Page 1 of Sin

Chapter One

Her father’s voice echoed through the church, reflecting his passion for the sermon. It was one of Adira’s favorite things—sitting in the pew and listening as he preached. His voice changed, growing deeper with a little more twang as he built up the passion. Her mother sat next to her on one side, and her fiancé, Abel, sat on the other. Once she walked down the aisle, her world would be complete.

They rose for the last hymn and she looked up at Abel with a smile. He winked. Once the service wrapped up, she stood next to her parents to greet the congregation. Finally, the last person left and her parents headed back inside the church.

“Are you going home?” she asked Abel.

“Yeah, thought I’d rest a little before coming over for dinner.”

“Okay,” she said. “I’ve got to run to the store.”

“All right.”

She stood on tiptoe and kissed his cheek before heading toward her car. Only when she got to the door did she realize she left her keys on her father’s desk where she had tossed them earlier. Adira returned to the church, entering through a side door, and walked soundlessly down the hall. She heard the low timbre of her father’s voice coming from his office. Just as she reached it, however, she heard her name and realized her fiancé, Abel, was in there with her dad.

“Your daughter is a cold fish,” Abel said.

The words halted her in her tracks. Surely, she heard wrong, or the words out of context. Yet, confusion filled her. Cold fish?

“What’d you expect? She was raised by my cold fish of a wife,” her father stated with a dark chuckle. His cruel words filled her with shock. “But that’s why you have a side piece. A wife to look good for the congregation and a woman to fuck on the side. That’s what I have, and no one is the wiser. Get Adira pregnant and she’ll be in her own little world.”

She didn’t know what was worse—her father admitting to cheating on her mom or the fact he was encouraging her soon-to-be husband to do the same. Her stomach churned and she backed up. When the two men started laughing, she’d heard enough. Fleeing, she didn’t know what to think. How did she handle this? Her father was the pastor, for crying out loud!

She had to tell her mother.

Her mom, Esther, was putting away the hymnal books from religion class. Adira closed the door behind her, giving them privacy. Something her father should’ve done. Her mother looked behind her and smiled.

“I thought you had already headed out,” her mother said.

“Mom.” Words failed her. How did she blurt out her husband’s infidelity?

Seeing how she struggled, Esther hurried over and took hold of her hands. “What is it?”

“Mom, I … I overheard Dad and Abel talking.”

Her gaze turned wary. “What were they talking about?”

“Dad … he, uh, oh my God, Mom! He said he cheats on you! And then he encouraged Abel to do the same!”

Esther’s chin went up and she smoothed a lock of Adira’s hair back. “It’ll be fine. Abel will give you children and a stable home.”

Her eyes widened. “What? You know?”

“Of course I do,” Esther said, sighing. “I was hoping you’d never find out.”

“How could you hope for something like that?” Adira demanded. “How can you be okay with Dad sleeping with other women?”

“Because he provides a nice home, a car. Money for clothes and shopping. He keeps food on the table and doesn’t mind when I find my own companionship.”

Bile crawled up Adira’s throat. “Wait,” she whispered. “You too?”

“Darling, a marriage is just a way for women like us to have the nicer things in life.”

“Women like us?” Adira shook her head. “ ‘Thou shalt not commit adultery.’ It’s one of the Ten Commandments!”

“Don’t quote the Bible to me,” her mother snapped. “I get enough of that crap here.”

Adira had no idea what was happening. Her whole world was splintering apart. She backed up, needing to get away from her. From them. From this.

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