Sarah winced at Aunt Lily's terse whisper and bowed her head for the funeral ceremony. Some ceremony. The few pitiful words her mother's remains received from a hasty minister, who probably wouldn't have spoken to a live Rochelle Jorgensen Bartholomew, hardly qualified. Poor Mama. Not even forty years old and nothing to show for her life but a saloon, a few motley friends, and consumption.
Sarah peeked from under her lashes at the other mourners. Her adopted Aunt Lily stood ramrod straight, face puckered like a sour lemon. Sarah regretted bringing Aunt Lily to the cemetery, but it wasn't proper to come alone. In fact, she regretted having brought Aunt Lily with her on the trip from Texas. She had wanted to hire a pleasant companion, one who would sympathize with her poor mother's plight and make the trip interesting instead of an ordeal.
Three saloon girls sobbed into their handkerchiefs, their bright satin dresses as gaudy and tawdry in the daylight as their brilliantly dyed tresses. Sarah had wondered why the girls wore such gaudy saloon clothes to the funeral instead of daytime dresses, but Ruby explained these were the last dresses Mama had given them. With the breeze came the smell of the cheap perfume worn by the girls. Those three, the bartender, and the man who stood guard at the saloon door were the only other mourners at the cemetery. Five lost souls from her mother's short life.
It won't be like this for me. I won't let it.
She wanted friends and family, a stable home, to be respected in the community. When she died, plenty of people would mourn her loss. She intended to leave a legacy of good works—and children, grandchildren, friends who would celebrate all she had accomplished on this earth.
And she wanted to accomplish a lot. To serve others in need as her half sister, Pearl, had served her and their half brother, Storm. To make a change in the lives of others as Pearl did with her healing. To set a good example.
The minister droned on about repentance and the life hereafter. Sarah's gaze roamed the cemetery. Not far away, a lone man stood staring at her little group. Perhaps he had lost someone, too. No, he stared directly at her. My stars, glared would be more like it.
Sun streaking through tree limbs over his head shot his light brown hair with gold. Dressed in a black suit and gray patterned vest, he wore a fancy white shirt and a black string tie. In his hand he held a flat crowned black hat with a wide brim. Could he be some gambler who had known her mother?
A handsome man, she thought, if only he would smile. He braced one shoulder against the tree trunk. She wondered if grief brought him here. He looked angry, not sad.
"Sarah," Lily's harsh whisper caught her attention. ”I declare, are you staring at that man during your very own mama's funeral?"
She felt herself flush before she whispered back, "He keeps watching us. I wondered if he knew Mama."
"Half the men in town knew your mama. And I do mean in the Biblical sense. Now pay attention and quit embarrassing me."
One more time, Sarah wondered why she let herself be bullied into bringing Lily as chaperone. And why did she let Lily talk to her so rudely? She sighed and admitted she always let others dominate her. What kind of good works could she accomplish if she couldn't stand up for herself?
At first she had wondered why Lily agreed to act as escort, but now she knew the answer. Lily used any opportunity to her own advantage. Her old beau, Harold Vermillion—now an eligible widower—lived near their host and hostess, Harold's brother Walter and sister-in-law Margaret. Wild horses couldn't have prevented Lily visiting St. Louis once she learned Harold would welcome her consoling presence.
The minister ceased his admonitions and mourners filed past to offer condolences. Poor little Faye cried so much the kohl around her eyes smeared into a raccoon mask. Her hair escaped its headdress and tumbled in an iridescent yellow spill down her puce satin gown.
"You know Roxie was the best person in the world. I would have starved if it wasn't for her. She helped me when no one else would."
"Thank you for telling me.” Sarah felt as if someone else spoke the trite phrase. "And thank you for coming.
Ruby's orange hair belied her name, but Sarah liked her best of the girls. Lollie and Ruby approached together.
"She's better off," Ruby said, smoothing a crease in the black lace of her red dress. "But don't ever forget she thought of you every day, and was so proud of you."
"That's right," Lollie said. "Kept your little portrait with her all the time."
Though she deeply mourned her mother's death--and life--Sarah had thought herself cried dry. Now she fought tears as she repeated the same phrase, "Thank you for telling me. Thank you both for coming."
The bouncer nodded to her. "Sorry 'bout your ma. She gave me a job when I was awful hungry. Trusted me like I was somebody. I won't never forget her."
"Thank you. That would make her proud."
Bowler hat in his beefy hands, the bartender stopped in front of her. "Reckon we'll be finishin' up our business tomorrow?"
Sarah nodded. "Yes, Mr. Fykes. I'll come to the saloon to clear out the rest of Mama's things. The attorney will meet us there at two, then The Lucky Times Palace will belong to you."
"Been waitin' a long time to have my own place. Still and all, I'm right sorry it come about from Roxie's passing on."
"Thank you. I'll see you tomorrow."
When the last of the mourners had offered condolences, Sarah stood by the open grave. Workmen arrived and shoveled dirt onto the casket holding Mama's remains. Sarah's heart broke for all the pain her mother had suffered. She wanted to stop the workmen, to urge them to let her have more time to say goodbye, but couldn't speak.
She jumped when she felt a firm grip on her arm.
"Come along." Lily pulled at her. "Margaret expects us for dinner and Harold is stopping by later. Thank goodness this debacle is over."
Sarah pushed down the goose-egg-sized lump in her throat to defend her mother. "Mama was a good person, Lily."
Lily's nose tipped up. "I suppose everyone thinks his or her own mother is a good person."
"In this case I'm right. She helped a lot of people. Didn't you listen to the people who worked for her?"
Her aunt stopped and shot her a frown, her mouth open in surprise. "No, I did not listen to that riffraff. Surely I hardly need remind you of how your mama earned her living?"
Sarah walked ahead with her head high. Though she felt a blush spread, her heavy veil hid it from Lily. "I know she let the girls take customers upstairs if they chose to, but she didn't do, um... that and didn't encourage them to. Cal and Mama were married as well as being professional partners until he died. Mama ran a saloon, a successful business, not a brothel as you said."
Surprised at her own long speech, she wished she had the gumption to remind her holier-than-thou aunt of Lily's own checkered past, but the words wouldn’t come.
"Well, it's a sordid business at best. Thank goodness you're selling that awful place immediately."
"Mama had the sale all arranged. Besides, I couldn't very well run a St. Louis saloon from Texas. Mama was proud I have my teaching at home."
"Your teaching? I declare I do not understand why you insist on teaching those low class children in your very own school. If their parents don't want to teach the children English so they can go to school in town, why should you?"
Refusing to be drawn into an old argument with her snobbish aunt, Sarah fell silent. She hated confrontation, and conversations with Lily brought nothing else.
The Vermillion's driver helped them into the buggy as if they were rare porcelain. Lily arranged her skirts carefully. Sarah caught herself imitating her aunt's actions automatically and sighed again. Sometimes she felt invisible, just an imitation of her aunt or her sister Pearl. Not that she minded being like Pearl, who was the best person she’d ever known. Still, she wanted to be her own person.
That man in black stood watching as they drove past. Lily pointed her nose in the air as if he were unworthy of notice. From beneath her veil Sarah turned her h
ead and returned his stare. What a handsome man—if only he would smile.
To read the rest of The Most Unsuitable Husband, go to the universal Amazon buy link, http://mybook.to/Husband
Pearl 's Chicken and Dumplings
1 large stewing hen
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon powder
Optional: sliced carrot and celery
Choose and prepare a nice fat hen. Cut it up, with the meat on the bone. Stew the chicken in a large pot with plenty of water. After the chicken has cooked, you may want to remove the bones so people do not have to deal with them when they eat, but they add flavor and nutrition to the broth.
Cook the chicken until it is tender (about an hour).You can put slices of carrot and celery in the broth as the chicken cooks. Season broth with salt and pepper. When the chicken is tender, cook on very low simmer while you make the dumpling dough.
To make the dough: Mix the flour, shortening, baking powder, salt and milk. Roll dough out thin and add more flour if it is not stiff enough. Cut it into strips about 1" to 2" wide. Keep heat low under chicken. Drop half of dumplings into broth, pulling strips of dough into pieces as you drop them. After about five minutes, push those dumplings to the side of the pan and drop in the rest of the dough in the same way. Cook another five minutes or so. Stir. Take a little fresh milk or buttermilk and drizzle it around the edges of the pan. Stir. Cook another ten minutes. Test to insure dumplings are cooked through and serve.
Pearl’s Corn Bread
1 cup yellow corn meal
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/3 cup liquid shortening
1 cup milk.
Stir all dry ingredients together until thoroughly blended. Make a depression at one side of ingredients and break eggs into it. Beat eggs until blended, add milk and oil, and stir thoroughly. Pour into 8” by 8” greased pan or drop into greased muffin tins. Makes 24 muffins.
Bake at 425 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes, or until edges start to brown. Serve warm with butter and honey.
Dear Reader,
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Read Caroline’s western historical titles:
Mistletoe Mistake, sweet Christmas story set in Montana
Blessing, Widows of Wildcat Ridge, set in Utah, sweet
Garnet, Widows of Wildcat Ridge, coming January 2019
Loving A Rancher Series (sweet)
Amanda’s Rancher, No. 1
The Rancher and the Shepherdess, No. 2
Murdoch’s Bride, No. 3
Bride’s Adventure, No. 4
Snare His Heart, No. 5
Capture Her Heart, No. 6
Loving A Rancher, No. 7
Patience, Bride of Washington, American Mail-Order Brides Series #42, sweet
Bride Brigade Series: sweet, set in Texas
Josephine, Bride Brigade book 1
Angeline, Bride Brigade book 2
Cassandra, Bride Brigade book 3
Ophelia, Bride Brigade book 4
Rachel, Bride Brigade book 5
Lorraine, Bride Brigade book 6
Prudence, Bride Brigade book 7
The Surprise Brides: Jamie, sensual, released simultaneously with three other of The Surprise Brides books which are: Gideon by Cynthia Woolf, Caleb by Callie Hutton, and Ethan by Sylvia McDaniel, each book is about one of the Fraser brothers of Angel Springs, Colorado
The Kincaid Series: Sensual, set in Texas
The Most Unsuitable Wife, Kincaids book one
The Most Unsuitable Husband, Kincaids book two
The Most Unsuitable Courtship, Kincaids book three
Gabe Kincaid, Kincaids book four
Monk’s Bride, book five, novella, sweet
Save Your Heart For Me, a mildly sensual romance adventure novella set in Texas
Stone Mountain (Texas) Series:
Brazos Bride, Men of Stone Mountain Texas book one, sensual
Buy the Audiobook here
High Stakes Bride, Men of Stone Mountain Texas book two, sensual
Buy the Audiobook here
Bluebonnet Bride, Men of Stone Mountain Texas book three, sensual
Tabitha’s Journey, a Stone Mountain Texas mail-order bride novella, sweet
Stone Mountain Reunion, a Stone Mountain Texas short story, sweet
Stone Mountain Christmas, a Stone Mountain Texas Christmas novella, sweet
Winter Bride, a Stone Mountain Texas romance, sweet
McClintocks: set in Texas
The Texan’s Irish Bride, McClintocks book one, sensual
O’Neill’s Texas Bride, McClintocks book two, sweet
McClintock’s Reluctant Bride, McClintocks book three
Daniel McClintock, McClintocks book four, sweet
Long Way Home, a sweet-ish Civil War adventure romance set in Georgia
Caroline’s Texas Time Travels
Out Of The Blue, 1845 Irish lass comes forward to today Texas, sensual
Texas Lightning, sweet, 1896 woman rancher comes forward to today
Texas Rainbow, sweet, 1920s flapper comes forward to today
Texas Storm, sweet, WWII WASP comes forward to today
Contemporary Western Hearts Facebook Group
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Caroline’s Contemporary Titles
Angel For Christmas, sweet Christmas tale of second chances, sweet
Texas Caprock Tales:
Be My Guest, mildly sensual with mystery, sensual
Grant Me The Moon, sweet with mystery,
Snowfires, sensual, set in Texas
Home Sweet Texas Home, Texas Home book one, sweet
Caroline’s Mysteries: (Texas)
Almost Home, a Link Dixon mystery
Death In The Garden, a Heather Cameron cozy mystery
Take Advantage of Bargain Boxed Sets:
Mail-Order Tangle: Linked books: Mail-Order Promise by Caroline Clemmons and Mail-Order Ruckus by Jacquie Rogers, set in Texas and Idaho
Under A Mulberry Moon, nine-author anthology, July 2018, available for a limited time, novellas by Zina Abbott, Patricia Pacjac Carroll, Caroline Clemmons, Carra Copelin, Keta Diablo, P. A. Estelle, Cissie Patterson, Charlene Raddon, and Jacquie Rogers.
The Kincaids, Books 1-4 in one set, sensual, Texas
Cindere
lla Treasure Trove, excerpts, blurbs, author bios, and recipes from authors who write books with a new take on a fairy tale. Free
Musings and Medleys, blurbs, excerpts, recipes, and author bios from the authors in Under A Mulberry Moon. Free
About Caroline Clemmons
Through a crazy twist of fate, Caroline Clemmons was not born on a Texas ranch. To make up for this tragic error, she writes about handsome cowboys, feisty ranch women, and scheming villains in a small office her family calls her pink cave. She and her Hero live in North Central Texas cowboy country where they ride herd on their rescued cats and dogs. The books she creates there have made her an Amazon bestselling author and won several awards. Find her on her blog, website, Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, Google+, and Pinterest.
Join her and other readers at Caroline’s Cuties, a Facebook group at for special excerpts, exchanging ideas, contests, giveaways, and talking to people about books and other fun things.
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The Most Unsuitable Wife
The Kincaids, Book One
Caroline Clemmons
The Most Unsuitable Wife Page 31
