Mail Order Promises

by Julianna Blake

  He’d seemed like a very lonely man whose faith in happy endings had been shaken, but not destroyed. She could relate to that. After the worst night of her life, she could have thrown herself from a bridge, or locked herself in her room and become a bitter old maid. Instead, she dared to hope that men—some men—could still be trusted. That she might still live a happy life, and perhaps even find love.

  She had thought Mr. Morgan’s letters revealed him to be a sweet, kind man who seemed very solicitous for the comfort and happiness of his future wife. She knew he’d been looking for a while, and none of the other girls that Mrs. Gardner had interviewed were interested in a divorced man. Not one girl had chosen to write to him. Mrs. Gardner’s business partner, Mrs. Porter, had apparently suggested that Mr. Morgan write multiple letters as a supplement to his first, so that potential brides could get to know more about him, in the hopes they’d overlook the fact that he’d been previously married, but none would have him.

  He’d gotten so tired of the situation that finally, in April, he’d written that he would take on any girl that was honest, trustworthy, and kind. He was even willing to take on an unattractive woman or a widow with children of her own. Mrs. Gardner had told Lilly that she was lucky—there weren’t a lot of men willing to take on a woman with children, and as a widowed mother herself, she didn’t even want to let Lilly write to him. In fact, had there been any widows on her list at the time, she wouldn’t have allowed it, knowing the plight most widows with children faced.

  Lilly, desperate to find a situation quickly, and impressed with his letters, wrote to him immediately, telling him every detail about herself—almost every detail—in the hopes that he’d find her agreeable, and send for her immediately. She nearly cried with joy when she’d received his letter two weeks ago with a train ticket.

  “You look like a mouse about to be eaten by a snake,” chuckled Mrs. Abernathy.

  Lilly let out a sigh. The older woman had done much to take her mind off her worries. They had become fast friends since crossing over the border to Montana, talking about everything from knitting to gardening to Mrs. Abernathy’s children and grandchildren. She lived south of Fargo, North Dakota, and was on her way to visit her grandson, who managed a timber company in Seattle. She had done many things in her seventy-plus years.

  Lilly tried to smile, but it felt more like a grimace. “I suppose am a bit jumpy.”

  “Don’t be, child. You’re a lovely girl. He’ll be the happiest man alive when you step off that train. Marriage isn’t always easy, but if you marry a good man, and you try hard to be a good wife, then it’s worth it.”

  The train whistled, and both women looked out the window to see Helena ahead of them, off to the left, nestled against the mountains. “Looks like we’re almost to your stop, so I can’t pass on much of my wisdom, what little I have to give.” She laughed, turning back to Lilly.

  “I’m eager to hear anything you can share with me.” It was true—Lilly could use all the advice she could get.

  “Well, the best advice I can give you is this: never let the sun go down on your anger, don’t be afraid to admit when you’re wrong, remember after you have children to make time for your husband, treat him the way that you would want to be treated, and expect him to treat you with kindness and respect. Now, that last one doesn’t mean that he won’t say and do stupid things sometimes—just as you will, I’m sure—but it does mean that he should treat you the way he’d want his own daughters treated someday. And if you get there and he’s not the man you thought he was, by all means, girl, don’t marry him!”

  Lilly bit her lip. “But…”

  Mrs. Abernathy’s watery blue eyes pinned Lilly under their gaze. “I’m not fooling. I expect that there’s a reason back in Boston that makes you figure this mail order bride business is the best way to get a good start in life—and it may be. But no matter how bad a situation you came, from, trust me, being trapped in a bad marriage is far, far worse. And you will be trapped, once you have children. At least, it will feel that way. So if your gut is telling you to run, then run. Go to the local church if you need some help. There are plenty of bachelors in these parts, and if yours turns out to be a lemon, you go and find yourself some sweeter fruit. You hear?”

  Lilly nodded. The last thing she wanted was to jump into a worse situation than she came from…and it made her feel better, knowing that if Jake Morgan didn’t find her suitable for a wife, she still might have other options.

  “Thank you so much for your advice, Mrs. Abernathy. It helps more than you know.”

  Lilly turned to look out the window again as the locomotive slowed, chugging toward the city that would be her new home. She never thought she’d ever get to leave the Boston area, much less travel across the entire country. It was frightening, but exciting. Her mother had cried when Lilly had asked permission to marry a stranger in Montana Territory. She cringed as she remembered her father’s tirade.

  She had waited to tell them until the night before her departure. She didn’t want to listen to two weeks of her mother wheedling and her father threatening in order to get her to stay. They insisted that she was not going anywhere, and that she continue to allow Theodore Bennett to court her.

  Lilly would never let that happen.

  She’d always been the stubborn one in the family, but she had still been obedient. For the most part. She followed the rules, behaved like a proper girl should, and in the beginning, she had even allowed Theodore to court her, despite her dislike of the boy. He went to their church, and his father owned two men’s clothing stores, one of which Theodore had just been given dominion over, upon his graduation from business school.

  Her parents were delighted—Theodore only had one sister, so he was sure to inherit his father’s business. The Watkins family was only upper middle class, while the Bennett family was clearly clawing their way into the upper class, so a marriage into that family would not only be the best they could ever hope for, for Lilly, but could also benefit their younger daughter, Felicia, who was sixteen and might be able to attend social events that the Bennetts hosted, and potentially meet an even bigger “catch” than Theodore Bennett.

  But Lilly had thought there was something about Theodore that she didn’t like. Something she couldn’t put her finger on. He was just…unsavory.

  But her father insisted she give him a chance. Theodore was well-educated, well-groomed, perfectly polite, and financially set. In addition, her father pointed out, he was a good, church-going Christian boy who always helped out at the church or at his mother’s charity events. How could Lilly pass him by, her father had demanded, without really getting to know him?

  After allowing Theodore to escort her to a few social functions, she had to admit, he did seem to be the ideal suitor. She thought perhaps she’d been unfair, and misjudged him. She didn’t feel any attraction to him, despite that he was fairly good-looking—could she be judging him, without realizing it, based on shallow reasons?

  Then the unthinkable had happened—confirming Lilly’s instincts, and proving Theodore was far worse a prospect than she ever could have guessed.

  When Lilly had announced one day, after no obvious hint of trouble, that she would not see Theodore again, her mother had been crushed—her father, furious. No amount of nagging, wheedling, bribing, or threatening would change Lilly’s mind. Her older brother, Adam, told her she was being selfish and was only thinking of herself. Everyone expected Felicia to beg Lilly to change her mind—after all, Lilly’s refusal of Theodore affected Felicia’s social future—but Felicia stayed silent. She knew the truth, though she wouldn’t say a word to anyone.

  At least…not until she was forced to, a few days later.

  Had things not progressed beyond that point, Lilly would have stayed in Boston, and her shame would have remained a secret that only she and two other people knew about. But she’d been forced to choose between a life of torture and misery and a life of freedom—without her family.<
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  And six weeks later, defying her parents’ wishes, she’d boarded a train.

  Chapter 4

  The locomotive ground to a halt at the platform with a long, loud screech and a whoosh of steam. Lilly bid Mrs. Abernathy goodbye and thanked her for the companionship and advice, then gathered her things and made her way off the train.

  As she set foot on the platform, she looked around. Passengers were greeted by friends and family, with embraces and kisses. Lilly had no one. She felt very alone standing on the platform, looking for the marriage broker who had promised to meet her. She had thought Mrs. Porter’s idea of not meeting her betrothed at the train station after such a long journey had been a good one, but now she felt a bit adrift. At least if her husband-to-be had shown up, she’d be meeting someone that she knew something about—someone whose photograph she had seen. All she knew about Mrs. Porter was that Mrs. Gardner held her in high esteem.

  “Lilly!” a voice called out.

  Lilly turned, craning her head in the direction of the voice. As a cluster of passengers dispersed, she saw a woman wending her way through them, followed by a man who carried a young child in his arms.

  “Welcome to Helena!” The woman held a hand to Lilly. Her belly swelled obviously with child, and Lilly was struck by the woman’s exquisite features and refined deportment.

  “Mrs. Porter?”

  “Yes!” She took Lilly’s free hand and squeezed it briefly. “I’m so pleased to meet you. This is my husband, Clay Porter. Clay, this is Miss Lillibeth Watkins.”

  “I’m pleased to make your acquaintance,” Lilly nodded, shifting her satchel from one hand to the other and dipping her head in acknowledgement.

  “Likewise,” answered Mr. Porter. He had chestnut hair that curled up under the edges of his hat, as he touched the brim of it and nodded at her. “Shall we go fetch the rest of your baggage?”

  “No,” Lilly shook her head, embarrassed. “It’s just the one bag.”

  “Ahh,” grinned Mr. Porter, looking at his wife and winking. “A woman who packs smart. I like it!”

  “Don’t start on that again.” Mrs. Porter cut her blue eyes to him in an irritated expression, but a smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. She smiled at Lilly. “He’ll never let me live down the fact that I arrived with enough baggage to clothe three people.”

  “Three people? Try half the town.” Mr. Porter laughed. “I nearly threw out my back lugging your trunks up the stairs in the boardinghouse.”

  “Yes, you’re a saint, my dear, for putting up with my vanity,” she chuckled. “Now let’s get Lilly to the hotel so she can rest. I’m sure she’s exhausted.”

  “Would you like me to take your bag?” Mr. Porter asked, reaching toward her.

  Lilly gasped and jerked backward. “No!”

  She could feel the color flooding her cheeks as she realized just how rude and strange her behavior toward Mr. Porter must seem, when he was clearly just trying to help. Will I ever feel normal again? “I mean…that’s not necessary.” Lilly clutched her bag closer to her. “But thank you.” She forced a strained smile, trying to play off her discomfort. “It’s fairly light, and it looks like you’ve got your hands full with that adorable little one.”

  Lilly could feel Mrs. Porter watching her, but wouldn’t meet her eyes. Instead, she focused on the Porters’ daughter.

  The little girl, who looked to be about a year and a half old, flashed a drooly, chubby-cheeked grin at Lilly and leaned toward her, trying to snatch at the lace trim at Lilly’s shoulder. Mr. Porter pulled her back, and Grace eyed Lilly’s shoulder as if she was plotting her next move.

  “I’m so happy you made it alright.” Mrs. Porter said as they walked down the platform. “How was your trip?”

  “Long.” Lilly sighed. “But nice. It was fun to see the countryside—I’ve never been out of the New England area.”

  “My trip out west was thrilling for me, too. I’d been to Europe, and visited various cities throughout New England and a little south of there, but never anyplace farther west than that. It was nerve-wracking, but quite an adventure. I hope someday when the children are grown, that Mr. Porter and I can travel the country a bit.”

  “Mrs. Gardner told me you were from Boston originally. That’s how she said she met you. She said you saved her.”

  “Oh, pish.” Mrs. Porter waved the air in dismissal as they walked out into the lot and led them over to a wagon. It was painted a dark emerald green, with Porter’s Butcher Shop in gold-colored lettering along the side. “Don’t listen to her. She exaggerates. I met Mrs. Gardner when my church was running a program helping widows and orphans, and poor Mrs. Gardner had lost her husband, and had no relatives close by who were in a position to help her. Woman are at quite a disadvantage if they are widowed and left no estate.”

  Lilly thought she detected a momentary change in Mrs. Porter’s expression, but then it was gone. “It was kind of you and your church to help her out.”

  “Oh no, it was my church that helped her. I was only one of dozens of ladies who helped out when needed.”

  “But didn’t you hire Mrs. Gardner for your mail order bride business?”

  “Mrs. Gardner and I are partners in our marriage correspondence business. She has a stake in the ownership of Northwest Matrimony Connection. My husband and I organized things and funded the start-up, but Mrs. Gardner did all the work out in Boston. I couldn’t have done it without her. She’s very efficient.”

  “Aw, don’t let her snow you, Miss Watkins.” Mr. Porter landed a quick peck on Mrs. Porter’s cheek before helping his wife up into the wagon.

  “Clay!” hissed Mrs. Porter.

  “Sorry, couldn’t help myself.” His grin was mischievous. “You’re just too modest.” He turned to Lilly once his wife was seated. “My wife likes to downplay it, but even with her church’s help, Edie Gardner might not have made it without work, which is nearly impossible for a mother of two little children, who has no one to watch them. Mrs. Gardner can do most of her work from home, and still care for her children, until they are old enough to go to school in the daytime.”

  “Clay, really, we don’t need to air Mrs. Gardner’s personal troubles.”

  “I know, I know. You’re right—but I can’t help it. I think people should know how admirable my gorgeous wife is.” He handed Grace up to his wife, and then walked around to where Lilly was about to climb into the back of the wagon.

  “Let me help you.” He reached for her hand.

  “No!” Lilly pulled away, as if his hand was on fire, and stepped back quickly, drawing her satchel up in front of her. Her pulse raced, and memories flashed through her mind, making her feel faint.

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean—”

  “It’s fine. I’m the one who should be sorry.” Her words came out sharper than she’d meant them to. “I just…” she wiped perspiration from her forehead. “I must be more tired from the trip than I thought. But I can get up into fine on my own. Thank you for offering.”

  “At least let me take your bag while you climb up.”

  She handed the satchel to him, then lifted her skirts just enough to be able to clamber up into the wagon, in an awkward, less-than-ladylike manner. She caught the look Mrs. Porter exchanged with her husband.

  “All set?” Mr. Porter asked, then handed up Lilly’s bag when she nodded.

  Once she was settled, he hopped in and directed his team to turn around and pull the wagon out of the lot.

  Lilly calmed her edginess by turning to take in the valley as they headed south, into town. “I’ve never seen such a view. The western part of Montana Territory is truly magnificent.”

  “It’s not Montana Territory anymore,” Mr. Porter corrected. They made Montana an official state back in November. Dakota territory, too—it’s split into North and South Dakota now.”

  “Really? I’d heard about the change for Dakota Territory on the train, but I hadn’t realized Montana was its own state now, t
oo. Well, then, it’s a magnificent state,” she corrected, grinning.

  “It is magnificent, isn’t it?” Mrs. Porter looked back over her shoulder, as she held Grace on her lap. “I don’t know that I could have left it, even if I hadn’t fallen in love with Mr. Porter. Montana just grows on you. It’s a raw, awe-inspiring beauty. I would have missed it if I’d gone back.”

  “Gone back?” Lilly was confused. “I thought you came here to marry Mr. Porter?” Did Mrs. Porter think of leaving Mr. Porter before or after they had wed? Does everyone in Montana Territory take marriage so lightly? Is it a “Wild West” sort of thing?

  “Not exactly. I was a mail order bride myself, but I came out here to marry someone else, who turned out to be…well…quite a scoundrel, let’s say. Mr. Porter saved me from marrying the man, and then we fell in love.”

  “You left out the part where you almost left me to marry a dandy from Boston.”

  “Will you stop?!” Mrs. Porter whispered, turning to her husband.

  Lilly could see a blush on Mrs. Porter’s cheeks.

  “Don’t listen to him. That was before he proposed. Apparently he expected me to wait around indefinitely until he got up the courage to ask for my hand.”

  “Hey now, that’s not exactly true. And could you blame me for needing to gather my courage? It takes a lot of courage to ask the most beautiful woman in Montana Territory to settle for him instead of a millionaire.”

  “The state of Montana, dear. Remember?”

  “It wasn’t a state then.”

  “True.”

  “A millionaire?” Lilly nearly choked. “A millionaire asked you to marry him?” What an unusual woman this Madeline Porter must be! What on earth could have enticed a woman who appeared to be refined and well-educated, and who was being courted by a millionaire, to come out west and become a mail order bride?