Flawfully Wedded Wives (8 page)

 

Almost two weeks following their initial encounter, Angel and Jordan finally squeezed enough time out of their hectic schedules for an afternoon lunch. After gorging on fried green tomatoes, roasted tilapia, and shrimp panini at the Cotton Exchange Tavern and Restaurant, Angel and Jordan attempted to burn off the excess calories with a romantic stroll along Savannah's famed River Street, taking in the sights, smells, and sounds of the tourist district.

“I can't believe I ate like that,” said Angel as she and Jordan walked along the cobblestoned path following their lunch. “I'm usually very particular about what I allow inside my body. You're a bad influence on me, Mr. McKay.”

He winked at her. “You loved every bite of it. Admit it.”

Angel sneered, unable to deny it.

“Why are you so worried about what you eat, anyway? You're not even close to being overweight. Everything—and I mean
everything
—on that body of yours looks great. Even better than back in the day.”

“I certainly hope so! I wasn't much to look at back then,” lamented Angel.

Jordan smirked. “You were cute, but you have a different kind of beauty now. It's still soft, but there's a strength to it as well. It's very attractive.”

“Thank you.”

“So do I look the way you remember?” asked Jordan.

“No.” She stared into his deep-set russet eyes. “You look better.”

A smile escaped from his lips. “Now, you know I'm too dark for you to have me over here blushing.”

Angel winked at him. “You look cute doing that too.” Angel looked at the sun reflecting off the river as they strolled by. “I love this time of year, with all the festive colors and the crisp air.”

“Yeah, it's beautiful here.” He looked over at Angel. “It's beautiful everywhere.”

“You can literally see the seasons change. The Bible talks a lot about there being an appointed time and season for things to happen in our lives. I think it's a new season for me.”

“I feel the same way.”

“You said you came to Savannah to make a fresh start, but you could've gone anywhere in the world for that. Why Savannah, Georgia?”

Jordan kicked a pebble down the street. “I'd been here a few times before. We have family in Augusta and South Carolina, so we'd drive down here to go to the beach sometimes. I don't know what it is about this place, but I've always felt at peace and at home here. What about you?”

“My college roommate lived here. She and I are best friends. When my marriage fell apart, she invited me to stay with her for a while. I came and never left.”

“Are you and your ex still cool?”

Angel nodded slowly. “Yeah, we're friends. We talk, and I still spend time with his two daughters. We just weren't meant to be a couple, that's all. It took me a long time to accept that, but after three failed attempts at a relationship, I finally got the message.”

Jordan appeared to be deep in thought.

Angel nudged him. “Hey, what are you thinking about over there, McKay?”

“To be honest, I'm over here trying to figure out why you're still single.”

Angel laughed. “Oh, I could give you about a thousand reasons!”

“I mean it,” affirmed Jordan. “You're gorgeous. I'm in love with all this natural hair.” He ran his fingers through a cluster of curls. “You're smart . . . sexy.” She blushed. “You've got good conversation, and you're successful. You're the total package.”

“Well, I do have two things working against me,” she divulged. “One is that I work too much and hardly have time for a social life. The second is that I'm celibate. Those two words aren't usually a turn-on for most guys.”

His eyes bulged. “Celibate, huh? As in no sex, period?”

“Yes, I'm saving myself for my husband. I want him to know that I loved him enough to wait for him and to do things God's way.” Angel waited for Jordan to react. “Uh-oh, there it is. . . .”

“What?”

“The look that means ‘Lose my number.' I've seen it more times than I care to count.”

Jordan laughed. “Not at all, Angel. I respected you anyway, but I respect you even more now than I did before. I think waiting is very admirable.”

“So if we were to date, you honestly wouldn't have a problem with my being celibate?”

“No. In fact, I've been kind of on a break myself. I haven't been with a woman since I moved down here.”

“Wow, I guess there are at least two of us taking cold showers in Savannah,” she joked.

“Just look at it as us doing our part to conserve energy and protect the environment.” They both laughed again. Jordan reached for Angel's hand as they neared her parked car. “I really want to see you again, Angel.”

“I'd like that too.”

“I think I'd like to see you as much as possible,” confessed Jordan.

Angel nodded and smiled. “I think that can be arranged.”

Jordan checked his watch. “I know we both have to get back to work, but I'm not ready to be dismissed from your presence.”

“It's just temporary, right?”

“Better be. I already have a place in mind for our next date.”

“Where's that?”

Jordan shook his head. “It's a surprise. I think you'll approve, though.”

“I can't wait,” she gushed. “I love surprises.”

Jordan opened Angel's car door for her. “I guess now comes the awkward part. Do we kiss? Do we hug? Should I pound you up like you're one of my homies?”

She giggled. “What would you like to do?”

He swept a strand of hair out of her face. “I would very much like to kiss you.”

Angel wrapped her arms around his neck. “So kiss me.”

Jordan placed his hand on the small of her back and leaned down into her. He set his lips on top of Angel's for a lingering kiss that left her a little breathless.

“Was that okay?” he asked, releasing her.

“That was perfect.”

“Good.” Jordan smiled and helped Angel into the car. “Get back safely. I'll call you later, all right?”

“I'm looking forward to it.”

Angel watched Jordan walk away. She let out a deep breath and placed her hand over her heart, but she didn't need to feel it to know how fast it was beating. There was no denying that Jordan McKay was responsible for making her feel things in places where she hadn't felt anything in a long time.

—
Sullivan Webb

 

Sullivan arrived at Angel's house and dumped a bag full of newly purchased shawls and scarves into Angel's lap as Lawson looked on. “Here.”

Angel picked one up and frowned. “What's this?”

Sullivan flopped down on the sofa next to Lawson. “I gave up. The whole knit-one-purl-two thing is
so
not my scene. It was way less hassle to just buy the doggone things and be through with it.”

Angel shuffled through the items. “Some of these aren't even shawls! You've got scarves and do-rags in here too.” Angel thrust them back into Sullivan's arms.

“Three years ago we all agreed to knit these shawls to donate to Shelia's Shawls in honor of Kina, and every October we find an excuse not to do it, but we promised that this year would be different,” said Lawson. She shook her head. “Are you philosophically opposed to committing to anything, Sullivan?”

Sullivan set the bag down. “Maybe doing anything for Kina is the part I'm philosophically opposed to.”

“Then do it for all the other domestic violence survivors the Silent Witness National Initiative helps,” urged Angel. “Handmade, not store-bought.”

“Ugh,” grunted Sullivan. “Pass the dang yarn and needles!”

Lawson snickered and obliged Sullivan. “Try to not poke anybody's eye out with those things!”

Sullivan began wielding the needles. “It's a good thing I didn't have these when I went to see my mother the other day.”

“How did that go?” asked Angel.

“As expected. Vera is still a psychologist's wet dream. I swear the older she gets, the more intolerable she is.”

“Just keep praying for her, Sully. You know she has a lot of demons.”

“Lawson, Vera doesn't have demons. She
is
a demon! But I will say that she seems to love Charity. It's the only proof I have that she's actually human.”

“I'm sure Vera loves you too, in her own twisted way,” Angel told her. “Did she tell you anything about your father?”

“Nothing useful. I think I'm going to go to Atlanta and see this Samuel Sullivan for myself and let the chips fall where they may.”

“Are you sure that's a good idea?” Lawson asked, pondering aloud.

“What other option do I have? He's certainly not going to come to me. I can't even get him to come to the phone.”

“Just don't set your expectations too high. He may be less than thrilled to see you,” Angel advised, speculating.

“While we're on the subject of people showing up unexpectedly, I had a visitor.” Lawson turned her needles and knit the purl stitches.

“Who?” asked Sullivan, looking up from her own halfhearted knitting.

“My husband's baby mama, Simone.”

Angel groaned. “What did she want?”

“She wanted to know what my issue is with her.”

Angel stopped and frowned.
“Seriously?”

“Oh, it gets better! She officially put me on notice that she expects me to treat Simon like my own child and that, while she isn't going to chase after my husband, she has no qualms about letting him chase after her.”

“How considerate of her,” Angel remarked, ruminating. “And I'm sure it's all in the name of ‘just wanting a daddy for my son.'”

“Of course it is,” agreed Sullivan. “Some women have no problem stooping to use a baby to get exactly what they want. I know. I've done it before!”

Lawson shook her head. “Obviously, she's waiting with open arms, as well as various other parts, for Garrett to come trotting back to her.”

“Lawson, the only power she has is the power you give her,” insisted Angel. “That child is the only thing she has on you and her only connection to Garrett. You take that away, she has nothing.”

“But we
can't
take him away—that's the problem! As long as Simon is in our lives, Simone will be too, always lurking in the shadows somewhere, waiting for the opportune time to pounce.”

“You're the one Garrett loves. She's the baby mama. That's it. Don't be scared off by that slut puppy!” advised Sullivan.

“Sometimes it's hard not to be,” Lawson revealed, no longer hiding her insecurities. “Ladies, my marriage is a mess right now. We argue all the time, and things are incredibly tense at home. I wouldn't be all that surprised if he did go running back to her.”

“You're playing right into her hands, Lawson. Honey, do you have any idea how many desperate, hat-wielding, Bible-thumping heifers try to push up on Charles? I don't run away with my tail between my legs when they show up. I let them know who the queen is and make those wenches bow down!”

“See? That's what I'm talking about!” exclaimed Lawson. “I don't want this to turn into some big competition between Simone and me. That's not what I want my marriage to be about.”

Angel was baffled. “So you're just going to roll over and sign away your husband to her?”

“No, but I'm not going to fight dirty, either. I think the Christian thing to do is to take the high road.”

“I'm all for that,” said Sullivan. “You can take the high road. When you do, though, make sure Simone's in the middle of it so you can run her over and toss her off the side of it.”

“You've always been such a fighter, Lawson,” noted Angel. “You seem to have lost some of that edge. What happened?”

“I guess I feel like I'm at a disadvantage.”

“Why?” asked Angel.

“Because I can't bring myself to love Garrett's child. I'm sorry, but I look at him, and I'm reminded of everything that has gone wrong in my marriage, from Garrett pressuring me to have children to his affair with Simone. I know I'm hurting my husband, because he loves us both.” She paused. “Sometimes I think setting him free is the kind thing to do.”

“Yes,
kind of stupid!
” Sullivan scoffed. “Lawson, your marriage can be whatever you make it. You and Garrett write the rules, not Simone and not Simon. I'm not excusing Garrett's behavior or his affair, but it happened. Forgive, forget, and get over it. Simon can be a blessing to you if you let him be.”

“This is all about your pride, Lawson, pure and simple. You already know that the Bible says pride comes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall. Don't let your pride and the pain you want to hold on to destroy your marriage. That's a much bigger threat to your relationship than ole Simone is,” Angel said.

Lawson hushed them. “Enough about my depressing love life. I want some happy couples news. Angel, what's going on with you and Jordan?”

Angel broke into a smile. “We had our first date . . . and our first kiss!”

The women oohed like schoolgirls.

“I can't wait to see him again,” Angel added.

Lawson started knitting again. “So you think this might actually amount to something?”

“I hope so. I really like him, and you know I haven't felt this way about anybody since Duke and I called off the wedding.”

“I think you reuniting with Jordan is proof that calling the wedding off was the right thing,” concluded Sullivan. “You know . . . that and the fact that you were practically cheating on him with his cousin and developed that nasty little porn addiction in the process.”

Angel set her needles and yarn down in her lap. “You really know how to suck all the fun out of a room, don't you, Sully?”

“I know that this is all exciting for you Angel, but don't move too fast,” Lawson advised, lecturing her.

“Lawson, I've known the guy almost twenty years, and we're just now getting around to our first date! I think it's safe to say we've taken things pretty slow.”

“No, you knew him in high school,” Lawson replied, drawing the distinction for her. “It's not the same thing as interacting with someone for twenty years.”

“Well, I say go for it!” Sullivan said, pushing Angel. “Angel, you deserve to have some fun and enjoy yourself. You haven't had a date, not to mention what else, in nearly two years. Seize the day and the man!”

There was a knock at the door before Angel could respond.

“I bet that's Reggie,” said Angel, rising from the sofa to answer the door.

“Another unwanted visitor,” Sullivan muttered.

Lawson faced Sullivan. “So you're really just going to show up at the church, demanding to see Samuel Sullivan, without so much as a phone call or warning?”

Sullivan shrugged. “Yes. What's the worst he can do?”

“Have you thrown in jail for trespassing and stalking.”

Angel yelped. Sullivan and Lawson whirled around in the direction of her cry.

“Is everything all right?” called Lawson.

Angel returned with a woman barely recognizable to Lawson and Sullivan at her side. “As you can see, everything on this body is great!”

“Oh, my God!” Lawson gasped. “It's you!”