Sex in the Sanctuary (13 page)

As God’s promise to have mercy on Tai with everlasting kindness resonated, joy replaced her anger. The tears fell, but they were ones of hope, not despair. God was with her and she was going to be okay. She knelt in prayer and much to her surprise began praying for King and the other woman. She prayed for women all over the world, women who were married to philandering men—women like her. She prayed for the ministry and for ministers everywhere—ministers like King. She prayed for first ladies, deacons’ wives, trustees’ wives, men’s wives. She prayed for the single women so desperate for companionship and starved for love that they turned to other women’s husbands with no thought of shame or responsibility. She prayed for her children’s well-being
during this strenuous time. She prayed for the right way to handle them, and for their emotional well-being. She prayed for children of divorced and separated parents everywhere. Children caught in the crossfire—children like hers. She was just getting off her knees as she heard the front door open. When she went down to greet the children her hugs were sincere and her smile was genuine. God was with her and she was going to be okay.

Vivian was taking the casserole out of the oven as she heard the front door close. Derrick was back from his week-long revival in Canada. “Perfect timing!” she called out to him.

He came into the kitchen with a smile that said,
I-missyou-and-I-love-you-and-I-want-to-do-it-to-you-right-nowon-the-kitchen-floor!

“What’s that?” Vivian crooned, trying to peek behind Derrick’s back to see what he was holding. He pulled out an exotic bouquet of orchids and birds of paradise.

“Exotic flowers for an exotic lady. My erotic—I mean, exotic queen!”

Vivian laughed and swatted at him playfully. “You were right on both counts. Exotic
and
erotic! I’m just glad you didn’t say neurotic!” They both laughed.

“These flowers are lovely, boo, to what do I owe the pleasure?” She opened a cabinet and took out a crystal vase, filled it with water and began arranging the bouquet carefully.

“To the fact that I love you, I need you and I can’t live without you.”

“Well, that makes two of us.” Vivian placed the last flower in the vase and walked over to her husband. She wrapped her arms around his neck and brushed her lips lazily over his.

“Don’t tease me, woman,” Derrick murmured, pulling her into a lingering kiss and tight embrace.

Vivian gave as good as she got. She broke the kiss, only to plant tiny smooches all over his face. She outlined his ear with her tongue and traced a moist path back down to his full mouth, reclaiming once again what she thanked God for every day. After a moment, she stepped back, smiling playfully. “Feels like you bought me a large cucumber, too. Did you want a salad?”

Derrick’s reply was interrupted by the sound of feet on the staircase and the squeal of a baby girl excited to see her dad. “Daddy!” Elisia shouted, running into the kitchen. D-2 followed in a more subdued manner. He considered screaming and running to one’s parents acting like a baby. He was much too cool for that. Still, he was glad to see his dad. Seeing their parents embrace was a common occurrence, so they were not surprised or embarrassed. Elisia tried to scoot in and make the embrace a threesome. Daddy, however, was trying to hide his “cucumber” and was in no position to break the now strategically necessary cuddle. Still holding Vivian with one arm he leaned down and kissed his daughter, acknowledging his son over her head. “Hey, son, hey, baby! How’s Daddy’s other girl today?”

“I’m fine, Daddy! Hey, can you come to my room and see the drawing I did today at school? Mrs. Nelson said it was beautiful!”

“I’m sure it is, darling. I tell you what. You go on up and get it ready and I’ll be up in a little bit. As soon as I finish talking to your mother.”

“Y’all weren’t talking, y’all were kissing!”

“Whatever we were doing, we’re not finished!” Vivian countered, smiling down at her daughter. “Your father is busy and will be up in a moment. I get him first, remember?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Elisia said, smiling. “But you’ll come up soon, right, Daddy?”

“I’m already up,” he whispered in Vivian’s ear, and then to his daughter, “Yes, sweetheart, I’ll be up soon.” They both smiled as their daughter skipped out of the kitchen and headed upstairs. D-2 had already left to spend time with one of his best friends and their favorite pastime—basketball.

“You’re incorrigible,” Vivian continued as she resumed her husband’s seduction, loosening his tie and beginning to unbutton his shirt. “Just like I like you.”

“I better stop while I still can,” Derrick whispered, gently breaking away from Vivian with a final kiss on the cheek and pinch on the behind. “Something smells good.”

“Everybody knows the smell of tuna casserole; you’re changing the subject.”

“I’m postponing the subject, but believe me this is a topic I do intend to take back up with you later tonight.”

“Ooh, is that a promise?”

“Cross my heart.”

“Then go on up and change and I’ll bring you a cup of tea. Would you like that? I need to talk to you about something.” Vivian’s mood turned serious, and Derrick noticed immediately.

“Is this what you alluded to on the phone that you said I had to hear in person?”

“King and Tai.”

Derrick rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “So that’s what King wanted.”

“He called you?”

“Left a message. I never got a chance to call him back.”

“You need to, it’s pretty serious. But go on up and I’ll get your tea. I wouldn’t want this discussion overheard.”

Vivian poured water into the teakettle and turned the burner on. Then she grabbed lettuce, tomato and a cucumber out of the refrigerator to make a quick salad. By the time she sliced the
last of the cucumber, smiling as she did so, the kettle was whistling. She poured the hot water over the teabags, and the smell of chamomile wafted up from the steaming cups. She grabbed a lemon out of the refrigerator, sliced it and placed it, the honey, a bowl of nuts and the two mugs on a tray, heading for the bedroom. Derrick was lying on the bed, his arms behind his head, when she opened the door. She smiled, closing the door with her foot.

“You’re distracting,” she said, coming over to Derrick’s side of the bed and placing the tray down on his nightstand. Derrick was clad only in silver silk boxers and black socks. “You’d better put a robe on if you expect me to remember what I want to talk to you about.”

Derrick swung his legs over the side of the bed, sitting up languidly. He made a reach for the tea but turned, grabbing Vivian instead, and pulled her down on top of him in the middle of their king-sized paradise.

“Maybe I don’t want to talk,” Derrick cooed as he reached under Vivian’s tank top and grabbed a handful of her firm, lush breasts. “Maybe I want to do…other things.”

Vivian rolled over and sat up, scooting to the end of the bed and reaching for his tea mug. “All in good time, my pretty,” she droned. “All in good time.”

Derrick sat up. He reached for the mug that Vivian held out to him and grabbed a handful of nuts. Sitting back against the headboard, he looked at her intently. “So how bad is the damage this time?” he began while taking a sip of tea. He reached over for the honey and added another huge dollop to the steamy concoction.

“Tai wants a divorce.”

“She said that?”

“She said it, and Derrick, this time I think she means it. She met King’s—how should I say this nicely—‘ho.’”

Derrick almost spilled his tea. “What?” He set down the mug. “When?”

“By accident, a week ago,” Vivian answered, reaching for the nuts herself. She then proceeded to tell Derrick about her conversation with Tai and Tai’s unplanned run-in with King and his mistress. By the time she finished the mini-version of this real-life mini-series, Elisia was knocking on the door. “Daddy, you promised!” she yelled from outside. Derrick had forgotten all about Elisia and her artwork.

Vivian stood up and walked toward the door. “Go on, honey, I’ll set the table. Dinner will be waiting when you two come down.” She opened the door and spoke to Elisia. “Where’s your brother?”

“Outside. He’s still playing basketball with Chris.”

Vivian walked down the stairs, through the living room to the front door. She walked out onto the sidewalk, glancing two doors down to where Chris and his family lived. All she saw was an empty driveway with an abandoned basketball resting on top of their perfectly trimmed hedges. “I’m sure his mother will love that,” Vivian mused as she scanned the block for her son. She then did what was done to her when she was his age; something that she was sure embarrassed him immensely as it had her in her youth. She bellowed.

“DERRICK!!!!” Almost instantly, Derrick appeared from the Winters’ backyard.

“Aw, Mom, do you have to yell?” he whined, grabbing his shirt and heading over the grass toward his house.

“It worked, didn’t it?” Vivian replied with a kiss to D-2’s cheek, causing further chagrin since he thought Chris might be watching. “Now, hurry up and shower. Dinner’s ready.” She held him in a hug, and he tried to break away as they walked through the front door.

Vivian laughed as D-2 bounded up the steps two at a time and she headed to the kitchen. Humming quietly, she took out the necessary dishes and silverware for the table setting. She grabbed napkins and glasses and headed for the dining room. After setting the table quickly, she returned to the kitchen
for the bowl of salad and basket of rolls. She then went back for the casserole dish. She smiled, relishing the simple acts of motherhood and married life. She again thought of Tai, and her smile faded. Her heart went out to the woman, who was like a sister to her. She couldn’t possibly imagine the depths of Tai’s pain. Going back into the kitchen for the pitcher of tea, Vivian tried to. Imagine Tai’s pain. Imagine how she’d feel knowing that Derrick was cheating on her. She grabbed the vase of flowers and placed them on the buffet in the dining room as she pondered her possible reaction to finding out someone else was in bed with her husband. Then she tried to figure out how long it would take her to adjust to prison life, because that was where she’d be headed after she’d killed them both!

“Dinner’s ready,” she called from the foot of the stairs. “Yes, I would kill,” Vivian whispered with quiet certainty as she leaned against the stair rail and pondered that thought until she heard her family coming down to meet her.
Thou shall not kill,
she heard in her conscience. “I know you’re right, Father,” she said aloud, moving from the stairway to the dining room, grabbing the butter from the kitchen on the way. “So I might as well ask for your forgiveness now because should something like that happen to me, I’m going to need it.”

Her ebony skin glistened in the moonlight. Cy moaned as he pulled her to him, planting kisses from the top of her head to the soles of her feet. The night was balmy, but splashes of a cool breeze wisped against their bodies. She was the Eve to his Adam, and he indeed felt as if he were in paradise. He rolled over in the sand, pulling her with him, so that now she was on top. She sat up then, body erect (as was his), head thrown back, eyes closed, lips slightly parted. She licked them, enjoying her own mental imaging as she played a finger melody upon his ridged stomach and massive chest. Slowly she opened her eyes and looked at him. Her lips parted into a smile that could light all darkness. She began to purr, bending over to kiss his eyes, his nose. He reached up and grabbed her breasts, taking first one and then the other into his mouth. He could have sworn he tasted chocolate. She purred louder with each tug of her nipple, felt a cord rippling through her entire insides. They kissed again, slowly, leisurely. She reached down between his legs and grabbed his dick, her exploration continuing. Cy groaned, burying his head between her breasts,
his breath coming in short, quick gasps. Slowly, reverently almost, she rose up with his manhood still in her hand and positioned herself over its huge, throbbing tip. Cy held his breath, the wonder of their imminent joining almost too awesome to comprehend. He’d waited a lifetime for her. She sank down on his shaft, slowly. Somewhere in the distance a ringing sounded, then got louder and louder as he sank deeper and deeper into her tight, wet pussy. Cy tried to shut out the noise and concentrate on this tender morsel surrounding him, but the clanging bell would not be denied.

He reached out blindly, searching for her, longing for the feel of her warm, soft body next to his. He touched a book first, the book he’d been reading before he fell asleep the night before, and then a pillow. He jerked his head up suddenly then, feeling disoriented and bereft of spirit. Like he’d found his greatest pleasure only to lose it again. He shook his head, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. He reached over absentmindedly and turned off the alarm without looking, his mind still on a woman on a beach on an island in another place and time. His brows creased. Could that have really been just a dream? It seemed so real.
She
seemed so real.

Cy Taylor, it’s time to get married
, he thought as he dragged himself off the bed and headed for the shower. His manhood marched before him. Cy stepped into the shower, the cold water flow at full blast. He massaged his shaft until he found release, then increased the temperature until steam began to rise above his shower stall, coating the glass and the chrome and the mirrors. He was hardly aware that the entire time in the shower was spent thinking about a nameless ebony princess whom he’d held in his arms all night long, and whom he wanted to hold again.

Cy dressed casually in a pair of Armani slacks and a Dawson Forte pullover. He grabbed his BlackBerry from the nightstand and headed downstairs to the kitchen. Still feeling a bit out of sorts, he poured himself a glass of apple juice and was
about to grab a bagel when he changed his mind and decided what he needed was a full-course meal. He thought of a couple of restaurant options and looked at his watch. Great. There was plenty of time to eat a good breakfast and make a couple calls before his meeting with Derrick later that morning. That decision made, he strolled into his office, glancing briefly at his desk before walking past it to the window and a view that spread from the marina to the ocean with a crop of high-rises and office buildings glittering in the distance against the early morning sun. He rubbed his neck, feeling a bit tight, a bit wound up. His message light was blinking, but he didn’t feel like checking it. He didn’t feel like being in his office, any office really. Try as he might to shake it, he felt like being on a beach, feeling the sand between his toes and a beautiful woman between his…“Damn!” Cy said aloud, grabbing his briefcase and heading toward the door. The knob was turning as he reached for it, and Maria, his housekeeper, hustled inside.

“Good morning, Mr. Taylor!” she offered cheerfully. “It is a beautiful day!” Her sparkling, always optimistic personality was one of the reasons he’d hired Maria Garcia. She was a vibrant woman, still beautiful after twenty years of marriage and five children. Her long, thick black hair was streaked with the smallest hints of gray, and her large brown eyes peeked out from under long, curly eyelashes. Her buxom frame exuded the warmth he knew could make any child feel better. Cy wished he could be that child as he smiled back at her warmly and said, “Good morning, Maria,” before walking through the door and closing it behind him.

Cy sat back and sipped his coffee, looking around his environment, looking for
her
. His physical body felt better, having been fed a king’s breakfast of eggs, ham, pancakes, hash browns and as if to show that he wasn’t totally ignorant
of the value of health and nutrition, a bowl of fruit. His emotional well-being was another story. His reading of the morning paper was constantly interrupted with thoughts of the no-named woman in his dream. And for the first time since deciding to become celibate, he was close to losing control, as horny as a prepubescent teenager with a
Playboy
magazine. He had to get a hold of himself.

He thought about Millicent. Now, where did that thought come from? Yet, there it was, and he pondered it as he finished his coffee and sat back to let his food settle a bit. No, she was definitely not the one. He had always thought her attractive, at least before the dream last night. Now he thought she was too tall and too thin with not enough coffee in her cream. He thought about Pamela with her corporate concentration and endless ambition. For some reason he couldn’t see her rolling in the sand on a moonlit night, glistening from the sweat of their lovemaking. He thought of countless others who’d approached him in the last year, scores from the church alone, and all the letters with pictures enclosed and questions asked and promises made. And, suddenly, none seemed to satisfy him. His cell phone rang and startled him out of his reverie. It was Derrick.

“Minister Montgomery,” he began formally.

“Cy, my man! Mr. Big.”

Right now Cy didn’t feel all that big. He signaled the waitress as he continued to listen to Derrick on the line.

“So listen, I just got a call from King, about his conference next month.”

Cy nodded, as if that could translate through the digital system.

“Cy, you there?”

“I’m listening.”

“Well, anyway, one of the speakers, Dr. Hayden, a financial expert, has had a tragedy strike his family. His mother-in-law passed away.”

“Oh, no.”

“Yes, and understandably his wife is taking it hard. I guess on top of the loss itself is a lot of family infighting—it seems there are some people who are contesting the will. It’s taking a toll on their whole family, and the doc has cancelled all speaking engagements for the next two months so that he can give this situation his undivided attention.”

“Well, I can understand that.” Cy signed the bill the waitress brought over and headed to his car. He slid behind the wheel, set his phone on the hands-free module, started the engine and eased into traffic, heading for his business appointment and then to Kingdom Citizens’.

“So, anyway, that’s why I’m calling,” Derrick continued. “They are looking for someone to handle that part of the conference, and I thought about you.”

“Me? You know public speaking isn’t really my thing. I’m much better in a one-on-one, consultation-type setting.”

“I know that, but you’re the money man, and I know, can’t nobody handle money like you can. If you don’t have the answer, you know where to find it, and I have the bank account to prove it! I think King’s members would benefit from somebody like you. Not a preacher preaching to them about prosperity and God’s promises and naming and claiming and believing and receiving and all of that, even though all of that has its place, but a businessman teaching them simply and specifically how to turn their finances around and in doing so turn their lives around. I can’t think of anyone who could do that better than you.”

“Hum. When is the conference again?”

“Next month, fourth weekend in July. I can give you the details when we meet, but I wanted to put it on your mind right away. I know how you have to digest everything.”

“And I’ll do that. I have an appointment here in the marina that should be fairly quick and then I’m there.”

“See you then.”

Cy punched the speaker button disconnecting the phone and sat back. He didn’t relish speaking in front of a crowd, even though he’d grown comfortable teaching the Kingdom family. He’d always been a better behind-the-scenes type of guy. But this might not be so bad. He thought about a business partner in Chicago and decided he could pay him a visit while he was in the Midwest. Come to think of it, it probably was time for him to get away. He’d been putting in so many hours at the church, and in managing his various business interests, that he’d hardly had time to relax.

Yes, that’s it,
he thought as he tuned in to a jazz channel on his car’s satellite radio system. Maybe he’d talk to his travel agent once he returned from Kansas, have her look up some island destinations. Maybe that was what the dream meant. That it was time for him to get a little fun in the sun. Whatever it meant, he knew it was time for him to get a little something.

Marriage. The idea was becoming more and more palatable to him, more and more appealing. Some sweet little thing to cook his meals and wash his clothes and warm his bed and have his children. He smiled at what would certainly be considered a chauvinistic attitude in today’s society. But he thought back to his mother and how happy she’d been doing precisely that for his father. He recalled vividly how her eyes would light up whenever his dad entered the room. He remembered the warmth and affection with which his dad treated his mother, making her feel like a queen. He remembered when his mother wanted to start her own business making “hospitality baskets” that were filled with homey goodies like fresh jam and baked bread, quilted blankets and handmade shawls, booties, hats and mittens. He remembered how his father supported her decision and turned half of the garage into her working domain, complete with shelves for the baskets and drawers for the items she created. They were quite a team, those two. You could feel the passion in their
marriage, the love. Cy wanted his marriage to feel just like that.

These were his thoughts as he stepped into the tropically decorated office building lobby for his business appointment. And these thoughts continued as he stepped into the elevator and pushed the button to the tenth floor. Thoughts of marriage and teamwork, passion and love. And just as the bell sounded and the doors opened, thoughts of an ebony goddess with shimmering skin whose eyes sparked fire in the moonlight.

A couple hours later, Cy arrived at Kingdom Citizens’ for the meeting with Derrick. They discussed the building expansion at KCCC and the upcoming conference at Mount Zion Progressive. But Derrick could see that Cy’s mind was elsewhere.

“I’d say a penny for your thoughts, but I think they’re worth a whole lot more.” Derrick sat back on the leather sofa in the pastor’s office and eyed his friend speculatively. “Was your prior appointment that intense?”

“I’m cool, Dee. Just a bit distracted, I guess. I didn’t get much sleep last night.”

Derrick just raised his eyebrows.

“Please, it’s not even like that, although, truthfully, I wish it were.” Then Cy changed the subject. “How do you like married life, Derrick?”

Derrick’s curiosity registered all over his face. “Hum, interesting question. What brought that on?”

“Just curious, I guess. You know, I’m not getting any younger, and this celibate thing, well, it’s not for me. I’m starting to climb the walls, and I don’t like climbing, if you know what I mean.”

“I hear you, brother, I don’t envy you single men at all. God must know me very well because he sent Vivian along before I really even got started in the ministry. Guess he knew I’d have to be, uh, satisfied in order to do what it is He’s called me to do.”

Cy smiled at his pastor’s explanation. “Well, Vivian is a blessing, everybody knows that.”

Now it was Derrick’s turn to smile. “Not like I do, brother, not like I do.” He decided to pass the ball back to Cy’s court. “So what’s her name?”

“Who?”

“You’re thinking about marriage; you must have someone in mind.”

“No, not really.”

“You know Millicent worships the ground you walk on. I know y’all had something going a while back. She seems like a good woman.”

“Yes, she’s a good woman, and no, there’s nothing still going on with her. She’s just my sister in the Lord, Dee, a friend.”

“The look I see in her eyes when she’s looking at you goes a little farther than friendship, my man.” Derrick cocked his head to view his friend more intently. “So are you telling me that out of all the fine women in Kingdom Citizens’,
nobody
is in the running, standing out from the crowd? ’Cause you can’t tell me there isn’t a crowd.”

They both laughed at that. Cy gave his friend an abbreviated rundown of some of the women he’d pondered over breakfast a few hours earlier. Pamela still came out as the strongest possibility, but there was something missing. Yes, he had deep feelings for her, and yes, she was fine. He didn’t doubt she’d satisfy him in the bedroom, and he knew she had an intelligent head on her shoulders. Still, he didn’t know if she was someone he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. Because that was the other thing—he didn’t care about the statistics. He wanted to do this marriage thing only one time. He told Derrick all that, too. But he didn’t tell him about the dream.

“So how did you know Vivian was the one?” he asked instead.

Derrick thought a while before speaking. “From the moment I saw her, I think. We were back in the Midwest at a convention, and I caught a glimpse of her as I was walking up to the pulpit. She had this energy that was palpable and a body that wouldn’t quit. I couldn’t take my eyes off her.”