by Yvette Hines
“I understand there won’t be a true wedding night, but we’ll have to leave our reception guests and go somewhere. We want everything to look like it’s on the up and up, don’t we?”
Yasmine thought she felt her knees began to tremble as she watched him rise off the desk and make a slow swagger in her direction. “Where do you suggest we go?”
“Leave that to me. I’ll take care of it.” He stopped less than a foot away from her.
“Are you sure?” Yasmine backed up until she felt the doorknob press against her hand.
“It’ll be no problem.”
He gave her one of his sexy smiles; it caused a wave of heat to slide down her spine.
“Okay,” the only response Yasmine could think of before she made her escape.
~ML~
“Guess you’re not as indifferent as you’d like me to believe, Yasmine.” Jason spoke out loud to himself. He couldn’t help the smile that crossed his features as he returned to his desk.
At least I won’t be the only one suffering, Jason thought to himself.
He didn’t know why he had suggested they go on a honeymoon; he was just making things harder on himself—literally. They could have easily stayed at either of their places; no one would have made a production about it. He was just causing himself more pressure.
After what she had told him about her first marriage, he was feeling the need to let Yasmine know she could trust him. Besides, it would be his first marriage, and he wanted it with as much of the trimmings as possible. Even if the main one wasn’t there.
Shaking his head he couldn’t believe that Yasmine had practically given him permission to sleep around. He knew he wouldn’t do it; marriage vows were something he took seriously.
“Well, if I’m planning on keeping the makers of coconut butter lotion in business, I better find out if I can.” He picked up the phone he dialed a number of the only person who would be able to give him the answer he sought.
“Dr. Hudson’s office, Linda speaking.” An articulate voice greeted him through the phone.
“Hi, this is Jason Richardson, I’d like to make a follow-up appointment with Dr. Hudson.”
“I can handle that for you, Mr. Richardson. Is this an urgent appointment?”
Jason could hear her flipping pages in what he assumed were the Dr.’s appointment book.
“No it’s not urgent, but I need it within two weeks.”
Eleven
“Good morning, Pastor Hiles’ office. How may I help you?” a serene voice answered the phone.
“Hello, Mrs. Hiles. It’s Yasmine.” Yasmine recognized the voice on the other end. Her pastor’s wife had taken over the job of being his secretary after the youngest of their five children had turned eighteen and had gone away to college. Donna Hiles had told her she needed something to fill her days now that the nest was empty.
“Hello, dear, how are you?”
“I’m doing good.” They chatted briefly, before Yasmine continued, “If the pastor’s available, I’d really like to speak with him.”
“You sure can. He just finished up with a meeting with the youth pastor and he’s free. One moment and I will connect you.”
“Thank you.”
Yasmine barely heard a complete line of the Christian jazz artist before her pastor’s voice came on the line, deep and melodic.
“Yasmine, it’s good to hear from you. How is everything with your business?”
“Very well, thank you for asking.” For the second time that day, Yasmine found herself feeling nervous, but this time she could understand why. This man had been her pastor since she had been in college and there wasn’t much about her life that he didn’t know.
“So, how can I help you?”
“Pastor Hiles, I’m getting married.” Yasmine found no need to beat around the bush.
“Congratulations. Is it to one of our members?”
“No, sir.”
“That’s okay. So, when do I get to meet this young man?”
Yasmine should have guessed he’d want to see them before performing the wedding.
“Umm, how about this week?” Yasmine figured since he was going to meet with them anyway, there was no need to drop the rest of the bombshell over the phone.
“This week. Wow, that soon. Let me look at my schedule.
Yasmine got the jazz artist once again as she waited for him to check with his wife for available times.
He returned to the phone and gave her a date and time.
“I’ll talk with Jason and call back and confirm the time with your wife.”
“No problem. I’m looking forward to meeting this young man. God bless.”
“You too, sir.” She hung up the line.
~ML~
“Pastor Sean Solomon Hiles.” Her pastor offered his hand to Jason.
Pastor Hiles gaze was directed toward Jason, as if he were sizing him up, as a father would do a suitor of one of his daughters.
That made Yasmine feel warm inside, considering this man was closer to her than her actual father.
“Jason Richardson.”
Yasmine watched Jason shake hands with her pastor before he escorted them into his office.
Two nights ago, Yasmine had used Jason’s home number off the information form he had filled out at her office, to tell him about the premarital counseling time. He had agreed to come without a pause.
After they were seated, Pastor Hiles asked Jason some questions about his background and faith. Yasmine hadn’t known how he would take to the questions, considering he said it had been awhile since he had practiced his faith, but he showed no irritation and didn’t hesitate in any of his responses.
“So, when are you all planning to get married?” Pastor Hiles asked looking at both of them with a quizzical smile.
“Little under two weeks,” Jason answered.
“Two weeks?” From the questioning look on her pastor’s face it was evident that he was shocked.
He turned to her and asked, “Are you pregnant?”
Yasmine felt herself blush. “No, sir.”
“Then what’s the rush?”
She respected her pastor too much not to be honest. “I’m going to be honest with you, Pastor. We are getting married so I can adopt two children from the orphanage.”
She watched the man of God, continuing to sit quietly in his chair for a long moment before he asked. “Are you in love?”
“No, sir.” She wanted to bow her head in shame, but didn’t. She knew Pastor Hiles was not the type to judge.
One thing he was though, was a direct and honest man, which was manifested in the way he asked, “So, you want me to marry the two of you, knowing that it isn’t a love match?”
“Yes, sir, I hoped that you would. I’ll understand if you can’t under the circumstances.”
Not answering her, he cast his intense gaze to Jason, “Why would you want to marry a woman who doesn’t love you?”
Jason didn’t flinch. “Sir, all I know is that her desire for these kids touched my heart. I couldn’t stop myself from offering her the chance to have them.”
“This is a big responsibility you’re taking on,” the pastor commented.
“I understand what it will entail, sir, and I’m willing to do it,” Jason confirmed.
“So, what happens to these children if she gets pregnant?” her pastor asked.
That was a question Yasmine was not prepared for.
“We’ll deal with it as a family.” Jason answered.
Yasmine looked over at Jason—she was impressed, that he could think that quickly on his feet. She chose to keep silent about the fact she and Jason were not planning to consummate the marriage.
“Yasmine, I’ve prayed for you to someday heal from what happened to you in your first marriage and with the baby, so you would fall in love and marry again, but I can’t help feeling a little hesitant about this arrangement.”
“Sir, that’s the reason why I came to you inst
ead of going to a courthouse, because you do know what I’ve been through. I don’t know if I can ever trust my heart so freely again, but I know that I love Joshua and Jessica and need them in my life.” Yasmine knew her voice sounded pleading, but she didn’t care. She wanted this man to understand how she felt.
There was another pause as her pastor closed his eyes, looking as though he was seeking guidance. She and Jason sat quietly, respecting his silence.
Pastor Hiles opened his eyes and looked at them both. “I’ll do it.”
Yasmine got up from her chair and hugged the older man. “Thank you.”
Jason and Pastor Hiles shook hands again before they left his office to set the date with his wife, who was waiting patiently in the front office.
~ML~
That night Jason called his family and broke the news to them. Amazingly his mother didn’t lecture him about his reasons for getting married, she only told him she trusted that he had made the right decision. His parents were going to be out of town with his father’s brother who had gotten sick, so they would not be able to make it. But, he promised them that he would have Yasmine call and talk to them.
Teddy didn’t pick on him nearly as much as he had been expecting. He said he would book his plane tickets the next day and would be there for the reception. His sister was more disappointed that she would not be able to attend the wedding but respected Yasmine’s decision for an early ceremony once he had explained to her about Yasmine’s prior marriage and how she felt.
After he had told his family, he waited until after Yasmine had sent the invitations for the reception, by carrier, to break the news to his boss.
Monday, a week before the wedding, Jason walked into his boss’s office. Mr. Coleman was looking over some storyboards for a commercial, when Jason walked in.
“Jason, come on in here. Look at these boards and tell me what you think.”
Jason scanned the drawings for a moment. “A bit suppressed.”
“In what way?”
“Well, I can see it’s an ad for shampoo, because I can see the bottle, but it doesn’t have any life to it.”
“What would you have done differently?”
“It all depends who they’re trying to market it to. For instance, if it’s to women and it’s one of those types that smell soft and frilly—you know, the kind a man wouldn’t even want to accidentally use—then make it look that way.”
“It’s a new line for the company and if I’m not mistaken I think it’s supposed to tingle.” Mr. Coleman face held a disgusted look.
“Call me crazy, but I’d take it home and try it—well, I wouldn’t if it was one geared specifically for women. However, I’d get someone from outside the office to use it and tell me what they think—an unbiased opinion. Off the cuff though I’d put a person, a woman preferably, in one of those salon washing chairs, in a big fluffy towel, with a person massaging her feet, someone giving her a manicure while a third person is washing her hair. I’d want the customer to think of total relaxation. What woman wouldn’t want that in a bottle?”
Jason watched his boss nod his head, then ask, “You don’t mind if I share your ideas with the junior staff assigned to this, do you?”
“No, sir.”
Mr. Coleman put the boards aside. “So, what can I help you with, Jason?”
He placed the sealed envelope in front of his boss on the desk. “I’m getting married on Saturday and I would like you to come to the reception.”
“Married! I didn’t even know you were seeing someone seriously. When did you pop the question?”
“Actually, over a month ago, it just took her a while to say yes.” Jason confirmed.
“Well, congratulations.” The older man stood up and shook Jason’s hand. “So, when is the wedding going to take place?”
“It will be that morning, but she wants a private ceremony.”
“Well, the wedding is all about what they want anyway. Just be glad she’s not one of those high maintenance women, a term I learned from my youngest son.”
Both men laughed at the verbiage of a twenty-two-year-old.
“So, do I know her?”
“You met her not too long ago at the promotion party.”
“Ah yes, Yasmine, I believe her name was?”
“Yes, sir.”
“She was quite a looker, what was she, Mexican and Black?”
“Portuguese, sir.”
“Well, I’ll be there. I’m happy to see your life is going in a broader direction.”
“So am I, Mr. Coleman.”
Jason left his boss’s office. He didn’t have to tell Mr. Coleman that he was expecting his life to broaden in the sense of his career at the company. The guise had been set in motion and he intended to follow it through until the end.
After it was over he and Yasmine would part with irreconcilable differences, it happened all the time. A little voice in his head questioned what would happen if he fell for Yasmine, but he pushed it aside. He refused to allow his heart to be entangled in it.
~ML~
“Do you, Yasmine, take Jason Richardson to have and to hold, for better or worse, for richer for poor, forsaking all others and keep yourself only to him?”
“I do,” Yasmine answered Pastor Hiles’ question. She was facing Jason and feeling like she was caught in the intense green of his eyes.
A man’s eyes shouldn’t be that green, or that sexy, she thought to herself. It was too easy to find yourself lost in them or fantasizing about what color they would take on in the heat of passion.
She noticed the lips as he repeated the words of the pastor, Man, oh man, sexy eyes and a sexy mouth, who had ever heard of such a thing?
“I do,” he was saying when her eyes returned to his. The light humor held in his look made her wonder if he had guessed what she had been thinking about.
Taking the plain gold band rings from Leigh, the only other person present in the room with them besides the pastor and his wife, Yasmine brushed the thought away.
“Both of you repeat after me, please,” Pastor Hiles spoke as they both held the rings poised at the top of each other’s left ring finger. “With this ring I thee wed.”
“With this ring I thee wed.” They recited the words that sealed them together, simultaneously sliding the rings on each other’s hands.
“By the power vested in me...I now pronounce you man and wife. Jason, you may kiss your bride.”
Jason closed the gap between them without hesitation, sealed his lips to hers in a brief kiss, then it was over.
Yasmine was amazed at how the simple touch of Jason’s mouth had turned her inside out and caused her body to respond in an area that she had long ago believed it was immune to any man’s charm.
~ML~
“So, you actually did it?” Teddy was saying once they had arrived at the house after the brief ceremony.
“Looking at her, I can see why you don’t mind being shackled.”
“Yeah, I did it,” Jason received a hug from his brother. “You can have the same, my brother. Crystal is fine, a good cook and totally in love with you.”
“I still don’t think I can do it. You let me know how yours turns out and I’ll get back to you.” His brother gave him a firm pat on the back.
“Well, knowing the circumstances of mine...that’s not a good example.”
“I just met her, she is lovely, Jay. I’m so happy for you.” His sister strolled over to them, interrupting.
Jason receiving the hug from his sister and looked over her shoulder toward Yasmine who was standing and talking to a girl resembling her; he assumed it was her sister. Their eyes met for a brief moment and she gave him a soft smile, before she turned away. Today she wore a cream-colored pantsuit that complimented her smooth rich champagne complexion. “She is beautiful,” he responded, breaking away from the embrace with his sister.
“She’s totally not your usual type,” Lisa commented.
“What’s my usual?”
“Leggy,” Teddy added in.
Jason laughed. “She is shorter than I’ve dated in the past, but I’ve never chosen by height, it just always turned out that way.”
“Teddy, sometimes you can be so superficial.” Lisa rolled her eyes at their older brother. “Jason, I meant the fact that she’s family oriented. All of your other girlfriends have either been just as consumed by work as you are, or getting married and having children was the last thing on their agenda.”
“Now, that I did do purposely. I just didn’t see where it all fit into my life. To be honest I still don’t, but I’m doing it—in a sense.” Jason’s thoughts sobered, he and his family were talking like this was permanent. It wasn’t, and hopefully it would all be over with in less than six months, even though they had agreed to give it a year.
~ML~
Yasmine felt chills run down her spine at the intimate look Jason gave her. She’d smiled at him, because she was extremely aware that they were not in the room alone; what she would have liked to do was run. Her system had become so out of whack in response to him, all he had to do was look at her and she’d get all befuddled.
“Isto é grande,” Laura spoke to her in Portuguese, then switched to English, for the benefit of the people at the party. “I can’t believe you two fell in love so quickly.”
Yasmine could hear the hurt in her sister’s voice, even though she was smiling. It was the same sound she had sensed over the phone when she made the decision to tell Laura about the wedding. Her sister yearned to get married and it just never seemed to happen for her. She had her sympathy, because her sister couldn’t seem to get married once and Yasmine had done it twice.
Yasmine felt more guilt about that than she did about lying to her family. She just didn’t want to hear all the nay saying. Laura would have dumped an armload of advice on her about why she shouldn’t do it and to wait for the right man, but her parents would have been the worst. Her dad would have used the condescending voice on her about having left her first husband and the disgrace it put on the family. Her mother would have berated her about adopting orphans and not knowing where they came from. That she was capable of having her own instead of grabbing at someone else’s leftovers. So she’d told them as little as possible.