Fire and Agate by Andrew Grey

Author:Andrew Grey [Grey, Andrew]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: gay romance
ISBN: 978-1-64080-942-0
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Published: 2018-11-05T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 7

“I GET it,” Pavle said when the doorbell rang.

“Okay, just be careful,” Chris cautioned from the kitchen. He’d been doing a lot more cooking lately and found he didn’t mind spending so much time in the kitchen. Chris turned down the heat under the pot of hamburger-vegetable soup to let it simmer and followed Pavle’s path through the house.

“Reverend,” Chris said as Pavle was about to close the door on the people he didn’t know. “Please come in.”

“Tyrone, please,” the reverend said with a smile. “And you must be Pavle.” He didn’t seem upset that Pavle had nearly slammed the door on him. “This is Anika, my wife, and our son, Isaac.”

Chris knew the instant Pavle recognized the toddler.

“You… you save me.” Pavle smiled and sank back onto the bench Chris kept in the entryway.

“I’d say you saved yourself,” Anika said. “I found your note when I was getting Isaac up one morning.”

“I know… I no write good.” Pavle bit his lower lip as Chris offered him a hand for support.

“Your note was fine. We knew you needed help and called the police. They found you and saved you.” She offered Pavle a hand, and he released Chris’s to take hers. “Tyrone and I want to help others. It’s why he became a pastor and partly why I married him. A life of service is what we chose, but it’s so rare to see the help we give someone pay off so quickly.”

“I thank you for help,” Pavle said formally. “I there long time.”

“We had no idea. I was just assigned to rebuild this congregation a few months ago,” Tyrone said.

Chris motioned them toward the living room. “Please come in.” They took seats, with Pavle next to Anika, who still held his hand. He was so pleased Pavle wasn’t scared of them and accepted the comfort and care they exuded from every pore. Chris left the room to set up a tray of lemonade and cheese and crackers in the kitchen. He brought it in as Pavle told his story, or at least an abbreviated version.

“I open window, throw note, close again. Then pray,” Pavle was saying as he returned and put the tray on the coffee table. “People no know there more like me here. They need help, but hard to find.”

“Yes, they are. And the neighborhood near our church is a good place to hide.” Reverend Tyrone took a glass of lemonade and handed it to Anika. “I want to work to help build a sense of community around us.” He looked over at Chris. “Do you have any suggestions to help us get started? Since you’ve been here longer than we have, that would be helpful.”

“Have you contacted the garden people?” Chris asked.

“Not yet.”

“They are the ones who built and maintain the gardens and trees in the park area. I bet they would be willing to help you. They love that neighborhood and would probably work with you to spearhead your cleanup campaign. The leader is Marilyn Smith.

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