Mail Order Megan (Widows, Brides, and Secret Babies Book 11) By Elissa Strati TABLE OF CONTENTS DEDICATION MAIL ORDER MEGAN COPYRIGHT EDITION LICENSE NOTES DESCRIPTION PROLOGUE CHAPTER ONE – The Matchmaker CHAPTER TWO – Fare Thee Well CHAPTER THREE – All Aboard CHAPTER FOUR – “Auntie” CHAPTER FIVE – Aftermath CHAPTER SIX – The Pinkerton Agent CHAPTER SEVEN – Mrs. Kemble CHAPTER EIGHT – No Rest CHAPTER NINE – Benson CHAPTER TEN – Mr. Bristol CHAPTER ELEVEN -- Explanations CHAPTER TWELVE – Starting Over CHAPTER THIRTEEN – Gossip CHAPTER FOURTEEN – With This Ring CHAPTER FIFTEEN – A Little Excitement CHAPTER SIXTEEN – “Droopy Pete” CHAPTER SEVENTEEN – News CHAPTER EIGHTEEN – Broken Heart CHAPTER NINETEEN – Tombstone CHAPTER TWENTY – Kidnapped! CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE – Following Clues CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO – The Mine CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE – Tom McNeel EPILOGUE PLEASE POST A REVIEW https://www.Amazon.com/review/create-review?&asin=B084T7R3GW ABOUT THIS SERIES ABOUT THE AUTHOR Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ElissaStratiAuthor Twitter: Betababe [@AvenueAntiques] Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Elissa-Strati/e/B077GLWD94 Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17307510.Elissa_Strati BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/elissa-strati Sweet Promise Press: https://sweetpromisepress.com/authors/strati AllAuthor: https://allauthor.com/author/elissastrati (Nota Bene: The cover of this book was a runner up in the March AllAuthor cover contest!) ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS AUTHOR’S NOTE DEDICATION Dedicated to the memory of my dear friend Maura Crist Who faced with courage all that life had to offer, even death. MAIL ORDER MEGAN (Widows, Brides, and Secret Babies Book 11) By Elissa Strati COPYRIGHT Mail Order Megan © 2020 Elissa Strati All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author, Elissa Strati, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, or events, is coincidental and not intended by the author. ~~~ EDITION LICENSE NOTES This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the author's work. ~~~ Cover design and logo inset by Black Widow Books, Virginia McKevitt, cover artist. Series concept by Cheryl Wright. DESCRIPTION Megan, a young, second tier, Philadelphia debutante, of average looks and stature and not above average intelligence, has enjoyed two seasons but not met anyone who’s made an offer for her hand. Her brother, Paul, wishes to wed and is anxious that she find a home of her own. When Paul’s classmate, Ted, mentions in a letter that he is in need of a wife to entertain visiting executives, and there are no candidates suitable in his new location in Benson, Arizona Territory, Paul thinks a marriage arranged between his friend and his sister would be the ideal answer for everyone involved. But of course, fate always steps in to lend a hand. WARNING: Murder, mayhem, trains, robbers, and miners may be involved. PROLOGUE She gazed at the sleeping infant in the basket atop her trunk, then turned around at the sound of approaching footsteps. "Miss Maddux?" The speaker was taller than she but not imposing despite the stiffness of his bearing. His uncertainty was obvious but he was clearly trying not to let it show. His nervousness actually relaxed her own a bit. And then she saw him take in the basket and its contents. And the outrage it sparked. "Miss Maddux, I was expecting a maiden!" "And I, sir, was expecting a gentleman!" A shocked silence ensued as each glared at the other, then Megan turned her back on Mr. Bristol and raised her arm to summon a porter. "Hrmmm, uhm," he cleared his throat, "perhaps you have an explanation for this, erm, uh . . ." His voice sounded plaintive and Megan felt herself waver from her own outrage. She turned back to him. "You're right. I had no opportunity to write to you about the child before I left. But this is hardly the place for extended discussion." She glanced around at the passersby who quickly averted their heads as if they hadn't been gawping at the evident disagreement being enacted before them. Mr. Bristol pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and mopped his forehead. "No, this will not do. It will not do at all." Seeing the porter approach he nodded to the man abruptly and pointed toward the trunk. "Please assist the lady with her things. My buggy is just over there," he pointed with his chin. Then, giving a stiff bow, he offered Miss Maddux his arm. "One moment, sir," she replied, dipping her head slightly; then, turning back to her luggage she secured the basket over her free arm before resting the other hand lightly on his extended appendage. The babe remained asleep. Silence reigned as Mr. Bristol neatly handled his equipage, conveying them a scant few blocks from the station over dusty roads. The town wasn't much to look at. There were a few wide streets with a fair amount of commerce, mostly consisting of what Megan took to be ore wagons, based on Mr. Bristol's descriptions in his letters. Those letters had been rather sweet and Mr. Bristol had sounded quite lonely. It was that, finally, that had convinced her to come west. But now? CHAPTER ONE – The Matchmaker Theodore Alexander Bristol, known by his friends as Ted, had gone to the University of Pennsylvania with Paul Maddux. Paul was fond of pointing out to all and sundry that his alma mater was the sixth oldest university in the country, having been established by Royal Charter in 1755. You’d think that Royal Charter made him royalty, thought his sister Megan, rather disloyally.
