A Passion Denied Read Online Free PDF Page B

whispered.
    Charity chuckled. “Yes, but let’s not get off track. My point is that Brady is a normal, red-blooded American male, yet for some mysterious reason, he refuses to pursue a romantic relationship.”
    Faith squeezed Lizzie’s shoulder. “It’s true, Lizzie. All I know is, according to Collin, women come in the shop all the time trying to catch Brady’s eye, but apparently he has no interest in spending time with any of them.”
    Charity planted her arms firmly on the table and leaned in. “Only you, Lizzie. He only spends time with you.”
    Lizzie blinked and then grinned. “I know. Three times a week at lunch, and we don’t always study the Bible or pray. Sometimes we just talk.” She sighed. “What am I going to do? I’m so in love with the man, I’m sick.”
    The teakettle whistled and Faith bounced up to get it. She poured the steaming liquid into each of the three cups, then returned the kettle to the stove. The sweet scent of jasmine billowed into the cool air as she placed three spoons and cream on the table. “Well . . . maybe our Brady needs a little jolt . . .”
    “A jolt?” Lizzie sat up.
    Faith grinned and glanced at Charity. “Wouldn’t you say, Charity? Something to make him more . . . attentive?”
    Charity chuckled. “Goodness, I’m ashamed I didn’t think of it myself. Heaven help me, this pregnancy must be dulling my manipulative skills.”
    Faith stirred some cream in her cup and took a sip. “Well, hopefully not too much, because I’m counting on you to teach our Lizzie a few feminine wiles.”
    “And you’ll cover the prayer department?”
    Faith laughed. “What else?” She cocked a brow at Lizzie. “But I’ll only be praying for you and Brady to get together if it’s what God has in mind, all right?”
    Lizzie pouted. “And what do you think I’ve been doing the last four years? Knitting? I’ve asked God over and over again to take Brady out of my heart if it’s not right, but my feelings have only grown. Why do you think I’ve turned down every boy who’s ever asked me out? If God hadn’t intended Brady for me, wouldn’t I have known it by now?”
    Faith smiled and patted her hand. “Seems like it. All right, then it’s settled. Charity will handle the romance, and I’ll handle the prayer.” She gave Charity a playful smirk. “Because obviously I’ve never had her abilities with men.”
    “I don’t remember you doing too badly,” Charity said with a grimace. She turned toward Lizzie, her brows bunched deep in thought. “Well, let’s see. You’ll need privacy, of course, and you can’t get that at the shop, not with Collin there.”
    “Collin’s not always there at lunch when Brady and I have Bible study. Sometimes he runs deliveries.” Lizzie drowned her tea with a hefty dose of cream.
    Charity shook her head. “No, you need someplace romantic, someplace where you and he can be alone, without his Bible to hide behind.” She scrunched her face. “Is he coming to dinner on Saturday?”
    Faith grinned. “He is if I get Collin to ask him.”
    “Good! That’s perfect.” Charity waggled her brows. Her tone was thick with conspiracy.
    “Perfect for what?” Lizzie guzzled her tea.
    “For seduction, of course.”
    “What?” The tea pooled in Lizzie’s throat while the cup trembled in her hand. “You want me to seduce Brady?”
    “No, nothing that sinister. Just enough to get him thinking about you as a woman instead of a little sister.”
    Lizzie’s cup clattered to her saucer. She glanced at Faith. “And you’re in agreement with this?”
    Faith sighed and crossed her arms on the table. “Well, I’m not going to argue with the master. Besides, for what it’s worth, I’ve always had a sense that you and Brady fit together, like it was meant to be somehow. But ultimately, it’s God’s decision, not ours.” Her serious tone lightened with a lift of her brows. “Which means, little sister, that if it is what God wants, then