Promise Me This
Authors: Cathy Gohlke
Tags: #Fiction, #Christian, #Historical, #Romance, #General
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Promise Me This
Copyright © 2012 by Cathy Gohlke. All rights reserved.
Cover photograph of woman taken by Stephen Vosloo. Copyright © by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.
Cover photograph of coastline copyright © PeteRyan/National Geographic/Getty Images. All rights reserved.
The
Titanic
at the moment of its Departure from Southampton Harbour on 10th April, 1912 (litho), /Private Collection/Archives Charmet/The Bridgeman Art Library International.
Designed by Ron Kaufmann
Edited by Sarah Mason
Published in association with the literary agency of Natasha Kern Literary Agency, Inc.,
P.O. Box 1069, White Salmon, WA 98672.
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the
Holy Bible
, King James Version.
Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible,
New International Version
,
®
NIV
.
®
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.
™
Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.
www.zondervan.com
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This novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons living or dead is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of either the author or the publisher.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Gohlke, Cathy.
Promise me this / Cathy Gohlke.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-1-4143-5307-4 (softcover)
I. Title.
PS3607.O3448P76 2012
813´.6—dc23 2011034977
A Wedding Gift
For Tim and Elisabeth Gardiner
Welcome Son and Precious Daughter
Loved Beyond Measure
“See! The winter is past; the rains are over and gone. Flowers appear on the earth; the season of singing has come, the cooing of doves is heard in our land.”
SONG OF SONGS 2:11-12 (NIV)
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Chapter Forty
Chapter Forty-One
Chapter Forty-Two
Chapter Forty-Three
Chapter Forty-Four
Chapter Forty-Five
Chapter Forty-Six
Chapter Forty-Seven
Chapter Forty-Eight
Chapter Forty-Nine
Chapter Fifty
Chapter Fifty-One
Chapter Fifty-Two
Chapter Fifty-Three
Chapter Fifty-Four
Chapter Fifty-Five
Chapter Fifty-Six
Chapter Fifty-Seven
Chapter Fifty-Eight
Chapter Fifty-Nine
Chapter Sixty
Chapter Sixty-One
Chapter Sixty-Two
Chapter Sixty-Three
Chapter Sixty-Four
Chapter Sixty-Five
Chapter Sixty-Six
Chapter Sixty-Seven
Chapter Sixty-Eight
Chapter Sixty-Nine
Chapter Seventy
Chapter Seventy-One
Chapter Seventy-Two
Chapter Seventy-Three
Chapter Seventy-Four
Chapter Seventy-Five
Note to Readers
About the Author
Discussion Questions
This story and its themes are offered with thanksgiving, as a picture of Christ’s love story to the world—His gift by grace that forever changed and made possible all that we are and hope to be.
I am deeply grateful to . . .
—my husband, Dan, for donning your chauffeur cap and sharing research adventures for this book throughout England, France, and Germany, and for your insights on this manuscript. You bless me with your love.
—my son, Daniel, for traipsing the hills and dales of France and Germany with me, for interpreting and translating among the people, museums, and books found in lovely France and in my manuscript. Your companionship is joy to me.
—my daughter, Elisabeth, for sharing research treks through Berlin and Oranienburg, and for the inspiration of your loving nature. This book is dedicated to you and to your new husband, Timothy Neil Gardiner—a man of God and most welcome family member. May God bless your life together.
—Natasha Kern, my agent, for loving this story enough to challenge me, for wise counsel through new territory, and for finding its publishing home.
—Stephanie Broene and Sarah Mason, my insightful and gifted editors, for working with me to bring to print what lay on my heart; Babette Rea, my innovative marketing manager; Christy Stroud, my publicist; the wonderfully creative design, PR, and sales teams, and all at Tyndale House Publishers who worked to bring this book to life.
—the generous and diligent team of family, friends, and colleagues who shared my vision for this story, read, or critiqued this book in its early stages: Gloria Bernice Goforth Lemons, Gloria Delk, Dan Lounsbury, Reverend Karen Bunnell, Carrie Turansky, Terri Gillespie, and Tracy Leinberger-Leonardi.
—my families of origin and marriage, friends, church family of Elkton United Methodist Church, and writing colleagues who regularly pray for and encourage me in this journey. I know that I do not travel alone, and I am so very grateful.
—Marge and Henry Jacobs, for sharing your fathers’ war photos, family heirlooms, and history from WWI.
—Debbie and Dominique Desmettre, for opening your home to weary travelers and for recommending WWI research sites in France.
—historian Somers Carston, the enthusiastic volunteers of the Cape May County Historical Society, and the wonderfully helpful staff of the Cape May Courthouse Library in New Jersey. You brought Cape May County, NJ, (1912–1919) to life for me.
—the owners and creators of Leaming’s Run Gardens in Swainton, NJ, just outside Cape May Courthouse. Allen’s Run Gardens are based on your lovely gardens, graciously open to the public.
—the curators of the Southampton, England, Maritime Museum for your fine
Titanic
collection and many books; the groundskeeper in Bunhill Fields cemetery, London, for patiently answering my questions; the many museums, new and used bookstores, and helpful staff in London, Dover, and Lincoln, England; the museum staff and helpful people of Calais, Verdun, Colmar, Reims, Lyon, and in the countryside of France; the many tour guides, museum staff, and bookstores in Berlin, Germany, and the gracious German families who opened their homes to an inquisitive American.
—Charles Haas for his excellent books on
Titanic
, Lyn MacDonald, for her extensive interviews of WWI medical and military personnel, and Arlen Hansen for his research on the ambulance drivers of WWI.
And thank you, always, Uncle Wilbur, for reminding me that a sure way to know if I’m working in the will of God is to ask, “Do I have joy? Is this yoke easy? Is this burden light?”
