“Tyson told me he loved me!” Monica screamed into the phone, waking Veronica from her beauty rest late Saturday night. Having just returned from a romantic dinner with Tyson, she was too keyed up to sleep. This was her perfect life.
“Took him long enough,” she stated as if she wasn’t surprised, then yawned.
“Actually, he told me yesterday over lunch, but it didn’t count until tonight. It was so romantic…”
“Hold your excitement. If you want me to go to church tomorrow with you, then I need all eight hours of my beauty rest.”
“Right. Bye, girl.” Monica didn’t have to be threatened her twice. She had tried for weeks to get her friend to visit, so she wasn’t leaving anything to chance.
“Wait,” Veronica yelled. “Congratulations, I’m happy for you.” Click.
To match the warm-and-fuzzy feeling in her heart, Monica strolled into her bedroom and turned on the gas flames in her fireplace. Cuddling up in her robe, she closed her eyes and relived the moments.
Exactly four hours earlier, Tyson had showed up with a single red rose and a limo parked outside her door. It was a cliché, but so were romance novels and she couldn’t get enough of those as a teenager. At his request, she had worn the gown she had on at the ball. He gazed at her with such awe as if it was the first time she had seen her in it.
They dined at a five-star restaurant by candlelight. Reaching across the white linen tablecloth, he held her hands. “At times I’ve been told I have a habit of not thinking things through, like when I told you I loved you yesterday. I still do today and will tomorrow. I want you to remember that.” His eyes sparkled.
Bowing her head, she gathered her thoughts, before meeting his eyes again. “I think our chance meeting on the highway was our road to Damascus. Somehow that chain of events led me to you and Christ. To know you love me despite knowing the worst of me is a special kind of love.” She blinked to keep the tears at bay.
“Hey, you act like I don’t have faults.” He smirked. “I think you’ve been privy to my judgment calls too.”
Their evening was unrushed as they ate and shared dessert. Afterward, they relaxed as the limo driver gave them a tour of their city, which Monica saw very little of. She and Tyson were too busy whispering their words of love.
Reluctantly, their date ended at her door with a short kiss and a long hug. With those memories, she got up, turned off the gas flames, and climbed in bed after saying her prayers of thanks for everything and everyone in her life. Then she surrendered to sweet dreams.
The next day as Veronica had promised, she arrived at church late and had an excuse to leave before Pastor Reed finished his sermon, “Treasures Won’t Last Down Here,” Matthew 6:19.
Monica didn’t hide her disappointment. She wanted her friend to experience firsthand this spiritual strength. They had shared so much in life.
Solae reached over Tyson and whispered comforting words, “Some people come to Christ willingly. Others come as a last resort. We’ll keep praying she comes either way.”
“Okay,” she mouthed while Tyson squeezed her hand. One thing she had learned over the past weeks was that prayers did change things. Maybe her best friend was next to make a change.
The following Saturday afternoon, she and Tyson attended a matinee at the St. Louis Black Rep. “I think it’s time we meet each other’s parents,” he said casually.
Monica gave him a side glance as they strolled hand in hand back to his SUV. “And you just came up with this idea while you were supposed to be enjoying Sunset Baby?”
The tenderness in his eyes made her heart flutter. “When I’m with you, I’ve learned how to multitask.” He paused. “I can profess my love and kiss you at the same time.” He beamed before giving her a demonstration.
She giggled, gripping his coat collar. “So are we going to flip a coin to see whose parents we visit first?”
Tyson shook his head. “Nope, my mother and sisters have demanded to meet you since I lost my appetite at the dinner table—well, sort of.” Turning her around, he helped her inside his vehicle.
While she buckled up, she couldn’t help but wonder how much Tyson told them about her. “Do they know about my attacks?”
He didn’t mask the guilt on his face. “I’m sorry, babe,” he confessed and her heart sunk.
She hadn’t experienced anything in weeks. Prayer was definitely working.
“I discussed it with them when you were first hired. If I knew I was going to fall in love with you, I wouldn’t have said anything.”
“It’s okay.” She shrugged. “You couldn’t resist me.”
His nostrils flared. “You have no idea how right you are.”
“So when would you like me to meet them?” She relaxed against the head rest.
“Now.”
“Now!!!!” She sprang forward. She couldn’t form her thoughts fast enough. “Tyson Graham, you could have prepared me. I could have gotten my hair and nails done, bought a new sweater…”
“Babe, you look perfect without trying, but if it will make you feel any better, they don’t know either. It’s a surprise for all of you.” He grinned and she rolled her eyes.
Men are so clueless, she thought and glanced out the window as he called his mother. She snickered, hearing a piercing scream through Tyson’s earpiece.
“Serves you right,” she mumbled loud enough for him to hear, and folded her arms. When he disconnected the call, she laughed out loud.
By the time they made it to his parents’ home, his sisters had arrived minutes before them and his mother had leftovers warming in the oven. She was amazed how they dropped everything for Tyson.
Despite knowing her secret, the Grahams embraced her without batting an eye and never hinted she wasn’t good enough for their brother and son.
When they were ushered to the dining room, the food was blessed and dinner was served. Monica was amused hearing Tyson’s childhood stories he hadn’t shared with her yet. Before leaving, his younger sister, Gail, pulled her to the side. “Thank you.”
“For what?” she asked, perplexed.
“My big brother is stubborn. Once he makes rules, he doesn’t break them. But when he met you, something told me you were going to change his heart. We’re all convinced true love brought you two together.”
“Amen,” she whispered as they exchanged goodbye hugs.
#
“So your parents know nothing about me?” Tyson couldn’t believe his ears the following week, watching Monica nod an affirmative from the passenger seat in his SUV. They had been officially dating six weeks. “Should I be hurt or upset by this revelation?” At least his family suspected she would hold a special place in his heart.
Her lips curled into a smile and she squeezed his hand. “Scared? Don’t be. My mother knows I’ve been going out. If she suspected I was dating exclusively, she would hound me about getting married and having children. I didn’t want that pressure on our relationship.”
Tyson accepted her explanation, but he didn’t like it. He figured if everyone at the office knew they were a couple, even the folks at Solae’s church, it shouldn’t be a secret to Monica’s parents.
The Wyatts lived in North County in an older subdivision with well-kept single-story homes. He thought Mrs. Wyatt was going to cry when she answered the door, sniffing, and arms wide open before her daughter even introduced him.
“I can’t believe my daughter has been hiding
you,” she said.
“I can,” Mr. Wyatt mumbled, coming up behind his wife. The
look in his eyes put Tyson on notice he wasn’t easily
impressed.
Once their hats and coats were removed, he followed them into a small sitting room off the kitchen. “Mom, there’re a lot of things I need to tell you.”
“You’re pregnant,” Mrs. Wyatt stated in horror as they took their seats.
“What!” her father raised his voice as he and Tyson exchanged bewildered glances.
“Ah, no. I told you Tyson and I got our past sins washed away, we’re not trying to make any new ones,” Monica defended their relationship and he was proud of her.
It was Tyson’s idea to tell her parents about the attacks, even if she hadn’t suffered any since the day they accepted God’s complete salvation.
Her father crossed his arms and leaned back in his seat while her mother scooted to the edge of the sofa.
“I’m starving. Can’t we eat first?” Monica practically whined.
“No, let’s talk, then we’ll feed you,” Mr. Wyatt stated.
If Tyson knew they would be interrogated first, he would have insisted they grab a bite earlier, but she refused, stating her mother would be offended they had eaten anything.
“Daddy…”
Doubting her father was going to budge, Tyson squeezed her hand for her to comply.
“Hush, George, I want to hear how they met.” Ollie smiled.
She glanced at him again. “A while back, I started having these attacks—”
“What kind of attacks?” Her mother gasped for air, then patted her chest.
“Nothing life-threatening,” she hurried to explain.
When Monica seemed concerned at Ollie’s reaction, Tyson kept his eyes on her and prayed nobody would be having attacks today on his watch.
“I kinda freaked out for no reason. I felt frightened, started sweating. The next time I was on the highway, another time I was in my car.”
“How many times?” her mother asked.
“Four,” Tyson answered. “She was having an attack while driving and pulled over to the shoulder. I stopped to see if she was all right.” Mr. Wyatt smiled, definitely pleased. “Then I hired her.”
“She works for you?” Her father frowned. “I don’t like he has the power to fire you.”
“Or the power to love her,” Tyson stated. “And I do.”
“These attacks…” Her mother steered the conversation back to Monica. “You’re a very rational and tempered person. For you to act like that out of the blue reminds me of when you were a baby and we caught your Uncle Johnny holding you high in the air, ignoring your pleads to get down, or putting you in the wagon and running fast. The boy was beyond mischievous. After we caught him trying to terrorize you with Halloween masks, your daddy banned him from our house,” she explained.
“Uncle Johnny?” Monica said as if she couldn’t believe it.
“Yep, Attorney Johnathan Washington Wyatt had a warp sense of humor when he was young.” His father hmphed.
“Maybe that had something to do with those fear attacks,” her mother reasoned.
“Maybe, but I’ve never been scared of flying, driving, people…” She shrugged. “So can we eat now?” She feigned starvation. It worked and in less than five minutes, they gathered around the table.
Tyson kept his amusement to himself. His woman had perfected the art of getting her way and better watch himself around the woman he loved her.
#
Double dating was overrated, judging from the vibes Tyson was getting from Reggie and Tracee. What had happened between last weekend and today?
He and Monica had been excited about joining them for dinner, but the evening was going downhill and fast. She must have sensed the tension too as she tried to engage Tracee. Reggie’s girlfriend was polite, giving short answers, but seemed uncomfortable.
What was going on in their paradise? Tyson wondered. The couple definitely wasn’t glowing.
“So, Tracee, how long have you and Reggie been dating?”
“Six months and two weeks.” Tracee cut her eyes at her boyfriend.
When Reggie excused himself to the men’s room, Tyson followed and stopped his friend outside the door. “Hey, man, what’s going on?” He tried to keep the edge out of his voice. “The double dating thing was your idea for our ladies to get to know each other, which is what Monica is trying to do. I’d have taken her to a movie or play.”
“That was before…” Reggie rubbed his neck and glanced away. Finally, he looked Tyson in the eyes. “I hate to say you were right, man, but the long-distance relationship is wearing us down. Changes need to be made. She ain’t moving and neither am I, so there you have it. The handwriting is on the wall.” He made quotation marks with his fingers.
“The double date was planned before Tracee decided, without my input, that we should go our separate ways. She felt I deserved to be told face-to-face.” Reggie twisted his mouth. He looked wounded. “She told me she was going to wait until after dinner, but it was too much to hold in.” He pointed back at the table. “You can blame her for ruining the night.”
Tyson had never seen his business partner so discombobulated. Neither had he seen him so enthralled with a woman. “Man, I’m sorry.” He glanced back. Tracee seemed to have no problem talking in their absence.
Two more names would be added to Tyson’s prayer list, because his heart ached for Reggie. “Listen…after we eat, let’s call it a night. Clearly, you and Tracee’s hearts aren’t in this and I want to salvage the night with Monica.”
“Fine with me. If this wasn’t an upscale restaurant, we could order to-go meals,” Reggie sputtered and walked into the men’s room.
Tyson didn’t follow this time. Instead he whispered a short prayer, “Lord, what can I do or say? Reggie’s hurting.”
Pray My will, God whispered back.