by Annie Boone
“But we never get flowers or cards.” Maddie quickly blinked back a tear. Just like Catherine had done before her wedding when she didn’t want to ruin her makeup with tears. But Sarah was pretty sure in Maddie’s case these weren’t tears of joy she was holding back. “How are we going to find husbands if we’re already old maids?”
“If anyone’s going to end up an old maid it’s probably me. I’m practically a spinster in many men’s eyes already!” Sarah patted Maddie’s shoulder. “Besides, you’re too pretty to be an old maid.”
“I’m not sure it’s about being pretty,” Mae pointed out as she handed Jewel a napkin full of cakes. “Most of those girls have families to help them out. Dowries. Connections.”
Sarah thought back to her employers, who felt almost like her family. Her real family was back in England, at least what was left of it – she had lost her mother as a child, and her father had always been distant. But while the Taurell’s were happy to help her find a new job, a new family to stay with; no one in their social circle would ever be interested in any other kind of relationship with Sarah.
“We need to make our own connections.” Caroline wiped her hands on her skirt and approached the table.
“And pray on it,” Jewel added.
“I’ve been praying,” Eva joined the conversation. “I don’t think we’re going to find husbands here in New York City. There are too many other women in better circumstances than ourselves. We need to look somewhere else.”
Caroline raised her eyebrows. “Where else would we go?”
Surely not back to England?
“I don’t want any old husband,” Mae chimed in. “I want a man I can love. A man who will love and respect me in return.”
Maddie laughed. “That rules out all the young men around here. I can no more see myself marrying one of the boys from the factory than I would jump off the roof of this building.”
“Wait.” Caroline held up a finger as if she’d just had an idea. “A few months ago, I was at the library and I overheard two of the librarians talking about the Matrimonial Times.”
“Marry a stranger? Move out west?” Jewel pursed her lips. “I can’t believe you’re suggesting it.”
“It’s not going to hurt to buy a copy.” Caroline looked at Jewel, who hadn’t yet offered any better suggestions.
“I suppose there’s no harm in reading it,” Jewel admitted.
“The worst that could happen is that we’d get a letter we wouldn’t want to answer.” Mae passed the last of the napkin-wrapped cakes to Eva.
Eva tucked the neat package into her reticule. “No one’s going to make us write back.”
Sarah watched her friends in silence as they all mulled over the idea. It was bold, certainly unusual, almost crazy. But there was something about it, something that made it seem like it was a sign from the heavens.
“If we do this, we might never see each other again,” Jewel quietly broke the silence. “We need to pray on it. What if God has another plan for us?”
“God put the idea in Caroline’s head,” Maddie said.
“And if it’s not a good idea, surely God will send us a sign that we shouldn’t do it,” Sarah added, more and more convinced it was the perfect plan.
“But, the frontier? It’s going to be so much different.” Eva bit her lip. “What if we hate it there?”
“It might be exciting…” Sarah said.
“Everything worth doing is a risk.” Mae held her hands out to her friends. “A risk and an opportunity. We don’t know what life will be like on the frontier, but it will be a fresh start. And no matter what, we’ll remain friends. We’ll write. We’ll visit. We’ll keep each other in our hearts, no matter what.”
Eva swallowed hard, then nodded. “It’s agreed then?”
“Agreed,” the other girls all said as one.
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I hope you enjoyed reading the bonus first chapter of Christina Ward’s book in the series.
To continue reading Sarah’s Journey, find it here on Amazon.
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