Sex In The Sanctuary. Lutishia Lovely

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СКАЧАТЬ the door, watching him silently. He offered a small smile as he got up to join her. They headed down the hall hand in hand.

      “Daddy,” Elisia said quietly as they neared the bottom step before entering the downstairs area and crossing through the living room to the dining room. She’d stopped and was now looking up at her father seriously with big, clear brown eyes.

      “Whatever it is, God can fix it. He can fix anything.”

      Derrick swallowed as his heart swelled and eyes misted at the perceptive words of his little girl. And a little child shall lead, he thought, smiling. “You’re absolutely, right honey bunch,” Derrick replied as he entered the dining room now overflowing with people, food and conversation. Because if God couldn’t fix it—nobody could.

      Sundays were a celebration at the Montgomery residence, and this Sunday was no exception. The table was set beautifully with fine bone china and Waterford crystal. A floral arrangement of calla lilies provided an eye-catching centerpiece.

      A large platter of blackened red snapper lay on one side of the lilies, an equally large platter of baked lemon chicken on the other. Surrounding these meat choices was an array of vegetables including corn, spinach and summer squash, a large bowl of mashed potatoes with sprigs of fresh parsley and dashes of paprika for color, a pan of Vivian’s famous dressing made with apples and olives and a bowl heaped with a variety of rolls. On the buffet behind the large dining room table was another Vivian dinner staple, a salad bar. Also on the buffet were a variety of sodas and a pitcher of tea. Lastly there was Derrick’s surprise, his favorite dessert besides Vivian, sweet potato pie.

      The classical music in the background could hardly be heard amid the din of voices. There was Mother Faye Moseley, a pillar at Kingdom Citizens’ and Vivian’s play mother who practically lived at the house, and her husband, Brother Clyde. This couple, married for forty years, had been one of the mentors of the Montgomery marriage, and at times Vivian wondered if it would have lasted without them. Other Kingdom Citizens’ members around the table included Darius Crenshaw, the minister of music, and his sister Tanya, who worked with the youth ministry. Next to Tanya was Stacy, a good friend and fellow worker in the youth ministry. Stacy dreamed of changing her title from “friend” of Tanya’s to “sister-in-law.” Her sly yet seductive glances to Darius throughout the meal underlined this fact. Rounding out the dinner guests was Cy (not only pronounced “sigh” but evoking many) Taylor, Derrick’s associate minister, confidant and friend.

      Cy was a bit of a phenomenon at Kingdom Citizens’ for many reasons. First, he was one of the most intelligent men Derrick had ever met, having graduated summa cum laude from Howard University with a degree in Business Administration. He’d received his master’s in Organizational Leadership from Biola University and had been an irreplaceable asset to Derrick and the ministry since joining the team full-time, three years ago. Secondly, he was a man of integrity—gracious, unpretentious and humble. He was one of those rare breeds of men unafraid to show his emotions. People felt special around Cy.

      Then there was his outward appearance. Cy Taylor was one of the finest men God ever created. When God stepped back and said “it is good,” his eye had rested on Cy. At six-two, with bedroom eyes, cupid-shaped lips and a dimple, Cy wasn’t just handsome; he was fine. Or as Stacy said it, “faeye’een,” figuring that one syllable just wasn’t enough.

      Cy was wealthy. He’d made his money as a financial advisor for a large investment company and, following his own advice and intuition, had invested heavily in the computer and Internet markets when both were in their infancy. When he sold his Internet stock several years later, he was a millionaire many times over. That was when he decided to leave the business world and assist Derrick and Kingdom Citizens’ full-time. He was adored, admired and envied by men and women alike. He was God’s man, single and celibate.

      Derrick blessed the food, and everyone filled their plates. Mother Moseley had taken only a few bites before starting a litany of anecdotes from her Sunday service observations.

      “Lawd a’mercy,” she said, wiping her mouth on a napkin. “It’s just pitiful how these women keep throwing themselves at the man, just pi-ti-ful!” She looked at Cy and shook her head.

      Cy knew what was coming. Although he would have preferred to not be the topic, he couldn’t help but laugh at the comical and accurate way she told a story.

      As usual, groups of people milled about after church, with more than a few waiting on a chance to see and or speak to Cy Taylor. One of the regulars was Millicent Sims, who’d been in hot pursuit of Cy since he joined the ministry. Unfortunately for Cy, he’d made the mistake of going out with her a few times, and although he thought she was a wonderful person, he discovered quickly she was not his wife to be. And a wife was just what Cy was looking for. Millicent, however, felt differently and had made it her mission in life to become Mrs. Taylor. She tried everything, including becoming active in every area of ministry even remotely affiliated with the man. When she found out the bookstore fell under his branch of leadership in the church, she became the manager. If Cy pledged a thousand dollars for something the ministry needed, she’d also pledge a thousand, even though for her this often meant a bank loan. When he signed up for the singles cruise to the Bahamas, she booked a ticket. When he offered to conduct a seminar to educate church members on investment, budgets and economic freedom, Millicent volunteered to be the coordinator. She always dressed impeccably in designer suits, shoes and handbags. Her best shopping buddies were MasterCard and Visa. Millicent always had a number of admirers swooning around her. But she had eyes only for Cy.

      When she saw him exiting the church after service, she made a beeline in his direction. Unfortunately, she was trying so hard to act as though she wasn’t approaching Cy that when she casually looked behind her, she almost knocked down another member. Even more, her heel caught on a cobblestone, and when she grabbed a post to steady herself, everything she’d been carrying—purse, briefcase and a box of flyers for an upcoming book sale—went flying. Cy had his back to her and missed the entire spectacle, except for the fluttering flyers. Mother Moseley, who didn’t miss much, had seen it all.

      “Lawd, I thought the child was gon’ fall and hurt herself or somebody else. She was trying to unhook her heel, grab the flyers and keep an eye on Cy all at the same time. She looked like a human pretzel!” Mother Moseley wiped her eyes, which were tearing up from her laughing so hard. “God’s got a wife for ya,” she continued as she grabbed another piece of chicken and put a scoop of potatoes on her plate. “You just wait and see.”

      Stacy, who’d been staring at Cy, now glanced at Darius and then at Mother Moseley, wondering if she had a word on Darius’s wife, and if her name was Stacy.

      Stacy had had a crush on Darius from the beginning. She remembered when he first came to the ministry, when it was still called Good Rest Baptist Church, the name before Dr. Montgomery left the National Baptist Association, renamed the church Kingdom Citizens’ Christian Center and aligned the ministry with the Total Truth Association. He’d joined the ministry as a keyboard player but also played saxophone and drums. He was married then—to a very possessive, diminutive woman. She sang in the choir, a powerful soprano, and led many of the songs. Darius quickly became an integral part of the music ministry, writing many of the choir’s songs and charts for the band members. He also traveled several times a month as part of Dr. Montgomery’s evangelism team.

      It was upon returning early from one of these trips that Darius came home and found a strange car in the driveway. That wasn’t unusual. Gwen was always inviting people over. But the car belonged to Bobby Perkins, Gwen’s former, and it would seem present, lover. Things looked normal enough as he opened the door, but Gwen’s greeting seconds later was a bit too hurried, a bit too forced. She seemed breathless, her make-up smudged, hair thrown back in a hasty ponytail. She couldn’t СКАЧАТЬ