A Betting Bride
A Novel
Rebecca De Medeiros
Copyright © 2013 by Rebecca De Medeiros
All rights reserved. In accordance with the U.S Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, or electronic sharing of any part of this book without permission of the publisher is unlawful piracy and theft of the author's intellectual property.
This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to names, characters, places and incidents or either persons living or dead is entirely coincidental.
For Donald Mullaney...
I have been blessed to have the greatest man in the world to call Daddy.
For all you do, and for everything you have sacrificed for all of us... Thank you. And to Joao, for holding my hand and standing by my side through good and through bad times, I love you. Every hero, in every book, pales in comparison.
For my sisters: Victoria, Aurelia, Emily and Courtney...Brave, beautiful, women who have pieces of my heart...You have wiped my tears, held my hand and were the best friends a girl could ever have. I love you all. Maggie, Jackie, Judy, Diane, Naomi, Amy, Jacqueline, Liz and Lynn Marie, for all of the encouragement you ladies have given me to continue on.
Maggie and Judy, my first real "fan mail" came from you, and I will never forget the joy it brought me. To Naomi, Jackie, Amy, Jacqueline and Kathleen, excellent writers such as yourselves, I am honored to have been included into your group of friends. Diane and Lynn Marie, both of you ladies are wonderful and no words can describe how helpful and supportive you have been to me. I hope you all don't mind that I got a little sappy on you...
"When mortal man plans, a higher power laughs."
Prologue
Texas, January, 1873
"We have to do something, those blasted women on the charity league won't let up until we do!" Josiah Brown proclaimed to the small crowd of elderly men who had gathered in a shabby back room of the Rot Gut saloon. "My own wife won't let me be about the subject. She feels that it is time some of the bachelors find themselves brides and make this town a respectable place to live," he complained to the assemblage.
Josiah rubbed his portly belly irritably through the fine brown double breasted vest that stretched tightly over his girth. "She won't even make me a proper supper anymore...she is starving me over onto her side."
Tonight's town council meeting had been hastily organized. As the demands from the women on the charity league had gotten out of hand as of late. Only four out of the five members that made up the town council had gathered, and each man had a different opinion on the matter before them.
As head of the town council, Josiah felt they must deal with the issue head-on. Plus, Josiah was tired of hearing his wife yap nonstop about wanting to see more weddings occur in town. More weddings equaled more babies... more babies added up to a larger population. A larger population meant more prestige for their town and hopefully Liberty would gain the attention of the railroad expansion.
Josiah could not care less about babies, but Loretta, his wife, had swayed him to her side, when she had convinced Josiah that a larger population meant more money spent at his hotel and fine dining establishment. If a railroad expansion was built nearby, you had better believe that Liberty would become a full-fledged city and money would come pouring in. Josiah really loved money. He loved it almost, as much as he loved Loretta. Now, he just had to get the other men to agree to vote his way.
"Ye understand, it willna' be easy to wrangle these young lads into taking a bride? The young folks are a stubborn lot," Fergus O'Malley spoke up for the first time that evening. All night Fergus, or "Pops," as the young people of Liberty, Texas called him had seemed to be deeply in thought. It was a rare thing for his boisterous nature to be so subdued, so Josiah knew that something was afoot.
"Why should we do what these women demand?" Harlan Jones cried out, turning Josiah's thoughts away from whatever was concerning his friend. Harlan's twin Marlon nodded his scraggly, graying head in agreement with his brother's disgruntlement.
"If we give in and help match up some of the bachelors, the ladies of the church league have agreed to withhold their protest of the new distillery that we propose to build." Turning baleful eyes toward Fergus, Josiah informed them, "Since someone went and burned down the last one we were attempting, we need their approval for the funds. The mayor says so."
"Ye' cannot keep blaming me for that. I told you, your granny's recipe was too strong. The fire was'n me' fault!" Fergus cried out offended. His Irish brogue always became thicker whenever he was riled. "Bah!"
"You have them at their word that they won't try to pull any stunts if we get this done?" Marlon asked. He was suspicious of Josiah's new chummy ways with the dreaded church league ladies.
Marlon distrusted anything that had to do with that infernal group of soured females, especially, their leader Gertrude Stevens. The woman was a sharp thorn in Marlon's heel. The meddlesome group she ran had been trying to get his saloon the Rot Gut closed since the day Marlon had opened it. He didn't even have dancing girls, let alone women of loose morals about the place, sadly enough. And still, that horde of leather faced biddies, shook their fists and cried for his business to close its doors. They called gambling and drinking an ugly blight on mankind. They wanted to ban those entertaining practices in town. Well in Marlon's opinion, most of Gertrude's giant, floppy, feathered hats, needed to be run out of town like a plague as hideous as they were.
"Bah!" Marlon echoed his friend Fergus's words in disgust.
"The only way ta' make the lads marry, is to get the most eligible of them to take a wife... the rest will follow suit soon enough," Fergus waved his hand dismissively at the topic of discussion.
"You'd have to hog tie and auction that one off, Fergus," Harlan drunkenly pointed out, snickering. Even with his slurred speech, Fergus and the two other men present knew just whom Harlan was referring to. Alec Wentworth.
Alec, town mayor and general 'great idea' killer of the town council, was young and handsome. He had never failed to make the ladies sigh whenever he was near. Though not yet thirty, Alec was a strong capable leader for their community. The only problem was that the boy stood in the way of every brilliant idea the council had put forth.
First he tried to block the original distillery, claiming the boys on the council weren't "trained" in the arts of fine distilling and could somehow "cause an accident." Well, in actuality, a fire did happen... but that was beside the point. Then there was the time that Fergus had that swell idea to design one of those big balloons that the Frenchies were using and offer rides to the people traveling through. The dang mayor had put paid to that idea, as well. "The council did not know anything about scientific matters," he had argued.
"Auctioning off the mayor would serve him right," Marlon Jones nodded.
Marlon himself was still a tad bitter that Alec had refused his suggestion to bring in some professional gamblers to play in the back room of his saloon. Everybody knew that gamblers bring in all kinds of people from all over that were interested in meeting them or playing a few hands of cards hoping to beat a professional.
"No," the mayor had said of his brilliant plan. "It would bring trouble to our town by way of gun fighters and bad elements."
"Hold a moment... That is it me' lads! We auction off the men to the single ladies... it is brilliant!" Fergus crowed excitedly.
"How do you propose we get the men to agree to auction themselves off? That is beyond the power of even your schemes Fergus." Josiah scoffed.
"Easy," Fergus snapped his fingers and winked one jolly bright blue eye. "We tell the men that we are auctioning off the mayor... we all know they try to emulate his every move. Like fishes to me' line they will take
the bait."
"The mayor will never agree," Harlan slurred. "He's a tricky one, he is."
"We force him to. We tell him that he will lose his position as mayor if he doesna' agree," Fergus explained his plan.
"Let's just vote on the matter. We can sort out the details later," Josiah suggested.
"Wait a blasted minute, we can't vote! George isn't here," Marlon interrupted while trying to support his twin from slumping over in the seat next to him.
George Sinclair, the last member of the group had been feeling poorly for the last few months, and as a result, he had been missing many of the council's meetings. The five men had all been the best of friends for years now, and their collective worry over George's failing health was clear to all.
"We need the fifth vote. George is always our tie breaker," Josiah pondered the situation for a moment. The few members that made up the council were all business owners in town. All save for one, Fergus. The men chose though to overlook his lack of business acumen in favor of Fergus's power of persuasion. Crafty devil that he was, the man could talk a saint down from his pedestal.
Marlon was right. They did need that wretched fifth vote. "We could allow the banker to join the council temporarily," Josiah suggested.
Thomas Bixby the bank owner had been trying to weasel his way onto the council for the last two years. He had been denied the position for two simple reasons; one- if they added him to the ranks, the group would be an even number making it impossible for a tie breaker as each of the men tended to vote stubbornly. The second and most important reason to deny him was that he was a big cabbage headed fool, who thought his family was better than everyone else.
"Not the banker," Fergus shook his head in denial at the suggestion. "George's son Mathias can step into his da's shoes, at least until George is well enough. I will stop in on him on my way home and give him the good news."
"Your idea will be shot down for sure then Fergus. You know Mathias's stance on marriage," Marlon warned. "I say we take a vote now on the matter and then just inform the boy of the situation."
"All in favor?" Josiah called out.
"Aye." Four hands shot in the air, it was unanimous... the bridal bid had passed successfully.
"Any new council matters to discuss before we call it a night?" Josiah asked the group. He was in a hurry to get home. He could hardly wait to tell Loretta the news.
"I'm in some need a wee bit o' help meself," Fergus had decided to include his friends in on his latest scheme. "I've done something me' grandson will be furious over, but it is for his own good."
"What is the problem Fergus?" Josiah asked.
"I placed an advertisement for a bride for him today." Fergus winced at the horrified expression on his companions' faces. "I was forced to do it. You all know how Gabriel is."
"Oh ho! You are going to be in sooo much trouble," Harlan drunkenly chortled, shaking a finger at him before slumping over once again onto his brother's shoulder, much to Marlon's irritation.
"What do you need from us Fergus?" Josiah asked.
"Help me pick the right girl for me' grandson and help me make sure when she gets here that they follow through with the marriage."
"Won't work Fergus... Gabe is too hardheaded to do what we want," Marlon shoved his now snoring brother off of his shoulder and wiped at the drool left puddled there.
"Want to make a bet? I'm so positive that Gabe is ready for a bride that I will put money on it," fishing through his pocket, Fergus brought out a pile of coins.
"Hey! I want in on this... In fact, let's make this even more interesting. Why don't we place wagers on each of the bachelors that decide to join in? Whoever's bachelor marries first, claims the prize." Josiah clapped his hands excitedly. "All in favor?"
"Aye!" three voices cried out in accord. The fourth let out a loud snore that was taken as acquiesce.
"After we get me' grandson married off, the mayor is next!" Fergus exclaimed with glee.
Not a single soul in the room felt a bit sorry for the way that they were essentially railroading the mayor into marriage. Sometimes you had to be a devious to get good results.
"A first kiss is a glimpse into a lover's soul."
CHAPTER ONE
July
Getting drunk, completely mind numbingly drunk, was the only thing Alec Wentworth wanted to do as he ambled carelessly down the tidy, rain soaked streets of Liberty, Texas. His large frame teetered as the rush of alcohol hit his system. Try as hard as he might, but this town just did not have enough liquor to pacify his needs. He honestly did not think there was enough spirits in all of Texas to numb him.
Fury tore at Alec's gut as he thought about his current situation. He wanted to throw his chestnut head back and howl at the moon, the only thing stopping him was that he was afraid he would fall over if he did. His entire life was spiraling out of control, and he was powerless to prevent it from doing so.
In less than two days' time, he would be auctioned off like a prized pig to the ladies in town. Ladies with one goal in mind... marriage. With the single women out numbering the marriageable men in the settlement, the town council had come up with the insane idea of holding a bridal auction. The "bridal bid" as it had currently come to be known as, was the brain child of a bunch of meddlesome, elderly men who secretly tried to run his town behind Alec's back.
Knowing that the only way to get Alec to agree with the scheme was to place his job as mayor in jeopardy, the council had dealt the death blow. Join in the auction willingly or forfeit his job to David Harris. The vile bastard had been after Alec's position for a while now, and Alec was determined to beat the man at all costs. Someone had to protect the community from that little snake.
A small but booming town, Liberty was his baby. It was his responsibility. The only damned thing he had in his life that he took pride in. He, Alec Wentworth, was mayor to all he surveyed. Store fronts lined up neatly were now closed for the night. The boardwalk was swept clean nightly. The tidy little school house sat just on the edge of town, waiting for the rush of future children that the council hoped would come from these unions. Even the three cell jailhouse was freshly painted and spotlessly cleaned. He had helped care for all of it, and Alec was proud of the fact. He did not need a wife to make him a better mayor.
Having just left the Rot Gut Saloon, Alec was in possession of not one, but two large bottles of whiskey. He was damned sure going to partake of every last burning drop. Hell, he had already gotten a good start on the first bottle judging by its half empty state. The golden liquid made promises to help Alec forget. Forget this damn day ever existed. So far, drinking had not erased anything from his mind.
No small feat, considering today started off with the kidnapping of a young girl, which had lead up to Alec hanging precariously from a cliff holding onto a vile murderer. Now the latest of surprises, he just found out that his mother, whom Alec had thought killed in an Indian raid when he was four years old, was still alive.
Twenty five years after Bethany Wentworth's disappearance, and he was just finding out now that she was alive? Obviously, Alec had not been particularly important to the woman. After all, she had never bothered to send one word of her survival to her young son. Instead of notifying her family of her survival, Bethany had gone on to create a new life for herself amongst the people who had butchered his father. She had forgotten all about him. Oh, and just to rub salt into the wound, he had a half-brother. Hey, how was that for surprises? Adding to the fact that Alec wasn't even sure if he even liked the guy let alone wanted to be related to him, he now owed the kid a debt for saving his life. Today had certainly been one shit pile after another.
Taking a sudden left nearly caused him to lose his balance. Quickly catching himself, he continued on his path. As Alec made his way past the massive two story brick building that housed his office and his residence in one, he paused for a brief moment to appreciate the structure.
Alec had the place built when he had first come to
live in the small community. Using up all of the pay he had saved while riding with the Texas Rangers and from the few bounties he had collected during his short stint as a bounty hunter, Alec had planned the place down to the smallest detail. He'd had no desire to go into the too quiet mausoleum that he lived in.
He continued walking onward until he passed the hotel. Walking to the edge of town, he thought that maybe he should just keep right on going. Walk right out of this town and never look back.
Alec had lost his horse sometime in between hitting the saloon and wandering aimlessly, not that he had really noticed anyway, he was too preoccupied with feeling sorry for himself. It wasn't until he stared up at the candlelight in the top window of the brick building before him that he had realized just where his feet had brought him.
"Serena- God damn- Sinclair's house," he shook his head ruefully.
Taking a healthy swallow from the bottle in his left hand, Alec cursed aloud. He should have known he would find himself staring up at what he knew was her bedroom window. He had found himself standing in this very spot more times than not lately.
Serena Sinclair was his best friend's baby sister and currently a throbbing pain in Alec's backside. Obviously his feet brought him here for a reason. He knew that even though she was currently the bane of his existence, she would understand how he felt. However, whatever, he felt even if he wasn't even sure yet. Alec was filled with a strange mixture of numbness and rage. But Serena would understand that. Hell, maybe not, but he couldn't think of a single person that he wanted to see right now except for her.
Serena had always listened to him when she was a kid. She had constantly run to him with her problems in the past, but lately things had changed. The brat was grown up. It seemed that now whenever they were together all they tended to do was argue. He would say one tiny little thing, and she would fly off of the handle. When had their friendship turned so sour?
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