by Clay, Verna
Brant paused while a buckboard pulled by a swayback horse ambled past. He waved at old Mr. and Mrs. Snodgrass and then crossed to the warped boardwalk that ran in front of a dozen businesses. "Jenny, did you give Mr. Jenkins that list of staples so we can pick them up next trip to town?"
"Yes, sir." She shifted two year old Ty to her other hip. "One of the letters came all the way from Philadelphia."
"I'll read them tonight. Where's Luke?"
"He's still talking to Mr. Jenkins about ordering some more dime novels."
Brant bent and kissed his baby's forehead. "Well, run in and tell him it's time to go while I hitch Sugar back to the buckboard and bring it around. We've got chores to finish up."
"Sure, Pa."
Several minutes after Brant had pulled the wagon in front of the store, his fourteen year old son sauntered out. Inhaling a calming breath, he said, "It's nice you could join us, Luke. I'd sure like to get home before nightfall. If not, you'll be mucking the barn in the dark."
With a sullen look, Luke hopped onto the back of the wagon and sat on a sack of grain. Jenny snickered and Ty scrambled to sit on his big brother's lap. Brant flicked the reins. "Giddy-up."
After a long evening of chores, Brant finally collapsed into his favorite chair and propped his feet on the hearth. He could hear Jenny telling Ty a bedtime story in the room she shared with her baby brother. No doubt Luke was in the loft devouring another cheap novel.
Leaning his head back, he surveyed his cabin. Besides his bedroom and Jenny's room, there was an additional bedroom that his mail order bride would stay in until they got to know each other. His plan to remarry scared the bejesus out of him, but he was dead set to find a ma for his children. He closed his eyes and saw Molly's laughing face. God, he missed her. How he'd loved her. His eyes stung and he blinked rapidly, glancing again around the combined living, dining, and cooking area that still held her touches in the curtains and knickknacks. Although modest, the cabin was sturdily built from the labor of his own hands.
Unable to put it off any longer, he unfolded his lanky frame and reached for the letters he'd tossed on the mantel. Sighing, he read more responses to his advertisement, none of which he felt any inkling to respond to. Damn, but the thought of marrying someone he'd come to know through a newspaper ad irked him. However, his children needed a mother. Jenny did the best she could caring for Ty, but she was only ten years old. Guilt plagued him at the responsibility that had been forced on her. As for Luke, Brant hadn't been able to bond with his son since Molly's death, and now the boy lost himself in dime novels. And Ty, his baby, God help him, needed a mother's care.
He fingered the letter from Philadelphia. He'd placed ads in newspapers, local and cross country, and wondered if the call of the West would provoke responses from city girls. He'd received a few, but from the tone of their letters, they'd seemed too high and mighty to live in a humble cabin on a small ranch. He slipped a thumb under the envelope flap and ripped it open. The letter was short and written on quality stationary in neat printing. He read it a couple of times.
Going to his room, he retrieved a paper and his quill and ink and brought the kerosene lamp to the dining table. Tapping his jaw, he thought about his response.
May 1, 1886
Dear Miss Vaughn,
Thank you for your letter and also your forthrightness. Please tell me more about yourself and why you would want to marry someone you have never met and mother children that are not your own.
As for myself, I will also be forthcoming. I am solely seeking a mother for my children. If you have romantic notions, I am not the husband for you. My wife died over a year ago from lung fever. I have two sons, a fourteen year old and a two year old, and a ten year old daughter. My ranch is small, as is my cabin, so if you are looking for anything else, I suggest you not respond to this letter.
As for your qualifications, they are excellent. My eldest son loves reading. I can hardly get him to complete his chores without a book in hand. My daughter is very smart and an avid learner. Both children attended school until their mother died. My eldest son now helps me on the ranch and my daughter cares for her baby brother. My desire is for them to return to school after I marry. I am the son of a teacher so I know the importance of education.
As for Two Rivers, it is a small town that does not have much in the way of diversion to keep folks interested.
So, as you can see, I have not painted a pretty picture. I have written the truth so as not to waste your time or mine.
—Brant Samson
Novels and Novellas by Verna Clay
* indicates paperback available
Contemporary Western Romance
Romance on the Ranch Series
Dream Kisses
Honey Kisses
Baby Kisses
Candy Kisses
Christmas Kisses
Rock Star Kisses
Forever Kisses
*Collection (1-3)
Oasis Series
Stranded in Oasis
Branded in Oasis
Crashed in Oasis
Historical Western Romance
Unconventional Series
*Abby: Mail Order Bride (award winning story)
Broken Angel
Ryder's Salvation
Joy's Return
*Collection 1-3
*Collection 1-4
Finding Home Series
*Cry of the West: Hallie
*Rescue on the Rio: Lilah
*Missouri Challenge: Daisy
Red Rocks Trilogy: Past, Present, Future
Healing Woman of the Red Rocks (April 2015)
Song of the Red Rocks (July 2015)
Spirit Tree of the Red Rocks (October 2015)
Fantasy Romance
Shapeling Trilogy
*Roth: Book One: Protector
*Fawn: Book Two: Master
*Davide: Book Three: Prince
Jazmine
Young Adult Contemporary Romance
(Written under the pen name, Colleen Clay)
Fragile Hearts
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AUDIO BOOKS
Abby: Mail Order Bride
Broken Angel
Cry of the West: Hallie