Sinful Intentions

by Crystal Rhodes

  With that she turned and walked out of the door.

  Chapter 14

  “What do you mean that you’re leaving tomorrow?” Nedra was incensed. Her mother had just arrived yesterday, and then had made this startling announcement. “I expected you to stay longer than overnight!”

  She was so angry with Marva that she couldn’t sit still. She paced the large family room from one end to the other. She and her mother were alone in the house. After dinner, Sin had gone out on an errand and taken the children with him.

  “I need you, Mama!” Nedra’s voice rose in frustration. “You’ve always been there for me. How can you abandon me at a time like this? I could lose my baby!”

  “You won’t lose him, Nedra.” Marva’s answer was confident.

  “You don’t know that!” Nedra shouted. She was at her wits end with this woman.

  “Listen, Missy, lower your voice and watch your tone.” Marva’s warning was delivered with the authority that she always commanded. “Now sit down and listen to me. All that pacing is getting on my nerves.”

  Nedra seriously considered defying her mother as she had tried to do a few times in her adolescence, but just as she had in her youth, she thought better of it. Still, she had to let her know that she wasn’t happy about her decision. She crossed her arms and glared at her. Marva didn’t blink as she returned her glare. Gradually, knowing that she was fighting a losing battle, Nedra unfolded her arms and dropped her eyes in submission. She took a seat.

  “I’ve prayed on this challenge God has sent you and Sinclair, and I came here to assess the situation for myself, and I’ve come to one conclusion. There is one thing I’ve tried to provide you with that will get you through this crisis, and I’m sure you know what it is.”

  Nedra had no doubt. “Faith.”

  “Nothing else. I had planned on my stay being short, because I don’t want you to lean on me. I’ll always be there for you. You’ve got a greater power than anything I possess to lean on, so don’t let your faith falter.”

  “I won’t, but…”

  “There is no but. Go to the Source, and I assure you everything will be all right. Trevor will stay where he belongs. That’s an absolute. It’s up to you to make it a reality. I’ll be talking with Sinclair before I leave. I’ve got to make sure that everybody in this house is on the same track. Then I’ll leave tomorrow as planned.”

  Rising, Marva leaned down and kissed her daughter’s brow. “This family has everything it needs to get through this. I’m simply the messenger sent to remind you of that.” Marva stretched and gave a big yawn. “I’m bushed. It’s been a long day. I’m going to bed. Tell Sinclair and the kids that I’ll see them in the morning.”

  “Goodnight, Mama. I love you.”

  “Love you, too, baby.”

  Nedra watched as her mother climbed the winding staircase leading from the family room to the second floor. The spring in her step was as jaunty as ever, and her words were just as sincere. For Rev. Marva Davis there was nothing faith couldn’t solve.

  Getting up from the chair, Nedra walked to the patio doors and looked out. The sun had set, and the moon was barely a sliver. Stars glittered against the darkened sky. The night was beautiful, absolutely perfect, just as God had made it. She had spent most of her life as a minister, assuring others that the Universe was one of perfect order. God made no mistakes. How could she falter in her belief that this was true because the test of that truth was now her own?

  As she stood there, a peace came over Nedra that had eluded her before her talk with her mother. She had let fear and anxiety overcome her faith in the greater power of good. She vowed that from this moment on, no matter what happened, she would stand firm in her faith.

  * * *

  Sinclair and Marva walked arm in arm through the airport. Nedra and the children walked a distance ahead, providing them with needed privacy. His mother-in-law had tried to talk to him earlier that morning, informing him that she had something important to say. However, the hectic day had not afforded them the opportunity to be alone until now.

  The telephone at the Reasoner house started ringing from the time the family awakened. Their lawyer had called to say that Jamison’s attorney wanted to arrange a meeting with them. Royce Jamison would also be present. Sin and Nedra had locked themselves away to discuss this latest development. By the time they emerged, it was time to take Marva to the airport. Everyone was sad about her early departure, but before she left, she gathered the family in the foyer and told them to join hands, close their eyes and bow their heads.

  Raising her hands skyward, Rev. Marva Davis closed her eyes and said, “They’re in your hands, Lord. Walk with them.” Opening her eyes, she looked at the gathering. She smiled at the shocked looks on her family’s faces at the rare brevity of the prayer. It was unusual. The next words she spoke were as absolute as the prayer had been short. “Everything will be all right.”

  Turning, she picked up her bag and walked out of the front door. Silently, the family followed.

  As Marva and Sin walked toward the airport security area, Sin was still upset that her stay had been so short. He had been certain that Nedra would be devastated by her mother’s early departure, but she didn’t appear to be as concerned as he was. He was crazy about Marva. He loved the woman like his own mother, and she treated him like a son. They were the best of friends, and he always looked forward to her visits. Whenever she came she spoiled and pampered him just as she did her grandchildren, and he enjoyed every minute of it. The only thing he didn’t look forward to when she visited were her lectures on spirituality. She was well aware that it was a subject with which he was still struggling. It was Marva’s goal to eliminate that struggle, and Sin had the distinct feeling that she was about to work on that goal now. He braced himself.

  “Don’t worry, brother. I’m not going to preach you a sermon today.”

  Sin felt her forehead. “Are you sure that you’re okay?”

  Laughing, Marva playfully slapped his hand away. “Get outta my face.”

  Sin joined her in laughter. “You know that every time we’re together you get on my case.”

  “Because I’m trying to keep your good-looking butt out of hell. You’re a great husband and father and a dynamite son-in-law. I sure don’t want all of that to go up in flames. I love you too much.”

  Sin was touched. “I love you, too, Marva.”

  “I have no doubt. Like I said, I won’t preach a sermon, but I do have something to say to you.”

  Sin gave a dramatic sigh. “I figured that. What is it?”

  Amused, Marva looked at him a moment before continuing. God had sent this complicated man to love her child like no other man ever had, and by doing so she had also been blessed. She knew that he would give his life for Nedra and his children. He was a good man with a good heart.

  “I’m not staying here longer because I don’t want to become the crutch that your family leans on during this time of trial. My support is a given. It’s important that the five of you lean on each other. That’s how a family should operate. As for your part in this, I only have two words to say to you.”

  Sin raised a skeptical brow. “Two words.”

  She nodded. “Two words.”

  “What are they?”

  An ethereal smile crossed Marva’s face. “Stay strong and believe.”

  Sin shook his head at his mother-in-law’s antics. “That’s four words, Marva.”

  She grinned. “So I can’t count, but I do know that you can’t do one without the other.”

  At the security gate, amid kisses, hugs and tears Marva said her goodbyes.

  “I’m just a phone call away,” she assured her daughter.

  The family watched as she disappeared through the gate. She would board a plane, meet her friends and fly to Hawaii. Her work here was done. She had delivered the messages that God had sent her to deliver. The rest was up to the Reasoner family.

  * * *

 
; Nedra was in for a surprise when their family arrived home from the airport. As soon as they walked into the house the telephone rang. Carla was on the other end. She sounded anxious.

  “Hey, Nedra, have you heard from Sharon?”

  “No I haven’t. Why?”

  “I just got a call from Winston…”

  “Winston? Is something wrong with Sharon?” Nedra’s own anxiety was on alert.

  “Nothing a sanity pill won’t cure. She left Winston.”

  “What? They just got married!” This was an unexpected development. “Sharon seemed so happy. What happened? Why did he call you?”

  “He said that he had tried to call you guys but you weren’t home. It seems that Sharon is on the Peninsula someplace in a hotel. He wanted to know if we knew where she was. The man sounded desperate.”

  “He must be if he’s calling around for her.” From what Nedra had observed, like her own husband, Winston Duncan didn’t seem like the kind of man who would share his personal business with people he hardly knew.

  “And that’s not all. Did you know that Sharon’s pregnant?”

  “No!” Nedra had to take a seat this time. “She didn’t tell me.”

  “Me either.” There was a pause, then, “Actually, we haven’t spoken to each other in a couple of weeks.”

  That was another surprise. The three of them were in contact all of the time. She saw Sharon at work every day, and she had said nothing to her about not having contact with Carla. “What’s going on?”

  There was another moment of hesitancy on the other end, which meant that Carla was reluctant to talk. She sighed. “I was mad at her. I know she didn’t have the nerve to tell you, but that husband of hers might be in a position to help you and Sin with this custody thing with Trevor, and he refused to do so. It seemed to me that she was defending him and taking his side.”

  “Oh, Carla.” She was disappointed that her friend had taken such a position. She needed their full support, not fighting between them.

  “Don’t ‘Oh Carla’ me. There’s such a thing as loyalty and as far as I’m concerned, she wasn’t showing any by defending that stranger…”

  “Her husband, Carla.”

  “He’s a stranger that she took as her husband. Now look where it’s gotten her. Lord knows what the man did to her.”

  “Did he hit her?” Nedra prayed that her friend hadn’t gone through that experience again.

  “I don’t know. All I know is that he’s frantic to find her, so he called here saying that she left him yesterday and he was worried. He explained that he normally wouldn’t have bothered me, but since she was pregnant and had been sick lately—”

  “Morning sickness?”

  “Probably. Anyway, he wanted us to know that she’s alone and may need help.”

  “Well, Sin and I can call around and find out what hotel she’s in. That is if she’s registered under her married name.”

  “She may be registered under her maiden name, try that. As for leaving her husband, I don’t know what to think about that—and she’s pregnant too! Girl, I don’t know what’s going on. Why would she get pregnant so soon? I ask you, where is that woman’s head? I hope she didn’t leave him because of our little spat. I mean, I didn’t think she should have married him since she didn’t really know him, but daggone.”

  Carla went on lamenting about Sharon’s fate until Nedra cut it short, promising to see about Sharon. After disconnecting, she shared what Carla had told her with Sin.

  “So did she leave him because of us, or what?” He looked confused. “I don’t understand.”

  Nedra shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m not sure I understand either, but I’ll call around and see if I can find her, then I’ll see what’s going on.”

  She and Sin were in the family room, waiting for their children to come downstairs. They were taking them to the movies, hoping to cheer them up after their grandmother’s departure. Snuggled against her husband, they relaxed on the sofa. Nedra could feel him stiffen slightly, a sure sign that he didn’t agree with something she had said. She looked at him expectantly.

  “What?”

  He sighed. “I know you didn’t ask for my advice, but like Carla, I’m giving it anyway. Stay out of this. Both you and Carla need to leave it alone. You two have to stop trying to fix Sharon’s problems for her.”

  Taking offense, Nedra sat up and scowled. “We don’t try to fix anything! What are you talking about? We try to help each other, that’s all! We’re sisters.”

  Sin knew better, but continued anyway. “I’m just saying that you need to let her come to you. There was a reason that she didn’t tell you something as important as her being pregnant…”

  “She knows that we have a lot on us. She was probably waiting until the time was right.”

  “Then let it be the right time. You work with her and see her everyday. You’ll see her on Monday. My advice is don’t go tracking her down. She’s upset and probably needs the time to herself…”

  “But she’s pregnant, Sin. She shouldn’t be stressed. And she’s alone, too!” His practicality was annoying.

  “Let her come to you, Nedra. That’s all I’m saying. You’re a trained counselor. You know what to do.”

  He was using reverse psychology on her, and she didn’t like it. He was getting too good at this.

  “All right,” Nedra agreed, reluctantly. “We’ll see what happens Monday. But, after she says something, I’m inviting her to move out of that hotel and in with us. She shouldn’t be alone right now.”

  The subject was closed. If Sharon had put her marriage on the line for their sake, that was the least they could do. They had Marva’s spiritual support, but Sharon’s physical presence would be more than welcomed. It would be an additional source of strength for the battle ahead.

  Chapter 15

  Sharon crossed the street at the intersection and entered the sandwich shop across from her hotel. She had spotted the small shop from her window. It was Sunday and evening was fast approaching. She was pleased that it was open. She didn’t want to eat alone downstairs in the combination restaurant/bar. A sandwich would be perfect.

  Inside the tiny establishment, it looked as though she and the counter girl were the only occupants. As she ordered a sandwich and soda, she sensed movement behind her. She turned in time to see the back of a woman who was walking hurriedly toward the door. Sharon started at the familiarity of her gait.

  “Rhonda?”

  The woman stopped. Slowly, she turned. From behind a pair of stylish sunglasses, Rhonda came face to face with her stepmother. It was obvious that she wasn’t excited about doing so.

  “Hello, Sharon.”

  There was an awkward silence as the two women stood looking at each other. Both had questions in their eyes. Rhonda inquired frostily.

  “You’re a little way from home. Don’t tell me that you’re working on Sundays. Or are you here visiting your friends?”

  Sharon hesitated. The question implied that Rhonda might be unaware that she and Winston had separated, but it had only been two days. She was evasive.

  “You could say that. I didn’t know that you had friends in this area.”

  The younger woman tensed. Sharon could feel her defenses rise.

  “There’s a lot about me that you don’t know.”

  Sharon gave her a sad smile. “You’re right, and I really regret that.”

  Rhonda looked surprised at the comment and opened her mouth to speak, but the counter girl announcing that Sharon’s order was ready interrupted their exchange. By the time she paid and turned around, Rhonda had slipped out the door and disappeared. Picking up her purchase, Sharon exited.

  She had crossed the street and was headed back to the hotel when she saw him—Garth. He was coming out of the doors to her hotel with an arm wrapped around a woman with waist-length auburn hair. It wasn’t Rhonda. Sharon stopped dead in her tracks. Garth gave the valet his car keys, and then embraced the woman as they
engaged in a long, passionate kiss. Sharon’s heart sank. She knew that somewhere Rhonda was watching as her reason for being on the Peninsula became perfectly clear.

  Sharon glanced back at the sandwich shop in which they had met. The large picture window gave an excellent view of the front of the hotel. The tall booth seats had obscured Rhonda from Sharon’s view when she first entered the shop, but it provided an excellent place to sit and watch all of the activity in front of the hotel. Her attention returned to Garth and his companion.

  The couple came up for air as the valet brought Garth his late-model sports car. Garth popped the trunk with his chain key remote and the doorman placed two small overnight bags into the interior. After tipping the service personnel, he helped the woman into the front seat of the car, climbed into the driver’s seat and drove away, unaware of Sharon’s scrutiny. She watched the car until it disappeared, and then she waited.

  A few minutes passed, but just as she expected, Rhonda stepped through the front door of the hotel onto the canopied covered sidewalk. She was still wearing the sunglasses meant to hide the tears. She looked lost.

  Sharon was glad that Rhonda hadn’t confronted the couple. It would have served no purpose, but she knew what the young woman was feeling.

  Without a word, Sharon walked swiftly up to her, took a hold of her elbow, whirled her around in one move and forced her back through the doors of the upscale hotel. Caught completely off guard by her unexpected action, Rhonda was in the lobby and being dragged toward the elevators before she could do more than utter in protest, “What are you doing?”

  She made an attempt to jerk away from her abductor, but Sharon’s grip was like a vice. As the elevator doors opened, Sharon practically threw Rhonda inside before releasing her. The doors closed almost instantly. They were the only occupants.

  As the elevator ascended, Rhonda rubbed her arm, certain that it had been bruised. She threw a hate-filled glare Sharon’s way.

  “Have you gone crazy? What are you doing following me?”

  Sharon leaned against the wall assessing the woman. “I’m not the one doing the following.”