Authors: Emily Woods
Mail Order Bride: Captured Hearts: a Clean Western Historical Romance (Mail Order Brides of Gold Creek Book 6)
Captured Hearts
Mail Order Brides
Of Gold Creek
By Emily Woods
Copyright
©
2015 Emily Woods
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Except for review quotes, this book may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, without the written consent of the author.
This story is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual people, places, or events is purely coincidental.
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Be sure to check out all of my books
Mail Order Brides of Gold Creek Series
- Pearl of the West
- The Girl from Ruby Ridge
- For Richer Not Poorer
- Twist of Fate
- Saved by a Cowboy
- Captured Hearts
Sherwood Mail Order Brides
- Millie’s Texas Cowboy
- Alice and the Texas Lawman
- Hazel and the Texas Postman
Mail Order Brides of French Gulch
- Rescuing Katie
- More Than Words
- A Christmas to Remember
Mail Order Brides from the Midwest
*** Written with Vivian Wells
- Heart of Gold
- Christmas Surprise
Mail Order Brides of Ruby Ridge
- Thanksgiving Forgiveness
- Christmas Bride
Montana Mail Order Brides
- Christmas Baby Miracle
Multi-Book Boxed Sets
- Mail Order Brides of Gold Creek – Volume 1
- Sherwood Mail Order Brides
- Mail Order Brides of Gold Creek – Volume 2
- Mail Order Brides of French Gulch
- Mail Order Bride: Christmas Delivery
Table of Contents
Mollie Hughes sighed deeply as she watched her mother bustle around the kitchen like she didn’t have a care in the world, humming a lively tune to herself.
“Ma, I wish you would sit down and let me fix dinner,” Mollie said. “You’ve got to get your rest.”
“Nonsense,” Nell replied, swatting her, not all that gently, with a wooden spoon. “I’ve got to stay active and keep moving. I’m not going to my grave yet.
“But Doctor Gordon said—“
“Doctor Gordon says a lot of things,” Nell said scornfully.
“Yes,” Mollie pressed, “like you’ll need to stay in bed.”
“And that I’ll need $200 for surgery,” said Nell. “Neither of which is going to happen.”
Mollie felt that the frustration of it all would bring her to tears again. How on earth would they ever raise that kind of money? With her needing to quit work to look after her mother and Silas, her stepfather, working reduced hours in the factory, money was the tightest it had ever been. She tossed her dishcloth on the kitchen table and put her head in her hands.
“Why couldn’t Todd have at least sent us some of his money? To just go West and make a fortune and never come back? How selfish can you get?”
Her mother looked at her kindly.
“Don’t go down this road again, Mollie,” she said. “No, your father has certainly not been ideal—“
“You can say that again.”
“—but you’re blessed with a wonderful stepfather who considers you his own.”
“I know,” Mollie said. “And I am glad for that.”
“Well, good,” her mother said. “Things will work out, don’t you worry.”
Mollie had no idea how her mother could have such a casual attitude about the whole thing. She had a tumor in her side that grew by the day, but never seemed to let it get her down. She carried her rosary beads around and graced everyone with a genuine, compassionate smile. Mollie marveled at her mother’s ability to handle stress, feeling her own pulse quicken and muscles tighten whenever she thought of their desperate situation.
“I’ll just have to go back to work,” said Mollie, as if her determination would make a job appear out of nowhere.
“If you think that’s best, dear,” said Nell breezily.
“Of course, I’ve looked and looked and there seems there’s nothing available,” Mollie said.
She was probably the best educated young person in their poor neighborhood in Virginia, Nell and Silas having scrimped and saved every last penny to make sure she could complete school and learn how to read and write. She had quickly become the neighborhood scribe, filling out forms and reading letters, by the age of nine. Everyone had said that she would be the most successful girl their neighborhood ever produced, but with her mother’s illness she had barely had any time to work.
Mollie felt tears stinging in her eyes. It was too much for her to handle and she rushed out of the room, not wanting to burden her mother with her tears.
Running up the stairs, she threw herself on the bed and sobbed as her heart broke with the hopelessness of their situation. How would they ever come up with the money they needed for the surgery?
She thought about her biological father and wondered if he was still in Gold Creek. He had sent them a single letter, over ten years ago, with some money tucked into the envelope. They had written him back to the Gold Creek post office address he provided but received no reply. There was no way of telling whether he was dead or had moved on, or was simply ignoring them. It was a mystery. It had ended up the same way for many other families in the neighborhood, having watched the men of their households mount up on the wagon heading West but never having the relief of seeing them return. Only one came back, Henry Glasser, full to the brim with money that he threw about indiscriminately trying to keep the neighborhood afloat. It was gone before the year was out.
As she lay on the bed, a new thought dawned on her. She rolled over and took out the Matrimonial News that she kept hidden in her rickety nightstand. Flicking through the pages, she became ever more excited with the wild idea that had captured her imagination.
Perhaps she could be a mail order bride!
Though it was maybe not quite as moral as she would have liked, it certainly made sense given the desperate situation. She could pick a potential husband that gave an impression of wealth in his picture and description. Then she could go over there and marry him, legally be entitled to his money and take it to pay for her mother’s operation. After that, it was simple. She’d return to Virginia, free to finally pursue a job, and pay the man back. It all sounded masterfully straightforward.
She flicked through the magazine, trying to see if there was anyone from Gold Creek. That was where Henry had gone too, so she knew there must have been some sort of wealth there. She scanned the pictures and text, trying to find the elusive man that would fix all their problems without even knowing it.
Soon she landed on
Ira King, wealthy rancher, Gold Creek,
and she knew immediately that he was the one she needed. It was as if it was meant to be. She scrambled for her writing things under the bed, her heart beating with excitement at the prospect of being able to raise the money and see her mother get better.
Dear Ira,
she began.
My name is Mollie Hughes and I am looking for a husband.
She bit the end of her pen and wondered what on earth she should say. She hated to lie but it seemed to be the only option she had. In truth, a husband was the furthest thing from her mind as she poured all her energy into seeing that her mother recovered.