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Baker Publishing Group - Judith Miller

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148 pages

English

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Delightful Blend of History and RomanceAinslee McKay's world is shaken when she discovers her twin sister has not only eloped with a man she barely knows but now Ainslee must fulfill their obligation at a tile works in Weston, West Virginia. Ainslee must learn the ropes and, if she can keep the tile works profitable, her brother will help her sell the business. When Levi Judson arrives and shows Ainslee his designs for new tiles, she's impressed by his skill and passion for the business. But he's hiding his true reason for coming to Weston. And Ainslee knows he'd be crushed to learn his plans for a long career at McKay Tile Works are in vain since she intends to sell. Can the growing feelings between them survive if the truth comes to light--or is a future together as untenable as the future of the tile works itself?

Sujets

Historical romance

Informations

Publié par	Baker Publishing Group
Date de parution	02 août 2016
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781441269485
Langue	English
Poids de l'ouvrage	1 Mo

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0432€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

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Cover
Title Page
Copyright Page
© 2016 by Judith Miller
Published by Bethany House Publishers
11400 Hampshire Avenue South
Bloomington, Minnesota 55438
www.bethanyhouse.com
Bethany House Publishers is a division of
Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan
www.bakerpublishinggroup.com
Ebook edition created 2016
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Control Number: 2016931049
ISBN 978-1-4412-6948-5
Scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, incidents, and dialogues are products of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Cover design by LOOK Design Studio
Cover photography by Aimee Christenson
Author is represented by Books & Such Literary Agency
Dedication
In memory of Sharon Asmus, precious friend, sister in Christ, amazing editor. You are deeply missed.
Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Epigraph
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
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17
18
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21
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23
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30
Note from the Author
Special thanks to . . .
About the Author
Books by Judith Miller
Back Ads
Back Cover
Epigraph
Thou also, son of man, take thee a tile, and lay it before thee, and pourtray upon it the city, even Jerusalem.
Ezekiel 4:1
Chapter 1
Grafton, West Virginia May 1876
A lump the size of a lemon lodged in Ainslee McKay’s throat. Hands shaking, her thoughts whirled while she forced herself to once again read the brief note from her sister. How could Adaira do this? Sisters didn’t run off without a word of warning. Especially not a twin sister. And certainly not with a man who was practically a stranger. There was no way to make sense of Adaira’s impulsive decision.
Ainslee raced down the stairs with the note clutched tightly in her fist, giving no thought to her inappropriate attire. Inside the dining room, she skidded to an abrupt halt.
Grandmother Woodfield’s brows arched high. “Did you forget that we fashion our hair and dress for breakfast, my dear?”
Although she wasn’t a blood relative, the older woman had been like a grandmother to Ainslee and her sisters when they had arrived from Ireland. Even before Ainslee’s brother Ewan and Laura Woodfield had married, she’d asked that the girls address her as Grandmother Woodfield. And they’d been delighted to accommodate her request.
Ainslee’s sun-kissed light brown locks spilled from the loose ribbon that had held her flowing tresses in check during the night. After tracing her fingers through her hair, she clutched her dressing gown tightly around her neck with her free hand. “I apologize, Grandmother, but once all of you read this, I think you’ll understand why I didn’t take time to dress.” Flapping the piece of stationery, she turned toward Ewan and his wife, Laura, who sat near his side at the dining table. “Did you receive a note from Adaira, as well?”
Ewan shook his head. “Why would she write to us when we live under the same roof?”
“That’s just it. We no longer live under the same roof.” Ainslee’s voice cracked with emotion. “Read this.” She handed the missive to her brother and watched his nonchalant expression change to one of utter disbelief.
“I canna believe Adaira would do such a thing. She can be a bit flighty, but she’s not a thoughtless girl.” Ewan’s words were tinged with Irish brogue as he returned his attention to the note. “And yet . . .” He handed the piece of cream-colored stationery to Laura.
Ewan’s wife visibly paled. “Surely we must have missed some clue along the way. Did you realize she was serious about Chester Mulvane, Ainslee? Had she spoken to you about him?”
Before Ainslee could reply, Grandmother Woodfield edged forward and tapped her index finger on the table. “Is anyone going to tell me what has happened?”
Ewan gulped the remains of his coffee and returned the cup to its saucer with a startling clank. “Adaira has eloped with Chester Mulvane.”
The room fell silent; time stood still.
Grandmother Woodfield was the first to recover. “Eloped? With Chester Mulvane? Isn’t he the young fellow from Pitts burgh who was here for dinner last week? Adaira barely knows him, and she’s only twenty years of age. I can’t believe she’d do anything so rash. Let me see what she wrote.”
Ewan passed the note to his mother-in-law. “Aye, you’re right about Chester. He was here for dinner last week—and a few other times, as well. He’s a nephew of Joseph Horne and works for his uncle. I’m not sure what title they’ve given him, but he does a good deal of buying for the store. He’s placed several large orders for china, and when he was last here, he purchased some of our most expensive specialty pieces for their store. While I value the company’s business, I’m not pleased by this turn of events.”
“Nor am I.” Grandmother Woodfield read the scribbled note and returned it to Ewan. “In addition to shopping at Mr. Horne’s department store on several occasions, I’ve attended a few social functions where he and his wife were present, but I don’t recall meeting the Mulvanes. And I don’t recall any of you telling me Chester was related to the Hornes.”
Laura motioned for Catherine to refill her coffee cup. “I didn’t think Chester’s family history was pertinent, Mother. None of us thought he was anything more than an occasional visitor to Grafton.”
“Yet he’d called on Adaira, so he likely considered himself a suitor, don’t you think?”
Laura stirred a dollop of cream into her coffee. “Perhaps, but none of that really matters at this juncture. What matters is that we locate Adaira and discover whether she and Chester have truly married.”
The older woman sighed. “I’m not sure if it’s better to hope that they’ve exchanged vows or trust they came to their good senses before finding a preacher who would marry them. Either way, there’s bound to be no end of gossip once word gets out.”
“At the moment, gossip is the last thing that’s on my mind.” Ewan pushed his plate aside and turned toward Ainslee. “When did you last see your sister?”
“Late yesterday afternoon. She said she was going to dinner with Chester and then they were going to hear some speaker at the Emporium. She told me it would be late before she returned home.” Ainslee frowned at her brother. “I mentioned this at dinner last night. Sometimes I wonder if anyone listens to me.”
Ewan pushed away from the mahogany dining table and massaged his forehead. “I do listen, Ainslee, but sometimes I forget what I’ve been told. I now recall that you said she’d be returning home late.” He looked at a loss for what to do next. “Did you look in her room before you came downstairs?”
“No. I’ll go up and check now, if you’d like.” She thought the note provided enough evidence of her sister’s departure. The idea of checking her room seemed a waste of time, but she wouldn’t argue. She shot an exasperated look in her brother’s direction. “I don’t think she’s hiding under the bedcovers.”
Ewan sighed. “Nor do I, but I do wonder if she took her belongings. I know you’d both been packing for your upcoming departure to Weston, though I’m not sure how she could have removed those heavy trunks from the house without someone noticing. If they’re not in her room, it’s a sure sign she’s not planning to return anytime soon.”
Ainslee nodded toward the maid who was removing Ewan’s plate from the table. “Adaira knows Catherine goes into town for the weekly shopping on Monday afternoons. Chester could have come to the house then and loaded them into a wagon or even hired someone to come to the house and transport her belongings.”
Tessa, Ewan and Laura’s six-year-old daughter, jumped up from her chair. “I’ll go upstairs and look for you, Daddy.” With out waiting for his approval, the towheaded girl ran from the room and disappeared up the stairs.
Ewan folded his hands together and turned toward Laura. “I’m not sure what to do. Should I board a train for Pittsburgh and try to bring her home?”
Ainslee gave her brother an enthusiastic nod. “Yes. Adaira simply must come home or we’ll lose the tile works. I can’t go to Weston on my own.”
“Let’s take this one step at a time.” Ewan’s lips tightened into a thin line. “First we must decide what to do about Adaira. Then we’ll discuss the new business in Weston.”
Before another opinion could be offered, Tessa’s footsteps clattered in the hallway. “Her trunks are gone.”
Ainslee dropped onto one of the silk-upholstered dining chairs as the child’s words seeped into her bones. She and Adaira were scheduled to leave for Weston on Friday and begin work at the tile works on Monday morning, yet her sister never said anything about a plan to elope with Chester Mulvane. Truth be told, Adaira had barely spoken Chester’s name. Granted, she’d mentioned that Ewan had given the young man permission to call on her when he was in town, but there had been no indication that Chester was anything more than a handsome young man who could act as her escort to an occasional party or dinner. In Ainslee’s opinion, he’d been no more than a passing fancy to Adaira, no different than several other young men who had occasionally called on her sister.
How could she have been so blind? Ainslee picked up the engraved piece of stationery and traced her fingers across the imprint of her sister’s name. The personalized notepaper had been a gift from Grandmother Woodfield last Christmas. Ainslee’s name had been inscribed in bold block print, while Adaira’s had been printed in a delicate flowing script—to match their talents and personalities. At