Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty One
Chapter Twenty Two
Chapter Twenty Three
Chapter Twenty Four
Chapter Twenty Five
Chapter Twenty Six
Chapter Twenty Seven
Chapter Twenty Eight
Chapter Twenty Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty One
Chapter Thirty Two
Epilogue
Have you missed any of the Proxy Brides?
About Caroline Clemmons
Chapter One
Boston, Massachusetts, 1871
Keira Cameron’s lips formed a firm line as she listened to her cousin, Alec Fraser, natter on about how she should marry his Montana friend by proxy. Alec might as well have told her she was unwanted and unlikely to be a wife without his help. Staring out the window at the busy Boston street scene, she refused to shed the tears stinging the back of her eyelids.
In the six months she’d been here, she’d begun to lose hope of ever having her own home and children. Finding a job had been hard. Apparently her brogue and height were off putting to most.
Finally she’d been hired as a nanny but since then the children’s mother had decided she was not needed. No doubt the woman had seen the lecherous looks the children’s father sent toward Keira. The man’s leers and double entendres made Keira want to rush and scrub her entire body.
Although polite, none of the men Alec had introduced to her displayed an interest in courting her. She’d asked him to stop dragging home men to meet her. She didn’t need the humiliation compounding her rejection.
Keira wished she’d stayed in their small Scottish village after the deaths of her parents. True, there were no marriage prospects for her there but at least she knew the neighbors. She could have stayed in her family home and… and what?
She threw up her hands. “Fine, I’ll do it.” She agreed if only to get Alec to stop talking. In truth, though, she didn’t see she had much choice.
A wide smile appeared on his face. “You won’t be sorry. Gideon is a fine man, none finer. He, Darren McVie, Travis Bruner, and I served together in the war.” His voice carried excitement. “Gideon is the bravest man I know.”
She turned her back so he wouldn’t see the tears she could no longer hold at bay and she brushed away. “You might as well make the arrangements. The sooner it’s done the sooner I’m out of your hair.”
Gently, he turned her to face him and held her shoulders. “Keira? You can’t mean that the way it sounded. Surely you know you’re welcome to stay here forever if you wish.”
She shook her head, still unwilling to meet his gaze. “That’s not practical. You’ve always been very kind to me, Alec.” She raised her head. “I realize now I had unrealistic expectations when I came.”
His eyes held both sympathy and fondness. “For all that we’re only cousins, I’ve always thought of you as a dear younger sister. I wouldn’t willingly let you go so far away to anyone but Gideon. You know Rory’s middle name is Gideon after him.”
His arm hugged her shoulders as he moved to stand beside her. He ushered her to stand in front of the fireplace where a small fire burned in the grate in spite of the fact the calendar indicated they were in late summer.
“Let me tell you more about Gideon. As I said, we served in the war together. The call came to retreat but Darren and I were pinned down and under fire. We were both wounded and trapped. We were in the open and couldn’t get back to our unit.”
She gasped. She’d known he was injured in the war, but no details. “How frightening. What did you do?”
“Do? We could do nothing except pray. You can be assured I did plenty of that.”
“Apparently your prayers were answered, but how?”
“Neither of us could walk well enough to escape. Gideon is a big, brawny man who stormed in and carried Darren to safety. He got shot in his cheek, but he didn’t let that stop him. Gideon pressed his handkerchief to the wound and tied another kerchief around his face and came back for me.”
“What a courageous man he must be.”
“If he weren’t so brave, I would have died that day. That he didn’t die from blood loss or infection is a miracle. Medical care in battle was often as dangerous as no treatment.”
She brushed a lock of her cousin’s from his face. His hair was darker red than hers now but had been fiery when they were children.
“Then I will be eternally grateful to him, dear cousin. I would wed him because he saved your life if for no other reason. If you say I should marry him, then I’ll take your advice.”
His broad smile emphasized his approval. “You’ll never meet a man more honorable. Gideon’s sister Orla is married to our friend Darren. You’ll not only get a fine husband, but you’ll enjoy his sister and brother-in-law.”
She twisted her handkerchief. “I don’t mean to sound ungrateful for all you’ve done for me. I can’t help feeling unwanted, Alec.” She didn’t want him to think she found fault with him. “You’ve been very kind. But, I thought I’d have made more friends, found a job to support myself and find rooms somewhere, maybe even have found a beau by now.”
“Please, don’t trouble yourself further about your current situation. You’re a clever woman and a pleasure to know. You’ll get on well with Gideon.”
He took her hands in his. “Trust me, won’t you? Gideon, Orla, and Darren love living in Montana Territory and it does sound a good place. If Millie wasn’t so tied to her mother here, then we’d already have moved there.”
She forced a smile. “You’re a fine man and you’re generous to let me stay with you and your family.”
Her feeling unwanted in this home wasn’t her cousin’s fault. His wife, Millie, wasn’t happy having Alec’s relative living with them in their small home. No, not even when Keira could contribute to the family coffers.
Now that Keira was out of work and had yet to find a new position, she’d have to use her savings. Millie’s harridan of a mother visited daily and made snide remarks when Alec wasn’t within hearing. Better Keira should move on as he suggested.
“I’ll ask Millie to go with you tomorrow to buy a wedding ring. The groom sent the fare for you but didn’t know how to choose a ring and get it here in time. He sent the cash to buy one, though.”
How romantic—she had to choose her own wedding ring. At least Millie would enjoy their shopping expedition, especially since it meant Keira would soon be gone.
Haverhill, Montana Territory
“Can you not understand I’m done talking or thinking or acting on the subject?” Blacksmith Gideon Ross hammered a piece of metal into shape, his Scots burr thickening with his annoyance. Normally he thought of himself as a gentle soul in spite of his formidable size. Today he would like to hammer sense into his best friend, Darren McVie, the man who also happened to be his brother-in-law.
Darren edged around to see Gideon’s face. “I tell you, this is the perfect solution.”
Gideon dipped the red hot metal into the water, sending steam hissing into the air. “Apparently I need to remind
you that is exactly what you said about a mail-order bride. Now I’m a laughingstock to the whole town.”
“No one is laughing at you, Gideon. No one blames you because that fickle woman up and married Alfred Price.”
Gideon turned slowly to face his friend. “If you’ll recall, Ella Trigg didn’t just ‘up and wed’ Alf. First, she had to tell me and anyone who’d listen that I was too ugly, too big, and too scary looking for her. I didn’t appreciate that, especially with half the town listening.”
His friend had the grace to look sorrowful. “You’re right and that was her sad mistake. I accept that part of the blame is mine for encouraging you to send for a mail-order bride. What nerve she had to come here last week and ask if you’d take her now if she divorced Alf. You put her in her place by shaming her and sending her scurrying.”
Gideon offered his most solemn glare, not that it had much affect on Darren. “Remember you’re not to tell that to anyone. As much as I dislike the woman, I’ll not be party to anyone spreading tales. I should have known any woman would be afeared of me.”
“Now that’s simply not true. Anyway, this time, I have a guarantee, see? Our friend Alec Fraser has a cousin over from his wee village in Scotland. The thing is, she’s only about six inches shorter than your six foot five inches. For all that she’s pretty as a picture, the men in Boston think she’s too tall. The lass has wide blue eyes, thick and shining red hair, with skin white as alabaster and smooth as satin.”
Gideon pumped the bellows and called over his shoulder. “There’s a catch in there somewhere, Darren. If she’s that pretty, men would overlook her being tall.”
“Well… Alec wrote she’s a mite plainspoken and has little patience with foolishness.” Darren danced back from the furnace’s increased heat. “Even though I think both those traits are good, mind you, her manner puts off some folks.”
“You’re saying she’s a shrew, a nag, a harpy. No thank you.” He took out his frustration on the metal laying across the anvil.
“Alec says she can be as sweet as sugar and is a grand cook. I’m saying this girl is willing to marry you by proxy, see. Then, when she arrives, you’ll be married to her and she can’t back out.”
Gideon gaped at Darren. “What if I’m the one who wants to back out?”
Missing the sarcasm, Darren scratched his jaw. “I don’t think you can because the vows are binding. I suppose you can get an annulment, but that would take time. Never you mind, Gideon, you won’t want to part with her, of that I’m positive.” Darren strutted around in front of Gideon. “So what do you think about Keira?
Following Darren’s conversations was always a winding road. “Who?”
“Keira Cameron, the girl I’ve been telling you about, who else?” Darren rubbed his hands together expectantly. “Shall I set up your part of the proxy wedding this afternoon?”
Gideon leaned on the anvil. “Are your ears plugged then? I said I’m not interested.”
Darren pulled off his cap and wrung the thing in his hands while a worried expression hovered on his face. “Well, you see now, Gideon, there might be a problem with you saying no.”
Gideon stood with his hammer in one hand and stared at his best friend. With Darren and Orla’s scheming, he had no need for enemies. “What have you done this time?”
Darren’s eyes widened and he backed up two steps and held up a staying hand. “Now take it easy, Gideon, until you’ve heard me tell it all. You see, Keira’s done the proxy wedding on her end and is on her way here.”
Gideon laid down the hammer and tongs and stared at his friend. Surely he’d misunderstood Darren’s prattling. “She’s what?”
“She’ll be on the five o’clock stage today.”
He hadn’t gotten the wrong idea, drat his luck. “Auch, the time must be near four now.”
Darren pulled out his pocket watch. “Aye, half past three. We’d better get you wedded on this end before she arrives.”
Gideon advanced on his friend. “What the devil is wrong with you, man? How could you let this situation get so far out of control before you told me? What do you intend to do when this woman arrives and there’s no groom to meet her?”
He stabbed a finger in Darren’s chest. “You’d better decide fast.”
Darren’s wheedling tone of voice changed to demanding. “Now look here, Gideon Ross. Don’t be mistreating the nice lassie because you’re put out with me. It’s coming on cold weather and you’ll be happy for a wife to warm your bed. Plus, having a wife in your arms at night may stop your nightmares.”
He shook his head, sorrow claiming him. “I doubt anything will make the night terrors cease. Nothing even makes them less.”
“You’ll be surprised. Having Orla next to me has done wonders. Besides, you admitted you wanted a wife and a family.”
He exhaled. Would the man never shut up? “Maybe I’ve changed my mind.”
At six feet to Gideon’s six foot five inches, Darren stared up into his face. “You know you haven’t. Don’t let your stubborn pride prevent you from marrying the one lassie perfect for you. Alec’s description sounds like you and Keira are well matched in height and temperament and the other things you enjoy.”
Gideon couldn’t resist leading on his friend. “Is she going to help in the smithy then or does she repair guns?”
“Don’t be daft, man. You know I mean things you do when you’re not working.”
When would that be? Lately he was working from can to can’t. “Such as?”
“She likes to read and play chess and go outdoors for walks and such. She wants a home and children and the security of a good man. How can you fault her for that?”
“Auch, I’m not faulting her, you idiot. You’re the one whose neck I’d like to wring. I’ll bet your wife—my own little sister—knew about this and conspired with you against me. Am I right?”
Darren wouldn’t meet his gaze. “Orla and I might have talked the possibilities over between us. Listen, Gideon, the idea came to us only because we think so highly of you and want you to be happy. Orla especially worries about your well being.”
The truth of what his friend said softened his anger. “Well, you’re in a fine mess now, aren’t you? How did this woman come by the funds for the train and stage fare?”
Darren grimaced. “Um, well, you see, Orla took the money from her inheritance, the money from your grandparents’ estate. She said there was no better use for it than seeing her dear brother happy.”
Gideon hated that his sister had used part of her money on his behalf. What was Darren thinking to let her? Gideon took a deep breath. Auch, what was he thinking himself? There was no “letting” Orla do anything. His sister was stubborn as a stone once she’d made up her mind.
He frowned and pointed at his friend. “Through no fault of her own you’re bringing a woman over two thousand miles under false pretenses.”
“But, don’t you see? They’re not false if you wed her by proxy before she arrives. Orla is waiting at the parsonage until you and I show up. She’ll stand in for Keira and I’ll be a witness. Come on, Gideon, you won’t be sorry.”
“What’s the point? She’ll soon be here and I can marry her then if I wish.”
Darren did a few fast steps to get in front of him. “No, can’t you see that won’t work? Think about the situation. She’s already married you by proxy in Boston and believes herself properly wed. You have to do the same before she arrives, else I don’t know what will happen. Don’t let being peevish with me cause you to hurt Keira.”
Gideon found himself weakening. In truth he would like a wife to come home to each day. He admitted he’d been depressed since Ella had publicly rejected him six months ago. Was he that unlovable? Her privately recanting her criticism recently had done little to soothe his hurt even as it made him glad he wasn’t married to the fickle woman.
He looked down at his leather apron tied over his grimy work clothes. “Did you not think I might like to look a l
ittle better on my wedding day? Did you not consider that this Keira might appreciate coming to a clean home?”
Darren tugged on his arm. “Come to the church parsonage now. While you’re at the stage stop, Orla and I will nip over to your house and tidy it a bit.”
Recalling the state of his home, Gideon shook his head. “A ‘bit’ won’t do the job. You know I’ve been rushed with jobs and working all hours for months. I haven’t cleaned in… well, it’s been a while. Unless I’m mistaken, I don’t even have a clean shirt. Once again, you’ve created a mess with your meddling.”
Darren refused to be daunted. “Don’t give it a second thought. Orla and I will make things presentable while you’re meeting the stage.”
Resigned to Darren and Orla’s manipulation, Gideon removed his apron. He must be losing his mind. He told himself he was only agreeing to spare this Keira the humiliation he’d experienced.
Fact was, not only curiosity fueled him. He admitted he was lonely. He looked forward to a wife sharing his life.
Chapter Two
Keira had grown tired of the dust and wind blowing in through the stage window even with the gorgeous panorama the portal offered. She closed the shade, but her effort didn’t offer much protection. If she’d thought the train ride was long, the stagecoach was worse. At least on the train she could walk a bit and there was a privy.
Here she was jammed in with four other passengers. The confined space didn’t leave enough room for her feet and long legs. The elderly woman beside her must be as uncomfortable from the bouncing, dust, and heat. Three men sharing the stage with them were too busy swapping lies to comment on the weather, although one constantly mopped his sweating face.
The other woman gazed at her. “Don’t worry, dear. We’re almost there.”
She looked through the open window on the other side of the stage. “How can you tell? Everything looks the same.”
The woman chuckled. “Not if you’ve lived here as long as I have. You’ll get used to the landmarks too.”
“I’ve been watching the mountains but we never seem to get closer. Is Haverhill near them?”
A Bride For Gideon Page 1
