Loving Mr. Wright

by Brenda Barrett

  "Well, I think their loss is our gain." Chris smiled. "I couldn't believe it when Farmer McGregor called and told us your qualifications…and the food you did for us last Monday…I don't think our guests will want to leave here."

  "What most hospitality places don't realize is that you may have the sun, sea and weather but an outstanding chef is the ace in the hole."

  Chris withdrew a sheaf of papers from a briefcase that was leaning on the chair, "I have your two year contract here. We offer the usual benefits along with your pay package. As you'll see, it is quite substantial. We are safe guarding against anybody stealing you away."

  Caleb grinned and then whistled when he saw the monthly figure, "I can go car shopping in less than three months."

  Chris frowned. "Don't you have a car?"

  "No," Caleb shrugged. "I walk everywhere."

  "Mmm," Chris rifled through his briefcase and found his cell phone. "We can give you a company car as part of the package. I want you to be here when you are supposed to be here. Let me call Marla at our head office and ask her to add this to your contract. It won't take long for her to make the adjustments."

  When he hung up the phone with Marla, Chris said, "We'll pick up your car this evening. I hope you are excited about our grand opening. The crème de la crème of society will be here. We even invited Ezekiel Hoppings and he agreed to come."

  "Uhm, isn't he that rich guy who goes to Three Rivers Church?" Caleb who was still reeling at the swiftness with which he got a new means of transport, asked belatedly.

  Chris nodded. "Yes, he comes by when he is in Jamaica. Ezekiel is a bit anti-social but he is one of the richest men in the world and if he recommends our villas to even one or two of his friends as a destination we are talking some serious money. This also means you should be ready for all sorts of weird food requests coming your way."

  "I'm used to it. I am anticipating just that."

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  Erica hadn't anticipated just how much she would miss Caleb until she hadn’t heard from him for two whole weeks. She then realized that a big part of her life in the past couple of months had been intertwined with his. She had driven up to his place twice last week but there was no sign of him. She mourned the fact that he didn't have a cellular phone though she could see that he now had electricity running up to his house.

  She dragged herself around the place and was feeling even lonelier and more dejected than before she met Caleb. She didn't even have the comfort of falling back on chocolate as a crutch anymore. These days she wasn't craving her favorite food so much.

  She realized how bad it must have looked to Caleb when he saw her in the lobby with so many accusing eyes and she admitted to herself that she had overreacted when she found out he was in prison.

  A mature approach would have been to sit down and listen to his story. That was what she had been angling to hear for months but now she feared that it was too late. Caleb probably had written her off by now.

  She looked at her watch, it was Wednesday evening, and she had nothing to do until her lecture at the church that night. There was no food in the house and she needed to restock the pantry or sit in the house and constantly think about Caleb. She opted to go to the supermarket. Thinking about Caleb made her feel stupid and lonely.

  She drove up to the parking lot of one of her father's supermarket. The underground parking lot was full and she slowly drove around until she found a place to park. She got out of the car gingerly and was locking it when she heard his voice.

  It was Caleb. He was talking and laughing to a young lady who was in a tight green dress. He was opening the car door for her. She was slowly unwinding herself from the car seat so that her body could touch his as she got out of the car.

  He said something to her and the girl was doubled up into paroxysms of laughter. Erica clenched her fists at her sides and gritted her teeth. How quickly he had moved on, and what about his vows of celibacy?

  To Erica, he and the green dress girl looked too intimate to be casual friends—and when did he start to drive? She glanced at the late model Honda and felt her blood boiling when he whipped out a late model phone and started to talk on it. Erica felt deflated. Where was the Caleb that she had gotten to know?

  He looked like a different, more suave version of himself. She must have made a sound from her section of the garage because he spun around and looked at her. She stared back at him, flagellating herself at how stupid she had been for not listening to his explanation. Meanwhile a perverse part of her that wanted to be punished admired his muscular physique and his handsome face.

  He continued staring at her and then hung up the phone. The girl beside him was looking over a list and then whispered something to Caleb, who had folded his arm and was giving Erica one of his raised eyebrows looks.

  Erica felt a bile of jealousy rising in her throat. So, he had really moved on; they were now shopping together. That girl was probably enjoying the newly neat place that she had helped Caleb with in the hills.

  The thought was enough to make her fumble with her car keys, trying to get it into the keyhole. She didn't care if she never ate again, she was going to go home and have a good cry.

  There was nobody else to blame in this whole sorry situation but herself. She had practically pushed him away. She felt a tear slipping down her cheek and she dashed it away, impatiently.

  She had really loved Caleb. She hadn't cared that he was broke or didn't have any electricity; she didn't even mind when the two of them had worked so hard together to fix up his place.

  She had appreciated his company and loved his sense of humor. Which woman in her right mind wouldn't have been shocked when she found out that the man she was hoping to spend the rest of your life with had been in prison?

  She had been shocked, but after the shock wore off, she had been willing to hear, she reminded herself morosely.

  A part of her was sure that she would have eventually found him, and he would tell her the truth about his past and they would get past it. She was sure that they could have; she was not so naïve as to think that everybody was perfect, but now it was all gone.

  Obviously, he had moved on and she was now redundant. She tried to swipe away the trickling tears, but they turned into a flood. She grabbed her nurse's jacket that she always hung on the back of her car seat and tried to stuff her mouth; she wasn't a quiet sobber.

  She sensed that she was being watched as she noisily blew her nose in the jacket. Glancing sideways through the window, she saw Caleb. His hands were in his pockets and he was leaning on the car beside hers.

  Erica slumped against the steering wheel. "Go away."

  He opened the door on her side of the car and asked quietly. "Is something wrong?"

  "Why do you care?" Erica asked. She glanced in the rear view mirror to see that her eyes were swollen and her nose was red.

  Caleb shrugged. "I don't know why I care. It appears as if I still do even though… "

  "Even though what?" Erica looked at him angrily. "Even though you have moved on and have another girlfriend."

  Caleb laughed. "You know, I will never understand women. I thought you were afraid of me. I am an ex-convict, remember?"

  Erica nodded. "I remember, but not seeing you for two weeks I realized that I overreacted and I was stupid. I visited your house twice and you weren't there," she said accusingly.

  Caleb stared at her seriously for a few moments and then straightened from the car. For weeks, he had been agonizing over Erica. He felt that the relationship had ended pre-maturely. He missed her. Several times, he had wanted to call her and to tell her about his day or just to talk to her. They had never really had the sort of relationship where they could talk on phones or go out on dates because he had been too broke to suggest it and too proud to allow her to offer to.

  "I have a job now," Caleb finally said. Erica had been fidgeting under his stare. "I am the head chef at Villa Rose."

  "Oh," Erica hiccupped
. "Congratulations. That's an exclusive property."

  Caleb was silent after that; they stared at each other silently.

  "So who is the girl?" Erica asked waspishly.

  Caleb grinned. "I thought you would know. She is a purchasing manager for this supermarket. I gave her a lift back from Villa Rose. Apparently this supermarket, which I understand is owned by your father, is the official supplier to the Villa Rose."

  "I don't know anything about my father's business," Erica shrugged. "So are you two together?"

  "Hmmm…" Caleb grinned. "No. I swore off women when I went to church three weeks ago and saw a certain lady whom I considered my dear friend spreading fibs about me in the church lobby."

  "I never did that," Erica gasped. "That’s what you thought?"

  Caleb nodded. "So how was I the hot topic of conversation and why were so many people looking scared when they saw me?"

  Erica got up out of the car and stood before Caleb. "A church sister went to Kingston for a couple of months; she told another church sister that you were in prison. I think she gave conflicting reports as to why."

  Caleb cleared his throat. "So why was I in prison?"

  Erica shrugged. "Arson, murder, drug trafficking."

  Caleb nodded. "I see."

  Erica looked at him cautiously. "Are any of those true?"

  "What would you do if they were?" Caleb looked at her seriously.

  "I would…er… I would… hear your reason for doing it and…" Erica threw her hands in the air. "I don't know. I have never loved an ex-con before. I love you Caleb and somehow your past is not holding as much sway as I thought it would. Do you think I am one of those women who will accept anything because they are washed up, single and desperate?"

  Caleb grinned. "I should have remembered your penchant for drama before I wrote off our relationship. No, you are not washed up and desperate."

  Erica smiled. "I really did overreact the other morning, didn't I?"

  Caleb nodded. "Come here."

  She stepped into his arms and he hugged her tightly. "I love you, Erica."

  She squeezed him back tightly. She had really longed to hear those words from him even though she wasn't sure what he had done that sent him to prison. Her urgency to know was not as acute.

  He kissed her in her hair and then released her slightly.

  "We are in a supermarket parking garage; there is a lady looking at us."

  Erica sniggered. "But I don't want to let you go."

  Caleb brushed his lips against hers. "I know how you feel, but the two of us have to talk."

  "I promised Pastor Brick that I would participate in the service tonight," Erica hugged him again. "Every Wednesday night the health department will be giving half-hour presentations on health. Tonight I'll be talking about exercise. Apparently since it worked for me, Pastor Brick thought I would be the best person to talk about it."

  Caleb inhaled her scent and then shifted away. "I'll meet you there then."

  He kissed her on the forehead and then glanced at his watch. "See you in two hours."

  "Okay," Erica blew him a kiss got into the car and instantly felt lighter.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  When Erica dashed into the house, she realized that she had not gotten the groceries that she wanted to buy but she had no time to ponder that right now. She was talking to Caleb again and he said he loved her. Love was a powerful thing, she grinned to herself. With love she could overcome whatever problem he had been going through.

  She skipped into the shower singing at the top of her voice, and with a big smile on her face. She was done with being afraid of Caleb's past. Whatever it was she would deal with it.

  She was heading out of the shower and toweling off when she heard the phone ring. She hurried to get it.

  "Hello, Erica," It was Lola and she sounded slightly mollified.

  "Hi Mom," Erica said brightly. Her mother had been giving her the cold shoulder for the past two weeks and had rarely called.

  "I am going to church tonight, so I can't stay and talk," Erica frantically dried her body.

  "Well," Lola said hesitantly, "your father has something to tell you about that guy… I mean Caleb."

  "Ooops," Erica said, "I had forgotten about that detective report… the guy took so long."

  "It surprises me how blasé you are taking this man's past," Lola said and then huffed. "Anyway, your father has gotten all the details and…"

  "Meet me at church," Erica said frantically, "I have to do the health lecture tonight."

  "Okay then," Lola said. "I was planning to come to church anyway. Fred is actually ready so we'll see you there."

  Erica hung up the phone and then found her pink dress; she always thought she looked extra pretty in it. Tonight she was going to meet Caleb and they would finally get to talk. She sprayed on her favorite scent, gave herself the once over in the mirror, and rushed out.

  When she got to the church, the parking lot was unusually full for a Wednesday night. Usually the attendance was sparser but since the health lectures, more people were coming out.

  She got out of the car hurriedly and entered the church lobby. Pastor Brick was talking to a group of people and he waved her over when she entered.

  He turned to Erica. "They are having song service now. After that Sister Gena, will introduce you and then we'll have the testimonies and prayer section."

  Erica nodded. "Okay, I will just give the technicians my jump drive with the presentation."

  Pastor Brick nodded absently; he was already caught up in the conversation that was going on around him.

  Erica couldn't wait to get the presentation over and done with so that she could go and talk to Caleb. She wondered if he had arrived yet. She kept looking behind her to see if he was around. He arrived when she was in the middle of listing the different types of exercises that people could do from home. He sat in the back. She saw that he was dressed all in black and she stumbled a bit over the few words she still had to say. He looked masculine, and handsome.

  The church was fairly packed with quite a few members and visitors. She tried to get back into the presentation but her eyes kept straying toward Caleb. He gave her a discreet thumbs up.

  She grinned and continued with her presentation, finally breathing a sigh of relief when she finished—the question and answer session was relatively easy for her to handle. Phoebe wanted to know how she lost the weight; she told her that she engaged in a particularly taxing outdoor activity.

  Her mother winced at that and Erica breathed a sigh of relief when she didn't get up and say something about it.

  When she finished, she went to sit beside Phoebe who called her over but she wanted to join Caleb at the back.

  "Your ex-con is here," Phoebe cackled softly when she sat beside her in the front.

  "I know," Erica said, excited.

  "So you found out what he was in for?" Phoebe asked curiously.

  "No," Erica looked at her. "Frankly, I am going to trust my instincts where he is concerned and I am going to wait for him to tell me."

  Phoebe shrugged. "I would want to know without delay. Suppose he's psychotic or a serial killer."

  "Stop it," Erica whispered.

  "Thank you, Sister Erica," Pastor Brick was saying from the front. "I think these health lectures can make a difference to the way we operate on a daily basis." He patted his paunch. "I will take into consideration some of those pointers you gave us.

  "And now we will have our testimony time. Our first testimony will be from our infamous church visitor, Brother Caleb Wright. He has been visiting with us for close to seven months. He was actually baptized in prison. I don't want to take up too much of his time so I invite Brother Caleb to come forward."

  Erica gasped. "Caleb. What's happening?"

  Phoebe snickered beside her. "Well now…I guess we are about to find out."

  Erica looked across at her mother.

  Her mother had a serious look on her face
and her father was smiling slightly.

  Erica's heart picked up speed and she inhaled deeply, exhaling in spurts. She wondered if she could deal with his announcement publicly.

  Well, she would have to because he was heading for the front; his slight bowleg giving him that extra sexy walk.

  It was her turn to be supportive so when he picked up the mike she gave him a thumbs up and then tensed her spine in anticipation of his testimony.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  Caleb headed for the front of the church. He had not realized how far the walk to the front was, and how many people were in church. They were all staring at him and when he turned around, he took a deep breath.

  He had never been comfortable with crowds. He always preferred the hustle and bustle of a kitchen, and allowing his food to speak for itself rather than facing people en masse.

  Now here he was, about to give his testimony. He had thought about it all of this evening and then he had come to church bold as you please and asked the pastor for the opportunity. He did it for two reasons. He didn't want the continuous whispers about his past to hamper his attendance at the church anymore and he wanted to put Erica's mind at ease. This was the best way to do it, he thought.

  He cleared his throat. "Goodnight everyone." The church members eagerly told him good night. He could see the gleam of curiosity in their eyes and the nervous apprehension in Erica's.

  "Well, as you may have heard, I was in prison for five years, four months, three days and two hours. I know the exact time because when you are in prison every single minute can be torturous. You track time and it moves so slowly.

  "Before prison, I thought I was happy. I had a job I loved, I was married to a beautiful woman… she had a daughter from a previous relationship but I took the child for my own. I had a family, something I never had when growing up.

  "Then my wife had an affair with a lawyer and decided that she didn't want me in the picture anymore. I had no idea that she was plotting to strip me of every material possession that I had bought to make our lives comfortable."