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  April finally moved from her living room to the kitchen to get a bottle of water, but her anger had not cooled as she slammed the door on her state of the art refrigerator.

  April had always been a woman who used men to take care of her and to get what she wanted. She could spot a wealthy and vulnerable man from a mile away. Married or single mattered not to her. She was usually only in it for what they could offer her. There had been more than a few who wanted something more stable from her. That was usually the time she would replace him with a fresh face. She had also had her share of stalkers, but they would usually go away after being introduced to her cute nickel-plated .32-caliber pistol. This was Arizona, after all, and it seemed as if everyone was packing heat. She would not have been able to get away with having the gun as easily if she still lived in Chicago.

  About four months into their affair, April found herself falling in love with William. This was so very different for her. The only emotion April ever allowed herself to feel for a man was that of greed. William, however, was unlike all the men she had been with, both in Chi-town and Arizona. William was a very intelligent businessman, serving as a director of finance for USA Bank. While most of the men she associated with only respected her beauty, William recognized her intellect as well, and he spoke about it often. Although April made a great living from the men she dealt with, she also held a master’s degree and worked as a design engineer for an architectural firm. A lot of the time April and William were together was spent just talking and sharing. Many of their dates ended without sex.

  William did not speak about his wife, good or bad, too often. The other married men she dealt with in the past always moaned and complained that their wives spent too much money. Their wives were no longer interested in sex. Their wives were lazy and unadventurous. On and on they went about their wives’ negative qualities. William, however, hardly ever mentioned his wife when he and April were together. The only memorable thing April could remember William saying about his wife was that she was the only person that called him Billy.

  On the other hand, William spoke about his son, William Jr. or B.J., short for Billy Junior, often. He was very proud of his little boy. His love for him was very obvious. April had never met William’s son of course, but simply by the way he spoke so enthusiastically, she knew that once she and William were together for good, she would care for the child as her very own.

  It was about six months into her relationship with William that April stopped seeing other men and set her heart on one day having William exclusively. She knew without a doubt that William had deep feelings for her, feelings that extended well beyond the physical. He made her feel important, needed, wanted, and safe. He was expressive, generous, and humorous. Despite the fact that the relationship did not hinge on it, he was also an extremely attentive lover. And as strange as it may sound under the circumstances, the fact that William attended and participated in church and its various activities was also a plus in April’s eyes. Though she was not a Bible-thumping, scripture-quoting holy roller, she did believe in God and His Son, Jesus Christ.

  April had no real idea why a man like William was cheating on his wife or what kind of wife William had, but it was her estimation that she must be lacking in some area. April could not imagine any woman who would not find William to be a wonderful man worth holding onto at all costs. Apparently he was married to one, however, and April appreciated whatever shortcomings Mrs. Rucker possessed. They gave her the opportunity and ammunition to show him she would be all the woman he needed.

  Chapter Two

  As William drove his family home from church, his nerves were completely frazzled. He walked past head usher Gordon as she spoke with April. Though he could not get a good ear on the conversation without obviously stopping to listen, he could tell that Sister Gordon was none too happy. April’s facial expression showed animosity as well. So as to not draw attention, William walked past the ladies as if their conversation meant absolutely nothing in the world to him. From his peripheral vision he could see other congregants slowing to get an earful. He was beyond a doubt certain that April was very unhappy about being approached in front of an audience.

  Even under duress April was absolutely stunning to William. Her beautiful face kept flashing before his eyes as he drove and his wife, Aujanae, sat in the passenger’s seat singing along softly to the gospel music that played. Their son, fourteen-month-old B.J., slept peacefully in his car sat in the back.

  The fact that April was from the Midwest was one of William’s biggest attractions to her initially. Though he met his wife in college at the University of Michigan, Aujanae was originally from Mobile, Alabama. He found her southern charm new and refreshing. Her honesty and humility quickly endeared her to him, but he still enjoyed the sassy flavor of a Midwest woman.

  Up until the day William initially laid eyes on April fourteen months ago, no one could have ever told him he would be cheating on his wife. He loved her. He loved her when he met April three days before his son was born. He loved her and his son now. Their courtship and marriage had been marred by very little drama, but as with all relationships, there was some. Coincidently, one of those few periods in his marriage to Aujanae was happening on the very day William met April.

  Aujanae had never been what some would call a sex kitten, but William found their sex life satisfactory. This changed, however, when his wife found out she was pregnant.

  They celebrated her pregnancy announcement with a nice evening of lovemaking. Shortly after that night, Aujanae began to represent herself as anything but sexy as she began suffering from the effects of her first trimester of pregnancy. The morning sickness was almost unbearable for her, as it lasted all day for the duration of those first three and a half months. Once the morning sickness passed, Aujanae felt too fat, unattractive, and undesirable. No matter how often William would assure his wife he wanted and needed her physically, she could not be convinced. In the nine months of the pregnancy, William and Aujanae made love three times; those second two times only after an impeccable amount of begging. William knew his wife had not enjoyed either encounter.

  Then along came the beautiful, sexy, smart, and interested April, and as the saying goes, that was all she wrote.

  William called April one week after she gave him her phone number.

  “Hello,” April answered, unsure of the number on her caller ID.

  “Hello. Am I speaking with April?”

  “Yes. This is April.”

  “Hello, April. This is William Rucker. You gave me your phone number a few days ago while I sat eating my lunch.”

  “Hello, Mr. Rucker. I’m not surprised you called, but I am wondering where is Mrs. Rucker on this early afternoon?”

  Wow! William thought. He didn’t know whether or not April noticed he was married. “So you know I’m married. Why, then, did you want me to call you?”

  “After spying your wedding band, I noticed the pained look in your eyes. Anyone radiating that much sadness could not be happily married, so I decided I had to do my civic duty to help relieve you of the marital blahs from which you were obviously suffering.”

  To be honest, William was somewhat put off by her forwardness, yet still intrigued as he remembered her beauty. His desire to see her again after hearing her voice could be likened to that of an addict needing a hit of drugs. They arranged to meet for their first date three days later. Exactly one week after the date of his son’s birth. In essence, April had been a part of his life for virtually as long as his only child.

  When April joined the church a few weeks ago, William was bothered by her antic, but was strangely turned on and flattered at the same time. When he asked her about it a couple days after she joined, she admitted that she did it to be closer to him and to see Aujanae. She told him several months prior that she had fallen in love with him and wanted him all to herself. She had yet to repeat those words, but she had since begun performing to show him she meant it. April never threaten
ed him or gave him an ultimatum. She just worked hard to prove she was the better woman for him.

  William, poor William, could not be certain she wasn’t.

  Aujanae Rucker continued to sing along with the gospel songs that played from her iPod through the car’s music system. She sang and concentrated on the lyrics to keep from having to concentrate on her husband, who sat pensively beside her as he drove them home from church.

  For the past few months, probably about three or four to get closer to being accurate, she had been concentrating on a bunch of different things in an effort to keep her mind off the eerie feeling she had that William was seeing another woman, having an affair, cheating on her.

  William had begun spending a lot more time at work since B.J. had been born. He explained to her that he had been putting in more hours so that he could get a promotion, move up in the company, and make more money to take better care of his family. In essence, he had actually received a small promotion about four months ago. No one was more proud of him than Aujanae. With the additional money he received, they opened an additional savings account as a college fund for their son, but that seemed to only prompt him to work even harder. His fifty-hour a week job now had him working up to seventy hours a week as he worked toward a vice presidency.

  Aujanae believed her husband’s claims of working ridiculous hours wholeheartedly, until just after he received the initial promotion. Then something in her changed.

  Because she never doubted her husband before, she had never done any snooping behind him. She had no evidence of any betrayal. She attributed his absence from her presence to exactly what he said: his striving to rise in his career. However, Aujanae woke up in the wee hours one morning, 4:35 A.M. to be precise. She looked over at her husband, who had only come to bed four hours earlier and was sound asleep. At that precise moment, something stirred in her, giving her reason to believe there was another woman in his life—and not just some snippy little hussy he was only physically involved with either. This was a woman of some significance to him.

  Though she was certain in her spirit there was something unsavory going on with her husband, she was less than certain that she wanted to know it in her flesh. William had been her life from the moment they started dating in her senior year of college six years ago. In her mind, they had a wonderful courtship and an even greater marriage. The birth of their son, William Jr., only increased the joy of their happy life.

  Aujanae remembered William being extremely excited when she told him she was carrying their child and he was tremendously supportive during the difficult months of her pregnancy. Sure, their sex life suffered a bit during that time, but the emotional love the two shared kept them bonded beyond the physical intimacy they lacked.

  Aujanae silently left the bed that morning, went downstairs to the family room, and began praying. After her talk with God, asking Him to give her strength and to show her what to do to hold onto her man and her marriage, she returned to their bed with one edict in mind. She would not accuse him or nag him with her revelations. Aujanae would just do what she could do to be a better wife. She would continue to listen to God and allow Him to lead her on the decisions she should make concerning her family.

  Today, when the gorgeous woman who always seemed to be in the vicinity of wherever her family sat on Sunday morning again sat near her and her family in church, that same Spirit rose up in her. Aujanae, who was already very distressed with the idea that her husband was spending time with another woman, did not want to make assumptions about the unease she felt as a result of this woman’s presence today or her remembrance of her constant company for the past few weeks. But it was difficult not to wonder why this woman made her so uneasy, and if she was indeed the woman who was stealing her husband’s time and attention.

  As the family walked past Sister Gordon looking as if she was giving the woman a piece of her mind about something, Aujanae had to restrain herself from running over and giving the head usher a big hug. She instead watched her husband as he watched the scene with painful eyes.

  As they pulled into their driveway, Aujanae had decided that after she put her son down to sleep, she would run herself a relaxing bath and have another talk with God to see what she should do next.

  Katrina Hartfield sat at her desk daydreaming about how handsome David looked standing in the choir stand at church yesterday. David sang the solo as he led the choir in a beautiful rendition of Donnie’s McClur-kin’s song “Speak to my Heart.” Every time she laid eyes on him she fell just a bit more in love with him. When he sang, her feelings doubled, so at this point she was truly head over heels crazy for the man. Katrina wanted David in the worst way, and she was sure David knew exactly how she felt about him too.

  David Mathis stepped into Katrina’s life for the first time eight months ago when he came to the church to meet with her boss, Pastor Calvin Abraham. David was new to Phoenix. His former pastor in Detroit was a good friend of Pastor Abraham. He recommended King David’s Christian Tabernacle as a church home and Pastor Abraham as a mentor for David. This worked out great because this was the same church his cousin William Rucker attended.

  When Katrina received the call from the receptionist to inform her that Pastor Abraham’s appointment had arrived, she went to personally greet David and to escort him to the pastor’s office. When she arrived at the reception area, Stacey, the receptionist, was openly flirting with him. Upon getting a look at him, she could totally understand Stacey’s inappropriate behavior. One look at the handsome stranger and Katrina wondered if the church was named for him and his beauty instead of the biblical king.

  As Katrina led David through the halls to the office she asked, “So how will it feel to attend a church with the same name as you?”

  David chuckled and responded. “It will be interesting, I’m sure.”

  The magnificent timbre of his voice made the hairs on the back of Katrina’s neck stand at attention.

  “Wow! What a great voice. Do you sing, Mr. Mathis?” Katrina could hear the swoon in her voice only after she asked the question, and she felt quite embarrassed.

  David laughed his sexy laugh again, as he too noticed the emotion in the voice of the pastor’s pretty assistant. “I’m sorry. I don’t think you told me your name.”

  Now Katrina was thoroughly embarrassed. “Oh my goodness. I was so busy admiring your voice and your face that I forgot to introduce myself.”

  Oh God! Please tell me I did not say that out loud. The look on David’s face told her she had. Now completely humiliated, she meekly offered him her hand in introduction just as they reached Pastor Abraham’s office.

  “Hello. My name is Katrina Hartfield. Please forgive me for my juvenile, unprofessional, and even un-Christian behavior.”

  “No harm. No foul. This has been one of the best receptions and introductions I have ever received,” David said just before he rewarded Katrina with a prizewinning smile.

  Katrina smiled shyly in return, as she was still a little disgraced. She knocked on Pastor Abraham’s door to let him know David was there.

  Pastor Abraham opened the door and immediately received David with a smile and an affectionate hug. He greeted him as if they were old friends reuniting after many years, instead of a young man he had never previously seen.

  “Come into my office, young man. It is so nice to meet you. I am Pastor Calvin Abraham.”

  “It is very nice to meet you too, sir.” David began to follow Pastor Abraham into his office but stopped just on the other side of the threshold. “Thanks for everything, Katrina. And by the way, I do sing. If I decide to make this my church home, I hope to join a choir.” He again smiled and walked into the office.

  Katrina’s affections toward David began that day and continued to build with each encounter, until they bloomed into full-blown love.

  Now, here she sat daydreaming eight months later, like practically every other single female in the congregation, about a man who had been nothing more
than kind to her.

  For the past eight months every time Katrina would meet a guy who showed any interest in her she would compare him to David. If he was not tall like David or as gentlemanly as David or if he could not sing like David or as was not as good a conversationalist as David, she could not be bothered for too long. The only area in which she would cut a guy some slack was looks because there was no other man as handsome as David. In Katrina’s opinion, even Denzel Washington came in a distant second.

  The only man Katrina wanted was David Lorenzo Mathis. The only thing that kept her from having him was his girlfriend, Toriyana Kent, who still lived in Detroit.

  Katrina’s musings were interrupted by her ringing cell phone. Checking the caller ID, she realized the intruder on her thoughts was her best friend, Maleeka. “Hey, Mal,” Katrina greeted as she answered the phone.

  “Hey, Kat. What you up to other than work?”

  “What am I always up to when I’m not bogged down with work? This happens to be one of those times, by the way.”

  “You are daydreaming about David Mathis. I have never seen anyone pine away for a man they have never even made a move on the way you do. You act as if he was your man once upon a time and he broke your heart.” Maleeka was a little exasperated by her best friend’s infatuation.

  “I know. I have got it bad.”

  “What gets me is you refuse to do anything about it. Why won’t you let him know how you feel about him?”

  “You do know why, because I have told you a million times. He has a girlfriend, Mal. Besides, the man is supposed to pursue the woman, not the other way around.”

  “Okay, Kat. I can appreciate that. But there is no harm in letting him know you are available and willing to be pursued.”

  “Well, I am glad you can appreciate it. I am sure, however, that his girlfriend won’t appreciate me making myself available to her man.”