by Linda Bridey
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LINDA BRIDEY
Mail Order Bride: Westward Destiny
Montana Mail Order Brides: Book 4
Dedication
To YOU, The reader.
Thank you for your support.
Thank you for your emails.
Thank you for your reviews.
Thank you for reading and joining me on this road.
Chapter One
Spring was late coming to Dawson County, Montana that year. It was late April and there’d been a series of snowstorms that had left copious amounts of frozen precipitation behind. Much to the relief of the inhabitants of the Samuels’ ranch, the new day dawned bright and clear with no threat of snow again. The cattle moved around in the pastures, mooing and lowing as Luke Samuels threw hay into them.
Because it was difficult to find a substantial amount of grass under the thick layer of snow, it was necessary to supplement the diet of the steer to prevent them from losing weight during the winter. The spring cattle auctions were coming up, and skinny cattle didn’t bring good prices.
“Hey, Luke,” his cousin, Seth Samuels, said as he walked over and leaned against the fence near Luke as he kept working. “How’s your first day going?”
Seth was a big man, who stood six-foot-three and weighed around one-eighty or so. He wasn’t used to looking up to many people, but Luke was slightly taller than he and probably about twenty pounds heavier. Marcus, Seth’s younger brother, called him a gentle giant. Seth thought that description was apt.
Luke’s big, dark brown eyes crinkled at the corners a little as he smiled at Seth. “It’s going fine. Did you come to check up on me and make sure I’m working?”
Seth said, “Nope. Just wanted to say howdy and make sure everything’s ok.”
“Yeah, everything’s ok.”
“You settled into your bunkhouse all right?” Seth asked.
Luke smiled at his cousin’s fatherly attitude towards him. “Seth, I’ve lived in a bunkhouse for the past four years. A bunkhouse is a bunkhouse. But I have to say, yours is nicer than most.”
Seth said, “Thanks. I lived there for, hmm,” Seth said as he ticked off the years on his fingers. “About eleven years. I put a lot of work into it.”
“Well, it shows. With the wood stove in there it gets really toasty,” Luke said.
“Yeah, it’s a good stove, and I tried to make sure the place was insulated good,” Seth said.
A bell sounded, and Seth turned his head towards the new cookhouse they’d built a few months back. “Hot damn! Time for breakfast, cuz,” Seth said. “C’mon. That can wait until after we eat.”
Luke sat his pitchfork against the fence and followed Seth. They entered the cookhouse and were greeted by the scents of sizzling bacon, eggs, toast, and home fries. Luke’s mouth watered as he watched his second cousin Jack flipping eggs and making coffee.
“’Morning, fellas,” Jack said, and started putting food on plates for them.
“That looks incredible, Jack,” Luke said. “Where’d you learn to cook like that?”
Jack smiled. “Mama and Uncle Marcus taught me. I learned some on my own. Oh, and Lydia gave me some recipes, too.”
Lydia Benson and her husband Charlie were close family friends who lived on a nearby ranch.
Jack handed Luke a plate and Luke took a seat on a bench at the long table. Jack gave Seth his food and he sat across the table from Luke.
“So, Jack,” Seth said, “How’s it feel to run the cookhouse?”
“Great. I know Pa thought I was a little young for it, but I showed him that I can handle it. Speaking of that, I need one of the teams today to go into town and get some supplies,” Jack answered.
“Do you want me to go with you?” Seth said. Jack had recently turned sixteen and was a little new to driving a team of horses.
Jack frowned and looked like a younger version of his father, Dean Samuels. “I guess I oughta be able to manage on my own, dontcha think? If I can run this place, I can go get supplies on my own.”
“All right. Don’t get your britches in bunch, kid. I just thought you might like a hand loading the stuff,” Seth said.
“Nope, I’ll be fine,” Jack said.
During this exchange, Jack’s other uncle, Marcus entered the cookhouse. “He wants to go alone so he can see his sweetheart,” Marcus said.
Seth and Luke laughed, and Jack’s face colored.
“I do not,” Jack said.
“Aw, don’t be shy about it, Jack. Miss Grant is a pretty little thing. Who could blame you,” Marcus said, as he stepped over to the stove and cracked some eggs into a pan.
“What are you doing?” Jack asked. “That’s my job.”
Marcus eyed him and said, “I guess I have the right to cook a little since I own a third of this place, huh?”
Jack rolled his eyes and turned to put on more home fries.
Marcus said, “Besides, you got more people coming, so you’re going to need a little help. Your Mama is coming over to get some breakfast. She said last night was a bad night with the twins. She’s tired and doesn’t feel like cooking.”
“Yeah, I know about the twins being up all night,” Jack groused. “They kept me up, too.”
Luke laughed and said, “That’s why you’re cranky.”
Jack nodded. “Probably.”
As Marcus had said, Tessa appeared a few minutes later. Fatigue was etched into her pretty face. She hadn’t bothered to do much with her hair. “Good morning, everyone.” Claire, Marcus’ wife, had relieved Tessa for a while.
They all greeted her as she sat by Seth. He put an arm around her and she leaned against him. “Poor thing,” Seth said. “Marcus said your little ones are giving you a rough time.”
“Yes. Marcus, will you check them to see if it’s colic or just a phase they’re going through?” Tessa asked.
Marcus wasn’t officially a doctor, but he had a good amount of medical training and was often called upon to help with medical matters.
“Sure. Not a problem. I’ll look at them right after breakfast,” he said as he finished filling his plate.
“Here, Mama,” Jack said, as he put a plate in front of her. “Scrambled eggs just like you like them. Toast and jelly, too.” Jack enjoyed cooking for Tessa, and was always trying to impress her with his cooking prowess.
“Thank you, Jack. They look delicious. Nice and fluffy,” Tessa said with a smile. She picked up her fork and began to eat. Then she looked across the table at Luke. “How is your first day going, Luke?”
Luke laughed. “You’re about the fourth person who’s asked me that. It’s fine. All I’ve done so far is throw hay in the pens and now I’m eating. I call that a good day so far.”
Tessa smiled at Luke. He was someone you liked immediately upon meeting him. He was a big, muscular man but he was shy and kind-hearted. His tousled, dark brown hair and soulful brown eyes were appealing, and it didn’t hurt that he had a strong jaw and a nice smile.
Luke gave her a shy smile in return. “Dean’s a lucky man,” he said. “He has a wife who’s pretty and smart.”
“Why, thank you, Luke. How nice of you to say,” Tessa responded.
Her heart went out to Luke. He’d been stood up at the altar by his fiancée, Charlene, two years ago and hadn’t put his
heart on the line again. Everyone had known how much in love he’d been with her and Charlene’s public rejection had deeply wounded him.
“You’re welcome,” Luke said.
Maddie, Seth’s wife, came in and sat on the other side of Seth.
“Hey, good-lookin’,” he said.
“Hi, handsome,” Maddie said with a smile.
Seth placed a hand her swollen tummy and kissed her.
Luke watched them with mixed emotions. He was happy for them but also jealous. Seeing happy couples bothered him. He’d wanted that kind of future with Charlene and she’d crushed his heart. It would have been better if she’d told him she didn’t want to marry him before the wedding, instead of just not showing up.
He’d felt like a fool standing up in front of everyone in the church when the word came that Charlene wouldn’t be coming. His embarrassment and heartbreak had been profound. As a result, he hadn’t dated anyone since. Luke loved his cousins but couldn’t help but be envious of them, too. He knew the circumstances around how Tessa had come to Montana as a mail-order bride, and it had worked out well between her and Dean.
Lately he’d been wondering what it would be like to do something like that. The problem was that he didn’t know how to go about it. What Luke did know was that he was lonely, and that maybe having a woman come specifically to get married would be a good thing. He’d heard the story about how Marcus had placed the advertisement for Dean even though Dean hadn’t really wanted him to.
He gave Marcus a speculative glance and wondered if he might help him, too. Then he pushed that thought from his mind, dismissing it as a bad idea. Finishing his breakfast, Luke rose from the table and put his plate in the sink.
“Thanks, Jack. You’re a good cook,” Luke said as he put a hand on Jack’s shoulder.
“Glad you liked it,” Jack said.
Luke nodded, opened the door to leave and rammed into Dean, who was on his way inside. If Luke hadn’t caught him, Dean would have gone down. Startled, Dean grabbed onto Luke’s arms to keep upright.
“Sorry about that,” Luke said.
Dean smiled. “No harm, no foul.”
“I’m heading back to finish putting hay in the pens. What do you want done after that?” Luke asked. He was grateful to Dean for hiring him after being laid off from his previous position at another ranch. Luke wanted to do a good job so Dean would keep him around.
Dean considered a moment and then said, “Just come to the barn when you’re done. I’ve got something in mind, but it’ll be easier to show you than tell you.”
Luke nodded and left.
Dean rubbed his left shoulder as he took Luke’s place at the table. “Damn, but that kid is built like a brick wall.”
Tessa chuckled. “Yes, he’s a big boy.”
Maddie said, “I feel bad for his poor mother. I’m sure that was a difficult delivery.”
Seth laughed. “Yeah. Aunt Pricilla isn’t a big woman, either.”
“Pa, are you eatin’?” Jack asked.
“I’m here, aren’t I?” Dean said.
“Ok, don’t be a smart ass about it,” Jack replied.
“Jack,” Dean warned. “Watch your mouth.”
Jack smirked and said, “I’ve heard a lot worse come out of your mouth, Pa.”
Dean just stared at Jack until his son lowered his gaze and said, “Sorry, Pa.”
“You’re forgiven. Now how about some of that grub?” Dean said.
Luke finished his first day of work for Dean and sat in his bunkhouse. The wind had kicked up and the bunkhouse creaked slightly but there were no drafts. Seth had made sure that the walls and roof were airtight. Although he’d tried to put it out of his mind, Luke couldn’t let the idea of a mail-order bride go. He decided he was going to talk to Marcus about it the next day.
The next morning, Marcus followed Luke to his bunkhouse. Marcus’ cousin had asked to talk to him privately and he was curious as to what Luke wanted. Luke closed the door behind him and then looked at Marcus.
Marcus waited but Luke didn’t say anything for several moments. “Ok, Luke. I’m here. What’s going on?” he prompted.
“I don’t know where to start,” Luke said. He felt stupid all of a sudden.
Marcus sat in one of the chairs and motioned for Luke to do the same. “How about at the beginning?”
Luke sat and said, “You’re a smart guy.”
“Thanks,” Marcus said.
“You helped Dean get Tessa here,” Luke said.
“Yep.”
Luke fidgeted with his watch. “So how do you go about getting a mail-order bride?”
Marcus leaned forward. “You want a mail-order bride?” he asked excitedly.
“I think so. I don’t know,” Luke said. “Damn it! What’s the matter with me?”
Marcus frowned. “I don’t follow.”
“I mean, why can’t I just say what I’m thinking when it comes to women? I can talk about anything else to anybody, but let this subject come up and I sound like a moron,” Luke said.
“I think ‘moron’ is a strong word,” Marcus said with a smile. “You’re just shy about women. Like Dean only…worse. Sorry.”
“Don’t be. It’s true,” Luke said. “So how do I get things started?”
Marcus leaned back again and put his right ankle on his left knee. “Well, it’s pretty simple really. You put an ad in the paper and then wait to get a response. When you get one, you just answer the letter and go from there.”
Luke nodded. “Sounds easy. Was Dean nervous when he met Tessa for the first time?”
Marcus said, “Oh yeah. Terrified. Well, first off, he was furious with me because I put that ad in the paper in the first place. Then he read Tessa’s first letter and he was hooked. The day they met, he was like a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs.”
“I remember the look on his face when he saw her standing on the porch of Long’s store. He was smitten right away, but tried not to show it. To tell the truth, I was a little jealous at the time. Tessa’s a smart, beautiful woman and I was wondering if maybe I should have placed an ad.”
“You did?” Luke asked.
“Yeah. It all worked out the way it was supposed to, though,” Marcus said smiling as he thought about his wife, Claire, and their little girl, Aiyana.
Luke said, “You have more guts than I do, Marcus. I don’t want to go through anything like what Charlene put me through again.”
Marcus cocked his head. “Maybe that worked out for the best and you’re meant to find someone better for you than Charlene.”
Luke was taken aback. “I never thought about it like that.”
Marcus could see the big man’s mind working on that. He wanted Luke to be happy and the only way to make that happen was to get him over his fear. Besides, he had enjoyed playing matchmaker for Tessa and Dean and wouldn’t mind doing it again.
“Listen, Luke, if you wanna give this a whirl, I’ll write the ad for you. The letters will be up to you to write, though. I’m not going to write letters for you like I did Dean. It caused problems between them when Tessa found out. I was only trying to help at the time, but I realize now that I shouldn’t have done it.”
Luke rubbed his thighs in a nervous gesture as he tried to decide what to do. Then he looked at Marcus and said, “All right. What do I have to lose? The worst that could happen is that no one answers.”
Marcus jumped up. “I’ll write it tonight and bring it with me tomorrow for your approval.”
“Thanks. I appreciate it,” Luke said. “I better get chopping that wood or else Dean will have my hide.”
Marcus squeezed Luke’s big biceps. “You’ll have it done in no time. You shoulda been a lumberjack.”
Luke laughed and followed Marcus out the door.
Chapter Two
Her morning duties were done and Jamie had a little while before she needed to start the laundry. Her boss, Mr. Norton, had gone into town, so Jamie could relax withou
t fear of him getting angry. She took the Walhalla newspaper out of her large satchel and sat in the living room of the farmhouse to read it. She looked at the obituaries, but was disappointed that none of the people she hated were dead. There were a lot of people in the North Dakota town that she hated too, so she thought that the chances that someone she hated had died would have been pretty good.
It wasn’t that Jamie was a mean person– she was just tired of all the uppity people in the town looking down their noses at her because she didn’t act the way they thought she should. She might be a widow, but she wasn’t dead yet. At only twenty-six, she had a lot of life to live and she didn’t want to spend it being stuffy and miserable.
Turning to the classifieds she scanned them, looking for different work, but knew that there wouldn’t be any. She was stuck in her present job, which she hated. It wasn’t the work itself so much, it was her employer. Mr. Norton was a crotchety old thing and he was always yelling at her and telling her she was lazy or stupid.
There were days when Jamie wondered how she kept from poisoning the old buzzard or hitting him over the head with something. Only the possibility of going to jail kept her from doing it. She ran her finger up and down the columns. Her eyes spied something odd, and she stopped. It wasn’t a job ad, it was some man looking for a wife. She’d never seen an advertisement in their newspaper like that before.
Since it was something new, she read it thoroughly.
Ladies, if you’re looking for a big, strong man, who is kind, considerate and good-looking, look no further. This fella is twenty four years old, and he’s a hard working Montana ranch hand with soulful dark brown eyes and dark brown hair. He’s looking to wed a lovely lady with a good disposition and who knows her way around a kitchen. She must be interested in having a family. Don’t wait to write because he’s going to get snapped up fast!
Jamie read it again and thought that she had the qualifications outlined in the ad. Most of the ill will directed at her by the women of Walhalla was because of her beauty. Her auburn hair and vivid green eyes were striking and drew the attention of any man she met. Jamie knew she was beautiful, and wasn’t above using her good looks to get what she wanted.
