The Escape (8 page)

Cole drew away, and his eyes caressed her softness.

“But I like sassy,” he murmured with a smile that reached her very soul.

He took her slender hand in his and together, they walked back toward the house.

The End

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The Escape
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Mail Order Brides of Burrow Creek: The Replacement
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Lou held the envelope before her eyes and regarded the words she’d neatly penned across the front
: Louellen Montgomery, Boston, Massachusetts.
A fierce stubbornness and determination rose inside her. She would do it. Her fingers shook as she stood and tucked the envelope inside her handbag and fastened her wool cape around her neck. She peered down the hallway to make sure the coast was clear and then slipped down the stairs. She walked straight through the entrance hall and out the front door.

Gerald called to her as she left the drive.

“Miss! Miss! Where are you going? Shall I call for a carriage? Wait! Miss!”

The butler’s voice was insistent, but Lou ignored him. He mustn’t know where she was going.

No one must know where she was going until the deal was sealed.

Puddles dotted the streets, and Lou raised her skirts a few inches to avoid the mud. If she returned home with splatters up her gown, she’d be forced to explain. And she couldn’t afford any explanations.

Not yet.

She knew the exact location of
Mrs. Cobblestone’s Agency for Gentlemen Seeking Wedded Bliss
. With supreme luck—or was it God’s providence—Mrs. Cobblestone’s establishment was located quite near Grandfather’s house. She could easily walk the distance in a half an hour as she had on her first visit.

Lou eyed the dark clouds thickening in the sky. She’d forgotten her parasol and hoped it wasn’t about to rain. She rounded the last corner, entered a more subdued neighborhood, and increased her speed. A few sprinkles began to fall as she knocked on the heavy oak door which Mrs. Cobblestone herself immediately opened.

“Why, Miss Montgomery, you’ve returned. How superb. Do come in.” Mrs. Cobblestone stepped back and opened her arm to indicate an alcove harboring an ornate desk with one upholstered chair behind it and one in front.

“Please be seated.” She smiled widely, revealing slightly crooked teeth. She patted her bosom as she went to seat herself behind the desk. “Why, this is simply providential, my dear. God is smiling down upon us this very moment.”

Lou loosened the clasp at her neck and sat in the vacant chair. Her heart pounded at the thought of what she was about to do. If her mother were still present, she’d faint dead away, and Betty would have to run for the smelling salts.

Mrs. Cobblestone stared directly into Lou’s deep brown eyes. “You’ve decided then. Your letter?” She held out her hand.

Lou pulled the envelope from her bag and presented it to the woman. “Yes, ma’am, I’ve decided.”

Lou hadn’t realized how tightly she was clasping the envelope until Mrs. Cobblestone was obliged to tug it loose from her hand. The woman leaned forward, her thin eyebrows raised in a perfect arch.

“Dear?”

Lou offered her a tremulous smile. “I’m sorry. I’m a bit nervous.”

Mrs. Cobblestone gave a dainty, tinkling laugh. “That’s perfectly all right. Quite normal. But I do have some magnificent news for you today. As I said, it’s simply providential that you arrived this very moment.”

“What do you mean?”

“I have a gentleman, a Mr. Jude Walker, who is expecting his bride to arrive within the next ten days.” She picked up a letter from a tidy stack on the corner of her desk and perused it. “My dear Louellen, it
could
be you. Are you willing and able to leave for the Wyoming Territory immediately? A place called Burrow Creek—a charming young settlement, I’m told. Oh, please say yes. I do so hate to disappoint a client.”

Lou’s forehead crinkled. “I don’t understand. I’ve only just brought my letter of introduction. I understood I was to correspond with a gentleman before any formal arrangements were made.”

Mrs. Cobblestone lowered the letter to the glossy wood in front of her. “But, my dear, this gentleman is perfect for you. He’s an upstanding citizen in Burrow Creek. He has a growing farm. And as all the gentlemen I work with, he’s a man of faith and character.”

Lou felt as if she was being sucked into a whirlwind. Her head spun and doubt climbed through her mind. “But it’s so soon!”

“I feel I must be completely forthright with you, my dear. I had another match arranged for Mr. Walker. A solid match, or so I thought. However, the young lady in question—due to unfortunate extenuating circumstances—had to renege on her commitment. Evidently, a close relative was taken seriously ill, and she felt obliged to move locations to tend to this person.”

Mrs. Cobblestone waved her hand with impatience. “I do not care for such complications with my clients, but there you have it.” She leaned across the vast wooden desk and stared at Lou. “You are the perfect candidate to take her place.”

Lou’s breath rushed out. “But this Mr. Walker, won’t he be expecting someone else?”

Again, the wave of her hand. “Pish posh. You are a lovely young lady, Miss Montgomery. I can’t think why he would be disappointed.”

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