Page 18 of When You Least Expect It
“Welcome,” the guy said, though he didn’t stand up, which was customary when a woman entered the room.
What a fucking douchebag.
“So, let me introduce everyone,” Louise went on, sounding like world peace had just been solved.“From left to right, this is Linda Grant, Donna Dougal, and Gina Margorie.”Then when she gestured towards the man, she added, “And this is Jury Patton.”
“Nice to meet you all,” Calista muttered, and the I-told-you-so in her voice made me want to get her the hell out of here.
“I’ve set aside two chairs for you two, and as you can see, there are refreshments on the table,” Louise went on, oblivious.
Once again, I placed my hand on the small of Calista’s back, making sure to let Jury see the possessive gesture, and I even held onto her chair as she seated herself.Whatever this was, we weren’t leaving this place without everyone here thinking that we were a couple, if only to make them aware that Calista wasn’t alone in the world.
“Well, since we have newcomers, I think a quick refresher of our mission is in order here,” Jury announced, and it was clear who was the one in charge here.
“Of course,” Louise quickly agreed, the other three women stone-cold silent.
“Our purpose here is to foster a relationship with God that is deeper than your normal churchgoer,” Jury said.“We believe that you can actually reach out and touch the hand of God if you open your mind and heart to the possibility.You can have a direct line to God’s ear if you just believe.”
“Isn’t that what prayer is?”Calista asked, and there was nothing sexier than a feisty woman.
“Generalized prayer isyourdirect line to God, not the other way around,” Jury answered.“Of course, God can hear all our prayers, but this is about hearing his answer directly.While there are signs everywhere, some of us need the answer given to us in a way that erases all doubt.”
“But being only human, how would we even be able to process God’s voice?”she asked.“Our ears shouldn’t be able to withstand such greatness, don’t you think?”
Something flashed in Jury’s eyes, but he quickly masked it.“God is all.So, since He is capable of all things, then it stands to reason that He could make such a communication happen.”
“Okay, but how does one go about opening that kind of avenue?”I asked.“Because, not for nothing, there are a lot of devout Christians that don’t possess that kind of relationship with God.”
Jury looked over at me, and it was clear as day that he did not appreciate another man in his hen house.“While they might be devout, they haven’t transitioned the way that we have.”
“Transitioned?”I echoed.
“It’s in the choice to live purely,” he said, making me arch a brow.I mean, while I didn’t give much to how people lived their lives, I seriously doubted that anyone in this room was ‘pure’.
“Meaning?”I asked.
“Everything that we take in must be pure,” he explained.“While we cannot do anything about the pollutants in the air, we can control everything else.We eat only clean food, nothing processed.We cleanse ourselves with organic products only.Even our entertainment is pure.We do not watch violent or vulgar movies or television.We even make sure that our clothing is freeing, nothing too constricting.It’s a lifestyle, Myer.One that you have to commit to fully.”
“And do you guarantee this transition?”I asked, feeling like he was nothing but a predator the more and more that he spoke.
“Whatever do you mean?”
“How do you know that everyone in this room is fully dedicated?”I clarified.“I mean, how do you know that Louise doesn’t sneak in a hamburger every now and again?”
Louise let out a dramatic gasp as Jury said, “Because, not only do I trust them, but we would not be in sync if one of them was desecrating what we’ve created here.”
With the women still silent, I asked, “And what of their husbands?Partners?What if they don’t adopt a clean living also?”
“Oh, none of us are married,” Louise answered, finally chiming in.“That term of service isn’t in God’s plans yet.”
Term of service?
“So, everyone here is single?”I asked, glancing over at the women.“No...husbands or boyfriends?”
“Our priority is getting right with God first,” Louise answered.
“Well, you have definitely given us a lot of food for thought,” I lied.“However, I find that I like bacon and tacos way too much to make that drastic of a lifestyle change.”
“That’s because you haven’t ever felt the presence of God before,” Louise replied, and she was wrong about that.As a man that’d had plenty of orgasms in his past, I knew what it felt like to walk with God.
