My Father's Gift by Mary M Hall-Rayford Page B

really knows her Word and how to put it together.  It was fantastic.”
    “I’m sure it was.”  The sarcasm that coated her tongue couldn’t be missed.
    Cal rambled on about the message, ignoring her agitation and D’Cerner tried to placate herself by thinking that at least he was handsome.  “I should be thankful for that.  But why is he rambling so?”
    “Cal,” A thought occurred to her.  “Am I making you nervous?”
    “No, what makes you ask that question?”
    “I’m not sure.  Our spiritual connection seems to be broken and the communication network scrambled.”
    “That’s not true.  That connection is very much alive.”
    “Oh.” She suddenly decided to flirt.  “How alive is that?”
    “You wouldn’t by any chance be trying to flirt with me, would you?”
    “And if I was?” She was smiling, mischief dancing in her eyes.
    “It wouldn’t work.  You know what I said about physical attractions.  This relationship must develop on a spiritual level and nothing else.”
    Cal was berating himself even as the words poured out of his mouth.  He was in trouble and he knew it.  He excused himself and went to the men’s room.  Feeling more secure once he was on the other side of the door, he leaned against it for a few seconds trying to regain his composure.  “You are in control,” he kept telling himself.  He ran the cold water and doused his face with it, hoping to extinguish the rising flames of carnal passion.  A few minutes later, control once more his, he returned to the table.
    “D’Cerner now that we’ve met, there’s no reason for you not to come to the tournament.”
    “Really?” Exasperation was seeping through her pores and her words.
    “No, and I’d like for you to be there.”
    “I’ll think about it.”
    The waiter returned with their salads and they spent the next twenty minutes eating in silence, neither knowing what to say or how to say it.  As soon as they finished, Cal made excuses about having to get back to his office.  D’Cerner didn’t mind and half-heartedly agreed to talk with him later.
    The minute she got into her car, she pondered what had happened.  Something was wrong.  The connection was broken.  The entire meeting was a fiasco.  As she drove away, she agonized over what happened.  She went back to her office, but was too distracted to work.  Unable to work, she went home, changed into a jogging suit, drove to the park and sat in the car by the water.  Water always had a calming effect on her.  As she listened to the music playing on the radio, she lay back and thought about what might have happened.  She even tried to get a conversation going with God through prayer, but found He was not responding to her.  She finally realized He was going to make her get through this without His input.  Frustrated, she got out of the car and ran a few laps around the track and then went home, showered, and changed into blue jeans and a sweatshirt.  By the time Chantelle and Carlos came home, she had cooked, something she rarely did, one of their favorite meals, spaghetti with garlic bread and a tossed salad.  They knew something was wrong.
    Chantelle looked at Carlos and he shrugged as if to say he didn’t have a clue.  Having years of experience with their mother’s moods, they didn’t question her. They simply enjoyed the meal.  Whatever was bothering her would blow over soon.  As much as they hated seeing her upset, they loved to get the unexpected treats that she cooked to keep her temper from raging.
    *****
    Cal felt like an idiot after leaving D’Cerner at the restaurant, but he didn’t know what else to do.  She was much too attractive to spend a lot of time with alone.  Besides, he was a man and he couldn’t afford to ignore that fact.  Godly, yes.  But a man just the same.  He knew she was probably confused about his behavior, but he’d call her later.  Right now, he had to get his feelings under control.  He drove