Chapter 27
Charmaine was at a loss for words. She shifted her gaze from Pastor Gillespie’s eyes to the half filled glass of water she was holding. She tapped the glass lightly with her index finger. Her calm spirit attracted Pastor Gillespie even more. He reached his right hand across the table and rested it lightly on hers. Charmaine smiled but kept her focus on the glass. If his touch stirred anything inside her, she did not reveal it. Pastor Gillespie was about to tell her to think about it when her eyes met his.
“I…I don’t know what to say. I feel honored. I…”
“How about saying, yes,” Pastor Gillespie said. He felt her studying him as she kept her eyes focused on his. It was as though she was peering into his soul. He saw innocence and sincerity in her eyes.
“Yes, Roland, I’ll marry you,” she finally said.
“Thank you, Charmaine. Thank you so much for accepting my proposal.”
Charmaine nodded her head slowly. Pastor Gillespie felt honored by her humility.
“I’m not sure what the custom is in your country,” he said sliding his hand away from hers. “I will ask your uncle’s permission, of course. Forgive me if I have jumped ahead of myself.”
“That’s fine,” Charmaine said with a smile. “We’ll do it the American way first; then we will do it the Ethiopian way. My uncle won’t be mad.”
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“We’re all set to go,” Sentayhu said as he and Bohlale walked from the back kitchen into the dining area where Pastor Gillespie and Charmaine were seated. “Pastor Gillespie, I want to thank you for everything you did to make the Ethiopian Celebration Sunday go so well,” Sentayhu said extending a hand to Pastor Gillespie. Bohlale did likewise. He thought he had seen Pastor Gillespie slide his hand away from Charmaine’s as they entered the room. Looks like they’re getting pretty close to each other, he thought.
“You are more than welcome,” Pastor Gillespie said. “And I thank you for everything. I don’t know about you, but I’m beat. We have everything recorded on DVD and they will be on sale in the church bookstore and on our website soon. Just let Sister Mona know how many copies you want and she will get them delivered to you. Stop by the office as soon as you can Sentayhu, you too, Bohlale. I have some things I would like to discuss with you. Good night, my brothers and my sister.”
“Good night, Pastor Gillespie.”
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“A blessed man,” Sentayhu said of Pastor Gillespie as they rode home.
Charmaine was deep in her own thoughts. It would be an honor to be his wife. Everyone seemed to have received my people well today because of his eagerness to include us as part of the church family.
“Charmaine, is all well with you?” her uncle asked her as he pulled into the driveway at his house. “Do you have something you wish to share with me?”
Charmaine smiled. Her uncle seemed to always know when she had something on her mind. She hesitated to share the good news with him—not that she was trying to hide it from him; she just wanted Pastor Gillespie to mention it to her uncle first.
“I was thinking of waiting, but I’ll go ahead and let you know. Pastor Gillespie asked me to marry him,” Charmaine said. “I…said yes.”
Sentayhu pulled the keys out of the ignition and thought a moment before speaking. His silence lasted so long that Charmaine began to wonder if she had accepted Pastor Gillespie’s proposal too quickly. Finally, he said, “Congratulations, my daughter.” He leaned over and gave Charmaine a hug. “I’ll let you go ahead on to bed since it is so late and I know you are tired. We’ll talk more in the morning.”
