One Last Chance: Last Chance Brides, #1

By Diana Bold

When Charlotte answers an advertisement for a mail-order bride, the last thing she expects is that the man who placed it is Logan, her former fiancé who had jilted her long ago. He's come to New Orleans on behalf of the men of Last Chance, a booming town in the Washington Territory, but he doesn't intend to leave without the woman he's never been able to forget.

Charlotte decides to board the ship headed for Last Chance, determined to make a new life for herself, far away from the war-ravaged South, but she has no intention of falling for Logan once again. Can Logan change her mind during the long voyage north, or will she marry someone else once they arrive?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Diana Bold
• Release date: Jun 3, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393840466

Diana Bold

All my life, I've wanted to a writer. Even as a child, my sister claims all I ever did was sit in my closet and scribble in a notebook. In any event, I won my first writing contest when I was seven, and I was hooked! I married young, and soon had three wonderful little boys running around the house, so writing took a backseat for several years as I worked a variety of jobs that I hated. Once I started seriously pursuing a writing career, I found it was not as easy as I had expected, and I was not the prodigy I had imagined. But I joined a writer's group and made a ton of writing friends along the way who showed me the error of my ways and unselfishly helped me get a little better. By the time I sold my first book in 2006, I'd already been at this for over ten years and was about ready to give up. Rejection is hard!!! But holding that first book in my hands made it all worth it! Now my sons are all grown up, and two of them have babies of their own. But I now have all the time in the world to devote to telling the stories that just won't let me sleep. Hope you enjoy them! Love, Diana Diana 

Book preview

ONE LAST CHANCE

A Historical Romance

(Last Chance Brides #1)

by

Diana Bold

ONE LAST CHANCE

Edited by Eve Paludan

Copyright © 2014 by Diana Bold

All rights reserved.

Book cover: Mandy Koehler Designs

First published by Eve Paludan Books ONE LAST CHANCE by Emma Connor

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author. Any similarity or resemblance to real persons, living or dead, or actual events, is purely coincidental, or is used in a fictitious manner.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

One Last Chance

Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Epilogue

About the Author

Dedication

For Eve. I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship.

Acknowledgments

A special thanks to Robin Searle, Donnell Bell, and Allegra Gray, for the great brainstorming session. Thanks for always being there through both the successes and the failures.

September 4, 1866

Last Chance, Washington Territory

It needs a woman’s touch, Logan Donley observed, the words escaping of their own volition.

The white, green-shuttered house stood at the end of the high street and abutted the dark, endless forest. It had a breathtaking view of the shimmering, sapphire bay. After years in the wilderness—sleeping in tents, boardinghouses and the open air—Logan finally had a home of his own. He could imagine watching the sun set out across the water from the wide front porch every night for the rest of his life.

Cole Latimer raised an amused brow and sat down on the front steps, staring at the nearly identical house next door, which was half-completed, and belonged to him. The second son of an earl, Cole had come to America with bulging pockets and a driving need to make a name for himself. You’re right, he said with a laugh. Not a single one of us knows a bloody thing about hanging drapes or ordering furniture.

Joshua Blake grinned at them from a few yards away. Maybe we should import some women to Last Chance, like Mercer did down in Seattle. Where else are you boys gonna get wives to decorate your pretty houses?

What are you talking about? asked Garrett Monroe, the fourth member of their group. They hadn’t started on his house yet, but planned to soon, though it would be on a much smaller scale, as he was Josh’s foreman and didn’t have the funds the others did.

The four of them had been working on this project every evening since spring. Once they finished building houses for themselves, Cole was going to advance them the money to build a few more, which they planned to sell at a substantial profit.

Last Chance, the town they had founded six years ago, was booming. In just a few short years, it had gone from a remote logging town to one that boasted its own mill, shipyard, and harbor. Suitable housing, however, was hard to find. The four of them had been sharing a small bunkroom at a boardinghouse, even though most of them could have bought the place ten times over.

Josh grinned and fished around in his pocket, dragging out a worn newspaper clipping. I’ve actually been meaning to talk you all about an idea I had. I saw this when I went to get that last load of supplies.

Logan plucked the crumpled paper out of his friend’s hand and scanned it, finding it to be a recounting of how a man named Mercer had shipped in several educated, well-born ladies to marry Seattle men.

After all, Josh continued, everyone knows that women are a civilizing influence. If Last Chance is ever to become a real town, we need wives. He laughed and shook his head. "Well, not me, of course, but the rest of you don’t seem as thrilled with the company of soiled doves as I am."

Cole grinned and leaned back on his elbows. I hate to admit it, but he has a point, he said, looking at Logan. Don’t tell me you didn’t build this house with a wife and family in mind.

Logan had built his home with a woman in mind. A very specific woman he’d foolishly turned his back on long ago. Now that he had a home to offer her, and his lumber business was going so well, he’d been planning a trip back East for quite some time.

I’ve been thinking about this ever since I read that article, Josh said, his green eyes lighting up with something Logan recognized all too well. Josh’s crazy plans to make money were known far and wide. Oddly, they usually seemed to work; the man was filthy rich. "What if we were to gather up all the men in town and tell them that for a small fee, his grin grew wider, we’d be willing to go back East and pick them out a bride? We could use one of Cole’s ships, he nodded in Cole’s direction, and charge enough to make a hefty profit on the trip. We could keep building houses, which we could sell to the same men, so they’d have a place to put their brides, once they have them. And after the women get here, I imagine Last Chance will need schools, churches and such, all of which we could have a hand in building."

Garrett gaped at him for a long moment, and then laughed, shaking his shaggy dark head. Sometimes, the way your mind works scares me.

Cole leaned forward, his light blue eyes alight with interest. Do you really think we could get enough men from Last Chance to go for that?

There are over two hundred men here, a lot of them with money to burn, and the only women are six well-used prostitutes and another dozen who are already married. I think we’d have men lining up for such a chance. Supply and demand, boys. Besides, Josh added, feeling a sudden need to justify his avarice, it would be good for the town.

Good for your pocket, Garrett jeered.

"Good for all our pockets, Josh retorted. I’m more than willing to cut you all in. Someone needs to stay here and build houses while I go get the women."

I’ll stay, of course, and build those houses, Garrett said.

Josh nodded his thanks. He trusted Garrett.

Where would you get the women? Cole asked, still looking thoughtful. And what woman in her right mind would agree to come thousands of miles to marry a man she’d never met?

New Orleans, Logan replied, his mind whirling furiously. The war left the South devastated. So many men died, leaving their women in poverty. I’m sure we could find ladies there who would be eager for a fresh start.

Cole gave Logan a knowing look. Aren’t you from New Orleans?

Logan nodded and pinned Josh with an intense gaze. If we do this, I want to go with you. I need to go to New Orleans anyway. For personal reasons, he stressed, when he saw the question in Josh’s eyes.

This is the most ridiculous idea you’ve ever had, Garrett grumbled, his eyes focused back on his work. I can hardly afford to build a house, let alone give you fools the money to bring me back a wife to put in it. Their gruff friend was a mountain of a man, towering over all of them by several inches, even though none of them could ever be considered short. Women feared him, but Logan knew he had a heart of gold. He resolved to speak to the others about pitching in the funds to bring a woman back for Garrett, too, despite his protests.

Cole actually seemed to be seriously thinking about this crazy scheme. Excitement rushed through Logan at the thought of seeing Charlotte again after all these years. He’d hurt her badly. Did she have it in her heart to forgive him?

One way or another, he figured it was time to quit running from his past and find out.

April 7, 1867

Successful, respectable men seek twenty-two healthy, proper, unmarried young ladies to relocate to the booming town of Last Chance, in Washington Territory. Purpose: Matrimony. Safe passage and all expenses paid.

Charlotte Martin clenched the newspaper clipping tightly in her hand as she stared at the dozen or so women in the lobby of the faded old hotel. So many! She wasn’t sure whether to be relieved or alarmed that so many other women had responded to this morning’s controversial newspaper ad.

Moving further into the room of chattering women, she was relieved to hear that fine houses were being built by prospective grooms. At least it wasn’t a hoax, or just a way to lure women in for some nefarious purpose. As long as she stuck with these other girls, she didn’t have to worry too much. Safety in numbers.

A handsome blond man strode toward her and gave her a charming smile. He was tall, and his green eyes sparkled with warmth. It had been a long time since Charlotte had seen a man who looked this healthy, happy and confident.

She gave him a tiny, shy smile in return.

I’m Joshua Blake. Are you here about the advertisement?

She nodded, blushing slightly, wondering what he must think of her. She still couldn’t quite believe she was here, but the