DESTINY WATCHED AS DANIEL REVIEWED THE PROGRAM materials she had developed since their last meeting. This was the first time she’d seen him since that meeting, as their plans for Sunday lunch had fallen through. She wasn’t sure who was more disappointed. He’d already apologized several times and, of course, she’d accepted his apology. He was a minister and there would be times the ministry would come first. Sunday afternoon had been one of those times.
Daniel looked up from the program materials he was reviewing. “As usual, you’ve done good work, Destiny. The application for the small business development seminar is perfect. I just made a couple of minor changes. Look them over, and if you agree, let’s run the application by Gavin and Natalie. After we get their approval, it’s ready to be printed.”
Destiny took back the application he handed her and glanced at the notes he’d made on it. As he said, they were minor. “I’ll make these changes and get the document to Gavin and Natalie. It shouldn’t take long for their approval. We should have the application ready for distribution at Sunday services. I hope we can also get a notice in the church bulletin for Sunday. It goes to press on Friday.”
“That would be great,” Daniel said. “But if we can’t, we’ll just wait a week. That won’t be a problem. I’ve adjusted my time expectations since our last meeting to something more realistic. ‘The race doesn’t go to the swiftest, but to him who endures to the end.’”
She smiled at his scripture recitation. “Sounds good to me. Next, we need to make some decisions about the teams we want to send to training to lead our Dave Ramsey personal finance seminar.”
“Yeah,” he said. “I talked to Gavin about it and he has a couple of folks he strongly wants us to consider. They’ve been good stewards in the church and they’re the kind of people he’s comfortable putting forth as examples.”
“Makes sense,” she said.
“I don’t know any of these people personally,” he said, handing her a sheet of paper with a list of names.
Looking over the list, Destiny said, “I know four of the eight listed here. Do we have to narrow it down to four or should we send all eight to training?”
“Let’s just send all eight,” he said. “It’s better to have more people prepared than not to have enough.”
“Sounds good to me,” she said. “Do we contact them or should Gavin do it?”
“He wants us to do it,” he said.
Destiny made a note of it. “I’ll draft a letter of invitation and we’ll both sign it.”
“Let’s have them meet with us as a group before the training,” he said. “That way, we can all get on the same page.”
Destiny nodded. “What time frame are you thinking?”
“My schedule is pretty open,” he said. He met her eyes. “Maybe Sunday after church. Is that too soon?”
She shook her head. “Not at all. The folks on the list are regular attendees at the Sunday service so it shouldn’t be a problem. Instead of a letter, it might be better if you call and invite them. Having one of the pastors call would make it clear how important the church sees the program.”
“Good point,” he said. “I’ll have Doris get their contact information for me and I’ll call them tomorrow.”
She smiled up at him. “This is going pretty smoothly, isn’t it?”
He smiled back. “We’re a good team,” he said.
“I guess we are.”
He leaned toward her. “I really am sorry about Sunday, Destiny. I was looking forward to spending some time with you.”
“You don’t have to keep apologizing, Daniel. I understand. Really, I do.”
“Then can we try it again this Sunday, after we meet with the team?”
She began shaking her head. “I have an even better idea. Why don’t we have a luncheon meeting after church on Sunday? We can either provide food here at the church or we can make reservations somewhere.”
Daniel nodded. “That’s a great idea. I like the idea of providing food here at the church. We can ask Eve to cater it for us. Do you think she’ll be able to pull something together on such short notice?”
“I don’t see why not. It’s such a small group, she should be able to if she doesn’t have another event lined up for the weekend. I’ll check with her as soon as we’re finished here.”
“I hope she can do it. Did you know that Eve was the inspiration for the small business seminars?”
She looked up at him. “No, I didn’t.”
“She brought lunch over for me and Gavin one day and Natalie told me that she was trying to get her catering business off the ground.”
“And from that you came up with the idea for the seminars?”
He nodded. “That and the fact that I have some experience starting a small business. I know what it’s like to dream about building something and to not be sure that you can pull it off. If I can help somebody else through that maze of insecurity, I want to do it.”
“We’ll have to make sure that we get Eve in the first small business session. Is there some way you can use her as a case study in the workshop? You know, show the class how to get started by getting her started?”
“You’re just full of great ideas today. That’s certainly something I can do. We should talk to Eve about it soon. If she can cater the event on Sunday, let’s talk to her afterward.”
“I’ll let her know. She’ll be so excited.” She met his eyes. “Daniel, these programs are going to be the answers to so many folks’ prayers. Gloria will be so pleased.”
“Thanks for saying that,” he said. “I hope you’re right.”
“I know I am,” she said, pulling out a sheet of paper from the stack in front of her and handing it to him. “I had the deacons and Gavin and Natalie come up with a list of folks needing help now.”
“This is not a lot of money,” he said after he’d looked over the list.
“Not to you,” she said, “but it is to them.”
“You’re right,” he said. “It’s just hard to imagine that so little money can make such a big difference in somebody’s life. I say we fund each one. We just have to do it in a way that allows the recipients to keep their dignity.”
Destiny was pleased he’d remembered her suggestion from last time. “It’ll probably be easiest if everything goes through the deacons. That way, it will still feel like a private matter.”
He nodded. “That was easy. Anything else?”
“No more business, but I do have a question.”
“Shoot.”
“You told me your inspiration for the small business seminars. What was your inspiration for the personal finance sessions and the associated loan program?”
He leaned forward. “You know, this is the kind of conversation we should have had over lunch on Sunday. Again—”
She lifted her palms to him. “If you apologize again, I’m going to be offended. Instead, tell me now about your inspiration.”
He released a deep sigh. “The business that I started with my friends was a cybersecurity firm. We handle a lot of cases of corporate fraud. It’s been my experience that a lot of the folks who get caught up in those scams do so because they’ve mismanaged their own finances. While we can’t force folks to make the right decisions, we can give them the information they need to make wise choices.”
“You have a good heart, Daniel,” she said.
He shrugged. “I’m just giving back what I’ve been given.”
“You accused me once of not being able to accept a compliment. You know you’re just as bad at it, don’t you?”
He smiled. “Maybe that’s why we work so well together. We’re so much alike.”
Destiny fought the need to turn back his praise. “Did you just compliment both of us?”
He laughed. “I think I did. Now that we both agree on how great we are, have we covered all the business for today?”
She looked down at her notepad and then back up at him. “There is one more thing. I’m trying to find some time to take a weekend trip to California so I can visit with my kids. Given how everything is lining up here, school, and my day job, it seems like three weeks from now would be good for me. I need to know if it will be good for you.”
“Whatever you need to do, Destiny. Just let me know. Family needs to come first.” He met her eyes. “You know, I don’t know much about your kids. That’s another topic we would have covered over lunch.”
“You’d better not be apologizing again.”
“I’m not apologizing, but I am expressing regret. Tell me about your kids.”
She reached over and picked up her handbag from the chair next to her. She pulled out a mini photo album and handed it to him. “A picture is worth a thousand words.”
Daniel thumbed through the album. “They’re cute kids. They’re six, right?”
She nodded. “Six going on sixteen. They’re growing up so fast. Too fast for me.”
He handed her back the album. “It’s nice that they have such a good relationship with their father.”
She nodded. “Our relationship didn’t work, but Kenneth has been a good father to the kids. I have to give him that.”
“He certainly chose a great vacation spot for them.”
“It’s more like a work vacation. Kenneth’s wife, Mary Margaret, is out there for a summer work project. Kenneth and the kids tagged along since it made for a very inexpensive vacation when you consider their out-of-pocket costs.”
He nodded. “I can imagine her company is picking up the tab for most, if not all, of the living expenses.”
“You got it. That’s why it made so much sense for the kids to join them.” She went on to tell him all the activities Kenneth and Mary Margaret had planned.
“I would enjoy a trip like that.”
“So would I,” she said. “But there was no way I could afford it. The best I’ve been able to do is take the kids to Disney World in Orlando for a week.”
“I bet they enjoyed it.”
She smiled. “They had a ball. It’s easy to entertain them at their age.”
“You’re a good mom,” he said.
She met his eyes. “I try, but it’s not always easy.” He’d been open with her about his life so she decided to open up a little to him. “I just want so much for them.”
“From the looks of them in those pictures, they’re both healthy and happy. Everything is gravy.”
“I know,” she said, “but I want the gravy.”
He chuckled. “I’m getting lost in the analogy. What’s the gravy?”
“Right now it’s a house in Gwinnett County. That’s why I’m working extra jobs this summer.”
“You want to move?”
She nodded. “Kenneth convinced me to enroll the kids in a school in his school district. It was the right decision since the school did have a better report card than the school they would have gone to here. But we spend a lot of time traveling between my house, Kenneth’s house, and the school. It’s a lot for the kids and for me. It would be much easier if we lived closer to the school.”
He nodded. “Or the kids could live with their father during the school week. I guess that’s not an acceptable option for you.”
She shook her head. “No, it’s not. Of course, Kenneth has suggested it. I see his point but I don’t see my kids living away from me. That makes my best alternative moving to the district. I’ve already found a little house that’s perfect for us. I have until August first to go to contract with the owners.”
“Are you going to make it?”
She nodded. “It was touch and go for a while, but with my extra work, I’ll be able to swing it.”
He met her eyes. “You know, the loan program was made for situations like yours. You’re—”
She began shaking her head. “Don’t even offer. If I hadn’t been able to find extra work, I would consider your offer a godsend. But since I have found work, I couldn’t take money that some other family might need.” She smiled at him to let him know she wasn’t offended by his offer. “I will be one of the first people to enroll in the personal finance workshop though.”
“I’m glad,” he said. “I ought to enroll myself. It makes sense that we both attend a full session. We can learn something while we’re evaluating the session.”
“Makes sense to me,” she said, jotting down the idea.
He looked at his watch. “It’s getting late. Do we have anything else?”
She closed her folder. “No, that’s all I have. Unless you have something, I think we’re done for the day.”
He leaned forward. “I do have one more thing. Given his work at HR Solutions, I spoke with Phil Harris about supporting these programs in some way and he had a great suggestion. He is a member of the DeKalb County Chamber of Commerce and is involved in the Southside Business Council, which includes the community surrounding the church.”
She nodded. “I’ve heard of it.”
“Well, they’re having an open house and reception next Saturday night that he thinks we should attend. It will be a good way for us to make some connections in the community, connections that might be useful with this program and with the church as a whole. I’ve already spoken to Gavin about it and he’s on board with us going as church representatives.” He leaned closer. “I’d like you to attend as my date, not just as the church representative. I’d like to make it up to you for having to cancel last Sunday.”
Instead of giving a straight answer, she said, “I guess it’s formal.”
“I have the invitation right here,” he said, pushing it toward her. “It says cocktail attire.”
“Cocktail attire,” she repeated, mentally going through her wardrobe for the perfect dress.
“So will you go with me?”
She nodded. “I’m looking forward to it.”
“Good. Phil and Bertice will be there as well. Phil mentioned going out to a jazz club or something afterward. How does that sound?”
She smiled. “It sounds like we’re about to go on a real date. It’s sorta scary.”
He shook his head. “Nah. It’ll be easy. I promise.”