Mail Order Bride - Westward Changes: A Clean Cowboy Romance Novel (Montana Mail Order Brides Book 14) Read online

  What all does a foreman do? It sounds like hard work. I take in laundry and such on my family’s farm to make some extra money. I work hard and I’m responsible. I’m not really sure what else to tell you about myself. Just ask me and I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.

  I look forward to hearing back from you.

  Deanna Morris

  Eddie scratched his head a little after reading the short letter. He like the idea that the woman lived so close to Dawson, but she hadn’t asked much about him. She also hadn’t said much about herself. He bought his twine and left the store feeling more disappointed than before.

  *****

  Eddie let Joe read the letter to get his opinion on it. Joe smiled as he read it.

  “What’s so funny?” Eddie said as his boss handed the letter back to him.

  “Well, I told Elliot to pick the most unusual letter he got and he picked Abby’s. Look how that turned out for him. It was the same with Lacey’s letter and Sammi’s. That’s the letter you want to respond to, Eddie. Maybe she’s shy and really just doesn’t know what to say or ask,” Joe said.

  Eddie gave Joe a doubtful look. “Do you really think so?”

  “Yes, Eddie, I do. Write her back and see how it goes. If the two of you like each other, you won’t have to wait forever for her to get here, that’s for sure,” Joe said. “How perfect is that?”

  Eddie smiled. “I guess you’re right. I’ll give it a whirl.”

  “Good. Here comes my lady,” Joe said as he saw Lacey coming towards him.

  She carried their seven-month old son, Timmy. Joe took the baby from his wife and blew raspberries on the little fellow’s belly. He laughed and squealed as his father’s actions tickled him.

  Eddie watched Joe with a smile. It used to be that Joe lived for gambling, women, and horses, but that was all before he met Lacey. Now he lived for his family before anything else. Lacey and Joe also had a seven-year-old daughter named Emily who looked and acted just like Joe. Joe and Lacey were hoping that this little one took more after Lacey. They had a feeling that Emily was going to be a real handful as she grew older.

  Suddenly a horse squealed and someone shouted. Eddie ran into the barn and saw Charlie Douglas, their newest hand, holding his left biceps. Leo, a large black Thoroughbred colt, pranced in place on the crossties on which he was hooked.

  “Damn it! I hate that horse,” Charlie said.

  Eddie said, “Move your hand, Charlie. How bad is it?”

  Charlie took his hand away and blood ran down his arm, staining his red shirt.

  “Get your shirt off,” Eddie said.

  As Charlie took the shirt off, the wound on his bicep became visible. Large bite marks were already turning purple and bled freely. Charlie swore a blue streak.

  “C’mon up to my apartment and we’ll get that fixed up, Charlie,” Eddie said.

  Joe frowned at Leo. “I’ll get him back in his stall. I don’t know what we’re going to do with him. You are right, Eddie. He is a holy terror.”

  “I’m gonna start putting a muzzle on him except at feeding time. The only person he behaves for is your daughter. I can’t figure it out,” Eddie said. “C’mon, Charlie.”

  Joe went in search of his daughter. Eddie was right. The colt loved Emily and did anything she asked. He found her in her room, reading a book.

  “Hi there, beautiful,” Joe said.

  She smiled. “Hi, Daddy. What’re you doin’?”

  Joe grinned upon hearing her accent. She hadn’t grown up in Texas at all, but she’d heard him talk so much since she was born that she’d picked it up.

  “Well, I need your help. Can you put Leo in his stall for me? He bit Charlie really bad. I’ve never been afraid of a horse, but he’s a different story.”

  “Sure, Daddy. Where is he?”

  “On the crossties in the first barn,” Joe answered.

  Emily came and took his hand. “I’ve told him and told him he can’t be mean like that.”

  Joe walked with his daughter and looked at her with love in his eyes. He was proud of the adorable little girl. She was also almost an expert with the horses and he could well imagine her taking over the business someday.

  Upon reaching the barn, Emily went right up to the horse and shook a finger at him. “You’re a bad horse. Shame on you for hurting Charlie like that.”

  Leo put his head down as though he was ashamed of his behavior. Emily took a lead rope from a hook and attached it to the colt’s halter. Once she undid the crossties, she said, “Now look here, buddy. You better behave or you won’t like what happens, ya hear?”

  Leo put his head down and pressed his face against Emily. She stroked the horse and scratched behind his ears while he made whickering noises low in his chest.

  Lacey and Joe watched with fascination as the little girl controlled the large horse with ease.

  “All right. Now you get in that stall and quit causing so much trouble. We’re gonna send you to the glue factory if you don’t stop it,” she told him.

  Leo walked meekly beside her and went into his stall without so much as a peep. Emily unhooked the lead rope and walked out of the stall. She closed and latched the door.

  Emily walked towards her parents and said, “I guess I told him.”

  Joe said, “You sure did, sweetheart. Thank you.”

  “Sure. I keep tellin’ y’all that you have to be firm with him. You can’t be afraid of him or he acts up,” Emily said. “Anything else?”

  Lacey laughed. “No, honey. How about we go see what Addie has for a snack?”

  “Ok, Mama. ‘Bye, Daddy.”

  Joe watched his girls and son walk away and shook his head. He looked back at Leo and frowned. Something had to be done with the horse, but he didn’t know what.

  *****

  Deena gathered eggs from the chicken coop on her family’s small farm. She was happy with how many eggs the hens were laying. It meant that they would have plenty for themselves and also be able to sell the extra ones. They needed all the money they could get at the moment. The winter had been hard on them and they were hoping to make up for it that summer.

  As she gathered eggs and milked their three cows, Deena wondered if Eddie would write back to her, or her fake persona. She felt a little guilty about the deception, but needed a way to get through to him. Maybe if he got to know her a little through letters, he’d realize how much she liked him and would finally be interested in her. Deena wanted him to see that she was more than just a waitress at a restaurant.

  Her father came out of their storage shed and came into the barn. Deena smiled at him.

  “Hi, Pa. I’m almost done with the milking. What’s next?” she asked.

  Tom Abbott wiped the sweat from his brow and said, “Well, I guess that’s about it for you. You’re not helping with the plowing so get that out of your head. I’m not having my beautiful girl out doing men’s work. No offense, honey.”

  “None taken, Pa, but you know I would do it,” Deena said.

  “I know, but Kenny will be along soon,” Tom said. “I know what you can do. Why don’t you go make us some of that mint iced tea of yours? That’ll taste good later on.”

  “Ok, Pa. I can do that. I’ll get that mending done for you, too.”

  “All right. I appreciate it,” Tom said. He came to her and placed a kiss on her cheek. “You’re the apple of my eye.”

  Deena laughed. Tom was always telling her that. “Pa, you’re such a softie.”

  “Only where you’re concerned. Your ma would be proud.”

  She smiled, but didn’t say anything. Blinking back tears, Deena finished milking the last cow. Tom went on his way, whistling off key, as he often did. Deena loved hearing her father whistle. It was a comforting sound that always cheered her up. Once the milking was done, Deena took it up to the house, intending to churn butter with it.

  Her cousin, Kenny Benson turned up not too much later and came up to the house to see her. He was a cut
e guy with sandy blonde hair and bright green eyes. He was the youngest of the Benson children at twenty-years-old. He’d been a surprise baby and had been spoiled rotten by his parents and siblings alike.

  Kenny often came and helped them with various jobs around the place, for which Tom was very grateful. He was an affable young fellow who smiled a lot.

  “Hey, cuz,” he said as he sat down at the kitchen table.

  “Hi, Kenny. Ready for plowing?” she asked.

  “Yeah. Might as well get it done. I’m gonna try to get more rocks out of that ground. The crops will grow better that way. We need rain. I hope we’re not gonna have a drought again this year,” Kenny remarked.

  “Me, either.”

  Kenny gave her a teasing smile. “So how’s Eddie these days?”

  “None of your business. I still don’t know how you figured out that I like him,” Deena said.

  “Aw, c’mon, Deena. It’s all over your face whenever he’s around,” Kenny said. “You’d have to be blind not to notice it.”

  “Well, then, I guess Eddie has bad eyesight because he doesn’t see what’s right in front of him,” Deena lamented.

  Kenny chuckled. “Well, then I guess you’re gonna have to try something different.”

  Deena sat down at the table and debated on whether she should tell Kenny about her plan. Kenny was often her confidant about things and he was completely trustworthy about not telling anyone else about the things they discussed.

  “I am trying something new.”

  Kenny said, “What is it?”

  “I’m swearing you to secrecy, Kenny.”

  “Ok. I won’t tell anyone, Deena. You know that,” Kenny said.

  Deena looked around their well-worn kitchen a moment. The counters were clean, but showed signs of wear and tear. The same for the floor and cabinets. Her pa often remarked about how he wished they had the money to remodel the room.

  “Did you know that Eddie placed an ad for a mail-order-bride?” she asked.

  “He did? No. I had no idea,” Kenny said. “But then again, I don’t really talk to him much. We don’t really run in the same circles.”

  “Well, I wrote him a letter, but I sent it from Wolfe Point under a different name,” she said.

  Kenny’s eyebrows rose. “Why’d you do that?”

  “So he would get to know me so that when we met, he would see that we would make a good match,” Deena told him.

  “Yeah, but Deena, what’s gonna happen when it’s time to meet him? He’s gonna get mad,” Kenny said. “I don’t want to see you get hurt. Can’t you just tell him outright?”

  “I don’t think he’ll listen. No, I want him to get know me and then I’ll deal with whatever comes,” Deena insisted.

  Her cousin shook his head. “I don’t know, Deena. It’s a crazy plan.”

  “I know, but I’m doing it,” she said.

  Sighing, Kenny replied, “All right, but don’t say I didn’t warn you. Well, I better get to that plowin’. I’ll see you later.”

  “Ok. I’ll have tea ready later on,” Deena said.

  “Sounds good.” Kenny gave her a smile and left out the kitchen door of their little white house.

  Deena sighed and propped her chin up with her hand. Closing her eyes, Deena conjured up an image of Eddie in her mind. His perpetually messy brown hair made her want to straighten it with her fingers. She longed to kiss him and have him really see her with those gorgeous, blue eyes of his. Opening her eyes, Deena hoped and prayed that he would respond to her letter.

  Two days later, her prayer was answered. She’d been able to get to Wolfe Point one afternoon after her shift at the Grady House. When the postmaster handed her a letter, Deena wanted to jump up and down.

  She hugged her horse, Thumper, and said, “He wrote me back, boy. Let’s read it, ok?”

  Thumper nodded as though he thought this was a good idea.

  Deena chuckled and opened it.

  Dear Deanna,

  It was really nice hearing from you. It surprised me that you live in Wolfe Point, but it’s nice that you live so close. I didn’t know that the ad had been put in the paper over there. Anyway, it seems like you match what I’m looking for, but I’d like to know more about you. Tell me about your family and maybe what you’re looking for in a man. That’s a good place to start, I think.

  I live on a big horse ranch. It’s funny that you mention the mayor here, Joe Dwyer, because he’s my boss. The ranch belongs to him and his wife, Lacey. I’ve been friends with Joe for about ten years or so now. We got to be friends after he hired me as a groom. I moved up to foreman not long after, so I guess that means he liked my work.

  I’d have to use a lot of paper to tell you everything I do, but I’ll give you the short version. I have five grooms and four stable hands to supervise. I hire and fire the outside employees. I’m in charge of ordering supplies, making sure the help is keeping equipment in good repair, and all the horses groomed on a daily basis. I also have to make sure that any horses that are sick or hurt get tended to and oversee the births of foals. There’re all kinds of other things to do, too, but I don’t want to bore with it all.

  Joe insisted that I take the apartment over the barn. That way, I can be on-site whenever there’s a problem. It’s rent free and it’s a very nice place, so I can’t complain any. Joe is generous to a fault and pays his employees very well. He pretty much leaves the day to day stuff to me, which is nice because I don’t have him breathing down my neck.

  My ma and pa live in Dawson and Pa works at the feed mill. Ma watches the neighbor kids for a young couple and loves doing it. My sister, Shelby, moved to Helena a little while back with her husband, so we don’t see her as much as we’d like to. I hate her husband, but would never tell her so. He seems kind of uppity and it’s real irritating.

  I’m happy to hear that you ride. We have a lot of good horses here that you would be welcome to ride. There are some that are too expensive and we only let a few select people ride them. We have about sixty head of horses right now.

  Well, now that you know more about me, tell me about you. Looking forward to it.

  Sincerely,

  Eddie

  Deena reread the letter as she rode home. There were many things in it that she didn’t know about Eddie and she couldn’t wait to respond. Yes, he had given her a lot of information to work with and she felt that she could provide details about herself without him catching on since he’d never known much about her other than where she worked. She laughed to herself as she got more excited about her plan. Things were starting out well and she intended to make sure it stayed that way.

  Chapter Three

  Dear Eddie,

  I was very happy to get a letter back from you. I wasn’t sure if I would or not. It sure sounds like you have a lot of responsibility on your shoulders, but you also seem like you’re up to the task. You must also be very smart to be able to keep track of all of that. I’m glad you have such a good boss and enjoy your work.

  From the sounds of it, you have a nice family. That’s very important. In-laws can be a pain. I don’t know from experience, but from what I’ve heard in the past, that seems to be the case. It’s just my pa and me since my ma passed away a few years back. We have a small farm and do all right. We’re just hoping we don’t have another drought because we need our crops to do well this year to make up for last.

  I do love to ride and would love to see all of the horses you have there. It sounds like it’s a very big place to have enough room to hold all of those horses. What kinds of horses do you raise? Do you have many foals right now?

  You asked what I want in a man. Here goes. I want someone I can trust, who’s loyal and won’t cheat on me. Someone who knows how to have fun and doesn’t mind a woman who speaks her mind so you don’t have to guess what she means. He should be smart, which you seem to be, kind, likes children, someone who isn’t afraid to do crazy things like dance in the rain or play a game of tag. I l
ike a man who pays attention to what I’m saying and will hold me if I cry. Maybe that’s a little sappy, but you asked me what I’m looking for and I’m just being honest.

  Write me back soon.

  Sincerely,

  Deanna

  Eddie smiled as he finished Deanna’s letter. He sat in his office with his feet propped up on his desk. His office used to be the old tack room and it was a large space, which was filled with everything necessary for him to do his job efficiently. His cat, Fatty, sat on his lap purring loudly. The tiger-striped cat weighed close to twenty-two pounds and was tall and long along with being well fed.

  “How about that, Fatty? I guess Joe was right, huh? She sounds really nice,” Eddie said.

  “Eddie! Eddie!”

  Eddie sat Fatty down and put his feet on the floor when he head Joe call him. It sounded like something was very wrong. Coming out of his office, Eddie saw Joe and jogged over to him. “What’s wrong?”

  Joe’s face was red with anger. “We’ve been robbed. Almost all of Lacey’s jewelry has been stolen. There’s a lot of expensive jewelry there. They got some of Addie’s stuff, too. Do you have anything missing?”

  Eddie’s eyes widened in disbelief as he listened to Joe. “I don’t know. I’ll go look. When do you think it happened?”

  “We’re not sure. They got some of my good cufflinks, too. And a watch that my Mama bought me,” Joe said as he followed Eddie to his apartment.

  The door opened into a large parlor. The furniture was a little worn, but nice nonetheless. Eddie strode back to his bedroom which was past the kitchen. He went over to his bureau and opened the bottom right drawer.

  He rummaged around under socks and underwear and pulled out a wooden box. Upon opening it, he discovered that it was empty. “Damn it! They got my cufflinks that Ma gave me for my eighteenth birthday and an expensive knife I bought a while back.” Eddie put the box back and stepped over to his closet. Parting the shirts that hung in it, Eddie pressed a knothole in the wood paneling and a little door opened up. His rare coin collection was intact.