Spoiled Evelyn (The Mail Order Brides of Boot Creek Book 4) Read Online Free PDF

public place,” countered Mr. Brittle. He tipped his hat. “Y’all have a nice day now, you hear? Welcome to Boot Creek, Miss Warner. I’m sure you’re going to find us folks just as charming as you please.” He headed for the exit, while Harold and Percy stared after him.
    “How did he know your name?”
    I faced my fiancé, at a loss. “I … I … had the misfortune of meeting him in the stairwell. We … we collided.”
    “Chuck Brittle’s a hard case,” said Harold. “He’s a womanizer and gambler and generally not fit for polite society. I don’t care if he’s been successful in business. Ingrid and I would never have him over for supper, nor would we ever dine with him in public.”
    “Indeed.” Percy grinned. “He’s of no consequence to us in the least.” His hand remained on my back. “Why don’t we go in and meet my family? I’m sure you’ll want some champagne and cake. It’s all waiting.”
    Harold seemed perturbed about something. “Yes, a celebration for a non-wedding. Very odd, if I may say so. How do you plan on getting on in Boot Creek, Miss Warner?”
    “What do you mean?”
    “You came to marry, and you failed to do so. Now you’re here alone, without protection. A woman’s reputation is a delicate and fragile thing. Mother would be appalled, if Percy were to marry someone whose character was brought into question.”
    “I can assure you, I am not going to jeopardize my reputation, sir.” His words rankled me, and I forced myself to remain calm, schooling my features. “I’m staying at the hotel with my maid. I assume this is a safe place, is it not? Should I worry about my physical well-being at the hotel?”
    “That’s enough,” grumbled Percy. “I don’t like the tone you’re taking with my fiancé.”
    “I’m saying what everyone is thinking, Percy. Mother will want to know how long this courtship will go on before things are legal. She’s not happy with the mail order bride business. We don’t marry strangers. It’s not how it’s done.”
    Having been raised in polite society, I understood exactly what he meant, and he was right. However, I had several reasons for agreeing to become a mail order bride, no matter how foolish that decision had been. I had no desire to marry the man my family chose, fleeing the situation and agreeing to marry a stranger instead. I realized it had been a poor choice, but desperation had brought me to this juncture. I had behaved rashly, yet the alternative remained too awful to contemplate. I could not marry Joseph Cardcastle, and now I wondered if I could marry Percy Vanguard.
    “Let’s go in,” said Percy. “I wish to introduce Evelyn to everyone. Once mother meets her, she’ll realize her concerns are for naught. Evelyn belongs in our world. She’s an accomplished woman in her own right and deserving of the name Vanguard. It’s wrong of you to question her character. She’s from old money, Harold. Her father’s father came from England, and the family is far more successful than ours. If anything, she should be questioning if we fit into her society. We’re the lacking ones.”
    Harold seemed unmoved, his look bland. “I maintain that something isn’t right here. I mean you no offense, Miss Warner, but I’ve a sixth sense about things. I somehow don’t think this will end well. Percy’s far too immature to comprehend what’s happening. For a blue-blooded woman to flee west and throw herself at the mercy of strangers, it’s all very shady, if you ask me.”
    I hated that he had figured me out. “My family’s overbearing, Harold. I did flee them. You’re right. I never dreamed I’d find someone as darling as Percy. He writes lovely letters. It’s possible to fall in love with someone you’ve never met. It happened to me,” I lied. I had to salvage the conversation, hoping to take the upper hand. I grasped Percy’s arm, gazing at him with as much adoration as I could muster. “He’s so boyishly