>
This was going to be a lot harder
than he thought.
Why did she have to have eyes that penetrated the very depths of his soul, connecting with that spot he had purposely kept shut off for years?
He broke eye contact. He didn’t want her or anyone else invading that private place. Nor did he want her coming home with him.
Think, Haydon! Maybe he could buy her a one-way ticket home and set her up here in a Prosperity Mountain hotel until the next stagecoach.
He scanned the mining town. Several men stood in front of the saloon with their arms crossed and their legs spread, gawking at Miss Devonwood as if they hadn’t eaten in days and she were a fresh piece of meat.
His brother should be dealing with this. But with Jess injured, it was up to Haydon to do what he had to do to keep this woman safe.
No gentleman would do anything less. And if Haydon was anything, he prided himself in being a gentleman.
Most of the time anyway.
DEBRA ULLRICK
is an award-winning author who is happily married to her husband of thirty-six years. For more than twenty-five years, she and her husband and their only daughter lived and worked on cattle ranches in the Colorado Mountains. The last ranch Debra lived on, a famous movie star and her screenwriter husband purchased property there. She now lives in the flatlands where she’s dealing with cultural whiplash. Debra loves animals, classic cars, mudbog racing and monster trucks. When she’s not writing, she’s reading, drawing Western art, feeding wild birds, watching Jane Austen movies, COPS, or Castle.
Debra loves hearing from her readers. You can contact her through her website at www.DebraUllrick.com.
The Unexpected Bride
Debra
Ullrick
MILLS & BOON
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Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,
and whose hope is the Lord.
—Jeremiah 17:7
A ginormous thanks to my dear friends,
Staci Stallings, Dennis Bates, Michelle Sutton,
Rose McCauley and Jeanie Smith Cash.
Your endless hours and invaluable input has
taught me so much and helped make this book
so much better. To my wonderful agent
Tamela Hancock Murray and my fabulous editor
Emily Rodmell, thank you for believing in me.
To the friendly people in Moscow, Idaho,
who helped with my research, thank you so much.
And a humungous thanks to my husband, Rick.
Thank you for always being there for me.
You truly are my hero, and I love you very much.
Last, but definitely not least, to my Lord and Savior
Jesus, thank you. You rock!
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Epilogue
Letter to Reader
Questions for Discussion
Chapter One
Paradise Haven, Idaho Territory
1874
If Rainelle Devonwood’s mother knew what she was about to do, she would roll over in her grave.
Grave.
That one word ripped at Rainee’s heart, but she refused to cry in the presence of the strangers surrounding her. She lowered her head and pressed her fingers over her eyelids in hopes of holding back the flood of tears.
Oh, Mother, you would be astonished to know what I have done. But even you would understand why I did it. If only you and Father were still alive. Then I would still be at home, living without pain and suffering. But, Mother. I had to leave. I just had to.
In the small confines of the dusty stagecoach, only one thing gave Rainee a measure of peace about her drastic
