Divided Nation, United Hearts

by Yolanda Wallace

  Today wasn’t a workday, though. Today was special. Because today Abram and Mary Bragg were to be married. Not standing alone before a justice of the peace like Wil and Clara had when they had exchanged vows, but surrounded by family and friends.

  Joseph Bragg had returned from the war older and grayer, but essentially unharmed. He would give Mary away today, and Moses would walk Enid down the aisle while Nancy, his pregnant wife of three years, would look on beaming with pride. Clara would serve as Mary’s matron of honor, and Wil, Percy, and Solomon would stand up for Abram. Because that’s what families did. They stood up for each other even when they occasionally found themselves at odds.

  So much had changed since Wil had marched into this small town four years prior. The dirt roads heading into and out of town were filled with carpetbaggers traveling from the North to the South so they could seek their fortunes during the reconstruction, as well as grieving relatives in search of the final resting places of their fallen sons, husbands, brothers, and fathers.

  One thing remained unchanged, however: the love Wil felt for the woman who had been able to look past her disguise and see her for who she really was.

  “Wake up, Clara. Today is going to be a beautiful day.”

  About the Author

  Yolanda Wallace is not a professional writer, but she plays one in her spare time. Her love of travel and adventure has helped her pen ten globe-spanning novels, including the Lambda Award-winning Month of Sundays. Her short stories have appeared in multiple anthologies including Romantic Interludes 2: Secrets and Women of the Dark Streets. She and her partner live in beautiful coastal Georgia, where they are parents to two children of the four-legged variety.

  Books Available from Bold Strokes Books

  Divided Nation, United Hearts by Yolanda Wallace. In a nation torn in two by a most uncivil war, can love conquer the divide? (978-1-62639-847-4)

  Fury’s Bridge by Brey Willows. What if your life depended on someone who didn’t believe in your existence? (978-1-62639-841-2)

  Lightning Strikes by Cass Sellars. When Parker Duncan and Sydney Hyatt’s one-night stand turns to more, both women must fight demons past and present to cling to the relationship neither of them thought she wanted. (978-1-62639-956-3)

  Love in Disaster by Charlotte Greene. A professor and a celebrity chef are drawn together by chance, but can their attraction survive a natural disaster? (978-1-62639-885-6)

  Secret Hearts by Radclyffe. Can two women from different worlds find common ground while fighting their secret desires? (978-1-62639-932-7)

  Sins of Our Fathers by A. Rose Mathieu. Solving gruesome murder cases is only one of Elizabeth Campbell’s challenges; another is her growing attraction to the female detective who is hell-bent on keeping her client in prison. (978-1-62639-873-3)

  The Sniper’s Kiss by Justine Saracen. The power of a kiss: it can swell your heart with splendor, declare abject submission, and sometimes blow your brains out. (978-1-62639-839-9)

  Troop 18 by Jessica L. Webb. Charged with uncovering the destructive secret that a troop of RCMP cadets has been hiding, Andy must put aside her worries about Kate and uncover the conspiracy before it’s too late. (978-1-62639-934-1)

  Worthy of Trust and Confidence by Kara A. McLeod. FBI Special Agent Ryan O’Connor is about to discover the hard way that when you can only handle one type of answer to a question, it really is better not to ask. (978-1-62639-889-4)

  Amounting to Nothing by Karis Walsh. When mounted police officer Billie Mitchell steps in to save beautiful murder witness Merissa Karr, worlds collide on the rough city streets of Tacoma, Washington. (978-1-62639-728-6)

  Becoming You by Michelle Grubb. Airlie Porter has a secret. A deep, dark, destructive secret that threatens to engulf her if she can’t find the courage to face who she really is and who she really wants to be with. (978-1-62639-811-5)

  Birthright by Missouri Vaun. When spies bring news that a swordswoman imprisoned in a neighboring kingdom bears the Royal mark, Princess Kathryn sets out to rescue Aiden, true heir to the Belstaff throne. (978-1-62639-485-8)

  Crescent City Confidential by Aurora Rey. When romance and danger are in the air, writer Sam Torres learns the Big Easy is anything but. (978-1-62639-764-4)

  Love Down Under by MJ Williamz. Wylie loves Amarina, but if Amarina isn’t out, can their relationship last? (978-1-62639-726-2)

  Privacy Glass by Missouri Vaun. Things heat up when Nash Wiley commandeers a limo and her best friend for a late drive out to the beach: Champagne on ice, seat belts optional, and privacy glass a must. (978-1-62639-705-7)

  The Impasse by Franci McMahon. A horse packing excursion into the Montana Wilderness becomes an adventure of terrifying proportions for Miles and ten women on an outfitter led trip. (978-1-62639-781-1)

  The Right Kind of Wrong by PJ Trebelhorn. Bartender Quinn Burke is happy with her life as a playgirl until she realizes she can’t fight her feelings any longer for her best friend, bookstore owner Grace Everett. (978-1-62639-771-2)

  Wishing on a Dream by Julie Cannon. Can two women change everything for the chance at love? (978-1-62639-762-0)

  A Quiet Death by Cari Hunter. When the body of a young Pakistani girl is found out on the moors, the investigation leaves Detective Sanne Jensen facing an ordeal she may not survive. (978-1-62639-815-3)

  Buried Heart by Laydin Michaels. When Drew Chambliss meets Cicely Jones, her buried past finds its way to the surface—will they survive its discovery or will their chance at love turn to dust? (978-1-62639-801-6)

  Escape: Exodus Book Three by Gun Brooke. Aboard the Exodus ship Pathfinder, President Thea Tylio still holds Caya Lindemay, a clairvoyant changer, in protective custody, which has devastating consequences endangering their relationship and the entire Exodus mission. (978-1-62639-635-7)

  Genuine Gold by Ann Aptaker. New York, 1952. Outlaw Cantor Gold is thrown back into her honky-tonk Coney Island past, where crime and passion simmer in a neon glare. (978-1-62639-730-9)

  Into Thin Air by Jeannie Levig. When her girlfriend disappears, Hannah Lewis discovers her world isn’t as orderly as she thought it was. (978-1-62639-722-4)

  Night Voice by CF Frizzell. When talk show host Sable finally acknowledges her risqué radio relationship with a mysterious caller, she welcomes a real relationship with local tradeswoman Riley Burke. (978-1-62639-813-9)

  Raging at the Stars by Lesley Davis. When the unbelievable theories start revealing themselves as truths, can you trust in the ones who have conspired against you from the start? (978-1-62639-720-0)

  She Wolf by Sheri Lewis Wohl. When the hunter becomes the hunted, more than love might be lost. (978-1-62639-741-5)

  Smothered and Covered by Missouri Vaun. The last person Nash Wiley expects to bump into over a two a.m. breakfast at Waffle House is her college crush, decked out in a curve-hugging law enforcement uniform. (978-1-62639-704-0)

  The Butterfly Whisperer by Lisa Moreau. Reunited after ten years, can Jordan and Sophie heal the past and rediscover love or will differing desires keep them apart? (978-1-62639-791-0)

  The Devil’s Due by Ali Vali. Cain and Emma Casey are awaiting the birth of their third child, but as always in Cain’s world, there are new and old enemies to face in post Katrina-ravaged New Orleans. (978-1-62639-591-6)

  Widows of the Sun-Moon by Barbara Ann Wright. With immortality now out of their grasp, the gods of Calamity fight amongst themselves, egged on by the mad goddess they thought they’d left behind. (978-1-62639-777-4)

  18 Months by Samantha Boyette. Alissa Reeves has only had two girlfriends and they’ve both gone missing. Now it’s up to her to find out why. (978-1-62639-804-7)

  Arrested Hearts by Holly Stratimore. A reckless cop with a secret death wish and a health nut who is afraid to die might be a perfect combination for love. (978-1-62639-809-2)

  Capturing Jessica by Jane Hardee. Hyperrealist sculptor Michael tries desperately to conceal the love she holds for best friend, Jess, unaware Jess’s feeli
ngs for her are changing. (978-1-62639-836-8)

  Counting to Zero by AJ Quinn. NSA agent Emma Thorpe and computer hacker Paxton James must learn to trust each other as they work to stop a threat clock that’s rapidly counting down to zero. (978-1-62639-783-5)

  Courageous Love by KC Richardson. Two women fight a devastating disease, and their own demons, while trying to fall in love. (978-1-62639-797-2)

  Pathogen by Jessica L. Webb. Can Dr. Kate Morrison navigate a deadly virus and the threat of bioterrorism, as well as her new relationship with Sergeant Andy Wyles and her own troubled past? (978-1-62639-833-7)

  Rainbow Gap by Lee Lynch. Jaudon Vickers and Berry Garland, polar opposites, dream and love in this tale of lesbian lives set in Central Florida against the tapestry of societal change and the Vietnam War. (978-1-62639-799-6)

  Steel and Promise by Alexa Black. Lady Nivrai’s cruel desires and modified body make most of the galaxy fear her, but courtesan Cailyn Derys soon discovers the real monsters are the ones without the claws. (978-1-62639-805-4)

  Swelter by D. Jackson Leigh. Teal Giovanni’s mistake shines an unwanted spotlight on a small Texas ranch where August Reese is secluded until she can testify against a powerful drug kingpin. (978-1-62639-795-8)

  Without Justice by Carsen Taite. Cade Kelly and Emily Sinclair must battle each other in the pursuit of justice, but can they fight their undeniable attraction outside the walls of the courtroom? (978-1-62639-560-2)