“You were? I mean, of course you were. She isn’t with us today. The prayer circle requires us sending our prayers vocally. You can see how that might not be a good fit for my darling.” She chuckled a little, a brittle strain to her tone.
“Of course. Pass on my good wishes. I look forward to seeing her on Sunday.”
“You are divine!” Sandy crowed before clapping her hands and asking everyone to take their seats.
“Now ladies, Pastor Young was hoping he could impose on us for a moment. I didn’t think you would mind.” There was a wave of good-natured laughing as Pastor August Young poked his head in with a wry grin.
“I hope I’m not interrupting?” he joked as we all settled in the circle of chairs. Sandy flicked her hand and scoffed.
“Pastor! Of course not. Your flock is always happy to see you.” She reclined in her chair like she was a queen in her own right, inviting another royal to speak. Pastor Young understood the undercurrent of hierarchy as he went and stood at her shoulder, his hands pressed in prayer to the group. I licked my lips, the memory of our time spent together making me rub my thighs together. He flicked his gaze over to me, a quick, insignificant thing. Except, I felt the quick jolt of lust the pastor created.
Naughty. I loved it and gobbled it up like a snack, hoping for more. His throat bobbed as he valiantly avoided looking at me.
“Now, flock, I have some exciting news. Our Prophet has moved his trip forward. His presence will bless us in one mere week. I can’t tell you how important it is that everything goes smoothly. I am hoping I could work closely with one of you to shift our plans around. I need an assistant of sorts, and we all know you ladies are the most wonderful organizers.”
Sandy tittered like a teenager.
“Oh you! I would love to assist, but myself and several others already have the responsibility of providing a feast that amazes the Prophet. There must be another member who could work closely with Pastor Young, a devoted, perhaps young one who has more energy than us oldies?”
She shot a meaningful look at Olive, who was slow to react.
But I wasn’t.
My hand shot up, fingers waggling in the air. An excuse to spend time with Pastor Young? The possibility of gorging on lust with his handsome, eager tongue? Hopefully his cock? Yes please.
Olive’s hand followed shortly after, along with a handful of others. Sandy smiled like she’d won an award. Clearly, she expected Pastor Young to choose Olive. They would make a pretty pair, but she hadn’t had her tongue wrapped around his straining cock. A clear tick in my favor. Pastor Young sucked on his lower lip, rubbing his chin like he was deliberating.
“Allera volunteered first, so I will choose her. I’d be grateful if you dropped by my office after prayer group and we can discuss the details.” I smiled on the inside, recognizing that it wouldn’t be in my best interest to irritate Sandy Wicker, not when she’d been generous. I widened my eyes in mock surprise and genuine excitement.
“Of course. I cannot wait to help,” I gushed, making sure I looked around at the others like I couldn’t believe my luck. Pastor Young nodded his head.
“I’m grateful to you and I won’t take up anymore of your time,” he praised and hightailed it out of there. Olive slumped in her chair for a moment, springing up when her mother’s imperious look swept over her.
“Well, now that it’s just us womenfolk, let’s get down to it,” her voice was slightly icy. I wouldn’t want to be Olive right now. I imagined Sandy would light into her as soon as we were done.
“Now, for those of you who are joining us for the first time, this prayer circle is one of our most important responsibilities to the church and to the Prophet. All you must do is repeat the words spoken and focus on infusing them with energy, power, and strength.”
Important for the church and Prophet. Unusual stipulations, but before I could ponder on the lack of mention about the higher deities, Sandy began.
“We praise the Prophet. We send our power, we send our energy, we send our strength. Our Prophet is a living king. Our Prophet is our Lord. Our Prophet is bountiful with everything he needs.”
I struggled not to screw up my face, looking around surreptitiously as everyone dutifully repeated the insane prayer, not wanting to be the odd one out after I just usurped the queen bee’s daughter. I needed to look like the most pious one in here. I imagined what I was going to do with the Pastor after this, drifting away into filthy daydreams. My throat cracked, hoarse from the near constant chanting. It felt like we had been doing it for an age, when finally, Sandy trailed off, her own voice gravelly with over-use. She bowed her head, steepling her fingers towards us.
“Our Prophet thanks you. With him in our thoughts he can continue to commune with the Lord and bring us more revelations.”
Okay, real cult vibes right now.
“Help yourself to some of the fresh brewed honey and ginger tea, perfect for your hard-working vocal cords.”
I sagged in the chair, sighing as Aunt Kathy jumped up immediately. Her eyes were bright and glowing, like she’d had an epiphany and it was slightly disconcerting.
“Allera, take a cup to the Pastor. You don’t want to keep him waiting,” she murmured, a cheeky hike of her eyebrows when she continued. “Better to stake your territory before Sandy can convince Pastor to change his mind in favor of Olive. Call me when you’re finished, and I’ll pick you up later.”
I guess I didn’t need to guard my virtue around the Pastor. She was more than happy for me to be around him unchaperoned. I didn’t need to be told twice, flying to the line and pouring out a cup for the Pastor. I wasn’t a total heathen (as far as they knew) so I made my way over and thanked Sandy for having me.
“I am honored to have been able to lend my voice and prayers to our Prophet. Thank you so much for inviting me. I was hoping to visit Christabel, perhaps tomorrow after church? Do you think that she’d like that?”
Sandy gave me a warm smile and nodded.