“Papa!”
Her father ignored her and motioned for them to follow him.
Levi grinned wickedly and raised his eyebrows like her father had, only he gave his a little wiggle and winked. He placed his hand in the small of her back and gave her a gentle shove in her father’s direction.
The cad. He had no idea what they were in for, but she did, and dread filled Millie at the thought.
An hour later, in the privacy of her parents’ home, Levi faced Millie’s father. “I know you are upset, Mr. Hamilton, but you have to believe that I love your daughter.”
“I found out from my daughter’s own lips that you are not married and that you have been living under the same roof for months.” Mr. Hamilton’s nose turned red with anger.
Millie hadn’t handled the situation very well at all. When they’d arrived at the house, Mrs. Hamilton had her leg propped up on a cushion on the sofa. She claimed it could be broken, much like her heart. The woman should be in plays, she was so dramatic.
While Millie apologized for running away, Mrs. Hamilton had sniffled into a handkerchief, but no tears leaked from her blue eyes. If anything they danced with happiness. No wonder Millie wanted to get away from the woman.
And when Mrs. Hamilton learned they weren’t married she demanded that they get married and had proceeded to send Mr. Hamilton out for the preacher. Levi had been surprised when Millie’s father turned to do her bidding.
That was the final straw for his sweet Millie. She stood up straight, pulled her shoulders back and, while staring her mother in the eyes and in anger, said it would be a cold day in Florida before she’d marry the likes of him.
Levi had to admit that had stung somewhat.
Still, he knew she was angry with her mother and would reconsider once she’d gotten over being mad at her mother who still was trying to control Millie’s life. At least he hoped so.
“It’s a boardinghouse, Mr. Hamilton. There are six of us that live there, so it isn’t like we aren’t chaperoned.”
“Why haven’t you asked my Millie to marry you if you love her?” Millie’s father demanded.
Levi wanted to laugh but knew Bart Hamilton wouldn’t appreciate the gesture. “I have asked her, several times, in fact. And she’s turned me down.”
Bart sat down with a frown. “Why?”
He shrugged. If Millie wanted him to know, she’d tell him. “You’ll have to ask her.”
Confusion laced Bart’s face and he shook his head. “I could have sworn that girl loves you.” He looked up at Levi. “Are you going to ask her again?”
Levi rubbed his chin. “No, the invitation is out there. If she wants to marry me, she’ll have to let me know.”
Bart frowned. “I don’t know if that’s such a good idea. Millie is the child of my heart, but that girl is stubborn, like her mother.”
He couldn’t disagree with Millie’s father more. As far as he could see, Millie was nothing like her mother, but Levi was wise enough not to comment. “If she does change her mind, do we have your blessing?” he asked instead.
For the first time since they’d arrived at his house, Bart smiled. “You most certainly do. I know Millie loves you, too.”
* * *
The smell of roast and potatoes filled Millie’s senses as she entered the kitchen. She frowned when she realized it was her papa pulling dinner out of the stove instead of her mother. “Hello, Papa.”
He turned to face her. “Feeling better?”
Millie felt like a heel for running out of the house the way she had, but her mother made her so mad. Why couldn’t she leave her alone? Why did she feel her hand had to be in everything Millie did?
“A little.”
He nodded and pointed at one of the kitchen chairs. “Please have a seat. Dinner won’t be ready for a little while. I want to talk to you about that Westland boy.”
Hearing her father refer to Levi as a boy almost brought a smile to her face. Levi was anything but a boy. She sat where her father had pointed and crossed her arms. “I’m not going to marry him, Papa, and Mother can’t make me.”
Bart sat down beside her. “Why not? I can tell you love him.”
Tears filled Millie’s eyes, and she fought not to let them fall. This was her papa; she’d always been honest with him. “I do, but I’m also afraid.”
“Why do you fear him? Has he hurt you? If so, I will see that he never leaves Cottonwood Springs.” The threat hung in the air between them. Her father looked like a mighty warrior who was about to take on the Goliath in her life.
Millie reached across the table and covered the fist that rested upon it. “Oh, Papa, it’s nothing like that. Levi would never hurt me on purpose.”
The anger seeped from him and was replaced with confusion. “I don’t understand, then.”
She sighed. “I believe Levi loves me now, but what if he marries me and then decides he doesn’t love me? I won’t be in a loveless marriage like you and Mother.”
Her father’s jaw dropped. The hurt look in his eyes was almost her undoing. Then, her papa transformed into a powerful, strong man. He straightened his shoulders and stared her straight in the face. “Millicent Summer Hamilton, I love your mother very much and she loves me. Our marriage is far from loveless.” Truth shone from his eyes as he challenged her to deny what he’d just said.
“But Papa, she bosses you around just like she does me. I can’t believe you married her when she acted like that. Surely after getting married Mother changed.”
He cut her off. “Of course she didn’t change. Your mother has always been strong and protecting in her love for both of us.” His gaze softened as he studied her face. “You really have believed that your mother didn’t love us?”
How could bossiness and controlling someone be love? Millie saw the love in her father’s eyes when he spoke of Mother and she understood. Except when it came to Mama and how Millie truly felt. She loved her mother, too, but couldn’t stand the way she treated her.
It was his turn to reach out to Millie. “Millie, it’s because your mother loves us that she is, in your words, bossy. What you call bossy, she calls love. Your mother lost three babies before you were born and two more after. You are the only child God allowed to remain in her care. She takes that responsibility very seriously.”
Millie had never known her mother had lost three babies before she was born. She put herself in her mother’s place. It was no wonder her mother guarded her from all harm.
Understanding and newfound appreciation for her mother consumed Millie. Her mother wasn’t trying to smother her or enjoy being in control; she simply loved too strongly. Millie smiled at the thought. She’d rather be loved too much than not enough.
How many nights had she lain awake resenting her mother? A sob tore at her throat. “Oh, Papa, I’ve been so wrong.”
He came around the table and pulled her to her feet. Papa’s strong arms wrapped around her shoulders, and he hugged her. “Yes, but now you know and will treat your mother in a more caring manner.”
Millie nodded. “I will try.”
Bart chuckled. “You sound so much like your mother.” He hugged her for a few seconds more and then set her back from him. A teasing light filled his eyes. “And for your information, your mother does not boss me around. She likes to think she is in control and I let her think that. It gives her pleasure and because I love her, it gives me pleasure also.”
Millie realized she’d misjudged her mother and father’s relationship. Was this a sign that she was maturing herself? Or was she simply a daughter finally comprehending what love truly meant?
“Thank you, Papa.”
He nodded. “Now, don’t you have a young man to go find? I like him and wouldn’t mind having him for a son-in-law.”
Millie nodded. “After what I said to Mother in front of him, he may never speak to me again.”
Her father cupped her face in his rough hands. “He loves you. That trumps any ill-spoken words yo
u may have said. Now go to him and say yes to his marriage proposal.”
She prayed her father was right. Millie wasn’t so sure. In anger she had told her mother she would never marry Levi. Had he taken her words seriously? Where was he now? She stepped out onto the front porch.
Panic gripped her at the thought that she might have lost him forever. Where had he gone after she’d fled her parents’ house? Her heart raced. Oh, Lord, please help me find him.
The thought came to her that Daniel would know where his brother could be found. Last time she’d seen Daniel and Hannah they had been headed to the marshal’s house.
Millie picked up her skirt hem and ran to Rebecca and Seth Billings’s house. She frantically knocked on the door several times.
Seth came with the speed of a snail to the door. Millie figured he was used to people banging on his door. As soon as it was opened enough for her to speak, Millie asked, “Is Levi or Daniel Westland here?”
“No, they were headed to the livery. Levi’s saddling up and leaving town. Didn’t you know?”
Headed home? Her hand went to her chest as the pain of loss cut through her. She’d really done it this time. A tear trickled down her cheek. An absurd question entered her mind: When had she become such a crybaby? She swatted away the tear.
Seth cleared his throat. “Shouldn’t you be going to the livery to stop him?”
Stop him? Could she? Millie didn’t take the time to answer Seth; once more, she picked up the hem of her dress with both hands and took off at a run.
She ran into the dark barn that served as the town livery. It was open at both ends, and when her eyes adjusted she saw Daniel and Hannah standing at the opposite end. If they were still here, maybe it wasn’t too late.
Millie ran to them. Her side ached and her breath came out sounding like a broken-down windmill. “Where is Levi?”
Daniel pointed down the street. He looked shocked to see her.
Levi rode a big paint horse. His shoulders swayed in the saddle as he left town.
Whatever dignity Millie may have had fled. She couldn’t let him leave with her heart. Millie chased after him, screaming, “Levi! Levi!” Oh, Lord, please make him stop. I can’t bear to lose him now.
He turned in the saddle. When he saw her running toward him, Levi stopped the horse. He looped the reins over the horn and swung from the saddle. Concern laced his beautiful green eyes.
Millie couldn’t stop. All she wanted was to be close to Levi. He held her heart; he was her heart. She threw herself into his arms. “You can’t leave, Levi.”
Levi caught her up and swung her around with a laugh. Millie held on for all she was worth.
He stopped swinging her and allowed her feet to touch the ground once more. “Why not?” The love in his eyes spoke volumes.
“You haven’t married me yet.”
Levi leaned forward and for her ears only asked, “Is it a cold day in Florida?” he teased.
Millie remembered her words to her mother. She’d been wrong to say them, she’d been wrong to judge her mother and she’d even been wrong in judging Levi based on how her mother made her feel, but now wasn’t the time to go into that. They were standing in the middle of the street with the whole town looking on.
So, taking a page from her mother’s book, she grinned back and whispered, “I’m not sure. Are you willing to wait for a Florida weather report to find out?”
He tossed his head back and laughed. “I wasn’t leaving town forever, Millie, but I’m glad you chased me down.” At her confused look, he laughed again.
Millie slapped him on the arm and hissed, “Levi Westland! That isn’t funny.”
Once he could control his laughter once more, Levi looked her right in the eyes and said for the whole town to hear, “You’re right! We’ve got a wedding to attend.”
Millie didn’t protest as he scooped her up in his arms and kissed her in such a way that she forgot about the crowd watching them, their meddling mothers and the other mail-order brides. All she cared and thought about was Levi, his love for her and how wonderful their lives were going to be.
Epilogue
“What do you mean they were born at the same time?”
“How could that be?”
Levi and Daniel asked the doctor in unison. Bonnie Westland stood with her mouth hanging open. Daniel raked his fingers though his hair.
Levi could sense the struggle going on in Daniel’s mind. He wanted his wife to be okay and he wanted to keep the ranch he loved as his home.
Then the strangest thing happened. He stood frozen in place and watched his mother throw her arms around the doctor’s neck and thank him through the sobs that racked her body.
Finally getting control of her emotions, Bonnie Westland turned to face her sons. “Boys, I know I have done you both a great disservice, but I did it to help you, not hurt you in any way.” She pulled at the handkerchief Doc placed in her hands.
Had their mother gone mad? Was she finally losing all her senses?
She ignored their confused looks and continued. “Starting the contest was wrong. But I did it for your own good. You see, I wanted you to experience love. I didn’t want you to be alone like I was after your dad died.”
Some of the old spark came back into her eyes. “But you boys were muleheaded and wouldn’t go looking for wives like most young men do.” She heaved a big sigh. “So I took matters into my own hands and made sure you didn’t do something stupid like a marriage of convenience just to get this ranch. That’s why I added the extra ultimatum for it to be the first grandchild born.”
She walked to Daniel and placed a hand on his chest. “Can you forgive me, son?”
Daniel looked as if a mule had kicked him in the head and he’d lost all sense of what was going on. He stared at their mother as if she’d sprouted wings.
When he didn’t answer, she looked at Levi, a pleading expression on her face. “You both can have the ranch. Or you can buy each other out. I don’t care. I only wanted you to know love in every way. Love of a good spouse and love of a child.”
Thankfully, Daniel snapped out of his stupor. He and Levi exchanged looks of pure amusement and relief.
Their mother wore a look of pure confusion. “What am I missing, boys?” She addressed them now as if they better answer her or suffer the consequences.
Levi should have known the humbleness in his mother wouldn’t last long. He took great pleasure in telling her. “Mother, I gave Daniel full rights to this ranch several weeks ago. Millie and I will continue to live in town.”
Huge tears rolled down his mother’s cheeks, and she gathered her sons as close as she could get them. They returned her hug with smiles on their faces.
“Umm.” The doctor cleared his throat to get their attention. “I hate to break this up, but your wives would like to see you.”
Levi and Daniel raced up the stairs. They shared one more grin before stepping into their wives’ rooms.
Levi closed the door softly and entered the dimly lit room. Millie held their sweet daughter in her arms. A tender smile graced her beautiful face as she beckoned him to come closer. Levi eased onto the bed beside her.
He held his finger close to the tiny balled-up fist that rested outside the blanket. His little girl latched on tight to both his hand and his heart.
Levi pulled Millie close, careful not to hurt her. In awe, he said the first thing that came to his mind. “You’re both so beautiful. How can I be so blessed?”
Millie laughed softly. “We are the ones who are blessed.” She eased the baby into his arms.
He slid back against the headboard, with his newborn princess in the crook of his arm and a beautiful mail-order bride resting against his shoulder. Levi silently prayed a prayer of thanksgiving that God had protected the woman he loved and the daughter who had already stolen into his heart.
His wife’s easy breathing also had him thanking God for a meddlesome mother who had, with a contest, helped him to find th
e perfect love.
* * * * *
Keep reading for an excerpt from A RUMORED ENGAGEMENT by Lily George.
Dear Reader,
Hi and thank you so much for picking up His Chosen Bride. I fell in love with Levi while writing, Taming the Texas Rancher. He gave his brother such a hard time over his mail-order bride that I got to thinking Levi needed a mail-order bride of his own. At the same time, his mother whispered in my ear that she had already sent off for three of them for him. Imagine how surprised I was, and I’ll be honest, I thought it was kind of funny. Poor Levi. Then Millie decided she’d come to Granite, Texas, too. His Chosen Bride was born, and I had the best time juggling all these people. I hope you enjoyed their story and will watch for the other mail-order brides’ stories.
Please visit my website at www.rhondagibson.net to get updates on this and other books. I love hearing from readers so feel free to contact me at [email protected] or write me at P.O. Box 835, Kirtland, NM 87417.
Warmly,
Rhonda Gibson
Questions for Discussion
Millie ran away from home. Have you ever run away from home? Or a problem? Why?
Millie learned that facing our problems gives peace where strife used to live. If you ran away from home, did you return? And if so, what was your family’s reaction? And how did it make you feel?
When Levi discovered his mother had invited three more mail-order brides to Granite, Texas, he felt overwhelmed. Have you ever had someone put you in a situation where you felt overwhelmed? Please explain the situation.
Both Millie and Levi felt they had manipulative mothers. Have you ever felt one of your parents was manipulating you? If so, how old were you and what was the situation?
Millie had a dream of becoming an artist and opening up her art gallery. Have you ever had a dream and someone told you it was impossible? What did you do?
His Chosen Bride (Love Inspired Historical) Page 22
