Sex in the Sanctuary (21 page)

Hope’s anger began to flare again. That was the problem with handsome men. They thought they could get anybody they wanted. “Look, Mr. Taylor—”

“Please, call me Cy.”

“Look, Mr.
Taylor
,” Hope repeated emphatically. “You’re probably used to getting every skirt that swishes in your direction, but if you think I’m going to rendezvous with a practically married man, you’d better think again!” Hope had thrown back her covers and was now pacing, nude, across her bedroom floor.

Cy wasn’t moved. “You’re spunky. I like that.”

“Look, first of all, I don’t appreciate you calling my house like this. Whoever gave you my number was totally out of line and probably had no idea that Millicent was your fiancée. Secondly, I don’t know about the women in California, but this woman respects herself and her sisters enough to not hang out with somebody else’s man. Now, I don’t know your girl personally, but from what it looks like, she knows you and quite well, I might add. So do her and me a favor, go back to California and leave me alone!” Hope was surprising herself with the indignation she felt with this virtual stranger. Just yesterday she’d almost wet her panties when the man shook her hand!

Cy remained calm, actually enjoying himself. After so many women throwing themselves at him, it was refreshing to hear a female try to put him in his place, however misplaced that place she tried to put him was. “Are you finished?” he asked with a smile in his voice. “Because if you are, it’s my turn.”

Hope was silent. She sat back on the bed, grabbing her bed-spread and covering herself as she did so.

“The person you can get angry at for giving me your phone number is your pastor, King Brook.”

“Pastor?” Hope was incredulous.

“That’s right. As far as he knew, you were unattached, and since he knew I also am single and after I assured him my intentions were honorable, he had his assistant look your number up so I could give you a call.”

“But I heard…”

“Well, you heard wrong. Millicent is not my fiancée. We are not involved in a relationship of any kind other than that we’re both members of Kingdom Citizens’ Christian Center and work on church-related projects together from time to time.”

“But it looked like…”

“Looks can be deceiving. Now, are you going to join me for breakfast or not, because I’m a busy man and if you’re not going to meet me, I can get on a plane and head to…a friendlier environment.”

Hope smiled for the first time since she picked up the phone. “Well,” she hesitated just to let him know she could. “I
guess
I can meet you.”

“Do you know where this hotel is?”

“I’ll find it,” she replied.

“Good, is an hour enough time?”

“Yes, I’ll see you in an hour.”

Hope jumped on the Internet for directions to the hotel. She made it there in just over an hour and, to her surprise and delight, enjoyed a wonderful breakfast with Cy. He was warm and down-to-earth, and though she never would have guessed it, they shared several things in common. For one, his paternal grandparents had lived in Oklahoma, so he and Hope knew many of the same places. They both loved gospel music, especially the more contemporary, nontraditional variety. They both loved to travel, although Hope hadn’t traveled nearly as much as Cy. And they both loved God. Cy also seemed impressed with her writing. He was pleasantly surprised to learn she’d written the poetic piece delivered right
before their final dance number the night before. He’d actually done a little acting back in his college days, memories of which evoked more than a little laughter as they sat enjoying the morning.

Hope was more than pleased with Cy’s company as they sat eating and sharing, a pleasure that continued as he asked her to show him around town. She was a bit worried about how his over six-foot frame would fit into her little MG, but he pressed the seat all the way to the back, tilted the cushion and made himself at home. She took him around the Plaza where his upscale and expensive hotel was located, then down to some of the more touristy sites like the Crown Center Shopping Center and the famed 18th and Vine jazz district. They toured the Negro Baseball League Museum and the Mutual Musicians’ Foundation, the first of its kind for Black jazz musicians. They sat down and listened to an impromptu jazz session in progress before having lunch at Papa’s, a neighborhood hole in the wall with the best hamburgers in town. Given his love for jazz music and good food, he was duly impressed with Hope’s tour and with her.

They went back to his hotel and spent more time in the lounge area, sipping drinks and getting to know each other. Finally Hope, thinking that surely she was keeping the man from important business, feigned an appointment and said she had to be on her way. Cy looked visibly disappointed. Later, Hope wanted to kick herself because she missed him even before she went through the hotel doors. Before she left, however, Cy had given her his home, office and cell numbers and then stood to walk her to the door. He waited with her as the valet brought her car around, then waited as she stepped inside. He leaned down and looked meaningfully into her eyes. Hope stopped breathing, feeling she would faint if she didn’t leave that very moment. Cy sensed her “need to flee” and placed a hand on her arm. The caress, though gentle, sent shards of energy through her. She gripped the steer
ing wheel to keep from throwing her hands around this man and kissing him with the passion of a woman who’d been celibate for far too long.

“Thank you for a wonderful day,” he said softly.

“You’re welcome,” she replied. She started breathing again, inhaling and exhaling in short, jerky beats.

Cy leaned forward slowly and licked his lips. Hope closed her eyes. The kiss was soft and chaste and brief—and on her cheek! Her lips immediately got an attitude. “Until next time?” he whispered, the breath fanning the tendrils of hair around her ears.

Hope swallowed but couldn’t speak. Instead she sat mesmerized, staring at his lips. A car pulled in behind them, thankfully jolting her out of immobility. She simply nodded and put her car in gear. She didn’t remember the drive home. She entered her apartment as if on a cloud and sank into her couch still dazed. The message light was flashing, and she punched it numbly. She recognized Cy’s voice immediately, and once again her breath caught in her throat. At this rate, she’d need CPR every time she was near the man. Then she thought of Cy giving her CPR, and her breathing resumed, quick and erratic. “You are a very special woman, Ms. Hope Jones,” he said with certainty. “Thanks again for the day. I look forward to returning the favor soon, by inviting you to Los Angeles.”

Hope and Cy had spoken by phone often since the conference at Mount Zion Progressive. It seemed they never ran out of things to talk about, and Cy was knowledgeable about so many topics, Hope could listen to him all day long. He’d wanted her to visit him in Los Angeles right away, but they’d tentatively agreed she’d come two months later, in October, when she could get time off from work. Everything had happened so quickly, so unexpectedly. Maybe this was why Hope
was having such a hard time accepting the situation as real. She kept thinking that the clock was going to start chiming twelve and she’d have to run out of the ball, leaving behind a glass slipper.

It wasn’t a glass slipper but a leather sandal that Hope slipped her foot into as she got up from the bench to rejoin Frieda, who judging from the time she’d been inside, had obviously decided to buy the outfit she’d seen in the window along with half of the rest of the store.

Cy’s eye roved impassively over the standing-room-only Sunday morning crowd. Praise and worship was in full swing. If the swelling numbers were any indication, Kingdom Citizens’ would definitely need a larger building sooner than anticipated. As it was, the church had gone from one to three morning services per Sunday, and there was talk of adding an extra service to accommodate the thousands of members who attended the midweek prayer hour and Bible study. This thought caused a slight frown to crease Cy’s brow. Pastor Montgomery was trying to talk him into taking on a more visible teaching role in the ministry, perhaps even presiding over one of the Sunday services or heading up a midweek service, should one be added. Although Cy would do almost anything to help his friend and spiritual mentor, he knew God was moving him in a different direction, and that in fact, Cy wasn’t even sure he would continue in the ministry in his present position. He felt that his would become more of a supportive, behind-the-scenes role, one where his visi
bility would be limited to the board and business rooms instead of the pulpit.

The fact of the matter was Cy had never been comfortable in his role as a minister, that he’d only agreed to be an associate minister during a time when the church was sorely in need of competent male leadership. The membership had literally exploded in the last three years, and on top of that, Pastor Montgomery’s teaching had become more and more in demand both nationally and internationally. Pastor Montgomery was looking for a strong right-hand man, someone he could depend on to continue to lead the congregation during the times when the call of God would lead him around the world. Cy’s brow creased again. He was not that man, and the time was swiftly approaching when he would have to let Pastor Montgomery in on this fact.

Cy shifted in his chair and looked at the other ministers sitting in the pulpit. His glance rested on Allen Anderson, a quietly intelligent man in his late fifties, who’d been at the church since its inception. As sincere as Pastor Anderson was, however, and as much as he loved God, Cy knew that he didn’t possess the depth Derrick needed to help him lead the masses on a regular basis. He quickly scanned the other three associate ministers sitting around him and just as quickly dismissed them as possibilities. The first, Dave Kroenig, was knowledgeable and charismatic enough. Unfortunately, he was in the middle of a messy divorce, one that would surely overshadow his effectiveness in leading the congregation. Another, Brother Ben Snyder, led such a sin-filled life that Cy was loath to sit next to the man, lest lightning strike him down for being such a hypocrite in the pulpit. Cy knew he wasn’t perfect, but Jesus! Was there no end to the testing of God’s mercy? Kenneth Brown, a young man in his twenties, showed great promise and, out of all of the other men, was the one whom Cy would embrace most readily. He didn’t know whether
the man had the maturity necessary to handle a position of such authority, but maybe with mentoring he could in time.

Cy felt an intense stare and turned his attention from the choir to the crowd. Millicent. He’d figured as much, although there were more than a few women during each service who tried to catch his eye. He would never get used to the scrutiny, yet he’d learned to live with it. He managed a slight smile and nodded briefly. Millicent smiled and gestured that she needed to talk to him. What else was new? Maybe meeting her for a quick lunch wouldn’t hurt. After all, during the conference in Kansas, it appeared she’d finally gotten over the idea that he was her husband and realized that a friendship was all they’d ever have. She’d spent most of her time there with King’s wife and Sister Vivian. Millicent would make someone a good wife, and he sincerely wished her the best. Yes, he’d meet with her and help her out as best he could. She, like all the other women who clamored for his attention, deserved to find happiness in her life, and he would do whatever he could to make that possible.

Cy continued his perusal of the Sunday churchgoers. He checked out the band members, grooving in sync as they led the congregation in glorious praise. He gave a quick nod to Darius Crenshaw, the minister of music who was largely responsible for the success of the Kingdom Citizens’ Chorale. Theirs was one of the best and most sought after choirs in the country, and Darius had become a celebrity with the release of his CD,
D&C, Darius and Company
. God had gifted Darius tremendously, and on top of a voice that Gabriel would envy, the man was phenomenal on keyboards, held his own on the saxophone and could pinch hit for the drummer should the need arise. He was self-assured without being cocky. Genuinely kind, with the type of sensitivity women drooled over. Like Cy, Darius had his share of problems with the ladies. He was what women labeled a pretty boy, in addition to being successful and single. They had shared war stories
on occasion, and Darius was one of the few Kingdom men able to truly empathize with what Cy went through. Cy thought about Darius for Millicent. Maybe they’d make a love connection. As far as Cy knew, there was no one serious in Darius’s life at the moment. He knew that Darius had been married and that his wife had left him for another man. That undoubtedly had hurt, but that had been a few years ago. Cy knew Darius had dated a couple other women, but it obviously wasn’t serious. He also knew that Stacy, who worked in the youth ministry, had aspirations where Darius was concerned, but such feelings had obviously not been mutual between them. Cy remembered hearing a rumor that Darius was gay, but had dismissed it immediately as a vicious lie probably started by a woman scorned. Yeah, Darius would definitely be considered a good catch by any female’s standards.

Darius gave the signal, and soon the sanctuary was filled with the illustrious sounds of “God, My Jehovah,” one of the original singles from Darius’s CD.

Immediately, worshippers began standing throughout the congregation to become active participants in the praise and worship process. Cy smiled at the looks of reverence and awe on faces lifted toward Christ. His head nodded in time to the beat as his eyes continued to scan the masses. As his eyes took in different women in various stages of worship, another woman’s essence filled his mind. Hope. He closed his eyes and smiled as thoughts of their recent conversations bubbled up and into his consciousness. What a delightful surprise she’d proven to be. He’d become more and more enamored each time he talked to her. He couldn’t put his finger
on what it was that made her different exactly, but somehow she reached places inside him no other woman had been able to touch. She was the only woman in a long time in which he’d thought her name and the word “wife” in the same sentence. That revelation had startled him initially, but he found himself warming to the idea more and more. In fact, he’d decided to share his thoughts with Pastor before long because, even though she didn’t know it yet, Hope Jones was going to be his wife.

He opened his eyes, still smiling, and looked directly into the eyes of Millicent Sims. Millicent had thoughts of marriage on her mind as well. Thoughts that included Cy Taylor and did not include Hope Jones.