Free Saved Folk in the House by Sonnie Beverly Page A

exclaimed as she gave him a big hug and a kiss on the cheek. “I’ll get the champagne. We have to toast your brilliance,” she said, going into the kitchen.
    “Let me help you,” Jay said, feeling good to be needed.
    As they drank champagne, they talked about how to reinvest. Jay was becoming very comfortable, and after so much champagne, he began to imagine that Jessica was Zakia.
    “This is it, the last of the champagne,” Jessica said, emptying the bottle evenly into both of their glasses.
    They held up the glasses, toasted, and sipped the remaining champagne as she looked deep into his eyes, drawing him into her. He moved closer to her, and she met him with a long, deep kiss. Jay imagined his wife as they removed their clothes and made love.
    When he woke up hours later, groggy from all the champagne, he was very remorseful about what had happened. He thought he had taken advantage of Jessica.
    Things were exactly the same between Jay and Zakia. He started feeling less and less guilty about his infidelity . . . until Jessica called Jay at work three weeks later and informed him that he was going to be a daddy.
    “I don’t expect anything from you, Jay, but I do plan to have my baby and raise him or her in the church. You have been wonderful, and thanks to you, I am doing fine financially. We’ll be fine.”
    “I wouldn’t turn my back on a child of mine, Jessica. Give me some time to figure things out.”
    “Of course, darling. Take all the time you need.”
    That evening Jay decided to tell his wife everything. Zakia was brushing her teeth when Jay came into their bedroom and stuck his head in the bathroom.
    “We need to talk when you’re done,” he said.
    “Okay,” Zakia responded with a mouthful of toothpaste. She rinsed and spat, then came into the room wiping her mouth with a hand towel.
    Jay was sitting on the side of the bed and patted the spot beside him for her to sit down. Zakia was relieved that Jay didn’t appear to be upset with her for again not cooking dinner. She thought he probably grabbed something on his way home from work, which was why he was late. He had stopped complaining about a full-course meal not being ready every day, so he was probably eating out more often, having figured out that she wasn’t the housewife type. That was good. Less pressure on her.
    “Zakia, Jessica is pregnant.”
    “Who?”
    “Jessica Stone. She’s the finance secretary at Fig Tree Baptist.”
    “So?”
    “It’s mine.”
    The revelation that he was having an affair sent her into a state of shock. She froze as thoughts of Ezekiel’s daddy, Malik, and his cheating ran through her mind. She was numb and couldn’t speak, so Jay continued.
    “You are obsessed with the church, neglecting me and your family, alienating your friends,” Jay said. “Is that the kind of God you want to serve, one who makes you lose everything important in your life?”
    Shock turned to rage. She mustered all the strength she had to speak.
    “Get out,” she managed to say without bursting into tears.
    It only took him minutes to pack a few things. He left her sitting on the bed still in shock.

Chapter Eleven
    G od, how? Why? Where did I go wrong? I obeyed Your Word. I believed You. I don’t understand. What is going on?” Zakia cried out.
    She felt nothing, heard nothing. She was numb. She must have missed something, but she was too depressed to find out what it was. She just lay in her bed feeling betrayed. Jay’s words rang in her ears, “Is that the kind of God you want to serve, one who makes you lose everything important in your life?” Jay’s question caused her to think hard for the first time in a long while. Her family had been treating her differently, like she was strange. Her friends seemed to always be irritated with her. She began to question her actions, her faith, and her life. Her mind wandered, she lost focus, and she felt drained.
    The next day, Jay called Alexis and confessed everything,