Things had turned out fine, in the end. He and Laura were together, man and wife; Belinda was fully recovered and ecstatically happy that her daughter had married well; Eli had been taught a valuable lesson about just who was in charge of the Thorne ranch, as well as knowing that he'd have to treat his sister better in the future, now that she was a happily married woman with a husband who wouldn't take any nonsense.
Joshua thought of his recent visit to his cousin, Nathan, and how he'd had to keep secret his plans to ask Laura to become his wife. Joshua had hinted to Nathan that he was thinking of getting married. On that visit, Joshua had seen what getting married was really all about. Nathan and his two friends, Devlin and Trent had all recently found wives. And they'd all had children. That gathering of all the three families had impressed Joshua mightily. It had shown him what this was really all about. It was about the future, and children and loving families. It was about couples united in love.
That word made Joshua pause in his reflections. He looked at Laura. He did love her. There was no doubt about it now. There never had been any doubt. But, now he was more certain of it than he'd ever been.
Laura glanced up at him. He could see the happiness shining in her eyes. Her features were soft and content. It was a look that he'd come to recognize over the years. He wanted that look to always be there, every time he gazed into her eyes. It was his job to make sure that she never had a bad day for the rest of her life. He'd made that promise to her, and he was determined to do whatever it took to honor that vow.
Joshua thought about what was going to happen once they reached the ranch. Wrapping one arm around Laura's shoulder, while gripping the reins with the other hand, he realized he didn't want to let her go. The thought of her being away from him, in the other room, his bed empty of her presence, made his insides tumble. But, was she ready for that? Only she could answer that question. Joshua knew he'd have to wait for an answer to that. Patience could be a virtue, but it could also be a source of torment, he thought.
Laura opened her eyes as Joshua pulled the buggy to a halt in front of the McKenzie ranch. She'd fallen asleep briefly lying against him and dreamed of being driven home by Joshua, arriving home, going into the house, making her way upstairs with him. Waking up and finding that they'd only just arrived at the ranch house was briefly disconcerting and confusing.
She sat up and fixed some loose hairs that had strayed across her face.
"You okay, sleepyhead?" Joshua asked with a smile.
Laura rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. "How long was I asleep?" she asked.
"Half an hour, or so," Joshua replied. "I'm going to put the horse in the stable," he explained. Joshua jumped down off the buggy and started to unhitch the horse.
Laura noticed right away that Joshua was all fingers and thumbs. He couldn't untie the restraints without getting his hands caught. His normal calmly efficient manner was completely absent. Laura frowned as she stepped down off the buggy. Was he nervous about something?
"You want a hand?" she asked him.
Joshua looked up, his eyes wide. "No. I'll be fine. It'll only be a few minutes."
Joshua kept on fiddling with the harnesses and eventually, after much fussing, he managed to get it all untied. Laura smiled when she saw the relief on his face.
Joshua started to lead the horse to the stable. He turned to her. "I'll only be a few minutes," he said.
"I can wait," Laura said. She noticed that those words seemed to make Joshua stumble. Laura raised a hand to her mouth, retraining a smile. She'd never seen Joshua nervous before.
Laura followed Joshua to the stable. Standing at the entrance, she watched Joshua put the horse into his stall. He really was a fine looking man. Laura sighed as she thought about how close she had come to losing him. She'd never really known just how much he'd wanted her. But, today she'd seen it so many times. He'd looked at Laura with what could only be described as love, as Belinda had done her utmost to embarrass her daughter with the secrets of Laura's childhood.
Was that what she'd seen today? Her husband gazing at her with love in his heart?
Laura looked over at Joshua, savoring the sheer physical presence of her husband. He looked so comfortable in this place, this ranch that he'd built up from nothing. Laura thought of how he'd shown her that life on a ranch could be worth living, provided you had one very important ingredient.
Love.
That was what had been missing recently at the Thorne ranch. Of course, her mother had done a lot to try to make Laura happy. And Laura did love her mother. But what she had with Joshua was a whole new thing that she'd never experienced before. The love and obvious devotion of a man who was interested in only one thing. Making Laura happy.
She watched Joshua stride slowly toward her. His wide shoulders, long muscular legs, his bright, shining eyes fixed on her. Laura felt a tumbling inside her as she watched Joshua take his long, slow steps toward her.
Laura suddenly knew that she had to say something to Joshua, had to express to him how she really felt. But, her mind became blank as Joshua came close to her, and wrapped his arms around her waist. His eyes were warm and his smile was wide. He pulled her close. "What're you thinking?" he asked.
Laura tried to take a breath, but found that his proximity, his closeness was making it almost impossible.
Joshua peered into her eyes, so many questions there, so much emotion. Laura couldn't draw her eyes away from him. The truth was, she didn't want to. Having him so close, feeling his firm grasp around her middle, she was certain that there was nowhere else in the world she'd rather be than here, being held by him, being the center of his whole attention.
Laura felt Joshua take in a deep breath. Then he was saying the words that she was struggling so hard to find inside herself.
Joshua's voice was soft, but firm. "I have always loved you. But right now I feel a love for you that I never could have thought possible," he said quietly. His words vibrated inside Laura, filling her soul, making her heart pound. Laura felt her mouth open. Joshua ran the pad of his thumb along her moist lower lip. He smiled as she reached up and shifted a loose hair from his forehead.
Joshua's eyes widened, expectant, impatient. Finally, Laura spoke the words that suddenly seemed so natural, so inevitable. "I love you, Joshua. How could I not love you? After all you've done to make me your wife."
Joshua smiled and shrugged. "I wasn't ever going to lose you, Laura. It was never going to happen," he admitted. "And from now on you are going to be by my side, every day. And every night," he said.
Laura felt her throat tighten slightly. But, then she gazed up into Joshua's eyes, seeing the gentle passion there, the warmth, the kindness. Joshua dipped his head and kissed Laura. His lips were warm and soft. Laura felt his hand at the back of her head, drawing her closer. The kiss was tender, a declaration of his love, a promise that made it's way straight to Laura's heart.
When their lips parted, Laura looked up at Joshua and saw joy on his face. Joshua caressed the side of Laura's face. "Let's get into the house," he said gently.
Laura nodded. There would be no separation anymore, no distance. Only the most natural, intimate closeness.
And, as Laura walked toward the ranch house, Joshua's arm holding her close, their steps in perfect unison, it seemed to her that it had always been her destiny to become Joshua's McKenzie's wife.
EPILOGUE
Aaron Stewart stood by the side of the dance floor at the social in Great Falls, and watched his fellow rancher Zack Buchanan make his way through the crowd toward him with two drinks in his hands. Aaron had given up trying to find Joshua and Laura. He figured they must have already come and gone. Maybe they'd had better things to do. He smiled as he recalled the happiness on the faces of his friend and his new wife. It was good that they'd ended up together. Aaron had always known that Joshua was sweet on Laura. He'd seen the lengths Joshua had gone to hide that fact from Laura. But love always found a way.
It was ge
tting to be late in the afternoon and the dancing was getting real intense, the music loud from the stage, the hubbub of the packed hall seeming louder, now that the drink had been flowing for a while.
Zack came up to Aaron and handed him a drink.
"There you go," Zack said. "You're going to need that."
Aaron frowned as he took the drink from his friend. "What do you mean?"
Zack looked back in the direction from which he'd come. "I just had a very interesting conversation with a friend of Eva Gillespie," he said.
"About what?"
Zack shook his head and then took a swig of his drink. "I don't know how to tell you this," he said. "It's about what's happened at the Gillespie ranch."
Aaron felt a knot of worry twist in his gut. "What about it?"
"Eva's father just died," Zack said bluntly.
Aaron sighed and took a sip of his drink. "That's sad. He's been hanging on a long time. He was an ornery critter," Aaron declared. "I'm sorry for Eva. She loved her old man," Aaron said shaking his head.
"You and Gillespie's ranch being neighbours and all that, I guess you've had a chance to get to know Eva over the years," Zack said with one of his mischievous glances.
Aaron frowned at Zack. "You know that Eva and I have had our differences."
Zack nodded. "Oh, I know all about those," he admitted. "I think you and her are going to have a few more differences to settle over the few weeks," Zack said.
"What are you talking about?" Aaron asked.
"Remember how we said that if Gillespie died, Eva would probably sell up and move on."
Aaron recalled the many difficult conversations he'd had over the years, trying to persuade Gillespie to let Aaron have some of the prime land for his own expanding ranch spread. Gillespie had always resisted every attempt by Aaron to buy him out. Now that he was gone, Aaron thought that Eva might just be a bit more amenable to the idea than old man Gillespie.
Zack's eyes fixed on Aaron. Somehow Aaron could tell that there was bad news coming.
Aaron leaned in closer to Zack. "Are you trying to tell me something, Zack?"
His fellow rancher nodded. "Eva's inherited the ranch and she's not going to sell. In fact, she's planning on staying put."
Aaron frowned and shook his head. "What's so bad about that?"
Zack cleared his throat and leaned closer to Aaron. "Eva's sent a message," Zack said in a flat voice.
"What kind of a message?"
Zack glanced from side to side. "She wants to meet with you, Aaron," Zack said.
Aaron's brows furrowed. Why would Eva Gillespie, a woman who'd done everything in her power to make it plain to Aaron that they had absolutely nothing in common, who'd done everything to make it obvious that her and Aaron could never be friends, want to meet with Aaron?
"Why would she want to meet with me?" Aaron asked.
Zack took another sip of his drink. "It appears she has a proposal for you," he said after a pause.
The only thing that Aaron Stewart could think of for the rest of the evening was one thing.
What kind of proposal could Eva Gillespie possibly have for Aaron Stewart?
THE END
Aaron and Eva's story will be available in October
Thank you!
Thank you for reading Joshua's Montana Bride. I hope you enjoyed it.
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I appreciate all reviews, whether positive or negative. They help me know what readers of my books want in future novels.
The Montana Ranchers and Brides series
Montana ranchers and their search for brides in the 1880's
An Amazon Bestselling series in Historical Romance
Nathan's Montana Bride
Devlin's Montana Bride
Trent's Montana Bride
Joshua's Montana Bride
Aaron's Montana Bride (coming in October)
The Brides of Sweetheart Falls
Three sisters and their struggles finding husbands and new lives in 1870's Wyoming
An Amazon Bestselling series in Historical Romance
Book 1 Mail Order Vows (Cassie's story)
Book 2 Mail Order Beau (Martha's story)
Book 3 Mail Order Blessing (Rachel's story)
Mail Order Vows (Cassie's story)
Brides of Sweetheart Falls series: Book One. A sweet, full length, complete mail order bride romance novel with a happy ending.
Wyoming 1878
On the verge of giving up on a future in the growing Wyoming town of Sweetheart Falls, and heading back to an uncertain life back East, recently widowed mail order bride Cassie Miller is given a final chance at happiness.
Soon Cassie finds out she has no choice but to marry handsome ex lawman Ethan Macleod. However, can she make a new life while trying to come to terms with the loss of her beloved husband Joshua?
Can she really trust Ethan, the man the entire town agrees would make a perfect husband? How come he already knows so much about Cassie?
And just how far will he go to prove to her that he is worthy of being her new husband?
Book 2 Mail Order Beau (Martha's story)
Brides of Sweetheart Falls series: Book Two. A sweet, full length, complete mail order bride romance novel with a happy ever after.
Wyoming 1878
Martha's story.
After waiting months for the Sweetheart Falls Matrimonial Society to find a husband for herself and her sister, Cassie Macleod's sister, Martha is beginning to wonder if she and Rachel will ever get married. Meanwhile, there's a baby on the way at the Macleod farmstead, and Martha and Rachel need to move out so that their sister and her wonderful husband, Ethan can start their new life as a family, without relatives getting in the way.
However, when town matchmaker Hettie finally provides a selection of suitable husbands, only one of them holds any promise.
Who is the mysterious ranch owner who wants to wed one of the unmarried sisters? Why is he going to such lengths to keep his identity secret? And just what will Martha have to do to secure a future for herself and Rachel?
Book 3 Mail Order Blessing (Rachel's story)
Mail Order Blessing. A sweet, full length, complete mail order bride romance novel with a happy ever after.
Wyoming 1878
Rachel's story.
Sweetheart Falls' town matchmaker Hettie Longfellow has finally found a husband for young, eager to marry, Rachel. Or so Rachel thinks. But there's one obstacle. Aaron Caldigate doesn't want to settle down in town. Then there's the problem of Aaron's past and how it stands in the way of Rachel's chances of married bliss.
Aaron Caldigate is a man who keeps his word. He's returning to Sweetheart Falls because he promised he'd come back after completing his training as a lawyer. But he's not planning on staying, especially since his mother has taken it upon herself to find him a bride!
However he hasn't counted on a very determined and beautiful young bride-to-be who is going to do everything she can to persuade him that Sweetheart Falls is the only place to settle down, and that she is the only woman for him.
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
Joshua's Montana Bride © 2014 Maya Stirling
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Joshua's Montana Bride (Sweet, Clean Western Historical Romance)(Montana Ranchers and Brides Series) Page 11
