Charmed by Claire by Cindy Kirk

Author:Cindy Kirk [Kirk, Cindy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Waverly House
Published: 2019-06-18T04:00:00+00:00

* * *

Tony headed down the running path that circled the outskirts of Millville. The rhythmic beat of his shoes against the asphalt soothed his jangled nerves.

It had been a bad couple of days, and he needed to work off the stress. He’d decided after the lock-in to confess to the church elders and hope for the best. But he’d had difficulty arranging a meeting, and then Kendall had stopped by the church to talk.

After speaking with the boy Tony realized he couldn’t take the chance that the elders would tell him he had to leave. He knew Kendall had recently moved to Millville, but until yesterday he hadn’t understood how hard that had been on the teen.

A connection had been forged the night he’d shared his story with Nate and Kendall. It was as if God had sent him here to minister to these boys knowing Tony was someone who truly understood the pressures they faced.

So he’d kept his mouth shut.

Claire had taken the news in stride that the engagement would continue for a while longer. She seemed oddly content with the status quo. Tony decided it must mean, since her father hadn’t shown any signs of softening, she really had nowhere else to go. And, although Mrs. Sandy still had to wake her up at times, Claire had fit into the household with surprising ease.

Claire.

They were tied together in an arrangement that would soon end. While it was becoming clearer why he’d been sent to Millville, the reason Claire had been thrown into the equation was more difficult to understand.

Despite their physical attraction to each other, Claire and he were too different for any long-term commitment. They both knew that.

Of course, he had to admit that they’d gotten along pretty well, considering those differences.

He smiled. Claire always kept him guessing. He never knew what she’d say next. And when she fluttered those long black eyelashes and her full lips turned upward in that dazzling smile, there wasn’t anything Tony wouldn’t do for her.

He wished he could say she’d do the same for him. Although she attended church every Sunday, she seemed to focus more on the social aspect than the spiritual. And although Dottie had asked Claire repeatedly to go to Bible study with her, she still hadn’t agreed to give it a try.

Tony knew everyone wondered why his fiancée wasn’t more involved with the church. Personally he didn’t care how it looked, he just wished she had a stronger faith. Because if she didn’t get turned on to God living in the same house with a minister, would she ever?

But when had that minister ever witnessed to her?

The realization hit Tony like a lightning bolt, and he stopped, stunned. He’d pondered Claire’s lack of faith. He’d prayed for her. But he’d never sat down and simply shared what God meant to him.

A deep sense of shame filled him.

“Are you okay?”

Tony’s gaze jerked in the direction of the voice. A slender young woman about his own age, dressed in running shorts and a T-shirt, jogged in place, a worried look on her face.

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