “Wow—lucky Forest, I would love to go to Hawaii and check out surfing—but no worries Miss Patton she will be back before you know it. I had better get these deliveries out—bye Miss Patton” shouted Kyle as he stepped out the backdoor of the shop to load up his blue, rust-coated, Jeep Cherokee, with the deliveries. Helen began to think of how nice it would be to see her daughter again in person, and be able to hold her and make her favorite meals for her, and just enjoy their time together. Forest loves going to stay in Manhattan, she finds the big city so exciting and exhilarating, on a much faster pace compared to here, in Woodstock, Vermont. This year she was going to have to wait a little longer before she will have Forest back home with her. Helen was glad that Forest got along well with Dana, Helen too did for that matter—she had no ill feelings where John and Dana were concerned. Strange as it may sound they all got along quite well.

  John and Dana live in Manhattan, New York, not far from central park. John still works as a copywriter and Dana as a yoga instructor. They have shared custody of Dana's ten year old daughter Verity. Most school holidays Verity would spend with her father Nick, who lives in New Hampshire with his second wife Anne, and their six year old twin boys, Brandon, and Mark.

  Helen watched Kyle's truck drive off down the back alley, as she shut the backdoor, the front doorbell rang alerting her that someone had entered the shop. She shouted out letting them know she would be right with them, as she finished locking up the backdoor. She walked into the front of the shop to find Toni, she owned and operated, the “Green Living Health Food Store” over on Church St. It was where Helen bought her herbal teas as well as other natural health related products. They saw each other at least once a week, as Toni would come in and purchase some daisies and sunflowers, to display in her shop.

  But today she was not here for daisies for her shop, but she was picking up some flowers that she was getting for her blind date that a friend had set her up on. Toni asked Helen what her favorite flowers were, what would she choose out of the flowers in the shop? Helen said she would go for an assortment of the lilacs, in white, purple, and pink—she was crazy for the smell of them! So Toni in turn said “well can you give me a dozen of those please?” After some more pleasantries, Toni headed out the door with the bouquet of lilacs for her mysterious friend that she didn't give Helen any details about. Helen was not a nosy type and would not think of prying into someone else's affairs. But she knew that Toni was a single lesbian woman, she too was in her golden years—she wondered if Toni was a member of Golden Date too, Helen grinned at the thought.

  Chapter 2. Lilacs on the Porch

  Walking home from her flower shop, as Helen approached her house, a light summer rain started to come down, cooling her warm skin. Turning into her drive she saw sitting across a chair on her front porch a big bouquet of beautiful mixed lilacs—with a look of surprise and confusion she walked up onto her porch, leaning over and picking the flowers up. Underneath the bouquet was a small card that read: Date cancelled didn't want to waste the flowers, had an inside tip these are your favorite pick of the bunch—enjoy! Signed Toni:) Helen walked into her house, pulling out a big blue glass vase to hold the lilacs, she breathed-in the intoxicating scent that they gave off—enjoying this bit of aromatherapy, she placed the big vase in the middle of the island in her kitchen. Helen thought back trying to remember the last time anyone had given her flowers—when you own a flower shop flowers are the last things people think you would want—but actually if the truth be told she always loved getting flowers. She always thought Toni had the most amazing green eyes, Helen was very much an eye person—if a person had nice eyes Helen was drawn to them—after all they are the windows to the soul! Helen decided she would take a pop around to Toni's Health food store tomorrow at lunch and invite her over for her girl’s luncheon on Sunday, as a thank you for the flowers.

  As Helen sat at her kitchen island eating her tuna casserole, and sipping on her glass of white wine she stared at the lilacs that triggered memories from her. Back to the time when she was a student at the California College of the Arts in San Francisco, California—where she met Erin Varner, a fellow student. Helen had developed a very close relationship with Erin ... indeed. They had shared a small apartment together on the top story of a house in San Francisco, located a ten-minute bike ride from the College. Erin and Helen were much more than just roommates—they were secret lovers. Helen begins to drift further back in her memories, these memories she had not shared with anyone in her present life—except for her dear friend Lily, that was a lesbian, but was not one to shout it from the roof tops. About three years ago Helen had gone to Lily's bed and breakfast—the Early Bird Inn-to have dinner with Lily. They ended up having such a good night filled with lots of wine and laughter, Helen found herself revealing her past life to Lily, almost like a confession of sorts.

  They exchanged stories, crying and laughing together that night. Helen had gotten pretty tipsy, she had not gotten that drunk in many years. She begged Lily to keep her confession of her true past life between the two of them. Lily assured Helen that her secret was safe with her, just before Helen passed out on Lily's couch. Where upon Lily tucked her in with a warm blanket, before she herself made her own way to bed with a wobbly step. The two of them never discussed what Helen had revealed to Lily that night again. Helen felt it was another time and another life that she wanted to keep in the past. If the truth be told she knew deep down in her heart that she had never felt love and passion like she had with Erin when they were together. They kept their relationship secret, being two women, they did not want to draw attention from unwanted sources. They were two young women out exploring the world beyond the home front, both spreading their wings and learning how to fly solo in the big world beyond the comforts of home. Their friendship had blossomed and they became lovers. Helen and Erin both had hopes of becoming artists that would make their mark in the world of art. With fanciful dreams of owning an art studio together some day, teaching art classes, selling their art, and living happily ever after together. But this was not meant to be, Erin moved back to Toronto, Canada, where she was from, once school had ended.

  And the long distance relationship was not in the cards for them—they chose different paths down the road of life. Helen cherished the precious memories that she had of making love with Erin, wrapped up together in sheer bliss, feelings of harmony oozing from their limbs, it felt so right... at the time. It seemed like another lifetime ago, when she last heard Erin's bubbly laugh resonating through their apartment. It used to fill their home with a light warm feeling filling up all the rooms, making it a cozy home filled with love and joy. Hearing that laugh always filled Helen with comfort and a sense of bliss, she felt she was where she was meant to be—with Erin—nothing in her life ever felt that right again—until the birth of her daughter, Forest.

  Helen began to try to convince herself that what she had with Erin, was nothing more than a young woman sexually experimenting, it was nothing more—or was it? Helen knew deep within her sole that she had buried her sexual feeling towards women a long time ago, trying to deny that they existed, tuning them out. She had chosen to live the life of a straight woman, getting married, have a child, and now here she sits alone with her thoughts and her lilacs. Suddenly the phone begins to ring—drawing Helen out of her walk down memory lane and back into the present.

  “Hi Lily” replied Helen as she answered her phone. “I hope I am not calling at a bad time, Helen” replied Lily. “No you are not bothering me, I was just sitting here sipping on a glass of wine, finishing off my leftover tuna casserole, nothing exciting” Helen replied. “I got your message for the girl’s lunc
heon on Sunday, I am just calling to say I am in, and I was going to make my Caesar salad with the homemade dressing you like—what do you think?” asked Lily. “You know Lily I can't turn down your Caesar salad, that is something I will look forward to munching on.” “Okay now that I have bribed you with my salad offering, I was wondering if I could bring along a woman that is staying here, she is a photographer taking pictures of the area, for the travel magazine—Small Towns of America—have you heard of it? “Yes I have heard of the magazine and yes you are more than welcome to bring your photographer, as your date” replied Helen with a grin. “Thanks Helen, I think you will like her—Molly Garth, she is so sweet, we really connect with each other. We actually started chatting on guess where—Golden Dates—believe it or not. I would like to introduce her to my best buddies, you know—introduce her to a couple of my favorite women—that live in the small towns of America. Well it sounds like the sooner I get myself up and running on that Golden Dates the better.

  They both shared a little laugh. “Have you spoken to Val yet?” “No I haven't, but thanks for reminding me. I will give her a call tonight. I am happy to hear that you have found a companion Lily, I look forward to meeting Miss Molly on Sunday. I am also going to invite Toni—the woman that owns Green Living Health Food store. She came into the shop today and bought a bouquet of lilacs for her date, but that apparently got cancelled. When I got home I found the bouquet on a chair on my front porch—she didn't want them to go to waste, so she left them for me. So, I am going to go over to her shop tomorrow and invite her over on Sunday as a thank you for the flowers” replied Helen. “Well it sounds like I am not the only one that is going to have a date on Sunday” replied Lily with a chuckle. “Ha-ha you are too funny” remarked Helen. “All right I am going to let you go now, I have to go and make sure my cook (Ted) isn't burning the dinner for the guests, I will see you on Sunday, bye for now.” Helen exchanged good-byes with Lily and hung up her phone.