His First Lady (18 page)

Evan sighed a deep sigh of relief.

The restaurant’s elegance only fueled Evan’s nervousness. If it wasn’t for the valet’s urgency, she might have kept driving. She stepped out of her car and would have lost her footing if it weren’t for the handsome Latin valet that grabbed her arm preventing her from falling. That wasn’t from nervousness; it was the five inch cream stiletto sandals that Mimi brought over from her own closet. They were beautiful but she wasn’t used to walking in such high heels that Mimi always made look effortless. But Evan was going to do what she could do best and that was to plaster a smile on her pretty face and fake it.

Heads turned as Evan walked through the door. Wearing a cream lace and sheer sleeveless number, she looked like a model walking in the door. Surprisingly, it fit her like a glove then Mimi explained that it was her ‘
when I lose 10 pounds dress’
and she hadn’t lost those 10 pounds yet.

Seeing some do a double take as she passed by helped her realize that she wasn’t any different than the other First ladies; she too belonged there. The maître d’ familiar with the First ladies luncheon eagerly escorted her to them. Evan took a deep nervous breath from her abdomen attempting to calm the flutters.

Evan saw Nina first as she followed the maître d’ to the table. She could tell without a close up that the ladies were a lot like Nina, perfectly put together but she hadn’t expected such a large group. Nina spotted her causing the ladies to look in Evan’s direction. Nina stood, walked up to Evan and threw her arms around her. “You look beautiful,” Nina whispered in her ear. Nina wouldn’t know it but her compliment gave Evan an instant burst of confidence.

The other six ladies stood up as Evan approached. Candace, better known as Candy, a gorgeous brown Barbie type, Kree, a heavily perfumed and noticeably made up bleached blonde, Linda, a younger and heavy set version of Nina, Kristy, a thin seemingly conservative plain faced woman with glossy lips, Seducca, pretty, thin, with black hair down her back and a diamond wedding ring that looked like the size of a child’s earlobe, and Daniela, a young understated olive skinned beauty. They all seemed to be sizing her up yet each embraced her with a hug as if knowing her forever.

Evan sat down across from Nina who seemed to eye her like a mother proud of her daughter’s new prom dress. Nina winked.

“I love that dress.” Candy beamed.

“Is that Chanel?” Kree asked.

Score one, Evan thought. Mimi had been a definite life saver today and she literally jumped up and down when Mimi brought the dress over and took it out of its dress bag. It was perfect for today but she had to promise Mimi that she wouldn’t spill anything on it.

“Thank you,” Evan said. “I don’t know the designer. I have to admit I overlook that most of the time,” Evan explained getting situated in her chair and placing her sparkling rhinestone clutch on her lap.

“Me too,” Linda said. “What’s the big deal, right?” Linda smiled at her.

Evan felt relieved although she couldn’t help but notice the many expensive name brands that the ladies seemed to be wearing not to mention their impeccable manicures and accessories. She knew it was stupid since that had nothing to do with Christ and even being concerned about such things was senseless. Like her mother, she never saw the value in spending foolishly.

“Ladies, this is the First lady of JMC that I was telling you about. Her husband’s church is on the way to becoming one of if not the largest church in the state from what I hear,” Nina said.

Evan blushed unsure if it was something to be proud of or ashamed of. “I’m not so sure about that.”

“Josh sure says it is,” Kree said. “That’s my husband, pastor of New Life on Parkway.”

“Girl, don’t be so modest, nobody respects it anymore,” Seducca said.

Candy noticeably rolled her eyes at Seducca. “Evan, we really are pleased to meet you. We’ve heard a lot about JMC and I’ve been meaning to invite you and your husband over but you know as a First lady that there never seems to be enough time in the day.”

“Yes, it’s very nice to meet you,” Daniela said.

The waitress approached. As the ladies looked over the menu, Evan repeatedly turned it over, front to back and back again looking for the lunch menu before realizing that the prices she was looking at was for the lunch menu.

“I’ll just have a big salad,” Kree said placing her menu on the table.

“I’m ordering some appetizers for us to share,” Nina said staring at the menu before rattling off a few different appetizer choices.

Candy winked at Nina. “Okay big boss, can you pay for my crab cakes too?” Candy grinned.

“I’m having the steak and cream potatoes,” Linda said closing her menu and laying it on the table.

Seducca peeked over her menu at Linda. “You really should do a salad because that’s no longer baby weight, sweetie.”

Evan noticed that the waitress made a curious face as she took the orders before walking off. The other ladies all seemed to chuckle at Seducca’s insult except Nina and Linda. She began to wonder if she was in the midst of a group of mean girls or simply the wrong group of First ladies. She didn’t know any First ladies who acted like this.

A plump yet pretty faced Linda looked over at Evan. “Sed likes to poke fun because she chose liposuction after each of her children. Do you have any children, Evan?” Linda asked.

Everybody laughed at Linda’s come back jab. Evan had to admit that it was brilliant. Linda’s question would have normally made her feel pre-judged but not today; she could and would answer differently this time. “We’re working on it.”

Nina clapped her hands. “Yah! How wonderful; what do you want?”

Evan smiled huge. “It doesn’t matter.”

“Josh and I have 5 children and it does matter. My boys are so much easier than my girls,” Kree said.

“I don’t think it does. I absolutely love having girls,” Candy said. “You would’ve thought that Will carried that boy of ours.”

“Yes, boys and girls are different but I even have to parent my two girls differently from each other so I’m not so sure it matters.” Daniela chimed in.

“Evan, please share with us a little about yourself,” Nina said changing the subject.

Evan looked around and saw all eyes on her. She smiled. “I don’t want to bore anyone because I really don’t have anything magnificent to say but I’ve been a First lady for about seven of my eight years of marriage and I’m still learning and trying to get closer to God.”

“You’re not going to ever get the hang of it. I tell my husband that my job is a lot harder than his any day because as a First lady, I also work fulltime, and take care of him and our kids.” Daniela said.

Linda nodded. “I agree. See pastors can concentrate on the word and hearing from God while we’re laboring, praying, laying hands, counseling, cooking, and folding clothes.”

“Daniela, I don’t see how you still work fulltime as a First lady. It’s too much,” Kree said looking over at Daniela with a slight turned up nose.

Daniela shrugged. “I love what I do. I’ve always loved medicine and I don’t feel that God has called me to quit that.”

Kree looked over her long bedazzled manicured nails. “I don’t know. I couldn’t fathom working a fulltime job; being a First lady is hard enough. Josh could never expect me to do that. He just wants me to concentrate on our kids while he handles everything else.”

“Rob doesn’t expect me to work at all. I choose to work, Kree.” Daniela frowned clearly displaying her contempt for Kree’s words; to which Kree smiled.

Two waitresses and a waiter returned with their drinks, appetizers, and salads. After the remaining orders were taken, the ladies handed up their menus.

Seducca cleared her throat loudly when the waitress walked away from the table.

“So, there’s a nasty little rumor going around,” Seducca said causing everyone to turn their attention toward her. She then turned to Daniela. “You don’t mind if I share do you, sweetie?”

“Let’s not do that right now, ladies,” Nina said looking uncomfortable. “Let’s share about what God is doing in our ministries.”

“I guarantee that God is going to be doing something else when the pastor’s wife finds out about this one,” Seducca responded.

“I don’t think it’s appropriate, Sed,” Daniela said looking like she wished Seducca hadn’t brought the subject up.

“What is it?” Candy leaned forward toward Seducca to hear what was sure to be some juicy gossip.

Seducca smirked. “For you holy First ladies, you might want to close your ears. For the rest of you, you might want to put your hands to your pearls now,” Seducca said with a sneaky grin.

“What is it?” Linda asked.

“Darling, it seems that there’s a pastor who’s been cheating on his wife and has fathered a child with one of his deacon’s wives’.”

A look of shock swept over the ladies faces.

“You’re lying,” Linda said skeptically fishing for more information.

Seducca smirked as she turned to Daniela. “Am I lying, Dani?”

Daniela sighed placing her palms in the air. “It’s what I’ve been told by my patient. I have no way of verifying how true it actually is.”

“What!” Candy said in disbelief. “Are you kidding me?”

“I’m not lying or kidding,” Seducca answered. “She’s a patient at Daniela’s office. Daniela performed an ultrasound on her and she spilled the beans.”

Nina’s forehead wrinkled in curiosity. “Well, what all did she say?”

“Uh huh, I knew you’d be interested,” Seducca said looking at Nina. “Tell them Daniela.”

Daniela sighed seemingly irritated at being put on the spot. “I don’t normally talk about my patients because I value their privacy but she willingly shared this with me.”

Seducca rolled her eyes. “Girl, just tell them already.”

“She’s a married woman but the baby isn’t her husband’s because he had a vasectomy years ago. It’s her married boyfriend’s baby who happens to be a well-known pastor who has no children with his wife.”

The ladies all sat amazed and speechless for a moment. A flood of heat seemed to rush over Evan. She knew it couldn’t have been her but it could just as well have been and the other girls may have been thinking the same thing. After all, she had no children.

“Pastor of what church?” Linda asked.

“I have no idea,” Daniela answered. “But believe me I wanted to ask.”

“Does she know that Rob’s a pastor?” Nina asked suddenly interested in the conversation.

Daniela shook her head. “I don’t discuss personal details of my life with my patients.”

Kristy leaned forward in Daniela’s direction. “How did you sit and listen to that knowing that could be any First lady’s husband?”

“She just started talking; I was trying to get her out of the office because the ultrasound was finished. You know people feel that they know you when you’ve seen them pretty much naked.”

“Wow, if I ever found out that William did that. I’d probably kill the both of them and ask God to forgive me later,” Candy said with a serious look on her face.

“Candace!” Nina said shocked at Candy’s revelation.

Candy grimaced. “Nina, stop acting like Ms. Goodie two shoes. I love Jesus but I am not about to sit here like you, Ms. Perfect. I know that I seriously couldn’t handle the humiliation of my husband getting another woman pregnant especially somebody I knew.”

“I’d be mortified,” Kree said before taking a sip of her sparkling water.

Seducca put her hand out in front of her face to look at her wedding ring before adjusting it on her finger. “That is the ultimate betrayal.”

“I for one know that I have sacrificed a lot for Will and if he ever did that to me and my children, then his mother would need to begin making funeral arrangements. That’s all I’m saying,” Candy said.

“Wow,” Linda said.

Nina looked at Candy clearly agitated. “You would do time and leave your children parentless if your husband cheated instead of just leaving? That’s ignorant,” Nina said reaching into the appetizer dish and getting a sea scallop with her fork and placing it onto her plate.

Candy shrugged as she began cutting the grilled chicken in her salad. “Call it what you like.”

“That’s why you have to keep your husband in prayer. They’re constantly under attack and the devil is always seeking to break them down to keep them from preaching the word of God,” Kristy said.

Seducca rolled her eyes. “Do you seriously think his wife hasn’t or wasn’t praying for him, Kristy?”

“I’m not saying that; just stating my opinion,” Kristy replied.

“You have no idea who this pastor is?” Linda asked Daniela.

“I don’t. The woman won’t tell me what church she attends. But this woman is apparently being set up real nice by the good pastor.”

“Whore,” Candy said sucking her teeth.

“That’s putting it mildly,” Kree said drizzling small amounts of vinegar and oil on her salad.

“We have to give our men what they need or they’ll find it elsewhere. Some women in the church are vicious,” Kristy said.

Seducca chuckled. “You can give it to your man every day, twice a day but if he’s going to cheat then he’s going to cheat.”

“You make it sound like we’re dealing with men of the world; these men are chosen by God to preach the gospel. We’ve got to have more faith than that,” Kree said fingering a strand of blond hair that wandered out of place.