“Millie, it’s so good to see you,” Cate said as she opened her arms and pulled Millie into a tender hug. “How have you been?”
“Okay. Adjusting to this quiet place. Tate loves it here…Any news about Darcie?”
“I’ve been in to see Adam this afternoon and Robbins is now in the custody of a U.S. Marshal and on his way to St. Louis. Unfortunately, as many places as Adam has wired looking for your sister and her baby, he doesn’t have any news yet. They seem to have vanished at the moment.”
Cate hesitated, then added. “Adam’s also been looking for your father. Back when you wrote to your father, Adam sent a wire to the Chicago Police trying to tell him of the problems going on here for you, and for your sister in St. Louis.”
“He never told me that, Cate.”
“He didn’t want you to think he was interfering with your family, but he was trying to help you even back then. More wires to Chicago since still haven’t located your father. Adam’s gotten wires stating that your father left his job and the police station doesn’t know where he went.” Cate paused in thought. “I wonder if your father got the first wire from Adam, then took off for St. Louis?”
“Surely he’d let me know if he’d found Darcie though?”
Cate patted her arm. “We’ll just keep praying that we’ll hear soon.
“Well, do you and Tate like it out here? I’ve always loved the view from this porch.”
“I must admit I miss the noises in town, but Tate enjoys the animals and the attention Isaac and Marcus gives him. I’m…toying with the idea of moving on to Denver though, once I’ve gained funds to do so.”
Cate pulled a letter out of her reticule, tapped it against her gloved hand a few times before holding it out to Millie. “Here’s an opportunity you might want to consider first. If you want to answer back, let me know and I’ll pass the message on to the writer.
“How about this young man and me go into the kitchen and see what we can find for drinks and treats?” Cate looked down at Tate when she sweetly talked. “I know my way around Isaac’s kitchen so you can read your letter in peace while Tate and I play host and hostess. Isaac will be in for coffee when he’s done taking care of my horse.”
Millie looked at the envelope, recognizing Adam’s big scrawl on the front panel. It was addressed to “A Mail-order Bride”. That caught her curiosity enough to open the envelope and pull out the letter. Her hands trembled with the thought that Adam was writing for a bride, and what, needed her help in finding one?
Dear Ma’am,
I’m looking for a mail-order bride with certain qualifications and wondering if you’d like to apply.
I want a beautiful woman, with an Irish lilt in her voice. It would be an extra asset if she had long red curly hair and a fiery temperament to match it.
There would be a wonderful extended family and group of friends who would be included with the groom, including a very helpful a mother-in-law and sisters-in-law.
I’d appreciate a ready-made family and would love to have a little boy be a part of our marriage ceremony. More children in the future would make our family complete.
She needs to accept the fact that she would live in a very small town with lots of wide-open prairie around it. A nice, two-story house, with a fenced yard and chicken house would be her home. Chickens and a cat come with the place—along with two babysitters just a block away.
The only thing I need to caution her about is that the groom is the town marshal, and can be in danger as part of his job. He tries his best to do the right thing by the law, and recently learned he must think with his heart, besides his head, in certain cases.
The man in question has, in the past, had a lapse in judgment that hurt someone he very much loved, but he plans not to do that again—if there is any way he can avoid it.
If you are interested in this particular groom and conditions, could you please write back to me in care of Cate Wilerson, or whoever delivers this letter?
With deep admiration and love,
Adam Wilerson
P.S. Millie, will you marry me, please? I love you and Tate with all my heart.
Drops of moisture fell on the letter and smeared a word as Millie read the last line. She quickly wiped her eyes, not wanting to destroy a word on this precious letter.
Now what will she do? She could accept this proposal, or move on to Denver. Which would be best for her, and Tate? Could she and Adam have a good life together, or would his job cause her to be an early widow with more children to support?
Millie wiped her eyes again as Tate burst open the screen door of the house. “Tate, please go see what’s keeping Isaac while I talk to your aunt. Okay?”
“’Kay, Gamma.”
Cate eased down in a chair by Millie, but keeping her eye on Tate as he toddled across the yard toward the barn. “I think he’s grown since I last saw him four days ago. This sunshine and fresh air has been good for him.” Then she turned to look at Millie, her smile fading, replaced by a serious inquiry.
“I don’t know what Adam wrote, but he asked that this letter be delivered to you. No one has told him where you are, so it’s your decision to write back to him or not.”
Millie sighed as she met Cate’s eyes. “He wrote a sweet proposal asking for a mail-order bride, but he spelled out that the person would have to put up with being married to a lawman. It made me think of my parents’ marriage, and I can’t decide if I want that for myself or Tate.”
“Tell me how your father’s job affected your parents’ marriage.”
“Whenever Pa walked out the door, we knew that he might not come back. Danger could snatch his life at any time.”
“How did your mother handle the worry?”
Millie thought back to her early childhood. How did her mother handle it? She smiled now at the memory. “Actually she gave him a kiss before he walked out the door each morning and said, ‘May the good saints protect you and bless you today.’ She said that every morning until…she died.”
“Life is constant—and changing,” Cate mused. “We can never guess what will happen in a day. We will all face danger, and finally death, be it from an accident, disease or old age.”
Cate was silent for several minutes, staring across the distant grass in thought. “I never thought of my husband dying from cancer at such a young age. We planned to live to a ripe old age together—with rheumatism, hard hearing and a houseful of visiting great grandchildren.
“I wasn’t prepared for his departure, but yet I had time to adjust because of his slow death. It would have been far worse if his life was cut short instantly by a bullet, or a mad bull in our pasture.”
“So how did you cope, Cate? I’m not positive I can take the chance of loving Adam, only to lose him in a gunfight down the street.”
“The question is—do you want to love him while you can—or walk away now? Do you think you’d always wish you had those years together—be it one or fifty—or you’d be happier marrying someone else being a railroad worker or a tailor? Just remember that anyone could fall off a ladder or be killed in some fashion you never thought of. Experience has already told you ‘that’s life’ hasn’t it?”
Yes, that was so true. And try as she might, Millie could only see Adam as her husband, gun strapped around his waist as always.
Then Cate added, “As Adam’s mother, I want you to be sure you’ll love him as he is. My son deserves love and respect because he is a good man. Even as a boy, he had the ‘what’s right is right, and what’s wrong is wrong’ attitude, and that’s what makes him a passionate lawman. A wife can’t and shouldn’t change him, just as a husband probably couldn’t change a red-haired woman’s temper,” Cate added with a pointed finger and a crooked smile.
“Oh so true, Cate. ‘Me Irish roots run deep’ as my mother always said, and it continues through my blood, and Tate’s too when he gets in one of his stubborn moods.”
Millie looked across the yard again and sighed. “Tate
is happy here in Clear Creek. I’d hate to pull him away from the new family he’s formed around him.”
“But how about you? What do you want? What’s the first thing that pops into your mind?”
“I want to be with Adam and his family…” Millie grinned.
Chapter 14
Adam’s eyes lit up when he saw his mother had an envelope in her hand. Millie had written back! He snatched it from her and tore open the envelope before his mother had a chance to sit down in the office chair.
Dear Sir,
I have received your letter and will accept being your mail-order bride—if you will agree to my conditions also.
First, I want us to live by this old Irish proverb. “Don’t walk in front of me, I may not follow. Don’t walk behind me, I may not lead. Walk beside me and just be my friend.” We will be equal partners and make important decisions together for our family.
Also:
You will try to be as safe as possible in your job, and will take the suggestions of a policeman’s daughter if they are offered, because she does have experience with this kind of work.
You will help raise my nephew as your own son, along with as many children as the good Lord gives us.
You will allow our family to get a medium-sized dog (preferably one that doesn’t yap all the time).
You will always have a one-pound tin of powdered sugar in our bedroom for “Baker’s Kisses”.
If you are interested in this particular bride and conditions, please be waiting for me at the altar this Sunday after church, for our marriage ceremony.
With love,
Millie Donovan
“She said ‘Yes’! I’m getting married on Sunday, Ma!”
***
Millie stood with Adam on her right and Sarah on her left at the front of the church, trying not to visibly shake as the preacher started their wedding ceremony. She was outfitted in a beautiful dark blue silk dress with a high bustle in the back. It was trimmed with white lace on the collar and wrists and was the most gorgeous dress she had ever worn. A fashionable hat, made from the same fabric and lace crowned her curly red hair.
As soon as her new sisters-in-law heard she was joining the family on Sunday, they sprang into action. Cate insisted Millie and Tate spend Saturday night at the Wilerson ranch before the ceremony. Rania moved Millie’s and Tate’s belongings back to Adam’s house, except what she and Tate needed overnight. Meanwhile Sarah drove Millie out to the Bar E home for Cora’s surprise contribution. The women went through Cora’s vast wardrobe to find the perfect Boston-made gown for Millie to wear for her wedding. Irish brides wore blue for their weddings so Millie wanted to go with a blue theme for her special day. Cora even insisted Millie keep the dress and hat as her wedding gift.
Millie felt so blessed standing in front of the church with the Wilersons surrounding her and Tate with love, understanding—and patience. There was no doubt in Millie’s mind that she was supposed to be Adam’s wife, so she was marrying a marshal today. She was prepared for the good and the bad that could happen in their future, because she’d have the support of his family and town if worse came to worst.
Her only regret was not having her Irish family here today, but Kaitlyn Reagan tried her best to fill that gap. Trying to work in Irish traditions, Kaitlyn wrapped blue ribbon around a new horseshoe for Millie to carry with her flower nosegay. The horseshoe, open end up, would be nailed above their front door for good luck after the ceremony.
Adam probably wondered about the short piece of rope that was draped across the altar, but it would be used during the ceremony to wrap around their clasped hands to symbolize their “tying the knot”, or their agreement to spend their lives together.
Cate had asked Millie to take off Sam’s ring she had been wearing. She wasn’t sure what Adam had in mind for a ring, but she’d soon find out.
Millie turned her attention to Pastor Reagan when he cleared his throat and said, “Dearly Beloved, we are gathered here today in the sight of God and angels, and the presence of friends and loved ones, to celebrate one of life’s greatest moments, to unite Adam and Millie in holy matrimony”.
Millie heard the back door of the church quietly open, then an infant’s soft cry. She tuned out the sounds and turned her attention back to Pastor Reagan.
“If there be anyone who has cause why this couple should not be united in marriage, they must speak now or forever hold their peace.”
“I do,” boomed a man’s voice in the back of the church. “We need to start over. I have the right to walk me daughter down the aisle first.”
“Da?” Millie turned when she thought she heard her father’s voice. Then the whole congregation turned to see a large man with a ruddy complexion and orange-red hair beaming at this daughter, and a thin young woman who matched Millie in looks.
“Momma?” Tate, being held by Sarah, who was standing beside Millie, squirmed down to the floor when he saw his mother in the back of the church.
“Wasp?” The elderly Mrs. Benson yelled, slowly pulling herself up by the seat back in front of her as Tate streaked by her pew.
***
They began the service again, with her father walking her down the aisle and Darcie following them carrying Tate. Darcie’s neighbor Flora Davis, holding baby Amelia, was seated in the front row with a beaming Kaitlyn Reagan.
Millie joyously stated her vows in a clear voice, knowing she would be happy with Adam, living in their little prairie town. The only thing that surprised her was when Adam slipped her wedding band on her finger and whispered, “Let love and friendship reign”. Kaitlyn had helped Adam pick out a ring that had a heart in the design, to symbolize the Irish Claddagh ring. The design of the traditional ring has three key elements: a heart for love, a pair of hands for friendship, and a crown for loyalty, and Adam’s simple statement was the motto of the ring’s symbol. Millie believed the wedding couldn’t have been better if they had weeks to plan it.
Now the congregation had moved outside to set up the picnic reception, and Millie was introducing her family to the Wilersons.
Millie never would have guessed when she answered Sam’s letter to be his mail-order bride, that she would be marrying his friend instead, and gaining an extended network of family and friends in the bargain.
And now her immediate family would fill Adam’s and her house to capacity, but she knew Adam welcomed them with open arms, just like the rest of the Wilersons and Hamners. The luck of the Irish delivered them all safely to their new home in this little Kansas town.
“Saint Catherine, I want you to meet Saint Flora,” Millie grinned with pleasure. Both women laughed but with questions on their faces. “Cate, you were my ‘saint’ helping me here in Clear Creek, while Flora was Darcie’s in St. Louis.
“Every morning, when our father left the house to go to work, our mother said, ‘May the good saints protect you and bless you today.’ When my sister and I were down on our luck, you ladies came to our rescue. We can’t thank you enough for your protection and guidance.”
“And Darcie, these are my new sisters, Sarah, Rania, her twin Hilda, and our special friend, Cora who gave me this gorgeous gown…” Millie stopped talking and looked down when she felt a tug on her skirt.
“Auntie Illie, Unca Adam needs a kiss,” Tate solemnly stated. Millie felt her face flush with embarrassment, and excitement.
“Oh, does he have a boo-boo that needs a Baker’s Kiss?” Millie asked Tate, while watching Adam sneak up behind her to wrap his arms around her waist. Darcie and Flora looked clueless, but the other women chuckled, knowing how Millie took care of Tate’s little mishaps and worries.
“Where are the tins of magic sugar and cookies?” Millie asked, still talking to Tate. She melted in Adam’s arms though when her whispered in her ear, “Up in our bedroom…”
Yes, Millie married a marshal—but she was sure with her luck—they would have a long life together, filled with lots of love and kisses.
Epilogue<
br />
A week later…
Adam read the first of two wires that had just been delivered to him at the jailhouse. The wire from St. Louis stated that Curtis Robbins had been sentenced to hang for the murder of a fellow lawman. Adam hated that a life would be taken, but was relieved that his wife and her family were finally free of the man.
The second wire made him chuckle. His brother Noah was boarding the train in Denver today and would arrive home later this week. Adam couldn’t wait for Noah’s reaction when he found out his unfinished homestead claim had been bought and taken over by a woman—and a little yapping dog…
The End
I hope you enjoyed reading this book in the Brides with Grit series. Please help other readers discover my books by recommending them to family and friends, either by word of mouth or writing a quick and short review. I’d really appreciate it.
Many thanks from the Kansas prairie!
Linda Hubalek
Dear Readers:
The series setting is based on the famous old cowtown of Ellsworth, Kansas during its cattle drive days. The town of Clear Creek though, is fictional, based on the many little towns that sprang up as the railroad was built across Kansas.
This particular area is now the current Kanopolis State Park in central Kansas. Being local to where I live, I’ve hiked the park’s hiking trails where it’s easy to visualize what the area looked like in 1873—because it remains the same now—as then.
Although not all of the Brides with Grit titles may be published as of this book’s debut, please visit your favorite vender to find out when they are available.
You don’t have to, but I recommend reading the books in order to get full benefit of the story line.
Rania Ropes a Rancher (Rania and Jacob)
Millie Marries a Marshal (Millie and Adam)
Hilda Hogties a Horseman (Hilda and Noah)
Millie Marries a Marshal Page 9