He had set the lofty goal of becoming one of the top five wealthiest men in the world and reached it at the age of thirty-five. He bought a castle that once belonged to a Lord. He had a large staff which took care of everything. He had his privacy. He had his own beach and could take long walks along its shore anytime. The only thing missing was someone to share his life with.
He was tired of going on dates with women he had no interest in. Most of them were only interested in his wealth. He was lonely and longed for companionship. Then, he had the idea of hiring a companion. He was willing to pay for them. He preferred that the woman be between the age of thirty and fifty. She had to be attractive, well read and employed. He had his secretary place the ad in the local newspaper and screen the calls and do the interviews. Out of hundreds of applicants, only a handful were chosen for him to interview himself.
The woman he chose was a French university Art professor who moved to Brussels five years ago. She was very attractive, engaging, shared the same interest in books and a love for the Arts. She was forty but looked younger. They got along very well. She had made it very clear that she wasn’t doing this for money. Most of her friends were married and her family was in France and like him, she yearned for companionship. She told him that when she saw the ad, at first she was hesitant to apply but after thinking about it, she decided to do it and was happy she did.
They spent every waking moment together, learning about each other and sharing parts of themselves they had never shared with another living soul. They swam in the ocean, went for walks, drives, went to the opera, enjoyed classical musics in his private movie theatre and enjoyed intimate dinners in the large dining-room or on the terrace facing the sea.
Then one terrible day, he got a call from her. She sounded upset. She informed him that she couldn’t continue seeing him. Alarmed, he asked her why. After being evasive, she finally informed that she had been diagnosed with chronic kidney disease. She didn’t want to burden him with her illness. “It wouldn’t be fair to you,” she said. “I’ll be in and out of hospital.” However, he insisted that he wanted to be there for her and after they ended the call, he went over to her place.
He was there for her during the daily dialysis and several hospital stays. He took her food and helped her to get dressed. He spoke to the doctors, anxious to find out everything he could.
When he found out that she needed a transplant and after learning that her relatives couldn’t be donors, he asked to be tested. Despite her protests, he was tested and it turned out that he was a match. Both of them were tearful when they got the news. They underwent the kidney transplant and on her forty-first birthday which was a couple of weeks later, he proposed to her. She happily accepted, knowing in her heart that not only had she met the man who selflessly gave his kidney so that he could save her life but she had met the man of her dreams. As they sat on the terrace gazing out at the sea one afternoon, she said to him, “I have your kidney and you have my heart.”
He smiled and reached for her hand. “You have all of me.”
This story was inspired by one I read today of a man who donated his kidney to save his girlfriend’s life. If you would like to read their story, click Here.
This was written for the Ragtag Daily Prompt for today’s prompt, Lofty. If you’re interested in participating, click HERE for more information.
Source: Leicestershire Live
