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Now, though I love the way that Pastor Stewart can deliver the word, the thought of me giving up something I love didn’t appeal to me. Like I said, I liked the way that I lived. When he’d spoken the Sunday prior about doing this fast for a month, I wasn’t with it at all. Then, it was as though God himself sent me a sign in the form of a dream about my mother.
I could usually handle my emotions and stuff, but when I woke up from the dream I was a wreck. I was sweaty and crying. It took me about half an hour to calm down. Even though my mother hadn't spoken to me in the dream, the message was clear; I needed to take a breather on my activities for a month. I thought long and hard about it and prayed, and I knew that if I could see it through, I’d get something out of it. What that something was, I did not know. It’d be hard for me because I loved having sex and I loved having it often. The longest I’d gone in the last three years without dick had been two weeks, and that was only because I was sick with the flu.
I was a little late getting to church that morning. I had been prowling the night before and was out way too late, knowing I had to get up. I was going to follow through on my promise to myself and leave men alone for a month, but I needed to collect on what I was owed from someone.
I’d gone down to Catherine’s to meet up with this dude named Tyrell. He was one of those Instagram famous dudes who always flashed a lot of cash and lived a lavish lifestyle, but no one really knew what he did for a living. I knew that he was scamming people online by selling fake hair growth pills, but I wasn’t gonna expose him.
While I was there, I got the shock of my life. I was standing in the parking lot talking to Ty when I saw none other than Pastor Stewart walk out of Catherine’s. I wasn’t sure if he could see me or not because it was dark as hell since we were by the woods, but I could definitely see him. He was dressed a lot more casually than I’d see him before in jeans and a dark t-shirt, but I would have recognized his face anywhere. I wasn’t sure if he had noticed, but he took off in a hurry after that.
Pastor Stewart had preached a lovely sermon, and he officially announced that after service today, the church was on a fast. There would be Bible Study on Wednesdays and special groups after church on Sundays so people could talk about how it was going. I wasn’t planning on going to any of them ‘cause I wasn’t about to share my business with anyone, but the idea was nice.
Usually, after church I didn’t stick around, but Pastor Stewart was talking to people about fasting and giving them tips. I got in the line to speak to him and patiently awaited my turn. It took a couple of minutes before I got up front. I wrapped my arms around him in a hug and stepped back.
“How are you, Pastor?” I asked.
“I’m doing well, Sister Bell, and yourself?” he replied.
Though I would have never slept with the Pastor because of who he was, I had to admit that he was a handsome man. At 47 years old, he didn’t look a day over 40. He was a classic tall, dark, and handsome man with a bald head and a salt and pepper beard that he kept shaped up.
“Can’t complain. Preparing myself mentally and physically for this fast,” I said. I smiled at him, and he smiled back.
He seemed to be playing it cool, not acting suspicious at all. I decided to get straight to the point.
“So, Pastor Stewart, was that you I saw last night at Catherine’s?” I made sure to lower my voice a little bit. God was always listening but so were nosey ass church people.
His eyes bulged for just a moment and when he spoke, he didn’t seem so composed anymore. “Uh..well...I was over there helping out a friend with something. You know how it is...wherever the call takes me,” he said. “Well, I must get this line down. I’ll see you around, Sister. Bible study Wednesday.”
I moved over to the side to let the next person up. It was clear that the Pastor was hiding something. He’d been ready to get rid of me. I didn’t think he thought that I saw him at Catherine’s. I also knew he was lying. Catherine’s was as anti-church as you could get. Church was where you went to get saved, and Catherine’s was the place where you did the sinning. I couldn’t figure out what he was up to, but I damn sure was gonna figure it out. I didn’t know what it was, but I had the feeling that the Pastor’s secret might somehow be tied to the church’s problems. I needed to speak to Andre Mattis.