What an exciting week for me! A BRIDE
FOR GIDEON releases May 9th and has been available on preorder for a
couple of weeks. This is #16 of the popular Proxy Brides Series, a multi-author
project. I’m so honored to participate in this project. The beautiful cover was
designed by Virginia McKevitt.
I'll be giving away a $25 Amazon gift card to one person who comments on this blog between now and midnight May 12.
A BRIDE FOR GIDEON takes place in
Montana in 1871. Here’s the blurb:
Keira desperately wants to belong
somewhere
Gideon is haunted by a secret too
horrible to share
Fate conspires against them…
Keira
Cameron came to Boston from Scotland after the death of her parents. She wanted
a job, a husband, and eventually a family. She feels rejected because she’s too
tall, too foreign, and too pretty for a wife to want Keira working near her
husband. Were her expectations unreasonable? Her cousin convinces her to enter a
proxy marriage to his friend, Gideon Ross, who lives in Montana Territory. Out
of options, she agrees and hopes her goals will be realized.
Gideon Ross is a large man at five
inches over six feet. His business is a smithy and gun repair shop. The war
left him with a terrible scar on his face. He wears a beard to try to conceal
the scar but still hears people whisper he’s a monster and a giant. Do they
think he has no feelings? He’s haunted by the war and has terrible nightmares. Reluctantly,
he agrees to wed Keira by proxy.
Outside forces work against the couple. Keira
and Gideon must find the key to the attack on their lives. Can they defeat the
enemy before they’re too late?
I love writing books with outside
forces working against the hero and heroine. The more mayhem in the story, the
more I enjoy writing. I also enjoy humor in a book but that I write is subtle. Still, I hope readers find a smile tugging at them once in a while.
The Universal Amazon buy link is http://mybook.to/Keira A BRIDE FOR GIDEON is
available in e-book, print, and is in KU.
Here’s an excerpt from A BRIDE FOR
GIDEON of when he finds out his sister and brother-in-law have arranged a proxy
marriage for him:
Darren strutted around in front of
Gideon. “So what do you think about Keira?
Following Darren’s conversations was
always a winding road. “Who?”
“Keira Cameron, the girl I’ve been
telling you about, who else?” Darren rubbed his hands together expectantly. “Shall
I set up your part of the proxy wedding this afternoon?”
Gideon leaned on the anvil. “Are your
ears plugged then? I said I’m not interested.”
Darren pulled off his cap and wrung the
thing in his hands while a worried expression hovered on his face. “Well, you
see now, Gideon, there might be a problem with you saying no.”
Gideon stood with his hammer in one hand
and stared at his best friend. With Darren and Orla’s scheming, he had no need
for enemies. “What have you done this time?”
Darren’s eyes widened and he backed two
steps and held up a staying hand. “Now take it easy, Gideon, until you’ve heard
me tell it all. You see, Keira’s done the proxy wedding on her end and is on
her way here.”
Gideon laid down the hammer and tongs
and stared at his friend. Surely he’d misunderstood Darren’s prattling. “She’s
what?”
“She’ll be on the five o’clock stage
today.”
He hadn’t gotten the wrong idea, drat
his luck. “Auch, the time must be near four now.”
Darren pulled out his pocket watch.
“Aye, half past three. We’d better get you wedded on this end before she
arrives.”
Gideon advanced on his friend. “What the
devil is wrong with you, man? How could you let this situation get so far out
of control before you told me? What do you intend to do when this woman arrives
and there’s no groom to meet her?”
He stabbed a finger in Darren’s chest. “You’d
better decide fast.”
Darren’s wheedling tone of voice changed
to demanding. “Now look here, Gideon Ross. Don’t be mistreating the nice lassie
because you’re put out with me. It’s coming on cold weather and you’ll be happy
for a wife to warm your bed. Plus, having a wife in your arms at night may stop
your nightmares.”
He shook his head, sorrow claiming him.
“I doubt anything will make the night terrors cease. Nothing even makes them
less.”
“You’ll be surprised. Having Orla next
to me has done wonders. Besides, you admitted you wanted a wife and a family.”
He exhaled. Would the man never shut up?
“Maybe I’ve changed my mind.”
At six feet to Gideon’s six foot five
inches, Darren stared up into his face. “You know you haven’t. Don’t let your
stubborn pride prevent you from marrying the one lassie perfect for you. Alec’s
description sounds like you and Keira are well matched in height and
temperament and the other things you enjoy.”
Gideon couldn’t resist leading on his
friend. “Is she a blacksmith going to help in the smithy then or does she repair guns?”
“Don’t be daft, man. You know I mean
things you do when you’re not working.”
When would that be? Lately he was
working from can until can’t. “Such as?”
“She likes to read and play chess and go
outdoors for walks and such. She wants a home and children and the security of
a good man. How can you fault her for that?”
“Auch, I’m not faulting her, you idiot. You’re the one whose
neck I’d like to wring. I’ll bet your wife—my own little sister—knew about this
and conspired with you against me. Am I right?”
Darren wouldn’t meet his gaze. “Orla and
I might have talked the possibilities over between us. Listen, Gideon, the idea
came to us only because we think so highly of you and want you to be happy.
Orla especially worries about your well being.”
The truth of what his friend said
softened his anger. “Well, you’re in a fine mess now, aren’t you? How did this woman
come by the funds for the train and stage fare?”
Darren grimaced. “Um, well, you see, Orla
took the money from her inheritance, the money from your grandparents’ estate.
She said there was no better use for it than seeing her dear brother happy.”
Gideon hated that his sister had used
part of her money on his behalf. What was Darren thinking to let her? Gideon
took a deep breath. Auch, what was he thinking himself? There was no “letting” Orla
do anything. His sister was stubborn as a stone once she’d made up her mind.
He frowned and pointed at his friend. “Through
no fault of her own you’re bringing a woman over two thousand miles under false
pretenses.”
“But, don’t you see? They’re not false
if you wed her by proxy before she arrives. Orla is waiting at the parsonage
until you and I show up. She’ll stand in for Keira and I’ll be a witness. Come
on, Gideon, you won’t be sorry.”
“What’s the point? She’ll soon be here
and I can marry her then if I wish.”
Darren did a few fast steps to get in
front of him. “No, can’t you see that won’t work? Think about the situation.
She’s already married you by proxy in Boston and believes herself properly wed.
You have to do the same before she arrives, else I don’t know what will happen.
Don’t let being peevish with me cause you to hurt Keira.”
Gideon found himself weakening. In truth
he would like a wife to come home to each day. He admitted he’d been depressed
since Ella had publicly rejected him six months ago. Was he that unlovable? Her
privately recanting her criticism recently had done little to soothe his hurt
even as it made him glad he wasn’t married to the fickle woman.
He looked down at his leather apron tied
over his grimy work clothes. “Did you not think I might like to look a little
better on my wedding day? Did you not consider that this Keira might appreciate
coming to a clean home?”
Darren tugged on his arm. “Come to the
church parsonage now. While you’re at the stage stop, Orla and I will nip over
to your house and tidy it a bit.”
Recalling the state of his home, Gideon
shook his head. “A ‘bit’ won’t do the job. You know I’ve been rushed with jobs
and working all hours for months. I haven’t cleaned in… well, it’s been a
while. Unless I’m mistaken, I don’t even have a clean shirt. Once again, you’ve
created a mess with your meddling.”
Darren refused to be daunted. “Don’t
give it a second thought. Orla and I will make things presentable while you’re
meeting the stage.”
Resigned to Darren and Orla’s
manipulation, Gideon removed his apron. He must be losing his mind. He told
himself he was only agreeing to spare this Keira the humiliation he’d
experienced.
Fact was, not only curiosity fueled him.
He admitted he was lonely. He looked forward to a wife sharing his life.
I hope you’ll join me in celebrating this release
and that you’ll buy and read A BRIDE FOR GIDEON. If you enjoy the book, please
leave a review on Amazon. I’ll appreciate it and you’ll be helping me and other
readers.
