We laughed, and I had a gut feeling he was a good guy. I really couldn’t explain why I thought so, surely there were all the signs that he could be a smuggler or something else. But I had done pretty well in life by following my gut, and when I talked with Chase, he seemed very genuine. The only thing that really bugged me was why was he looking on an international website for a date? There was no way he needed to. All the American women were surely all over him. Handsome, rich, and funny – he seemed like the perfect package.
There had to be something wrong with him. What was it that made him unappealing to the women and had forced him to come on the website to look for someone? I couldn’t even imagine what it was. There was nothing visibly wrong with him.
“What’s wrong with you?” I blurted out before I could stop myself.
Chase laughed at first, but he understood what I was asking.
“You mean why can’t I find a woman here?”
“Yes, you’re very handsome. I’m sure the girls love you.”
“I’ll be honest with you, because I think you deserve it. I need to get married so my father can feel like I’m responsible. I’ve been partying and being very wild for a few years.”
“Oh,” I said as a wave of sadness washed over me.
The idea that he just wanted to get married to impress his father did not sit well with me. I wasn’t sure why it bothered me so much. If he had asked to marry me just for fun, I probably would have thought about it. But to marry in order to trick his father seemed like a bad idea to me.
“So, you want to trick your father and marry a woman you don’t love?”
His face went blank, and I saw a lot of sadness in it. Something about what I said had touched a nerve or made him feel really bad, and I was instantly sorry.
“I’d like to find love. It just doesn’t want to find me. In an ideal world, I would find love and a woman who I could settle down with.”
Again, we both sat in silence and looked at each other. His answer seemed so genuine, and so did he. I felt for him. I knew what it was like to want to impress my own mother. Not by marrying someone, but that’s why I went to nursing school, to impress her.
“I can’t promise I’ll marry you,” I said seriously. “I don’t want you to think I’m going to be willing to marry you just because I come over there to meet you.”
Chase’s expression perked up right away.
“So, you’ll consider coming over here?”
I really had not planned to go over to America to meet the first man I talked to online. And I wasn’t really agreeing to travel yet, but I did like the idea of meeting Chase. He was handsome, rich, and funny – there wasn’t much more I could ask for in a potential husband.
“I’ve got to be crazy…but, yes, I’d consider it,” I said as I covered my eyes with one hand.
I really couldn’t believe I was considering traveling halfway across the world to meet a man I had only talked with in Skype for a few hours. Obviously, we were going to have to talk much more before I would be willing to travel.
“I’m sure you’ll want to talk it over with your family and friends first. I’d be happy to talk to them on Skype, too. I can send you anything you need, so you know I’m not some maniac.”
“We should talk some more, and I’ll think about it.”
We continued to talk throughout the day, until the dark of night had engulfed me. I was searching for a reason to say no to him. I had my ears perked up just waiting for something to sound wrong, any reason, but nothing seemed to come. Our conversation flowed effortlessly, and I enjoyed talking to Chase as if we were old friends.
I had to laugh at the thought of him being a maniac. I knew that I should have him send me something to prove he was who he said he was. That was exactly what Ana and my mother would want if they were around. But they were both gone, so I had to make the decision myself.
“Let me see your driver’s license,” I said.
Chase didn’t hesitate and held his license right up to the camera so I could look at it. I took a quick screen capture of it to save to my phone, just in case I needed it later.
Maybe it was the idea of loneliness or maybe there was a real attraction between Chase and me. There was no way to know unless I went to the States to see him. I felt a chemistry between us like I hadn’t felt with anyone else ever, and we were still an ocean apart.
“Okay, buy me a ticket and I’ll come see you,” I said suddenly.
“What? Seriously? You’re amazing. You don’t have to stay if you don’t want to. I’ll buy a round-trip ticket for you so you can go back any time you’d like. Does that sound all right to you?”
“Of course.” I couldn’t believe that I had just agreed to go meet this man who I didn’t know.
“So, how quickly can you come?”