“Well, it was an error on my part.” He begrudgingly offered.
When the dust settled. It was clear the only board members who were aware of this fraud were Alvin White and the treasurer. The treasurer was not willing to fall on his sword for the head of the board. “I did as I was instructed by Brother White.”
Aunty Letta, which was what Hannah’s godmother had told him to call her the night before, wasn’t having it. “Vernon, you know better.” She scolded the man. “Board approval should have been sought for such a financial decision.” The other members voiced their agreement. “I move effective immediately that Jeremiah Bank’s salary be terminated.”
The words were barely out of her mouth when the board secretary raised her hand. “I second that motion.” Within moments, the other members voiced their approval, and the motion was passed.
Nigel spoke up. “We have to schedule a meeting to go over the books and discuss how this could have gone on undetected for so long. Thank you for bringing this to our attention.” Almost everyone else echoed his thanks.
“What I want to know is how did you become aware of Jeremiah’s pay?” Ahh, there was Alvin White’s regular arrogance.
“The church books are available for leadership to review at any time. I’m glad I was able to catch your oversight.” It took everything in him not to smirk.
The entire time, Hannah remained stalk still beside him. She had removed her hand from his knee when he dropped his bomb. Samuel felt the loss of her touch. In hindsight, he should have prepared her for his announcement. He’d been preaching the importance of their unity to her. His actions weren’t one of a team player. He couldn’t wait to get out of this meeting and make things right.
However, Amelia, who oversaw church communications, showed how efficient she was. “Since we are all together. I would like to present some options for the Churches’ and the Pastors’ release statement regarding our Pastors’ marriage.”
They spent the next hour reviewing and tweaking both statements. By the time the meeting was dismissed all parties were pleased with the upcoming communication release.
The moment they stepped out of the room after the meeting was dismissed Hannah told him she would like to go home. Then there was radio silence. He took her hand as they walked to the vehicle. Although she had allowed him to do so without making a scene, it was clearly just for show, as her hand lay limp in his hand. Once they were both buckled in, Samuel broke the silence. “Jagiya?” He called quietly.
“Not now. Please, not now.” She answered. Her head was turned but her hurt was palpable. He was conflicted, his heart wanted to work things out on the spot. However, his mind understood she needed a moment. He gave it to her while he drove them home. The drive did something to him. He hated how disconnected they were. The realisation of how much progress they had made hit him. They couldn’t lose that. By the time they entered their home. He was ready to fall on his knees before her.
Hannah shuffled to the sofa as if she was in a daze. She sat ramrod straight in the corner, and he breathed a sigh of relief that she didn’t move away when he sat beside her.
“Why didn’t you tell me what you had found out?” Hannah got straight to the point. He had time to think of his response. He decided to be as forthcoming as possible.
“I wasn’t sure you would approve of how I wanted to share the information.” Samuel really had to practice what he preached. He couldn’t nitpick what he was going to share with his wife. “Please know I’m sorry for not levelling with you. That was wrong of me.”
“I’m not thrilled with the way you handled it, but I am grateful that you had the presence of mind to find the information and expose it. I don’t know what Brother White was thinking.”
“He was thinking he would look out for his great grandnephew on the church’s dime, and no one would be the wiser.”
“I’ve left so much up to him. It has to stop.” She shook her head.
“Don’t be so hard on yourself.” Samuel didn’t like her taking the blame on herself because White broke her trust. It wasn’t why he had exposed the head of the board. Samuel’s hope was that she could free herself from the weight of the man’s expectation. The rest of the board followed his lead blindly.
“You’re right. There is a lot of that going on today.” She gave him a cheeky smile. Relief washed over him. They would get past this. “Samuel, all I ask is in the future, you don’t keep things from me because you aren’t sure how I’ll handle it. I don’t want to live that kind of life again. Give us a chance to work things out together.”
“I promise.” Samuel vowed. When he wrapped his arm around her, she leaned into him. She tipped her head up and he couldn’t resist kissing her.
Over the next few days, they settled into living together. Maybe they weren’t as productive as they could be. Samuel didn’t have any complaints about it, though. They were newlyweds.
Samuel arranged another spa afternoon. It was several days before their official duties started. His wife wasn’t falling for it. The first spa day he arranged at their home hadn’t gone to plan. It was, however, very informative. He discovered exactly how flexible Hannah was. He also learned that she had a wildly talented tongue and a near nonexistent gag reflex.
“Spa Day?” His smart wife questioned.
“Physical intimacy expresses our bond.” He pulled her tighter into his embrace.
“No, Love, we both know what that entails. While the spa sounds fun and all, we can try it when I get back. I need to pop into the office and clear out my desk. It won’t be long. I’ll be back later after I finish all my errands and stop by the church.” She promised. He kissed her soundly.
Hannah declined his offer to accompany her “Absence makes the heart grow fonder,” she giggled as she headed off. Giggled. His wife, being happy and carefree, filled his heart.
Samuel spent the morning with Daniel. He first had to endure ribbing from his little brother. “Oh, look, you finally came up for air? How did you manage that?”
One dinner with his family had to be rescheduled because they were otherwise occupied, and his brother wouldn’t let him forget it. The two played racquetball. Then they grabbed lunch. Of course, his thoughts were on Hannah. More than likely, she forgot to eat. So, he grabbed her some lunch.
When he arrived at the church, their office door was slightly ajar. He slowed when he heard Alvin White’s vicious taunt. “You expect me to believe you two weren’t fornicating before your quickie marriage? You are a disgrace, Hannah!”
