Mail Order Bride: The Surprise Widow: Redeemed Western Historical Mail Order Brides, #6

By Kenneth Markson

Mail Order Bride: The Surprise Widow: A Sweet Clean Historical Mail Order Bride Western Victorian Romance (Redeemed Western Historical Mail Order Brides Book 6) is a sweet, clean, inspirational western romance novelette. 

Nora, a lonely widow, becomes a mail order bride. She is swept off her feet by a dazzling suitor. But is he too good to be true? Will a handsome gambler come to her aid before it is too late? Can she find true love in Virginia City, and prevent more harm from being done? 

If you enjoyed this story, you may also enjoy the other books in Kenneth's mail order brides Redeemed series, "A Wife For Charlie," "Clara And The Outlaw," "A Bride For Jim," "A Husband For Laurie," "Redeemed By Love," or Kenneth's mail order brides Rescued series.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Kenneth Markson
• Release date: May 22, 2016
• ISBN: 9780996554626

Kenneth Markson

While an English major at college, I wrote a column which was published weekly. I have been writing ever since. The old West and Los Angeles in the forties are eras which lend themselves to tales of romance, courage, and fast paced adventure. I particularly enjoy writing stories about the mail order brides who fearlessly took a chance and traveled West, hoping to find love and a better future. Many of the locales that I write about are places that I have either traveled through or actually lived in. I try to make my works richly accurate. My desire is to provide you with an entertaining and fun read. When I'm not writing, I enjoy spending time with my wife and two children.

Book preview

To my wife and children, always.

Chapter 1

Only a stone should be alone, Nora's friend Anna had told her repeatedly.  Normally, Nora let her good friend talk, without paying her much attention.  But in this case, the advice was well taken.  Even a broken clock is right twice a day, Nora thought to herself.

Nora Jameson was an attractive young widow in her late twenties, with long auburn hair and hazel eyes.  It was three years since her late husband, Albert, had passed away, and she missed him terribly.  Initially, she immersed herself in her business as a way of dealing with her grief.

That was only partially successful.  The pain which she felt subsided over time, but her sense of loneliness continued to grow.  The irony of it was, she reflected, was that she herself was running a bridal agency, and was helping other young women find a better future.

It was not that she was desperate, or in a precarious position.  Her late husband had been a businessman in San Francisco, and had left her a tidy sum, sufficient to live comfortably.  Moreover, her own business turned a nice profit.

The money was never the thing.  It was the natural human desire to find a loving companion and raise a family together.  That yearning only grew stronger as the days passed.

Her friend Anna had put the bee in her bonnet.  Why not become a mail order bride yourself, her friend had told her.  What's the harm, she said, in sending out a letter to prospective gentlemen yourself, and seeing what develops.

Nora decided to try her friend's proposal.  The first batch of responses left her singularly unimpressed.  That is, until she received a letter from a gentleman named Ronald Farrell.

From the start, Nora was captivated.  The picture which he sent, enclosed in the correspondence, made her heart skip a beat.  Her late husband had been a good and decent man, but physically unimposing.

Ronald Farrell, Nora reflected, cut quite a dashing figure.  By his own words, he was a tall man, over six feet in height.  His picture showed him to be a remarkably handsome man, with dark hair, strong features, purposeful eyes, and a bright smile.

They began corresponding with one another.  What really had Nora smitten, was the way Ron, as he liked to be called, seemed to penetrate her very soul.  He understood her loneliness, and had the same desire to raise a family together with a loving spouse.

He openly thanked God for finding a beautiful woman like her, with whom he could reveal his innermost thoughts.  Nora loved his flowery words, and erudite