After losing her mother and father when she was young, Lena learned that every kindness came with obligation. Now a widow with a small child, Lena has lost the one thing she had left: her house. She has no desire to be a burden on her neighbor, even if the man was foolish enough to promise her late husband to watch out for her. But when propriety demands a marriage, Lena makes Anker vow to annul it come spring.Anker has longed for a wife--but not like this. A forced marriage. A pretend marriage. He will do what he must to protect Lena and Charlie throughout the winter. But as days stretch into months, his admiration for the spirited young woman begins to turn to something else. Something more...Anker and Lena both had their reasons for wanting a temporary marriage. But when spring arrives, will they regret their vow to end the union?

    Even though it was self-defense, the only way Gabe knows to get rid of his guilt is to return the money he won to the man’s wife. Lara Talbot sees Gabe as a derelict like her husband and wants nothing to do with him. But as she struggles to provide for her family and makes plans to claim property in the upcoming Oklahoma land rush, she wonders if God might have sent the meddling gambler to help.

    She finds refuge with a doctor and his family, but develops a volatile relationship with their neighbor, Richard Madden. His expectations become difficult to ignore, and Sophie must figure out a way to hold off his advances. When a soldier shows up looking identical to Jamie, but not knowing who she is, Sophie decides she must make him remember. Will her love for him help him remember? Will they rediscover their love in the new century, or will Richard threaten their chance to reunite? Will Sophie survive the threat against her life and destiny?

    It's a weak truce at first, bound only by an arranged engagement between Anne MacGregor and Niall Campbell-the heirs of the feuding families.While Niall wrestles with his suspicions about a traitor in his clan, Anne's actions do not go unnoticed. And as accusations of witchcraft abound, the strong and sometimes callous Campbell heir must fight for Anne's safety among disconcerted clan members. Meanwhile his own safety in threatened with the ever-present threat of someone who wants him dead.Will Niall discover the traitor's identity in time? Can Anne find a way to fit into her new surroundings? Will the two learn to love each other despite the conflict? With a perfect mix of a burgeoning romance and thrilling suspense, this book is historical fiction at its best.

    Once Upon The Prairie - A Western Romance Novella (The Brides Of Courage, Kansas, Book 1)Married to the meanest rancher in Kansas, unhappy Mina Morlock lives in a golden cage, as her husband is also the richest man in the state.Her husband's foolishness puts him in awful opposition to the charismatic cowboy Jesse Bartleby and his men.Drawn to Jesse, but married to Neville Morlock, Mina does the right thing — and finds a happily-ever-after that she had not dared to dream of.Enjoy this clean sixty-page Western romance by Lenny Davis.The Brides of Courage, Kansas, Series of historical Western Mail Order Bride Romances:"Once Upon the Prairie," Book 1"She Came One Winter," Book 2"A Bride In Spring," Book 3"Heart of Summer," Book 4

    Of opulent mansions that serve as summer cottages for the rich and famous. Home of railroad magnates and banking tycoons--dashing young men and the women who aspire to marry them.But it's not the place for lady novelists. Especially not those who pen disreputable dime novels. This poses a problem for Lilly Westbrook, because that's exactly what she does.No one in Lilly's social set knows she pens fiction under the nom de plume Fannie Cole. Not her family or the wealthy young man about to propose to her. And especially not Jackson Grail, the long-lost beau who just bought her publishing company...and who stirs her heart more than she cares to admit.But Lilly must put aside her feelings and follow the path that will maintain her family's social stature and provide the financial security that everyone is depending on.Now Lilly faces a double dilemma. Can she continue to protect her secret identity? And will she have the courage to choose the man who will risk it all just to win her heart?

    Just a hardscrabble childhood and brothers who taught her to shoot first and ask questions later.Justin Wells left Boston in disgrace, heading out alone on the dusty trail to Texas. But when the once-respected clergyman encounters a feisty redhead in handcuffs with a dying U.S. Marshal at her side, their journey takes a dramatic turn.His high-society expectations and Sarah’s outlaw habits clash from the start. With a price on her head and towing an orphaned baby rescued from the brink of starvation, Justin and Sarah make the difficult journey toward Rocky Creek. There, justice will be meted out. Perhaps—they hope—with a healthy portion of grace.Filled with mishaps, laughs, and adventure, Margaret Brownley’s inspiring romance will keep readers cheering for Sarah as she struggles to become a true lady.

    Bridget O'Keefe leaves Chicago to teach Indian orphans and quickly experiences the hostility the Comanche face from locals like Seth Krueger who blame them for the death of his parents. Mary "Polly" Jessup holds onto a promise of marriage made five years ago, but when Joey Carpenter returns from law school with a new outlook and new girlfriend, her future hopes are dashed. Charlsey Ames can rope, ride, and work the ranch with the men and never thought she'd be attracted to accountant Harold Miller III, a citified tenderfoot. Travis McCoy is a nomadic photographer with no time to put down roots, find a wife, and raise a family. But then he meets the unconventional Vivian Sager.Lacey Mather’s delicious cooking is warming many hearts and stomachs—especially those of a closed-mouth blacksmith. But she has no plans to stay in Texas. An expert tracker, the plain Bessie Mae is content unmarried, until Texas Ranger Josef Mueller rides into town, trailing a wanted man.

    It's going to take an extraordinary man to appreciate her joy and spontaneity--or so says her doting oil-man father.Unfortunately such a man doesn't appear to reside in Corsicana, Texas.It's 1894, the year of Essie's thirtieth birthday, and she decides the Lord has more important things to do than provide her a husband. If she wants one, she needs to catch him herself. So, she writes down the names of all the eligible bachelors in her small Texas town, makes a list of their attributes and drawbacks, closes her eyes, twirls her finger, and ... picks one.But convincing the lucky "husband-to-be" is going to a bit more of a problem.Join Deeanne Gist for another unforgettable tale and find out whether Essie's plan to catch a husband succeeds or if she's just Courting Trouble.

    They go their separate ways—she returns to her family’s Caribbean plantation, and he returns to the Royal Navy. Now, twelve years later, Julia is about to receive a substantial inheritance, including her beloved plantation. When unscrupulous relatives try to gain the inheritance by forcing her into a marriage, she turns to the only eligible man to whom her father, Admiral Sir Edward Witherington, will not object—his most trusted captain and the man who broke Julia’s heart, William Ransome. Julia offers William her thirty-thousand-pound dowry to feign marriage for one year, but then something she never imagined happens: She starts to fall in love with him again. Can two people overcome their hurt, reconcile their conflicting desires, and find a way to be happy together? Duty and honor, faith and love are intertwined in this intriguing tale from the Regency era.

    Joseph, Missouri. Annie dreams of a pretty house with window boxes, and having friends, and attending church every week. But then her brothers spot the ad for a new venture called the Pony Express. "Wanted," it reads, "Young, skinny fellows not over eighteen. Must be expert riders and willing to risk death daily. Orphans preferred." Sure enough, both her brothers land jobs as Express messengers, and Annie puts her dreams on hold to work as a cook at Clearwater Ranch, a station along the Pony Express route. Annie struggles to adapt to her new job--work made all the more challenging when she has so many to feed and few ingredients. The gruff station owner, George, doesn't seem inclined to make her life any easier, or at least not at first. But slowly a friendship builds between them. When Annie attracts the attention of a refined, dashing lieutenant from the nearby fort, she'll have to learn how to trust her instincts and follow her heart, even if she's conflicted about which way it's leading her.

    Both have promised to marry one of the rough men toiling in this strange new world in order to escape suffering in the old. Geneviève knows life won’t be easy, but at least here she can establish a home and family without fear of persecution for her outlawed religious beliefs. When she falls in love with Tristan Lanier, an expatriate cartographer-turned-farmer whose checkered past is shrouded in mystery, Geneviève realizes that even in this land of liberty one is not guaranteed peace. Trouble is brewing outside the fort between the French colonists and the native people surrounding them. And an even more sinister enemy may lurk within. Could the secret Geneviève harbors mean the undoing of the colony itself?

    Born and raised in the hills of Kentucky, Laura "Copper" Grace loves the wilderness of her home in Troublesome Creek. But when her stepmother threatens to send her away to boarding school to become a lady, Copper faces the possibility of losing everything that is precious to her. Copper must come to terms with her family and discover the true meaning of home. Nothing can drag her off the mountain, until the day she realizes that God has other plans for her life.

    But Dogwood, Texas, seems to be plagued with emotional and physical dangers, especially for four women thrown into the arms of high adventure and unexpected love. Texas Honor - Rachel Isaacs, hoping to keep her family ranch going, encounters a man who says he is Travis Campbell, a family friend. The man's stated goal of helping Rachel in time of need is thrown into question by his suspicious actions. Soon, another man is identified as Travis Campbell. Who can she trust when one ends up dead? Texas Rose - When Kate Lowell's fiance dies, she vows never to love again. But then she meets handsome widower McCall Adams, who still clings to his wedding vows. When Kate agrees to tutor McCalls Indian-born son, she steps into a web of mysterious secrets. Texas Lady - Magnolia Alexander comes face-to-face with her tragic past and heart-to-heart with the man of her dreams. Will she have to forgo a chance at love in the view of the mounting danger confronting her search for truth? Texas Angel - Angela Isaacs is faced with risking her job and reputation by hiding a convicted felon from a posse of lawmen. Can she trust Reverend Noah Thorndyke when he says his conviction was a case of mistaken identity? As tension mounts, Angela must decide if she will believe in Noah enough to lay her own life on the line. When the going gets rough, these resilient women struggle with turning their backs on love or trusting God to see them through. Discover the intrigue, the adventure, the romance of the South, and the charm of the past in four complete novels from acclaimed author Debra White Smith.

    But the happily-ever-after life she's planned on suddenly falls apart when her boyfriend breaks up with her, accusing her of living in a world of fiction instead of the real one. To top it off, Alice loses her beloved library job because of cutbacks due to the Great Depression. Longing to run from small-town gossip, Alice flees to the mountains of eastern Kentucky to deliver five boxes of donated books to the tiny coal-mining town of Acorn, a place with no running water, no electricity, and where the librarians ride ornery horses up steep mountain passes to deliver books. When Alice is forced to stay in Acorn far longer than she planned, she discovers that real-life adventure, mystery--and especially romance--may be far better than her humble dreams could have imagined.