© 2010

He was almost too good to be true, what with his at least six-foot-two body frame, flawlessly smooth skin, coal-black wavy hair, and pearly white teeth. He somehow didn’t seem real, but Alicia knew he was real because at this very moment, she was sitting directly across the table from him at one of the most upscale restaurants in downtown Chicago. He was by far one of the finest-looking men she’d ever laid eyes on, and there wasn’t a woman she could think of who would disagree with her findings. The man looked that good, and as if that wasn’t enough, he also conveyed exceptional charisma and an alluring smile, and was the founder of New Life Christian Center, a five-year-old church that already had more than five thousand members.

Yes, Pastor JT Valentine was the kind of man Alicia had been hoping and praying for, particularly ever since her marriage to her first husband, Phillip, had ended just a few months ago, and she could barely contain herself. But since her father, stepmother, and a couple of Pastor Valentine’s deacons and their wives were also dining right along with them, she took a deep breath, drank a sip of water, and coolly leaned back in her chair.

“Pastor Black,” Pastor Valentine said, and Alicia couldn’t help noticing the very elegant and obviously tailor-made suit he was wearing. “I just want to thank you again for agreeing to come speak at our church this morning. Your words were even more powerful than the last time I heard you deliver a sermon, and I hope you’ll consider blessing us with your presence again sometime in the future.”

“I would be happy to, and I’m glad you were satisfied with what I had to share today.”

Pastor Valentine chuckled. “‘Satisfied’ isn’t even the word. You have been the one man I’ve truly looked up to for a while now, even before I accepted my call into the ministry, so having you accept my invitation has been the highlight of my year.”

“Well, I’m glad and it was an honor.”

“And I also want to thank you, Mrs. Black,” he said to Charlotte, “for taking time to make the trip here as well. I know you live only about an hour and a half away, but I do still remember what it was like for my wife, God rest her soul, and how demanding a first lady’s schedule can really be.”

“This is true, but unless our son, Matthew, needs me to be home to attend one of his football games or something else school related, I pretty much travel with my husband to most of his out-of-town speaking engagements. Which actually works out fine because Matthew loves staying with my aunt when we’re gone, and Curtis doesn’t travel nearly as much as he used to anyway.”

Curtis lifted a forkful of Caesar salad from his plate. “No, these days, I tend to turn down far more opportunities than I take on, but after traveling around the country for so many years, I eventually decided that I wanted to spend as much time as possible with my family.”

“Totally understandable,” Pastor Valentine said, and then looked at Alicia. “So, Miss Alicia, and I guess I’m sort of changing the subject a bit, but your father tells me that you’ve written the next worldwide bestseller.”

Alicia smiled. “Well, I don’t know about all that, but I did just finish writing my first novel.”

“That’s really impressive. It takes a lot of patience and diligence to write a book, fiction or nonfiction, so I’m very proud of you.”

“Thanks,” Alicia said, smiling at him again, her stomach fluttering.

“She worked on it just about every single day over the last six months, and it’s great,” her father added. “She definitely poured her heart into it and that makes all the difference, regardless of what anyone is writing.”

“It really is wonderful,” Charlotte said. “I read it in one sitting, the same as I do with all the other books I read by well-known authors.”

Pastor Valentine raised his eyebrows. “Wow, then maybe I should read it, too. That is, if you don’t mind sharing it with me.”

“No, I don’t mind at all, and actually, I would love to have someone else’s opinion. Someone who doesn’t love me so unconditionally that they would tell me anything as long as it doesn’t hurt my feelings.”

Everyone laughed and then her father said, “You’re right. I do love you, but at the same time, I would never tell you something was good if it really wasn’t.”

Pastor Valentine turned his attention to Alicia again. “So, you’ll send me a copy next week?”

“Yes, I’ll mail it tomorrow,” she said, and it was all she could do not to blush like some teenage schoolgirl. She was pleased to know how interested he seemed to be in her work but what she was most thrilled about was how interested he was in her-something she could tell more and more as they continued making eye contact. The chemistry between them was discreetly intense, and it was the reason Alicia suddenly realized something. JT wasn’t just some man she was attracted to. It was true that she’d known him for only a few hours, but at this very moment she knew he was the man of her dreams. She knew it with all her heart.

She knew she was going to be the next Mrs. JT Valentine. No doubt about it.

Seven Months Later

It was a fine and very warm first Sunday in May, and Alicia sat in the front row of the church, admiring her wonderful husband. He was actually sitting right next to her but was only minutes from heading into the pulpit to deliver his sermon. Alicia and JT had been happily married for one full month now but she was still in awe of his entire being, the same as she’d been the first day she’d met him. It was still so hard to conceive of how truly blessed she was to have found him-the perfect spouse, who, ironically, was ten years her senior, just like her first husband had been-not to mention how soon it all had happened. She’d sent him her manuscript as planned, he’d called her two days after receiving it, saying he’d read it and loved it, and the next thing Alicia had known, they’d found themselves on the phone for two hours. They’d talked about everything imaginable, and one thing had led to another. He’d driven over to Mitchell the next day to take her to dinner, and just one month later, JT had presented her with a three-carat, princess-cut, solitaire diamond ring. He had slipped the huge rock onto her finger and had asked her to marry him. For a few seconds, however, and only a few seconds, Alicia had been speechless and in tears, but then she had quickly told him yes three different times. She could still remember how happy she’d been, happier than she’d ever been in her life, and how even though they’d been together only for six short months, she felt as if she’d known this man for years.

There was one unfortunate aspect, however, that she couldn’t push out of her mind: Her father didn’t approve of JT and still hadn’t accepted the idea that she’d gotten married to him. She’d tried her best to forget her father’s words and all the reasons he’d given in terms of why she needed to end things with JT-reasons he’d given her for the umpteenth time the night before the wedding. But she couldn’t.

“Baby girl, I really wish you’d think long and hard about what you’re getting ready to do tomorrow,” her father said. “Because all JT Valentine cares about is money, power, and women, and he’ll never do right by you.”