The Convenient Mail Order Bride (25 page)

“Carl Richie, what did I say?” the judge
asked, turning his cold gaze to him.

With a huff, Carl stormed out of the small
courthouse.

Abe took a deep breath to settle his nerves.
It wasn’t worth it. He could chase Carl down and challenge him to a
showdown. The last man standing with the gun still in his hand
would get the stream and land. It would be quick and painless. It
would finally settle the ongoing dispute. He was better with a gun
than Carl.

But he couldn’t do it. Not knowing Phoebe
and her mother would be disappointed in him. Of all the things Abe
could say about Carl, he couldn’t say Carl was dumb. Carl knew what
he was doing when he posted that mail-order bride ad. He’d selected
a young, pretty, and kind woman. He figured all Abe needed was
enough time with her, and he’d fall in love and want her to stay
with him. Carl knew Phoebe would ultimately be his weakness.

Phoebe wouldn’t understand it if he demanded
a showdown with Carl. She was from a gentler place where men didn’t
have a duel over land and streams. Phoebe was a good woman, and
more than that, she loved him. She’d been willing to do everything
he’d asked of her, but a woman could only be expected to do so
much. There was no way Abe was going to risk losing the one good
thing in his life.

Forcing back the frustrated tears that
sprang up in his eyes, Abe told the judge good-bye and slowly made
his way out of the building, squinting at the bright sunlight that
bore down on him. He supposed a hat was practical, but there was no
way he’d ever wear one.

He was half Cherokee and proud of it.
Someday, he might even have children, and he’d tell them the
stories his uncle had passed on to him. More importantly, he was
going to tell them they should never be ashamed of their heritage.
No one was going to make them think less of themselves. He’d have
to give up the land and stream, but he wasn’t going to give up
instilling the right values to his children. And really, that was
more important anyway.

Releasing his breath, he turned and headed
for Lois’ house where Phoebe and her mother waited for him. On this
day, however, he didn’t look away from other people when they
stared. This time, he decided to meet their gazes head on, and to
his surprise, a couple of the men offered a friendly nod. He hadn’t
seen that before. It took him a moment to return the greeting,
realizing it was the polite thing to do.

And he couldn’t be sure, but he thought the
women didn’t edge so far away from him as he passed by. But maybe
it was all in his mind. Or maybe, just maybe, there had been the
few people who had always been willing to give him a chance, but he
hadn’t noticed it until now. It was hard to tell for sure.

He was just two blocks shy of Lois’ house
when Carl’s wife called out to him. Surprised since she rarely made
it a habit of talking to him, he stopped and looked over his
shoulder. She was following him down the dusty road. He couldn’t be
sure, but he thought she’d been drinking by the slight wobble in
her steps.

When she reached him, she said, “I just
found out about the will.” She covered her mouth and giggled.

“I don’t see what’s so funny about it,” he
said, wondering where Carl was. Certainly, he’d brought her to
town, and Abe couldn’t imagine he’d want her talking to him.
“Shouldn’t you be with your husband?”

“That’s what’s so funny,” she whispered.
“Carl’s determined we’ll have a child together, but between you and
me, he’ll never get into my bed. So you have nothing to worry
about. That property you two have been fighting over since your pa
died will be yours in two short years.”

Letting out another chuckle, she wished him
a good day and went back toward the heart of town.

Abe didn’t know where she was going, nor did
he care. She was Carl’s problem. As he continued his walk to Lois’,
the reality of it all sunk in. She was Carl’s problem. He’d seen
the way she and Carl argued, but it hadn’t occurred to him just how
miserable Carl must be until that moment.

Unlike Phoebe, Carl’s wife wasn’t easy to
fall in love with. She was probably downright impossible. Imagine a
wife intentionally sabotaging her husband’s chances of inheriting
something his father left him. Phoebe wouldn’t do that. The fact
that it was important to him would have compelled her to do
everything possible to help him.

He wasn’t used to feeling sympathy when it
came to Carl Richie, but in this one instance, he couldn’t help but
feel sorry for him. Carl had to live with her every day. There was
no escaping it.

Having Phoebe in his life made Abe aware of
how important a good wife was in a man’s life. And, that being the
case, his life was actually much better than he’d realized.

His heart lighter, he finished the path to
Lois’ house and knocked on the door.

Phoebe opened it, and, with concern in her
eyes, she stepped onto the porch and shut the door. “What did the
judge say?”

“He said Carl has the rights to the
property,” he told her. “My uncle sold it to my father, and if Carl
has a child in the next two years, he gets to keep it.”

“I’m sorry, Abe. I know that’s not what you
were hoping for.”

He glanced back at the town and saw an
unhappy Carl helping his equally unhappy wife get into the wagon.
Turning back to Phoebe, he said, “You know, I had time to think,
and in all honesty, it’s alright. I have you, and that’s more than
I’ll ever need.” He cupped her face in his hands and smiled. “I’m
the luckiest man in the world.”

Then, without waiting for her to reply, he
lowered his head and kissed her, looking forward to their future
and the children they would one day have.

The End

Coming Next in the Chance at Love
Series

The Mistaken Mail Order
Bride: Book 2

Eric Johnson has been writing to his mail
order bride for months, and at long last, the day she’s due to
arrive has come. Only, the young lady who comes off the stagecoach
isn’t at all what he expected. From her description, he was
expecting someone beautiful with the charms found in her southern
upbringing, something important since he’s the sheriff in a town in
need of reputable leadership.

However, he was a man of his word, and he
was going to marry her despite her homely appearance. He had
enjoyed their correspondence over the past year, after all, and he
reminded himself initial impressions weren’t everything. But then,
when the preacher pronounces them husband and wife, he finds out
she’s the wrong lady.

Worse, Caroline Benton’s just as shocked as
he is, not realizing she’d taken the wrong stagecoach and followed
the wrong man to his home. Why, oh why, didn’t she think to ask him
his name? She doesn’t know how it happened, but her penchant for
bad luck has, once again, worked against her.

Now she’s stuck in a strange town with a man
who’d been waiting for someone else, and she can’t imagine he’s at
all happy to be paired up with her for the rest of his life. Just
what is she supposed to do to convince him it’s not the end of the
world that he married the wrong mail-order bride?

Coming June 5, 2016

You can reserve your copy today by clicking
here!

***

The Accidental Mail Order
Bride: Book 3

Eric Johnson’s real mail order bride shows
up later than expected, and she quickly learns he is already
married. Now Allie Jones is stuck in a small Colorado town with no
way to leave. She must either marry the only remaining bachelor or
risk being sold to the saloon’s owner to be one of the soiled
doves. Seeing she has no real choice, she agrees to marry the
bachelor.

Not being much to look at and hefty, Travis
Martin is content to live alone, sheltered in the wooded area of
the mountainside, free from the town’s endless gossip. So that’s
why the last thing he expects is a preacher when there’s a knock on
the door. With great hesitation, he agrees to the marriage. He
can’t confine her to the saloon, but he knows the marriage won’t be
a happy one for her, not when she could have had someone so much
better.

Coming September 4, 2016

You can reserve your copy today!

***

The Bargain Mail Order
Bride: Book 4

COVER COMING SOON

Carl Richie’s wife took delight in making
him miserable, often reminding him how much of a disappointment he
was and how she wished she’d married someone much more deserving.
So when she dies, he’s relieved. His problems, however, are far
from over.

His father left him twenty acres and a
stream that most likely has gold in it, but in order for him to
keep the property, he must have a child. The last thing Carl wants
to do is marry again, but he has no choice. So, with reluctance, he
posts a mail-order bride ad.

Francine Gilbert needs to marry someone—and
fast. On a whim, she answers the mail-order bride ad that will take
her to a place where her past won’t catch up with her. From the
beginning, Carl makes it clear he’s not interested in love. He only
wants a child, and then he’ll give her a portion of any gold he
finds on his land and leave her alone to do as she wishes.

Since love is the least of her concerns, she
agrees as long as he never asks about her past. The two strike the
bargain, and she comes out to marry him. What neither factor on,
however, is that bargains are far easier to make than to keep.

Coming January 7, 2017

You can reserve your copy today!

*~*~*~*~*

For more Mail Order Bride Romances by Ruth Ann
Nordin, check out these books!

Available at all retailers.

Eye of the
Beholder

Mary Peters despairs that she will never
marry. At nineteen, she has no prospects of finding a husband, so
she takes matters into her own hands and becomes a mail-order
bride. When she arrives to Omaha, Nebraska to meet the man she's
due to marry, he takes one look at her homely appearance and
rejects her.

But fate has other plans for Mary. Dave
Larson happens to be nearby and thinks she will make a good wife.
Though she is stunned that someone as handsome and as kind as Dave
would ask her to marry him, she accepts. She knows that this
marriage will not bear the fruits of love. Love, after all, is for
beautiful women. Isn't it?

~~*~~*~~

The Mail Order Bride’s
Deception

“A hardworking gentleman of 26 years old, 6
feet, owner of a small cabin who lives off the land desires
marriage. Lady must be between 18-25 years, have a loving
disposition, and be willing to mother a baby boy. Though comforts
will be few, would like a happy marriage.” Mail Order Bride Ad
Written by Allen Grover on March 20, 1878

It wasn’t until September that Al’s bride
came to the Black Hills of the South Dakota Territory. He expected
Hazel McPherson. But he got Sadie Miller.

Before Hazel died in Omaha, she told Sadie
to take her place as Al’s mail-order bride. Under ordinary
circumstances, Sadie would never pretend to be another woman. But
in this case, it was her only chance of escaping the prison that
had become her life.

And there was no way she could tell anyone
the truth. No. Her secret would stay with her to the grave,
especially from the one man she was beginning to love.

***

All Books Written by Ruth Ann Nordin