Page 20 of The Prettiest Outlaw

“Good morning, Sister Perkins.” I spoke to the pastor’s administrative assistant. “Pastor asked me to step out here and grab you. He’s hoping to have a quick word with you before the next service.”

“Cool.” I stood from the pew then reached my hand back.

Julianna hesitated for a few seconds before taking it.Sister Perkins led the two of us through hidden corridors behind the sanctuary and into the area that held the church’s offices. At the pastor’s office, she knocked lightly on the door and awaited his response.

“Come in.”

She pushed open the door, ushered us inside and backed out of the room, leaving Julianna and me alone with Pastor Royal Sharpe Jr.

Pastor Sharpe was a young dude around my same age. He wasn’t necessarily short, but he definitely wasn’t tall, standing around five foot ten or eleven inches. He had a medium build, brown skin, and short, close-cropped hair. He often wore a bright smile, and Clark Kent glasses.

“Thank you for coming by, Brother Hill. Is it okay if I call you Domenico, or do you prefer Brother Hill?”

“I prefer Nico if I’m being honest, Pastor.”

“I got you, Nico. And who is this we have here? I know you’re a visitor, because I saw you stand up when we acknowledged the visitors.”

Julianna nodded with jerky, stiff movements. I could tell she was nervous.

“Yes. I’m Julianna Outlaw.”

“Are you local, Julianna? Is this your first time visiting us at Faith in Harvest?”

“Umm…yes. I was raised Catholic. I attended St. Monica with my family for years. I wanted to try something…different.”

Pastor Sharpe’s eyes bore into Julianna for a moment or so. Long enough to make me start to feel uncomfortable.

Finally, he spoke, “I hope you find what you’re looking for. We would love to have you here at Faith in Harvest. What do you do, Julianna Outlaw?”

He gave her a smile that was as big as it was friendly.

“I umm…I’ve done a lot of things in the past that didn’t…engage me. Recently, I’ve been decorating baked goods. Cookies and cupcakes are my specialty.”

“Do you bake the goods yourself?”

She nodded. “I do. I’m pretty good at baking. I grew up doing it with my mom and my sisters. Now, I only really bake so I can have something to decorate.”

The three of us laughed.

“Would you be interested in teaching a class?—”

The surprise of the request caused her to interrupt the pastor. “Teaching a class? What kind of class? What do you mean?”

“Yo, Pastor Sharpe, she’s a visitor. She doesn’t belong to this church. Quit trying to sign her up for volunteer duty,” I joked half heartedly.

He held up his hands in surrender. “My bad. My bad. I’m not trying to put your girl to work as a volunteer.”

I let his suggestion that Julianna was my girl slide because his presumption didn’t bother me. Julianna was fine as hell…sexy too. I didn’t feel any kind of way about her being confused for my lady.

“You know, after the pandemic, it’s taken time to rebuild our ministries and auxiliaries. The ministries that have managed to not only bounce back but thrive involve our children. Our children’s, youth, and teen ministries are highly populated and active, so we try to keep them engaged.

“Having said that. Here at Faith in Harvest, the week of Valentine’s Day is known as ‘The Week of Love.’ Each week day, we’ll host an event. Monday, there will be a blood drive. Tuesday, the Food Pantry ministry will give away 214 bags of groceries. Wednesday evening, there will be a father-daughter dance. Thursday evening is the mother-son dance. Friday is kids night—the children’s ministry will have the little ones create cards that will be delivered to a local nursing home on Saturday morning. Afterward, they’ll make pizza and watch a movie.

“Now Saturday, that’s our big day. We call itThe Great Date Night. All of our adult couples are invited to experience a performance by Zach the Comedian, he’s a Christian comedian. We’ll provide childcare for the parents while they enjoy the show. That’s where you would come in, Sister. I would like you to do a breakout session with some of the youth. Cookie decorating would fit right in. I already have somebody coming in to do mask painting, jewelry making, and photography. The church will pay for the ingredients and for your time. Would you be interested in doing something like that?”

“I could be.” Her smile was radiant.

“I’m going to have you leave your information with Sister Perkins. She’ll email you a contract along with the details.”

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