Chance of a Lifetime: Last Chance Brides, #2

By Diana Bold

Go Northwest, young man!
Four men went into the Washington Territory and founded the boom town of Last Chance. The town needs the civilizing influence of proper women, so these friends bring 22 brides-to-be to Last Chance, for a fee.
As CHANCE OF A LIFETIME (Last Chance Brides #2) opens, the ship is just arriving. Hannah McLean, one of the brides, is ready for adventure. She is grateful to escape the war-torn South and choose a husband from among the enterprising men who went northwest to make something of themselves. However, before they even land, Hannah has eyes for no one but Joshua.
No one is more surprised than Josh when he falls for the spirited redhead. A former Civil War nurse, Hannah knows what she wants.
Josh wasn't planning on taking a bride at all, but one of the men who paid the fee died, leaving an extra bride. Hannah wears her heart on her sleeve, but Josh is having none of this. Yet, he is upset that she will be matched up with someone else--he has only a day or so to take a stand or let go of her…forever. Josh is not the marrying kind, and Hannah isn't the type to take no for an answer.
Josh dares not let himself care for her. What will Hannah think if she discovers his past? Who will win this contest of strong wills, and, of the heart?
In CHANCE OF A LIFETIME, it's going to be a bumpy week, matching up brides with grooms! No one wants to be chosen last! When news arrives that someone desperately needs help, Hannah is the only one who can save him…
In this clean historical romance, there are perils, humor, friendship, competition, heartbreak and adventure. Get ready because the brides of Last Chance have arrived in the Washington Territory and they are pairing off with the grooms in a mad scramble before the best men are gone!
˃˃˃ Emma Connor is the pen name of an award-winning historical romance novelist. She takes the concept of "mail-order" brides to a whole new level. Her heroines are gutsy, beautiful, smart and anything but meek! And the Washington Territory in the Pacific Northwest is the perfect place to cheer, "Here come the brides!"
"With an interesting twist on the mail order brides' concept, ONE LAST CHANCE (Last Chance Brides #1) delves into a pivotal time in America's history. Emma Connor introduces a wide cast of unique characters; you'll sympathize with their setbacks and cheer for their successes. A clean read that left me eagerly looking forward to the next book in the series." -- Christi Corbett, author of Along the Way Home

• Language: English
• Publisher: Diana Bold
• Release date: Jun 12, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393307235

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

CHANCE OF A LIFETIME

A Historical Romance

(Last Chance Brides #2)

by

Diana Bold

CHANCE OF A LIFETIME

Edited by Eve Paludan

Copyright © 2014 by Diana Bold

All rights reserved.

Book cover: Mandy Koehler Designs

First published by Eve Paludan Books as Chance of a Lifetime 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

Chance of a Lifetime

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 Sarah Hoyt, a kindred spirit. Thank you for everything!

Title: Prologue

New Orleans, Louisiana

April 7, 1867

Joshua Blake glanced at the list in his hands and surveyed the hotel lobby full of women. Hannah McLean?

He’d headed to New Orleans with the best of intentions. After hearing of the now-famous bride ships that had sailed to Seattle, carrying gently bred women from Boston and their settling influence, he’d jested about how much the town of Last Chance needed a bride ship of its own. Only a few of the men in town had wives. Including the saloon girls, there were fewer than twenty women for 220 men. The numbers spoke for themselves. There was obviously a need, and where there was a need, Josh had always seen money to be made.

He’d calculated the costs of going back East to fetch some women, added on a hefty finder’s fee for himself and the small group of his friends who had backed him, then promised to bring back the perfect bride for any man who wanted one and was prepared to pay the price. Twenty-two men had gladly paid the fee, and he and his friend Logan Donley had traveled to New Orleans to find suitable women.

I’m Hannah McLean. A lovely redhead stood and walked toward him, her wide green eyes brimming with contagious excitement. She wore a threadbare gown in a shade of rust that shouldn’t have been flattering on a woman of her vibrant coloring, but somehow, it was.

He swallowed dryly and motioned for her to follow him down the hall to one of the meeting rooms the faded old hotel had provided. Until about half an hour ago, Logan had been conducting the interviews. This had been fine by Josh, because Logan was, by far, the better judge of character, and Josh would be the first to admit that he tended to be too easily swayed by a pretty face. However, one of the ladies who had come in to be interviewed ended up being Logan’s former fiancée, and the ensuing drama had landed the interviewer job squarely in Josh’s lap while Logan hashed things out with the woman.

Please, be seated, he told Miss McLean as they entered the room, which contained a desk and two chairs.

She sat gracefully, a perfect lady, no matter how shabbily she was dressed, and handed him the short questionnaire they’d had each applicant fill out about her background and reasons for wanting to travel all the way to the Washington Territory to become a stranger’s wife.

He made sure to keep the door wide open, always mindful of propriety. It had been suggested that they hire a chaperone to be present at the interviews, and he’d already placed another advertisement for such a creature, but for today, they had to make do without one.

Josh had never even thought of having an older woman present, having grown up rough in brothels, riverboats, and gold fields, but Logan had kicked himself for not having thought of it, since this was his hometown, and he was quite familiar with their odd morals and customs. The one thing Josh did know, however, was that he had no intention of bringing home one of these ladies for himself.

The last thing he needed was a bride.

As he took his own chair, he skimmed through Miss McLean’s answers. She was twenty-four, had never been married, and had no children. She had written: I am here today because Last Chance sounds like a beautiful place, and I am ready for a new adventure.

He smiled a bit at that. Of the dozen or so women who had already been interviewed, not one had mentioned the word adventure. You have an adventurous spirit, Miss McLean?

She didn’t blush or look away. Instead, she held his gaze and returned his smile. I do, Mr. Blake. I always have.

In what ways would you count yourself adventurous? he asked, leaning back in his chair and steepling his fingers. He let his gaze drift across her hair, which contained more shades of red and gold than he could name.

During the war, I went to Richmond to volunteer as a nurse. I stayed through the siege and was evacuated during the fall of the city, she replied a bit smugly, her emerald eyes lit with challenge.

Well, he said, utterly flummoxed, that certainly was adventurous.

So far, the women he’d talked to had all seemed beaten down by years of war and reconstruction. For them, becoming a mail order bride offered a new beginning, a way out of a life of poverty and despair. But Hannah McLean did not seem bitter or hardened by what had happened to her. Instead, she sat here talking of adventure.

A sprinkle of freckles across the bridge of her pert nose caught his attention, and he suddenly wanted nothing more than to kiss them. Her skin was pale and lustrous, absolutely flawless, her figure slim, yet voluptuous. Intelligence and life shone in her eyes, and he was suddenly very glad he’d been forced to do the interviews.

I’ve always longed to travel, to see the world and try new things, she continued. But I also believe that with the right person, you can find adventure without ever leaving your home, so, here I am.

He wondered if she realized how absolutely scintillating he found her. She met his gaze squarely, without any guile or false modesty, allowing him to see that she returned his interest. Such honesty from a woman was refreshing, yet, he found it almost threatening. This girl would never fall for the masks he sometimes wore. She would expect nothing less than a man’s entire heart and soul.

Why do you need to travel halfway across the country to find such a partner? he asked, genuinely curious.

The men here are battered and bruised from too many years of war. They’ve come home to find their homes destroyed, their entire way of life changed forever. Her eyes brimmed with sudden tears, which she blinked away so fast that he wondered if he’d imagined them. Your advertisement hinted at a place where prosperity and opportunity abound. I want to be part of that and find the sort of enterprising gentlemen who are making such exciting things happen.

He smiled, more impressed with her by the moment. Well, you are just the kind of woman we are looking for. In fact, I don’t believe anyone we’ve spoken to has had such a positive attitude.

The pleasure that spread across her lovely face took his breath away. Thank you, she said. I believe my nursing skills could be quite an asset in a frontier town. I’m eager to join your expedition.

You’re right, he mused. Last Chance doesn’t have a doctor, so we could certainly use someone who knows something of the medical arts. He tried to imagine this charming, lovely girl splattered with the blood and gore of a wartime hospital and the thought made him slightly ill. He had no doubt, given her poise and spirit, that she had been up to the task, but hated that she’d had to endure such a thing.

Wonderful, she said, with another of those blazing smiles. So, I assume that means I can start packing my bags?

He blinked. He had a whole slew of questions that he’d meant to ask, things meant to winnow out those too weak to handle such a long trip and the stress of an unknown future, but in truth, he already knew Miss McLean would thrive in Last Chance.

Yes, Miss McLean, he said, bowing to her indomitable will. I do believe I’ll be seeing you soon.

In the end, they sat talking about everything and nothing until Logan actually stuck his head in to see if anything was wrong and remind him that there were others still waiting to be interviewed. Josh concluded the meeting with a sheepish smile and a promise to contact her with their decision, as soon as possible. As she walked out of the room, he had a very bad feeling that he wouldn’t be forgetting her anytime soon.

Title: Chapter One

OCTOBER 18, 1867

Hannah McLean hid behind a lifeboat upon the heaving deck of the Horizon, blinking against the salty spray as the heavily wooded shoreline of the Washington Territory came into view. Nearly an hour ago, when the weather had gotten perilous, all of the ladies had been ordered below, but Hannah had immediately crept back up on deck. A little wind and rain wasn’t going to keep her from