Greg sighed. "All right, fine," he grumbled, watching as Kit opened the woodshed and selected a pile of firewood. Greg took the pile and hefted it under his arm. "So when's the new bride getting here?"
"Sometime today." Kit picked up another pile before pushing the door closed. "She's going to get her sisters settled into the property Kyle rents out, and then she's coming over to say hello."
Greg looked uncertain, his normally genial behavior subdued in his concern. "Are you sure this is the right thing to do?" he asked.
Kit shrugged and walked across the yard to the forge, which sat looming over his family home next door.
"I need a mother for the kids," he said simply. "I don't care about myself, but the children need a firm hand, and I'm too busy for them."
That much he could admit to, even though he thought he was doing a good job with them.
To say his family had been surprised when Kit declared he was marrying a mail order bride had been an understatement. His parents were both pleased he was looking for a wife again and worried that he was going to make a bad choice. His sisters were delighted that there would be another woman to talk to. Natasha, Mila, and their mother were three of the nine women who were permanent residents of Hope Springs. Everyone else was either single or widowed men. Mostly single. Very few, like Kit, were widowed.
The thought of going to a place virtually in the middle of nowhere to marry a man who already had children wasn't really appealing, but Lily had been delighted about becoming an instant mother. She hadn't expressed her opinion on Kit's arrangement, but Kit knew that while she agreed to it, she wasn't particularly happy.
But Lily wasn't getting married to be happy. It was an arrangement between them that worked perfectly and to their advantages. If anything happened out of it, it happened. But Kit didn't think it would.
"Three sisters, did you say?" Greg looked thoughtful as Kit opened up the back of his forge. "Think she can match me up with one of them?"
Kit grinned. Greg considered himself a ladies’ man, but the reality was that he was really shy when it came to women. Anything beyond the usual pleasantries and he hadn't got a clue. He was a kind, gentle man despite his size, but it didn't really transpose into courtship. Greg couldn’t go up and talk to a woman, not that there were any women in Hope Springs even if he could. The place was devoid of anything to entice women there except men, and most of the men had been without women for so long they were a little rough and ready. Kit knew he had been lucky to get Lily to come. Of all the letters he had written, she was the only one who had been willing to come to such a lonely and desolate place. The fact that she was bringing her sisters would soon create a stir in the town. Kit could imagine that more men than just his brother would be interested in the remaining sisters. He just hoped that Greg could let a woman see the truth of his character, for if he did, then she would fall for him without a doubt. "I'll speak to her about it."
There would be another advantage if Kit got Greg married to one of Lily's sisters. That way maybe his oldest brother would leave him in peace. Greg’s help around the forge was useful. He would help as much as he could between clients. Kit thought the hard work made him feel better, but soon Greg would be back in his suit and sitting at his desk. Today Kit couldn’t wait for that, because Greg’s questions were driving him mad.
Chapter 3
The house was a cottage on the outskirts of the town. The garden was neat and tidy, and the inside was full of usable furniture, all of it handmade according to their landlord.
As they looked around, Maye gasped with surprise. “This is beautiful and so clean.”
Their landlord, Kyle McFarlan, who also happened to be the town's doctor nodded. “Yes, ma’am. When my two sisters heard you were coming, they gave the place a good clean-out. I guess it needed it since the cottage hadn't been used for some months.”
Lily watched with trepidation. Hope Springs was as remote as she had thought, and it looked like visitors weren't common. They were in the middle of nowhere... who would want to visit there?
Lily felt a little uncomfortable that their landlord was also her soon to be husband's brother, but Kyle was an easy-going man and took everything in his stride. With thick black hair and haunting blue eyes, he was an attractive man. High cheekbones sloped down to a generous mouth that seemed to always have a smile. She believed she could like him. He didn't even blink when he saw her scar, giving her the same wide smile that he gave the other sisters.
Lily guessed he must see a lot worse than her injuries in his line of work. But it also gave her some hope that Kit would react in the same way. If he was anything like Kyle in person, then she wouldn't mind being married to him even if it was simply to become a governess.
After Kyle had left, they began unpacking. Within an hour and a half, the cottage was looking a lot like a home. Their home. Hattie put up homemade curtains in the windows and Maye decorated the place with her handmade rugs, blankets, and cushions. Lily and Nana made do with putting linens on the beds and putting their clothes away. Everything was set up pretty quickly, and soon the homely feel settled around them. The sisters were excited about their new start and so pleased with the accommodations.
Once they were all settled, Hattie and Nana went to inspect the back garden. They were excited because it included a vegetable patch. Albeit, one that had seen better days. Maye looked exhausted and went to have a lie-down. That left Lily alone, and she knew it was time. There was a hole in her stomach, and despite the heat of the day, a cold sweat ran down her back, but she had to do this sometime and so far their welcome had been good. Taking a deep breath, she pulled on a bonnet and decided to walk into the town. It was time to find Kit. After all, she had promised to go to the forge and say hello... It was time for them to get better acquainted.
Each step she took made her heart beat faster, and her breath caught in her throat. She wasn't expecting much on their first meeting, but she knew that they would have to address the elephant in the room—her facial scars. It had hurt to keep this secret, but they had been desperate, now they were here, she could hide her scars no more. What would Kit do? Once he saw her, he would know that his bride wasn't completely perfect as he had considered her to be. Lily hoped that he would smile and shrug it off as his brother had done.
But there was a feeling in the bottom of her stomach that said it wouldn't happen.
Stealing herself for the meeting, Lily walked down the track into Hope Springs. She took inventory of what was there, which wasn't much. There was a saloon, a general store, a doctor's surgery, a sheriff's department and a mayor's office. The rest seemed to be a collection of houses. People were walking or riding down the street. A buckboard came rattling past, and the cowboy aboard whistled as it trotted by.
Lily’s heart tumbled inside her chest.
Everyone was staring at her as she walked, a lot of them whispering and pointing. She heard whistles of appreciation, catcalls and even some caustic names following her but she ignored them all, refusing to let them upset her. What she did, she did for her sisters, and God knew what was in her heart. His strength was with her now.
Kit had told her in his letters that there were very few women in the area. Those who did come to town were usually ladies of disrepute from the bigger towns who went where the cowboys went. But even that wasn't very often. To read it was surprising, but to see it was even more surprising. Lily found it unnerving, walking through the streets where she only saw men and men who didn't look very inviting to the eye, either. They were dirty, unshaven, and ill-mannered. Staring, pointing, shouting and sometimes even laughing at her but no one actually said anything to her face.
When she passed the sheriff's office, the sheriff came out. Lily was surprised to see that he was young, barely older than her, and very handsome. When he raised his head and looked at her, Lily saw the same colorings and facial features as Doctor McFarlan and guessed this was another McFarlan brother. Kit had mentioned one of them was the lo
cal sheriff.
He raised his Stetson in greeting and carried on his way. Lily nodded back, noting that he didn't seem to flinch at her scar, either.
Maybe this was a good sign. The McFarlan brothers seemed to be gentleman when it came to her looks.
But what these brothers thought didn’t matter... it was one particular brother she needed approval from.
The forge was at the far end of town, situated next to a small, two-story house. The forge doors were wide open, and she could see the heat from inside the building snaking across the street, the air shimmering. Lily could feel the heat hit her from a block away. It was almost enough to turn her around, but she kept walking even though her knees were shaking.
Three children were playing out in front of the house, two girls and a boy. The boy and the older girl had dark hair while the younger girl had golden hair in tight curls that were held up in bunches. The older girl's hair was loose and flowing in the breeze as she kicked a ball with her little brother.
These children must be Kit's. They were undeniably cute. A little grubby from their play—and the boy's knees were recently scraped and bloodied—but still cute. Lily watched them for a moment, feeling a sense of sadness coming from them. They were lonely, despite having each other to play with. None of them were laughing. It was as if this wasn't what they really wanted to do.
Lily's heart ached for them.
They were playing softball close to the forge entrance. Lily wondered if this was the only way they could get close to their father. He had told her he rarely got time to spend with them. The older girl kicked the ball passed her brother, and it bounced towards Lily. She caught it as it was going past her and held it out to the boy as he ran up to claim it.
"Here you go."
"Ta." The boy took the ball and peered up at her curiously. "Your face looks funny."
"Caleb!" The older girl scolded, scowling at her little brother. "Don't be so rude!"
She couldn't have been any older than eight years old. Caleb looked about six. The little girl, who had raised her head from the doll she had been playing with to look at Lily, had to be younger than that, five at the most. Lily knew she would have her hands full with these three, but that did not worry her. She could see they were hurt and needed love, and she longed to give it to them.
She smiled at the older girl.
"It's fine, I don't mind." She knelt in front of Caleb and indicated her scar. "You're talking about this, aren't you?"
"Yes." Caleb reached out and ran his fingers along the deep groove. His fingers were rough against her skin. "What happened?"
"I was in an accident. I scraped my face along a sharp rock when I was thrown from a carriage."
Now the two girls had joined them, the little girl holding her sister's hand. Like her brother she looked openly at Lily's scar, her eyes wide in curiosity.
"Does it hurt?" she asked loudly.
Lily smiled.
"Not anymore. It did at first, though."
"What did your mama and papa say?"
Lily swallowed as a lump lodged in her throat. This wasn't easy for her, but she couldn't lie to them. They weren't to know, and she wasn't about to be rude. They had also lost a parent, and she wanted to relate to them.
"They were killed in that same accident," she croaked. "My sisters and I survived but..." She gave a tiny laugh as she choked up and wiped her eyes to catch the tears threatening to fall. "Sorry, I didn't mean that to happen. It was only three months ago that they died."
She was surprised when the little girl came forward and put her arms around her neck. Lily stared at her, amazed at the trust the child had. The older girl and Caleb also looked sympathetic.
"We lost our mama last year," Caleb said. "She died of phenu... phewe... pneumonnias."
"No, she didn't." The older girl snapped. "God took her away because we were naughty. That’s why Pa won’t play with us."
Lily was shocked that they could think something so terrible. Kit had told her in his letters that his wife Amie had died of pneumonia. He hadn't said anything about what his children thought, and she wondered if he had discussed it with them. Pulling them all close she began to explain. “God would not do that,” she said. “He loves little children, and I can see that you have not been naughty.”
“Then why did he take mama?” Dionne asked her eyes bright and shiny with tears.
“Sometimes He has a plan that we just don’t understand. It doesn’t mean that you were naughty or punished.”
The children were all around her now, looking up with eager faces.
“So, Ma died of pneumonnias, and it was just one of those things,” Caleb said.
Lily nodded. "I think that was so, and she is with God now, looking down on you. She would want you to be happy.”
Dionne nodded, her eyes brimming with tears. Then they all jumped when a loud bark came from the forge.
"Children, come away! You shouldn't be talking to strangers!"
Lily looked past the children and saw a tall, slim but muscular man coming towards them. She felt like she had butterflies in her stomach, and her heart pounded. Oh my! He was shirtless, his arms and torso sculpted almost to perfection. Goodness, to Lily he was perfection. There was a dusting of black hair across his chest that trailed down his belly, disappearing into his nicely fitted jeans. His black hair was wild and unkempt, sweat glistened on his forehead and covered his body in a noticeable sheen.
Lily had come across blacksmiths before but none as impressive or as gorgeous as Kit McFarlan.
Dionne was grinning at Lily's stunned expression.
"Handsome, isn't he?"
Lily swallowed.
"He certainly is," she murmured.
Kit reached them and snapped his fingers, beckoning the children over.
"Go inside, Caleb. Now. Dionne, take Renee and go."
The children didn't say anything, simply gave their father sullen looks before leaving. Renee was the last one to go into the house. Lily saw the sad expression on her face and the glistening of tears before she gave Lily a small smile. Then she disappeared inside.
"Apologies for my children, Miss. They're very rude."
Lily looked up. Kit was standing over her, staring at her. Lily knew he wasn't staring at her but at the scar. She also recognized the look in his eyes.
He was shocked. Repulsed. Disgusted.
Her heart sank. But she rose gracefully to her feet and faced him down.
"They seemed like very nice children," she said stiffly. "They weren't doing any harm."
"Those three, nice?" Kit snorted rudely. "That's a first."
Lily couldn't believe that this was the same man who had written to her. While she hadn't cared much for how his proposal had come about, she had actually liked him. This man wasn't likable at all. And from the way he had openly shown his disgust over her maimed looks... whatever had happened between them in their letters would quickly fizzle out.
Her temper flared as she stared him down. "If you spent time with them then you'd know that they were nice," she snapped.
"How do you know I don't?"
"Because you're sweating like a pig, you're filthy, and it's gone midday. I'm betting you've been working all morning and not actually spending time with the children, leaving them to play in the street where they could get run down by buckboards and horses."
Kit advanced on her slowly, but Lily stood her ground. She knew not to be intimidated just because he was a man. Her father had told her to never back away from threats or intimidation. Kit looked her over with an expression that was a mix of appreciation and scathing.
"You know about kids, do you?" he asked with a growl.
"Not personally but..."
"Then don't tell me how to raise my children. What are you doing in Hope Springs, anyway?"
"My sisters and I have recently moved here." Lily didn't blink. "We're looking for husbands."
Kit snorted rudely.
"Good luck with
that. With your face, no man's going to take you on as a wife. We may be desperate for women here, but we're not that desperate."
"It's not a permanent scar. It'll fade soon."
In fact, it was already starting to fade. It wasn't as bad as it had been shortly after the accident, but she knew it would probably never fade away to nothing.
"But people see that, and they're not going to go near you." Kit turned his back on her and started walking away. "Do yourself a favor, Miss, and declare yourself a spinster now. No one's going to marry you."
Lily felt like her heart was about to crack. This wasn't going to work. He would never marry her. But her pride kept her from shedding tears, and she followed him, her anger replacing her frustration.
"Oh, really?" she demanded. "Then why have I been exchanging letters with a man from Hope Springs for the last couple of months saying he wants to marry me?"
"Then he must be lying, blind or mad,” came Kit's reply.
"Or maybe just cruel and inexcusably rude," Lily snapped. She stopped and shouted after Kit as he made to enter his forge. "The name and address went to a blacksmith's forge to a man called Christopher McFarlan, also known as Kit... I presume that's you." She folded her arms and glared defiantly at him. "So, are you lying, blind or mad?"
Kit had stopped when Lily had mentioned his name and turned to stare at her. Now realization was dawning.
"You're Lily?"
"Yes." Lily planted her hands on her hips and glared at him. "I guess you really are desperate, aren't you?"
"Not that desperate," Kit growled. He looked her over again, his eyes focusing the longest on her scar, and shook his head. "I made a mistake asking you for anything."
Lily knew it would come to this, but even when it did, the knowledge still hurt.
"That's it?" she demanded.
"That's it. I don't want to see you near here or near my children. They're not going to get someone like you as their mother." He turned away and walked into the forge. "Go back to where you came from."
Christmas Miracles: Mega Mail Order Bride 20-Book Box Set: Multi-Author Box Set Page 29
