“Can you do me a favor and bring me home an order of linguine à la pescatore?”
Pearl nodded. “In fact, I’ll pick up a couple of orders. But I’m not getting off until nine.”
“That’s fine. I’ll just eat a late lunch.”
Foregoing her nap Pearl made her way to her bathroom. The apartment she and Paige shared came with dual master bedrooms, each with its own glamour bath. She washed her face and freshened up, the hot water being exactly what she needed to bring her tired senses back to life.
Pearl dressed in a pair of black tuxedo pants, a crisp white shirt and a black bow tie. She walked out of her bedroom just as her cousin was about to knock on the door.
“Here’s the money for my food,” Paige stated, holding out a twenty.
“I’ll call you if I get off early.”
“Thanks.”
Pearl grabbed a short, red leather coat out of the hall closet and headed to the front door. “See you later.”
Thirty-five minutes later, Pearl parked on the employee side of the restored Victorian house that had been converted into an upscale Italian restaurant located in the heart of downtown. Milton’s Ristorante was considered one of the finest places to dine in Detroit.
Pearl had been working there for almost four years. She enjoyed working on the waitstaff because the job allowed her the flexibility she needed for her music and the tips were good.
Still, she dreamed of the day she’d be able to focus full-time on her music. Pearl knew deep in her heart that she was destined to be a singer.
Her time would come.
Soon.
Hopefully.
Chapter 2
Wade didn’t feel like cooking. In fact, he had grown tired of the variations of Hamburger Helper. He’d eaten enough of it to last him a lifetime.
He reconsidered the invitations issued by a couple of ladies in church. Both Barbara Delany, the church secretary, and Carole Davis came up to him after morning service to invite him over for dinner.
Wade knew without a doubt that the invite from Carole came with strings attached. Shortly after his arrival at Lakeview, Sister Carole became adamant in her attempts to get him to date her daughter, Elizabeth. Wade had taken her to dinner a couple of times.
Liz was nice enough but she was very needy and had a lot of issues. Wade was barely dealing with his own demons, had been for the past ten years. He couldn’t take on any additional baggage in his personal life.
He made his way over to the refrigerator and looked inside, noting the bag of salad, a few pieces of fruit and some leftover Hamburger Helper. Wade checked the freezer. He had a steak and a couple of pieces of chicken but they were frozen solid. There was no telling how long they’d been in there and would take too long to thaw out.
The last time he tried to defrost a piece of meat in the microwave…Just the memory was enough to convince Wade not to relive that particular experience. Cooking skills were definitely not among his talents.
Maybe I should seriously consider looking for a wife.
A fleeting image of Pearl Lockhart drifted through his mind. Wade shook his head, trying to shut out all awareness of her.
She’s definitely not the woman for me.
His stomach growled loudly.
He briefly considered ordering Chinese food but didn’t really have a taste for it. Actually, he was in the mood for pasta. He recalled one of the deacons telling him about a pretty good Italian restaurant in the area.
What was it called? Wade searched his memory.
Milton’s, that was it.
He strolled into his office and looked it up on the Internet, searching for details and reviews on the restaurant.
Satisfied with what he’d read, he grabbed his coat, wallet and keys and headed to the door.
Inside his black Chrysler 300, Wade keyed the address into his GPS navigational system. He steered the car out of the driveway and onto the street. He was looking forward to enjoying a meal that hadn’t been prepared by his hands or come with somebody’s daughter as the dessert.
Fifteen minutes later, Wade arrived at the restaurant. The smell of freshly sautéed garlic and herbs tantalized his senses. A smiling hostess greeted him warmly and escorted him to a small table in the main dining room. The mustard-gold walls and deep burgundy drapes provided a richly colored backdrop while soft music floated throughout the restaurant.
Wade perused the menu while he waited for a member of the waitstaff to arrive. Everything he read on the list sounded delicious.
His eyes traveled around the room, taking in the dining guests and enjoying the ambiance. Wade was more of a homebody unless he was attending a dinner meeting or on a date, but he vowed to change that starting tonight. He’d been in Detroit for a few months. It was time to start enjoying the city.
Humming softly to the music, Pearl carried out a tray of drinks for a party of six. Since coming to work, she’d had a steady stream of customers, but she wasn’t complaining. She preferred staying busy. It helped to pass the time.
Pearl was on the schedule to work every day this week except Wednesday, and she’d picked up a singing gig for Saturday.
If things continued the way they were, she’d earn close to fifteen hundred dollars this week—money that would go back into her savings.
Last month she’d sang at three weddings, a function for the mayor of Detroit and a couple of private parties. The gigs had paid well enough to cover her bills for November and December.
Out the corner of her eye, Pearl noted the lone newcomer who had just been seated in her station.
She made her way over to his table.
“Good evening,” Pearl greeted. Her voice died when she recognized Wade. “Pastor…hello.”
“Sister Pearl,” he responded. “I didn’t know you worked here.”
She lifted her chin, meeting his gaze straight on. “What you mean is that you didn’t know I was a waitress.”
Wade didn’t respond.
Pearl thought she detected a flicker in his intense eyes. “It’s okay,” she plunged on carelessly. “I’m not ashamed of it. It’s a job. I make an honest living. But anyway, welcome to Milton’s Ristorante. Have you ever eaten here before?”
“No, this is my first time.” Leaning back in his seat, Wade said, “I have a taste for seafood so what would you recommend I try?”
“Everything on the menu is delicious, though I have some personal favorites.” She described them in detail, and the pastor made a choice.
“I’ll go put your order in and I’ll be right back with your water.”
Wade nodded in response.
Pearl couldn’t believe her luck. Why did Wade Kendrick of all people have to come to Milton’s today and end up in her station?
He’d better leave me a nice big tip, she thought to herself.
She returned to Wade’s table a few minutes later with his water. Pearl sat it down in front of him, saying, “Your food should be up shortly.”
Their gazes met and held, making her uneasy.
“Thank you,” he murmured after a moment.
Pearl moved without haste but with hurried purpose. She had no idea why Wade affected her the way he did, but instead of dwelling on the thought, she pushed it to the back of her mind as she wrote down more dinner orders.
She smiled at the two men entering her station, acknowledging them. As soon as they took their seats, Pearl went over to introduce herself.
She stole a peek over her shoulder at the table where Wade was sitting.
He was watching her. Pearl thought she detected a flicker in his intense eyes, causing her pulse to skitter alarmingly.
She drew her attention back to her customers and managed to get through the specials and take their drink order without fumbling. Having Wade seated in her station made her nervous.
But why? she wondered.
Pearl had been completely caught unawares seeing him. Wade was just as surprised to see her standing at his table. She lo
oked as stunning in her uniform as she did any other time. All of the Lockhart siblings were beautiful, but Wade thought Pearl the prettiest.
She was also the most outgoing, it seemed. And the most opinionated, for sure.
His eyes traveled to the two men sitting at the table across from his. They shared similar features, so much that they had to be related to each other. Probably brothers, Wade decided.
Pearl paused at his table to refresh his glass of water, her appearance distracting him briefly from his thoughts.
He cast another smile her way. “Thank you.”
“Would you like something else to drink with your dinner besides water?” she inquired.
Wade shook his head. “This is fine.”
“Your food should be ready.”
While Wade waited for Pearl to come back with his meal, he reflected back over his life. His journey to the pulpit had not been one without heartache. His gaze landed on the two men laughing and talking nearby, his heart breaking all over again.
I miss you so much, Jeff.
Memories of his dead brother rushed to the forefront, bringing tears to Wade’s eyes. Ten years had passed since Jeff’s death, but to him, it still felt like it had happened yesterday. Wade didn’t know if he would ever be able to escape that particular heartache or be free of the guilt.
It’s my fault that Jeff is dead.
Wade had joined the Chicago Kings, one of the city’s largest and most violent street gangs, when he was fifteen. Two years later, when his younger brother, Jeff, wanted to join, Wade didn’t do anything to dissuade him, despite the constant pleas of their mother.
He knew the dangers, but back then, it was nothing more than a way of life to Wade. It took Jeff being killed in a drive-by shooting a year later to change Wade’s way of thinking and to change his life.
Wade went through the motions of eating but not really tasting his food. Seeing families together, enjoying each other, was a constant reminder of everything that he’d lost.
Suddenly needing to get out of there, he dropped two twenty-dollar bills on the table and rose to his feet. He spotted Pearl coming his way and met her.
“I’m sorry but I need to leave,” he blurted. “I left money on the table. Keep the change.” Wade didn’t give her a chance to respond. He walked briskly to the door.
Outside, he took a deep breath and climbed into his car.
Wade pushed his thoughts to the back of his mind as he drove down I-75, en route to his house in Auburn Hills.
At home, Wade went straight to the dresser in his bedroom. From the top drawer he pulled a yellow bandana and a necklace made of gold and black beads—the items Jeff was wearing when he was killed. The faded brownish stains on it were his brother’s blood. Wade kept the bandana and necklace because it was all he had left of Jeff.
But the items couldn’t help him remember the exact details of what happened that day. Wade had tried over the years to piece together everything, but there was a huge gap in his mind from the time they were walking to a nearby store to his holding Jeff’s bullet-ridden body.
Holding the bandana to his chest, Wade sat down on the edge of the king-sized bed, lost in the memories of his brother and the precious little time they’d spent together.
The images Wade dreaded most were of Jeff wearing the bandana and the necklace, and the day Wade took him to get a royal crown tattooed on his shoulder. Wade had since gone through the expensive process of having the Kings’s symbol removed via laser treatment. Even now, the faint image of a crown still remained as a permanent link to his past.
“I’m so sorry, Jeff,” he whispered, his voice breaking.
Wade would never forget the look on his poor mother’s face when she was told that her sixteen-year-old son was dead. She was in denial initially until she looked into Wade’s eyes. Her expression changed from grief to pure hatred. She charged at him, beating him with her fists and calling him a murderer.
He winced at the memory.
After they’d buried Jeff, his mother had told him at the cemetery that he no longer had a home or a mother. A close family friend who’d been in town for the funeral had invited Wade to live with his family in Indiana—but only if he was ready to leave the gang.
Harold Green and Wade’s father had been in the military together. Afterward they’d both decided to go into law enforcement. Wade’s father had been killed five years later when he went to check on a domestic dispute. Uncle Harold had stayed in law enforcement until retiring a few years ago. He’d tried to counsel Wade against gangs, but his words had gone unheard.
Until Jeff’s death.
When Jeff died, life with the Chicago Kings no longer appealed to Wade. It had cost him all that had ever mattered to him—his family.
Wade had moved in with the Green family and surprised everyone when he not only accepted Christ into his life, but finished high school and announced that he felt led to ministry. When Harold accepted a position with the Detroit police department, Wade opted to stay in Indianapolis to finish school at the Christian Theological Seminary.
He received a master’s of divinity degree with the Green family in attendance. Although he didn’t really expect his mother to be in the audience, Wade kept hoping she would come to see him graduate. He missed her dearly.
Wade had not spoken to her in ten years—not since the day they buried Jeff. His death was a wound that would continue to fester and never heal.
Even after her last customer left, Pearl was still wondering what made Wade leave the restaurant in such a hurry. He’d seemed really upset about something.
She cleaned up her station, picked up her dinner and Paige’s, then left the restaurant.
She drove straight home, listening to Yolanda Adams’s new CD.
Her cousin was waiting for her in the living room. “I’m so glad you’re home. I’m starved.”
She got up and followed Pearl into the kitchen.
Pearl sat the bag of food on the Venetian gold-granite countertop. “Guess who had dinner tonight at Milton’s?”
“Who?” Paige retrieved two plates from one of the cherrywood cabinets.
“Pastor Wade Kendrick.”
Paige’s eyes widened in surprise. “Really? Was he alone?”
“Yeah. Why?” Pearl wanted to know. “Is he seeing someone?”
“Not that I know of. That’s why I was asking you if he was alone.”
The thought of Wade with another woman bothered Pearl more than it should’ve. There was no reason for her to be jealous. They couldn’t have a decent conversation much less get involved. Besides, she had absolutely no interest in Wade.
At least that’s what Pearl kept telling herself.
Chapter 3
When Wednesday rolled around, Pearl was ecstatic. Tonight the Chargers would play their first game of the season. This afternoon she was meeting Paige at Charlie’s Coney Dog Empire, one of Pearl’s favorite haunts.
After her errands she made her way to Charlie’s, conveniently located across from the hospital where Paige worked, so all her cousin had to do was walk across the street for lunch.
“I’ll have two with everything and a cherry Coke,” Pearl ordered with a smile. “And these,” she added, referring to the bag of potato chips she was holding.
She liked sitting at the counter in full view of the grill, where she could watch the cooks. Her standard order was always two Coney dogs with chili, mustard and raw onions, the toppings piled so high that half of it ended up on her plate.
Paige came up from behind Pearl, wearing a pair of royal blue scrubs beneath her coat. “Hey, girl,” she greeted. “How long have you been here?”
“Not very long.”
When the waitress came over, Paige ordered, then turned to Pearl. “After I eat this, I’m going to have to spend another hour on the treadmill tonight.”
Pearl laughed. “It’s so worth it. Besides you’ll work it off in the E.R. They usually have you running around like crazy.”
“How can you eat all those onions like that?” Paige asked when their food arrived. “You’re never going to meet a man walking around with onion breath.”
Pearl shrugged. “A little onion breath never killed anyone. Besides, I’m not looking for anyone. I’m content being carefree and single. It gives me a chance to focus on my career.”
She said a quick prayer of thanks before taking a bite of her Coney dog. “Mmm, this is so good.”
Paige nodded in agreement, her mouth full of food.
While Pearl ate her Coney dog, she contemplated her life. It was true, she was very content with her life but still, there was nothing wrong with some male companionship from time to time. And she wanted to get married one day.
A fleeting image of Wade entered Pearl’s mind, surprising her. Why am I thinking about him?
“You’re not saying much,” Paige stated. “Something bothering you?”
“I was just thinking about how it wouldn’t be so bad to have a man in my life. You know, it’s been a while since I’ve even been on a date.”
“A long while.”
Pearl nearly choked on her pop. “You didn’t have to say it like that. You make it sound like it’s been years.”
“Well, it has been a while.”
“Six months, four days and eight hours, but who’s counting?” Pearl responded with a chuckle.
Paige drank some of her pop. “So you’re saying that you’re ready to be involved in a relationship?”
“If the right person comes along.” Pearl picked up her second Coney dog. “I could eat two more of these.”
Shaking her head, Paige said, “You’re a heart attack waiting to happen. You should balance out all that junk food with some healthy foods.”
“I eat healthy most of the time, and you know it. It’s just that I have a thing for Coney dogs and pizza.”
“And white chocolate, and red-velvet cake and—”
“I have a sweet tooth, I admit it.”
They laughed, and finished their lunch.
“What time are you getting off tonight?” Pearl asked.
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