Divine Temptation

by Nicki Elson

  They’d stopped walking and stood staring at each other, with Maggie reading in Evan’s expression something between controlled lust and mild fear—yearning. Before her imagination traveled too far down the path that the angel had just told her was closed, she returned her focus to the spots of light and resumed walking. “Don’t worry, I’m not entertaining ideas. I’m obviously not in any emotional shape to get involved with a human man right now, much less a divine one. Besides, for all I know you’ve already got someone up in those not-clouds.” She stopped abruptly and jerked her attention back to him. “Do you?”

  “Do I what?”

  “Have a wife or something in Heaven?”

  “There isn’t marriage or anything of the like in my Father’s kingdom.”

  “Ah yes, that’s right.” She let out a sardonic grunt. “Poetic, isn’t it?”

  “There is something poetic about a happy earthly marriage too. The freedom and felicity in Heaven is ideal, but it doesn’t diminish the beauty of a well-matched earthly husband and wife.”

  “So heavenly beings don’t yearn for companionship the way humans do? You’re okay being solitary forever?”

  “We’re not solitary. We’re all one. I don’t long for companionship because I have it, fully. Humans are only ever able to satisfy a part of each other’s need for intimacy. Only the Lord can satisfy it completely. Even the best matched husbands and wives leave gaps of need in one another. Humans seek to fill those gaps through children, friends—”

  “Extramarital affairs.”

  “Sometimes. It’s all part of yearning for what only the Lord can truly provide. No one is complete until he’s called them to his realm.”

  Maggie stayed quiet with her thoughts until she broke the peaceful lull to ask, “Would you like me to make you an appointment with my girl for a haircut?”

  Evan flashed her a smile more brilliant than the bright city. “Don’t worry. I’m sure we’ve got ‘people’ for that.” He’d accentuated his words with his fingers.

  “Well, well, well, looks like somebody’s learned all about air quotes. Glad to see you’re making such good use of that ‘form.’” She imitated his finger movements.

  “Cheeky human.”

  Chapter 11

  “HOW LONG HAS THIS THING with Evan been going on, and why didn’t you tell me about it?” Sharon hadn’t even said hello first.

  Maggie was grateful that at least this time they weren’t face to face and she could cringe unseen at the other end of the phone. “It’s not a thing. We’re really just friends.”

  “Uh huh. How’d you meet him?”

  Maggie was prepared for this one. “Through church.”

  “Well, nice to know you can make time for your church friends.”

  “Sharon—”

  “Don’t say sorry again. It’s wearing thin.”

  “I know. I’m s—I mean…ah! Carl’s big-ass camper just pulled in the driveway. My babies are home! I’ve got to go, but I’ll call you and we’ll get together soon.”

  “I’ll believe that when I see it. Give those kids a smooch for me.”

  “I will. And I’ll call. I want to hear about your big anniversary weekend.”

  “That was two months ago.”

  The sounds of kids’ voices and doors slamming seeped into the house.

  “Okay, we’ll talk soon. Promise.” Maggie rushed to hang up and ran to the front door, throwing it open and grabbing the kids into a big hug. They squeezed her back and stayed pressed into her side while Carl and Melissa unloaded their bags, so Maggie couldn’t be resentful of the tears that welled in Kirsten’s eyes when she waved to her father and his girlfriend as they drove away.

  Melissa lowered her window and blew a kiss. “Miss you already! I’ll share the pictures once they’re online!”

  It was already evening, and the kids looked positively exhausted, so Maggie ordered a pizza and they all got into their jammies early. Kirsten pulled a pair of polished stone earrings out of her duffel and gave them to Maggie, which reminded Liam to rifle through his bag for the Grand Teton travel mug he’d picked out for his mom. They filled her in on their western adventure until their eyelids drooped, and then, with an arm around each of their shoulders, Maggie walked them upstairs, alternately kissing the tops of their heads the whole way.

  Washed up and in her own bed, Maggie was satisfied. Her children were home and she’d gotten through the dreaded trip without too much heartache. She had Evan to thank for that. But now, as she lay there with everything feeling back to normal, the angel seemed almost like a dream again, not part of her daily existence.

  She’d been headed to such a dark pit of despair, and now she considered that perhaps this was why Evan had been sent to her—to pull her up. Now that she was righted, she wondered if that meant she had no more need of him…and would that mean she might not see him again?

  As unpleasant as the thought was, it wasn’t entirely unwelcome. She’d treasured every minute with him, had looked forward to their time together more than anything else during the last two weeks, but being with him was beginning to inspire more conflict within her than serenity. Though she’d earnestly tried to keep her feelings toward him on a high plain, her thoughts kept drifting toward something more mortal. He’d been absolutely right about the ideas she’d been entertaining—it was difficult for her to separate her growing affection for him from a physical attraction. So if he didn’t come back, she had to consider that it might be for the best.

  Sarto returned from his stint away from the parish and presided over late morning Sunday Mass. He wasn’t always the most magnetic speaker, but on this morning he had Maggie’s rapt attention.

  “The devil is at work every day in this world. He’s not going to jump out at you, wielding a pitchfork with his red horns flaring. He’s more cunning than that. We all know the small ways he tempts us day to day, but on occasion he takes a bolder leap. And sometimes he even disguises himself in the most innocent, even most holy, of masks. He knows we yearn constantly for a connection with the higher power, so what better way to gain our trust than to pretend to be a component of the same? No doubt many of you have heard of the ruckus over at Somme Park.”

  A quiet murmur worked its way through the pews. The foundation’s goal of keeping a low profile had worked fairly well and nothing had ever shown up in the local press about the suspected visitation at the garden, but rumors had a way of winding their way through suburbia faster than the vines had woven their way around those pillars.

  “I’ll be completely honest with you,” the monsignor continued. “I have no idea what’s going on over there, but that’s exactly what concerns me. Our Lady wouldn’t hide from us. So this could simply be a trick of nature. Or it could be something more sinister. And so it is my advice to each and every one of you to keep away from Somme, or if you must go, at least stay away from the site in question until such time as it can be determined that it’s safe.”

  After Mass, Sarto broke from shaking hands with departing parishioners to seek Maggie out, saying he needed to speak with her immediately. She told Kirsten and Liam to wait for her by the front doors while she went to speak with him in the side room. An usher was setting down a stack of weekly bulletins on the counter.

  “Tell the others to leave the extras on the side table. I’ll put them away,” Sarto instructed and shut the door after the man had left. Unlike Father Tom, he didn’t go near the cabinets to offer Maggie a drink or any other source of comfort, not even a seat. The only thing he offered was a penetrating stare. “What do you know about Somme Park?”

  “Do you mean the disturbance you referred to in your sermon?”

  “Is that what I’m asking about? You tell me. I want to know exactly what happened to you that day I ran into you at the gardens.”

  Maggie knew word of the strange occurrence would eventually make its way to Sarto, but she’d expected him to forget about their little run in. She didn’t see a reason to evade his
question, however, especially if he could possibly shed light on what Evan hadn’t been able to. “I’m sorry I didn’t mention it before. I honestly thought, hoped, it was just my imagination, but then I heard about the vines and I wasn’t sure any more. Are the vines still there?”

  “What did you feel?”

  “It was like…a pressure, drawing me to the urn that sat inside. And right before that happened, I had…a vision, the most vivid vision of the garden and everything in it belonging to me. It was beautiful, actually.” Her natural impulse was to qualify her statement and again shun it as probably nothing more than her imagination, but she could see by the intent way the monsignor studied her that he believed there truly was something going on at Somme.

  “Why did you run away from it?” he asked.

  She wasn’t ready to be entirely truthful with this answer yet, particularly not with the monsignor. The priest was too clinical and suspicious. For all she knew, he’d attempt to incarcerate Evan E.T. style to study him. “I was distracted. Heard a noise or something. And that’s when I thought I saw my friend and went after him.”

  “Did you ever catch up with him?”

  “No. So it’s still happening? The vines?”

  “It continues,” he answered crisply. “And I discourage you in particular from going near there again. You’ve already shown yourself to be susceptible to its influence.”

  “What is ‘it’ exactly?”

  “It is something for me to make a judgment on,” Sarto said. “Until I do, keep clear of it. Thank you for your time, and may God bless you on this fine Sunday.”

  He opened the door and motioned her out. Maggie emerged into the narthex feeling as if she’d just been scolded.

  “I slept with Carl.”

  Sharon’s eyes shot wide open, and she grunted something incoherent while Maggie leaned back in her chair at the outdoor café and watched, a big grin spreading across her face. She’d purposely waited until her friend had taken a big mouthful of sandwich before delivering that piece of news.

  Handing Sharon an extra napkin to catch the bits of lettuce falling out of her mouth, she said, “Go on, chew slowly while I give you the gory details. It happened late spring. He and Melissa had broken up briefly. He seemed sad, so I offered him a glass of wine, and next thing I knew we were naked and tangled up in each other.”

  “Was it good?” Sharon mumbled through her food.

  “More like fantastic. Maybe the best sex we’ve ever had. But it wasn’t going anywhere. Unfortunately, I didn’t get that until afterward when Carl assured me that we’re much better apart. And then he promptly got back together with Missy.”

  “Oh, sweetie.”

  “No, I’m done being sad about it, and I’m not entirely sorry the whole thing happened. It helped me see that I’ve been clinging to the marriage more than I should have, and now I can work toward truly letting go. But I’ll admit, that was one reason I was avoiding you. I just haven’t wanted to talk about it until recently.”

  Sharon peered at her for a moment. “You really do seem okay. Proud of you, kiddo. You’re a lot stronger than you give yourself credit for.”

  “Well, I haven’t done it totally alone.”

  “Evan helping you out?” Sharon winked.

  “I meant my faith, but yes, Evan played a role there too. He was a gift sent right when I needed it.” A gift that had an expiration date, apparently. Maggie’s instincts had been right, and she hadn’t seen him during the two and a half weeks since that day in Chicago.

  “Go on…” Sharon coaxed.

  Maggie shrugged. “Not much more to tell. We really were only just friends. But ever the idiot, my feelings were beginning to get confused, and he didn’t feel the same way. So, it seemed the best thing to do was to part ways.” It felt good not to have to dodge her friend’s questions anymore. Evan’s absence gave her a sort of freedom in that way, but the longer he was gone, the less okay she became with it. She reluctantly missed him.

  “Well, too bad,” Sharon said. “But realistically, it probably wouldn’t have worked out anyhow. I mean, how old is he?”

  “I don’t actually know. I get the feeling he’s a lot older than he looks though.” Maggie caught her smile before it fully formed.

  “Wonder if that’s what all cougars tell themselves.” Sharon rolled her eyes and took a sip of water as a flicker of white flashed in the distance beyond her shoulder.

  “I’m not a cougar!”

  “Only because he wasn’t that into you,” Sharon teased.

  “Did he really look that much younger than me?”

  “I think five years qualifies, so yeah, he looked at least that.”

  Maggie glanced from the restaurant patio toward the street and scanned the row of Victorian-era homes that had been retrofitted into stores and other businesses to create a quaint shopping district. The persistent blob of white that had been dancing in her periphery took form—standing on the sidewalk across the street with his earnest eyes directly on her was Evan.

  “Speaking of things that are too young,” Sharon continued, “you’re not going to believe the new football program I just got an e-mail about from the SportsPlex. Football for eighteen-month-olds. Little Piggies.”

  The revelation was an excellent excuse for Maggie’s shocked expression. She flicked her gaze back to her friend. “Stop it! Really?”

  “I kid you not. Looks like suburbia’s no longer satisfied with burning the kids out on their sport by age fourteen; now we’re going for, what—five?”

  Maggie dared a glance back at Evan. He lifted his hand and fluttered his fingertips at her while a teasing grin twitched upon his lips. She responded with a subtle nod while her insides did cartwheels.

  “Well, I guess Liam’s all washed up then.” She forced herself back to the conversation. “Poor kid’s already nine and never strapped on a cup. You think they make jock straps for babies?”

  “Sure, build ’em right into the diaper.”

  Maggie’s laughter flowed easily, the joy coming from more than the thought of reinforced nappies.

  When the waitress cleared their plates, Sharon said, “We’ve got a couple hours before we have to pick up the girls from camp, want to do some shopping?”

  “Oh, um…” Maggie shifted her gaze toward Evan, who tapped his wrist and then made an upward motion with his fingers, as if to indicate flying away. She took it to mean he had to leave soon. “I’m sorry; I’ve got to run.” She made a show of looking at her watch. “Yipes! Right now actually. I’ve got a…church thing to take care of. Here.” She pulled out a twenty dollar bill and held it out toward her friend. “Mind taking care of the bill?”

  Sharon waved the money off. “I’ve got it. You’ll owe me next time, all right?”

  “Sounds good,” Maggie said as she stood and leaned down to give her friend a peck on the cheek. “You’re the best! This was fun.”

  She dashed out of the restaurant and across the street. Evan had moved down the sidewalk and briefly locked eyes with her before turning a corner. By the time she got to where he’d veered from the main road, he was several yards away and took another detour behind a row of tall hedges. The cat and mouse chase intensified her desire to reach him. Running down the sidewalk, she flew around the side of the hedge to practically slam into him.

  “Evan!” she gasped and without thinking about what she was doing, wrapped her arms around his neck. She inhaled, and took in everything about him, including the aroma she unexpectedly recognized as uniquely his—like freshly laundered cotton enhanced by undertones of something more exotic. Coconut and spices, perhaps. She also noted that his golden hair was trimmed to the length it had been when they’d first met.

  “I can only stay a moment. But you called, and I had to see you.” His hands gripped her waist, the force of his touch surprising her.

  “Is something wrong?”

  “No, sorry, I didn’t mean to imply there was.” Relaxing his hold, he slid his hands
to the small of her back. “I was glad to be summoned, but I have to go now. I’ll be back soon…if that’s what you want.” His silvery eyes glinted as they intently bored into hers. “You’ll have to stay open to me for that to happen.”

  They spoke in whispers, hidden from outsiders behind the large shrub, and Maggie tightened her grasp around his neck, as if that could somehow keep him there longer. “I didn’t know I was closed to you. I kept you away?”

  “I’ll explain when I come back; I have to go.”

  His words rushed out, and before Maggie could complain, he pressed his lips firmly against hers. She sank into him, but rather than a soft and watery sensation, the pressure and tension in his kiss felt more like smashing through an iceberg. Maggie hadn’t realized she’d closed her eyes until she opened them a few moments later and stared at the empty space where Evan had stood. Touching her fingertips to the tingling pink flesh of her mouth, she murmured, “What the hell was that?”

  Her thoughts whirred on her drive home. He’d said she wasn’t “open” to him, but she didn’t understand how she’d kept him away. Was it because she’d recognized that she was probably better off having that temptation removed from her life? Perhaps she’d inadvertently put up a barrier against him. Then at lunch, she and Sharon had been talking about him, and she’d suddenly wished for him.

  So he’d come back, and the first thing she did was press herself against him, gaze longingly into his eyes, and kiss him. She berated herself for being so weak. Though, in fairness to herself, she hadn’t exactly been prepared for him to make such a move. Was it possible that he really did return her human affections? She both wanted to know and didn’t. Because what difference did it make? The situation remained impossible. While attempting to sort it all out, she missed the turn to take her back home. Glancing at the clock, she saw that she had just over an hour before she’d have to pick up the kids. Kirsten’s camp was on the way to Somme Park anyhow…

  Ten minutes later, Maggie pulled into the garden’s parking lot. The meandering trails and varied foliage were just what she needed to help unwind her jumbled thoughts. She yearned for clarity. Somme was a big place, she reasoned, big enough for her to avoid the tholos with no problem as she’d done when her sister had visited. She didn’t have enough time to get into any real trouble there, just a quick walk around the gardens and she’d be gone.