When Solomon Sings (24 page)

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Authors: Kendra Norman-Bellamy

BOOK: When Solomon Sings
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TWENTY-THREE
“You've been flying high for two days, Dr. Taylor,” Margaret said as she entered his office and handed him the stack of folders in her hand. “You hit the lottery and didn't tell me?”
Neil laughed. “You know I don't gamble, Ms. Dasher. And don't act like you're not on the same high that I'm on.”
Taking the liberty to sit in the chair across from his desk, Margaret said, “Lord have mercy. I have hardly slept since Sunday evening when I heard the news. Now, I'm not saying I haven't seen any miracles in my day, 'cause truth be told, it was a miracle that I didn't kill my first husband when I found out that he'd been sleeping with our neighbor ... in the same bed that he and I slept in.” Margaret pursed her lips and grabbed the letter opener from Neil's pencil holder, clutching it like it was a switchblade. “That devil didn't know how close he came to getting something cut off him that he needed.”
“Whoa ... whoa. Hold up,” Neil said. Margaret always had the tendency to go into some kind of bipolar-like twisted tangent when she referenced her first husband. “Just calmly put that down and back away from my desk.”
She put the letter opener back and just as quickly as she'd gotten riled, she shifted back to first gear. “I'm so happy for Pastor and First Lady. And see? I knew you'd learn sooner or later that what everybody's been telling you about your voice is true.”
Neil smiled. He knew it was only a matter of time before Margaret would get to her “I told you so” speech. He probably would have gotten it yesterday, but Neil opted to take the day off in preparation for today. He had only stopped by his office briefly, to print some ticket information that he had saved on the hard drive of his computer. Shaylynn knew that he had planned something special for Valentine's Day night, but she had no idea just how special it was going to be.
“There are a few things that became clear to me over the past couple of weeks,” Neil admitted, “and my calling to sing is just one of them. I mean, I've always known I had a special gift, but God confirmed some things for me in all of this.”
“Yeah. He confirmed just how stupid you've been for doubting it to begin with.”
Neil couldn't deny it, so he moved on. “Pastor Loather said that although Theresa hasn't awakened yet, she's been responding well to the tests they've been giving her at the hospital, and all her MRIs and other scans have come out normal. No brain damage has been detected.”
Margaret stood. “Well, as big a miracle as that is, to tell the truth, none of it should surprise us. We're always talking and singing about how all-powerful God is, but as soon as something like this happen, we act all shocked, like we didn't even know God had it in Him. We serve a good God, and He doesn't do anything halfway. If He wants to heal a person completely, then that's what He'll do.”
Nodding in agreement, Neil said, “So true. When Shaylynn and I went to the hospital last night, Theresa was looking like herself for the first time. She just looks like she's asleep. She even stirs if you nudge her or tickle her feet. Dr. Hale says they expect her to open her eyes any day. Since all her tests are fine, as soon as she wakes up, they are going to move her out of ICU. Her unconsciousness is the only thing keeping her there.”
“I hear there's going to be a write-up on it in this weekend's edition of the
Atlanta Weekly Chronicles
.”
Margaret had to be the nosiest person Neil knew. How she'd found that out, he didn't know. CJ had just told Neil about it last night while he and Shaylynn were visiting. Hunter Greene, the owner of the highly popular newspaper, was the son-in-law of Reverend Tides, and he had gotten exclusive rights to print the full story. It would be on the front page when the paper was released on Friday.
“Yes, that's true.” Neil decided against asking her where she'd heard it. If there was a long “he said, she said” story attached, he didn't want to hear it.
“I sure wish Pastor would let us come out and see First Lady, especially now that she's doing so much better. I don't know why he let some and not others.”
“I think there's a good chance that he'll completely lift the restrictions once she's in a regular room.” Neil knew when Margaret said “some,” she really meant Shaylynn. He and Shaylynn were the only two non-related church members who had been allowed, and by process of elimination, he knew Margaret wasn't talking about him. There was no one who would not have expected CJ to allow Neil access.
“So do you and Ms. Ford have plans for tonight?” Margaret was looking over her frames at him now. Neil knew that meant only one thing: her nosey nose was about to start sniffing.
“It's Valentine's Day, of course we do.” Neil pretended to busy himself with organizing the files she'd brought him. Margaret was good at reading eyes, and he didn't want her to decipher his plans for the evening. This was his and Shaylynn's second Valentine's Day together, so he knew a marriage proposal wouldn't be Margaret's first guess.
“Where are you going? Dinner? Dancing?”
“Maybe a little bit of both.” Neil figured the best route was to just tell her the part he didn't mind her knowing. Margaret would stop fishing if he just handed her a nice-sized perch and called it a day. “I'm taking her to dinner at Canoe and to the concert at the civic center.”
Margaret's eyes grew large. “The one with Peabo Bryson?”
“That's the one.”
She wrapped her arms around herself like Peabo was in front of her. “I love that man! And isn't James Ingram there too?”
“And Jeffery Osborne.” Judging from Margaret's reaction, Neil knew he'd hit a home run with this choice. He could only hope that Shaylynn would feel the same.
“Well, shoot! You could've given me tickets to that show. I didn't have to be a third wheel; I could have driven my own car and sat clear on the other side of the auditorium.”
Neil laughed. “There's just no pleasing you. Didn't I present you with a dozen roses this morning?”
“Yes, you did. And they were real pretty up until you told me you had tickets to this concert. The good seats sold out real fast.”
“I know,” Neil said. “The brokers bought them as soon as they hit the Web so they could jack up the prices and resell at a hundred percent profit. I only know one guy who was idiotic enough to go to them and pay those ridiculous prices rather than settling for seats that were farther back.”
“Who was that?”
When Neil raised his left hand, both of them burst out laughing. “Hey, an idiot's gotta do what an idiot's gotta do. Valentine's Day comes only once a year, right?”
“I hope Ms. Ford knows she's got a good one. I still can't believe my niece let you get away.”
“You mean the niece with the bench warrant for assault and battery? The niece the police came and handcuffed
while
we were on our date?” He laughed again. “I don't mean no harm, Ms. Dasher, but she didn't
let
me get away. I was getting away with or without her permission.”
Margaret shook her head. “My poor Lawrence ... God rest his soul. His family is so messed up. Even the ones with good book sense are just a bunch of educated fools.”
Neil never knew either of Margaret's husbands, but from all he'd heard, she seemed to really love the second one. That was more than could be said about the first man she'd married. Every time she mentioned him, she did so through clinched teeth. Lawrence was the only one she'd even identify with a proper name. The first guy was always identified by words like
devil
and
beast
. On good days, he was upgraded to
fool
or
scoundrel.
Neil had often wondered what the man's given name was, but he was too afraid for his own life to ask.
“Well, let me get back to my desk and finish things up so I can get out of here on time.” Margaret began walking to the door, and then stopped. “Did Sean Thomas call you today?”
“Who?”
“Sean Thomas. That's the same man who called here for you a few weeks ago and said he just wanted to be sure he had the right workplace. He called again yesterday while you were out.”
Neil hadn't heard that name since the first message Margaret gave him. At that time he didn't see any need to be concerned, but now that the man was calling again, his curiosity was piqued. “Did he leave a message or a call-back number this time?”
“No.” A slight grin tugged on Margaret's face. “This fellow has a young voice. You don't think that maybe Ms. Ford has an ex she never told you about, do you?”
The thought had never crossed Neil's mind, but now, thanks to Margaret, it was sitting front and center. He shook his head despite his doubts. “No. Shay would have told me.” He tried to shrug it off like before. “Oh well. As long as he's not leaving a message, it can't be too important.”
Neil wished he believed his own words.
TWENTY-FOUR
If Margaret Dasher thought he was flying high today, she should have seen him tonight. Neil felt like he was floating on cloud nine ... and that was only because that was the highest-numbered cloud he'd ever heard mentioned. If there was a cloud ten, eleven, twelve, or twenty, then that was the one he was riding.
She said yes!
The look in Shaylynn's eyes, the joy in her voice, the tremble of her hand as he slipped on the ring—all of it was etched in Neil's mind forever. He'd sworn that he'd never take this step again, but right now, he gladly called himself a liar. Nothing in the world could be better than this feeling of making Shaylynn his wife, and when he held and kissed her tonight, Neil found an amazing sense of relief in knowing that his days of having to leave the house after saying good night to her were coming to an end.
He shuddered when he thought of how he'd almost changed his mind again. Everything had been going so well. Shaylynn enjoyed the concert more than Neil imagined she would. In fact, she enjoyed it just a little too much. Her reaction to James Ingram had Neil wondering if he should shave his head bald. Not only had the concert gone better than expected, but upon leaving the auditorium, Neil noticed a missed call, and inside the quiet of his truck, he and Shaylynn listened together while CJ tearfully told them that Theresa had opened her eyes. Shaylynn broke into such praise that Neil wondered if she was going to open the door, jump out, and take a lap around the crowded parking lot. To his relief, she didn't.
After all the highs, things took a downward turn at Canoe. After weeks of not hearing Shaylynn mention Emmett's name, she'd worked it into their dinner conversation. Neil had to excuse himself from the table and go into the men's room to regroup. And even after regrouping and rejoining her at the dinner table, doubts continued to plague him. If she rejected his proposal on any day, it would result in major dejection, but if she rejected him after referencing Emmett, it would be emasculating.
When he took her back to her house and they were saying their good-byes, Neil knew he couldn't let the moment pass. This was their first night out together since Shaylynn had become Li'l Miss's caregiver. They had been fortunate enough to get his mother to keep both children tonight, but Neil was getting tired of enjoying dates with Shaylynn only to have to say good night at the end of it all. He wanted to hear Chase call him something more than Dr. Taylor. He wanted more than hugs and kisses from Shaylynn. He longed for all the ...
fun
that she'd assured him would satisfy his next wife. And if he was going to be able to get any of the things that he wanted out of this relationship, he was going to have to lay all his insecurities on the line, go for it, and hope to God that she said yes. And he did. And
she
did.
Thank you
,
Jesus!
That was the umpteenth time the praise had played in his head. Neil removed his hat and coat, and sat on the sofa. He felt so happy that he could hardly contain himself. He felt
too
happy, and that thought alone made him put the brakes on his overactive heart. If being shot down at the happiest moment could possibly be a genetic trait, he was headed for trouble. His father, his brother ... both of them had died in the middle of their happiness.
Leaning his head against the back of the sofa, Neil laughed out loud. He wasn't going to allow the devil to steal his joy. He didn't believe in bad luck or family curses. Just because things happened to others in his family certainly didn't mean it was going to happen to him. He had brothers who were happily married and had great families. Death and disaster hadn't run them over, and he wasn't going to allow it to overtake him either. There was no way he'd die before experiencing a life with Shaylynn. He'd kill death before he'd allow death to kill him. The irony of him killing death made Neil laugh even harder, but the humor dried when he heard his doorbell.
Who would be coming to his door at this hour? He sat in the quiet darkness for a moment, wondering if he was hearing things. A second chime verified the obvious, and Neil stood and flicked the wall switch that brought light to his living room. There was no sense in pretending no one was home. Whoever was at his door had surely heard him laughing just moments earlier. Neil looked at the watch on his wrist. The little hand was grazing the edge of the one, and the big hand was on the ten. It was probably CJ. It had to be. He was the one person who knew Neil's Valentine's Day plans, and he probably couldn't wait to hear the results. Neil couldn't wait to tell him either. No doubt, CJ had told Theresa by now, and more likely than not, she was the one who had shooed her husband to Neil's house to get the juicy details.
A smile twisted his lips, and he reached for the doorknob. But just to be sure, he asked, “Yes? Who is it?”
“Sean Thomas.”
An automatic reaction snatched Neil's hand away from the door.
Sean Thomas?
One moment, the name sounded vaguely familiar, and the next, it was very familiar. This was the mystery man who had called his office twice over the past two months, but had never left a detailed message with Neil's assistant. Neil knew the name, but he didn't know the man. Whoever this Sean Thomas character was, Neil wasn't about to let him in his house at ten minutes before one in the morning.
“Who are you looking for?” Maybe the gentleman was confused. Neil Taylor was a pretty common name. Maybe it was a different Neil Taylor he was searching for. Maybe—
“Neil Taylor, son of Ernest and Eloise Taylor,” the voice replied.
Okay ... maybe not. Only a few people in Atlanta knew his mother by her given name of Eloise, and even fewer knew his father by anything other than Pop, so this person must have known Neil from his youthful days in Mississippi. But he still wasn't ready to identify himself as the person being sought. He wasn't exactly fearful, but he could hear his heart pounding in his own ears. Neil had no idea who Sean Thomas was or what he wanted, but for some reason, his gut feeling told him that this wasn't good news.
“What business do you have with Mr. Taylor?”
For a few seconds, it was quiet on the other side of the door. Then ... “Well, I've been told that you ... I mean, he ... made a mistake a few years ago. So I guess you can say that my business with him is that ... I'm his
oops
baby.”
Neil felt his legs become weak. It was worse than he thought. Maybe dying before the wedding wasn't such a bad idea after all.
Shaylynn lay in bed with her left arm raised and her fingers spread out like the feathers of a peacock. She had never had anything so uniquely beautiful in all her life, and every time the overhead light struck the diamond, it made her think of all the fairytales that she used to read about and watch on television as a child. There was always something that sparkled in those fairy tales. A shoe, a crown, a star, a ring ...
something
. She felt like one of them—a damsel in distress—who had just been saved by her prince. She thought the day would never come that Neil would ask her to be his bride, but now, in this moment, the wait was all worth it. Of course! Why hadn't she thought of it before? Valentine's Day was the perfect time, and while she was fretting for no reason, Neil had probably had it earmarked all the while. Shaylynn was glad that she'd been patient and had never pressured him ... even though she wanted to ...
badly
.
She turned over in the bed but kept her hand out where she could see it. Now it lay on the pillow beside her face. Even from this angle the light ricocheted off of it. Sooner or later, if she planned to get any sleep at all, she'd need to turn off her overhead light, but for now sleep was the last thing on her mind. The only sad part about all of her wonderful news was that she had no family to share it with. No parents, no siblings; not even a best friend. The closest friend she had was in the hospital recovering, and having not seen Theresa since she opened her eyes, Shaylynn wasn't sure how coherent she was. But as soon as she thought it was a sensible time to go by the hospital for a visit, she would find out. Since CJ and Neil were so close, Shaylynn figured Neil would probably beat her to the punch, but still, she was going to share her joy with Theresa.
“I wonder if she'll be my matron of honor?” Shaylynn thought aloud. Was it acceptable for the first lady of the church to stand with her as she got married? Shaylynn didn't know what the rule book said, if there was a rule book, but she definitely was going to ask. If Theresa didn't do it, she didn't know who else would. She had no other women in her life who she considered her friends.
“I'll ask Mr. Jessup to escort me down the aisle.” Before Shaylynn knew it, she was sitting up in her bed with her laptop powered and planning out her entire wedding. She knew it seemed foolish and premature, but right now, becoming Mrs. Neil Taylor was all that she could think about.
“Matron of honor, Theresa Loather. Bridal escort, Lucas Jessup. Gown color, ivory.” She said the words as she typed them, and tradition had everything yet nothing to do with her decision not to wear white.
Tradition said that as a woman who had been married previously, she didn't qualify for a white gown, but had Shaylynn wanted to wear white, she knew she could without raising too many eyebrows. When it came to weddings, most customs that were once mandatory were optional in the twenty-first century. Tradition also said that bridal veils represented innocence and purity. Shaylynn had worn a veil for her first marriage, and she was nowhere near a virgin. She and Emmett were practically living together, and everybody knew it, but nobody challenged her decision to march down the aisle with a covered face.
This time around, Shaylynn wanted to do it right on every level. She and Neil had kept their courtship pure, and she didn't know about him, but for her, it hadn't been easy. There were days when she had to pray against the enemies of her own hands. She loved touching Neil, and knowing that he relished her touches only encouraged her urges. Reaching for him felt like second nature. Withdrawing her hand from him didn't come so easily. She had been celibate ever since Emmett died, and up until she began dating Neil, staying celibate hadn't been a struggle. She now understood the message she'd heard CJ preach when she first began attending KBCC as a habitual visitor almost two years ago. In it, he'd said that there was no testimony in a person's purity if they weren't being tempted. In a case like that, CJ said that person was celibate by default. Only when the opportunity was there, yet the person
chose
to live according to God's will did they have a testimony of victory.
When Shaylynn married Emmett, everything about the wedding was exaggerated. There was a horse-drawn carriage waiting outside to take the bride and groom to their honeymoon suite after the reception, and six limos to transport the thirty-two attendants wherever they needed to go. Shaylynn didn't know a single one of her sixteen attendants. They were all friends and relatives of the Ford family who, if they were anything like Emmett's parents, couldn't have cared less about the girl for whom they were serving as attendants.
But as much as Emmett's parents hated her, they'd picked up the full tab for the celebration. Shaylynn didn't have to pay a dime, which was good, because she didn't have much more than a dime to pay. Had Shaylynn had to foot the bill, she and Emmett would have been getting married at the courthouse, and Melinda Ford would have never tolerated such foolishness. Emmett's mother wanted to make sure that her son's wedding would be the talk of the town. And it was.
The train of Shaylynn's wedding gown was so long and had so many pearls and flowers sewn into it that it made moving uncomfortable. The entire time that she was walking up the aisle, she felt like the details of her train were getting caught in the fibers of the carpet. By the time she made it to the front of the cathedral where they were wed, Shaylynn felt like she had been punished. She was left to wonder if her mother-in-law had purposefully made the walk a chore. And the church was so full of flowers that Shaylynn felt like she was getting married in the middle of somebody's funeral. Now that she thought about it all, she wondered if that was a deliberate move on her in-laws' part too. Emmett's parents probably saw their son's wedding as their funeral. If Shaylynn hadn't loved him so much, in hindsight she would see their stupidity as comical.

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