“Why you’re no bigger than a twig,” she said with a condescending smile. "Yeah, but I can fight like the trunk of a redwood tree!" Audrey’s gaze traveled to the guns resting on Violet’s narrow hips. Her face curled up. “Why, you’ve got guns strapped to your hips like a man!” Violet gritted her teeth and forced a smile, resting a hand on one of the guns and held up the Bible she had tucked under her other arm. “I figured between the Good Book and the pistols, anyone wanting to mess with me was gonna meet their maker one way or the other!”

    But is she strong enough to accept her father's fate and move on with her own life and love? Braden Rafferty just wants to get away-away from the pain of failing his wife and losing her. Maybe hard work in the cold Alaskan mountains will numb his aching heart. But he didn't expect to find another needy woman along the way, another woman who will depend on him for strength. Will Braden realize that Amy wants his heart more than his help? Will they both see that the bonds of love are strongest?

    Head to Hope Falls, Colorado, where three enterprising young women put an ad in the paper for healthy, hardworking husbands-for-hire, never dreaming the suitors would respond so promptly—and in person! Out of the logjam of eligible bachelors, which one will Evelyn, Lacey, and Naomi choose? Find out in the complete Husbands for Hire Trilogy from bestselling author Kelly Eileen Hake. Includes all three books from the Husbands for Hire Series: Book 1 - Rugged and Relentless Book 2 - Tall, Dark and Determined Book 3 - Strong and Stubborn

    Their best being Oswald Petite. He had money and position. What more could a girl want? But Sarah did want more. A lot more. She had a healing touch and wanted to use it. Her parents thought the notion silly. She thought it practical. But what would Oswald think? She was staring spinsterhood in the face. Which made Oswald her last hope. Unfortunately, Oswald was about as exciting as a walnut. Abijah Waller, an assistant to the famed Dr. Campbell of Edinburgh, Scotland, stayed with his rich cousins in Philadelphia while he worked for the doctor at the city's most prominent university. The best part? He learned as much about doctoring as any of Campbell's students! He couldn't thank his cousin enough for getting him the position. In fact, he was well on his way to becoming a fine physician himself. That is until he got invited to tea one day and began to know Sarah Clemmons. That's when his world turned upside down.

    Marston isn’t so sure about this arrangement. Will he finally cave-in…just in time for a Christmas wedding? Greta Samuelson was only fourteen the year Kansas bled, but by the time the Civil War had ended, she was a woman of steel. The war had left only broken pieces of men for single women to comb through, so there wasn’t much for her in Atchison, Kansas. She longs to go west where her brother is. When the wagon train driver arrives in town, he’s got a letter he wants her to see. It’s from a schoolteacher announcing his desire for a wife, primarily asking for a woman of good composure, strong sensibilities and sufficient education to assist him. Greta has not had a great deal of formal education, but she has a good writing hand, and sends back a letter saying she is interested. When Marston first meets Greta, he is disappointed. He had expected a mature, scholarly woman, not a mere slip of a twenty-year-old girl. Greta, however, sets out to prove she is a woman to contend with, even for a thirty-two-year-old teacher. She rolls up her sleeves and takes on the Wild West with as much fortitude as she had shown while living through the Civil War. But can she win Marston’s heart in time to be a Christmas bride? Or will he decide she is too young for him… AUTHOR’S NOTE: Enjoy this clean historical western romance short story! I have plans to turn it into a series to keep you happily reading. Also included are 3 bonus stories! Don’t miss out on this one…it’s one of my best written stories yet!

    Adulterer. Divorced. That is Lord Davis Rathbone’s history. His future? He vows to never marry or fall in love again—repeating his past mistakes, not worth the risk. Then he meets Magnolia Blume, and filling his days penning poetry no longer seems an alternative to channel his pent-up feelings. With God’s help, surely he can keep this rare treasure and make it work this time? Magnolia Blume’s life is perfect, except for one thing—Davis Rathbone is everything she’s not looking for in a man. He doesn’t strike her as one prone to the sentiments of family, or religion, but her judgments could be premature. Magnolia must look beyond the gossip, Davis’s past, and their differences to find her perfect match, because, although flawed, Davis has one redeeming quality—he is a man after God’s own heart.

    Welcome to Last Chance, Nebraska! When the freak blizzard of 1878 kills most of the men in a small Nebraska town, what does it mean for the surviving women and children?Realizing they need to find men of honor to help rebuild, the women place an advertisement in the Matrimonial Times.Choosing a husband is more difficult than they thought, when there is an overwhelming response to the ad.Will these Blizzard Brides find the second chance at love in a town called Last Chance?This story is loosely based on the Blizzard of 1873 and the Schoolhouse Blizzard of 1888, where many men, women and children died in the unexpected storm.

    

    GroteFrom Alarming to Charming by Pamela Kaye TracyA Vow Unbroke by Amy RognlieFinishing Touches by Kelly Eileen HakeEntering into marriage without love is not the dream of most brides, but nine women from days gone by commit to saying I do before they barely know their grooms. Four sisters travel in answer to an ad before even corresponding with potential husbands. Two women bend to the will of their parents in taking husbands. A widow commits to a stranger in name only. And two women on the Oregon Trail hitch their lives to men they ve just met. Amid the angst brought on by conveniently arranged marriage, can love be found and firmed by faith?

     Desperate for grandbabies and cursed with four wayward sons, Maggie Carson concocts a scheme to impersonate them in letters sent back east for mail order brides. Charlie Rebecca Hart is the first ensnared, romanced by sweet words, poetry, and the promise of a new life. When she arrives in Topeka, she is eager to marry the man she thought she had come to admire, but the groom, Grant Carson, is nowhere to be found. It is his younger brother, Charlie, who greets her at the train station. Charlie is appalled after discovering his mother’s deception, yet jealous that Rebecca is meant for his older brother, who, in his estimation, does not deserve her. Grant reluctantly makes an effort to romance Rebecca, but his heart is elsewhere, as he is involved with a married woman in town. Rebecca and Charlie find themselves thrown together often, and a friendship emerges. An unexpected kiss confuses Rebecca, and she questions if it is Grant she really wants. Bronson Fleeing from an abusive marriage, Charlotte Mills and her five-year-old son, Dudley, travel to Kansas in the hope of securing a better future. While on the train to Topeka, the passengers are robbed by a band of outlaws. In the midst of the chaos, one of the bandits, a tall, rugged man in a bandana, shamelessly steals her last ten dollars. Injured after a robbery, Bronson Carson is forced to return to the Carson Ranch to recuperate. His mother has once again schemed to find a wife for his younger brother, Grant, having brought in a woman from back east. But there is something about Charlotte that catches his eye, as she nurses him to health. Falling in love was the last thing he expected or wanted, preferring to live wild and unencumbered. As the blonde with the sweet smile softens his heart, he finds himself in a quandary. His lifestyle as a hardened criminal is hardly appropriate for a woman and her son, but his feelings will not be denied. The past is never far behind, and Charlotte’s day of reckoning is at hand. Her husband has found her, and he is not a forgiving sort of man. Wyatt Hired for a cattle drive, Wyatt Carson is surprised when his boss, Mr. Hardin, expects him to transport his mail order bride, Sofia Parker, from San Antonio, Texas to Abilene, Kansas. Little does Wyatt know that the real Sofia Parker has just passed away from blood poisoning. Her roommate, Eugenia Madsen, has taken her place, determined to escape poverty by marrying a rich cattle baron. While on the Chisholm Trail, Eugenia’s drawn to the handsome trail boss, but Wyatt Carson, oldest of the Carson brothers, has no plans to settle down just yet or anytime soon, preferring his freedom. Eugenia is a raven-haired beauty with big, dark eyes. Her fun and flirty manner begin to wear him down, especially after she dons a pair of men’s denim pants and learns to ride and shoot. Two months on the trail is a long time—far too long to be spent with a woman like Eugenia and not touch her. The flirtatious vixen tempts him like no other, and his good intentions begin to evaporate. As the cowboys pull into Abilene, Wyatt must let Eugenia go. This could be the biggest challenge of his life. Grant Eva Caldwell is on the hunt for the gunslinger who attacked her sister, Cora, vowing to kill the man when she sees him again. The orphaned sisters have never had an easy life, struggling to fend for themselves by any means possible. A pickpocket by profession, Eva brazenly robs several men on the train to Topeka.

    It's either her or one of her younger sisters commanded to marry the awful man who makes her skin crawl. Their grand New York house is to be sold and their affluent lifestyle is at an abrupt end now her father has taken his own life and left Adeline as payment for his gambling debts to the man she hated most! Resourceful Adeline has six months to get them far away from the clutches of Lex Baxter, so she answers a Mail Order Bride advertisement with a strict no-love policy. Perfect! She has plans for her mother and sisters to follow later.Travel with her to the town of Goldrush, in rural California, and meet the robust and handsome James Blair who has a frozen heart, heart-breaking secrets, and is on the verge of being forced off his land.Will two bruised and battered souls become one in the healing light of loveand faith?Should they go through with the annulment they think they want?

    He'd ridden that trail until his fiancée left him with a shattered heart. What he needs now is a wife to help him care for his orphan nieces. Desperate, he sends an advertisement to a Baltimore newspaper and hopes for the best. Fleeing her former employer who would use her to further his unlawful acts, a newspaper advertisement reads like the perfect refuge to Carly Blair. The idea of escaping the city, the intrigue, and the danger to hide herself on a cattle ranch in Kansas is her best shot for freedom. But its sanctuary comes with a price—a husband. While marrying a man she doesn't know or love means sacrificing her dreams, it's better than being caught by the law. Or is it?

     Compared to an arranged marriage to the odious Bernard Regent, a prairie schooner on the Oregon Trail doesn't seem like such a bad trade to Amethyst Kent. When desperate Martha Davis reveals her need for a mother's helper on the trail, Ami decides to up and leave the pampered life she's always known for a land of freedom. But trail life is hardly a tea party, and Ami must draw from the deepest wells of her faith to survive. With the sunset always before her, and Shiloh Talon, a handsome trail scout, guiding the way, she might just make it through.

    Little does she expect to be plotting a way out of the marriage just a few weeks later.  Will his lack of affection be the demise of their new marriage?When his fiancée betrays him with his own father, Emmett Jones vows never to trust a woman again. Years later when he marries a mail order bride, Emmett cannot keep from expecting his new wife will betray him. By the time he realizes what a precious kind woman she is and falls in love with her, it could be too late. A story of two people who desperately need to find happiness.****Scarlett is part of the Brides For All Seasons world. However, it can be enjoyed as a complete standalone.

    The young girl, Signy, is unaware of the life thread the Norns spin and weave for her, but she is about to find out.It is the year 829 CE, Signy has lived a secluded life in a tiny hamlet on one of the isles in Southern Denmark and knows the outside world only from stories. Events take her to the bustling market town Birka, a vastly different place, and to a new life in the household of the town völva, a Norse shamanic healer and witch.A story of fortitude, friends and foes, völva magic, survival and betrayal set in Viking Scandinavia. Signy Kráka is historical fiction with a twist of Norse mysticism and will also appeal to fantasy fans.Written with attention to historical detail and sweeping imagination, this atmospheric story transports the reader into the culture and beliefs of Viking-Age Scandinavia.Praise from readers:"Great storytelling!""Very vivid and realistic.""Wonderful. I loved every chapter.""Your story is one of my favorites.""I can't wait to see what happens next!!" Signy Kráka is a novel told in three parts. This book is part one and contains 30 chapters.