A Guardian Angel's Kiss

*** Based on Christian Morals--Christian Romance ***

When Gina Russell learns she's pregnant from a rape, she loses all hope and contemplates ending it all.

God seems to intervene by sending her a guardian angel in the form of Dr. James Pierce. James gives her hope and strength to endure everything through the word of God.

However, with all her baggage, she knows she's not the one for James. When the rapist is finally behind bars, she'll be an unwed mother and without her guardian angel.

Excerpt

Gina Russell took a deep breath and sucked up her tears, dialing the number on the mysterious Christmas card. It rang twice. She hoped no one would answer.

What was she thinking, calling someone she didn't know?

As she moved the phone away from her ear to hang up, she heard a man's voice. "Hello?"

She couldn't be rude.

Gina cleared her throat and returned the phone to her ear. "Can you tell me who I'm calling?" She winced, knowing that was a stupid comment.

The man's laughter surprised her. "I think you dialed the number," he said. "Do you know what number you called?"

She rattled off the digits on the card. "Is this the right number?"

"Yes, that's my number. What's your name?"

"Gina." She knew better than to give her full name, living in the city. Chicago was nothing like Des Moines, Iowa, where she'd grown up.

"Well, Gina, how can I help you?"

She glanced around the room at all the packed items and sighed. She must've sounded stupid. "I'm not sure. What's your name?"

"James." He chuckled again, and for some reason, the sound seemed to give her peace in her heart. He sounded young and handsome, but she immediately put it out of her mind. No man ever gave her the time of day, because she'd been told often enough by her mother and her sister that she wasn't worthy of any man.

Maybe she was so lonely that anyone who connected with her would give her peace. That must be why his laughter calmed her heart.

"Well, James," she said. "I seemed to have gotten a Christmas card from you, even though it's only the beginning of December. It's a nice card. You signed it that you had great news." She stared down at the envelope. "It was sent to some administrative assistant and got in my mailbox by mistake." Tears burned behind her lids, but she forged on. "I'm no longer an…" She felt her throat constrict from her sadness, hardly able to speak. "Uh…I'm not an administrative assistant any longer." Sobs overtook her. She covered the phone until she collected herself and moved her hand away. "I don't have a job, so you sent this beautiful card to the wrong person."

"Aren't you with Nativity Church?"

It was too difficult to force her lips into a smile since the tears made her frown. "No. They're down the street." She tried to suck up her tears, but it wasn't working. "I'm sorry."

"I'm not sorry. Why are you crying?"

As she wiped away her tears, she walked to a chair in the living room and sat down. "Do you really want to know?"

"Yes, I do. What's the matter?"

She heard something clink in the background over the phone, figuring he was probably busy. "Well, I lost my job, and really have nothing to live for anymore, but it's not your problem. Bye, James. I hope you have a great life."

She moved the phone away from her ear but heard him yelling. "Wait! Gina. Don't hang up yet."

Her eyes closed from the tears, but she decided to keep talking to this man. She moved the phone back to her ear but wasn't certain she wanted to tell him anything. "Why?"

"I want to talk to you in person. I have to…uh…straighten out this problem with my bookkeeping. Can you wait until I get there?"

She shrugged, even though it just delayed the inevitable of what she planned to do. "I guess so."

"Where do you live?" he asked.

It didn't matter if he knew. She probably wouldn't be around to answer the door and he could find the body. He'd be the stranger left to clean up her mess.