Mail Order Bride and The Mix-up (A Western Romance Book)(COMPLETED)

Chapter 03

Belle stood in the room she was sharing with Gertrude, wishing she had never come to Sullivan Hotel. She could still not believe that her friends had talked her into such a scheme as this. She would never have accepted, even under their insistence, if she had not seen something in the man's eyes which made her feel that he'd been taking a big risk by asking her to dine with him.

It was probably against hotel policy to dine with those residing there, and although she was offended that he sought to gain her company by offering a reduced rate on their rooms, she could also not help but feel flattered that he'd risk his job for a simple meal with her. Just now, she was angrier with her friends than she was with him.

They were to dine in the hotel's restaurant, which meant she would not have to leave the premises with a stranger, and Cadence and Austin had promised to check on her if she was not back from dinner within the hour. Gertrude had promised to check on her every fifteen minutes, which Cadence knew meant her friend did not like this idea much more than she did. She'd only gone along with it because they had barely twenty dollars between them. Any money they'd had had gone into building the irrigation system at Angel's Reach.

While she was busy eating, and Gertrude busy spying on them, Cadence and Austin would go and track down Hale Mackery. Since he was not expecting her until next week, she did not know precisely where to find him. She had his address on the envelopes he'd sent her though, so that ought to do well enough.

Then tomorrow, they would see what they might learn about the man before her marriage to him took place. Belle did not think they would find out anything which would change her mind about him. His letters had indicated to her that he was a law-abiding citizen, had never been married before, and wanted a family as much as she did.

She made her way through the hotel lobby, irritated with not just her friends, but Ira Barton as well. She thought his name silly, his manners sillier, and everything else about him disdainful. If they hadn't needed the room so badly, she would never have agreed to meet him, despite the risk he'd taken in inviting her out.

He was standing nervously by waiting for her, his face a pale pink as if he'd been out in the sun too long. Her irritation eased ever so slightly, and then eased that much further when she saw the flowers he held in his hand.

Until this very moment, she'd resented the whole arrangement, but seeing the flowers in his hand made her feel that he'd meant no disrespect to her, that he was only a shy, awkward man who probably made too little money to attract many women and therefore had little practice in asking them out in the proper way. The flowers looked expensive, and between that and the dinner he'd promised her, he must be spending at least a third of his week's wages on this single evening.

She watched him another moment before speaking, observing the line of his jaw and the windswept appearance of his brown hair. It wasn't quite so plain as she had at first thought. It was more of a cocoa color with butterscotch undertones. It was actually quite beautiful. His skin was smooth though she detected a faint shadow on his cheek and assumed he hadn't had time to shave before meeting her. He'd probably come straight from work.

His frame was on the large side of medium, though hardly the grizzly bear that Austin was. His muscles, though, were defined enough that she could tell even with his coat on that he was well-formed across the chest... and all the rest of him.

"Hello," she said.

He turned his head in her direction and smiled, relieved. "Hello," he replied and stood staring at her. He handed her the flowers then, and she took them and inhaled. There were roses, violets, and some other red and pink ones she didn't know the names of. Their scent was like heaven to her, though.