Chapter 10
A Blast from the Past
After Bible Study on Tuesday evening, Ginger excused herself from the sanctuary. Five minutes later she exited the ladies’ room and was startled to see Joseph standing outside of the door, off to the side, waiting for her.
He looked in her eyes and smiled. “Hello, beautiful.”
Ginger was surprised yet happy to see Joseph. Since he had paid for her, Celeste, and Portia’s meal on Sunday, Ginger had not been able to dismiss Joseph from her mind. “Hi there,” she said smiling. “I didn’t know you were here in Bible class this evening.”
“I got here a little late so I decided to sit in the back of the church. I didn’t want to cause a scene. I didn’t know you were here either until you stood up and left the sanctuary. I thought you were leaving the church. That’s why I followed you. I wanted to talk to you.” Joseph scanned Ginger’s attire. The black slacks and cropped pumpkin-colored V-neck wrapped top she wore fit her nicely. He also took notice of the five-inch black patent leather stilettos Ginger wore. “You look beautiful tonight, Ginger.”
Ginger was a dainty girl, extremely feminine, and took pride in her attire. She would try on four or five outfits before she made a decision. That evening the pumpkin-colored blouse, black slacks, and stilettos was the fifth outfit she had tried on. Ginger knew she had made the right decision because Joseph loved it.
“Thank you.” Ginger scanned Joseph from head to toe. His navy blue slacks and pink button-down polo shirt looked good on him. Ginger admired a man who was secure enough in his manhood to wear the color pink. It was Ginger’s favorite color. “You look nice yourself.”
He smiled. “It’s good to see you again. How have you been?”
“I’ve been well, thank you. And you?”
“Things are going well. My stove was finally delivered today. Now I can leave that fast food stuff alone and cook a meal and eat properly.”
Ginger chuckled. “I know what you mean. Lords knows I’ve had more than my share of fast food lately. But I’m sure my hips can speak for themselves.”
“Your hips are lovely, Ginger. Don’t ever think differently.”
Ginger’s dark skin turned crimson red. She smiled in embarrassment. “Excuse me?”
“I didn’t stutter, did I? I said your hips are lovely.” Joseph paused. “And so are you.”
Ginger stood looking at Joseph in amazement. She had no words.
By the expression on her face, Joseph knew he’d embarrassed Ginger so he opted to change the subject. “Did you enjoy your lasagna on Sunday?”
Ginger’s thoughts were still on what Joseph said about her hips. Ronald had never said anything like that to her. He complained that her baby toe was shaped like a thumbtack. She recalled Ronald telling her that she was too short. Ginger remembered a time when she came home with a new short, tapered hairdo and Ronald told her that she looked like a man. Thinking back on Ronald’s verbal abuse, Ginger had only heard part of Joseph’s question. She shook her head vigorously from side to side and brought her attention back to the man standing in front of her. “I’m sorry, what did you say?”
“I asked if you enjoyed your lasagna on Sunday.”
“Yes, I did. And I got your note. Portia, Celeste, and I thank you so much. But you didn’t have to pay our bill, Joseph.”
“Of course I had to pay. I was being obedient. My steps are ordered, Ginger.”
Ginger laughed and mocked him. “God told you to pay for my dinner? Is that what you’re saying?”
“When He speaks, I move.” Joseph took a step closer to Ginger and looked into her eyes. “You wanna know what else He told me?”
She swallowed hard. Then she swallowed again. Ginger was afraid to ask Joseph what else God had told him. She didn’t want to know. But she wondered who Joseph was and what was he doing in her life. Why was he there at that particular time?
Joseph noticed her hesitation and he asked the question again. “Do you wanna know what else God told me, Ginger?”
He stood so close to Ginger that she could smell his breath when he spoke. Wintergreen Tic Tacs. She knew exactly what it was. Ginger always carried a box of the small, white after-dinner mints in her purse. The warm but cool scent flowed through Gingers nostrils like a summer breeze. Ginger was intoxicated in his presence. Her equilibrium was off. She felt herself sway. She slowly opened her mouth and said, “Yes.” The sound of her own voice brought Ginger out of the trance. “I mean no. I mean maybe, but not right now.”
Joseph leaned in. Ginger’s heart had started to race. His face was getting closer and closer to her face. Oh, my God. He’s gonna kiss me.
Within an inch from Ginger’s lips, Joseph moved to her left jawbone and whispered in her ear, “He told me that you were my wife, my Eve.”
Ginger shifted her weight from her right leg to her left. Joseph was mesmerizing her. But she had only met him two days ago and he was already talking about marriage. He couldn’t be serious. “You don’t know anything about me.”
“I know that you are an angel. And God doesn’t send too many of those down here. He told me to get you while the getting was good.”
At that moment Ginger knew that everything Ronald wasn’t, Joseph was and more.
Joseph reached for Ginger’s left hand and kissed the back of it softly. “Ginger, I know you’re gonna run from me. I expect you to. But there will come a time when your legs are going to get tired and give out. That’s when I’ll be there to catch you. You are a prize and I’m pressing toward the mark for the prize of the high calling.” He kissed the back of Ginger’s hand again and walked out of the church doors.
Ginger stood still for a few moments taking everything that Joseph had just said in. She followed Joseph outside and saw him getting in his car. Ginger stood on the church steps and watched his car pull away from the curb. Though she didn’t want to, Ginger liked Joseph. She liked the way he was wooing her. But it was foreign to Ginger. She didn’t know how to receive it. And it had only been two days since she met Joseph. How in the world could he possibly know that she was his wife?
“But two days, Lord? Really?” she said out loud.
Ginger walked to her car, got in, and started the engine. She reached in her purse for her cellular telephone. She buckled her seat belt then pressed Celeste’s home number on speed dial. A woman, a church member, walked by Ginger’s car, tapped the driver’s side window, and waved. Ginger waved and smiled at the woman just when Celeste answered her call.
“Hi, Gin-Gin,” Celeste greeted her when she saw Ginger’s cellular number on the caller ID.
“Hi, Momma Bear. I missed you and Portia at Bible class this evening. Where are you guys?”
“I haven’t a clue where Portia might be. I was a little tired after work today. I’ve been on my feet all day and my ankles are swollen. I’ve been in bed since I got home.”
Celeste was only four months pregnant but she behaved as though she were in her third trimester with twins. She complained that her breasts were sore. She complained that her back ached. She was already wearing maternity blouses that made her look as though she were wearing a tent. And now she complained that her ankles were swollen.
Ginger knew that having a baby had been Celeste’s obsession since she and Anthony had gotten married. And Ginger was ecstatic when Celeste had shown her the blue mark on the home pregnancy test stick. And Ginger even screamed louder than Celeste when she had called Ginger with the good news when she had left Dr. Bindu’s office with confirmation. But Ginger thought that Celeste was exaggerating her symptoms.
“If your ankles are swollen, you should soak your feet in Epsom salt. Do you have any? I could stop at Walmart and get it then bring it by.”
“I sent Tony already. He should be back soon. So, how was Bible class?”
That was another thing that irritated Ginger. The way Celeste ran Anthony was absolutely ridiculous. Lately it seemed that every time Ginger talked with Celeste, Anthony was out chasing one of her cravings. From all the running he’d been doing, the poor man would be burnt out by the time the baby arrived.
“Well, that’s what I called to talk with you about. Bible class was good but it’s what happened afterward that’s got me jacked up.”
“Uh-oh,” Celeste said. “Hold on, and I’ll dial up Portia and get her on the line.”
“No. Please don’t.” The last thing Ginger needed was Portia telling her what she should and shouldn’t do about Joseph. It was one thing to give advice but Portia was bossy, opinionated, and thought she knew what was best for everyone. Ginger didn’t want to argue, she just wanted to share with Celeste what happened with Joseph after Bible class. Had Portia been added to their conversation she would tell Ginger to run off and elope with Joseph that evening.
“Wow, that was a first,” Celeste said when Ginger stopped her from calling Portia. The three of them often ended their days with a three-way chat.
“You know, Celeste, I just wanna talk and get some emotions out without being judged or made to feel inadequate. Portia isn’t capable of controlling herself.”
Celeste chuckled. She knew Ginger was speaking the truth about their friend. “Okay, so tell me what happened after Bible class.”
Ginger settled in her driver’s seat and exhaled. “I think I like Joseph, Celeste.”
“You think you like him?”
She exhaled again. “I guess I really don’t know how I feel but I definitely feel something for him. I stepped out of the ladies’ room at church this evening and found Joseph standing off to the side waiting for me.”
“Really?”
“He’s so different from Ronald, Celeste.”
“Uh, yeeeaaahhh. You think? Ronald had never stared you down with dreamy eyes, followed you to a restaurant, and paid for your meal.”
“You got that right. And he never indicated that he wanted to marry me either.”
Celeste was sitting up in bed. Her back came away from the pillows she was leaning against. “Joseph asked you to marry him?”
Ginger laughed at Celeste’s high-pitched tone. “Of course not. But he told me that God told him that I was his wife. Joseph said that I was running from him but eventually he’ll catch me. He called me his Eve.”
“As in Adam and Eve?”
“That’s the only Eve I know,” Ginger said. “But it was the way Joseph said the words, Celeste. I mean he’s so charming, and handsome, and . . . and . . .”
“And charming and handsome,” Celeste said then laughed.
Ginger returned the laughter but had started to tear up. “I don’t know what to do.”
“You gotta get to know Joseph. Spend time with the man and learn who he is. Obviously he’s convinced that he’s found his soul mate. He likes what he sees and he’s determined to make you his one and only. I love it.”
Ginger wiped a tear away that had fallen on her right cheek. “But, Celeste, it’s only been two days since I met the guy.”
“Well, let me tell you something about God. When He does something, it doesn’t take Him long.”
* * *
On Wednesday morning Celeste sat at her station behind the counter, bowed her head for a quick word of prayer then removed the NEXT WINDOW sign. Immediately a lady approached. “Good morning, Celeste.”
Celeste looked up and recognized an old friend she hadn’t seen in years. “Hey, Latricia. It’s been a long time. How are you doing, girl?”
“I’m fine.” Latricia noticed the maternity blouse Celeste was wearing. “And I can see that you’re doing fine too. How far along are you?”
Celeste rubbed her small round belly, something she loved to do. “I just started my my second trimester.”
Latricia looked at the size of Celeste’s stomach. It was the size of a large cantaloupe. “Really? I think either you or your doctor may have miscounted. Are you sure you’re not having twins?”
“Girl, bite your tongue.” Celeste chuckled. “God won’t put no more on me than I can bear. He only gave me enough patience for one. I don’t think Tony and I could handle two babies.” Truth be told, because of Celeste’s fertility issues, she would be over the moon if she gave birth to twins.
“It’s good to know that you and Tony are still together,” Latricia said. “So, how is Mr. Anthony Harper?”
Celeste looked at Latricia with a weird expression. “You know Tony?”
“Of course,” Latricia said matter-of-factly. “Remember a couple of years ago? Down on Taylor Street? You and I were standing in line chatting while waiting to buy Italian ice. He walked up to you and kissed your neck. You introduced us then. You don’t remember that?”
Celeste recalled that moment. “Oh, you’re right. I remember now. Tony is fine. Thanks for asking. What brings you in here today?”
“I need to cash a check.” Latricia opened her purse and pulled out her checkbook. She filled it out, turned it over, and endorsed the back. Then she gave the check to Celeste.
Celeste accepted the check and saw that Latricia had written the check for $3,500. She looked at Latricia.
“Oh, you need my ID?” Latricia asked when she saw how Celeste looked at her.
“Girl, no. I know who you are.” Celeste keyed Latricia’s bank account number into her desktop computer. Her eyes grew wide when she saw Latricia’s balance. $387,979.23 jumped out at Celeste in big, bold black numbers. She couldn’t pull her eyes away from the computer screen.
Latricia noticed Celeste’s hesitation. “Something wrong, Celeste?”
“Uh, no. From the balance on your account, I say that everything is right. Girl, what do you do for a living?”
“I don’t work.”
Celeste glanced at the computer screen again to make sure that she had indeed seen at least six digits. “You don’t?”
“My husband is a motorman for the Chicago Transit Authority,” Latricia offered.
Celeste smiled. “Really? So is Tony but our bank account don’t look like yours.”
“And we own four chicken shacks. David and I.”
Celeste looked at the check Latricia had given her and saw two names on the top left corner. She was so intrigued by the amount of money in the bank account, Celeste hadn’t noticed there was a second name. “David and Latricia Hall?” She looked up from the check at Latricia. “When did you get married?”
“A year ago,” Latricia answered, smiling.
“Well, congratulations. How’s married life?” Celeste asked.
“It has its ups and downs but, overall, we’re happy.”
Heck, with that kind of money you better be happy. “And that’s all that matters, Latricia.” Celeste stamped the check on the reverse side and opened the cash drawer. “How would you like your cash?”
“All hundreds would be good.”
Humph, humph, humph. Must be nice. Celeste saw that she had only a few hundred-dollar bills in her drawer. She closed it. “You’re the type of customer who requires a visit to the vault. I’ll be back in a few.” Celeste closed her cash drawer and stepped away.
She returned with a stack of one-hundred-dollar bills in her hand. “Here we are,” she said. Celeste stood on the opposite side of the counter and started to count the money. She laid the bills on the counter one by one. “One hundred, two hundred, three hundred, four hundred, five hundred, six . . .” Celeste stopped counting. Something dawned on her.
She looked at the man’s name on the computer screen: David Hall. Celeste could have sworn Portia said she was dealing with a guy with that same name who lived in the Chatham area. Celeste read the address on the account. Latricia and her husband resided in the 8800 block of South State Street, right in the heart of Chatham.
Celeste froze. Oh, my God.
Latricia noticed Celeste’s hesitation in counting the money. “What’s wrong, Celeste?”
Celeste quickly composed herself. “I thought I felt my baby move,” she lied.
“Wow. That must feel so good.”
“Yeah, it does.” Lord, please forgive me for lying. Celeste continued counting the money, placed it in an envelope, and gave it to Latricia. “There you go. Will there be anything else for you today?”
Latricia placed the envelope in her purse. “Nope, this should hold me for a while.”
Suddenly Celeste recalled that Portia also said that David drove trains. Celeste tried to breathe but couldn’t. In shock she stood staring at Latricia with an open mouth.
“Celeste, are you okay? You look like you just seen a ghost.”
Get it together, Celeste, she told herself. “Um, yeah, I’m all right. The baby is doing gymnastics. I haven’t gotten use to it.” Celeste was angry at Portia for putting her in that position.
On the back of a savings withdrawal slip, Latricia wrote down her home and cellular numbers. “Let’s stay in touch, Celeste. And be sure to send me an invitation to your baby shower.”
Celeste didn’t quite smile at Latricia but she did the best she could. “Okay, Latricia. I sure will. You take care.”
Latricia said her good-byes and walked away from Celeste’s station. Before the next customer could approach her, Celeste set the NEXT WINDOW sign on the counter and went to the lounge to lie on a chaise chair. She put one hand on her belly and the other on her forehead then sighed. “Oh, my God,” was all she could say.
* * *
“Attention, all teachers. Miss Brown, please come to the principal’s office. Miss Brown, please come to the principal’s office.”
Ginger was in the middle of giving a spelling test when she heard the page. “Jamia, I want you to be in charge and take names,” she said to the student who sat closest to her.
Jamia got excited. For once she got to rule the class. She got up from her own desk and sat in Ginger’s seat behind the big desk. “Don’t worry, Miss Brown. I got this.”
“I’m sure you do, Jamia.” Ginger looked at all the students and made an announcement. “I’ll only be gone for a few minutes. I don’t wanna see any names on Jamia’s list when I get back. Is that clear?”
“Yes, Miss Brown,” the class mumbled.
“I can’t hear you,” Ginger stated.
They yelled, “Yes, Miss Brown!”
Ginger left her classroom and walked down the corridor to the administration office and approached the twenty-year-old secretary. “Renita, did you page me?”
Renita had been filing folders into a cabinet when she looked at Ginger standing on the opposite side of her desk. “Yes, I did. Diane wants to see you in her office.”
“Do you have any idea what she wants?”
Renita displayed a huge grin on her face. “Nope.”
Ginger cocked her head to the side and looked at Renita curiously. “Yes, you do.”
“No, I don’t,” Renita insisted and kept her smile.
“Then why are you smiling?”
“I can’t smile?”
Ginger gave Renita a long stare then looked toward Diane’s door and saw it closed. “Who’s in there with her?”
“No one. She’s waiting for you.”
Ginger slowly walked to Diane’s door and knocked. “It’s open,” Ginger heard Diane say. She turned the knob and walked in. She saw Diane sitting behind her desk.
“Why am I being paged in the middle of a spelling test?”
Diane looked up from a memo she was writing. “You had a delivery today, a special delivery, might I add.”
Ginger frowned at her. “What kind of delivery?”
Diane nodded her head toward the sitting area in her office. Ginger looked to her right and saw roses on top of roses on top of roses. “What in the world?”
Diane stood up and walked around her desk. She grabbed Ginger’s hand and practically skipped over to the sitting area. “Girl, you’re looking at five dozen roses. Count them. Five. Dozen. For Ginger Brown. All five of them, girl.” Diane walked around the table where the roses were sitting in glass vases and counted them. “One, two, three, four, five. See, I told ya. Five dozen roses, girl.” Next to the first dozen was a small envelope with Ginger’s name on it. Diane picked it up and gave it to her. “Open it.”
Ginger tore the envelope open, pulled out a small white card, and read it silently.
Diane exploded with anticipation. “Who are they from?”
“If you’d let me finish the card, you’ll know,” Ginger fussed.
Diane pulled a chair out from under the table and sat down on the edge of the seat. “Read it out loud.”
Ginger looked at Diane. “Diane, you act like you’re sitting on the front row at a male strip club. Haven’t you ever received flowers before?”
“Nope. I have to live vicariously through other people. Will you please read the card?”
Ginger knew Diane was anxious to find out who had sent her the roses to the school. “What are you willing to do to get me to read it?” Ginger teased.
“I might just give you a beat down if you don’t read it.”
Ginger chuckled. “It’s written in calligraphy and it reads as follows.” She looked at Diane. “Can a sista get a drum roll, please?”
Diane was more than happy to oblige. She turned toward the table and started tapping it quickly with both hands. Before Ginger could get the first word out, Diane’s telephone rang. Ginger saw that she wasn’t paying it any attention.
“Aren’t you gonna answer your phone?”
“Nope. Read the card.”
If Ginger didn’t know any better she would’ve thought Diane was a dope addict waiting for her next fix. “It could be important. What if it’s a call you don’t wanna miss?”
Diane exhaled and balled up her lips. “Ginger, in about one minute you’re gonna be missing two front teeth. Read the darn card.”
“Okay, okay,” Ginger said. “Let’s not get hostile.” She looked at Diane’s hands then at her eyes.
“What?” Diane asked hastily.
“I told you that I need a drum roll.”
Diane impatiently began tapping the table again. “I’m two seconds off of you, Ginger.”
Ginger brought the card to her face and read it. “‘Roses are red, violets are blue. Buying you dinner and flowers can’t compare to what I’m prepared to bestow upon you. Ginger, these roses are beautiful but they don’t measure up to the beauty I see in you. Joseph Banks.’”
Diane leaned back in the chair and crossed her left leg over her right knee. “Who is Joseph Banks and where can I get me one just like him?”
Ginger was smiling wide as she place the card back in its envelope. “Joseph is a man I met in church on Sunday. He asked me to dinner and invited Portia and Celeste to come along. I turned him down and told him the three of us already had dinner plans but big mouth Portia just had to tell him where we would be eating. He came to the restaurant and requested the bill for our table, paid it, and left. And last night at church I bumped into Joseph when I was coming out of the bathroom. He was standing there waiting to tell me that I was an angel sent from above and God told him to get me while the getting was good. He also said that God revealed to him that I was his Eve.”
Diane was impressed. “Wow. So, what are you gonna do?”
Ginger sat down in a chair next to Diane. “Diane, Joseph seems nice but I don’t know him. After all the mess Ronald put me through, how do I know that I can trust Joseph?”
“Ginger, are you sure that you’ve crossed that bridge with Ronald?” Diane asked. It seemed that Ginger was holding on to feelings she may still have for Ronald.
“Not only did I cross it, Diane; I burned every step behind me so I wouldn’t cross back, even if I wanted to.”
“Well, if there’s no turning back, the only thing to do is move forward, honey. And if you ask me, dinner and five dozen roses was the right kind of inspiration that you needed to put your feet in gear.”
Ginger looked at all the roses Joseph had sent. “I hear you, Diane. One thing puzzles me though. How did Joseph know where to find me?”
They both said at the same time, “Big mouth Portia.”
* * *
At the end of the day, Ginger went back to Diane’s office to retrieve her roses and saw that Diane had left already. Ginger set one of the vases on her desk. She wrote “Now someone can live vicariously through you” on a Post-it note and pasted it to one of the roses. Ginger looked at the four remaining vases filled with beautiful red roses.
Speaking with Diane helped Ginger realize that she couldn’t run from love. If Joseph was heaven-sent, then Ginger would accept her blessing with open arms. “Okay, Lord, I don’t know where this is going to lead, but I trust you.”