With a glance around, Joella waved with a smile. "They seem like friendly people ."
JD swallowed hard. What would happen if she knew he believed in a religion foreign to hers? Would she try to coax him into embracing her fairytale God? He could never allow that to happen. Or would she refuse to see him any longer? He bit his lip. Only one thing to do—bide his time for now.
The red ceramic tile and painting of an Italian gondola in the restaurant's entrance gave an old-world impression. Ivy fell over the sides of copper pots hanging along the wall. A blackboard sat on an easel listing several dishes he wanted to try.
Breathing in the aroma of garlic and tomatoes, JD forced a smile for the college-aged man greeting them. "Could we get a table for two outside, please?"
"Certainly, sir." The host led them through the main restaurant to glass doors opening onto a large deck with a view of the Sierra Nogales foothills. A quiet meadow spread out before them bordered by pine and sycamore trees. Farther in the distance, a grove of almond trees grew at the base of the hills.
Joella glanced at her watch. "Another half hour until sunset. We'll have a good view from here." The sun hung low in the afternoon sky, sweeps of orange and pink flame bathing the rural landscape.
The young man set a couple of menus at a circular glass table. Sliding the chair out, JD held it until Joella sat down.
She wrinkled her nose and glanced around. "I must be imagining things. I smell orange blossoms."
"Does it have anything to do with that orange tree in the yard?"
"You smarty." For the first time since she'd arrived in the parking lot, she seemed more relaxed. "Before I forget, I enjoyed meeting your friends."
JD flipped a page on the menu. "Oh, yeah. I—"
A waiter wearing a straw hat stopped at the table and smiled. "May I bring you a glass of wine?"
"No thanks." Joella shook her head. "Water please."
Did he imagine the slight curl of her lip? Did she dislike alcohol so much? Why? "I’ll have the same, with lemon."
The server nodded and shifted his attention to a table of diners at the far end of the deck.
Joella folded her hands and gazed off toward the sunset.
"You don't drink."
"No, I don't … I used to." She blew out a quick breath. "But Dale Burchett does. A lot."
The waiter put two goblets of water in front of them. "Have you decided?"
Though JD didn't drink because his faith forbade it, he didn't condemn others who did—only those who drank to excess. "I'm going to order the evening's special Eggplant Parmesan."
"The same for me, thanks." Joella set the menu on the table and spread her napkin in her lap.
The server scribbled their choices, picked up the menus, and disappeared back into the main dining room.
JD had waited long enough to understand what happened. No other diners sat within hearing range. "Do you want to talk about it now, Joella?"
Her eyes glistened, and she nodded. "As you know, I met a client, Dale Burchett. He lives at the Villa Allegre Condos. Unfortunately his wife was out of town. I never would've gone had I known that. He thought I should be honored that a wealthy lawyer like him would show me attention, despite the fact he's a married man." She squeezed her eyes shut, lines of tension marring her smooth forehead. "He'd already imbibed a lot before I got there—which probably fueled his bad behavior. Instead of listening to my decor plans, he grabbed me, trying to force me into the bedroom. I attempted to fight him." A shiver claimed her shoulders. "Intoxication didn't affect his muscles."
A rush of anger made JD's gut clench. He balled his fists under the table. "If I had been there, I would've kicked his teeth in. You should file a police report."
"I thought about it, but he's an influential man in El Camino. I don't want to lose the account for New Trend." She took a sip of water. "And he didn't carry out his intentions. I'm going to ask Mr. Tillman to assign the project to Mr. Allan."
JD ground his molars until his jaws ached. "Wait a minute. What did you say his name was?"
"Dale Burchett, El Camino's powerful and influential personal injury lawyer." He didn't blame her for the sarcasm her voice portrayed.
Just as he thought. "I hate to say it, but my firm handles his tax accounts. I don't personally, but I believe Mr. Tucker has worked with him. Anyway, you're okay. That's the important thing." He reached for her hand. "So tell me how you managed to elude him."
"With a desperate prayer. But mostly God's grace."
When she told him the story of her words to Dale Burchett and his reaction, JD's mouth fell open.
"The whole sordid situation reminded me of my wild college days." Joella clasped both hands under her chin and stared at the placemat. "You see, JD, I used to … used to drink then, more than I should have. Now, I look back and see the damage. I did some things …" Her face paled. "Without God's forgiveness …"
Maybe she drove a car while intoxicated or … slept around. But today she seemed so religious, so secure in her faith.
Did Joella really believe her God would forgive her—that He'd forget about what she'd done? Exalted Father considered drinking and promiscuity two of the worst sins. Unmarried EB women—or men for that matter, would never think of doing either.
"God protected me." She gazed toward the foothills. "After tonight I feel closer to Him."
JD had never really understood Exalted Father. The former man evolved from apes just like anybody else, but because of his self-esteem and positive thoughts, he earned his way to godhood. Today he lived and ruled over earth, but he didn't relate to man in the personal way Joella described.
She turned toward him in one slow motion. "JD, I believe that God made each of us unique." Her fingers warmed his hand, but her gaze burned. "He has a plan for my life—and yours."
In a way, he wished he could embrace those ideas. But life wasn't that easy. Joella would need to work day and night to make up for the wrong she committed in the past, though she didn't have any idea of the need.
The sunlight waned. A long breath of cool evening air reached his lungs. Joella's story baffled him, but more than anything her words intrigued him … only in the sense her God differed from his. She believed her deity rescued her from the hands of an egotistical man. And what's more, created her. Was she deluded or did she have a good imagination?
A chill settled on his shoulders and worked toward his heart. His head hurt, and he felt confused. If Joella's God had a plan for them individually, if the concept could possibly be true, He cared for and loved people personally.
A notion formed in JD's mind. He had to allow it to fully develop though it frightened him. Her words had challenged the structure of his beliefs. What if the church of the Exalted Brethren was wrong?
The setting sun sent spires of gold, red, and pink light from the horizon into the sky. Unease and confusion filled the cavity where his stomach used to be. Everything he'd learned since childhood, could it all be a lie? Did Joella's God live somewhere in the vast cosmos of all that existed? Had He really created everything? His breath caught in his throat.
"Your faith in God…" How could he compose the question?
Her gaze never strayed from his face. "Yes?"
A sip of water made it easier to ask. "Something I'm wondering about. Your faith in God is so real to you, it's as if you never doubt." He stared at the tablecloth and glanced back at her.
With narrowed eyes, she frowned. "Doubt? Maybe at first I did, but the more I know of God, the more I trust Him and realize I want to obey."
"Hmm." Never before in JD's life had he experienced such distress. Every word Joella spoke contradicted the doctrines he'd learned from childhood.
At fifteen he'd participated in the Rite of Virility, that passage into manhood when he proclaimed his loyalty to the church and began his work on the Scale of Balance. Yeah, he'd doubted the teachings every so often, but what else could he have done? His father and all the male members of the church told him the ti
me had come, and he believed them. He'd confessed that Exalted Brethren was true. They told him he had to confess it with his lips … that made it truer.
"JD?" She squeezed his hand. "You look like you're a hundred miles away."
"I'm sorry. I was thinking about my childhood."
She grinned. "You must have been a sweet little boy."
A smile crept to his lips. "Sweet? I don't know about that, though my mom described me as cute."
"I wish I had known you then."
Whether they'd met as teens or now, the facts wouldn't change. Their beliefs were farther apart than the steep walls in the Upper Ormond canyon and nothing could bridge them. In reality, he'd known that all along, but now he'd fallen for Joella. He shivered, but not from the cool evening breeze.
******
JD followed his dad's car from the church parking lot. The meeting of the brethren lasted longer than usual today. Brother Osborne spoke for over an hour. He'd been reading the Book of Wisdom when an assurance in his heart flamed … probably like the experience of the founders.
Dad turned into the driveway, and the garage door crept up. After his father pulled in, Tannon raced out into the front yard, grinning as JD parked by the curb. His brother must've grown three or four inches in the last month.
JD stepped out of his truck and gave Tannon a high five. "You're my favorite bro, you know that?"
"I'm your only bro, D," he howled. "I made the basketball team at school." His eyes gleamed.
"I'm not surprised. Hey, maybe we can go to the park and shoot some hoops after we eat. My leg is healed up." If JD ever had a son, he'd want him to be like Tannon. His heart swelled with love for the kid.
JD's smile slid away as unease settled in his stomach. According to EB, he should've had three sons by now.
At the front door, Tannon stopped. "D?"
"Yeah?" JD held the door for his brother and followed him inside.
"I can barely remember when you used to live at home." His brother walked backward as they passed through the entry into the hall.
JD chuckled. "For sure you don't remember Arletta at home. She got married the year you were born. Mom kinda spread her kids out." He rested his hand on Tannon's shoulder as Mom, Dad, and Glorilyn come into the hall from the garage.
"Hi, JD." Glorilyn scooted by him with a shy smile and headed down the hall toward her bedroom.
"Hey, sis." They obviously weren't going to discuss her newly repaired car.
See you, D." Tannon followed her and wandered in at his room.
"Later, bro." JD turned toward Mom in the hall. "Can I do anything?"
"No, honey, thanks." She set her Book of Wisdom on the shelf and strolled to the kitchen. "You've always been my sweet helper. Just go relax and chat with your father."
Chat with his father. Huh? That meant the usual lecture. JD tightened his jaw, walked into the living room, and dropped down on the couch opposite his dad's recliner.
Dad switched off the TV and assumed his serious face. "That was something … Brother Osborn's testimony." He sat up straighter in the chair. "You probably think I'm always on your case. But I need for you to know, it's because I love you." He paused for a long moment, maybe gathering his thoughts. "You're my first-born son." His face softened. "I want the best for you."
"Thanks. I care about you, too. About my whole family."
"I know you do. Now, son, I'd like to discuss some things while we're waiting on lunch." He cleared his throat. "I'm going to ask you some critical questions."
Dad's inquiries seemed more like directives most of the time. JD braced for the interrogation. "Go ahead."
Dad fumbled with his tie, loosening it. "We're so proud of you earning a college degree. You know how our faith values people with good educations. Since then, though, you seem to have lost interest in doing church work."
"We've had this discussion before." JD pressed his lips together and clutched his knees. Though Dad loved him, JD had grown up and become accountable for his own actions. Sometimes his father treated him like a child too young to understand the Scale of Balance.
His father's gaze pierced him. "I know, but we need to do it again. Let me remind you of the truth." Dad rose from the chair and dropped down beside him on the couch. "How can you ignore the wisdom of your own great-grandfather? Think of it. He was one of the eleven university professors who received the word that night in Portland. They did the human race a favor. Now more than one million members believe."
JD sat up a little straighter. "It excites me to think I'm directly related to one of the founders." Excited him? More like mystified him.
"That's right. You're privileged. It allows you more leverage on the Scale of Balance."
The portrait of Great Grandfather Neilson hung over the fireplace, the most conspicuous place in the room. "To be related to the right people makes a difference, like the way Jesus is Exalted Father's son."
"Correct. Don't ever forget Jesus' obedience to his father when he sent him to earth to tell others about the Scale of Balance. What I'll never understand is how man could have been so stupid as to crucify him."
JD gulped. He had to show obedience to his father just as Jesus did. But the task weighed heavy on him, so heavy at times, he thought he might collapse from the burden.
Dad ran a hand through his hair. "Look, JD. It's a simple concept really. How many times have I told you to picture a balance scale? Your good deeds and good behavior go on the right and the bad on the left. If your good outweighs the bad, you'll be worthy enough for heaven."
"Dad, I live a clean life." JD shuddered. How could anyone really know if the good outweighed the bad?
"I know you do, and I'm proud of you for that." He clasped his hands. "I want to encourage you to keep building up the good. Think of the reward … to live with Exalted Father and your wife and children that you bring from this life—if they are found worthy."
Dad lowered his voice. "You know that having children with a woman in the faith is one of the positive deeds you can accomplish to add to your Scale of Balance. You're helping to bring more pure blood into our world."
For a moment, the thought thrilled JD—the power, his sphere of influence. Then his heart fell. Why hadn't he done more? He'd wasted ten good years. The thought strangled him. "Dad, I'm going for a walk before lunch. Be back in ten." He couldn't sit around and listen to his father anymore for now. When he tumbled out the front door, the breeze cooled his face. A couple of times around the block would bring some relief.
Though he didn't want to entertain it, the same familiar notion settled in. He tried to choke it off, eradicate it, but the thought traveled from his brain to his gut. He didn't want to work to get into heaven. He wanted a God who'd overlook his faults and wrap him in loving arms like a little boy. JD's face reddened. How could he ever become worthy enough? He didn't have a backbone … he was nothing more than a useless weakling.
The calming coo of a dove didn't help to soothe his weary soul. Peace. He needed peace … like that in Joella's face when she told him about how God saved her from Dale Burchett. She'd described a God who brought harmony and assurance that He loved her. Yet she didn't have the promise of the truth he had. How could she live her life with such confidence?
Confusion wracked him. Was what Joella had genuine? Doubt hammered him again. Surely he hadn't come this far in his faith only to have it shattered at this pivotal point in his life.
Chapter Ten
JD leaned back in his office chair and rubbed his temples. Where was his usual enthusiasm? Dad's lecture yesterday robbed him of energy, and a nagging headache kept him company all day.
He checked his watch. Five thirty. Maybe he'd go home and get to bed before midnight for once. JD clicked save and closed out of his current screen. The few folders on his desk wouldn't take long to straighten. He stood and stretched his arms.
With unsteady fingers, he gripped the phone in his pocket. He could call Joella and see how she's doing after
the incident with the lawyer.
Or not.
His sense of reason did battle with his heart in the arena of his stomach. He couldn't get past the way her eyes sparkled when she spoke about her God. She exuded confidence in His ability to help her … as if she considered Him a friend.
JD clenched his jaw. The impression of stumbling in a dark place, like a blind man desperate for something to grasp, had challenged him since last week. Was Joella that "something?"
If his dad had an inkling of his thoughts, JD would never hear the end of it. His father's scolding voice bellowed even now. "That's what you get for associating with a woman who's not of our faith. She'll destroy you and draw you away from the truth of the eleven founders."
JD's eyes stung. He fought back the sadness rising from his chest. What was wrong with him? Church member or not, he had to see Joella again. He rubbed his throbbing forehead and pressed her speed dial number.
She picked up on the third ring. "Hi, JD."
"Hey. How are things? Back to normal by now I hope." With a swipe, he whisked the scattered paper clips into his desk drawer.
"Thank goodness, yes. Since I excused myself from the project, I haven't talked to Burchett."
"What did your boss say?"
"Mr. Tillman said he'd support me if I wanted to press charges, but I'm going to count it as a learning experience. God will allow justice to be done in the long run. But no more seeing a client of the opposite sex in their home without someone accompanying me."
"That's wise." He lowered his voice. "Especially for a woman as beautiful as you." He slapped his hand on the desk when he heard silence. What was he doing flirting with her?
"That's sweet of you to say. Thank you."
He squeezed his eyes shut. Her quiet voice set his heart pounding an unsteady rhythm. "Hey, I need some fresh air. What would you say to a late afternoon walk in Lower Ormond Park?"
"I've stressed out over a kitchen remodel all day. That's a good idea."
"Can I pick you up at your apartment?"
"Great, if you promise me you won't say anything about kitchen appliances and flooring."
He laughed. "I promise. See you later. Oh, and Joella." He ran his finger over the cell phone's receiver. "I'm glad you're okay."