A Bride For Brynmor (Songbird Junction Book 1)
Page 11
JacquiNelson.com
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RESCUING RAVEN
Deadwood 1876...
In a gold rush storm, can an unlikely pair rescue each other?
Raven wants to save one person. Charlie wants to save the world. Their warring nations thrust them together but duty pulled them apart—until their paths crossed again in Deadwood for a fight for love.
Rescuing Raven is a standalone story but also part of the Lonesome Hearts series which can be read in any order.
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EXCERPT ~ CHAPTER 1
August 1876, Dakota Territory
Fighting a growing impatience fueled by rage, Charlie Jennings drew his revolver and urged his horse through the trees flanking the Deadwood Trail. Below him, an Appaloosa with the strikingly similar color of his own horse—white covered from head to hock in chestnut spots—was rein-tied to the back of a buckboard. If the horse hadn’t caught his attention, he might not have given the transport a second look.
He might not have seen her.
The wagon rattled forward carrying one silent and seven grumbling passengers. When a bend in the trail cast the sun in the eyes of the guards, one riding behind and the other in front, he charged his spotted mare down onto the road.
Everyone in the wagon, except for the cowering raven-haired woman, screamed. The driver jerked on the reins. The horses skidded to a halt. The guards scrambled for their weapons.
The click of his revolver being cocked made them all freeze.
The silence that followed was as heated as the summer sun on his back. The guards glared at him through squinted eyes. He kept his focus on them as well—lined up in a neat row down the barrel of his Colt Peacemaker.
“Jennings,” growled the closest man, who went by the name Big Bill. “You shouldn’t be here.”
“Yeah,” hollered Bill’s partner, a stranger who resembled a beanpole.
Frontier trails and towns had a way of attracting similarly named men, including the Charlies like him. They also had a fondness for embellishment. The deck was stacked in favor of the rear guard being called Skinny Sam or Loudmouth Pete.
“We heard you were guidin’ a miner ’n his four kids, the ones who lost their ma, away from Deadwood.” At least Skinny hadn’t heard, and used, the double-barreled moniker Charlie had been saddled with since arriving in the Black Hills.
“But you,” he shot back, “didn’t hear that my job finished ahead of schedule.”
“Well,” Bill said on a long breath, “ain’t that a spot of bad luck.”
“Not for one of your passengers.” He didn’t look her way. He’d already seen enough: a ragtag assortment of women, one hunched with her dark head over her wrists tied to the wagon.
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To read the rest or learn more about Rescuing Raven, visit my website JacquiNelson.com
THE CALLING BIRDS
The Fourth Day in the
Twelve Days of Christmas Mail-Order Brides series
A wanted woman's flight,
a man in pursuit of honesty, not stolen gold...
and only nine days left to save the town.
Many years have passed since Bernadette Bellamy fled the Cariboo Gold Rush and her reputation as the sister of a French-Canadian gang of thieves. Armed with only an honest talent for sewing and a willingness to lead a solitary life on the run, she stays one step ahead of everyone seeking her brothers’ last—and now lost—heist. Until a craving to settle down makes her reinvent herself as Birdie Bell, a dress shop owner. The arrival of an old foe combined with her desire to hold onto her treasure trove of fabrics has Birdie joining a wagonload of brides bound for a remote town.
After losing his leg and his wife, Jack Peregrine buries his pain under a mountain-high pile of work. He only agrees to sign up for a mail-order bride to save the town of Noelle, keep his freighting business, and care for his absentminded grandfather. But Jack’s request for a sturdy bride who won’t crumble under his burdens brings him a woman as tiny as she is troubled. Can two mismatched people band together to become the perfect match?
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THE CALLING BIRDS ~ EXCERPT
Noelle, Colorado
December 24, 1876
A crowd of women filled La Maison’s front hall. One of them was Jack’s bride, Birdie Bell. A hard-working woman who’d started her own dressmaking business in Denver. A mature woman of thirty. A strong woman who wouldn’t break under life’s hardships.
Maybe his luck would change today. With time Miss Bell might come to respect or maybe even enjoy his company. He needed this marriage to last.
He should’ve looked for his grandfather first, but he couldn’t stop his gaze from scanning the women in search of his bride. Even wild-swept from the storm and huddled together shivering from the cold, the women were a fine-looking bunch. How had Mrs. Walters managed that?
A raven-haired, pale-skinned woman standing slightly apart from the rest snared his attention. Her beauty would’ve been enough to hold any man spellbound but her tiny size turned him rigid with concern. A woman so small wouldn’t last long in a town like Noelle.
His worry turned to anger. Whoever had asked her to come here should be horsewhipped!
A faint smile curved her mouth as if she was amused by the prospect of being housed in a location as scandalous as La Maison. He must be dreaming. She shouldn’t be here and she couldn’t be amused.
She surveyed the room, studying everything and everyone—until she saw him. Then she stared at him the way he felt he must be staring at her, as if mesmerized.
“I’ve come for a bride,” a voice proclaimed loudly, a familiar voice that made him cringe. “Which one of you is the future Mrs. Peregrine?”
The woman spun to face the speaker—his Grandpa Gus.
A wave of gasps and tittering laughter swept the crowd. Several of the women glanced at the tiny woman who’d captivated him. She was now staring at Gus with wide eyes.
Her gaze darted to him. When she caught him still staring at her, her expression turned blank and devoid of emotion. She straightened her shoulders, strode straight up to Gus, and said in a lyrical voice with a seductively foreign accent, “I am the bride you seek, Mr. Peregrine. My name is Birdie Bell.”
A surge of euphoria followed quickly by alarm made him stagger and lean heavily against the nearest wall. This tiny Frenchwoman couldn’t be Miss Bell. He’d asked for a strong woman. This one wouldn’t be able to hold up under his workload, the rough town, or the surrounding wilderness. She’d abandon Noelle and him.
Could he blame her if she did?
If she didn’t, she might die here.
“No!” His voice shot out louder than Gus’ a moment ago.
Complete silence descended around him. The chance to make a good impression was long gone. Everyone in the front hall stared at him including his tiny bride.
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Read what happens next on Amazon.
If you haven’t already, don’t forget to add The Calling Birds to your “want to read” shelf on Goodreads.
ROBYN: A CHRISTMAS BRIDE
The sequel to The Calling Birds. Read what happens one year later in Noelle 1877…
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Who’s the perfect match for a flame-haired Welsh tomboy who loves driving wagons?
Raised by three free-spirited older brothers, Robyn Llewellyn has learned to fight for what she wants—and now she wants to transform her boss and best friend, Max Peregrine, into a lifelong partner. Determined to become the image of what a marriage-minded man wants, Robyn trades her trousers for a dress and heads to Max’s hometown of Noelle, Colorado. But changing who she is with the help of the now happily married Brides of Noelle puts her friendship with Max at risk.
Who’s the perfect match for a work-addicted Denver business owner who loves his independence?
Defying his brother and grandpa’s wishes for him to stay with them in Noelle, Max Peregrine has created his dream job—leading a highly suc
cessful branch of Peregrines’ Post and Freight while working beside Robyn, the only person who makes him smile every day. But when she leaves without a word, Max follows her to Noelle where the choices they both must face could make it impossible for them to stay together beyond Christmas day.
Inspired by My Fair Lady, The Gift of the Magi, and the spirit of gift giving, Robyn: A Christmas Bride is a classic Western historical love story set in a small town high in the mountains during Christmas 1877.
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EXCERPT ~ CHAPTER 1
Denver, Colorado
December 21, 1877
“She’s gone?” Max Peregrine shouted, disbelief then panic raising his voice to a roar. “Where?”
Lined up shoulder to shoulder inside the Denver office of Peregrines’ Post and Freight, the three Llewellyn brothers studied him intently, not with surprise but curiosity. And something more. Something his careening thoughts couldn’t identify.
Brynmor, the eldest by several years, heaved a sympathetic sounding sigh. “She’s—”
“Fine,” Heddwyn interrupted, embracing his status as the swift-talking middle brother who needed to do everything quick, including driving freight wagons at breakneck speed. He shot his brothers a secretive glance. “Remember our plan. He sounds upset, but we need to know more.”
“Stuff your plans!” Max threw down his pencil and stormed around the desk where he’d been working on his ledgers. He’d throttle his answers from Robyn’s brothers if need be. “Why—did—she—leave!?”
Griffin, the youngest but also the largest, folded his arms over his barrel of a chest. “He sounds more than upset.”
“Good.” Standing on either side of their flame-haired baby brother, Brynmor and Heddwyn spoke and nodded in unison, like matching musclebound bookends with the same auburn hair and sky-blue eyes. Except Bryn had one eye clouded white. Max had yet to learn why.
The Llewellyns were fond of talk but notoriously unforthcoming on certain subjects. Like, at the moment, Robyn’s departure.
“He’s regretting something,” Griffin added.
Max froze. Leave it to Griff to pinpoint Max’s state of mind while never addressing his own. Griff’s hair color matched his sister’s, but his reputation as the Llewellyn sibling with a short fuse was his alone.
“I regret”—he unlocked his clenched jaw and tried to speak normally—“that your sister might have put herself in jeopardy.”
Heddwyn snorted. “Little Red can take care of herself.”
“Hedd’s right. The wee one is all grown-up,” Bryn proclaimed with another sigh.
“She’s as tough as she is beautiful.” Griff’s gaze narrowed, studying him even more keenly. “Or do you believe otherwise?”
“I don’t,” Max muttered, thinking of Robyn’s lean strength, steely blue gaze, and stunning smile. A smile he’d been blessed to see every day since he moved to Denver. A smile he craved more than a miner coveted gold. A smile that had become increasingly melancholy of late. “Whatever’s wrong and wherever she’s gone, she needn’t be alone. I would’ve traveled with her.”
“You sure ’bout that?” Hedd released a low whistle as he pointed at Max’s face. “Look! Dog Bone’s turning the same shade of red as Ruddy does when he’s near to exploding.”
In Welsh, Griff meant ruddy, but that hothead remained poker-faced as he said, “We have eyes, Peaceful. No need telling us something we can plainly see.”
Max’s entire body burned with outrage. Not because of the teasing titles the Llewellyns loved to dole out, for themselves and others. In Welsh, Heddwyn meant blessed peace, a constant source of ribbing for a man who had too much energy to stand still. Max had learned to look below the surface of their name tomfoolery after Robyn revealed her brothers called him Dog Bone because he never stopped gnawing problems into submission.
He didn’t give up. A trait all of the Llewellyns found admirable. If they assigned you a name, even one you didn’t find flattering, it meant you’d earned their respect. They didn’t waste their time on people they didn’t like.
Robyn’s explanation along with her easy smile had ended his dislike for long conversations. But only with her. They’d talked about everything after that, argued as much as they’d agreed, but always ended up smiling.
No topic had been taboo, or so he thought. Why hadn’t she spoken to him before she left? And how could her brothers question his resolve, especially when it came to Robyn?
Their lack of faith left him not only furious but frustrated and flummoxed. “If your sister asked, I’d have gone anywhere with her.”
Bryn raised an eyebrow in challenge. “You said differently in the past.”
“I did not.”
“Did too,” Hedd shot back. “Then Rob said she had to go there. No other place would do.”
“Took the Clydesdale.” Griff thrust his thumb over his shoulder. “In better weather, she’d be there by now.”
Max’s gaze leapt in the direction he’d indicated, hoping to see Robyn behind her brothers. That this was all some colossal joke.
Driven by a fickle wind, his world spun faster than the snow outside the window. She couldn’t be gone. Not in such a storm. Not when he needed her, when they all needed her. She was the thread that held everything together. Did her brothers seriously believe he wouldn’t have accompanied her on any journey? They’d lost their minds. He couldn’t do the same. He had to find Robyn.
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Read what happens next on Amazon.
Hope you’ll add Robyn: A Christmas Bride to your “want to read” shelf on Goodreads.
Also by Jacqui Nelson
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LONESOME HEARTS SERIES
Between Heaven & Hell
Following Faith
Choosing Bravery
Rescuing Raven (my free read for newsletter subscribers)
Until March 2020 Following Faith is only available in the Journey of the Heart anthology. For updates on the individual story release date, sign up for my newsletter on my website.
All of my stories can be read standalone, but in the Lonesome Hearts series: Between Heaven & Hell comes first chronologically in 1850, then Following Faith in 1852, Choosing Bravery in 1868, Rescuing Raven in 1876, and Healing Hope in 1877.
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GAMBLING HEART SERIES
Between Love & Lies, Book 1
Between Home & Heartbreak, Book 2
STEAM! ROMANCE AND RAILS SERIES
Adella’s Enemy
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NOELLE, COLORADO & BEYOND
12 Days of Christmas Mail-Order Brides Series
The Calling Birds: The Fourth Day
* set in 1876 with characters from Choosing Bravery *
The sequel to The Calling Birds
Robyn: A Christmas Bride
* set in 1877 with characters from The Calling Birds *
Songbird Junction Series
A Bride for Brynmor, Book 1
A Bride for Heddwyn, Book 2 (coming soon)
A Bride for Griffin, Book 3 (coming soon)
* The Llewellyn Brothers’ stories are set in 1878 with characters from Robyn and The Calling Birds *
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MULTI-AUTHOR PROJECTS
12 Days of Christmas Mail-Order Brides
Christmas, 1876: Noelle, Colorado is in danger of becoming a ghost town if the railroad decides to bypass the mountaintop mining community. Determined to prove their town is thriving, twelve men commit to ordering brides before the railroad’s deadline six days into the New Year.
Each of the twelve women has her own reason for signing up to become a mail-order bride. But after they arrive in the uncivilized settlement, they aren’t so sure they’ve made the right decision. Neither are the grooms.
Will the marriages happen in time to save Noelle? The countdown starts on Christmas
Day.
Twelve men. Twelve brides. Twelve days to save a town.
Twelve standalone but also interlinked novellas by Kit Morgan, Shanna Hatfield, Merry Farmer, Caroline Lee, Peggy L Henderson, Piper Huguley, Rachel Wesson, Mimi Milan, Danica Favorite, Amanda McIntyre, E.E. Burke, and Jacqui Nelson.
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Journey of the Heart Anthology
* Includes my story Following Faith *
A collection of eight short stories revolving around modes of transportation in the Old West by Melissa Lynne Blue, Anne Carrole, Stacey Coverstone, Debora Dennis, Tanya Hanson, Karen J. Hasley, Linda LaRoque, and Jacqui Nelson.
Travel along on romantic adventures that will have you falling in love with the gamblers, marshals, ranchers, doctors, riverboat captains, rangers, preachermen, and warriors of the Wild West.