by Debra Samms
"Thank you," he said to Joseph.
"You're welcome," Joseph said, and shyly extended his own hand.
***
At last, with the first streaks of dawn showing in the east, everything was taken care of for the night. Henry was back in his own room and sleeping normally, and Joseph was bedded down in clean straw with a blanket in the undamaged section of the barn.
The house was quiet. Everyone else had gone back to their own rooms to get what exhausted sleep they could. Catherine started to go into her room as well – but then there was a footstep behind her.
She turned to see Raymond standing there in the soft light. Without a word he lifted her up in his arms, carried her into his room, and set her down gently on the bed. He kicked the door shut behind them and threw the bolt.
Catherine knew that they would not ever be apart again after tonight.
***
On a beautiful May morning, two weeks after the barn fire, the damage had been completely repaired and both Rosie and Starflower were back in their own familiar pen. Catherine sat on a bench just inside the barn with Joseph and his two sisters, Ruth and Sarah, giving them their daily reading lesson.
Raymond walked past them on his way to getting Birdie saddled for the day's work of moving the cattle from the north pasture to the south. "Fine thing, teaching them to read. But Joseph has agreed to come and work for me when he turns fifteen."
"And that's a fine thing, too," she answered, feeling very happy. "But someday, Raymond, I won't have to teach them. Someday the Indian children will go to the same schools as the white children, just as the black children go to school with the white ones in parts of Boston."
"Maybe so," said Raymond. "If anyone could change such a thing, it would be you, Catherine Cowan."
She stood up. "And I want to show you something else, Raymond Cowan."
Catherine walked down to the pen at the far end of the barn. Bracing herself, she opened the gate and walked in, bolting it behind her.
Rosie turned and shook her head at Catherine again, but Catherine just grabbed the nearest horn and shoved the cow away. Then she caught hold of the little calf and knelt down in the straw beside her, rubbing the frosty red-and-white coat.
Raymond couldn't help but smile. "I guess you do belong here after all." He opened the gate and walked in, taking Catherine by the hand and drawing her close to him.
"I'm glad to have her back home," Catherine whispered.
"I'm glad to have you home," Raymond said, and gave her a gentle kiss as little Starflower frisked and played around them in the pen.
THE END
The Orphanage Series Book 1: Catherine
Mail Order Brides of Oregon
Bonus Chapter: Moira
Mail Order Brides of Oregon – Orphanage Series
Chapter One
Boston, Massachusetts
May 1, 1887
"Moira! Moira Susan Stanley! Hurry! We have a letter from Catherine, in a very large envelope! All the way from Salmon Jump, Oregon! Come on, we can read it together!"
Bridget Rose lit the small lamp in the receiving room of the Boston Female Society for Destitute Orphans, and then sat down and waited for her friend to join her.
"Moira, you are almost as late as I am tonight!" said Bridget, looking up as the other young woman hurried into the room. "I know the laundries are awful, but at least the days there are shorter than those of us assigned to the kitchens."
"Oh, Bertha was not feeling well tonight," said Moira. She sat down on the old worn sofa beside Bridget, wiping her damp hands on her heavy apron. "The poor woman could barely stand. I offered to finish her work if she was allowed to leave."
"You are so kind, Moira. I am sure she appreciates it very much." Then Bridget held the big envelope close to her chest and grinned. "Oh, it's so wonderful to hear from Catherine! She left us six weeks ago, but it seems so much longer ago. I feel that we've lost a sister, not just a friend. I've certainly wondered what she's been doing!"
"I'm sure she's been very busy as a newly married woman out on the frontier," said Moira, and watched as Bridget began carefully opening the large, heavy, cardboard envelope. "Oh, look! There are a lot of pages in there!"
The two young women sat close together on the sofa as Bridget began to read aloud.
April 10, 1887
Clear Springs Ranch
Salmon Jump, Oregon
My dearest friends, Moira and Bridget Rose,
I do love my life with my new husband, Raymond Cowan, here on his ranch in this beautiful country. Yet I can hardly find the words to express how much I miss you both.
"We miss you, too, Catherine," whispered Moira, and Bridget nodded.
I will tell you more of my life here in a moment, but first I cannot wait to tell you of something that I hope will make you both very happy.
Bridget looked up. "Do you suppose she's having a baby?"
"Why, of course not!" said Moira, in shocked tones. "She was married scarcely a month before writing this letter. What are you thinking?"
Bridget Rose merely shrugged, and went on reading.
I have enclosed two other letters. One is for Moira Susan and the other is for Bridget Rose.
The two young women looked at each other, and then Bridget immediately dug into the large heavy envelope again. Sure enough, she took out two smaller letters, one addressed to each of them, and then continued with Catherine's note.
I have had some conversations with the brothers of my husband, and they have both expressed the desire for a bride.
His younger brother, Henry Charles Cowan, is a bold young man with ambitious dreams of owning his own ranch someday.
The youngest of the three, George Richard Cowan, is also quite bold and sure of himself, but will go far once he learns to channel his great strengths into more practical endeavors.
These are both fine, hard-working young men whom I would be proud to introduce to you. You may write back to them if you wish, that you might know them better and form your own conclusions as to their characters.
There followed several more paragraphs from Catherine about life on Clear Springs Ranch, where her husband and his brothers and her husband's aunt and uncle raised good Oregon Cattle for both meat and milk. The ranch was just outside the little town of Salmon Jump on the Willamette River, four miles south of Portland Oregon.
"Oh, Bridget Rose," sighed Moira, holding up her own letter. "I would love to have a husband – but I would have to leave everything I know and move to a place at the other end of the continent, if I should accept this man's proposal."
"Well, I doubt he's proposed to you yet," said Bridget dryly, "so I shouldn't worry."
"You're right. You're right, of course," said Moira, very relieved. "I can just read his letter. I don't have to accept. Do I?"
"Of course you don't. You are supposed to write back and forth for a few months and then see if he does propose. If he does not, you are perfectly free to look elsewhere."
"I see," said Moira, clutching her letter. She raised her head. "Then I shall read it and decide."
"Very reasonable." Bridget Rose stood up with her own letter in her hand. "I will go and read mine, though I don't think Catherine knew that I may have a suitor here in Boston."
Moira looked up. "Here! In Boston! Oh, Bridget, even I didn't know that! Who is it? What is his name?"
Bridget grinned at her, and her hazel eyes sparkled. "I don't want to say. Not yet. I'm just waiting to see."
"Then – you don't want the letter from – " Moira looked at Catherine's note again. "From George Richard Cowan?"
Bridget stood up and held the letter close. "Of course I want it. A girl would be pretty foolish to discount any possible offer of matrimony. I may be an orphan, but I know more than that!"
Moira smiled up at her. "You are probably the strongest and bravest of all of us," she said. "You will get a fine offer, whether you stay in Boston or travel to Oregon."
"In th
at case, I had best go to my room and read this letter," said Bridget.
"Oh, yes, yes," said Moira, feeling relieved that she would not have to share her own letter. "I'm sure you will like him – like George – very much."
"But I'm not going to my room until you read your letter. And I will not take no for an answer!" said Bridget with a laugh, as Moira started to protest. "Now, let's see just what Mr. Henry Cowan has to say for himself."
A Word From The Author
Thank you so much for downloading my book.
I really hope that you enjoyed it as much as I
enjoyed writing it.
If you feel able, I would love for you to
give the book a short review on Amazon.
To receive notice of my new books, sign up
for my reader’s list. In return, I will be
happy to send you a Free story, My Heart and
Yours.
Many thanks once again,
Debra
[email protected]
Other Books by Debra Samms
Mail Order Brides of Oregon:
Orphanage Brides, Book 1, Catherine
Orphanage Brides, Book 2, Moira
Orphanage Brides, Book 3, Bridget Rose
Orphanage Brides, Book 4, Christmas at Clear Springs Ranch
Orphanage Brides, Box Set of 4
Mail Order Brides of California:
Book 1: A Steely Bride for the Steadfast Rancher
Book 2: The Persistent Bride for the Lucky Shopkeeper
Book 3: A Confused Bride for the Grieving Farmer
Box Set of 3
Miss Helen’s School for Western Mail Order Brides:
Matters of Trust
Matters of Survival
Matters of Desperation
Box Set of Books 1 - 3
Matters of Deception (May 2016)
Matters of a Fresh Start (June 2016)
Matters of Family (June 2016)
Mail Order Brides of Sawyerville:
Book 1: Three Butterflies
Book 2: Place of the Butterflies
Book 3: Journey to Sawyerville
Box set of 4: Mail Order Brides of Sawyerville, Volume 1
Book 4: Maeve and the Shivaree
Book 5: Delilah and the Whitewater Wedding
Book 6: Clara and the Silent Groom
Book 7: Bridge to my Heart
Box Set of 5: Mail Order Brides of Sawyerville, Volume 2
Book 8: Jessamine’s Garden
Book 9: Abraham’s Dove
Book 10: My Brave Irish Lass
Book 11: Winter Turns To Spring
Box Set 5: Mail Order Brides of Sawyerville, Volume 3
Book 12: Dawn’s Early Light
Book 13: Twilights Last Gleaming
Book 14: Rocket’s Red Glare
Book 15: Wildflower Meadow
Book 16: Prince of Sawyerville
Book 17: Wedding Grove (June 2016)
Book 18: Ladies Leap Day (June 2016)
Author Profile: Debra Samms
From the time Debra was a small child, she loved hearing the stories by her mother and grandmother about the 'olden times' when Oregon was first settled. Her great grandparents were among early settlers who forged the trail from Missouri to Oregon. They became ranchers, lumberjacks, and dairy farmers. Writing about the early days of Oregon has long been a passion of hers. Like most authors, she loves to read and write. On any given day, you might find her holed up in her writing room or skipping along a rain-drenched beach, thinking about the many stories yet to tell.
