Mail Order Bride 22 Book Boxed set: 22 Brides Ride West :CLEAN Western Historical Romance Series Bundle
Page 21
Then they both went quiet and looked at Emma.
“Now, no. Don’t look at me. I’m not in the market for children; in fact, Brendan and I haven’t even mentioned them yet. We haven’t even…” Emma felt the heat crawl up her neck to her face. “I mean to say we’ve had separate rooms until Wednesday night.”
“It’s good to take your time.” Anna patted her hand. “Some things won’t be rushed and neither should they be.”
Emma wished it was just that, but despite her baring her shoulder on Wednesday, she was still caught up in the fear of Brendan looking at her close up, and as he hadn’t said anything she thought he felt the same about his body. “I have scars. I’ve never told you two and I’ve always hidden them so you wouldn’t be hurt.”
“Scars?”
Emma nodded. “From prison. I’ve been so ashamed. I didn’t want anyone to ever see them. But I know I don’t need to be ashamed or guilty now.”
“Then I think you’ve just answered your own riddle, Emma. Men are emotionally weak. Women must lead the way.” Anna sounded like the wisest woman in the world right now.
Emma knew she was right. It was time her scars stopped ruling her.
* * *
The chemise she’d worn to bed was a light one and the front opening meant she could show some of her scars without removing it completely. Emma lay under the covers and Brendan had sat the candle on the table beside the bed and slid in beside her.
Emma sat up a little. “Brendan?”
“Yes?”
“I want you to look at me, at my scars. I’m terrified you’ll hate me and I need to get past this irrational fear.”
He turned to her. “Are you sure?”
“I am, and what’s more, I’d like to see yours…” Emma knew this might be pushing things a little far, but honesty was the best policy from now on.
“I see.” That was all he said and he never moved.
Her heart beat a hundred times faster. She’d taken it too far. Why didn’t she wait?
“Alright.” He turned to her and had the candle in his hand. “Show me. I won’t hate you, Emma. I’ll love you even more.”
Emma’s hand was shaking as she pushed aside a little of the chemise top near her neck and chest.
Brendan lifted his other hand up. “May I?”
“Yes.” Emma swallowed and squeezed her eyes shut.
The cooler air touched her skin as he moved the material over and held the candle up close. His breathing was even. She almost jumped out of the bed when he touched one of the scars, near her shoulder.
“Sorry.”
“No. It’s fine.”
“You’re shaking. That’s enough for now. It’s my turn.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. You’ve trusted me and now I must trust you.” He undid some buttons on his night shirt and let it drop aside. He brought the candlelight closer to his body.
Emma stared at the red marks. Some had been quite deep, and some not. She shuddered at the thought and then traced a finger over the largest that she could see. He flinched a little, but then exhaled and relaxed.
“There, that’s a start. Thank you, Brendan.”
He put the candle on the table and moved to hold her close while they lay together. “You’ve taken all my fears away. I thank you for that, Emma.”
“You’ve made all my dreams come true, Brendan, and I feel loved and safe with you.”
He leaned his head down to hers and gave Emma their very first real kiss. From that moment in time she knew God had blessed them and everything would be alright.
* * *
ADELINE - THE STRONG-WILLED BRIDE for HER LONELY FARMER
ARCHER SISTERS OF GOLDRUSH
BOOK 1
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b o o k 1
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Adeline is DESPERATE! She needs to run & made plan for her sisters- A PERFECT PLAN to get them far away from the clutches of Lex Baxter!
So what will happen when her escape plan is based on a marriage committed to a strict-no-love policy?
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1
Adeline
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“ From a woman wanting to be
spinster to a mail order bride. "
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New York, Summer,
1870
Adeline Archer glared into the predatory eyes of the abhorrent man who’d just demanded her hand in marriage. With his hands held clenched at his sides, his shining tongue licked his thick lips as he eyed her up and down. Lex Baxter was thirty years her senior and one the richest men in New York.
“No. With all due respect, Mr. Baxter, I have no wish to marry.” Adeline glanced to her ma, who stood beside him. She wrung her gloved hands together. Adeline hated that her ma had put her in this position just after the funeral of her pa by bringing Lex to their home.
Lex shifted his feet; his frown almost made Adeline shudder. His voice iced down her spine. “You’re twenty-five already. Your papa left a huge debt to me when he died, so you should pay some mind to being so choosy.”
“I do thank you for your concern about my family’s welfare, Mr. Baxter. Your generous offer is too kind. I’m afraid I couldn’t do justice to the position of your wife.” Adeline curtseyed and gave a tight-lipped smile. “Please excuse me. I have matters to which I must attend. Mama will see you out.” Adeline turned to walk away.
The glare he gave jumped her heart to her throat. She didn’t only dislike Lex Baxter; she was also frightened of him, but Adeline wasn’t about to let that show.
His thin arm shot out and bony fingers dug into her wrist as he jerked her back to him, close enough for the sickly aroma of aftershave to assault her nostrils. She winced at his tightening grip.
“Your pa owed me a great deal of money. I’m talking in the millions. I’ll see the debt repaid. The estate does not have enough assets to cover it.” He eyed her and licked his lips again. “But he thought one of his daughters might.”
Adeline’s skin crawled at the coldness in his eyes. She wished for more layers of clothes despite being covered from neck to ankle in heavy black velvet and lace. She said nothing in return.
“I will be repaid. If not by marriage, then I’ll take what I need.” He flung Adeline from him as fast as he’d grabbed her. “My generosity in being decent and asking for the eldest daughter may need to change.”
The hideous man turned to her ma, whose pallor was now transparent. “Make no mistake, Mrs. Archer, one of your daughters was promised to me by your husband, and I shall have one. I have the promissory note with his signature, along with his debt. This is the first and last time an offer of marriage is on the table. It would not be difficult to plant my seed in the youngest until she bears me a son.”
Adeline watched her ma clutch at her throat as tears rolled down her cheeks. Adeline would not let this monster near any of them. What she needed was to buy some time. With everything she had in her, she stepped forward and placed her black-gloved hand softly on the coat sleeve of the monster himself.
She prayed in her mind to God to help her now when she needed him most. “Mr. Baxter, please don’t upset yourself so. If my papa has signed such a promise, then it shall be honored.”
Adeline forced a smile. “But you must see that we’re in the depths of despair with papa’s passing; a period of mourning is in order.” She indicated the black mourning outfits worn by them both. “Any engagement or marriage would indeed be inappropriate at such a time. Would you have your future wife frowned upon? You may be many things, Lex…but you aren’t disrespectful to the dead.”
He bristled, but exhaled. “What are you suggesting?”
Adeline moved her hand back to her side, lest it move to his throat. “Would a peri
od of six months be too much to ask? My family can get our affairs in order and papa will have been mourned appropriately by me. Then, once I’ve seen the note and confirmed my papa’s signature, I will accept your proposal.”
His bushy eyebrows raised and then came together in a frown. “I have your word?”
“What choice do I have? We have nothing due to papa’s love of gambling. It’s no wonder he took his own life. He sold out his own daughters.” Adeline fought to keep the disgust out of her voice. “But we are Christians and we will forgive him his trespasses. Under the circumstances, a six month mourning period should be adequate for me and my sisters. Mama will likely grieve longer. We shall barely leave the house to have time to properly understand and ask God for his forgiveness of my papa and the situation we now face.”
“Very well. Do not try to cross me, or I will make good with my threats. I’ll see myself out. Good day, ladies. I’m sorry for your loss.”
Once his footfalls disappeared, Adeline rushed to the window to see his brocade-heavy coach pulled away by two magnificent white horses.
Ma wept beside her. “Thank you, Adeline. Your younger sisters and I will never forget your sacrifice to this family in marrying such a horrid man.”
“I’ve no intentions of marrying that monster, Mama. Nor will my sisters. I’ve merely bought us some time.”
“Time for what?”
“To disappear.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“We need to leave this city.”
“But where would we go?”
“I haven’t worked that out yet.” Adeline paced the floor. “But it needs to be a long way from here and we need to somehow change our names.”
* * *
Adeline barely slept a wink. Solutions eluded her as well as sleep. She was a problem solver by nature, but this was tricky. They couldn’t afford to leave the country. After going over her pa’s debts still owing, aside from what he owed to Lex Baxter, the money from the sale of their home and furniture would pay them and there’d be enough money to live on for a short time.
The problem was, if the house went up for sale and they’d left town, Lex Baxter would know about it and track them down. Somehow they needed to keep the house, arrange payment of the bills, and get away, all at the same time. Adeline went to the kitchen to warm some milk by the wood-fired stove. Yesterday’s newspaper was on the hearth.
Adeline needed to take her mind off her worrying thoughts, so she picked up the newspaper and opened it on top of the heavy wooden table. She flicked through the large newsprint pages, glancing over headlines. Nothing took her interest. The milk steamed and Adeline poured it into her mug and sat down to continue her search through the news.
The mourning period was good thinking on her part. If none of them were seen out and about regularly, no one would be surprised. Their servants could be seen to shop for them. Mama was quite within her rights to mourn for two years. Adeline wondered if her ma was sad her pa was gone, especially knowing his awful gambling habits. Her pa had never been close to any of them.
He’d showered Adeline and her sisters with everything, but he’d never hugged them. She’d never seen her parents show affection to each other. Adeline wondered how she should feel about the death of her pa. She’d found she didn’t feel anything much. She’d admitted she felt a little sad she didn’t have the relationship with him that she’d seen with other young ladies her age and their papas.
She knew she shouldn’t envy others. It wasn’t the Christian way. She’d had a lot more in life than many others.
Following the word of the Lord didn’t allow for such self-centered thinking. What she needed to do was let God be pa’s final judge.
Whatever pa had been didn’t matter now. Life had changed. All of this luxury they’d been afforded would be a thing of the past. Unless Adeline could find a way out of this in six months, she’d be marrying that horrid man. She shuddered. That would never happen. She sipped her warm milk. Marriage had never been of great importance to her. Why leave the life she had of convenience, parties and pretty dresses to be beholden to a man who’d likely ignore her once the novelty had worn off?
No, Adeline never wanted to marry. She wanted to be like her pa, a business success. Although, she wouldn’t succumb to gambling or insufferable debts to be paid for by family. He’d killed himself because the shame of selling out his daughters to clear gambling debts became too much to bear. That had to be to be the reason why.
Why else? Perhaps because he was weak, and not anywhere near a man. Because he never loved them and saw their virginity only as commodities. Adeline screwed her eyes shut and covered her face with her hands. How could she have such unchristian thoughts about her own pa? Lord, she prayed in silence, please show me an answer. If that answer is that I should marry this awful man, I will know that you have a plan for me. Just show me a sign. Amen.
When Adeline opened her eyes and her slightly blurred vision cleared, she looked to where her hand rested on the newspaper page. She read the words at her fingertips.
Hard-working man, 30 years of age, seeks determined woman with view to marriage and farming in California. Correspondence encouraged and promised for a period of two months preceding decision. Love not a prerequisite. View to an amicable mutual arrangement and partnership. No children in the foreseeable future. Please reply only if serious about partnership rather than notions of romance.
It went on to state a name and post office to send to. How odd. Adeline had seen many mail order bride communications in the papers, but none were worth a second glance. It was crazy anyone could think that marrying a complete stranger in a desolate environment could end up with a happy union. But this one wasn’t asking for love. No love. No children. She knew of the Californian mining boom for gold and now silver. She guessed farmers were needed to feed all the miners.
If marriage was the only way out, perhaps settling across the countryside with a complete stranger was the better choice, rather than marrying Lex Baxter. Adeline looked upwards. Is this what you’re showing me, Lord? But what of her sisters and mother? She couldn’t leave them behind at the mercy of that awful man.
Her sisters would need to get husbands as well. Adeline’s fingers drummed on the newspaper. If she were to go first, there were bound to be more men wanting wives. Adeline could see they corresponded with her sisters. She’d go first and then Amelia, and finally their mother could escort Averill, seeing as she was the youngest at eighteen.
There were no problems with the romantic Amelia marrying. She saw the whole world through rose-colored glasses. Averill was another story. She tended to be a lot more cynical than she should be at her age and eyed everything with an air of disbelief and caution.
Although she would relish the opportunity for travelling. Averill often talked about what the world outside New York might be like. Now the Trans-continental train line was all the way through, many people were heading west to find out.
Adeline’s heart raced. This might be a real solution. By the time Lex came for her hand in marriage they’d all be gone and Adeline would already be married. Her father’s lawyer could then take care of the house and goods sale and pay out as many debts as possible. He’d be discreet. The good Lord had answered her prayer.
She finished her milk and rushed to the writing desk in the lounge. A low lantern burned with a dim glow and Adeline turned it up for enough light to write by. She dipped her quill into the ink and proceeded to write her reply.
Dear Sir,
My Name is Adeline Archer. I am twenty-five years of age and wish to discuss your offer of marriage with you further.” I will explain my situation with honesty and you can decide if indeed you would be willing to continue correspondence…
Adeline wrote her heart out and hoped her enthusiasm for an adventure and new life would show on the page. If this worked, she would just need her mother and Averill to be gone from this house before the six months was up. She didn’t want to be dish
onest and not repay the debt. Adeline hoped her own business ideas could thrive enough to pay Lex Baxter back every last cent. She doubted her pa’s debts really did run into the millions, but she’d like to see it paid nonetheless. It was the proper thing to do.
If Lex ever found them, she’d beg him to take the money and, if all three sisters were married, surely, he’d see sense. The ink dried. Adeline folded the letter and placed it in an envelope. This was it. She sealed it with a drop of hot wax from a candle on the top of her writing desk.
From a woman wanting to be spinster to a mail order bride. Perhaps she’d been afflicted with a temporary madness.
* * *
2
James
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“ From a woman wanting to be
spinster to a mail order bride. "
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Two months later,
California former goldfields, one hundred and sixty acres, Blair Farm
James simply couldn’t afford another failed crop. He studied his fields as he drove his horses and cart past them. Today was the day he would meet and marry Adeline Archer in San Francisco, and he was trying not to think about how nervous this made him. Worrying about the crops failing again definitely took his mind off his impending nuptials.
So far his wheat and corn were holding their own and he’d get a crop, but his yield would be a lot lower than he’d hoped. He’d staggered his plantings, hoping the Californian warm weather would prolong the ripening of the wheat. It was a huge gamble, but planting nothing was more of a risk.
Why on earth he’d let his cousin, Jack, talk him into a mail order bride when this may well be his last season here, he didn’t know. She’d come expecting a successful farm with lush green grasses, and she’d get a pile of dusty fields and a dairy cow with a calf. But he admitted he did need help, and a wife, at the very least, could keep the household running while he farmed. He hoped she’d be willing to jump into the farm work when needed, and if she was good with numbers, keep on top of the accounts.