21:00 MSK time.
I never knew a handshake could trigger so many butterflies in the stomach and cause one’s heartbeat to stop. As Fred shook my hands, that was all it took for me to believe in love again. I had felt all my resolve crumble as he approached me, but this handshake did something much more deeper within me.
“Hello, Linda. My name is Fred, and it is very nice to meet you,” he said, as he started the conversation I had looked forward to for a very long time – it’s been 2 hours since I first noticed him in the hall, and seemed like such a long time ago.
“Hello, how did you know my name?” I asked with a very serious tone.
I definitely was not planning to sell myself cheap by making him know how I felt about him. I had also asked for his name from three different people earlier.
“Well, I asked a friend who was sitting beside me. Apparently, you are very popular around here. I didn’t have to do a lot of research to find out so much about you,” he replied.
He had this confidence in his tone that was pleasing to the ears, but I was also aware that it was dangerous to my heart.
“So you spent the last two hours getting information about me instead of listening to what the speakers had to say. We paid a lot to be here, you know,” I said to him.
“Lady, do not flatter yourself,” he said with a smirk.
I was supposed to be offended by his reply, but I wasn’t. His smirk disarmed me.
He continued, “I did listen for the most part of the talk until you stole my attention the moment you stepped on that stage to introduce the third speaker. I just couldn’t take my eyes off you. If I have lost any vital information, it is your fault, and you have to pay me back.”
“You are funny sir. And how do I pay you back?” I asked, with a chuckle.
I knew it was a dangerous question to ask, but the entire conversation has been exhilarating, so I figured it shouldn’t hurt to ask more dangerous questions.
“I need to win the time I lost. I noticed you listened to the speakers with rapt attention. So how about we go on a date, and you fill me in on everything I missed while I was staring at you,” he replied.
His speech was so smooth, and I knew he was a man with experience. He just knew the exact words to sweep a woman off her feet. This is the kind of man that I had been warned against.
“Thank you for the proposal, but unfortunately, I don’t know how feasible that will be. I will be leaving town Monday morning for a series of conferences, and I don’t know when I will be back. However, I could get the recordings of the talks for you,” I said as I smiled respectfully at him.
“How about tomorrow?” he asked.
“Tomorrow is Sunday. I will be at church in the morning, and I would spend the evening packing up for my trip and getting sufficient rest before leaving on Monday,” I said.
As much as I was mesmerized by his beauty, I did not want anything to do with him. I could not allow myself to get engaged with a man that just wants to go on dates with nothing more in mind.
“What if I attend your church service?” he asked. I was shocked at his question. That was the last thing I had expected him to say.
“Don’t you have your own church to attend?” I asked.
“No, I don’t, and it’s not because I’m not a Christian. I don’t live in this city. I only came in for the conference. In fact, I would be leaving by Monday morning also,” he said in a formal tone.
I was surprised he was not from this city, but I was much more surprised that he was looking for a church to attend.
“Okay. I did not know that you were not from around here. Where are you from?” I asked.
At that moment, his phone beeped. He looked at it, and squeezed his face into a frown. It must have been an unpleasant message or an unpleasant person. I was tempted to ask if everything was alright, but I restrained myself.
“I would answer that in church tomorrow.” He now had a smile on his face. “How about we exchanged numbers so you can text me the address of the church, and if I can’t find my way, I can call you,” he said.
I was reluctant to give him my number, but I also did not want to make a big deal out of it. I mean, he was asking for it because he needed a place of worship. Why should I withhold my contact from him? I brought out my business card and handed it over to him. He smiled as he looked at it.
“I am quite impressed. See you tomorrow.” he said, as he smiled at me. With that, he turned and left.
I stood there as I watched him leave. There was something troubling about the last few minutes of our conversation. I felt like something was wrong, but I just could not put a finger on it. I figured it could be related to the message that came in while we spoke. In that instance, I remembered his smirk, and admittedly, I was excited to see him tomorrow at church.
7:00 am MSK time.
The church service was at 10 am. Throughout the night, I tried to get some good sleep to no avail. I felt nervous for whatever reason. I tried to take the thoughts of Fred out of my head, but I just could not.
I first caught a glimpse of him when I got on the stage to speak. He was sitting at the front with one of our important guests. I found it difficult to concentrate on my speech as I noticed he was looking intently at me. But I was there to carry out my job, so I managed to compose myself and deliver my speech.
When I got back to my seat, I made inquiries about him from a friend and two other people. I asked them who the gentleman sitting at the front was. One of them replied, “Oh, you don’t know Fred?”
“Yes, I don’t know him,” I rolled my eyes as I replied to him. “If I knew him, would I be asking?”
My friend later disclosed to me that he was one of the country’s top project managers. He was in charge of many of the major projects in most companies.
“It made sense that I wasn’t acquainted with him as he wasn’t resident in my city, but if he was as popular as they claimed, I should have heard of him.”, I thought to myself.
I stretched my hands to pick up my Bible from my reading table. According to my Bible plan, I was studying the life of Esther. I was deeply intrigued by her life, and she was my Bible hero. However, today, I could barely concentrate on what was I read.
“Maybe Fred was my king,” I thought to myself. I let out a laugh at that thought. I was too old to have these kinds of thoughts and feelings.
With that, I stood up to prepare for church.
9:30 am MSK time
My phone vibrated in my bag as I approached the car. I knew my phone was deep in my bag, so I did not bother to pick it up. After getting into the car, I searched for my phone from my bag. It had stopped ringing, and I saw a missed call from an unknown number. I don’t usually take calls from unfamiliar numbers, but I knew that I was expecting a call from Fred.
I was surprised that he didn’t call or message the previous day after the event. I had initially thought he would call last night as is typical of other men, but he did not. A little part of me was grateful for that, but another part was sad, and a bit worried. It was most probably Fred who called, so I decided to call back.
“Hello, Good morning,” I said as the call connected.
“Hello Lady, this is Fred,” he said softly.
“I figured. How are you doing this morning?” I asked him.
“I am doing fine. I hope you are doing fine also,” he replied.
“Yes, I am,” I replied.
There was an awkward silence.
“Well, I just called to ask you for the address. I had dressed up for church, and I realized that I did not know that address of the church,” he said laughing.
“Oh! I am sorry. I was expecting you to have called earlier, but you did not, and I didn’t know how to contact you,” I replied.
“Oh! So you were expecting my call?” he asked. It didn’t sound as an innocent question, so I was cautious about answering.
“Well, you collected my number so you could contact me for the church address. Of course, I was expecting your call” I replied.
“Interesting. Just send me the church address then. We will talk in church,” he said, signifying that he was concluding the call.
“Okay then. I will send it now. See you in church,” I said as I ended the call.
13:00 MSK time.
I walked towards the parking lot. Fred had said he was waiting there for me. I was so skeptical about meeting with him. Something in me did not want to meet him, but another part of me was very excited to see him.
Suddenly, I heard a voice. It was the voice of an angry man. It sounded so much like Fred. But it was very different from the soft spoken man I had gotten used to. What could make him so angry? I became worried. I increased my pace as I approached the parking lot.
Just then, I heard a very loud sound. It sounded as though someone hit a car. Was the argument getting violent? I was so worried. I thought of calling another brother from the church to accompany me. But as I got closer, I realized Fred was on a call.
I was shocked. How could anyone be so angry over a call? I looked at his car and noticed the dent on his bonnet. I wasn’t sure if to approach him or run away. At that moment, Fred looked back, and he saw that I had been watching him.
“I will call you back,” I heard him mutter. With that, he ended the call and started walking towards me, smiling.
How could a man raging with anger look all sweet and smiling in a split second? Cold fear ran through my body.