A Sinful Calling (2 page)

The entire congregation applauded and most stood up. Many shouted their words out loud, all while in tears.

Dillon smiled and was glad to know his testimony still worked. It made people take notice and feel sorry for him. He watched the reaction of his parishioners and daydreamed about the ten-thousand-member congregation he wanted. His goal and dream was to have the largest church in Mitchell, Illinois. More than anything, he wanted to have a church larger than his dad's, and he wanted this sooner rather than later. His dad's existing sanctuary seated two thousand people, so to accommodate five thousand members—four thousand of whom attended regularly—he had to hold two services. Every week, Deliverance Outreach operated at 100 percent capacity, and for this reason, Curtis was finally building a five-thousand-seat building adjacent to the current one. That way, all his members could worship together at one service, and there would also be room for new parishioners. New Faith could hold two thousand people as well, but since Dillon only had one thousand members, the church never filled more than half its space. This wasn't good enough for Dillon, and his plan was to have twenty-five hundred members by the end of this year, a total of five thousand twelve months from now, and another five thousand within two years.

He wasn't sure what he'd have to do to make this happen, but he'd decided a while ago that he was willing to do whatever it took. Nothing was off-limits…not even sleeping with the woman he now glanced at in the audience. Her name was Porsha Harrington. He'd tried his best to ignore her, and until three months ago, he'd been successful. But now he couldn't get her out of his mind or his system, and he saw her as much as possible…regardless of how much he loved his wife. He didn't fully understand why his genuine love for Raven wasn't enough or why he had this burning desire to sleep with someone else, but he couldn't help it. For now, though, he had to refocus on the matter at hand. He had his congregation right where he wanted them, and as soon as everyone settled down and took their seats, he smiled and said, “I know you've already given your tithes and offering this morning, but when God speaks to me I've learned not to disobey him. So let us turn our Bibles to Second Corinthians nine, verses six through seven.”

Dillon waited for everyone to open their printed editions or pull up their electronic versions.

“Are we all there?”

“Yes,” everyone replied.

“And it says, ‘The point is this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.'”

Dillon gazed at his members and never said another word. He didn't have to. Not when they were already pulling out additional cash and writing new checks.

He'd heard lots of stories from Alicia about how when she was a small girl, their dad had been loved by all. She'd told him that members of his church seemed to have no problem doing anything he asked, including giving whatever amount of money he requested. She'd insisted that it was simply a gift that their father had been blessed with. He was handsome, charismatic, and very smart, and people gravitated to him. Dillon hadn't been sure he'd believed her, but when many of his congregants had begun saying how much he looked and sounded like his dad, he'd known he could use his father's good genes to his advantage.

He'd decided that not only could he be his dad, he could be better. When it was all said and done, the good Reverend Curtis Black would be history and Pastor Dillon Whitfield Black would be all the city of Mitchell cared about.

A
licia sat at the elegant twelve-seat mahogany dining room table, something that was much too large for four people, wishing time would pass by quickly. Dillon and Raven had invited Alicia and Levi over for dinner after church, but Alicia didn't want to be there. Not because she didn't want to spend time with her brother, but because she didn't care to exchange small talk with his uppity wife. As a matter of fact, Alicia was getting to the point where she could hardly stand the sight of Raven, and secretly, she wished her brother would divorce her. In a perfect world, he would fall out of love with her for good, and that would be the end of it. Alicia knew it wasn't right to want someone's marriage to break up, but she couldn't help the way she felt about Raven. Of course, Dillon had made it very clear how much he loved his wife, but this woman was proving to be a real piece of work. Actually, as far as Alicia was concerned, she'd always been that way, and Alicia just couldn't see why her brother was so taken with her. It was true that Raven was a gorgeous woman who was very smart, but she also couldn't be trusted; not when she'd stolen a hundred thousand dollars from the church where Alicia's dad was pastor. The woman had stolen from God's house, of all places, and she'd done it as though it were nothing.

Raven did claim to be a different person, but Alicia didn't believe her, partly because Raven spent a lot of time focusing on status and material possessions and partly because she seemed more concerned about gaining total control in the church than she was about building it as a whole. Actually, it was her history of stealing money and her deceitful character that had caused both Alicia and Levi to speak against her becoming New Faith's CFO. Raven had insisted she was the best person for the job, but when neither Alicia nor Levi would agree to it—which had made all the difference, since Levi was steadily covering all the church's operational expenses—she'd finally backed down. Raven hadn't been happy about it, but Dillon had seemed relieved. He'd never gone as far as saying it out loud, but Alicia could tell that, to some degree, Dillon was glad she and Levi had spoken up, because he didn't fully trust his dear wife to handle all the church's finances, either.

As far as Dillon and Raven's personal relationship, however, Raven did seem to support Dillon on every level, and she also seemed to genuinely love him. But Alicia still didn't like her. To be fair, Raven didn't care much for Alicia, either, even though she pretended to because she knew how much Dillon loved Alicia. Alicia faked with her, too, for a similar reason: She didn't want her brother to have to choose sides.

Dillon and Raven's sixtysomething weekend cook, Martha, set the final dish of food on the table and smiled. “Can I get you all anything else?” she asked.

Dillon glanced at everyone. “No, I think we're good, and thank you for everything, Miss Martha.”

“You're quite welcome, Pastor. I'm glad to do it.”

“Yes, thank you,” Raven said in a demeaning tone while straightening the pearl necklace that lay against her St. John suit. “And I hope the rolls are warm this time. Remember, last Sunday you forgot to warm them up.”

“I'm really sorry about that,” Martha said. “And yes, I warmed them up today for sure.”

Raven picked up the metal tongs and lifted one of the rolls from the bowl. She purposely checked to see if Martha was lying, and Alicia wanted to shake her head. So pathetic.

“Yes, you definitely remembered today, and I appreciate that. Especially since we have guests. Wouldn't want to be embarrassed when there's no reason to be.”

“Yes, Lady Black, I understand.”

Dillon seemed uncomfortable with the way Raven spoke to Martha and finally said, “Why don't you call it a day and head on home. Enjoy the rest of your Sunday, and we'll put the dishes in the dishwasher.”

“Excuse me?” Raven said.

Dillon looked at Raven and then at Martha. “Like I said, Miss Martha, we can handle the dishes.”

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely.”

“Okay, if you really don't mind.”

“Not at all. We'll see you next weekend.”

Alicia watched Raven's every move, but Raven didn't say anything else. She always acted as though certain people were beneath her, specifically the “help,” so to speak, and Alicia didn't like it.

When Martha left, Alicia scanned the dishes of turkey and cornbread dressing, macaroni and cheese, fried chicken, and turnip greens, and Dillon reached for his wife's hand. Levi grabbed Alicia's. Normally, when Dillon and Raven had more guests, Dillon sat at the head of the table and Raven sat at the other end, facing him. But with there only being four of them, it didn't make much sense, and Alicia wondered why they couldn't just eat in the kitchen at their smaller table. Of course, Raven would never allow that, not with her always feeling the need to do everything in a big, formal way.

Dillon bowed his head, and so did everyone else. “Dear Heavenly Father, we come now thanking You for the food we are about to receive. Thank You, Lord, for giving us this great day of rest and for allowing us to honor and praise You during service this morning. Thank You for my dear wife, sister, and brother-in-law and for bringing us together for this wonderful fellowship. Also, dear Lord, thank You for Martha as well as for the food she has prepared for us. Let it serve as nourishment for our bodies in Jesus's name. Amen.”

“Amen,” the others said.

“Down-home cooking just the way I like it,” Dillon affirmed. “Miss Martha is the only person I know who can cook as well as my aunt, Susan, used to. I just love her.”

Raven didn't seem too impressed. “Yeah, I'll give her that. She can definitely cook, but I'm glad she doesn't cook like this all the time. If she did, we'd be as big as elephants. And eating this kind of food is way too unhealthy.”

“Whatever, woman,” Dillon said, laughing and lifting a large spoonful of dressing onto his plate and doing the same for Raven. “But on a different note,” he continued, “I really think it's time we figure out a way to roll out our next marketing campaign. We need to bring in a lot more visitors than we have been. The kind who won't just visit but will ultimately become members.”

“I agree,” Raven added. “We need to market Dillon and the church like never before, and  if we put the right kind of dollars behind it, we can do that.”

Levi scooped some greens from the large bowl. “I think it's time we do a lot more marketing and advertising as well, and I also think we need to bring in a new marketing firm. We have a couple of good ones we've worked with in the past, but I think we need the best of the best this time around.”

“Exactly,” Raven said. “Bringing in the best is the only way to get things done in a top-notch manner.”

“I'm going to put together a few more ideas so we can begin discussing them on Tuesday at our elder board meeting,” Dillon said. “Especially since all the ministries will need to be included in the ads.”

Alicia pulled her thick, shoulder-length hair behind her ear and ate a forkful of macaroni and cheese. She was COO, but she didn't say anything.

Until Dillon looked at her. “So, what do you think, Sis?”

“I think doing a new campaign will be great, and I look forward to hearing some of your ideas.”

“I look forward to hearing them as well,” Raven said, sounding as though she was worried that Dillon might share his ideas with Alicia first. This was the reason Alicia hadn't commented initially.

“Baby, of course. Since when do I work on anything relating to the church without asking your opinion?”

Raven playfully bumped her arm against his, and Alicia wanted to roll her eyes. She could barely stomach Raven, and her feelings toward her were getting worse as time went on. It also didn't help that while Dillon, Raven, and Levi had been talking, Alicia had glanced over at one of the curio cabinets and spied new vases that looked antique and pricey. It was true that Dillon earned a six-figure salary from the church and Raven was on payroll as well—since she was the head of the women's ministry—but they didn't bring home the kind of money where she could keep spending hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars on things they didn't need. Not to mention, they had to be paying a pretty hefty mortgage for this richly constructed five-bedroom home that had six bathrooms. It wasn't Alicia's business, of course, and yes, her and Levi's house wasn't shabby, either, but she didn't see how things would end well if Raven kept buying everything in sight. Alicia also wondered why Dillon wasn't paying attention to the amount of money his wife spent, but it was likely because he was so taken with her. He was blinded by his feelings for her, but Alicia knew all too well what could happen when a person became obsessed with clothing, jewelry, and household goods—what it was like when someone spent beyond their means. She'd done the same thing in the past, and sadly, Raven's shopping addiction was much worse.

But to be honest, Raven and her excessive spending habits should have been the last thing on Alicia's mind, because Alicia had her own problems and worries to contend with. She loved, loved, loved her husband, Levi, mind, body and soul, but for the life of her, she still couldn't shake the guilt she'd been struggling with since Phillip's death. She'd had an affair, Phillip had snapped because of how hurt and betrayed he'd felt, and the gun the two of them had tussled over had accidentally gone off and killed him. Two years had passed, yet she still blamed herself. This had also been the reason it had taken her a full year to actually marry Levi. And while she'd accepted the fact that her parents and stepparents blamed her as well, knowing she was no longer close to them still hurt her to the core. From the time she'd been born, she'd been a daddy's girl, but even he didn't talk to her as much as he once had. He didn't treat her badly and had stated more than once that it wasn't his job to judge her regarding the affair she'd had with Levi, but he was still gravely disappointed in her.

Just thinking about it now and replaying every ounce of what had happened that night made her want to scream. The whole idea of it caused her to lose sleep, and her feelings of regret and deep remorse were affecting her marriage. She couldn't remember when she'd slept more than three hours a night, and sometimes all she did was lie in bed with her eyes closed. There were many evenings when she didn't sleep a wink, which was the reason she always drank loads of coffee at work, trying to stay alert. The entire scenario unnerved her, and she constantly hoped and prayed to move on from her past. All she wanted was to be happy with the man she loved—the tall, muscular, handsome man—who, after all this time, still loved her unconditionally and with everything he had in him. If only she could forgive herself and live a normal life, things could be good for her and Levi. They could enjoy the wonderful marriage they'd both dreamed about. They could settle into being the soul mates they'd known they were from the moment they'd first laid eyes on each other.

Levi rested his hand on top of hers. “Baby, are you okay?”

“I'm fine,” she said, lying. “I'm good.”

Levi gazed at her a few seconds longer, and while she knew he had a pretty good idea of why she was so preoccupied, he didn't let on.

Raven patted her lips with the linen napkin. “Well, now that we all agree that we need to create a whole new marketing plan, I have something I want to share as well. I've already shared this with my better half here, but Alicia, since you're the church's COO, and Levi, since all the elders report to you, I'm really hoping to get both of your blessings, too.”

Alicia raised her eyebrows, wondering what this was all about. She looked at Dillon, trying to read his thoughts, but she couldn't.

“So what's up?” Levi finally said.

“Well, not only have I given this a lot of thought, but I've also been in deep prayer about it. I prayed because I wanted to make sure I was hearing God correctly.”

Alicia stared at Raven. “And?”

“He's called me into the ministry. He wants me to serve as co-pastor alongside my husband.”

Alicia slightly laughed.

Raven frowned. “Oh, so you think my calling is funny? That it's some kind of joke?”

“No,” Alicia said. “I'm just a little shocked is all.”

“Well, it's true, and I'm not going to go against what God wants me to do. I'm going to be obedient.”

“Wow, well, congratulations,” Levi said.

Alicia turned and looked at Levi, who purposely stared at his plate of food, so then she searched her brother's reaction. Dillon sat speechless, but Alicia could tell he had concerns. She had worries, too, because while New Faith was a non-denominational church, Alicia wasn't sure the majority of the congregation would accept a wife being co-pastor. Not every church group was okay with having a woman as senior pastor. But more than anything, Alicia didn't like it because she knew Raven wasn't doing it because God had called her. She was doing it because she knew that being co-pastor would give her the kind of power, prestige, control, and say-so she'd been wanting since the beginning. Raven would even believe she could tell Alicia what and what not to do, even though Alicia was not only COO of New Faith Christian Center, she was COO of New Faith Ministries, Inc., too.

Alicia wasn't sure what it was she'd have to do to stop this crazy idea, but she was going to make sure Raven never became co-pastor or ended up holding any top leadership position in the church. She didn't care what Dillon or anyone else had to say about it. Period.