Sweet Wedlock: Carson Valley, #8

By Eliza Ester

Flight the fire of desire in this bouquet throwing mail order bride tale!

 

Caleb is a born and bred grafter. He'd stepped into Carson Valley as a blacksmith apprentice; earning and saving enough to build a log cabin of his own. A cabin is only beams and windows; he truly desires a honey to help him make a home.
 

Loneliness is a hungry hunter…
 

In sweeps Blossom Sutcliffe, who served as a housekeeper in her family home – until it suddenly couldn't be called home any longer. Seeking adventure and a chance to settle down, Blossom signs up to the mail-order bride agency to fill the gaping void she's spent years trying to ignore.
 

Love is a fire that flickers before it burns…
​

More than alarm bells ring when she first arrives at Carson Valley and books into a hotel. Later that night she smells smoke and is rescued by a handsome stranger. A stranger who turns out to be the man that she is promised to. However, there is more than one contender for his heart in these parts. Moreover, they'll go to hell and the high altar to dispose of the threat to steal Caleb's heart.

Can their love be spoiled before it has a chance to Blossom?
 

This clean western romance series can be read in about an hour. It is perfect for those moments when you are waiting at an appointment or want to enjoy a quick read.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Majestic Owl Publishing LLC
• Release date: Jan 28, 2022
• ISBN: 9798201347987

Book preview

ONE

Caleb

It was late when Caleb finally finished at the forge. Seth had gone home a while ago and Caleb felt like he was the only one still awake in the whole of Carson Valley. He liked working late, being left alone with his own thoughts. When he peered out into the night, the darkness was thick and he didn’t feel like riding out of town in it. Instead, he walked to the cot in the forge and lay down. His muscles ached from working so hard, but it was a good feeling to know he’d used his body and used it well.

Caleb Hall had come to Carson Valley when he was just a teenager to work as Seth’s apprentice at the forge. He learned everything from Seth—how to shoe horses and make pots and bells, pickaxes and the like, everything the farmers around the area needed. When he’d qualified as a blacksmith, doing what he did best, Seth had asked him to stay on and together they’d grown the business. Even though Seth was much older than Caleb and he had more years of experience, they were partners and respected each other.

Caleb closed his eyes and tried to envision Blossom, the woman he was to marry. She would arrive with the stage the next day and Caleb would finally get to meet her. She was a mail order bride, coming from the East. Even though there were a handful of women in town who fancied Caleb, he didn’t reciprocate their feelings, and he’d looked elsewhere for his bride.

He felt like he knew Blossom, even though they’d only communicated through letters. From what he could tell, she was headstrong and determined to make her own way through life, even when she wasn’t dealt the hand she would have liked. It was the kind of woman he needed—someone who would fight through the hard times with him. The life of a blacksmith was not an easy one.

Of course, he didn’t have much to offer his new bride. He had saved up money over the years of working, using only what he needed and no more, and he’d built himself a house outside of town on a plot of land that was envied by many. So he did have something he could offer, a place where he and his new bride could start a family. Caleb wouldn’t be alone anymore. As much as he enjoyed spending time alone, being the one to work late most nights, everything would change once his bride arrived and he would spend his evenings with her, instead of working late.

The only thing that remained was for Caleb to see what Blossom looked like. He felt he knew her heart but he had no idea what she looked like. When he thought of her he tried to imagine someone specific, but it was hard filling the void in his mind when he knew nothing. It didn’t matter to him if she was beautiful or not; he felt that she was beautiful on the inside and that was all that counted.

Slowly, Caleb drifted off, sleep finally dragging him under. He dreamed of a mysterious woman with the intent to make it through, no matter what.

The smell of smoke forced its way through the deep waves of sleep and Caleb’s eyes flew open. He was fully alert almost immediately. He sat up and checked the fireplace where he and Seth usually made roaring fires to melt the iron into submission, but the embers were cold after Caleb had poured water on them.

The crackle of fire drew his attention outside, and Caleb hurried to the door. The night was tinted with an