Mail Order Bride: Ultimate Mail Order Bride Collection: 6-Book Bundle ~ Clean Historical Romance (Shades of Romance Series)

by Jill Maguire

  Chapter Fourteen

  Her knees felt weak and her head was spinning when the handsome doctor walked up on stage. Miranda leaned forward, past the three women in the line beside her to steal a peek at the man she hoped would become her husband. He was tall, well-dressed and from what she could tell, very handsome. Judging by the hooting and hollering from the crowd when he appeared, the townspeople obviously liked him a great deal as well.

  As Miranda glanced down at her trembling hands, laced together with nervousness, she saw the cut she suffered when she and Cody had plunged into the river. It was starting to heal, but she wondered for a moment if her intended would find it unsightly. Cody hadn’t batted an eye at her injury. Rather, he had cleaned and bandaged it with a piece of cotton he ripped from his own shirt.

  Suddenly, Miranda’s world went quiet. There was no crowd, no announcement of contestants and no confusion swimming in her mind. It was like the earth had stopped spinning and in that moment, everything became perfectly clear.

  Rather abruptly, Miranda was shaken from her thoughts by the handsome doctor asking her name.

  “Miranda,” she whispered.

  “A beautiful name,” he answered. “I knew someone with that name once.”

  Miranda smiled sweetly, only pretending to be interested. “It’s a fairly common name,” she replied, looking past the rancher for any sign of Cody in the crowd.

  “You remind me of her,” the man continued.

  “Of who?” Miranda knew she was being extremely rude, but her moment of clarity had made her realize she was not meant to be wed to the man standing in front of her.

  “My sister,” he told her.

  His response commanded Miranda’s attention. She looked up at him and studied his face. She squinted in the bright daylight and took in every one of his features. The dark brown eyes, the dimple in his chin, the mole just below his left ear and the way he smiled – all were enough to convince her and she gasped out his name, hoping she wasn’t dreaming. “Timothy?”

  “Yes, Timothy Sawyer. Are you? No, you can’t be…...” His face began to crumble as she nodded and cried.

  “It’s me, dear brother. It’s me, Miranda.”

  “But they told me you didn’t survive the accident. The couple who took me in said I was the only one who made it.”

  “I was told the same. But it’s me, I’m here.”

  Timothy scooped Miranda from the stage and spun her gleefully in the air. “I can’t believe it!”

  Together, they melted into one another as the excited onlookers cheered and hollered. Miranda squeezed Timothy so tightly she thought she might break him in two. “Oh, brother, oh how I’ve missed you so.”

  “Let’s get out of here,” he whispered in her ear as he hugged her close. “We have a lot to catch up on.”

  ****

  Timothy took Miranda to a small cabin on the outskirts of town. It was simple, plain and obviously lacking the charms of a woman, but it was clean and comfortable. Timothy opened the door for Miranda and invited her in, the expression of jubilation still plastered to his face.

  “I still can’t believe it,” he murmured as he closed the door. “My long, lost sister. All these years we could have been together.”

  “I feel the same. I don’t understand why we were told the other did not survive. I find it all very odd and overwhelming.”

  Timothy poured them each a glass of lemonade as Miranda glided into the wooden rocker perched beside the fireplace.

  “Overwhelming indeed. But I’m ecstatic to have found you,” Timothy said, handing her the chilled drink.

  “So am I brother. How long have you been in Sunrise?”

  “Only a few short months. But I have dreamed about it my whole life.”

  “Me too,” Miranda agreed. “I desperately wanted to see the land that Pa spoke so fondly of when we were children.”

  “When I turned 18, my adoptive parents gave me a document that Pa had been carrying with him in the wagon on the day of the accident. It was a land claim for a parcel of property here in Sunrise.” Timothy paced the floor as he told Miranda the story. “You and I were to inherit the land in the event of their death, but not until we were 18 and not until we were married.”

  Miranda was speechless. Land of her own in Sunrise? Thoughts started spinning wildly through her mind. Children, animals, gardens, starry nights and happiness at last.

  “But since we were both participants in the bride pageant, I guess that means neither of us will be inheriting the land any time soon,” Timothy explained.

  “Forgive me for being blunt, but you are a handsome, wealthy doctor. Certainly, it shouldn’t be hard for you to find a wife. Why have you never wed?”

  Timothy threw his head back and laughed, a deep belly laugh that reminded her of the days when he teased her as a child. She hated that laugh back then, but now it sounded like music to her ears.

  “I have known many wonderful women over the years, but none that have completely stolen my heart. I guess I just haven’t been very lucky in love. How about you Miranda? Why do I not see a ring on your finger?”

  “I was promised to a man back in Little Cherry Springs, but he was a vile human being who used force on more than one occasion. I fled from my home to escape my fate.”

  “You ventured all this way by yourself? That is quite a feat.”

  “No, I wasn’t alone.” Miranda placed her empty glass of lemonade on the table beside her and furrowed her brow.

  “What is it sister?”

  “I was accompanied here by a man. He was running from something as well and at first, I wasn’t sure he was a decent man.” Miranda paused and looked out the window. “But along the way I realized what a kind and loving person he really is. He protected me and cared for me like no man ever has before and he didn’t treat me differently because of my limp. In fact, he made me feel beautiful because of it.” Miranda looked to her brother like a lightning bolt had struck her. “I think I may have fallen in love with him.”

  Timothy laughed out loud again and slammed his glass down on the table. “Well, I would very much like to meet the man who has stolen my sister’s heart.”

  “He’s very ill,” Miranda told him. “Will you help him?”

  “Anything for you.” Timothy gathered his sister in his arms and hugged her once more. “Let’s go find the man you love.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Cody returned to the pageant only to find the stage packed up and all of the townsfolk gone home. There was no one in sight except the diminutive man who had hosted the event, and he was propped up against a tree, fast asleep.

  Cody’s horse pranced in circles while he tried to decide how to collect his money from Miranda. Maybe she had gone to the doctor’s house. If he asked around town, maybe someone could tell him where to find the happy couple.

  Just as he was about the leave, he saw Miranda and the doctor walking arm in arm straight toward him. Good, she was bringing the money to him. That would save him some time and effort and it meant he could leave this two-bit town sooner rather than later.

  Miranda waved at Cody when she saw him, her smile as wide as it was on stage only hours before. As much as it hurt to see her with the tall handsome doctor, Cody could tell she had never been happier. He wanted desperately to be happy for her too, but all he felt was disappointment and heartbreak.

  “Cody!” she called.

  Cody took a deep breath. He wasn’t sure how he was going to handle hearing all about the doctor, their upcoming nuptials and how happy Miranda was now that all of her dreams were coming true. But if it meant getting the money he needed for medicine, he’d need to find a way.

  “Hi Miranda,” Cody said politely. He tried to sound genuine and gentlemanly and graciously extended his hand to the man who had stolen Miranda. “Doc,” he offered.

  “You must be Cody,” the man asked. “I’ve already heard a lot about you.”

  Cody was confused. Miranda had told he
r future husband about him? What had she said? That he was an outlaw? That he was on death’s doorstep?

  “Cody Hyde,” he said as they shook hands. “You two must be very happy to have found each other. I guess these pageants really do work out for some.”

  Miranda and Timothy looked at each other and giggled like schoolchildren playing a prank on their teacher.

  “Cody,” Miranda started. “Meet Timothy Sawyer. My brother.”

  “Brother?” Cody was dumbfounded. “Your brother? But….but you told me your brother didn’t survive the accident.”

  “That’s what I was told,” Miranda nodded. “But he’s alive, and I’m so happy I found him.”

  Cody felt the weight of the world evaporate from his shoulders. He was her brother, not her intended husband. Miranda Shaw was no longer a committed woman. He wanted to scoop her up and hug her, but he waited for her to continue.

  Timothy unlaced his arm from Miranda’s and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “I’ll leave you two alone. Remember to ask Mr. Hyde about the claim.”

  “Yes, of course Timothy,” Miranda called as her brother walked away.

  “The claim?” Cody had no idea what Timothy was talking about.

  “It seems there is a large parcel of land here in Sunrise that belongs to me. It would be perfect for building a homestead and raising a family. But I can’t take ownership unless……”

  “Unless,” Cody questioned.

  “Unless you ask me to be your wife.”

  Cody heard the words sail off of Miranda’s perfect pink lips, but they didn’t register in his brain. “Pardon?”

  “You heard me. I need to be married to claim the land and the only person I can imagine spending the rest of my life with is you. So, you need to ask me to marry you.”

  Cody chuckled and studied Miranda’s face. He felt like he was dreaming. Cody wasn’t about to risk having Miranda change her mind so he swept her into his arms and kissed her passionately. Miranda giggled with delight and then pulled away.

  “Now stop that before you start coughing. Which reminds me, my brother is going to see to it that you get the best medical care. I need my husband to be as healthy as a horse. That is, if you’re ever going to ask me to be your wife.”

  “First you’d have to stop talking woman,” Cody teased and kissed her again, pure happiness flowing through every inch of his body. He leaned back allowing a few inches between their smiling faces and asked, “Will you marry me Miranda Shaw?”

  Miranda whispered, “Yes,” and the two celebrated in the centre of Sunrise.

  ****

  Three short months later, Miranda and Cody were wed on the very property she was to inherit. Timothy and his fiancée were the only people in attendance, and Cody, now free of illness, had built a beautiful arbor under which they said their vows. It was the most beautiful wedding, simple and honest, and held appropriately at sunrise.

  “You have made me the happiest man in the world,” Cody told her.

  “And you have given me everything I have ever dreamed about.” Miranda reached up and gently caressed Cody’s cheek. “I love you Mr. Hyde.”

  “And I love you, Mrs. Hyde.”

  Cody collected his wife in his arms and the two watched the sun creep slowly above the horizon, the first of many sunrises as husband and wife.

  The End

  Coming Soon to Kindle:

  Love By Mail: The Whistle Stop Brides Series

  Meet 10 couples in the quaint railroad town of Whistle Stop, Wyoming. Each has endured triumph and tragedy on their way to the altar. Can love really conquer all?

  “A captivating new series by Jill Maguire & Kalyn Keyes.”

  A Note from Jill & Kalyn:

  Thanks for reading! If you have a spare moment, please consider leaving a review. We would greatly appreciate hearing your thoughts.

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  Shades of Romance Series

  (Each is a standalone novella)

  Ultimate Mail Order Bride Collection (Books 1-6)

  Shades of Romance Collection (Books 1-3-5)

  Shades of Romance Collection (Books 2-4-6)

  Or enjoy each novella separately:

  His Lavender Bride (Book 1)

  His Verbena Bride (Book 2)

  His Burgundy Bride (Book 3)

  His Turquoise Bride (Book 4)

  His Magnolia Bride (Book 5)

  His Sunrise Bride (Book 6)

  Coming Soon to Kindle:

  The Whistle Stop Brides Series

  Meet 10 couples on their wedding day in the quaint railroad town of Whistle Stop, Wyoming. Each has endured triumph and tragedy on their way to the altar. Can love really conquer all?

  “A captivating new series by Jill Maguire & Kalyn Keyes.”

  His Sunrise Bride

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