Chapter 15

Before they could even announce their engagement, their photos exploded all over the internet. The internet was filled with photos of them dining at the restaurant, with several featuring him holding her close as they danced intimately, leaving little doubt as to the nature of their relationship.

Cassandra woke up Saturday morning to several missed calls on her phone from several people including her best friend and her pastor.

Evan had also called and left her a message.

"Call me as soon as you get this."

"Hi."

"Cassandra, I have been calling you several times."

"I am sorry, I overslept. After last night…"

"You just woke up?"

Pushing the sheets off her, she frowned at the tenseness in his deep voice.

"Yes. Evan, what's going on?"

"Turn on your computer."

Walking over to her desk, she booted up her laptop. The photos were the first thing she saw.

"Oh."

"I am sorry."

"Why?" Taking a seat behind the desk, she scrolled through and read the story, which had the reporter speculating if this sudden and hasty relationship was a last-ditch effort for the company to regain its reputation.

‘The Billionaire and the choir girl' - the caption had her cringing slightly. She did not care about any of it. She knew the status of her relationship with him and was not going to allow anyone – certainly not some boring gossip columnist to taint something as amazing as their love for each other.

"I have asked Kim, head of the PR team to make a statement…"

"Evan, you are stressing over nothing." She interrupted him softly. "I don't care."

"What is your pastor saying?"

"I am going to be calling him next. I had every intention of imparting the news to him last night but fell asleep. I wish I could see you."

"You are not upset?"

She laughed at that, her eyes going to the glossy photos of them on the dance floor. "Unless you are planning on breaking the engagement."

"Only death could keep me from marrying you."

Her heart turned completely over. "Then I am okay. Have your PR issue a statement, but I am going to ask you a favor."

"Anything."

"Within reason?" She asked archly.

"Anything!" He stressed huskily.

"We are going to formally announce our engagement at church tomorrow so that the banns can be read. Will you come? I am not going to force you…"

"I was planning on it anyway. I will be there bright and early." He assured her.

"Good. Darling? I love you so much."

The silence following her declaration had her smiling as she waited.

"I think I love you more." He told her gruffly. "Go call your people and let me deal with things my end. I will talk to you later."

Cassandra hung up the phone and continued reading the article and staring at the photos. Shaking herself from her euphoria, she called her pastor next and explained everything to him.

*****

"I was asked to stay back for an additional couple of hours, but I told them I had an emergency." Marsha burst out as soon as her friend opened the door to admit her. "Let me see the ring."

Stretching her hand out, Cassandra waited for her friend's reaction.

"Holy mother of the highest God." She breathed, clearly taken aback. "Girl, you are going to need a bodyguard or two to cart this stone around." She grabbed Cassandra's hand and lifted it higher, gasping when the sunlight came through the curtains, connected with the stone and shot lights all around the room. "Tell me everything."

"We are going to need wine." Pulling her hand away, Cassandra led the way into the kitchen and got out the bottle of Cabernet from the wine cooler. "Grab some glasses." When that was done, she poured the wine, and they sat at the dining table.

"He took me to dinner."

"Oh honey, I read it on the internet." Marsha's eyes glittered with excitement. "I am now officially a celebrity by association. People at the hospital cannot believe it is you. How does it feel to be in the spotlight?"

"I don't care about any of that." She shook her head. "I slept through several phone calls, including ones from Evan. He was worried that I would be upset." She cradled her glass, a dreamy look on her face. "He loves me, Marsh. It is not something he is just saying. He loves me and it feels as if I am walking on a cloud."

"I want to hate you right now, but you deserve the very best. When is the wedding?"

"December. I want you to be my matron of honor."

"That's a given."

"The banns will be read in services tomorrow and he promised he would be there." Cassandra took a deep breath. "I am getting married."

"To a multi-billionaire."

She shook her head. "I cannot think of it that way. To me, he is just Evan, the man I love with all my heart."

"Honey, you are entering into a world that's completely different from what you are accustomed to." Her friend warned. "It might change you."

"No." She shook her head in confidence. "I am rooted and grounded in my life with Christ. I am not being arrogant or even cocky when I say that. I know who I am, and I am never going to allow status to change me.

And I also know him. I know people are going to say that we only just met, and it takes time to get to know a person, but it feels as if we met each other a long time ago.

There is this spiritual connection between us that is so uncanny that it's hard for me to explain. I am not na?vely expecting that things will remain the same. I am marrying a very powerful man, but I serve an incredibly awesome God and that is what's is the most important thing to me. My relationship with my savior."

Marsha stared at her for a few seconds before shaking her head in admiration. "Congrats honey, I am so happy for you."

*****

The excitement the following Sunday morning was palpable. She was always the first to arrive because she would stop by the office to get things ready, and they had rehearsal before Sunday school. She was embraced and congratulated, her ring exclaimed over by members of the choir, with them telling her how exceptionally beautiful she looked.

"No wonder you ignored all of us single guys." David, a member of the praise team who played the keyboard teased her, hazel eyes twinkling. "You were holding out for the rich guy."

It was all said in jest, and she knew that every one of them was genuinely happy for her.

As promised, he arrived early while she was in the middle of shepherding her kids into the room. She taught her class early enough so that she could participate in leading the praise team.

He surprised her just as she was handing them over to the substitute teacher.

She only saw when they all turned quiet and stared behind her. Before she turned around, she knew he was standing there.

"I hope I am not interrupting." His deep voice had her knees going weak and her heart tingling.

"You are right on time." Reaching out a hand, she beckoned for him to join her. He came forward, his fingers twining through hers. "Kids, I want you to meet Evan Davenport, my fiancé."

All fifteen of them stared at him curiously in silence until Billy scrunched up his face and gave him a suspicious look. "I love Cassandra." He declared it as a challenge.

"I love her too, very much." He told the boy solemnly.

The boy considered him for a minute. "Are you going to take her away from us?"

"Never." Evan promised. "She belongs here, and she loves all of you very much."

That assured them enough to break the ice. Afterwards, they all crowded around and introduced themselves.

Giving them a few minutes to get acquainted, she tugged at his hand. "I have to go. Where do you want…?"

"I want to stay here if you don't mind."

"Sure?"

He nodded, eyes roving over her exquisite face. She was wearing a chic emerald, green sweater over black dress pants. Her hair was coiled at the side of her neck and secured by pins.

Big gold hoops dangled from her lobes, and it was all he could do not to snatch her into his arms. He was probably going to try and convince her to push up the wedding date.

"You are so beautiful."

"And you look dashing." She touched the lapel of his dark blue jacket lightly. "I have to go."

"I'll be fine."

Turning towards the avidly curious children, she admonished them to behave and make ‘Mr. Evans' comfortable.

Their affirmative shouts echoed around the room.

*****

The time passed with excruciating slowness for him, but for Cassandra it was as if she was caught up in a whirlwind. As soon as their wedding was announced, insanity started. She was bombarded by the press who wanted to know the full story behind the proposal. As one reporter quoted:

‘Evan Davenport had been eluding the marriage loop for a very long time. And in just weeks of meeting Ms. Cassandra Daley, he proposed. Could this be love or could it be something else?'

A statement had been issued by Kim, head of his PR department, which slowed the momentum somewhat, but the sharks were still circling. They were fascinated that the well-known bachelor had suddenly fallen for someone in the church.

A committed member of the congregation, a woman who appears to be inconsequential and each time they were out on a date, their photos would be snapped.

Evan was furious and wanted to put a stop to it, but his beautiful fiancée was not in the least bit perturbed. In fact, she was handling the entire thing with aplomb and dignity. She had even granted one very persistent reporter, who made her way to the church office, an interview. When Evan heard about it afterwards, he had been upset.

"You should have cleared it with me first." He was frustrated and chafing at the restrictions he had placed on himself. He couldn't touch her for fear that he would go too far, and December seemed like years away.

Not to mention the two weeks counseling sessions he had to put up with. He already knew what he wanted. He wanted her, that much was pretty obvious. He certainly didn't need anyone telling him how to treat a woman.

"I knew I could handle it and decided that the best thing to curb their curiosity was to give an interview." She had responded calmly, making him feel like lower than pond scum. No matter what was shoved at her, she handled it with calm and grace and always managed to diffuse his anger.

And she had been right. The interview had taken place inside her office, the backdrop perfect. It depicted the quaint bookcase, the worn sofa in front of her desk. That was where the interview took place.

Cassandra had even served the woman and her photographer tea. That morning, she had worn a winter green dress and ankle length black boots. Her wild curls had been tamed into a smooth chignon at the nape of her neck.

"I am sure you know that the public is fascinated and curious about this engagement. You have to admit, Ms. Daley, that there is more than a hint of mystery and intrigue to all of it.

Evan Davenport is a man of the world whose company had been going through noticeable backlash from past doings. We have all seen the photos with both of you together and yes, it appears that you are in this for love. But is that true? Or is it just for show?"

"May I call you Amanda?" Cassandra had asked serenely.

"Of course."

"And please call me Cassie. It would be ridiculous for us to stand on ceremony when you are asking me all these personal questions." She smiled to take the sting out of the comment and took a sip of her tea.

"I believe in God. More than that, I have a personal relationship with him, and I know he works in mysterious ways. Here I was, going on about my business when he sent Evan my way." She had leaned back against the cushions and crossed her legs decorously at the ankles.

The cameraman had taken advantage and caught her entire exquisite profile. "Because I strongly believe that the Lord is in control of everything. I am in love with Evan and have no problem with saying it out loud. He is in love with me…" She laughed and waved a hand at that. "Something that is mystifying to me."

"Why is that? Because he is so rich, and you are a woman who works in a church office?" Amanda asked cattily.

Instead of taking umbrage, Cassandra leveled her with a look that had her squirming. "We are all created equally in God's sight. I try not to think about my fiancé's status in life.

Evan is a person, with emotions and hang ups as much as the next. Money doesn't define someone. It is what that person does when the doors are closed, tells the difference.

We all have our flaws, Amanda, we are all human and in search of happiness or peace or whatever it is that will get us through the day. My fiancé is strong and resilient and beautiful. I know of his past and he is cognizant of mine. Despite all of it, the imperfections, we manage to see past them and into the heart of each other.

I know our life will not be perfect and I know the morbid fascination surrounding men of his ilk. I will be there for him no matter what and together and with the Lord's blessing, we will face the future, knowing that we have a very strong foundation."

The rest of the interview went smoothly after that, with Amanda focusing on her role at the church. When she spoke about her ‘kids' the joy on her face was so contagious, it had the woman delving more into that aspect.

Turning off the television, Evan stared at the fascinating woman he had fallen in love with. They were in her office, waiting for the pastor. It was the last day of counseling and afterwards, they were going out to eat.

"I will never question your judgment again," he told her hoarsely.

The interview had been put on air, just this morning and Kim had burst into his office, her excitement palpable. "We should have asked Cassie to do the press conference. She is a natural."

"I am sure you will." She smiled at him complacently. "But I will love you just the same."

"I cannot wait for you to be my wife."

"And I cannot wait for the day when I pledge my life completely to yours."

It was a good thing, Pastor William arrived just then to diffuse the emotionally charged atmosphere in the small room.

*****

Her bridal shower was arranged by her matron of honor and was kept inside the large conference room at the church to accommodate the amount of people invited. Marsha had asked Evan for numbers of some of the ‘wives' of the members of his club and to her surprise and delight, they had responded positively and said they would be there.

"Cassandra is going to be one of us, so yes, we absolutely would like to attend. Just let us know the time." Leesa Wellington had told her breezily.

And they had arrived promptly, bearing gifts and laughter. Cassie had already met some of them when she attended a few functions at Evan's club and instead of feeling intimidated, she had been welcomed with open arms.

She had already met Leesa, Kelly, Amani, Jerri, Monique, whom she had personally consulted with about her dress – and several others. The women had formed a clique and made no apologies.

"We are Black women on a mission. We are married to rich white men and as far as the world knows, we shouldn't have been elevated this far. We are thumbing our noses up at society and changing the rules." Kelly had told her with her impish grin.

"And we do it sometimes with grace and dignity. We are a strange mix, most of us, just ordinary women who changed the lives of the men we are with. And we are damn – excuse the language, we are immensely proud of our achievements."

The gifts were expensive and most of them naughty lingerie which had Cassie feeling hot and bothered as the reality of everything was brought home to her.

She was going to be with a man for the first time in her life and even though she was anticipating the wedding night, she was more than a little afraid as well. Evan was a man of the world, and she knew of his past. He had had several women. What if she disappointed him?

She was not experienced, and a man like him, surely would prefer a woman who already knew how to please a man. She hadn't a clue and it was not like she could ask one of these women to give her some pointers.

She didn't have a mother to tell her what to do or to give her heads up as to what to expect. The closest thing to a maternal being in her life was the pastor's wife and even though she had come back home, she was still as distance as ever. She had grudgingly offered her congratulations, but it had not seemed sincere.

She was here at the bridal shower at Cassie's insistence, but she had isolated herself, by sitting with a few of the older members of the church. Cassie mourned the loss of her friendship and love but was not going to let it bother her.

Diving into the games that had been organized by Marsha, she soon pushed away her doubts and fears and got into the mix of it.

"We are here for you." Leesa and Kelly drew her over to one corner of the room, where the long trestle table was laden with food of all description. "This is a new adventure you are embarking on, and we know the twists and turns and what the pitfalls are."

Leesa popped a strawberry tart into her mouth, her eyes widening in delight. "Darling, you have to taste this." She shoved one at Kelly who did just that.

"Everything here is fantastic. Who is the caterer?" Kelly wanted to know.

"Several of the women." Cassie told them with a laugh and pointed them out.

"We have so many functions and even though my husband's restaurants and mine are catering heaven, we could always use some innovative ideas. Are they looking for a job?"

"Millicent is currently working for a local restaurant, but I am sure she would jump at the possibility of being hired by you."

"Fantastic." Kelly heaped her plate with more tasty items and plucked a glass of champagne from the table.

"How do you feel?" Leesa asked as she dipped into her own plate.

"A little frightened." Cassie had barely touched her own plate. Her stomach was so knotted, she could hardly swallow. "Nervous. It suddenly feels real. For the last few months, I have been too busy to think about my wedding day and night, but now that it is upon me, I have questions."

"Surely not about marrying him?"

"No." She shook her head adamantly. "It's about me and my inadequacy."

"Girl, you are exquisite and from what we see, Evan adores you."

"I am…," she swallowed the lump in her throat and could not believe she was going to tell these women her inner fear. She had only just met them, but they were already like family. "I have never been with a man before. There, I have said it."

They did not stare at her as if she had two heads and a horn in the middle of her forehead which was a blessing. Instead, they guided her over to a table where several chairs were grouped around.

"He is going to be in for a treat." Kelly told her softly, golden brown eyes twinkling. "And I am quite sure he knows of your innocence."

"I am petrified thinking that I will not please him," she admitted.

"Honey, you already do. That man cannot take his eyes off you." Leesa reached over and patted her hand. "Love is what makes it so wonderful, not how inexperienced or how much of an expert you are. It's the love that counts and as far as we can see, you have that in abundance."