"Hunter Wilson, do you accept this pledge from Mercy Spenser?" the preacher asked, not caring who saw him wipe away a tear.
"I do, sir." Hunter couldn't take his eyes from Mercy's face. He heard the preacher and he heard a prodigious sniffle from her mother when Mercy loudly and clearly stated her vows, but in his heart he and Mercy were the only two people floating on this cloud.
"Do you have a ring as a token of your love for Mercy?"
"Yes, sir." Mickey gave Hunter the a wide gold band set with a large round diamond and Hunter put it on her finger. "I love you, Mercy. I'm a fortunate man to know that you are returning that love to me. I promise to help you through times of pain and sorrow and to be with you in times of joy and happiness. I promise to share my dreams with you, my hopes with you, and give you my heart and my love for the rest of this life, and through eternity. We really were two lost souls until we found each other right here in this cantina. And, I, uh," Hunter realized he couldn't remember all of the vows he had tried to memorize, "and I give you my promise to love you until and even on the other side of death. And all this I promise, for the love of Mercy."
"Amen," the preacher said softly. "By the authority vested in me, I know pronounce Hunter Wilson and Mercy Spenser husband and wife. Hunter, you may kiss your bride."
And Hunter sealed his promises with a kiss that truly joined their souls for all eternity.
Author Bio
Carolyn Brown is a NY Times and USA Today bestselling author and a RITA finalist. With 68 published books and seven more on the list for publication in the next several months, she has written historical, contemporary, cowboys, country music mass market paperbacks and has recently crossed over into the women’s fiction market as well. She and her husband, a retired English teacher and author of mystery novels, live in southern Oklahoma. They have three grown children and enough grandchildren to keep them young. And no, her husband does not edit for her because she can’t afford a divorce.
Carolyn can also be found online:
WEBSITE: http://www.carolynlbrown.com
FB: https://www.facebook.com/carolyn.brown.16568
FB AUTHOR’S PAGE: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Carolyn-Brown/198727816879253
Note from the Author:
I love, love, love hearing from my readers! You can catch me on my website (contact us page), on FB (personal and author pages) or email me at [email protected]
I try to answer all my mail personally but sometimes if I’m working on a deadline, it may be a couple of days. Without readers, authors would soon top the list of extinct species so please know that you are appreciated.
Please also take the time to share your thoughts on this book with other readers on Amazon or GoodReads.
A few of Carolyn Brown’s other Romances Available on Kindle:
An Old Love’s Shadow
Honky Tonk Angel
Red River Deep
Bride for a Day
How to Marry a Cowboy
The Cowboy’s Mail Order Bride
The Cowboy’s Christmas Baby
Billion Dollar Cowboy
Cowboy Seeks Bride
Just a Cowboy and His Baby
Mistletoe Cowboy
One Hot Cowboy Wedding
Darn Good Cowboy Christmas
Red’s Hot Cowboy
Love Drunk Cowboy
Honky Tonk Christmas
My Give a Damn’s Busted
Hell, Yeah
I Love This Bar
Getting Lucky
One Lucky Cowboy
Lucky in Love
The Ladies’ Room
Hidden Secrets
The Blue Ribbon Jalapeno Society Jubilee
The Red Hot Chili Cook Off
A Forever Thing
In Shining Whatever
Life After Wife
Sweet Romances, Spicy Cowboy Romances, Historical, Women’s Fiction…Carolyn Brown has something for everyone:
“The writing was so expressive that I could almost hear the country drawl.” —Night Owl Reviews
“While the romance is hot, there is an old-world feel to it that will bring out the romantic in every reader, leaving them swooning and wishing they had their very own cowboy.” —RT Reviews
“Carolyn Brown’s books never cease to entertain me. Filled with moxie and has a hero who is drool worthy.” — Long and Short Reviews
“Sizzling…Brown navigates the pair’s rocky journey from friendship to red-hot sex while imbuing her lively story with lots of heart.” —Publisher’s Weekly
Coming Soon from Carolyn Brown:
The Burnt Boot Series
Cowboy Boots for Christmas (Cowboy Not Included), Oct. 2014
The Trouble with Texas Cowboys, Jan. 2015
One Cowboy Too Many, Summer 2015
The Cowboy's Christmas Miracle (working title), Oct. 2015
The Red Dirt Road Series
Long, Hot Texas Summer, Aug. 2014
Daisies in the Canyon, Dec. 2014
The Cadillac Texas Trilogy
The Yellow Rose Barbecue Ball, Apr. 2015
Available now:
The Blue Ribbon Jalapeno Society Jubilee
The Red-Hot Chili Cook-Off
Bride for a Day
A Vintage Carolyn
Brown Romance Novel
By Carolyn Brown
Copyright © 1997 by Carolyn Brown
Cover by Go On Write
“By turns funny and poignant, THE LADIES’ ROOM is a charming story sure to bring a smile to your face.”—Romance Reviews Today
“The age-old premise of simply country folk vs. rich city people may seem trite, but Brown makes this story seem new. From a whirlwind romance to a wedding to a divorce with a kidnapping and a rescue thrown in just in case your interest starts to waver—fat chance—this novel has something for everyone. It's not only a page-turner, it's a keeper. Brown hits a home run with this one.”—RT, 4 ½ Stars
“Author Carolyn Brown has gathered another great group of characters together and brought them to life through their actions, words and emotions. There are moments that will take your breath away, while others will have you ready to help with the lynching party, and still others that will bring tears to your eyes because you’re laughing so hard.” —Wendy’s Minding Spot
“Brown concludes her country-music-themed, sassy contemporary romance series (I Love This Bar; Hell, Yeah; My Give a Damn’s Busted, 2010) with happy endings galore for the owners and several regular customers of the bar, liberally lacing this pleasing novel with all the local color and humorous repartee her fans adore.”—Booklist
CONTENTS
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Dear Readers,
In 1997, I started my writing career with four contemporary romance books written under the name Abby Gray. Writing was going to be my vice and no one was going to know about it, but alas, my sister was so happy that I was finally published that she called three newspapers and everyone found out.
I’ve decided to reissue those four Abby Gray books as Vintage Carolyn Brown Books in digital and paperback formats. This is one of those books, which originally sold as Love is the Answer. It has a new title, Bride for a Day, and a new cover, but the content is the same, hence the Vintage imprint. And since my vice isn’t a secret anymore and all the rest of my books are written under Carolyn Brown, then these are, too.
Getting married was the last thing Cassie O’Malley wanted and she was grateful for the sexy farmer for pretending to be her fianc
ée. Then suddenly she had no way out other than to marry, Ted Wellman, the man she’d just met. But it was only for a day, just until she could rake up the money for an annulment or a divorce.
I firmly believe that love and emotions have been the same since the days of Adam and Eve. Times change. Clothing changes. Attitudes change. But love is the same, generation after generation and that is why I left the story exactly as it was written in 1997.
Seventeen years later and more than sixty books later, I have a special place in my heart for all my characters, but Bride for a Day, is special because it’s one of those first four books that kick started my career in writing romance.
If you like this one, look for Honky Tonk Angel, Red River Deep, or pick up An Old Love’s Shadow, all vintage Carolyn Brown books!
I would love to hear from you. Email me at [email protected] or visit my website at www.carolynlbrown.com or look me up on FB.
Happy Reading,
Carolyn Brown
Chapter One
"Hellfire and damnation." Cassie frowned at her reflection in the cracked mirror above the lavatory in the women's rest room. "I need a scarf or a hat," she muttered, dragging a comb through the tangled red curls framing her small oval face. "I should just put a sign around my neck that says Return Me To Cecil Gorman." She forced all her wayward locks into a ponytail, wrapped a rubber band around it twice, and checked her watch.
She had only a few minutes until the passengers started reboarding the bus. Just one more hour and she'd be across the Texas state line and into Oklahoma. She desperately hoped Cecil wouldn't come looking for her. If the authorities said she had to go back to Cecil's farm in San Antonio, they had better get ready to put her body in a pine box, because she would never go back, not if she was still breathing.
She sighed deeply and walked out of the rest room, right in view of two uniformed policemen. Her heart skipped two beats, fluttered a couple of times, then began to race. A fine sweat formed on her upper lip as one policeman nudged the other one and nodded in her direction. No doubt about it . . . they had spotted her.
Cassie imagined the steely chilliness of the handcuffs they would clamp around her wrists. She scanned the diner connected to the bus stop, but the exit door was on the other side of the policemen, who continued to look her up and down suspiciously as they walked toward her.
She considered dashing back into the restroom, and crawling out a window into the bus yard, but the only window she had seen was too high for her to reach. Her mind raced from one part of the restroom to another, trying to remember anything she could use to reach it—a stool, a trash can, the sink, even the side of the stall—but nothing came to mind.
Cassie prayed for a way out. Then she saw him.
A young man sat alone at a table for two. He looked up from the menu he had been studying and directly at her. She smiled cheerily and waved when she caught his eye. Pretending she didn't know there were two policemen between her and freedom, she commanded her jelly-filled knees to carry her across the room.
Who was she? Ted wondered. When he'd glanced up, she'd acted as if she knew him. Maybe she was a waitress he'd met the last time he ate in this diner. She was undeniably pretty, even though she looked tired and a little scared. Whoever she was, she was going to be embarrassed when she found out he didn't have the first idea who she was or where he'd seen her before.
"Hi, honey," she said, loudly enough for the two policemen behind her to hear. She leaned down and brushed a light kiss across his cheek. "Please help me," she whispered in his ear. "Please say I'm with you." She slid into the chair across from him, and laid her left hand on his right one. Her green eyes looked desperate, even though a loving smile was plastered on her face.
Maybe the girl was deranged, Ted thought. Maybe this was one of those television shows where they videotaped practical jokes on unsuspecting people. All he wanted to do was eat his lunch, get in his trusty old truck, and go home to Oklahoma. He wasn't the right person for anyone to be playing a joke on, most assuredly not if it was going to be on national television.
"Excuse me," the older policeman drawled. Ted hadn't even noticed them behind the girl. "I'm Sheriff Bud Tucker and this is my deputy, Buzz Stevens. Who are you, gal?" he asked the girl.
"Why do you want to know?" Ted asked. The girl looked so nervous, she had to be in some kind of trouble. He didn't know what it was, but she looked so vulnerable, he couldn't believe she'd done anything really bad.
"Well, we were told to be on the lookout for a runaway from San Antonio. Seventeen-year-old girl, not too tall, with red hair." The sheriff looked closely at Cassie, who certainly fit that description.
Ted knew suddenly that this was no joke, because this innocent-looking young lady had a death grip on his hand. He shook his head. "Sorry. This is my girlfriend. We drove down here from Maysville, Oklahoma, just a little while ago." He paused. "And we're going to elope today," he added in a flash of inspiration that he hoped would inspire the officers to leave them alone. "My name is Ted Wellman and this is—" He looked at the petite redhead beside him trying to think of a name that fit her. "Well, we all call her Sassy."
The sheriff relaxed and chuckled. "You must be Bob Wellman's son. He's some poker player. Last time he was in town to pick up parts I lost a hundred dollars to him. I still haven't paid him back." He hitched his thumbs in his gun belt and swayed back and forth on his big feet. "Tell you what. My brother is the Justice of the Peace here. I'll just lead the way in my cruiser and you two kids can get married in his office, free of charge. And while you're getting hitched, I'll get you a room at the Yucca Inn for the night. My sister runs the place. When you get home you tell your dad that Bud Tucker has paid up that hundred dollars and is ready for another poker game when he gets back down here."
Cassie squeezed Ted's hand even harder. He got the messages traveling frantically down from her mind through her fingers. Ted knew if he hesitated the game was over. The sheriff would win. The girl would lose, and they would put him so far away for aiding and abetting a minor runaway they'd have to pump sunshine and oxygen into his cell.
"Well, this is our lucky day." Ted grinned from ear to ear and patted the girl's hand. "The sheriff owes my dad money and we get a free honeymoon. Can't beat a deal like that. Lead the way, gentlemen." He pulled the girl up to stand beside him and casually draped his arm around her shoulders. "Didn't I tell you it would all work out, sweetheart?" he said, steering her to his battered pickup and opening the door for her.
"Oh, damn," she exploded when they were safely inside. "What are we going to do now? I can't marry you. I don't even know you."
"Settle down," Ted said calmly. "If they don't go in the Justice's office, we'll just tell the man we changed our minds and walk out. By the way, I really am Ted Wellman and my dad is Bob Wellman. Who are you?"
"My name is Cassie Stewart. You came pretty close," she told him.
"I figured I'd just tell him that was your nickname, whatever your real name was."
"Oh."
She looked out of the corner of her eye at the man sitting beside her. She'd never seen anyone so handsome. His hair was blacker than a raven's wing, and his pecan-colored eyes were flecked with gold. He stood more than six feet, towering above her five feet, two inches, even when they were sitting beside each other in the truck. He looked like he'd probably played football in high school and maybe college, and if he ever crossed the California border, Hollywood would be waiting for him with open arms and a million-dollar contract.
"Well, I'm not marrying you," she declared, more for her own benefit than his. "You could be a criminal. Or already married."
He shook his head. "Nope. I'm just a farmer from southern Oklahoma. And I'm single. But you are going to marry me, at least temporarily. You're underage and you're a runaway, according to that sheriff. I'd rather marry you—just for today, of course—than go to jail for you."
Ted was only half-joking. He looked over and saw that Cassie was almost
in tears, and felt a wave of sympathy for her, which surprised him. He hadn't felt much emotion—not love, hate, tears, joy, anger, or pain—in more than seven years.
"Running away isn't a crime," she said through clenched teeth. "Not from that Cecil, who says I stole from him. I didn't. And I will not marry you." Two spots of bright red colored her cheeks and her green eyes danced, daring him to argue with her.
"You don't have a choice, Cassie. It's me or—what was his name? Cecil."
The black and white cruiser ahead of them stopped in front of a small white building. A rusty pole supported a squeaky sign, which needed a paint job as badly as the house did. The writing on the sign promised certified copies, notary public available, and weddings in fifteen minutes, all from Samuel T. Tucker, Justice of the Peace.
Bud and Buzz waved at them to get out of the pickup. "Come right in, kids. Hey, I forgot to ask you. You got a blood test, didn't you?"
Cassie took a deep breath. "No, we didn't have time," she lied.
"Damn," the sheriff muttered. "Well, I can get you married and I can get you a room, but the blood test the hospital does will cost another hundred dollars if you want the results right away. I don't owe Bob Wellman that much money. You got another hundred dollars, boy?"
" 'Course I do," Ted said. "I told you we came here to get married. I was just hoping you could use your influence and we could skip the blood test. Temporarily, anyway."
The sheriff rubbed his chin with his hand. "Nope. Can't do it, boy. Got lots of influence, but it wouldn't be legal and proper without that test. Just leave your truck parked right there and we'll run over to the hospital in my cruiser. We can stop by the courthouse on the way and pick up a marriage license too. I almost forgot about that."
Small Town Romance Collection: Four Complete Romances & A New Novella Page 41