Claiming Midnight

Clayton Carter is a small town sheriff with a haunting past. He watched his brother murder his father when he was only fifteen. He escaped an alcoholic mother when he went to live his affluent aunt and uncle where he overcome his childhood tragedies to become a respected member of the community. Even though, some scars heal on the outside, they still remain on the soul and can affect every aspect of a person's life. His life was so chaotic as a child, now Clay has to have absolute control. He walks a very gray line between the black-and-white world of law enforcement.Isabella was an extremely sheltered child who grew into a naive woman. A childhood catastrophe caused her parents to be exceedingly overprotective. Her grandmother bestowed the family bakery to her with hopes Isabella would learn to live — not just exist.When an arsonist threatens Midnight, Clay is determined to solve the case and keep the residents of his hamlet safe. While questioning some of the locals, he meets Isabella. He has seen her a million times in the bakery but never noticed her. Clay is battling rumors in the town concerning his sexuality and decides Isabella could be a good cover. Clay only dates women outside of Midnight so no one will ever find out his fetishes run to the darker side.While using Isabella as a cover, he begins to notice the woman beneath the frumpy clothes, and guileless outlook on life. Isabella begins to discover the heart of a man who only shows coldness to the outside world. When the arsonist targets Isabella, Clay has to fight his inner demons and face his feelings for her, all while trying to catch the fire-bug plaguing Midnight. As Isabella becomes more disenchanted can she and Clay find a common ground between his controlling nature and her new-found autonomy?