When Solomon Sings (14 page)

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Authors: Kendra Norman-Bellamy

BOOK: When Solomon Sings
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THIRTEEN
“Shaylynn ... Come in, my dear.” When she made it to the part of the house where the owners lived, it was Lucas that greeted her. His arms were stretched wide as he spoke. Lucas Jessup, a man in his late sixties, was an average height, around five feet nine, and he had an odd, square-shaped physique. Nothing on his body seemed to be defined. His waist seemed to blend right into his hips, and his back did the same with his behind. He was almost completely bald, but there was hair at the base of his scalp, right above his neck, that seemed to want to hold on for dear life. He reminded Shaylynn of Frank Barone, the father of Ray Barone on
Everybody Loves Raymond
, only Lucas was nowhere near as insensitive and nauseating.
“Hi, Mr. Jessup.” She smelled Old Spice, Brut, Skin Bracer, or one of those classic older-men fragrances as she received his hug. “Thank you all for inviting me to lunch.”
“It's our pleasure.” He swept his arm in the direction of their private dining area. “Right this way. Alice has everything all ready for us.”
When they walked into the dining area, Alice was just placing the last serving dish on the table. They had gone all out; even had candles lit as though Shaylynn was truly a special guest. Alice removed her apron, grinned, and walked toward her. She wasn't any taller than Shaylynn, but she was wider. Alice had a pudgy frame, and though she was somewhat attractive, she wore a tad too much makeup in her effort to minimize the appearance of her fifty-eight years. Oddly enough, she resembled Marie Barone, wife of Frank Barone on
Everybody Love Raymond
, but she was nowhere near as meddlesome and annoying.
“Don't you look beautiful,” Alice remarked just before they embraced. “I believe pink is your color.”
Shaylynn totally disagreed, but she smiled and accepted the compliment graciously. “Thank you.” She looked at the spread of food. “The table looks great, and something on it smells heavenly.”
“I hope it tastes the same,” Alice remarked with a laugh. “Come on in, dear, and choose a chair.”
There weren't a lot of chairs from which to choose. They all took their seats at the table for four, and after Lucas graced the food, the serving dishes began making their rounds. Small talk and chuckles were passed between them throughout the meal, but it was obvious to Shaylynn that her hosts were purposefully avoiding the mention of Emmett. They'd been doing it ever since she arrived. In every visit that she'd made to Wisconsin and stayed at their bed and breakfast, Emmett was never spoken of unless she initiated the topic. And eventually, she always did.
“So are we going to get to see Chase this time around?” Lucas asked after downing the last of his fresh-squeezed orange juice.
Shaylynn nodded. Her hunger pangs were completely satisfied. The meal had hit the spot. “Yes, but only for a little while. I'll pick him up tomorrow and bring him back here for you to see him before we head to the airport. You won't believe how tall he's gotten since last year.”
“Oh, I'd believe it,” Alice said as she began busying herself with clearing the table. “I'd be more shocked if he weren't shooting up like a weed.”
Shaylynn knew that in the woman's mind she was picturing how tall Emmett was, and it only made sense that his son would grow to rival that. But as much as Shaylynn knew it was what Alice was thinking, she also knew it was something Alice wouldn't say. So she did it for her.
“Well, Emmett was over six feet, so I guess he's going to take after his dad and not me.”
“I'm sure.” Lucas seemed not certain if he should take it any further.
“Do you remember how much Emmett used to love sports?” Shaylynn was determined to break the ice. She needed them to get comfortable with the subject so that she could introduce the other topic of conversation that she wanted to share with them.
Alice nodded where she stood. “Oh yes.
That
one”—she threw her eyes in Lucas's direction—“always had somebody he knew he could depend on if he wanted to go to a game or watch one on television.”
Lucas agreed. “Yep. And I don't know why on earth we watched sports together because we hardly ever rooted for the same team.”
Grinning, Shaylynn knew she'd gotten a breakthrough. “Except when it came to hockey. I think both of you were fans of the Milwaukee Admirals.”
“True. True.” Lucas wiped his mouth with a napkin. “But the camaraderie ended there. When it came to baseball, football, or basketball, we were archrivals. And Emmett drew the line at golf. He enjoyed playing it, but watching it on television was another story. Whenever I'd call him up and say, ‘Hey, Emmett, the first round of the Masters kicks off today,' he'd respond by saying, ‘Mr. Jessup, you're on your own, buddy.”' Lucas chuckled at the memories.
“I think Chase is going to want to play football,” Shaylynn injected. She didn't want to lose control of the conversation. Lucas could get lost in the topic of sports.
“Oh, really?” Alice frowned across the room from the kitchen counter. She'd gone there to retrieve the pot of fresh coffee. She poured a cup for herself and one for her husband. She didn't pour one for Shaylynn, probably because she knew she would decline. “I'd hate to see that baby get hurt. Football is such a violent sport.”
“It's not violent,” Lucas defended. “It's a contact sport, so it's physical.”
“Well, all I know is people get hurt.” Alice placed fresh slices of blueberry crumb cake on saucers and placed one in front of each of them. She refilled Shaylynn's glass with orange juice before taking her seat. “Do you know I saw a special on television not long ago where a player got paralyzed from the neck down because of how he fell when he got tackled? That poor man is no good for anything or anybody anymore. Paralyzed from the neck down means you can't move anything but your head. I'll bet he wishes he'd never been introduced to a football, let alone played the game.”
The last thing Shaylynn needed seared in her mind was the image of Chase Ford as a quadriplegic. She didn't know what she'd do if her baby got seriously injured while playing a sport that she'd encouraged and supported, but at the same time, she didn't want to keep him from doing something that he loved. Shaylynn tried to blink away the imagery. Maybe this wasn't the route down which to take the conversation after all. “He likes to play football now, but he might outgrow it.” Saying that pacified her, although she knew full well that it probably wouldn't happen. “He likes to toss the ball around with one of his school administrators.”
“His coach, you mean?” Lucas asked, blowing into his hot coffee.
Shaylynn took in a forkful of cake and savored the flavor as the delicious dessert literally dissolved on her tongue. This was the topic she had been trying to work her way toward, but now that the moment had arrived, she felt nervous. “Chase is not on a team or anything, so no, the man is not his coach. He's the director at the Christian academy that Chase attends. He's very interactive with the students there, and Chase likes to play football with him.”
The table was quiet for a few seconds that felt like forever. Shaylynn could feel two sets of inquisitive eyes targeted at her, but she kept focus on her plate and pretended to be totally involved with eating her dessert.
“The school's director plays football with the kids?” Lucas probed. “I mean, is he playing with
all
the kids or just Chase?”
Shaylynn suddenly felt as though she was sitting at the table with her parents, and they were scrutinizing her every word, watching her every move. She looked up and found that her earlier feel of their eyes was justified. It was time for her to make them the sounding boards that she had been looking for. “Well, actually, he does interact with all the children, but he has a certain fondness for Chase ... and for me.”
“You're dating again?” Alice approached the question with caution.
When Shaylynn nodded her answer, Alice's eyebrows rose, and that was accompanied by the sound of a soft gasp. The woman's already pale skin became ghostlike. For a moment, Shaylynn wondered whether Alice was still breathing. The sudden inhale of breath that she'd taken moments earlier seemed to have gotten lodged somewhere. Shaylynn never saw it release. Was she happy? Sad? Petrified? Shaylynn couldn't read her face well enough to determine.
“How long has this been going on?” Lucas's voice drew her eyes in his direction. “How well do you know this fella?”
Shaylynn glanced back at Alice, just to be sure the woman wasn't slipping away, then she returned her attention to Lucas. “I met Solomon shortly after moving to Atlanta. Like I said, he's the director at the school that Chase attends. I know him very well.” Shaylynn smiled, and then sipped from her juice to moisten her throat. “He's strong, ambitious, smart, protective, kind, and thoughtful. He's romantic, spontaneous, funny ... he makes me laugh all the time. He has a close-knit, wonderful family who I've had the pleasure of meeting. I really like his family, and they embraced me from the very beginning. Most of all, Solomon is a great role model. Chase loves him, and he loves Chase ... and he loves the Lord.” Lucas and Alice weren't the most dedicated churchgoers, so she didn't know whether that last part meant much to them, but it meant the world to her. None of Neil's other attributes would have won her over if they had come void of his love for God.
“He sounds a lot like Emmett.” Alice had finally found her voice.
Shaylynn quickly shook her head in disagreement. There were numerous differences between the two men. The family thing alone was one of the most obvious ones. Emmett's family had never welcomed her. If it weren't for Chase, they wouldn't have anything to do with her even now. Shaylynn purposefully avoided pointing that out though. There were plenty of other dissimilarities she could site that wouldn't test her gag reflexes. “I guess some of their core values are the same, but they are very different men.” She knew what Alice was likely thinking: that she was trying to find a substitute for Emmett, someone just like him who'd be able to fill the lingering void. But nothing could be further from the truth. There was only one Emmett Ford. Outside of them both being handsome, God-fearing men who appreciated sports, there was very little likeness between the two.
“Emmett was much taller and leaner. Solomon has a more solid, muscular build, and he's not even quite as tall as Mr. Jessup.” She pointed at Lucas when she made the comparison. “And their upbringings were entirely different. Solomon was brought up in the church, and Emmett wasn't. And from what I've been told, there probably were no silver spoons anywhere in Solomon's entire childhood home, but, as you know, Emmett was born with one in his mouth. Emmett loved politics. Solomon hates it.” She took a breath before adding. “And Emmett couldn't hold a tune if you stapled it to the palm of his hand, but when Solomon sings ...” She smiled and closed her eyes. “When Solomon sings ... something amazing happens. When he opens his mouth and lets the melodies come out, somehow everything becomes right with the world.” Shaylynn opened her eyes to see Lucas and Alice looking at her in awe. To them, she probably sounded like a lovesick teenager. She felt like one too. In closing, she said, “Emmett grew up in the big city as an only child. Solomon grew up on a farm with nine siblings. And while Emmett was a few years older than me, Solomon ... well, Solomon is—”
“Younger?” Alice's eyebrows were up again. “How much younger? I don't have anything against these so-called
cougar
relationships, but I don't care what anybody says, men take longer to mature. You're barely in your thirties, and you have a young son. A man too much younger than you won't be much more than a child himself.”
“I agree.” Lucas nodded for added effect. “Sometimes the younger men may seem mature on the surface, but you get them in a marriage, and it's a different thing. Ed and Patsy's daughter married a younger man. There aren't but five years between them, and she didn't think that was anything to be concerned about. But Ed told me the other day that Suzanna called them crying, saying she felt like she had three sons now: the twin boys she gave birth to and the one she's married to. You don't want to wake up one day feeling like you have two sons.”
“Patsy told me the same thing over tea.” Alice shook her head from side to side, like she felt sorry for their friends.
Shaylynn held up her hand to shush them both. First of all, she had no earthly idea who Ed and Patsy were, let alone their poor, disappointed daughter, Suzanna. All she knew was that the Jessups had drawn the wrong conclusion and were running away with it. “Solomon's not younger than I am. He's older. A few years older.”
Lucas's voice broke through the cloud of silence that hovered over them for several moments. “What's your definition of
a few years?”
“Almost fifteen.”
The amplified clank of Alice's fork as it slipped from her hand and hit her saucer resonated in the dining space, but her voice that followed was barely more than a whisper. “Fifteen?”
“Yes, ma'am. Almost. He's about fourteen and a half years older.”

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