Bride for Donnigan (Women of the West Book #7) , livre ebook

Baker Publishing Group - Janette Oke

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116 pages

English

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Responding to an Advertisement, She Crossed an Ocean to Meet a Total Stranger and Became a Mail-Order Bride...Kathleen O'Malley stood on the deck of the Barreth Lily and watched the land she'd called home for more than a dozen years slip from her view. She had thought she would be glad to see the last of it, but she was not. Emotions in turmoil, her whole being yearned to slip from the ship and return to what she knew. Even though Kathleen had not been happy with her situation, it was all she had ever known. As the shoreline faded into the morning mist, her only certainty was that she was bound for America to marry a man whose name she did not even know and whose face she had never seen.On the other side of the Atlantic, Donnigan Harrison anxiously awaits Kathleen's arrival on a prairie farm far from her port of arrival in Boston. He has known the wonder of a dream fulfilled--a snug frame cabin, the sturdy log barn and outbuildings, a fine herd of livestock, and crops in the field that made his eyes sparkle. Yet Donnigan felt a loneliness on the western frontier that pierced his very soul. With so limited opportunities for finding a wife, the notion of ordering a wife that once seemed unthinkable had come to make some sense. Now that the time has come, Donnigan feels like a small boy waiting for Christmas.But Donnigan's anticipation is overshadowed with terrifying uncertainties--What have I done?

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Publié par	Baker Publishing Group
Date de parution	01 novembre 2007
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781585587339
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0259€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

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A Bride for Donnigan
Books by Janette Oke
Return to Harmony Another Homecoming Tomorrow s Dream
A CTS OF F AITH *
The Centurion s Wife The Hidden Flame The Damascus Way
C ANADIAN W EST
When Calls the Heart When Comes the Spring When Breaks the Dawn When Hope Springs New
Beyond the Gathering Storm When Tomorrow Comes
L OVE C OMES S OFTLY
Love Comes Softly Love s Enduring Promise Love s Long Journey Love s Abiding Joy Love s Unending Legacy Love s Unfolding Dream Love Takes Wing Love Finds a Home
A P RAIRIE L EGACY
The Tender Years A Searching Heart A Quiet Strength Like Gold Refined
S EASONS OF THE H EART
Once Upon a Summer The Winds of Autumn Winter Is Not Forever Spring s Gentle Promise
S ONG OF A CADIA *
The Meeting Place The Sacred Shore The Birthright The Distant Beacon The Beloved Land
W OMEN OF THE W EST
The Calling of Emily Evans Julia s Last Hope Roses for Mama A Woman Named Damaris They Called Her Mrs. Doc The Measure of a Heart A Bride for Donnigan Heart of the Wilderness Too Long a Stranger The Bluebird and the Sparrow A Gown of Spanish Lace Drums of Change
www.janetteoke.com
* with Davis Bunn

A Bride for Donnigan Copyright 1993 Janette Oke
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-electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise-without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
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.
E-book edition created 2011
ISBN 978-1-5855-8733-9
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
To the special cousins I grew up with- Bob, Don, Richard, Tom, Kenneth Archie And Eva
JANETTE OKE was born in Champion, Alberta, to a Canadian prairie farmer and his wife, and she grew up in a large family full of laughter and love. She is a graduate of Mountain View Bible College in Alberta, where she met her husband, Edward, and they were married in May of 1957. After pastoring churches in Indiana and Canada, the Okes spent some years in Calgary, where Edward served in several positions on college faculties while Janette continued her writing. She has written forty-eight novels for adults and another sixteen for children, and her book sales total nearly thirty million copies.
The Okes have three sons and one daughter, all married, and are enjoying their fifteen grandchildren. Edward and Janette are active in their local church and make their home near Didsbury, Alberta.
Contents
Prologue
1. Kathleen
2. Donnigan
3. Decided
4. Settled
5. No Turning Back
6. Preparations
7. Passage
8. Meeting
9. Adjustments Begin
10. Confused Beginnings
11. A Start
12. Settling In
13. The Tempest
14. A Long Talk
15. Erma
16. Sean
17. Understanding
18. Fiona
19. Brenna
20. The Continued Search
21. Family
22. Eamon
23 The Discovery
Prologue
This series of Women of the West has presented a number of different personalities in various circumstances that women of the past faced, and it seems right that a little attention be given to those who came, sight unseen, to the Americas to be brides of frontier men.
We know from history that these marriages did occur. But what do we really know about them? What would move a man to seek a complete stranger to be his lifelong mate? What kind of woman would respond to such a request? How might she feel as she traveled over oceans and frontiers to get to her unknown destination? Did the marriages indeed work ?
I don t pretend to have all the answers-but from a little research and with a little imagination, we can journey with one such couple to that significant first meeting and experience some of the emotions they must have felt on the way to that moment-and afterward.
Chapter One
Kathleen
She stood for a long time, staring through the dark of the morning mist at the posted notice. Her lips moved ever so slightly as she read again the strange words by the aid of the flickering streetlamp beside them-then read them once more to make sure she understood their meaning.
Ladies! The word seemed to shout off the printed paper. The Opportunity of a Lifetime in the New American Frontier! Well-Secured Ranchers, Farmers, and Businessmen Desire Wedded Partners to Share Their Life and Prosperity. INQUIRE WITHIN.
Surely it doesn t mean She mentally began an argument with the words. But she didn t even finish the unspoken statement. Her eyes were locked on the notice, and she read it through for the fourth time.
Would a girl-a woman really think of ? Her argument picked up again. No, surely not. I never could even-even think of such a thing.
But a few of the phrases still clung to her mind. Well-secured. Prosperity. And then the strange little phrase wedded partners. Did it really mean what she thought it did? She could only imagine one possibility. But she had never heard the phrase wedded partners before. Was the sign really saying that men-somewhere-were advertising for wives?
Her slight shoulders gave just a hint of a shrug. The thin coat, much too small even for her tiny frame, was reluctant to allow even that much room. She seemed to shrink back within its strained seams. The chill of the early morning made her shiver slightly in spite of her resolve to endure the cold.
Sure now, and I d best be on or I ll be late for my hawking, she scolded herself and was about to leave when two other young women approached quickly-excitedly.
There-ya see it for your own eyes. I wasn t yarnin . Look-right there.
Kathleen did not have time to move away from the notice on the wall. The girls seemed not to see her, so intent were they on their mission. They shoved right past her, and the taller of the two read the notice aloud for the shorter, more sturdy one. Kathleen took a step backward and hoped she was hidden in the shadows.
Ladies. The opportunity of a lifetime in the new American frontier. Well-secured ranchers, farmers, and businessmen desire wedded partners to share their life and prosperity. Inquire within. There could be no mistake-the now-familiar words had been confirmed by another.
Well, I never-! exclaimed the shorter girl, and the two clutched each other and hooted and squealed. Kathleen found her cheeks staining red. For a reason she couldn t quite understand, she felt embarrassed.
And you re thinking to apply? demanded the shorter girl.
Aye, Erma, answered the taller, a bit of Scottish brogue tinting her words. And I ve already done.
No! Go on with ya, lass!
Another squeal. Another shriek of laughter.
And why not? There s no prosperity to be had here in London. Not for the likes of me.
But to leave home-
Home? Home has been little more than the streets for me-
She broke off, but her words trembled in the cold, early morning air. Both girls became instantly serious, and Kathleen again shivered in her thin coat.
Do you think-? I mean, do you really think that a body-well, might ? The one called Erma was unable to finish the sentence.
What s to lose? said her companion with an obvious shrug of her broad shoulders. We have nothing here.
Erma nodded. And you ve already signed up? What do you have to do? I mean, do you need to have a dowry? Make promises?
Just give your name and promise to be there on the day of sailin , that s all.
It can t be that easy.
But it is, I tell you. They re already holdin a passage ticket with my name on it. I saw it for myself.
Kathleen stirred in the shadows. She had to get to work. She would lose her job if she didn t; and though it wasn t much, it was all she had, and it did bring in a few pence each week.
It was the first time the two girls seemed to notice her. Their heads jerked around in quick attention, but when they saw the slight girl move into the light they visibly relaxed.
You gave me a start, dearie, said the bigger, taller girl.
Sure, and I m sorry, apologized Kathleen, her Irish accent becoming thicker with her discomfort.
No need to fret, said the shorter Erma. No harm done. Her voice was soft and friendly, and Kathleen felt herself drawn to her immediately. She wished-but she quickly chided herself and shook her shoulders as though to also shake off her desire for the unattainable. Yet it would be so nice-so nice to have a real friend.
Are you thinkin of signing up? Erma continued, her eyes still on Kathleen.
Kathleen was about to make quick denial but Erma went on.
Peg here has already signed. Says there s nothing to it. I The girl hesitated, then lifted her chin as though suddenly coming to her own resolve. I m thinkin on signing myself.
The bigger girl, Peg, gave a squeal and reached to impetuously give her friend a hug.
I need to get to my work, apologized Kathleen, moving to leave. I ll be losing me job and that s the truth.
Peg cut in quickly. When we get to America, we won t need to worry none about hawkin posies in the street or sweepin out the city gutters. Then she stopped and seemed to look more closely at the slender girl before her. You ve a pretty face, she observed candidly. They d be right glad to have you sign.
Kathleen stopped mid-stride. She opened her mouth but no words came out. She felt her face flushing again.
If you re thinkin on signin , the girl named Peg said in a confidential tone, don t wait too long. They only have room on ship for about twenty, and the passages are being taken real fast.
Where do you sign? Erma asked Peg quickly.
Right there-through that door. I ll take ya in, said Peg excitedly. The two girls turned toward the door and Kathleen stood and watched them go, feeling alone and forgotten.
If you decide to join us, we d be most happy to travel with