A Bride for Noah Read online

  A Bride For Noah

  Book One

  Brides of Broken Arrow

  Cheryl Wright

  A BRIDE FOR NOAH

  Book One

  Brides of Broken Arrow

  Copyright ©2020 by Cheryl Wright

  Cover Artist: Got You Covered (Lisa Miller)

  All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the copyright owner of this book

  Thanks

  Thanks to my very dear friend and author Margaret Tanner for her enduring encouragement and friendship.

  Thanks also to Alan, my husband of over 45 years, who has been a relentless supporter of my writing for many years.

  And last, but by no means least, thank you to all my wonderful readers who encourage me to continue writing these stories. It is such a joy to me knowing so many of you enjoy reading my stories. I love writing them as much as you love reading them.

  Table of Contents

  Thanks

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Epilogue

  From the Author

  About the Author

  Chapter One

  Halliwell, Montana - 1880

  “You can’t be serious!” Noah Adams stood, his body shaking with fury. “Father gave me that land. You can’t take it from me!”

  Theodore Black sighed. “Do sit down, Noah, and let me finish reading the will. Everything will soon become clear.”

  Noah sat as directed, but still shook with rage. Barnabas Adams’ entire estate had been bequeathed to his eldest son, Jacob, despite their deceased father’s promise. He glanced across at Seth, who was two years younger than Noah at twenty-eight. He was far from happy.

  “Jacob, as the oldest son, the main house is yours. You get all the property your father owned, depending on certain conditions.”

  Jacob would be thirty-two at his next birthday, and turned deathly white as the will was read. The way it looked now, Jacob would get everything. He’d always been more interested in the business side than working the land.

  What on earth was their father thinking? And where did that leave both Noah and Seth? They’d each worked their allocated land for years, and were told, guaranteed it would legally be theirs when Father died. What was he playing at?

  Theodore, or Teddy as everyone called him, glanced first at Noah, then Seth.

  “Noah, Seth,” Teddy said, directing his gaze at Noah, the middle son. “Barnabas changed his will a few months ago. He knew he was dying, and wanted to ensure you boys were all well looked after.”

  Fury bubbled up and burst out of Noah’s mouth. “What, by leaving me penniless? By handing my land over to my brother who wouldn’t know one end of a cow from the other?”

  Jacob stared at him with sad eyes. It wasn’t his doing, but that didn’t stop Noah from being furious about the entire situation. Did Jacob know the will had been changed?

  Noah’s hands were white, from fisting them so tight. He had never been been so angry in his entire life. He had no idea what Barnabas had been thinking when he changed his will. And what was that about him knowing he was dying? That was news to Noah.

  “Jacob, since you are already living in the main house, you may stay there. Noah, Seth,”

  He’d heard enough. Noah shoved his chair back until it slammed against the floor, then stormed out of the lawyer’s office, his temper a hot rage. What he would do now, he had no idea. But he couldn’t help but wonder why his father had made such a stupid and heart wrenching decision. The thousand acres he’d been gifted on his twenty-first birthday, were supposed to be his for life. Now they’d been wrenched away from him.

  He’d spent the past nine years working hard on that land and was making a decent profit. Now he was being forced to hand it all over to his brother. Jacob knew absolutely nothing about running a ranch, and to Noah’s mind, probably didn’t want to either.

  He’d never known his father to make such a foolhardy decision, and couldn’t fathom what had caused it.

  He left Teddy Black’s office and headed to the saloon. He wasn’t normally a drinking man, and the booze wouldn’t help him think any clearer, but it might help calm his shattered nerves.

  As he threw back his third whiskey, he saw Teddy enter the saloon.

  “I’ve never heard anything so absurd in my entire life.” Teddy had walked him to the nearest café and ordered strong black coffee. Noah had never been drunk before, but the reading of the will had totally shocked him.

  Teddy waved to the waitress. “Another black coffee, please.”

  “This is so unlike Father,” Noah said, his head starting to clear. “Why would he hand everything over to Jacob? It’s so unfair.”

  The waitress refilled his mug then scurried away. “If you’d waited long enough, you would have heard the conditions.” Teddy sounded annoyed. He’d been the family lawyer for as long as Noah could remember, and was more like an uncle to the three brothers. “Provisions have been made for your future. Seth’s too.”

  Noah glanced up and stared at him. “What? Apart from wrenching our land out from under us?”

  “No such thing will occur if you comply with the conditions I mentioned earlier. At least I tried to explain before you took off.”

  Dare he believe such a thing? What sort of conditions was Teddy talking about? Noah shook his head, which was finally clear. “What conditions are we talking about?” He stared suspiciously at at the older man. It wasn’t bad enough he’d lost his father less than a week ago, now he had to deal with unknown conditions on a will that had been recently changed to benefit his older brother.

  “Your father felt it was past time you settled down. To reclaim your land you simply have to marry in the next three weeks.”

  Noah nearly fell off his chair.

  ~*~

  Angel’s Pass, Montana

  Mary Blake stood at the rusty and worn out stove stirring the barely-there broth. This was the third batch of broth she’d made using the same bones, and was certain there would be little flavor this time around. There’d been one carrot and small piece of celery left in the pantry, but nothing more. She’d chopped them as finely as she could before adding them to the pot. She also tossed in some parsley from what was left of her herb garden, and a little salt and pepper for flavoring.

  How she was meant to feed herself and her pa on such meagre pickings she had no idea, but it was expected of her. She scraped the mold off the five-day-old bread, and sliced it ready to toast. At least she had eggs to add to the moldy bread.

  The kettle was on the stove, and Pa would get the last of the coffee. Until he was paid for this latest batch of pigs for slaughtering, that was the end of their supplies. Despite her constant requests for him to kill another one of the pigs for food, he refused. They were worth far more sold than for food, he’d said.

  She would have to kill another chicken tomorrow or they would starve. They had few enough chickens as it was now. Less chickens also meant less eggs, but what was she supposed to do? She was slowly starving as it was.

  Pa constantly raided her vegetable patch to feed the wretched pigs, which left her nothing to cook with. It was a vicious circle and a constant problem to keep food in their bellies. She sighed. Of course the pigs needed to be fed, but why did it have to be her lovely homegr
own vegetables?

  Scraping his boots at the bottom of the steps, Pa stepped into the washroom on the porch and washed himself. It was the one consolation he gave her. Mary couldn’t stand the stench after he’d been working with pigs all day. He wasn’t a bad man, her pa, but he was set in his ways, and rarely budged from his stance. It made her life extremely difficult.

  She’d become so thin from the lack of food, she was often light-headed and had picked herself up off the floor on a number of occasions. As a hard working man, she put her pa ahead of herself when it came to meals.

  By the time he entered the kitchen, she’d dished up the broth, giving herself a far smaller portion. The eggs were now ready, four for Pa, and one for herself, and she only needed to butter the toast with the scraping of butter they had left.

  As hard as her life had become, this was her lot in life, and she’d never known anything different. Pa told her to get over it and accept what life dished out to her. She had no other choice.

  Ma had died when she was ten, and Mary had run the household ever since.

  “Mary,” Pa said as he sat at the table and began to eat. “Remember Johnny Parsons – ‘e used to come over with ‘is Pa when you were a child.”

  She remembered him alright. Mary wasn’t that small either – she was a teenager, and Johnny tried to kiss her on several occasions. He even tried to touch her where he had no right to be touching. The last time he came around, she’d made herself scarce, but he’d come looking for her and cornered her in the barn. He was evil through and through and she wanted no part of him.

  She nodded, but would rather forget the horrible creature.

  “Well, the boy’s a man now, and ‘e wants to marry you.”

  Her heart thudded. She hated to think what sort of man he’d grown into when he was so ghastly as a teenager.

  “If I don’t want to…” She let her words hang, but knew the conversation wouldn’t end there.

  Harry Blake slammed his cutlery on the table and stared at his only child. “There ain’t no choice,” he bellowed. “Yer an old maid, I can’t be supportin’ yer forever.” He picked up his fork and took another mouthful of food, then continued. “It’s past time you was married. Johnny Parsons is visitin’ Monday mornin’ – make sure yer wearin’ your Sunday best.”

  She looked down at the threadbare dress she was wearing. As much as she despised the man, perhaps he was her ticket out of the poverty she’d been living in for years. Mary straightened her shoulders. Was she so desperate she would sink so low? The man was despicable. He was a letch, and God only knew what she’d let herself in for if she married him.

  She swallowed back the emotion that threatened to overtake her. “Yes, Father,” she said quietly, knowing there was no other choice.

  ~*~

  Noah sat across the desk from Teddy, bogged down with worry. “How am I going to find a wife in such a short time?” He’d barely slept these past nights, and had no solution to his problem. “I can’t lose my ranch – I just can’t.”

  Teddy shuffled some papers around on his desk. “There’s no way around it. Barnabas wanted you married, and when he found out his heart was failing, decided this was the only way.”

  Noah stared at him with this new revelation. “Why didn’t he tell us he was dying?” He slammed his fist on the desk. “At the very least he could have warned us he’d changed his will. Jacob is even more upset than me and Seth.”

  Reaching for a file, Teddy briefly read the papers inside. “I might have a solution to your problem,” he said, fingering the paper in front of him. “Have you ever heard of a proxy marriage?”

  “No, never. What does it entail?”

  “Well, to start, you don’t have to be together to get married.”

  Noah raised his eyebrows. “That’s weird.”

  Teddy wriggled in his seat. “You do still need to get together, but the marriage can be in two different places.”

  “So that means…”

  “If we can find someone willing to marry you, even for only one year, you can keep your land.” Teddy stared at him, no doubt waiting for an answer.

  For a moment there, Noah thought his problem might be solved, but he didn’t know any women. He’d been too busy working his land to socialize, especially out of town. And locally, any available women were snapped up in a hurry.

  As if he could read Noah’s mind, Teddy continued. “I have a sister who lives in Angel’s Pass. It’s not too far away, about two days on the train.”

  Noah stared at him. “You want me to marry your sister?” He was incredulous. Unless this sister was far younger than Teddy…

  “No, Son. My sister is nearly double your age.” He chuckled. “But she knows a young lady who fits the criteria of being your wife. She’s living in dire circumstances and could use your help.”

  Noah listened carefully as Teddy explained further. The condition of having to only stay married to this proxy bride for a year sounded like a good idea. Noah wasn’t interested in marrying, and never had been, but his hand had been forced.

  ~*~

  Mary sat at the back of the church, along with Pastor Allenby, and listened carefully as Judith Hathaway explained the situation. The young man in question, Noah Adams, was a family friend to Mrs Hathaway’s brother, she said.

  While she hadn’t seen him for many years, the older woman assured her Noah was an upstanding citizen, a hard worker, and a God-fearing man.

  All the things Johnny Parsons was not.

  Mary was assured of a safe and secure home, and after the twelve months, she would be well compensated for her trouble.

  This was to be a marriage of convenience, and nothing more.

  Besides helping herself, she would be helping a deserving young man reclaim what was already rightfully his. It would be forced from his hands without her help. “Take some time to think about it,” Mrs Hathaway said in that reassuring voice that Mary found so calming. “I know it must be a difficult decision.”

  Mary’s head shot up. Difficult? The choice between the lecherous Johnny Parsons, and the God-fearing man Mrs Hathaway had described? There really was no choice. She stared at the older woman, straightened her shoulders, and opened her mouth. “No time needed. I’m in a difficult spot myself, so the timing is perfect,” she said. “When do I leave?”

  Mrs Hathaway stared at her – she knew Mary’s situation, everyone in Angel’s Pass knew. But still, she seemed rather shocked at Mary’s immediate acceptance. Did she honestly think Mary would pass up such an opportunity? The chance to leave her wretched and soul destroying past behind?

  “Well, I didn’t expect that,” Judith Hathaway said, clearly taken aback. She turned to the pastor. “When can you perform the ceremony?”

  He scratched his head. “I guess we could do it now except we don’t have a proxy to stand in for Miss Stanton.”

  Mrs Hathaway grinned. “My adult son is waiting outside for me. Would he do?” She was out of her seat before the pastor could answer, and in less than twenty minutes, Mary Stanton was no longer a single woman. It was going to get some getting used to being called Mrs Noah Adams.

  Chapter Two

  Mary stepped off the train wearing the only decent dress she owned. It was the same dress she’d been married in.

  She carried a small carpetbag which held a few personal items such as her hairbrush and toiletries, Nothing else she owned was worth packing. Her only bonnet was on her head, but was doing a poor job of holding her hair in place after the long trip.

  As people disembarked after their journey, Mary wondered if they felt as fatigued as she did. Sleeping upright was not an easy task, and it would be nice to lay her head down on a soft pillow in a comfortable bed.

  Her new husband had wired money for her ticket and food. Mrs Hathaway had made all the arrangements for her. And while her father and Johnny Parsons were most unhappy, there wasn’t a thing they could do about it – she was twenty-six after all.

  Fa
ther was annoyed but understood, while on the other hand, Johnny was furious. She couldn’t believe the rant he went into when he’d arrived the next morning to take her to town and marry her. If she didn’t have the paperwork, she wasn’t convinced either man would believe her.

  As she glanced about, Mary breathed a sigh of relief. Now to find her husband, a man whom she’d never met, didn’t even know existed until a few days ago, and had no idea what he looked like. How would she identify him? Her heart pounded and she felt light-headed. Not wanting to waste his money, she had skipped breakfast, not to mention supper last night – the prices in the dining cart were beyond atrocious, so she made do with a cup of tea. Mary stumbled as she headed toward the wooden bench at the other end of the platform.

  Without warning, she felt a hand wrap around her arm. “Are you alright, Miss? Let me help you to the seat.” A man supported her and guided her to the bench she’d spotted earlier. She glanced up at him, and had to almost tilt her head back to see him properly. He was solid, but not fat, and his blond hair was neatly trimmed.

  Most of all, Mary noticed what an incredibly kind man he was. If her husband was even half as kind, she’d be very happy. “Thank you,” she finally managed. “I haven’t eaten since… oh dear, I guess it was lunchtime yesterday.”

  He looked her up and down. His expression one of shock. “Why not, if you don’t mind me asking?” he said with a quiet voice.

  Mary glanced down at her gown, and flicked away an invisible piece of cotton. Was it any of his business? Then again, perhaps he was just trying to help. “I, I was trying to save my new husband’s money. It’s alright,” she added. “I’m used to not eating.”

  His shocked expression said it all. “Mary? Mary Stanton?”