Ever wondered what it might be like to be a mail order bride? Or the groom, already married to a woman he’s never laid eyes on? On the Canadian prairies in 1886, having a mail order romance wasn’t unusual. Noah Ferguson desperately needed help on his farm. Annie Tompkins knew she couldn’t go on working in Lazenby’s cotton mill. So she’d been a little less than honest in her letters, was that really so terrible? It was unforgivable, Noah fumed. He’d wanted an older widow, and Annie was a young virgin. But even that wasn’t the full extent of her lies.Problem is, Noah hasn’t exactly been straight with Annie, either, and his secret has the power to break Annie’s heart.Can even a special Christmas gift make their marriage work? Read an Excerpt:What the hell had possessed him to shave off his beard this morning, Noah wondered? His rugged features might look better without all that wild black hair, but the beard might also have kept his chin from freezing, waiting for this damnable train.And after all, what did he care how he might appear to her? It wasn’t as if he had to court her; the marriage was over, the legal bond established between them. She had insisted on a proxy marriage before she left Toronto on the four-day train journey that was bringing her here to Medicine Hat. Against his better judgment—and the advice of the only lawyer in town—Noah had agreed.He’d wanted it all over and done with. He’d signed the papers and sent the money for the fare, and now that she was almost here, his gut was churning. He wished to God the train would get here so they could be done with this awful first meeting, he and Annie Tompkins.Annie Ferguson, he corrected himself. Annie Ferguson, his second wife. Tall, she'd described herself. Thirty-four, on the thin side, and plain, which suited him just fine. He’d been relieved to read her description of herself; after all, this was no love match, far from it.Instead, it was a practical solution for them both. She was a soldier's wife, widowed in the Rebellion of 1885, a farm woman trapped in the city, working in some dingy factory to support herself and her young daughter while longing for the country life she'd known as a child.And as for him, this marriage was a desperate measure.He thought of his cranky, bed-ridden father, being cared for at this moment by a kindly neighbor, then deliberately forced his thoughts back to his new wife.Redheaded, she’d said, which worried Noah some. Was it true, what they said about a redhead’s temper? There’d been no sign of it in the eight letters she’d sent during the past months, and Lord only knew he had no experience of women’s temper and no desire to learn.Molly had been the sweetest of women. In their three years of marriage, Noah was hard put to recall times when she’d even come close to losing her temper.Molly. Without warning, bitter rage at his loss welled up in him, rage so intense that his tall, well-muscled body trembled with the force of it, and he clenched his teeth and knotted his hands into fists inside the blue wool mittens his dead wife had knitted for him.There were holes worn through one thumb and two fingers. Noah had clumsily mended them.It had been two years now since Molly and his eighteen-month-old son, Jeremy, had died within hours of one another, victims of typhoid, and in recent months he'd begun to believe this smothering, impotent, choking fury was gone forever, that time had eased the agony of his loss. Instead, here it was back again, as powerful as ever, and now there was this gnawing guilt as well.I never wanted any woman but you, Molly. Still don’t, but I can’t do it alone anymore, not since Dad had the stroke. If you’d lived, Molly, I wouldn’t be in this damnable position, waiting to meet some stranger. I’ve had to invite her to share the house we built together, the bed we slept in. Damn it all, Molly, how could you do this to me? Views: 11
After helping countless women find suitable husbands, Harriett is embarking on her own mail-order bride journey, to marry a man whose sister has eight lovely daughters of her own. Her new husband seems to care for her, but doesn't understand Harriett's attachment to her faithful butler Higgins. Will she find herself in another bad marriage, or is this, at long last, her own happily ever after?From the AuthorWant more matchmaking madness? Check out ROSE, the first book in the highly anticipated new series, SUITORS OF SEATTLE. Follow the adventures of eight western daughters, ready to benefit from the matchmaking expertise of their new Aunt Harriet, whom readers will recognize from the Brides of Beckham series.Please keep in mind that this is not a Christian book. There are love scenes that are rated R. Views: 11
This 15,000 word novella is a PG read and was originally published as part of the Call Me Valentino anthology.
Cassie Morgan has to take fifteen young ladies all the way to Texas
from New York, but she is unsure if it's a good idea to be driven there
by a rugged cowboy. How will she keep her heart intact?
When Valentino Hayes is offered the job of driving a bus full of
orphans to Texas, he jumps at the chance to find his long lost brother.
Now to convince the beautiful Mrs. Morgan to permit it. Will the trip to
Texas be more than they expected? Views: 11
He's got lots of patients--but she's the one with patience to spare!Dr. Tony O'Connor, chief of staff at St. Joseph's Hospital in Vancouver, has a short fuse these days. His mother is driving him crazy. His father, whom he hasn't seen in thirty-two years, is coming to visit with the woman he loves, and the members of Tony's family are taking sides. Not only that, Tony has just injured his ankle and gotten himself laid up in St. Joe's.Kate Lewis, the hospital's patient representative, is an expert at coping. Maybe she can help Tony out.Except that soon Tony and Kate are facing even more problems. Like what to do about the volatile feelings between them...and how to stop putting their own needs last. Views: 10
Tragedy strikes without warning. Just like love.Nothing, not even the beauty of Montana’ s big-sky country, can make up for the one reckless mistake Derrick made twelve years ago. And so he buries himself in raising his son, his only outlet the poignant country songs he writes and plays at the local bar.Until he meets Kara Tillman. Widowed at just twentynine and caring for her mother-in-law, Kara teaches him that grief doesn’ t have to be all-consuming. That tragedy can be overcome and wounds healed. That life is about risk
and happiness is worth the stakes. Too bad Kara hasn’ t learned that lesson herself.So maybe it’ s time for the pupil to become the teacher. Or, in this case, the sexy country singer to show the young widow that love can strike the same person twice. Views: 10
Clay Morrow was trapped.He should have stayed in Ellistown, his small hometown wherein life passed unhurriedly and the sound of gunfire was rarely heard. But rebellious instincts compelled him to ride out in search of a new identity and wild adventure.Very soon, Clay was involved in more adventure, more trouble, more danger than he could handle. His trail had crossed that of the desperate men who conspired to attack and loot an army supply wagon.In the moment of crisis, the adventurer was thrown together with a veteran manhunter, the astute, courageous Jim Rand, and that bucktoothed bravado from south of the border, Benito Espina.Thereby hangs a tale ... Views: 10
Cissie Rivers finds herself jealous of her best friend, Cindy, for the
first time in her life. Cissie's always been smart, pretty, and a
wonderful singer, but Cindy has found love, and Cissie is still alone.
She isn't sure how much longer she can wait for matchmaker, Lachele, to
find her perfect man. Patience has never been one of her virtues. Deputy Sheriff, Bob Anderson, takes one look at Cissie Rivers and
knows she's the woman he wants to spend the rest of his life with. The
only problem is, he can't seem to approach her. Every time he even
thinks about it, his tongue swells in his mouth so he's certain he'll
start stammering. When he finds out that Cissie is waiting to be
matched by Lachele, he contacts Matchrimony immediately. Will Cissie
be able to forgive him when she realizes he's engineered the match? Or
will she opt out of their marriage after the first year is up? Views: 10
