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A Bride in the Bargain

By Deeanne Gist

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Excerpt from A Bride in the Bargain by Deeanne Gist

Men crowded the dock, staring at Anna Ivey as if she were a miracle from heaven instead of Massachusetts.

“Did Mercer give ya a feller’s name?” one of them asked.

She pulled a piece of paper from her pocket. “Yes. A Mr. Joe Denton.”

Groans of disappointment tumbled through the throng as men turned, shoulders jostled and Joe was catapulted to the forefront.

He took his first full look at the bride he’d paid three hundred dollars for.

The woman had curves. Up top. Down below. And a tiny little waist in between. He’d prepared himself for the worst. Never did he imagine she’d be so comely.

“I’m Joe Denton.” He extended his arm. “There’s a welcome reception at the Occidental Hotel. It’s just up the hill in the center of town.”

After a slight hesitation, she settled her hand against his and they left both the men and the wharf behind.

He wondered how old she was. To get married in the Washington Territory, you had to be eighteen.

Please, Lord. Let her be eighteen.

He looked again at her delicate features and anxious expression. He’d have to be patient with her. She was way too young to handle cooking for his logging crew. But he wasn’t about to complain. By this time tomorrow, he’d be a married man and all his troubles would be over.

Excerpted from:
A Bride in the Bargain by Deeanne Gist
Copyright © 2009; ISBN 0764204076
Published by Bethany House Publishers
Unauthorized duplication prohibited.

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