Indiana Goes West (Mail Order Brides of Pioneer Town, Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page A

wracked her brain for days, but had
come up with nothing. A woman could not make it in this world
without a male guardian. Not in any proper way anyhow.
Society would shun them the instant they realized the truth.
    No wonder her father had yearned so earnestly
for a son. Even a young boy would have provided protection to his
fortune and family. The inheritance would have been his, and the
girls would have been able to find their own husbands in polite
society. This whole ugly mess could have been completely avoided.
She had so terribly misjudged her father’s intentions when he
voiced his discontent about having all daughters. It made her sick
how easily his fortune was scattered to the winds, his wife and
daughters forced into destitution. It just wasn’t fair.
    Indiana twisted in her blankets and stared up
at the ceiling. Surely there was something she was missing. Surely
there had to be a better solution to this mess than marrying her to
Mr. Hollway?
    The young woman jolted in alarm as the door
burst open. She clutched her blanket protectively against her chest
with wide eyes trained on the intruder. She sat up in surprise as
she watched her mother stride across the room with quiet authority,
flinging open the curtains.
    Indiana squeezed her eyes shut as the morning
light flooded her room. “Mother, what are you doing?”
    Deborah did not seem to acknowledge her
daughter’s confusion as she strode over to the armoire and started
to pick through the clothes in it. “Up with you now! Misty will be
in shortly to help you dress for town. We have shopping to do so
that you will look like a respectable wife. Your clothes are nice
enough for a young lady, but you will be a wife and woman of the
home soon.”
    Indiana’s mind whirled in a panic as she
watched her mother examine a pair of gloves for the trip out. She
had counted on her ruse to buy her time to think—at the very least,
a morning reprieve. “Mother, I, uh, I…”
    “Don’t stutter, dear. It is unbecoming of a
young lady.”
    Indiana swallowed nervously at the hard edge
in her mother’s tone. “I thought Misty would tell you. I am not
well today. I am feeling unwell.”
    “Wonderful,” Deborah said with such false
optimism that Indiana almost thought she was making a strange joke
of it. However she could tell by the set of her mother’s jaw that
she was playing a very dangerous game with the woman, one that
threatened to get dreadful quickly if she were to misstep. “I hear
that the men in the Midwest favor a certain complexion. ‘Pale
beauties’ they are called. Maybe it will entice Mr. Hollway into
forgiving your lack of charm with him.”
    “I am not impolite with Mr. Hollway.” Indiana
protested gently, careful to keep her tone respectful in the
presence of the stern woman before her as she pulled her legs
reluctantly over the edge of the bed.
    “You do not make extra efforts in your
politeness, either.” Deborah’s mouth set into a thin line.
    Indiana felt her face burn, feeling like a
chastened child. She frowned as she watched her mother half close
the door to the bedroom.
    “You shall get out of that bed, dress, and
prepare yourself to look your best when Mr. Hollway comes calling.”
From the doorway, Deborah spoke each word with slow, deliberate
force. Indiana’s throat dried up like sand, choking off any
protest. “We’ve no time nor privilege to dally in childishness,
Indiana. No man of proper means will have anything to do with you
if you are discovered as penniless. We’ve barely enough to cover
the dresses and a small dowry for each of you. I’ll not see my
daughters forced into squalor.”
    Indiana felt a pang of bitter resentment as
she stared at her mother. If society would cast them aside so
easily over their money, she could think of no reason to be so
desperate to keep her station—especially to marry a man on the
claim he was a wealthy rancher. For all they knew, his ranch was a
shack, and his land held only some