The Replacement Wife (26 page)

D
inner had gone off without a misstep. Every course of the meal was scrumptious, and the guests couldn't stop buzzing about how talented a caterer Darrin was. Montana was excited for him, because there were holders of millions upon millions of dollars in the ballroom. He only had to connect with the right ones. Next up on the evening's agenda was the wealthy bachelor auction, the highlight of the night for a lot of the women in attendance. Montana knew quite a few of the ladies from Freedom of Life had pulled money from their savings accounts to land a date with one of the wealthy guys. Montana was happy she didn't have to bid for Quentin's attention, and she was happy to be the auctioneer. She'd taken over those duties when it became clear that Chloe was no longer going to be a part of the festivities.

Montana stood on the stage, ready to be the auctioneer. She looked around the stage area and didn't see what she was looking for. Her wireless microphone. Then she remembered. She'd left it in Quentin's office when she went to put away the invoices for the final flower deliveries.

Montana dashed off the stage to go and get it. This was one time she wished the house was smaller. It took her several minutes to get to Quentin's office from the ballroom. As she pushed the door open to grab the microphone from the desk, she was shocked to find something other than what she was looking for. Or rather, someone. Chloe sat at Quentin's desk, wearing a formal dress.

“What are you doing here?” Montana asked. Her question was more surprise than accusation, but Montana could see by the dark look that came over Chloe's face that she took it to mean the latter.

“What am I doing here? I should've asked you that the first day you stepped into this mansion.”

Chloe got up from the desk and walked around it. Montana took a few steps back. The last thing she wanted was a confrontation, but Chloe seemed to have been waiting for one.

“I must say, I underestimated you,” Chloe said. “If anyone had tried to tell me I was about to lose Quentin to a domestic employee, I would've laughed in their face.”

“I'm not the reason you and Quentin broke up,” Montana said.

Chloe walked closer to Montana. “Let me see. Before you start working here, I'm going on trips and shopping sprees and to every high-society function in Atlanta. After you start working here, my credit cards are canceled and you're on his arm. Explain how you aren't the reason.”

“Maybe God didn't want you together.”

Chloe threw her head back and let out a cackle. “I just love how church folk get so mystical when they've done dirt. You stole my man and you just blamed it on God.”

“I didn't steal him,” Montana said.

Montana felt herself get annoyed with Chloe's accusations. She knew that what she and Quentin had embarked upon was more spiritual in nature than what he and Chloe had shared. It was unfortunate that Quentin was still seeing Chloe when they met, but what had happened wasn't done on purpose.

“Well, it doesn't matter now,” Chloe said with a shrug. “I got what I wanted from Quentin anyhow, even in the midst of your treachery.”

“Your money.”

“Yes, honey. He gave me a twenty-million-dollar settlement for my five years of standing in the gap for him.”

“Standing in the gap?” Montana asked. “When did you expose yourself for Quentin's protection? When did you raise up a defense for him? You don't know what it means to stand in the gap.”

“I protected him from his grief. When he was with me he wasn't thinking about his first wife, I guarantee it,” Chloe said.

“He wasn't healing either. Actually, he was spiritually dead.”

Chloe rolled her eyes and walked back to the desk to retrieve her purse. “I don't like you, nanny, but I'm gonna give you a word of advice. Don't believe Quentin's promises. He has no intentions of keeping them. Five years from now, you'll be standing in a room looking at your replacement.”

“I don't believe that.”

“I know you don't. I wouldn't believe me either, if I was you.”

Chloe walked out of the office with her head held high. But she left Montana with more questions than answers. She knew there was no treachery on her part with Quentin, but what if the rest of what Chloe said was true? How did she know she'd be any different? How did she know her love would be enough for Quentin?

Lacking the answers she sought, Montana went back downstairs with the microphone in her hand. Quentin caught her before she went on the stage.

“Is everything all right?” he whispered.

Montana closed her eyes. She wanted to tell him about her conversation with Chloe, but what good would that do if Quentin's intentions were poor? He wouldn't let on now if they were.

“Chloe's here,” Montana said. “Or she was. She might be gone now.”

“Do I need to call security?”

Montana shook her head. “I don't think so. I think she was waiting to talk to you.”

“Are you okay? What did she say to you?”

“Nothing. I'm fine. Let's start the auction, okay?”

Microphone in hand, Montana stood in front of the crowd on the band's stage. She tried to push Chloe's warning out of her mind while she addressed the partygoers.

“Thank you to everyone who came out to this event to support Transitions! I have had the opportunity to visit there myself, and it is truly God's work that Quentin Chambers is doing there. You are in support of a worthy cause.”

“Bring on the hunks!” shouted a lady in her mid-sixties. Her husband, who was seated next to her, shook his head in embarrassment.

Montana had to restrain her giggle. “Yes, indeed! It is definitely time to bring on the hunks.”

First on the stage was Tyler Prentiss. The catcalls started as soon as he started up the stairs. He was very handsome, with long locks that he wore tied neatly in back and a muscular physique. His skin was the color of cream, and he had light eyes like his mother. Montana watched the ladies swoon.

“Well, first, we have the very fine bachelor Pastor Tyler Prentiss. He's the assistant pastor at Freedom of Life, where he serves with his father Bishop Kumal Prentiss. He enjoys tennis, bowling, and spending time at the beach. His favorite foods are Italian and . . .”

“I will start the bidding at one thousand dollars!” yelled Dorcas, one of the sisters at Freedom of Life. Montana saw Emoni roll her eyes and again had to keep from bursting into laughter. There was no love lost between the two of them.

Another one of the church sisters said, “I've got two thousand on him, baby!”

Tyler looked tickled at the attention as if he wasn't used to it. He was Freedom of Life's most eligible bachelor. Everyone expected him to take over Bishop Prentiss's position one day as senior pastor at Freedom of Life.

After some furious back-and-forth bidding on Tyler, his mother, First Lady Diana Prentiss, rescued him by making a final bid of fifteen thousand dollars. The ladies, of course, were disappointed, but he gave all of the highest bidders a hug, so they were somewhat pacified.

The bachelors walked onto the stage one by one, each one nabbing thousands of dollars for Transitions. The auction was a great idea. Montana was going to recommend that they make it an annual tradition.

Quentin winked at Montana as he took the stage. He was the final bachelor and the one everyone wanted for an afternoon lunch date. Montana herself couldn't afford to bid, so she hoped one of the thirsty elderly ladies won a lunch date with her tall drink of water.

“All right, everyone! Our final bachelor is the founder of Transitions, my boss and your host, Quentin Chambers! I think it's only fair if we open the first bid at two thousand dollars!”

The bidding took off in a noisy frenzy, until there were six women contending for that date with Quentin. When the bids surpassed twenty-five thousand dollars with no signs of stopping, the room went loud with noisy catcalls and cheers.

“Twenty-five thousand going once! Going twice . . .”

“One hundred thousand dollars.”

The bid came from Estelle. All the women in the room groaned. If Estelle was going to get in on the bidding, they'd never win.

When no one countered, Montana said, “Well, that's one hundred thousand from Mrs. Chambers going once . . . going twice . . . going three times . . . Sold!”

Estelle burst into laughter. “I have done my duty as a mother, protecting my son from all of you barracudas!”

“You can't watch him all the time!” someone yelled, causing everyone in the room to join Estelle in laughing.

Quentin took the microphone from Montana. As he did so, he stroked the side of her face, a very public gesture that shocked Montana.

Quentin said, “I hope you ladies have fun on your outings with your bachelors. I'm almost one hundred percent sure my mother has something up her sleeve for me. So if I may solicit one more thing from you, I would appreciate your prayers.”

“Can everyone give the beautiful Ms. Montana a round of applause,” Quentin continued. “She came in and really pulled this event together at the last minute. She's been such a blessing to me and this household.”

Montana could've died of embarrassment. Many of the high-society ladies gave her a head nod of approval, and some of the church members, Emoni included, shouted “Hallelujah” like Quentin was preaching a sermon.

“Are you all enjoying yourselves?” Quentin asked. “Give it up for the band! As some of you may know, I dabble a little bit musically.”

Quentin paused while everyone chuckled. Then he said, “Well, lately, I've been writing again. For some reason . . . I've been inspired.”

Montana watched as three staff members pushed Quentin's white baby grand piano into the ballroom. Was Quentin going to play?

Quentin said, “I wrote a song I'd like to share. I was saving it for another, more private occasion, but one thing you learn by losing someone is to seize the moment.”

Quentin set the microphone down and left the stage. He squeezed Montana's hand as he walked by, making her wonder what was going to happen next.

Quentin spoke into the microphone set up near his piano. “Y'all pray for me again. I'm a little rusty.”

“It's all right, baby!” Ms. Levy said from her table.

The room was completely silent when Quentin started to play. The way his fingers flowed over the keys, he didn't seem out of practice at all. Then he started to sing.

Montana could hardly catch her breath when the song finished. Of course, it was about her. She could tell by the way Quentin stared at her over the top of his piano. Obviously, he was ready to go public with his feelings. He'd just serenaded her in front of all his friends.

Montana wanted to cut and run, as she couldn't stand being the center of attention, and it seemed that everyone was looking her way. She didn't run, though. She tried to smile and not look too awkward.

Then Quentin got up from the piano and started walking toward her. Montana trembled with nervousness. She didn't know what Quentin was about to do, but it was clear that it would be
something
—the look of resolve on his face was unmistakable.

Quentin walked faster as he neared Montana, and then to hers and everyone else's surprise, Quentin lifted her from the floor and spun her around with a hug. When he set her down on the floor again and smiled down at her, Montana was sure her face was every shade of red known to man.

“Did you like your song?” he whispered.

All Montana could do was nod. Quentin gave her a huge smile and hugged her again.

Montana hugged him back amid a room full of applause. It seemed that just about everyone was thrilled about her and Quentin, so she allowed herself to share in that joy. There was nothing Chloe could do or say that could make her feel any differently about Quentin than she felt in this moment. She loved him and he loved her too. Now all of Atlanta knew their secret.

M
ontana awoke just before daybreak. She had a full day ahead of her and runs to make for Reese's small wedding. She had to pick up his reserved tuxedo from the tailor and get the corsage from the florist. Some of what she did extended beyond her nanny duties, but she didn't mind. She loved the children dearly and would do anything for them.

She jumped out of her bed and started a pot of tea. Montana liked to pray and meditate before she started her day, and she'd been especially diligent following everything that had transpired with Quentin.

After she finished her cup of tea and Scripture meditation, she felt ready to face the day and any pitfalls that might be before her.

Right before she got ready to take her shower, Montana's doorbell rang. Immediately, her hands went to her hair, which was standing up in multiple directions, having yet to be tamed with her arsenal of styling products and brushes.

It had to be Quentin. No one else would be up this early, knocking on her door.

“Who's there?” Montana asked.

“It's me. You wanna go running?”

“I can't, Quentin,” Montana said, through the door. “I have to run errands for Reese.”

“I know. I'll help you do them if you go running with me first.”

Montana smiled. She couldn't resist him. “Okay, give me a minute.”

Montana took about ten minutes to shower, brush her teeth and hair, and throw on her workout clothing. Every time she tied her running shoes, it made her smile. Buying her the running shoes was the first romantic thing Quentin had done, and he hadn't even known he was being romantic.

She opened the door, and Quentin waited for her. He looked as gorgeous as ever. The sun kept playing with the light brown in his eyes, and it made them look like jewels.

“Come on,” Quentin said. “I need to go hard today. I have to work out some stress.”

“What's wrong?” Montana asked.

Quentin touched her fingertips and pulled her down the steps. “Oh, it's the good kind of stress. Either I sneak in your cottage at night to cuddle with you, or I run.”

Montana laughed and took off down the path. “Well, you better get running, sir.”

After her initial dash, Montana slowed to a jog so that she could warm up properly. Quentin had taught her how to pace herself so that she'd be able to run the entire distance. Twice she'd done the entire two miles without a break. She was getting into the best shape of her life.

Once she was done warming up, Montana fell into her pace. She counted her footfalls, in sets of twos. It helped her to concentrate.

About halfway through the path, when she was just starting to feel the burn, Quentin yelled out, “Hey, Montana. I need a break.”

Montana stopped in her tracks and turned around. Quentin never needed a break, but he was leaning against a tree and breathing hard. She ran to him. Something was wrong.

“Quentin, are you okay?” Montana asked as she approached.

He nodded. “I just wanted to stop for a minute. Look at you. You're going harder than me.”

“You're not the only one with pent-up energy.”

Quentin rested the back of his head on the tree and laughed. “We're both anxious.”

“Yeah.”

Quentin rose up from the tree and brushed his lips across Montana's. It was a sweet, unassuming kiss. Not the kind of kiss that started something they weren't ready to finish.

“Are we running or kissing?” Montana asked.

“I'm okay with either,” Quentin said. “Right now, I'm resting.”

“Okay, I'll rest too.” Montana leaned on the tree next to Quentin.

“Montana, do you think I'm doing the right thing letting Reese marry this girl?”

“He says he loves her, and they have a baby on the way, so I think you're fine.”

“They're so young, though. It scares me. What if he can't handle being a husband or a father?”

“He has no choice about the father part, and you may have to help with the husband part,” Montana said. “But I think he has a good example.”

“I want to be a good example for him.”

“You are. You're a great example for all your children.”

Quentin sighed. “I haven't always been. The last five years, I've been incredibly selfish. God helped me see that.”

“It was only five years. Not their whole lives. Your relationships will recover.”

“That's why I love you, Montana. You are so positive. You've got a light inside of you. I don't want anything to hurt that light. I want it to just shine brighter.”

“I love you too, Quentin.”

Quentin turned to face Montana. His facial expression was now intense. It made her heart flutter. When he reached his hand into his pocket and pulled out a box, Montana thought she might faint.

Quentin took Montana's left hand and kissed each finger before dropping to one knee. “Montana. You don't know what you've done in my life. You've made me feel like a man again. You make me want to live again. I wasn't living before, I was slowly dying. You've introduced me to God again. Your love brought me back to life. You've . . . you've resurrected me.”

Montana swallowed back the lump that formed in her throat. “Quentin, I don't know what to say to that.”

“Say that you'll let me return the favor. Let me love away all the mistakes I've made. Let me give you a life that you maybe thought you'd never have, but that you definitely deserve.”

“I don't care about the money, Quentin.”

“I know, but you'll have it anyway, and you'll have all of my love too. All of my heart.”

He opened the box, and a sunbeam illuminated the most beautiful princess-cut diamond that Montana had ever seen. Her hand trembled as he placed the engagement ring on her finger.

“Will you marry me?”

“Yes. Yes, I will!”

Quentin hugged her at the waist and then jumped to his feet. “You've made me happier than I ever thought I could be. I need you, Montana.”

Those three words solidified it for Montana. She needed Quentin too. She needed to feel safe, loved, and cherished. Quentin was the man she'd been waiting for.

“I need you too, Quentin. I can't believe God has blessed me with my very own prince.”

Montana sealed her declaration with a kiss of her own. A kiss full of possibility and hope for the future. There was more than passion in her kiss; there was a promise. There was a vow of love. Love that would cover anything and everything life would hurl at them. Love that would resurrect them both, as one flesh, as new creations.

God had put them together, and there was nothing or no one that would tear them apart.