Wed by Necessity

by Karen Kirst

  Smiling shyly, she encircled his wrist and held on tight. “I did.”

  Leaning close, he pressed his lips ever-so-gently against hers. “Am I glad to hear you say that, because I love you. You own me, sweet wife, mind, heart and soul.”

  “Oh, Duncan.” Despite her body’s weakness and lingering soreness, Caroline experienced such sweet acceptance and joy that she couldn’t imagine ever being happier. Her husband loved her. He’d seen the best and worst parts of her, and still he accepted her. Wanted her.

  “I want to start anew,” he said with urgency. “Are you willing to give us another chance? Allow me to prove I can be the kind of husband you can confide in?”

  “I’d be miserable without you, you know.”

  “Is that a yes?”

  Caroline held out her arms. “Yes, my darling. There could never be any other answer.”

  Duncan’s answering smile struck a balance between relief and delight. He wrapped his strong arms around her and held on as if afraid she might disappear. She snuggled closer, too full of gratitude for words.

  Epilogue

  Two weeks later

  The feeling of panic sweeping over Duncan when he couldn’t locate Caroline was all too familiar. He strode out of the barn, hollering for her.

  “I’m over here.”

  Her voice calmed him. The knot in his chest slowly unraveled as he approached her spot beneath a silver maple beyond the vegetable garden. Seated with her legs tucked under her on a rainbow-hued quilt spread out in the grass, she was concentrating on one of her masks, her lip pillowed between her teeth. Tin cans sat at precarious angles around her, likely holding her various crafting tools. Since she’d been ordered by Doc and Duncan to avoid strenuous activity, she’d taken to spending time outside with a book or sewing project.

  His gaze soaked her up, automatically searching for any signs her recovery might be suffering a setback. Despite her and Doc’s reassurances, he was still haunted by the memories of her on the brink of death. He shoved the troublesome images away and prayed they would fade quickly. In her summery white dress printed with dainty pink flowers, she was the picture of good health. A wide celery-green sash highlighted her trim waist. A ribbon of the same color trimmed the edges of her short sleeves, giving him a glimpse of her strong, sleek arms. Her complexion was sun kissed, her lips a soft coral hue, and her eyes were bright. Lately she’d been leaving her long hair loose, a shining blond curtain that reached the middle of her back. He loved the simple style.

  He crouched in front of her, careful not to soil the quilt with his boots. “But to see her was to love her, love but her, and love forever.”

  “Quoting Robert Burns again?” A content smile graced her mouth.

  “What can I say? The man had a way with words.” He winked at her. “What are you working on?”

  “My butterfly mask. It’s finished.” She held it up for inspection.

  “This one’s my favorite.” Reaching out to test one of the aquamarine stones, he said, “Are you going to sell it?”

  After the curiosity shop had sold her masks and requested more, she’d decided to sell most of her inventory and distribute the money among the women who’d worked in the now-shuttered artificial-flower shops.

  “I think I’m going to keep this one.”

  “Good.” Resting his knees on the ground, he produced a paper-wrapped box from his pocket. “I’m hoping you’ll want to keep this, too.”

  “What is it?”

  She turned it over in her hands. “It’s obviously not a living thing, and it’s too small to be a cleaning tool.”

  “It arrived today in the mail. I forgot to pack it while I was in Boston, so I contacted my parents. They were happy to oblige me.” His parents and brothers were as eager to meet Caroline as she was them. When she was fully recovered, they planned to embark on a long holiday. He couldn’t wait to show her the best parts of Boston.

  Aiming a questioning smile his way, she quipped, “It’s not my birthday.”

  “Consider it a wedding gift.”

  Gingerly unwrapping the packaging, she opened the lid and peered at the contents. Her eyes widened and her lips parted on a sigh. “Duncan, it’s lovely.”

  She lifted the wedding band his grandfather had crafted for his beloved and presented to her on their wedding day decades before. His grandmother had worn it until her death and, according to her wishes, it had passed to Duncan. The gold band was twisted into the shape of a Celtic knot and graced with three miniature diamonds. While the knot meant different things to different people, in his family it represented the endless bonds of matrimony viewed in the eyes of a holy God.

  “My grandfather had this ring especially designed for my grandmother. I was always her favorite.” He winked at her. “She promised it to me while I was still a young lad. She wanted me to give it to the woman of my choosing, the woman who tamed my adventurous heart. That woman is you, Caroline.”

  He carefully removed her plain band and replaced it with his grandmother’s. “It fits.”

  Her eyes soft with emotion, she leaned over to hug him and, in the process, knocked over several of the tin cans.

  “Hold on a moment.” He started moving the cans to the ground beside him.

  “What are you doing?”

  “It’s nap time.” Grinning, he tugged off his boots and tossed them, one by one, over his shoulder.

  Her cheeks pinked, and her smile took on that shy, we-share-a-secret quality. “Ah, so it is.”

  Duncan joined her on the quilt and, pulling her into the circle of his arms, shifted onto his back. “This is my favorite part of the day,” he mused, studying the patterns of clouds drifting past.

  They’d sort of fallen into this habit in those initial days after her fever broke and she was still confined to the sickbed.

  “Mine, too.” Tucked against his side, her fingers playing with the buttons on his shirt, she sighed. “I wish we could do this every day, but I’m pretty well healed. I can resume my usual chores, which means there won’t be time for naps. Besides, I’m sure my father wonders where you go every day.”

  “If your father noticed, he hasn’t said anything. Wendell, on the other hand, recognized the pattern. He approves.” Duncan chuckled. He’d developed a deep fondness for the older man. The fact that Wendell adored Caroline had a lot to do with it.

  “In about a week’s time, I’ll be the boss around here, which means I can take a nap with my beautiful wife if I’m so inclined.”

  As expected, Caroline raised up on one arm to stare at him. “Care to explain that?”

  Smoothing her hair behind her ear, he said, “Your mother and father have decided to move to Virginia. He sold his soap factories. He deeded us the house and the property.”

  Her lips parted. “I knew they were thinking of traveling, but I had no idea they planned to move away. Why Virginia?”

  “They have friends there, he said. With everything that’s happened, they aren’t ready to return to Charleston.”

  Nodding, she assumed the expression of puzzlement and hurt that accompanied thoughts of her parents. Albert and Louise hadn’t come to see her until several days after the accident. She’d requested that Duncan remain by her side, and the exchange had been fraught with tension. Albert, who’d been apprised of the blackmailing situation, had offered a stiff apology. Louise had been oddly silent. They’d left after a brief time and hadn’t returned. Duncan had wrestled with feelings of anger on his wife’s behalf and had had to offer frequent prayers for God’s help. There was nothing he could do to repair her relationship with them, but he could offer her a listening ear and a shoulder to cry on whenever she needed.

  Their move would be good for her, in his opinion.

  “What are you thinking?” he said.

 
Her mouth curved into a dreamy sort of smile. “That I’m blessed to know you. I didn’t know what love was until you came into my life.”

  Her palm against his chest for support, she leant down and kissed him. He cradled her head, reveling in the waterfall of her silk hair across his skin. The moment ended too soon.

  “We have a decision to make,” he said.

  “You’re talking about moving into the main house.” She surveyed the tiny cabin. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’d be a little sad to leave the cabin. It feels like home to me.”

  “To me, too.”

  They’d made changes during her recovery. The quilt barrier and extra bed had been relegated to the storage area in the hayloft so that they could share his. At long last, theirs was a true union, heart, body and soul. Being able to drift to sleep each night with Caroline in his arms made him feel like the most fortunate man in the world. He treasured the love they shared and the new life they were knitting together as a couple. Duncan prayed that, in time, the Lord would bless them with a child.

  “The cabin suits us now, but when babies start to come along, we’ll need more space.”

  She blushed prettily. “You’ll make a wonderful father.”

  “And you, fair lass, will shower your children with love and affection.”

  “I will, indeed.” Her navy gaze burned with conviction. “I would never allow a child of mine to feel unloved.”

  “I realize that house doesn’t hold many good memories, so we can stay here and build on as necessary. Or we could redecorate the house to suit your tastes. We could even change the rooms around.”

  “That’s an idea. We could use my old bedroom.” Wearing a thoughtful expression, she tapped his chest. “And my parents’ room could be my new art studio.”

  He chuckled at that. “Louise would be scandalized.”

  “That’s part of the appeal.” She laughed along with him, then sobered. “We don’t have to rush the decision, Duncan. We can remain where we are and still use the house for entertaining our friends or ladies’ meetings.”

  “I’m content no matter where we live, as long as I’m with you.”

  Her answering smile and the affection shining in her eyes filled him with such inexplicable emotion he couldn’t speak. Sliding his hand beneath the curtain of her hair, he cupped her neck and, tugging her down once more, funneled everything he couldn’t express into a kiss that melted both their hearts.

  * * * * *

  If you enjoyed WED BY NECESSITY,

  look for the other books in the

  SMOKY MOUNTAIN MATCHES series,

  including RECLAIMING HIS PAST,

  THE BACHELOR’S HOMECOMING and

  FROM BOSS TO BRIDEGROOM.

  Keep reading for an excerpt from THE OUTLAW’S SECRET by Stacy Henrie.

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  Dear Reader,

  Each book has its own set of challenges. Marriage-of-convenience stories can be especially tricky. In the beginning, I thought Duncan and Caroline were going to give me a lot of problems. They wound up being one of my favorite couples in the Smoky Mountain Matches series. They were both stubborn and prone to making hasty judgments about the other person, as we’re oftentimes apt to do. Putting the brash Scotsman with standoffish Caroline and watching the sparks fly was such fun. I hope you enjoyed their love story!

  Look for reclusive Alexander Copeland’s book next. For more information about this series and other books, please visit my website, www.karenkirst.com. You can also connect with me on Facebook and Twitter, @karenkirst.

  Blessings,

  Karen Kirst

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  We hope you enjoyed this Harlequin Love Inspired Historical title.

  You find illumination in days gone by. Love Inspired Historical stories lift the spirit as heroines tackle the challenges of life in another era with hope, faith and a focus on family.

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  The Outlaw’s Secret

  by Stacy Henrie

  Chapter One

  Near Medicine Bow, Wyoming, 1892

  The squeal of the train wheels jerked Essie Vanderfair’s attention from the doodles and half-formed thoughts scribbled inside her notebook to the window beside her. Nothing but hills of sagebrush and late-morning sunshine met her curious gaze. They shouldn’t be stopping yet. But even as the thought entered her mind, the locomotive shuddered to a halt.

  Impatience brought a frown to her lips. She still had hours to go before she reached her room at the boardinghouse in Evanston, where she planned to stay sequestered until her next brilliant dime-novel idea presented itself. Most of what she had in her notebook wouldn’t create the successful novel her publisher wanted.

  “I wonder why we’ve stopped,” her seatmate remarked, bouncing her drooling baby on her lap.

  The little boy was every bit as handsome as his mother was beautiful. Her lovely chestnut hair and sky-colored eyes reminded Essie of her three older sisters. She looked nothing like them with her blond hair and muddy-green eyes.

  A twinge of envy wound its way around her heart at the lovely picture the mother and babe made. That might have been her, if Harrison hadn’t decided she wasn’t serious enough or committed enough to make a suitable wife.

  Not serious enough about life. How many times had she heard those words? Not just from Harrison but from her own family, too. But Essie had gotten revenge as far as her old beau was concerned. The villain in her last dime novel had sported the name Harris and the same pointy nose and mustache as the man she’d once fancied herself in love with.

  Movement out the window caught her eye and she leaned closer to the glass. Five riders with bandannas over their mouths and noses rode toward the stalled train.

  Her heart galloped as she realized who they must be. “It appears...” She wet her dry lips. “That we are being accosted by train robbers.”

  She hadn’t spoken loudly, but the man in front of them clearly heard her anyway. “Train robbers,” he bellowed. Panicked murmurs swept through the passenger car.

  “Oh, my,” the babe’s mother cried, her face draining of color. She clutched her child to her bosom. “Whatever do they want?”

  “Money, most likely.” Essie stuffed her notebook into her valise, anxious to be ready for whatever lay ahead. “Although they might wish to take a few women along as hostages, as well.”

  Like in The Train Robber’s Bride, the latest dime novel from her professional nemesis Victor Daley. It seemed whatever story line Essie pursued, Mr. Daley came up with a similar one but achieved much greater success. If only she could think of an idea that would scoop his...

 
The woman’s face had grown even paler. “At least I have a child,” she murmured. “They won’t take a woman with a baby.”

  “Either way—” Essie snapped her valise shut “—I won’t let them hurt you or your child.” Lowering her voice, she explained. “I have a derringer in my boot.” She wiggled her shoe for emphasis. Not that one gun would be a match against five, but at least it was something.

  Her seatmate looked askance. “Whatever do you own a gun for? Do you know how to use it?”

  Essie couldn’t help laughing, in spite of the tense situation. “Ma’am, I was raised on a ranch and now live on my own in a city. I know my way around a great many weapons. Now switch me seats.”

  Speechless, the woman rose and sank into the vacated spot as Essie slid toward the aisle. Please watch over us, Lord, in this most unorthodox situation. Or could this be the Lord’s working in her life already? Maybe this was an answer to her prayer to help her write a more exciting tale than Mr. Daley. But would it be good enough to erase the troubled frown she’d seen on her publisher’s face during her recent visit to Ohio?

  “Look, Miss Vanderfair,” he’d said, peering over the top of his glasses at her. “You have talent, more so than any other female whose work I’ve read. But we can’t afford to publish more of your stories. Not unless your next one can outsell the likes of Mr. Daley.”

  The remembrance of those ominous words set her pulse kicking faster with dread than seeing the train robbers. She needed a new story that would be a guaranteed success—and soon. Otherwise she’d have to go back to the ranch and admit defeat. Wouldn’t her siblings crow over that one?

  Just one little idea, Lord. That’s all I ask.

  A train robbery wasn’t a bad place to start. The door to the passenger car opened with a clatter, she mused, composing in her head. She’d pen it down in her notebook later. The devastatingly handsome train robber stepped inside, his black gaze keen as it swept the passengers, finally alighting on the beautiful, demure heroine. Her heart beat wildly in her throat as their eyes locked. What did he—