The Paradise Problem

Anna is having trouble affording rent and helping to pay for her father’s medical bills. These days, she works the midnight shift at a convenience store, and tonight she imagines what life would be like if she were to become a famous artist. The store owners’ teenage son, Ricky, has recently been promoted to manager and has been hassling Anna at work ever since she turned down his offer to take her out on a date. Anna copes with the resulting tension by drawing caricatures of him. Tonight, Ricky fires Anna for failing to pay for a pack of gum that she took during her last shift, revealing that he watched eight hours of security footage to catch her.

Anna discovers that she has gotten a parking ticket and that someone has side-swiped her car. Now the door won’t close properly, and it begins to rain. Anna reminds herself to stay calm and take things one step at a time, but her circumstances worsen when she gets home and realizes that her roommate’s boyfriend has taken her parking space. The two are now having sex on her couch, and they have eaten the leftovers that she was saving. She seeks refuge in bed, staring at her pile of paintings, which feature intricate renderings of flowers. Her phone pings to alert her to the most recent bill for her father’s chemotherapy.

Liam is in a Safeway grocery store when his mother, Janet, calls him. He imagines her getting an alert showing that he isn’t at his family’s grocery chain, Weston Foods. This imagined scene is the result of the “kind of paranoia a man lives with when he shuts his powerful father out of his personal life for years” (13). Janet is calling to confirm that Liam will attend the wedding of his sister, Charlie. Janet also asks Liam to bring his wife, Anna. Liam protests that Anna is too busy to attend, but Janet prevails, emphasizing how bad her continuing absence looks and stating that even Liam’s father, Ray, is “getting strange” about the fact that Anna never takes part in family gatherings. Cornered, Liam agrees to bring Anna with him to the wedding but emphasizes that Ray owes him an apology. Janet ignores this and provides information about the trip; the family will spend 10 days together in Pulau Jingga. Liam wonders whether to tell his parents that he has been lying to them about his marriage for five years or to fly to Los Angeles and make a bargain with his wife.

Anna is high on an edible as she watches a movie and eats cereal from a mixing bowl. She is clad only in a T-shirt and underwear when Liam suddenly arrives at her apartment. Anna only half recognizes him as she notes the differences in their appearances. He is serious, sober, and well-dressed, while she is “unkempt, unemployed, baked” (19). Liam is clearly disconcerted by the messy state of Anna and her apartment; years earlier, he wasn’t paying attention when she switched her major from pre-med to art, so he has mistakenly been expecting her to be well on her way to becoming a doctor. Liam is a now professor of economics and cultural anthropology at Stanford.

As they catch up, Anna notes the contrast between his fortunes and hers, and she is shocked when Liam asks for her help and explains that he is one of the heirs to the Weston Foods fortune. Liam, in turn, is shocked to discover that his brother Jake never told Anna about his family history, and that she didn’t even know his real first name is William, not West. He scoffs at her misguided belief that his name couldn’t really be West Weston.

Anna recalls that Liam did not have much money when they married; this is because he defied his father by going to graduate school instead of joining the family business. Because he had to pay his own way, he needed her help to obtain low-cost housing—hence their marriage of convenience. After their wedding, Liam discovered that his grandfather’s will granted each grandchild an inheritance after marriage; however, if Liam were to divorce before a period of five years elapsed, he would forfeit the full balance, which is almost $100 million. In four months, Liam and Anna’s marriage will pass the five-year mark, and Anna will get a sum of $10,000 once their divorce is final. Anna never read the legal papers that he left with her, so she was unaware that they are still married. Liam recently discovered a loophole that no one else knows about, which makes the situation more complicated. To ensure that he and his siblings are able to inherit, he needs Anna to fly to Indonesia and pretend to be his wife.

Liam waits for Anna’s response to his offer and observes that she is beautiful beneath her unkempt appearance. He also reflects on the problem that he has created for himself by telling his family that she is a medical student. As he explains what the wedding will involve, he strives to present the situation in a way that will give her the confidence to agree to his plan. When Anna balks, pointing out that the trip begins in four days and declaring that some people have to work for a living, he offers to pay for all her expenses and provide a clothing allowance so that she can buy designer items.

Anna rejects Liam’s offer to pay double her standard hourly wage and asks for an additional $10,000. When Liam agrees too quickly, she retracts her offer, and they finally settle on a fee of $100,000.

Anna calls her best friend Vivi and says that she has agreed to do something “huge and unhinged” (38). Vivi comes to her apartment. As Anna explains the situation, a courier arrives with a contract detailing the agreement; she must stay married to William Weston until September and attend the wedding of his sister, Charlotte, to Kellan McKellan. The wedding will take place on the family’s private island, and Anna must play the role of a happily married woman. After reading the “Payment Terms,” Anna reflects that the money will allow her to pay her student loans and her father’s medical debt, and it will also give her time to paint. The courier brings another parcel. After he leaves, Anna frets about whether she should have tipped him; she knows very little about the unspoken etiquette of wealthy people.

The second parcel holds a check for $10,000, an American Express black card, a first-class plane ticket, and a set of designer luggage. An itinerary reveals that a different event is planned for each day of the trip; there is a list of the clothing that Anna will need for each event, along with a diamond necklace from Tiffany’s. Vivi promises to do all the shopping.

Liam waits at the airport, worried that Anna will miss their flight. When she arrives, he is stunned by how good she looks in the designer clothes. Her hair is freshly re-dyed to a shade of pink, and is happy to see that she has kept this color instead of going back to brown. However, her appearance comes at a cost; she is late because she cannot walk quickly in her heeled sandals, and she cannot use her hands because of her long, pointy nails. Before boarding the plane, she goes to the bathroom and has to call Liam to zip her shorts up for her, and he misreads this request and assumes that she is offering to have sex with him. Even after he realizes his error, he struggles with the feeling that paying her to play a role is “sleazy.”

Liam reveals that his family thinks she is coming from Cambodia. When he explains that he told them that Anna has been in a medical school program, Anna finally understands why he was so upset to learn that she changed her major. Now, Anna says that she was “a solid C-minus student in every premed class” (50), so faking medical knowledge will be a challenge.

On their flight, Liam describes his parents in the context of their roles at the company. When Anna asks if his mother is “nice,” he replies she might be nice to Anna because Anna can provide access to him. The family tree continues; Liam’s brother Alex and his wife Blaire have four children: Reagan, Lincoln, Nixon, and GW. Liam’s other siblings include his brother Jake and his sister, Charlotte, or Charlie. Charlie is marrying Kellan McKellan. The absurdity of the names causes Anna to point out the hypocrisy of Liam’s disbelief that she thought his name could be West Weston. Liam concedes the point and notes that both Kellan and Charlotte work for their respective parents’ companies.

As he discusses the “family dynasty” and his “eccentric” grandfather, Anna points out that only rich people use those words. She asks what made him distance himself from his family, but he insists that the family will not mention it and she doesn't need to know. He gives Anna a huge diamond ring to wear, and she jokes that it will drag her to the bottom of the ocean.