Bride Says 'Millionaire' Honeymoon Is Over

Darva Says She Cried On Plane To Barbados

Darlene Jeter, Staff Writer
February 23, 2000, 2:13 p.m. EST

NEW YORK -- The woman who married a millionaire says she isn't even attracted to her bridegroom, and they are definitely not in love.

Darva Conger, an emergency room nurse, appeared on "Good Morning America" Wednesday to address several issues about marrying Rick Rockwell, a real estate mogul.

Shortly after the pair was married, it was revealed that Rockwell had a restraining order filed against him by former girlfriend Debbie Goyne. She accused him of slapping her.

Goyne was quoted as saying, "His elevator doesn't go all the way to the top."

Rockwell addressed the media when he returned from his honeymoon without Conger and said that he has never struck any of his girlfriends.

All the while, Conger, who is a Gulf War veteran, remained quiet until Wednesday morning.

She said that she was mortified by the whole experience of going to Las Vegas and marrying a millionaire. She said that her world was turned upside down.

"I committed an error of judgment as to what was right for me," Conger said.

Conger told ABC that during the flight to Barbados, Rockwell slept while she looked at her huge emerald-cut ring and cried.

Going On The Show

Conger, who supports her mother and a brother with cerebral palsy, said that someone at work referred her to the show.

"I thought I would go to Vegas, meet a lot of new people," she said. "Never in a million years I thought I would be selected."

She added that even if she were selected she thought her bridegroom would look at the situation the same way that she would.

"It's a TV show, maybe we would like each other and get along," she said. "Maybe we would even date, but I never thought it was an actual marriage in my heart and before God. I never considered it that way and I still don't."

She told ABC that she never thought she would be selected.

"I wasn't looking to marry anyone," she said. "I committed an error in judgment."

She wishes now that she had walked away without marrying Rockwell.

"I didn't know how to escape," she said.

She told ABC that she wasn't attracted to Rockwell. In fact, most of their honeymoon, she spent her time with one of the chaperones.

She added that they slept in separate rooms during their Caribbean honeymoon.

Not A Gold Digger

Although many have accused Conger, who was also an honors student in college, of being a gold digger, she said she doesn't need anyone else's money.

"I have a great job, and I own my own home," she said.

As part of going on the show, Conger received an Isuzu Trooper and a diamond ring. It was rumored that she received $100,000, but she said that isn't true.

"I don't need anyone else's money," she said. "I don't want anyone else's money."

Not Married If Not In A Church

Conger said that she doesn't even consider herself to be married before God because the ceremony didn't take place in a church.

"I'm a Christian woman, I'm religious, and I know this will inflame many people, but if I'm not married in a church with a preacher, I'm not married before God, and I'm not married in my heart," she said.

She told ABC she didn't know how to escape.

"We thought it was just a lark," she said. "We never thought people would take it seriously."

She admitted that she knows that the marriage is legal, however.

Conger said that she doesn't like public displays of affection and when she was kissed by Rockwell she didn't approve.

"I would like to think that someone who really has an interest for me or respect for me would have kissed me on the cheek. And said, 'I'm delighted to meet you.' " she said.

Although Conger was offered money to share her story, she appeared on GMA for free. She said that she wants her credibility back.

"I'm not the caricature that people saw on the show that night," she said.

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