The Cattleman's Bride: A Golden Valley Story (The Brides of Birch Creek Book 4)

by Laura D. Bastian

  Contents

  Description

  Title Page

  Copyright

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  EPILOGUE

  Sneak Peek

  Beatrice

  Dear Reader

  Also Available

  About the Author

  Cora Hatch thought she could raise a family and grow old with her husband, but when she finds herself a young widow with nothing to her name, she answers an advertisement to become a cook, housekeeper, and farm help to a stranger out west. Now all she has to do is take a train across the country and marry a cattleman she’s only communicated with through letters, though that sounds like a monumental feat.

  Levi Finch is tired of hearing his father complain about his cooking and since the old man won’t remarry, Levi decides it’s up to him to find a woman to help out at the ranch. Placing an advertisement for someone to help them seems to be the only logical answer. When Cora, a widow from back east, responds to his advertisement, he’s certain the woman can slip into the role that had been taken care of by his mother.

  But when Cora arrives, sparks start to fly between him and his new wife. Will they be able to get past their plan to just be partners in life and not in love? Or will they spend the rest of their lives, longing for each other?

  The Cattleman’s Bride

  Brides of Birch Creek

  Book 4

  A Golden Valley Story

  By

  Laura D. Bastian

  Copyright © 2020 by Laura D. Bastian.

  All rights reserved. This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. No part of this book can be reproduced in any form or by electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without the express written permission of the author.

  Cover Design by Lange House Press

  Prologue

  Cora looked one last time at what had been her home. The small carpet bag and one wooden trunk on the ground beside her was all she could keep. The rest of her belongings, as well as everything of her late husband’s had been sold in order to pay off the debts that had arisen from the failed attempt at farming. Matthew had done his best, but a series of problems had plagued them. First, an early frost the previous year had meant they’d lost a good portion of their crop, preventing them from selling much. Then, when they’d planted the new crop the following spring, heavy rains had flooded their fields and resulted in very little to sell.

  Mathew had taken out a loan from the bank, but developed some lingering lung issues that had stripped him of his health until he was nothing but skin and bones. He’d tried to work the farm in order to have a harvest that would allow them to repay the bank, but had lost his fight with the illness and left Cora a widow at the age of twenty-one.

  There was nothing remaining for Cora here, yet she had no idea where to go. Her parents were both gone, and Matthew’s family couldn’t help. His parents were struggling as it was with the children they still had at home. She couldn’t impose on them for long, though they had invited her to stay while she figured things out. Besides, the thought of being there and being reminded of what they had all lost didn’t sound appealing. She had to make her choice soon, but it just seemed like such a crazy thing to do.

  Cora put her hands in her pocket and felt the folded piece of paper she’d been given, afraid to pull it out and read it again.

  Yesterday, she had gone to the store to trade her last gathering of eggs before the new owners of her chickens had taken them to their place. Mr. Soren had asked how she was doing when she passed over the basket.

  It had taken all her energy to answer that she was holding on and trying to do her best to find some place to go as soon as possible. He already knew that the Hatch family was struggling to make ends meet, so adding another mouth to feed was just going to give them more difficulty.

  Mr. Soren had given Cora a look as if trying to determine her bravery and then had taken the newspaper sitting on the end of his counter and tore out a section.

  “Don’t know a lot about this,” Mr. Soren had said, looking a little embarrassed. “But maybe this could be an option for you. I have heard of young women doing this. And with the troubles we’ve had here lately, you could find a bit of a relief from some of your trials.”

  Cora had taken the torn paper from Mr. Soren and scanned it quickly at first, then her eyes had widened at what she read. Could he actually be serious about the suggestion of becoming a mail order bride.

  She had been half tempted to give him back the paper, but had been too curious to know more about the kind of person that would be desperate enough to put in an advertisement of this sort.

  She had taken it home and looked it over dozens of times as she cleaned her house one last time.

  What had started out as an offensive and outrageous idea had turned into something she had begun to consider. And the more she thought about it, the more she wondered if it would be the solution to her problems.

  Cora read the paper section once more.

  Advertisement:

  In search of a healthy, strong, and capable woman who knows farm work and animal care. Must know how to cook for farm hands. Must agree to marriage.

  If interested, send a letter to Levi Finch for more information.

  Cora knew farm life. She knew animals and could cook. She was fine with the idea of marriage. But would this Levi be a good man? Someone she could feel safe with? Cora had been blessed with a good man in Matthew and the loss of her husband had been more than she thought she could bear. While she didn’t plan to find a man to love the same way she had loved Matthew, she needed something in her life to work for. Some purpose that would keep her from becoming a burden to her in-laws.

  Cora looked at the address for Levi Finch.

  Birch Creek Idaho.

  She had no idea how far away that actually was, but had heard a little of the progress of things in the west. With trains going across the country, she could reach the area in a few weeks.

  She would write a letter and ask for more details. If she didn’t like the answers, she wouldn’t have to agree to go. There could be no harm in writing.

  CHAPTER ONE

  Levi would need to leave soon if he wanted to get to Birch Creek’s train station before she arrived. It had been more than a month since he’d first received a response from his advertisement. He’d almost given up hope that someone would answer it. When he’d first been told about the option of placing an advertisement for a wife, it had seemed almost unbelievable that a woman would choose to come marry a man she’d never met.

  He had hoped he could find a good woman that would be happy at the idea of having a husband and an eventual family in exchange for helping him run his homestead. But he hadn’t actually expected to get a response, even with the results Michael Clark, the blacksmith in Birch Creek, had gotten.

  Michael had been the first one to send for a bride. When he’d suggested it to Levi about eight months ago while he’d been in town for some ironwork, Levi hadn’t given it much merit.

  But the more Lev
i’s father complained about the lack of upkeep at the house as well as the requirement to cook their own food, Levi had started thinking it might be good to hire a cook. Yet he’d have to pay for one, and right now, things were tight. Until they could get the herd fattened then transfered to Boise and sold, there would be nothing he could pay another person with.

  Besides, since they lived twelve miles from Birch Creek, a cook or housekeeper would need to live there with them, and unless she was married to one of the farm hands, there was bound to be some issues arise.

  So Levi had placed an advertisement for a mail order bride thinking it might be possible for himself, or even his father to convince some woman to move out west. Pa had flat-out refused to even consider remarrying. And when Levi had brought up the concept to his cow hands, none of his employees seemed willing to marry. William kept insisting he was too old and too ornery for such nonsense, Tucker had said he didn’t want to consider a wife until he had a home to bring her to, and Jake claimed he was still too young to be tied down to a wife. Besides, the two cowhands usually spent their time with the herd and no woman in her right mind would put up with that.

  When he’d read Cora’s letter informing him that she was a widow, but would be able to do all things related to caring for his home and cooking as well as the animals on the farm, he’d been thrilled. Since she’d already been married, she wouldn’t have any issues with being married again. He wouldn’t have to teach her how to take care of a home or a farm. That would free Levi up to focus on the work of caring for his herd and making sure the fences and grazing land was monitored.

  They had sent two letters each, explaining things and coming to an agreement before he had sent her a train ticket to bring her to Birch Creek. And now, the day had finally arrived.

  Levi took the horse they used for pulling the wagon and led her over to it then hooked her up. It wouldn’t do any good to get his hopes up. There had been a few other men in Birch Creek that had sent for wives, and each of them had had good luck. The odds of him receiving a similar type woman wasn’t great. And since she was a widow, she would be bringing all that heartache with her. Levi had seen how hard his pa had taken Ma’s death. If this Cora had the same kind of feelings about her late husband, Levi might have difficulty trying to convince her to care for him.

  “Pa, I’m about to leave for Birch Creek. You sure you don’t want to come along?”

  “I’m sure,” Elmer Finch replied gruffly. “I already told you I’d promised Jake I’d help him with that back stretch by the creek.”

  Levi nodded. It would make things easier on him to not have his father come with. He’d hashed out his reasoning for placing the advertisement over and over with the old man, but his pa only complained about the waste of money that had been required to pay for this bride’s train ticket out here.

  It would take most of the morning and even into the early afternoon before Levi reached Birch Creek. And if this Cora Hatch turned out to be suitable for a wife after they’d met, they would have to make sure the preacher in Birch Creek would marry them. Unless they wanted to travel to Oakley to find the judge who could oversee the vows.

  Knowing it wouldn’t do him any good to make plans until he knew for sure this Cora would work out, Levi tried to focus his thoughts on the things he would need to do around the ranch in the next few weeks.

  ***

  Cora watched the other passengers as they prepared to leave the train. The train would be stopped there for a short time while the passengers were allowed to get off and move around for a few minutes as supplies were taken from the cargo carts. They’d arrived in Birch Creek and for Cora it was the end of her travels. Or so she hoped. If things didn’t turn out well with Levi, maybe she’d find herself heading to California. She knew there were lots of opportunities to find employment out there. But she did hope Levi would be a good man. She wanted to have a home, and she knew how to care for a house, a garden, and work a farm.

  Trying to find another option again didn’t sound pleasant at all. Besides, she had no money to purchase a ticket and move on to anywhere else. It had been Levi’s funds that allowed her to make the trip out here to Birch Creek in the first place. No, this would be where she ended up staying. Cora closed her eyes and prayed fervently that this would be a good situation. That she would be treated well and that she could help Levi and make him happy.

  The passengers in the car with her had all stepped outside and Cora finally stood. It was time. She picked up the small bag she’d held nearby her and walked down the aisle between the seats toward the end of the train car. The trunk would be a completely different problem.

  When she stood at the doorway to exit the train, the conductor approached her.

  “This is your stop, is it not?”

  Cora nodded. “It is.”

  “I’ll unload your trunk then.” He moved over to the side where the cases and trunks were placed and manhandled her only property until it was in a place he could then lift it out of the train car.

  Cora stepped down the tight ladder onto the stool that had been placed on the platform. She gave a quick look around at the people waiting on the station platform in hopes of seeing the man who would become her husband.

  There were too many people milling around, and none of them looking at her specifically. How was she supposed to determine which one was Levi? They hadn’t gone into a lot of details about what they looked like besides his comment that he was a tall man with a beard and nearly black hair.

  There were a few men that had beards, though only one had black hair, and he wasn’t overly tall.

  Where was Levi?

  And what would she do if he took one look at her and changed his mind?

  ***

  Levi flicked the reins of the horse pulling the wagon. He’d seen the train in the distance traveling along the base of the far hill while Levi was still more than two miles away from Birch Creek. He’d had problem after problem on the journey to pick up his bride and he had begun to wonder if he’d ever make it.

  Levi hoped Cora Hatch had made it safely. Had she gotten off the train when he wasn’t there to meet her? She knew the name of the town. She would have had to get off here if her ticket was only paid this far. That was if she had even gotten on the train. If he had to return to his father and admit he’d been a fool to send a ticket to a strange woman with the hope that she’d agree to come out to Idaho to be his wife, he would never live it down.

  She had seemed honest enough in the letters. He could only pray she’d done as she’d agreed. He couldn’t afford to come back on another trip if she had missed the train back in New York State. The best he could hope for was that things had gone smoothly, and they could be married today and then be on their way back to his ranch immediately.

  In his eagerness to reach the town, he’d probably pushed his horse a little too hard. Levi watched the horse more closely. That back leg seemed to be causing it some difficulty. He slowed down and the horse didn’t limp or struggle as much so he pulled the wagon to a stop.

  After hopping down, Levi looked at the leg, then lifted it to check for rocks or sticks that might be irritating the hoof. He could see nothing obvious and needed to get back on his way. Levi would have to examine it better when he reached town. Hopefully it was something simple like a shoe issue. Michael could help him with the fit of the shoe if that was the case.

  If there was an injury, it would be a difficult return trip back to his homestead, especially if he got the supplies he planned to pick up from the Howard’s mercantile. If he didn’t make it home tonight, his father would be an ornery bear when he finally did arrive home.

  Levi took a slow, deep breath to try calming the mounting frustration building in his chest.

  When Levi reached the town’s edge, he looked at the blacksmith’s shop. No one was inside currently so he continued on to the local store. He pulled the horse and wagon up near the mercantile’s steps and handed the list to Mr. Howard who stepped ou
tside to meet him.

  “Mind getting a start on this?” Levi asked. “I’ve got to run meet someone.”

  “Sure thing, Mr. Finch. Want it loaded in the wagon as well?”

  “Yes please, Mr. Howard. I’d appreciate it.”

  Mr. Howard nodded and turned to reenter the store as Levi set off at a rapid pace toward the train station in the near distance.

  There were a few people on the platform, but not many. Most were looking through the few boxes and crates still lined up along the edge of the platform with tags and labels on them.

  A plump woman with an odd hat and a few trunks stood by the far side of the building as she looked at the schedule for when the stage coaches would be coming through. He looked around but could see no sign of another woman. Maybe this was his bride to be. He climbed the stairs to the platform and approached the woman, his heart pounding with nerves. Hopefully she had a pleasant face and disposition. And if he was lucky, she wouldn’t be too fond of that hat.

  “Are you Mrs. Hatch?” Levi asked.

  The woman turned around and met his eyes. “No. Sorry.”

  Levi tilted his hat. “I apologize for interrupting you, ma’am. Have a nice day.” He stepped away as the woman turned her attention back to the board. Levi walked to the other side of the platform, looking for any sign of the woman he was supposed to meet. Had she not arrived? The frustration of the journey here, the loss of a good work day, and the possibility of more travel was bad enough. But the thought of losing the money he’d sent her and then the subsequent argument with his father about it increased his annoyance.

  Levi walked to the station’s ticket office and opened the door. Bending slightly to get through the door without hitting his head, he stepped inside and looked around but saw only one person.