Promise of Forever Love

by Vanessa Miller

  “Sure, little sis. I’ll take care of everything.” Toya turned back to her mother and asked, “Can we squash this until after the wedding?”

  A gust of wind billowed the feather-like palm fronds in the trees around them, and in the surf, white, flaky pebbles were thrown against the beach. Surrounded by such beauty, Yvonne suddenly didn’t want to argue anymore. Tia looked gorgeous in her wedding dress, and Toya looked pretty in her aqua, tea-length bridesmaid dress, even though the color was not the best for her. “Let’s do this wedding,” Yvonne said with as much joy as she could muster.

  Robbie—or Robert Samuel Carter, as his name read on the programs—was not where he was supposed to be. During the rehearsal last night, Robbie had been told to wait for Yvonne in front of the chairs on the right side of the arch. But he wasn’t there right now. So, the wedding coordinator, Barbara, told Yvonne to take her place behind the arch, and she went to look for him. Soft music began to play. It sounded like live piano, but there was no instrument in sight. Yvonne finally spotted the small, discreet speakers arranged around the chairs.

  She glanced up and saw Toya at the end of the aisle, preparing to walk toward the front. Tia was right behind her, holding onto Thomas’s arm. He reached over and wiped what must have been a tear from her cheek.

  Yvonne wished David could be here to wipe the tears from Tia’s cheeks. But he was gone, and she had to face the fact and move on. Just then, she was struck by how handsome Thomas looked in his black tuxedo. The man could dazzle.

  Barbara came running back down the beach toward them. That’s when Yvonne saw Robbie. His best man and one of his cousins were holding him up and carrying him a few paces behind the wedding coordinator.

  “What’s going on?” Yvonne asked no one in particular.

  With no explanation, Barbara changed the song that was playing through the speakers and then said something to Toya, who began to walk down the aisle carrying her pretty bouquet. Robbie finally made his way to his spot in front of the arch, but not without the help of his best man, who held Robbie’s arm, even when he stood still.

  Yvonne turned her attention from Robbie to Tia, who glowed as she walked down the aisle. Yvonne’s baby daughter was in love, and she was finally ready to accept the entire situation. What else could she do? In a few minutes, her baby would be married, and a few months later, Tia would be a mommy with a baby of her own. Tia smiled at her, and Yvonne felt as if her heart would explode with all the love she had for her daughter at that moment.

  Then, Robbie fell down. Yvonne saw him out of the corner of her eye. Her attention shot back to the aisle, though, as Tia let go of Thomas’s arm and ran to her man. She and the best man tried to get Robbie back up, but Robbie fought against their efforts. He pushed them away and said, “I can do it,” but his words were so slurred that it sounded like he said, “I kum d’i.”

  Tia was crying again, but this time, her tears were not of joy or happiness. “Why did you do this?” she screamed at Robbie.

  Robbie tried to stand up. “I—I—I g-g-got th-this,” he stammered as he grabbed Tia’s arm and turned her toward Yvonne. “Let’s do th-this.” Then, he fell down again.

  Some of the guests gasped, but others sat in their seats with smiles on their faces as if nothing was wrong. Their behavior made Yvonne think of the people who had stood around watching Christ’s crucifixion even though they knew he’d done nothing to deserve it. Or, the people who knew that the Holocaust and slavery were wrong but did not feel compelled to speak out against them. Yvonne’s mother used to tell her that plenty of cowards will always sit around and watch bad things happen; it takes just one honorable person to stand up and do something about it.

  “This boy is drunk,” Yvonne stated, pointing at Robbie.

  Tia bent down and tried to pick up her groom again. When it was obvious that she wouldn’t be able to, Thomas picked him up and sat him in a chair.

  Tia turned back to Yvonne and said, “I don’t know what happened to him. He was fine last night. Please, Mama, just marry us, and I’ll take him back to the hotel and let him sleep it off.”

  Yvonne put her hands on her hips. “I am not about to marry you to a drunk. Have you lost your mind?” Yvonne wanted to strike out and hit Robbie. There was no way she would officiate this marriage.

  “But Mama!” Tia cried. “I have to get married!” She looked out at the guests, then turned back to her mother and whispered, “You know why I have to get married today. Please do this for me.”

  Yvonne felt sorry for Tia and her situation, and her daughter’s tears did have an effect on her. But Yvonne was a woman of God, and she would not marry any couple who came before the altar of God drunk—especially not when the sober one was her baby girl. “I can’t do it, hon. I’m sorry.”

  Tia turned to Thomas. “Will you please marry us, Uncle Thomas?” she begged. “I need to get married. I know Robbie’s drunk right now, but he’s really a good guy.” She grabbed Robbie’s hand and tried to pull him up once more.

  Instead of standing up, Robbie fell off the chair.

  A look of remorse crossed Thomas’s face, but he said, “I agree with your mother, Tia. I would never marry you under these conditions.”

  Tia dropped Robbie’s hand and ran away. Toya threw down her flowers and followed her sister.

  Yvonne turned to the small gathering of guests. “I’m sorry, but there will be no wedding here today. Please feel free to enjoy the food that has already been prepared for you in the reception hall.”

  Thomas whispered in her ear, “I’m going to take Robbie back to the beach house, and then I’ll be back for you.”

  “Just get him out of my face.” She had had enough.

  Thomas patted her shoulder, then bent down to help the best man lift Robbie up, and Robbie thanked him by throwing up all over his tuxedo.

  Chapter

  Thirteen

  Things quieted down after Yvonne ushered the guests into the reception hall to get out of the heat and humidity and feast on hors d’oeuvres and the buffet dinner. She had a splitting headache and wanted desperately to go back to the hotel and lie down. But with Tia, Toya, and Thomas absent, she felt obligated to stay at the reception hall and entertain the guests.

  She was thankful that there were only about twenty people at the reception. She probably would have been in a daze if there had been two hundred or more people to put on a face for after the botched wedding ceremony.

  “Are you okay, Mrs. Milner?” someone asked. Yvonne turned, shocked to see Marvel Williams standing beside her. She hadn’t seen him approaching. “You look a bit flustered.”

  “I’m fine,” she replied, “but I’m not so sure that you should be here, Mr. Williams.”

  “Please, call me Marvel. And I’m not your enemy, Mrs. Milner.”

  He was smiling as he spoke to her, but Yvonne saw something else in his eyes. Something akin to hatred. But Yvonne didn’t know this young man. What reason could he have for hating her? “It feels like you’re my enemy, Mr. Williams, because I don’t understand why you would insist on taking land that is already occupied when you could build your factory in one of so many other locations within the city of Detroit.”

  “See, I think this is where we’re getting our wires crossed, because I didn’t insist on taking any land,” Marvel explained. “I told the city which areas I was most interested in and the size my organization would be when construction was finished, and they came back with a location. But I had no idea that your church would be in jeopardy.”

  He sounded so convincing, Yvonne almost believed him. But then she recalled that the mayor’s assistant had told them that Marvel specifically requested the location where Christ-Life sat. So, somebody was lying, and Yvonne figured that she was looking at the liar. But Toya was dating this man. For her daughter’s sake, Yvonne needed to keep the peace. So, she said, “I hope that what you say is the truth, Mr. Williams. My daughter seems to believe you, so I am willing to reserve judgment u
ntil I have all the facts.”

  “I appreciate that, Mrs. Milner. And for the record, I really like Toya and wouldn’t dream of doing anything to hurt her.”

  “I hope that’s true, Marvel,” Thomas said as he walked up and stood next to Yvonne. “Because having Christ-Life Sanctuary torn down would definitely hurt Toya.”

  “Mr. Reed,” Marvel said, extending his hand. Thomas did likewise, and they shook hands. “Toya speaks very highly of you, sir,” Marvel continued. “It’s nice to finally get a chance to speak with you. I know you called my office to schedule a meeting, and if you’d like, we can sit down now and chat.”

  “Right now is not a good time for me, Marvel. Why don’t we just keep our appointment next week, and then we can sit down and talk this all out?”

  “Okay, then,” Marvel said. “I’ll talk to you about this when we get back to Detroit.”

  Thomas turned to Yvonne. “Would you like to escape with me for a moment?” he asked her.

  Yvonne looked around the room at the guests, who were sitting around and eating their expensive lunch. “I think I need to stay here and make sure no one needs anything.”

  “I’ve already told Barbara to let everyone know that I’m covering one night’s stay at the hotel for all of them, and that their dinner is on me, too. So, I think they will be all right if we disappear for a few minutes.”

  Why hadn’t Yvonne thought of letting Barbara handle the guests? After all, she was the wedding coordinator, and she had already been paid for the services she would render during the weekend. “Thanks, Thomas. If I had remembered about Barbara, I would already be back in my hotel room.”

  Thomas turned back to Marvel. “Enjoy the rest of your day. Dinner and your hotel room are on me. We’ll talk to you later.”

  With that, he took Yvonne by the arm and guided her outside.

  “I’m so drained,” Yvonne admitted. “I just want to go to my room and lie down.”

  “I know. But before you do that, I want you to take a walk with me.”

  “I guess I can walk with you for a few minutes. There’s something I wanted to tell you, anyway.”

  They started walking toward the beach but stopped to take off their shoes. Thomas was still wearing his tuxedo pants and shirt, but he had left the soiled jacket in the reception hall.

  Yvonne took off her pumps and buried her toes in the cool sand. It felt wonderful, and for a moment she forgot about the debacle at the ceremony.

  “So, what did you want to talk to me about?” Thomas asked as they resumed walking.

  Yvonne kicked a pile of white sand. “I appreciate your offer to pay for the hotel stay and dinner for Tia’s guests, but I can’t let you do that. I’ll take care of the costs.”

  Thomas stopped walking and turned to face Yvonne. “Why can’t you let me pay for this? I’m the one who suggested that Tia and Robbie get married in the Bahamas in the first place. I’m going to pay for those rooms and those meals, and I’m not listening to any arguments about it. So, just smile and say thank you.”

  “You aren’t Tia’s father, Thomas. You shouldn’t have to spend your money on her mistakes.”

  “I’m still waiting for you to say thank you….”

  She shoved him playfully. “Thomas, why do you have to be so sweet to us? Can’t you find some other dysfunctional family to lavish your kindness on?”

  “I wouldn’t have this much fun with anyone else,” he said with a hint of laughter in his eyes.

  Yvonne locked arms with him, and they began to walk again. “How did things get so messed up?” she wondered aloud. “When Tia told me a few weeks ago that Robbie was fired because his boss thought he’d come to work drunk, I should have known something was up. But Tia swore that it was cold medicine that had made Robbie act drunk.”

  “Well, we know he wasn’t drinking cold medicine today,” Thomas said. “But let’s just wait and hear what the kids have to say when this all blows over.”

  Yvonne headed for a pine tree on the beach, and she lowered herself onto the sand as Thomas sat down next to her. “I already know what they want to do,” Yvonne said. “Tia still wants to marry him. Did you see the way she looked at me when I told her that I wouldn’t marry them?”

  “Now, don’t go taking it personally. Tia’s not upset with you, Vonnie. She’s probably mad at herself for getting into this predicament in the first place.”

  “Thomas, do you know who you’re talking about? She’s my daughter, but I know how self-absorbed she is. At this very minute, Tia is trying to find someone to blame for this disaster, and I promise you, she won’t be blaming herself.”

  “I don’t know about that. I went back to the hotel with Robbie, remember? Well, Tia came to be with him, and she was pretty broken up. I saw something in her eyes that made me believe that these events have changed her.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me that before? I need to go see about my baby.” Yvonne tried to get up, but Thomas held her arm.

  “Toya is taking care of Tia. You just sit back down here and let me take care of you.”

  Yvonne started to get back up again, but then she relented. Thomas was right. She did need a moment to herself. She had almost been at the breaking point in the reception hall, just trying to hold it together so that she wouldn’t give the guests anything else to whisper about. She closed her eyes and leaned her head on Thomas’s shoulder. “Thank you for being here, Thomas. You always know exactly what I need.”

  “It’s in my job description. Something like: ‘a lowly assistant pastor has to take care of the senior pastor and anticipate her every need.’”

  “Hush up, Thomas! There is nothing lowly about you. And you’re not the assistant pastor. We are copastoring the church as equals.”

  “If you say so, boss.”

  Giggling, Yvonne poked him in the side with her elbow. “Stop that. You are worse than the kids.”

  “I’m just trying to make you laugh. The Bible says, ‘A merry heart does good, like medicine.’”

  She lifted her head off his shoulder and turned to face her friend. “I have been in need of that particular medicine for a while now. But with my younger daughter wanting to marry a drunk and my older daughter dating the man who’s trying to take the church away from us, I just haven’t found much to laugh about.”

  “It’s tough watching your kids grow up and having to back off and let them make their own mistakes. A little while ago, when I met Jarrod for breakfast, he was trying to talk to this young lady, and I instantly knew she was all wrong for him. But do you think he listened to me? Nope! He and this girl have been on three dates since then.”

  “When they get too grown to listen to parental counsel, we should still be able to lock them in their rooms or something,” Yvonne put in. “I mean, look at Toya. She is a very intelligent woman. Men ask her out all the time. But the one she picks is a church destroyer.”

  “We can’t call him a church destroyer just yet—we still don’t know for sure if Marvel is directing the action against the church, or if it’s coming straight from the mayor’s office.”

  “Thomas, why would the mayor be behind something like this? Christ-Life has been in the same spot for two decades, and no city official has ever sought to move us off of our land before now.”

  “Detroit is in desperate need of new businesses right now,” Thomas reminded her.

  “Yes, of course it is. And I could believe that the desperation the mayor’s office is feeling about economic growth is the reason they are willing to uproot us. But I still don’t believe it was their idea.”

  “You might be right. But why is Marvel so interested in our particular side of town?”

  “I don’t know, but I intend to find out.”

  Thomas leaned over and put an arm around Yvonne’s shoulders. “We will figure it out together,” he said, sounding determined.

  Yvonne’s breath caught in her throat. Her heart thumped loudly in her chest as her blood pressure raced. Thomas
had put his arm around her shoulder at least a hundred times through the years, and his touch had never made her feel like this. She was nervous and unsure of her emotions.

  Thomas must have sensed her reaction. “What’s wrong?” he asked, his eyes boring into hers.

  You’re too close for comfort, that’s what’s wrong, Yvonne wanted to tell him. But how could she explain to a man who had been her friend for so many years that she had strange, new feelings for him? She couldn’t tell him what was wrong, so she turned her face away from him.

  “Vonnie,” he said with a husky voice. “I feel it, too.”

  With that funny feeling still in her stomach, she turned back to face him. She looked into his eyes and saw the desire she had seen several weeks ago. What was she supposed to do? Her answer came quickly as Thomas leaned closer to her and touched his lips to hers. The kiss was awkward at first. Yvonne hadn’t kissed any man but David in thirty years, so it took her a moment to get used to the feel of Thomas’s mouth.

  Then, what had started as a gentle kiss became ravenous. They were like two hungry people receiving their first meal after a two-year fast. Yvonne didn’t want the kiss to end, but at the same time, she wanted to end it. She was so confused that she couldn’t wrap her mind around what was going on or the sensations she was feeling. She pulled away from Thomas. “What are we doing?”

  “I don’t know, but it feels right to me, Vonnie. It feels real right,” Thomas said as he reclaimed her lips.

  When the kiss started up again, Yvonne forgot to think. Thomas held her in his arms and took her breath away with the amazing way he kissed her. Then, he suddenly stood up and held out his hand to her.

  “Come on. Let’s go check on the girls, and then I’m taking you out on the town.”

  “W-what?” she asked, confused by his sudden urgency.

  “We have to go, Vonnie. As much as I would love to stay here kissing on you all day, we need to make sure the girls are okay. And then I need to get some food in your stomach, because I know you haven’t eaten anything all day.”

  Oh, yeah—the girls. Yvonne grasped Thomas’s hand and allowed him to pull her to her feet. As she brushed the sand off her dress, she tried to clear her head so that she could think rationally again. “I guess we’d better go check on the girls,” she agreed, because the silence was beginning to get awkward.