Love Like Hallelujah (13 page)

“I guess you could say she was my assistant, unofficially, when I first started in the ministry, back in Georgia. Helped me a lot before Vivian quit working to join me full-time.”

King remembered all the different ways Tootie had helped him, ministry aside. “What kind of help?”

“Not the kind you’re thinking, brother,” Derrick said. “She must be here on vacation, decided to look me up. That’s only natural. I must admit, I’m curious to talk to her as well, find out what she and other members she may still be in contact with have been up to.”

It sounded innocent enough. But with women, one never could tell. “Is Vivian going to be there? I mean, you never know what could be on this woman’s mind, calling you out of the blue.”

Derrick hadn’t thought about that, but it wasn’t a bad idea. “I’ll make sure and invite her.” His cell phone rang. “Speaking of, she’s calling me now. Take care, man.”

Derrick flipped open his phone. “Yeah, baby, the meeting’s over. I just got held up with a phone call, that’s all. I’m on my way.”

“Well, I hope you bring an appetite. Mother Moseley and these sistahs cooked up enough to feed an army. And they’re all your favorites.”

“No, you’re my favorite,” Derrick answered, grabbing his keys and walking out into the warm, summer sunshine.

“Well, all the dishes besides me,” Vivian cooed. “I’ll see you shortly?”

“I’m already there.” Derrick unlocked the door and started his Jag. It purred its greeting. As he left the church parking lot, drove down the crowded boulevard, and turned onto the highway, he thought of Robin. Mother Moseley had told him years ago that Robin had a huge crush on him. At the time, he’d laughed it off. But now, he wondered. What had brought Robin to Los Angeles, and more importantly, after all these years, to Kingdom Citizens’ Christian Center?

“Why are you telling me this, Mama?” King paced his mother’s living room floor, peered at the ceiling, paced again.

“Because keeping these suspicions to myself ain’t setting well with me. I’ve been feeling funny ever since that girl wouldn’t show me a picture.”

“But you know how loose Tootie was. Maybe she just doesn’t want anyone here to know who the daddy is.”

Mama Max stared silently, her lips pursed.
Nucka, please
, is the phrase her countenance expressed.

“Why do you think he’s
my
son?”

Mama Max went over to King and spoke calmly. She knew he had every right to be upset. “Believe me, son, I’m hoping, praying, it ain’t yours. But you know your mama can sense thangs, and something ain’t adding up when it comes to Tootie’s tight mouth and that near-grown son.”

King sat down heavily. Just when he’d decided to distance himself from seeing the woman, this news comes. As nerve-racking as it was, however, and with its potential implications, he was glad his mother had shared her concerns. Because if there was any chance he had another child, that Tootie’s oldest boy was his…

What did he mean, if there was a chance? There was more than a chance. If Mama was right, Tootie was pregnant when she left Kansas, only a few weeks after he ended the affair. He’d never questioned why she left so quickly, had assumed she needed her space, a chance to start over. He’d never given the illusion that he’d leave Tai, had always told Tootie that while hers was a special place in his heart, she could never replace his wife. He and Tootie had messed around for years, off and on since they were teenagers in high school. To this day, he’d never had better sex. That’s basically what the relationship had been about, s-e-x.

He tried to retrieve the past in his mind, tried to recreate those years around Tootie’s leaving. “Remember when she came back, what, fifteen years or so ago? That last time? Do you remember her looking different? Like she’d had a baby?”

Mama Max clearly remembered when Tootie had come back, had spent time with her through the relationship with her mother, Miss Smith. “I absolutely remember it, and that girl was as skinny as she always was. I remember commenting on it, teasing her about what kind of food they ate in Germany.”

“Right, and she’d already had the baby then.”

“That’s right. And Miss Smith never said a word. I’ve known that woman for going on forty years, and she never said a word about that child.” Mama Max started thinking back…visits to the Smith home, dinners, shopping sprees. “Come to think of it, there’s not a picture of that boy in the house, not that I’ve seen anyway. Then again, I could have been looking at that child for years and not known.”

Both she and King thought the same thing, at the same time. That it was time for Mama Max to visit Miss Smith.

“Yes, I need to check on her.” Mama Max smiled. “She’s up and walking around real good now, might want some help around the house, somebody to dust around pictures and whatnot….”

King laughed, thankful his mother could find humor almost anywhere. “Thanks, Mama.”

“So not to talk nothing up but, what in the world are you going to tell Tai?”

“Nothing! Please, Mama, say you haven’t men—”

“Well, give me some credit. If I ain’t got nothing else, I’ve got common sense. Of course I haven’t said anything, wanted to talk with you first. I tell you what, though, the next time I see Nancy, I’m gonna ask a thang or two about Tootie’s boy. I need answers. I’ll start with Nancy, and if she won’t talk about it…”

“Mama, no.”

“Look, if I have a grandchild out there somewhere, it is my right to know about it. I will ask Tootie to look me in the eye and say that ain’t my grandbaby.”

“Can you believe it? She’s been here all this time and I just ran into them? The whole family, in the mall, husband, kids, everybody.” Tai checked her feelings as she said this; she still felt fine.

“You know life, it had to happen. So, was it as bad, or awkward, as you thought it would be?” Vivian knew with God anything was possible, but she was talking to Tai about Tootie, after all.

“You know what? God can really do a work in people. Because believe it or not, it was almost cordial. She noticed me first. I was walking with the twins, and felt these eyes on me. I looked over just as we passed the food court, and Janeé, her husband, Hans, and their two children were sitting at a table. It was as if God planned it to happen just that way, so I’d have to stop. There was no way I could have acted like I didn’t see them, and I didn’t see them until I was right by the table!

“Looking back, it was almost surreal, as if I watched myself interact with her. She said hello; I stopped and answered. Now, it wasn’t hugs and kisses, but I didn’t pimp-slap her either.

“Then she introduced me to her family. They’ve got two girls, cute as can be. Her husband is very distinguished-looking as well. I introduced her to the twins, asked about her mom; it was a very sensible, almost amiable conversation.”

Both women reflected on the power of God’s grace. Then Vivian remembered a conversation she’d had with Derrick, right after Hope’s wedding. He’d shared some of the conversation King and he had on the golf course. She’d forgotten all about it until now.

“Wait, you said two girls. Doesn’t she have three children?”

“I don’t know; I only saw two. How would you know anyway?”

“I don’t, just remembered Derrick mentioning that she had kids. He’d brought it up because of how unlikely it was, considering the woman he used to know.”

“Two, three, it don’t matter. I’m just glad I had a chance to talk with her,” Tai said, “to see her with her family, and her
own
husband. Now I can honestly say I wish her well.”

Vivian smiled as she listened to Tai comfortably discuss her former nemesis, the woman who at one time had been such a source of pain. She was reminded of a scripture that read: “He that began a good work…would finish it, complete it, perform it.” As these friends laughingly went from talk of Tootie to church and other things, Vivian thanked God for His work.

“Mama Max thinks he’s your son?”

King sat in his church office, where he’d gone after the conversation with his mother. “She doesn’t want to think so,” he said to Derrick, the first person he thought to call after hearing the news about Tootie’s son. “But she says Tootie acts funny whenever she asks about her oldest child. Says she finally showed her an old picture where you could barely see the boy, and that Miss Smith is being tight-lipped, which is not like her at all, the way that woman gossips.”

“Have you talked to Tootie?” As hard as they’d tried, no one had been able to stick with
Janeé
for long.

“No. I need to though, and quick. Looks like Miss Smith’s health has finally stabilized. Mama said they’re going back to Germany at the end of the month.”

“Well, maybe that will be the end of it. Mama Max’s imagination may be working overtime. I think that with the history between you two, Tootie would have said something.”

That sounded rational. Why hadn’t he thought of that? Of course Tootie would have told him. Mama Max had him trippin’. “You know what? You’re right about that. I’m going to tell Mama to squash this nonsense the next time I see her. Why am I worrying about what probably exists only in Maxine Brook’s imagination?”

“There you go, dog, keep your focus. We’ll probably be laughing about this in a few days.”

They said their good-byes, but as King hung up he couldn’t find a damn thing funny.

“What’s up with your brother, Tanya?” Stacy asked.

“What do you mean, what’s up?” Tanya considered Stacy one of her best friends, but this obsession with Darius was getting on her nerves. Stacy had called almost every day this week.

“I mean, where’s he at?” Stacy was leaving choir rehearsal, disappointed again. For the second straight week, the assistant director had been there instead of Darius. “We were supposed to hook up, and he keeps cancelling.”

“They’re probably still out of town. Did you call his cell?”

“All I get is voice mail. And who’s ‘they’?”

“Him and Bo. I think they went to New York for some kind of publicity or something, and probably stayed over for the Fourth of July holiday. You know Darius has friends all over the country.” Too late, Tanya realized she probably shouldn’t have added the last sentence.

Stacy immediately copped an attitude. Well aware of Darius’s sex appeal and popularity with the females, she was ready to go toe to toe with any bee-atch who tried to come between her and her heaven. It had taken her two years just to get a date. Whoever this sistah was had met her even change.

“Hold up, wait a minute.” Stacy threw her bag in the backseat of the car, started the engine, attached her Bluetooth headset, and headed out of the Kingdom Citizens parking lot. “Now, who’s he with?”

“Calm down, Rock-aletta Balboa,” Tanya said, laughing. “Bo is a friend of his, a
male
friend. He helps Darius out with marketing, PR, and stuff.”

“Oh, okay.” Stacy calmed down a little, but immediately wondered how quick she could get her marketing and PR skills up to speed. She wanted to be the one jetting around with Darius. “I don’t think I’ve heard that name. Does he go to our church?”

“Uh-uh. But look, chickie, don’t be trying to use me as your encyclopedia for all things Darius. I’m not about to get in the middle of y’all’s budding romance. I am not my brother’s keeper; if you have questions, ask him.”

“I would if he would answer his phone.”

Tanya rolled her eyes. She’d never told Stacy how many women questioned her about her brother, how many tried to befriend her in order to get a hookup. Besides being her friend, Stacy had been one of the saner ones, showing a casual interest in Darius without being overbearing. Until now. Since Darius had agreed to go out with her, he was all Stacy could talk about. It was getting old, and if their friendship was going to survive the courtship, she needed to speak her mind.

“Look, Stacy,” Tanya said, her voice agitated, “you’re my friend. So I’m going to give you some advice you didn’t ask for. Chill the bump out. I know you like Darius and he knows you like him. But running after him and calling him over and over is just going to make you look like all the other girls trying to get in where they fit in. Obviously he’s interested in you, or he wouldn’t have agreed to go out. So stop acting all desperate, like he’s your air for breathing.

“He’s got an album to get done. He’s dealing with the record company, his band, their upcoming tour, and handling the music at Kingdom Citizens. The last thing he needs is another person bugging him.”

Stacy remained silent. Tanya softened a bit.

“Play your cards right, is all I’m sayin’. You know you’re my girl. I’d love to have you as family. But if you’re acting like this now, and y’all haven’t even gone out yet, how are you going to act when his record blows up and he’s gone on tour?”

Stacy didn’t know how she’d act. But Tanya was right. She needed to chill out. She’d waited this long to be with Darius and now she was getting ready to blow everything by being insecure.

“You know what, you’re right,” Stacy said, as she pulled into her driveway. “I do need to chill out. What God has for me, is for me. I need to trust that.”

“Now you’re talking like a friend with some sense.”

They laughed. Stacy hung up the phone feeling better, with even more resolve. She and Darius were made for each other. There was no mountain high enough, no valley low enough. Nobody would come between her and Darius—nobody.

She’d only had a few days to plan things out, but Robin was ready. She’d done what she could. It would be tricky, but if everything worked out, she might once again get a chance with Mr. Derrick Montgomery. Maybe her last one. Because if things didn’t work out…She didn’t even want to think about it. Instead, she started thinking of what it would be like to talk to Derrick.

Derrick had wanted to meet Robin soon after she’d given him the note, believing what she’d said about only being there a few days. She’d just said that to speed things up, and was glad she’d been able to push back their lunch date. At any rate, she wasn’t in a hurry to rush back to Florida. She wondered if she could live in LA, whether she should move there. No matter where she ended up, she knew she needed a job. The severance pay she’d gotten was almost gone and she’d taken her last pill days ago.

No time to think about that now, though. Robin needed to make the most of the time at hand. God knew she was ready for the lunch Derrick had arranged. She was starving, had barely eaten since she’d received Angela’s phone call. Hoping to drop a pound or two, she’d gone to the store, bought a case of Slim-Fast, and had forced herself to stick to their ridiculous plan of two drinks and a meal to drop pounds quickly. As she slipped on her pants, however, she was pleased to see less rear end in the mirror when she turned around.

The shopping trip had been an experience in itself. Robin went back and forth on what to wear. Should she continue the conservative facade? Try for something flashier? Go ho? In the end she’d purchased what she hoped achieved a little of each idea: a black summer pantsuit with long jacket and a low-cut, floral shell. And her best find? Vida, the sister who’d hooked her hair up in the mall salon the day before. After telling a sob story about having to survive in a two-bedroom with three kids, Vida had cut her price in half. Robin had been professionally fried, dyed, and satisfied with a style she thought really complemented her face. Vida had added shoulder-length loosely curled extensions. It was not a style she or her hairdresser in Florida would have thought of. She was glad she’d followed her first instinct and gone inside Lady Locks.

Robin appraised herself in the mirror. She cocked her head this way and that.
You can do this, Robin
. She felt tense, needed to loosen up. She looked in the mirror again and gave herself a big smile.
You go, girl!
She reached into her suitcase, pulled out Flori Robert’s Ashanti, her aromatic weapon, and after a liberal spray placed the bottle in her purse. There was only one thing left to do—make the phone calls. Her appointment was made easily. Now she could only hope everything would fall in her favor. With one last look in the mirror, she walked out the door.

“How’s your day looking, baby?” It had been a crazy week. Vivian and Derrick passed like ships in the night, or day anyway. The nights had found them together, both too exhausted to do anything but sleep.

“I have a lunch today at one o’clock, an old friend from believe it or not, Pilgrims’ Rest.”

“Oh, that should be fun. Who is it?”

“Robin. Remember the assistant who used to work with me, left shortly after you started working with me full-time?”

Vivian did remember, all too well. “Oh, yes, I remember Robin.” Before she could go there, Vivian pulled back. It had been years. She was now secure. “Well, baby, I hope you guys have a nice catch up. Speaking of, I have a one-thirty myself, that Mrs. Reynolds you told me about some time ago.”

“What? She actually called you? Well, I can’t wait to find out just what the personal business is she needed to discuss so desperately. That woman bugged Angela for a solid week or more.”

“Looks like we’re getting ready to find out. And it sounds serious. Tamika said the woman was almost hysterical when she thought I wouldn’t be able to meet with her today.”

“She’ll be better after talking to you.” Derrick’s intercom blinked. “Okay, baby, gotta run. And remember I have the dinner meeting tonight about the business center. Don’t wait up.”

“Okay. Love you, baby.” Vivian looked at her watch. She had some time before her appointment and decided to get a manicure before heading to the church.

Robin pulled up to the large, intimidating structure that was KCCC. She’d taken her friend to work that day and had the use of her filthy, beat-up Toyota. But she couldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth. It didn’t have air-conditioning, but it had gotten her there. Following Angela’s instructions, she drove around from the main sanctuary to a parking lot in front of what looked like several small office buildings. She went through the door Angela had described, then through a foyer where, thankfully, she saw a human being.

“Hello, Kingdom Citizen,” the receptionist greeted Robin cheerfully.

“Hello, uh, could you tell Angela that, um, Robin is here?” Robin had handled a variety of tough encounters in her lifetime. It took a lot to make her nervous, but here she was, stuttering like a teenager.

“Sure, one moment please.” The receptionist pushed a button, spoke to Angela, and in what seemed less than a minute, Angela was coming through a side door.

“You must be Robin,” she said cordially, extending her hand. “I’m Angela. Everything is set in our dining room. Just come with me.”

Angela’s down-home nature brought Robin the calm that had evaded her during the hour-long drive to the church.
No wonder road-rage is common on these highways
, she thought. Not only were there a zillion people traveling, but they all acted like they were the only ones on the road. It was during the drive that she’d made her decision. An affair with Derrick is all she could hope for, because she could never live with the crazy drivers in Los Angeles.

“Pastor says you’re a former church member, from Georgia, right?” Angela waved to various workers as they crossed the parking lot and entered another building.

Trying to digest being described as a former church member, Robin didn’t answer Angela immediately.
That’s all? A former church member?
Pilgrims’ Rest would not have moved forward had it not been for her administrative and organizational skills.

“Yes,” she said, after a pause that elicited a curious look from Angela. “I was there when, uh, Pastor Montgomery’s ministry began.” She hoped she sounded conversational enough; inside she was steaming. “He’s come a long way.”

The building they entered was well appointed: soft, fabric-covered walls coupled with mahogany, deep-piled, light blue carpeting, brass handles. They passed a conference room, a library, a few closed doors, and then went down a short hall that led to a great room filled with chairs, couches, coffee tables, and a plasma-screen television mounted on the wall. Delicious aromas assailed Robin’s nose just before they turned another corner into the dining room.

The room Robin entered matched the taste and elegance of the rest of the building. She wondered if Vivian had worked with decorators and guessed she probably had. Robin had to admit that if the goal was to create an atmosphere of understated, comfortable elegance, they’d more than achieved it. Her surroundings were splendid.

“Oh, forgive me. I wasn’t thinking. Pastor should be here in five or ten minutes, so if you’d like to freshen up, there’s a ladies room just down the hall. Would you like that?”

If for no other reason than to still her nerves, she agreed. “I’d like that very much.”

“Right this way please.” They walked the short distance to the restroom. Again, it was first class, and opened into a powder room. Angela turned to Robin. “Can I get you anything else?”

“You’ve been very kind. Thank you, Angela.”

“One of the staff will be ready to serve you as soon as you’re back in the dining room. You saw it as we passed, right? Just two doors back?”

Robin nodded.

“I’m sure they’ve prepared a sumptuous meal for your luncheon. Enjoy your time at Kingdom Citizens.”

Angela left, leaving Robin alone amid tastefully understated floral wallpaper, the fragrance of fresh flowers, and the beauty of a well-lit vanity accessorized in gold. Robin pulled out her compact and repowdered her sweaty face. She dabbed a touch of gloss over her lipstick, sprayed a touch of Ashanti between her breasts, and popped in a mint. She looked at her watch: 1:05.
This is it
. Grabbing the door handle, she walked out of the ladies room and almost ran over Derrick.

“Whoa, excuse me,” Derrick said, grabbing Robin’s arm.

“Oops, I’m sorry,” Robin said at the same time, almost spitting her mint into Derrick’s mustache.

“Are you okay?” they said in unison.

That broke the ice. Derrick looked at her, stepped back, looked again. “Robin?”

Robin was suddenly shy, but covered it with volume. She hoped she looked okay, hoped the mirror hadn’t lied. “Derrick Montgomery! It’s been a long time!” She grabbed Derrick and hugged him tight.

Derrick hugged her back. “Robin! It’s good to see you.” He began walking toward the dining room. “When I got your note, I couldn’t believe it. I told Vivian I was having lunch with you. She would have joined us, but an emergency appointment came up. She sends her best.”

They reached the dining room. Derrick pulled out Robin’s chair and waited for her to be seated. He walked around to the other side of the table and sat down. Almost immediately, an older lady came out of a side door with a pitcher of lemony ice water.

“Good afternoon, Pastor,” she said, pouring his water. “Good afternoon,” she said to Robin as she filled her glass.

“Good afternoon, thank you,” Robin replied. It was as though Derrick had his own personal maid service. She could get used to this.

Derrick looked at Robin with a big smile. It had been some time since he’d talked with anyone from Pilgrims’ Rest besides Mother Moseley. He’d run into other members from time to time, in his travels, but none lately. Looking at Robin made him realize how good it was to reconnect with people who’d been a part of his life’s journey.

“You look well, Robin,” he said. “What a pleasant surprise to get your note. I didn’t even recognize you that day, all clandestine in that hat and everything.”

Robin took a sip of her water. “I started to say something, but the line was long and I really didn’t want to bother you. That’s why I wrote the note. Thought that if you had time, you’d call, but if you were too busy, or had other reasons…”

“Of course I’d call. It’s been what, ten years or so?” The server came in with a bowl of rolls and two tossed salads. Derrick grabbed a roll immediately. “I see you’ve been at it again, Margaret. You and these homemade rolls are going to send a brother straight to the gym. Robin, this is Margaret. She’s going to be one of our premiere bakers at Kingdom Citizens’ new restaurant, Taste & See. Margaret, this is one of my former members from back in the day, from my very first ministry, Pilgrims’ Rest Baptist Church.” He said the last line with a southern preacher’s flare, and proudly.

“Well, nice to meet you,” Margaret said warmly. “Now, what y’all want to drink?” she asked.

Derrick looked at Robin, nodding at her to go first, and she said, “Oh, a cola is fine for me.”

Margaret turned to Derrick. “I guess you’ll have your usual? And as for those rolls, they aren’t jumping in your mouth by themselves. I don’t see a gun anywhere near your head, neither.” She let the implication of those statements linger behind as she sashayed into the kitchen.

“You’ve got to try these rolls while they’re warm. And here, she makes this honey butter to go on it. C’mon now, dig in!”

Robin’s stomach chose that moment to growl. “Well, I guess I’d better!” she said, reaching for a roll and the butter knife.

“Oh, wait, we have to thank the Father first.” Derrick said a quick prayer, closing with, “Amen!”

“Amen,” Robin echoed mindlessly. She was looking at Derrick and thinking of something she’d like to eat beside Margaret’s bread.

There was a moment of silence as both enjoyed the light and fluffy rolls and salad. Margaret came in with Robin’s cola and Derrick’s raspberry iced tea.

“So, Robin,” Derrick began again, “how is it that you’re in California, looking me up after all these years?”

The story Robin had concocted rolled off her tongue easily. “My job,” she said, swallowing a mouthful of salad. “I’m overseeing a project here.”

“What company do you work for?”

“IAC Products. It’s a manufacturing plant in Tampa. We make the large bolts and other connecting devices that go into everything from bridges to airplanes.” She felt there was enough truth in this to be safe. She’d worked for IAC long enough to talk about the company with a fair amount of intelligence.

“Hmm, that’s an interesting career choice for you. How’d you get into that?”

“By accident. I moved to Tampa, and after a failed relationship, found myself in need of immediate work. They had an opening, I needed a job, and almost eight years later, here I am.”

“You must enjoy it.”

“It pays the bills.”

“You mentioned a relationship. Are you married, children?”

Margaret interrupted them with aromatic plates of spicy sausage lasagna. Robin was thankful; she knew this subject would be trickier to navigate, especially with a pleasant face. Another server came in with more iced tea and a fresh cola. Robin looked at her watch: 1:20. She glanced at the door and at the table setup. Both she and Derrick’s water glasses were still almost full.

“So, you’re married, right? Kids?” Derrick repeated around a mouthful of lasagna. “Man, this is good!” he added.

“Actually, no,” Robin said. “I’m divorced.”

“Oh.”

Robin took a bite of her lasagna and was silent. She glanced at her watch: 1:25.

“Hey, Sister Vivian,” her assistant, Tamika, said as Vivian entered the office. “Ooh, you are rushing. Where’s the fire?”

“I didn’t think I’d make it in time for my appointment. I can never figure out why they decide to do road construction in the middle of the day. Traffic is congested enough as it is. But I’m here, praise God.” Vivian placed her large Louis Vuitton bag and briefcase down and quickly scanned the phone messages. “Anything important in here?”