“I’ll talk to you later, Daddy,” Alicia said, and then pressed the off button and tossed the phone onto her desk. She couldn’t remember when she’d ever been angrier.
Chapter 6
Hi, Mom, can you talk?” Alicia said when her mother answered her phone. Tanya was the director at an abused women’s facility not far from New Life Christian Center and sometimes had little time for personal phone calls.
“Actually, I’m eating lunch so this is fine. How are you?”
“Terrible.”
“Why, what’s wrong?”
“It’s Daddy. He just made me so mad, Mom.”
“About what?”
“JT and the fact that he doesn’t like him.”
“Look, sweetheart, I totally understand your frustration, but you also have to realize that your father loves his children more than anything and he’s only trying to look out for your best interest. He’s only acting this way because he doesn’t want to see you get hurt.”
“Well, I don’t care what his reasons are because what I want is for him to stop being so ridiculously overprotective of me, and I want him to accept JT the same as he accepted Phillip.”
“He’ll eventually come around. It may take him a while, but he will.”
“Maybe, but Daddy has a lot of nerve judging JT when he did all sorts of crazy stuff when I was a child. He messed around on you all the time.”
Her mother didn’t say anything, and Alicia knew she’d hurt her feelings. She’d spoken too much too soon and without thinking, and the only thing she could do now was change the conversation.
“So, how’s Dad James?”
“He’s good. Just getting ready for golf season. Actually, he and some of his buddies have already been out to the course a few times.”
“I know how much he loves that.”
“So, how’s the revising process coming along?”
“Very well. I’m almost finished, and I really hope Dad’s agent is happy with the rewrites I’ve incorporated.”
“I’m sure she’ll be fine with them. Do you want me to read it one last time?”
“Will you, Mom? You’ve read it twice already, so I didn’t want to ask you again.”
“Please. What are mothers for?”
“I really appreciate it, and I’ll print out a copy and overnight it to you tomorrow.”
“Sounds good. And you should probably let your father read it again as well.”
“I don’t think so.”
“Alicia,” her mother said, obviously disappointed in her answer.
“I’m sorry, Mom, but I don’t want to talk to Daddy for a while.”
“Do you think distancing yourself from him is a good idea?”
“Actually, I do, and if you want to know the truth, if Daddy can’t accept JT, then I don’t see how he can accept me as his daughter.”
“Alicia, I know you don’t really believe that, do you?”
“Well, if he doesn’t start treating JT like a son-in-law, then I won’t be going around him as much. JT is my husband, I love him, and if Daddy can’t deal with that, then so be it.”
“I really wish you and your father would work out your differences.”
“I’m sure we will at some point but not today.”
“Well, hey, I need to get going. But make sure you mail the manuscript to me, okay?”
“I will, and thanks again, Mom.”
Alicia dialed her best friend, Melanie. Her phone rang four times and then went to voice mail, so Alicia left her a message, asking her to call her back when she got a chance. After that, she signed in to NLCC’s computer system. Since she wouldn’t be able to spend much time at the office the church had given her, at least not until she got her book shipped off, she checked her assigned e-mail account daily from home. She’d only been a member for one month but already she was getting lots of notes from members, welcoming her to the church family. Some talked about how they would eventually make it a point to stand in line to meet her one Sunday after service, and others said they were e-mailing her because they wanted her to know how happy they were to have the Reverend Black’s daughter as their new first lady. Alicia rolled her eyes with irritation. Yes, there had been a time when she loved being recognized or given special treatment because of her father’s notoriety, but not at the moment. Not when she was so perturbed with him. Actually, she didn’t like it much at all anymore because what she wanted was for people to love her for her and not because of how famous one of her parents was.
Alicia skimmed through more e-mails and smiled at all the nice things people had to say, and then she saw one that had “From a Good Friend” as the subject line. So, she opened it:
Hi Alicia,
I have a message for you from a very good friend of yours so please call me at the number below.
She wondered who the note could be from but picked up her home phone and dialed *67, so she could block her number, and then dialed the number on the computer screen. It rang a couple of times, and then a guy picked up.
“Hello?” he said.
“Hi, you sent me an e-mail and asked me to call you?”
“Are you Alicia?”
“It depends.”
“I’m assuming you are because I didn’t send my number to anyone else.”
“Okay, yes, I’m Alicia.”
“How are you? I’m Darrell, a longtime friend of Levi’s, and he wanted me to give you a message.”
Alicia’s stomach quivered, and strangely, her heart did the same. Finally she asked, “Where did you get my e-mail address?”
“Levi heard about you getting married to the pastor of New Life Christian Center and asked me if I could maybe find you online. So, when I went to the church’s website, I saw your photo and an address listed for you.”
“I guess I’m not sure why he wanted you to contact me.”
“Levi is in a federal prison in Indiana, but he really wants to see you. His attorney is in the process of appealing his conviction, and because those detectives went into his home without a proper warrant and basically found nothing, he has a pretty good chance of getting out.”
“Even after all the millions of dollars that were found in offshore accounts? And the testimonies that were given by narcotics officers and a ton of other people Levi had been paying off for years?”
“Yeah, but the good news is that Levi has also cooperated with the authorities in a number of ways, including his providing proof of the person who really owned the drug manufacturing location. And the list basically goes on and on.”
Alicia was stunned by what she was hearing. “I guess I don’t know what to say.”
“I know it sounds far-fetched but none of those testimonies or anything else matters if the police entered Levi’s home improperly and his attorney can get him a new trial and prove he wasn’t the ringleader. If so, Levi could be cleared on a technicality.”
“Still, why does he want to see me?”
“He just does. He talks about you all the time, and I would be happy to take you to visit him.”
“I can’t. I just got married again, and there’s no way I can ever have any contact with him. But please give him my best, and tell him that I wish him well.”
“Will you at least take some time to think about it?”
“I’m sorry.”
“Well, all I could do was try. Levi will definitely be disappointed, but I’ll relay your message to him.”
“I really appreciate it, and again, I’m really sorry.”
“You take care.”
Alicia set the phone down and tried to calm her nerves. She wasn’t sure why she was reliving and remembering all the feelings she’d once had for Levi, but she was and she didn’t like it. Why did he have to try to contact her now? It was bad enough that she hadn’t been able to resist his advances when she was married to Phillip and now here he was causing the same problem again through some friend of his. She hadn’t even heard his actual voice, but just knowi
ng he wanted to see her made her uneasy. Not because she thought he would do harm to her but because she knew, without even hearing him say it, that he still cared about her. She knew he was still in love with her.
But she wasn’t in love with him. Not anymore. She loved her husband, JT. She loved him and no one else, and she was going to pretend she’d never gotten some anonymous e-mail or made a phone call to anyone named Darrell.
She would go on with the rest of her day, business as usual.
Chapter 7
JT drove his black BMW M6 convertible into the driveway and heard his BlackBerry ringing. He smirked when he saw it was Carmen.
“So, I guess you’ve finally come to your senses,” he said, waiting for the garage door to open.
“Actually, I was giving you one last chance to come to yours,” Carmen shot back.
“And what is that supposed to mean?”
“Exactly what I said. I’m giving you one last chance to acknowledge all that I’ve sacrificed and how long I’ve waited to be Mrs. JT Valentine. How long I’ve waited to be the one and only woman in your life and the first lady of your congregation. I’ve earned all of those privileges and then some, fair and square, and I want what I have coming to me.”
JT laughed out loud and wasn’t sure how she expected him to respond to such nonsense.
“Oh, so now you think I’m funny?” she said. “You think this is some sort of game I’m playing with you?”
“Look, Carmen, what we had was good, but since you’ve decided that you no longer want our relationship to continue, let’s just move on. Let’s end this thing peacefully so we can both get on with our lives.”
“I hate the day I ever laid eyes on you,” she said, sniffling, “and this isn’t the end, JT. This isn’t the end and that’s a promise you can count on.”
JT opened his mouth to speak, but before he could, she hung up on him.
He took a deep breath and maneuvered his car inside the garage. Women was all he could think, and he wished Carmen had stayed on the phone long enough for him to tell her to never dial his phone number again. She knew she wasn’t supposed to call his cell phone anyway, unless there was some sort of dire emergency. But he’d been willing to let it pass, just this once, if she was calling to apologize and tell him she’d made a terrible mistake when it came to cutting things off with him. For as long as he’d been seeing both Carmen and Diana, the rule had always been that they would arrange their next meeting days and times while they were with him, so that actual phone conversations were never necessary. Then, if for some reason he did need to talk to them, he would do the calling—which wasn’t a problem because Carmen was single and could take calls from anyone, and Diana always kept her phone on silent when her husband was around. Their system had always worked fine, but apparently Carmen had forgotten the guidelines and needed to be reminded of them.
JT shook his head out of sheer annoyance, parked his car, and went inside the house. Alicia was removing a pan of dinner rolls from the oven, and JT went over and pulled her into his arms.
“So, how’d your afternoon go?” he said, kissing her.
“Good. How about yours? Did you enjoy your lunch?”
“I did. And after that I ran by the church to do a little work.”
“Well, everything should be done in maybe twenty minutes or so.”
“You know, I’m actually glad you decided you’d rather cook than go out this evening because I really do enjoy being right here at home with you.”
“Me too. You know I love going out, but sometimes there’s nothing better than having a nice quiet dinner with no interruptions.”
He kissed her again and then said, “I think I’m going to head upstairs to change and get washed up.”
“Okay. See ya when you come back down,” she said, and he left the kitchen.
Alicia really was the perfect wife for him, and it was for that very reason that he sometimes regretted the way he was sleeping around on her and the way he lied to cover it up. He frequently told himself that he’d mainly married her because of what he’d thought being in the Black family could mean for his long-term career in ministry, but he couldn’t deny his feelings for her and how they seemed to grow stronger with each passing day. As a matter of fact, he was glad his affair with Carmen was over because now he’d be able to spend more time with Alicia, and he wouldn’t have to lie about where he was every Monday afternoon, his day off, or on some of the other days in the week. He’d still have to sneak out to be with Diana, but at least he no longer had to juggle two steady mistresses and a wife all at the same time. When his first wife had passed, he’d been able to see Diana and Carmen without much pressure at all, especially since neither of them knew about the other. But ever since marrying Alicia, he’d begun feeling the stress and strain of sleeping with three women on a regular basis—not physically, because he always had the kind of bodily strength he needed to keep up with all of them, but mentally the whole scenario was starting to wear on him. Actually, Carmen was the reason he’d started feeling this way, what with all her demands and possessive behavior, and he wasn’t sure why she couldn’t leave well enough alone. Why she couldn’t just appreciate their situation for what it was. He wasn’t sure why she couldn’t accept reality: She wasn’t his wife; she was his fling on the side. She was a woman no one could ever know about, not under any circumstances, and it was as simple as that. Yes, the more JT thought about it, he was glad to be rid of Carmen for good.
When he stepped inside the bedroom, he slipped out of his clothing and then went into the bathroom and took a quick shower. Normally, he never had sex with another woman and then came home without showering, but since Carmen had basically kicked him out of her apartment, he hadn’t had time to do so. Thankfully, he’d convinced her years before that he preferred a woman’s natural, God-given scent and that he didn’t like smelling a lot of perfume when he was making love. Of course, that couldn’t have been further from the truth, but it guaranteed his never having to come home with any fragrances that might have caused his first wife, Michelle, and now Alicia, to become suspicious.
After drying off, saturating his body with lotion, and then putting on a T-shirt and a pair of jogging shorts, JT started downstairs. But then his phone rang, so he went back into the bedroom, removed it from his pants pocket, and frowned when he saw that it was Carmen again. His first notion was to hit ignore, but then he decided he’d better take care of this problem once and for all.
“Why are you calling me again?” he asked, walking toward the bathroom and lowering his voice.
“Because.”
“Because what?”
“Because I love you, JT. I love you more than anything or anyone, and I can’t imagine not being with you.”
“Well, you need to make up your mind, one way or the other, because you can’t keep calling me like this. Alicia is right downstairs, and—”
“Alicia?! Why are you always talking about her? I’m the one who’s been there for you for all these years, and I’m the one who would give my life for you if I had to.”
“She’s my wife, Carmen. Like it or not, she’s the one I married and nothing is going to change that.”
Carmen burst into tears. “JT, please. I’m begging you. Please just leave her.”
“Look, I’m sorry things didn’t work out the way you wanted them to, but let’s just try to end this on a friendly note. We had some very good times, but what you need to do now is find someone who can give you the kind of love and commitment you’re looking for.”
“I don’t want someone else. I want you and only you.”
“Like I said, I’m sorry. And I have to go.”
“JT, I’ll do anything.”
“Good-bye, Carmen,” he said, ending the call, and then switched his phone to silent mode. First thing tomorrow morning, he’d have to call his cell phone provider to see what he needed to do to block incoming calls from both Carmen’s home and mobile numbers. Maybe then she
would take a hint and leave him alone.
Chapter 8
With most of the church staff being off on Mondays, Tuesday mornings tended to be filled with all sorts of meetings and personal counseling sessions, and right now, JT was sitting in his office with his two assistant pastors—both of whom contributed to the ministry in extremely positive ways but clearly couldn’t have been more different. Steven Payne was in his late twenties, full of energy, and thought the world of JT; and Glenn Weaver was a fortysomething straitlaced and strictly by-the-book kind of person. Truth be told, there were times when JT could either take or leave Minister Weaver, but because he was consistently dependable and had an exceptional knowledge of God’s Word, JT couldn’t imagine him not being a part of NLCC.
JT leaned away from his cherrywood desk, making himself more comfortable in his high-backed chair. “With summer being barely a month away, I just want to make sure we have each of the Sunday services and Wednesday-night Bible studies covered through September.”
Both of the ministers looked over the spreadsheets in front of them and Minister Payne said, “The only date I might have to change is the last Sunday in August because I have a family reunion.”
“I’ll be out of town as well,” JT said, and looked at Minister Weaver. “So, Glenn, do you think you can cover that Sunday instead?”
“I’m sure I can. I have a family reunion as well but it’s a couple of weekends before that.”
“Great.”
“Then I’ll take one of your other Sundays or Wednesday nights,” Minister Payne offered.
JT pushed the summer schedule to the side and rested his elbows on top of his desk. “The other thing I want to discuss is our membership objectives. Both of you know that my goal is to double the number of members we have within the next five years, so I want to begin having weekly meetings to discuss it.”
“Bringing in another five thousand people in such a short period of time won’t be an easy task,” Minister Weaver said, and JT wasn’t all that surprised because Glenn could be a bit on the pessimistic side when he wanted to be.
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