In Love with Ezra (Love Unaccounted Book 2) (39 page)

I took a deep breath. “I’m with Ezra on keeping your practices to yourself, Mary, but I appreciate you being candid about your feelings for your son. If it makes you feel better, what you shared does encourage me to have more patience with him. You were right, he is…different.”

Ezra was beyond different he was as frustrating as hell. He was baffling, arrogant, and controlling as I could ever imagine a man to be. Nonetheless, he was the man I wanted. The one who captured something in me I never knew existed. It was the very thing that made the decision for me that I would carry out from this very moment on: I would vie for my husband’s heart.

“Mary, I don’t agree with the way you go about your marriage and I hope you understand completely that Ezra and I play by our own rules…rules we created to make this marriage possible.” Her brows pinched and eyes danced in desperate need of understanding. “If you can promise to miss me with that sharing husband bullshit”—her eyes ballooned—“I can promise to keep an open mind about getting to know you and not shutting you out of the one clear avenue you’re pursuing to get to know him.” I regarded her sternly.

I meant each word. I would not get caught up in the bullshit politics of in-laws. As it stood, I didn’t fit their mold like princess Precious. As Ezra was with Ms. Remah and my father, I didn’t care to try. It wasn’t a clause in our covenant, as he would say.

With undisputed desperation in her pained eyes, Mary nodded in agreement. I gained, in that moment, my own covenant with First Lady Carmichael.

~Lex~

“Last one,” Ezra noted across the table.

My eyes traveled from him, over to Stenton Rogers. Stenton downed the last of his glass then nodded.

“Yip,” he concurred while sitting up in his seat.

“What about Alton Alston?” Ezra asked.

“Alton?” Zoey remarked as she entered the dining room with a pitcher of fresh punch. “Wake me the day it comes. By the way,” she glanced over to her husband after taking a seat next to him. “I forgot to tell you he’s stopping by to pick up the bag he left the other day.”

Stenton rolled his eyes, and I wondered what that was all about. It had also dawned on me how weird it was sitting at an NBA All-Star’s dining room table in his mansion, finishing up on dinner, and discussing another baller’s career. Did I mention the prior NBA player was my husband’s close friend?

“When?” Stenton asked his wife.

She shrugged just after forking in chicken casserole, a dish that had my full belly dancing happily on its toes. I was starving when we arrived after enduring two Sunday morning worship services, back to back. Ezra and I didn’t stay behind long in the
Bishop’s Lounge
where refreshments were served.

“Sometime today,” she garbled with a mouthful, reminding me why she had been appealing to me since she welcomed us into their home today.

“Shit,” Stenton muffled. “This
muthafucka
—”

“Hey!” Zoey scolded with a wrinkled face, still chewing her food. “The pastor’s in the house! Please don’t behave like a heathen on the day he’s here.” She pointed to Ezra with her fork. “You’ll make him think I’m not on my job with washing that mouth out with soap!” She then addressed Ezra directly with a whisper, “He’s worked his way down to using expletives only when excited.” Zoey winked and went back to her food.

Ezra chuckled freely—he did that a lot with Stenton—I’d noticed and had to face my jealousy issues as it concerned him. I also, on the other hand, felt I had a potty-mouth brethren. That spurred to mind his profanity when he appraised the sandbox that day I walked in on Ezra showing it to him. It was refreshing to see someone else getting yelled at for cussing. It warmed me to Stenton and especially to Ezra. It made me aware of how down to earth my husband really was, and how much of a holy roller he was not. I’d rather focus on that than recalling Stenton seeing the place where Ezra morphed me into the sex fiend he’d unearthed. Getting lost in that thought would have had me blushing like a damn fool at this table.

Stenton rolled his eyes over to Zoey, half offended and half amused. His mouth set into a suspicious pout. “Zo, please! You know what time it is when he comes through. I’m too tired to be dealing with dude.”

“Yeah, well…” Zoey sighed as she continued with her food.

Stenton shook his head and resumed the conversation with Ezra. “He’s not thinking about retiring.”

Zoey blew out air and murmured, “He’s in denial.”

And
I
laughed at that. She was never short of a sharp remark.

“Well, I’m sure all in due time,” Ezra provided a save for the Alston guy.

The small walkie-talkie-like device near Stenton sounded. The voice of a woman speaking another language, possibly Spanish, came through.

“Ah!” Ezra exclaimed with a wide smile, clearly having understood what the woman had expressed. “The princess has awakened.”

“And here I thought I’d have a few more minutes of adult time,” Zoey sighed, but with light eyes.

It was clear she loved their newborn. On the way over, Ezra shared that Zoey had given birth to their second child recently. I hadn’t realized she was pregnant back in the winter when Lillian pointed them out in Bible class the first time I laid eyes on Ezra. Neither did I know she was pregnant at the wedding because she didn’t mingle with the wedding party her husband was a part of. I’d guessed her pregnancy at the time was why. I could hardly tell today she was postpartum: she was small. Zoey and I were the same age, but couldn’t be any different in features. She was a caramel complexion, a hue lighter than Stenton and Ezra, and she was of average height. She wore no makeup and didn’t need any, considering the equal shade across her face. Her hair was long and thick, but not as much volume as mine. And she didn’t seem as high maintenance as Elle, though I really liked her, too.

Stenton replied in the same language the woman spoke with on the walkie-talkie, seemingly giving an order.

“Yes,” Ezra agreed with zeal. “Bring her down so I can meet her. Have you guys decided on a date for her christening, or have I missed that already?”

Stenton’s regard went over to Zoey and she returned it.

That was odd.

She used her head to gesture across the table toward Ezra.

“Well, go on,” Zoey demanded. “It was your call.”

I glanced over to Ezra who fingered his beard absentmindedly, but I could see in his eyes he was just as baffled as me. However, he didn’t utter a word.

“It’s not that deep, Zo,” Stenton supplied awkwardly.

“Then, ask him,” Zoey goaded before going back to her plate.

The table turned silent and I once again glanced over to Ezra and got nothing.

Ezra broke the awkward pause. “Any more on the horizon?”

That’s when Zoey’s head popped up and she blushed visibly.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” Ezra smiled, pleased.

“She’s crazy, E. I don’t know how she does it all,” Stenton commented, aghast.

Unable to hide her embarrassment or fight her smile, Zoey held up one finger as she swallowed. “Just one more and that’s it. When I was growing up with my sister, I always wanted a tie-breaker.”

“There’s nothing wrong with wanting to expand your family, Zoey. You have an adequate partner, who can provide for your progenies. There’s no problem with that,” Ezra affirmed.

“Well, I can take care of them on my own, but I get what you mean.”

“Oh, here we go with the B.S., Niña!” Stenton tossed his hands in the air.

Zoey giggled as she placed her head on his shoulder. Though I perceived Stenton to be nipped by that claim of independence, I could tell his affection for her trumped the sting.

“I told you Zo be on that feminist tip,” Stenton addressed Ezra. “She denies it, but I be knowing.”

Ezra laughed. I smiled myself, but I couldn’t miss their chemistry. This party seemed to have a history…a bond that I wasn’t privy to. That wouldn’t have bothered me so much if I’d at least had one with Ezra that resembled what Zoey had with Stenton. Maybe still being angry with me about my confrontation the other night kept Ezra from realizing the contrast in our chemistry when compared to that of the Rogers’.

“Where is young Jordan today?” Ezra asked.

“He stayed down with his grandparents,” Zoey answered. “They had a special fall service for the kids. We came up to move more things in, and figured we’d go to
RSfALC
for morning worship before Stenton flies out for work tonight.” 

“Oh!” Stenton gasped. “You know what I wanted to ask? Today you spoke about the courts of worship—at least that’s how I can articulate it.”

“Right.” Ezra nodded. “The outer court, inner court, and the holy of holies.”

“Yeah. This one you spoke today blew my mind, too. But what I missed was how that applies to contemporary times. Back then, only the priests could go into the third court and only once a year.” I found myself nodding because I, too, was taken by his sermons this morning. Quite honestly, there hasn’t been a sermon Ezra spoke that I didn’t instinctively open my mind to. Often times, I wanted more or had questions like Stenton did here, but didn’t feel comfortable asking. Ezra didn’t bring the mask of the pastor/preacher home with us. So I just held my questions, thoughts and wild admiration of his messages. “Like…those were ancient settings when they had to be physically and spiritually clean before stepping foot in the temple.”

“Yes. The day of atonement,” Ezra replied.

“You know,” Zoey interjected with wide eyes. She swallowed her food and continued, “I’m glad you brought that up, Stent! Ezra, I’ve heard several great teachers attempt to expound on this, but it had always been a difficult concept until today.”

“So, how do those ancient practices apply to contemporary times?” Stenton asked.

Ezra pushed his empty plate back, making room for his elbows caped in a beautifully and delicately printed, white dress shirt. I found myself twisting in my seat to face Ezra, simultaneously feeling my breasts weigh heavily in my bra and my mouth secrete, causing me to swallow several times. He paid me a cursory glance that seared my chest. It was as if he’d glossed over me, saw past me before further illuminating the Word.

“In a significant way, it applies to our worship today. It’s a reminder of how intimately God has structured His availability to us. Back then there was a convoluted method to reach your Savior, your Healer. I mean… Can you imagine having to go through so many channels to get healing when you’re sick or protection when you’re being attacked? Urgent needs require urgent calls and expedient actions. God is omnipresent and omniscient. He’s everywhere and knows everything. Why do we need a middle-man or a reservation to commune with or petition our needs to Him? Then came Jesus...” Ezra smiled passionately elated by the declaration.

“I don’t want to repeat the morning message for a third time, but I will if need be,” Ezra joked, and I wanted to scream if he did preach it for the third time, I’d sit attentive to receive it all over again. That’s how magnetic Ezra was.

There’s that word again. Magnetic.

“He came and destroyed the veil: the process of the middle man and the delay of communication and worship. Revelations 21:3 says, “
And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
” God designed our beings—human kind—in three states, similar to the courts: body, mind, and soul—I Thessalonian 5:23 talks about the sanctification of the three. Our spirit is the most holy place where He dwells privately. It is from there we hear Him, feel Him, and are guided by Him, unlike our flesh—body. That’s driven by carnal forces. Or our minds that can be swayed by things that are not of Him. And our hearts…” Ezra snickered as he shook his head. “Jeremiah 17:9 tells us, “
The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?
”” He shrugged. “It is simply how he created us, with a delicate balance. I can go further into that again, but here is princesa preciosa!” Ezra announced in a pitch I’d never heard from him.

That snapped my rapt concentration from his teaching and I turned behind me to find a woman carrying a small baby wrapped in a swaddle blanket.