The Redemption 0f A Hunted Bride (Historical Western Romance) Read online

  That action nearly made her mother drop the tray, so Hope immediately released her, realizing the mistake she almost made. Her mother hated messes.

  Hope’s mother put the tray down onto the desk and started pouring the tea in the cup. Hope found the whole endeavor maddening. Here Hope was, having the biggest crisis in her life and her mother was too preoccupied with making sure her father got his afternoon tea to bother with anything else.

  “Mother, please tell Father this is not acceptable,” Hope tried again.

  “So he told you,” her mother replied calmly, conversationally, looking at her husband.

  “Yes, he did,” Hope chose to reply before her father could answer. “And I do not want to be traded off as one of his properties,” she spat out.

  Her mother frowned, displeased. Hope was showing so many emotions that her mother deemed unworthy of any well-behaved young woman of her status.

  “Honestly, Hope, that was very theatrical of you,” her mother said condescendingly.

  Hope looked at her incredulously. She could not believe this was happening. “So, you agree with him?” Hope’s voice went so high she was certain neighboring dogs heard her without any problem. Mother as well?

  “Father knows what is best,” Hope’s mother replied simply.

  No. Hope rebelled, shaking her head. This cannot be. She came here so full of joy, thinking something else would happen, only to be blindsided in the worst possible way with this terrible news. How could her life turn upside down in mere minutes?

  “This is my life. No. I will not accept this.” She simply couldn’t.

  Her mother sighed. “We only think about what is best for you and for your future.”

  “Precisely,” her father agreed.

  “No. Stop saying that. If that was really the case, you would consider my opinion and my emotions as well.”

  And her opinion was that she would rather watch hell freeze over than get married.

  “Do not be foolish, Hope.” Her mother looked quite fed up with her, and the feeling was mutual.

  How to make them understand? Hope was desperate. “I want to be in love with my husband and if that makes me foolish, then so be it.”

  “Love is for poor people,” her mother snapped with disdain. “You have to think about your legacy. Besides, I married your father in an arranged marriage and we are truly blessed.”

  Hope was stunned for a moment. Her mind did not know what information to process first. Her mother had just made some statements that completely confused her, to say the least.

  “I do not want your life,” Hope replied eventually. When everything was spread out on the table, when everything was said and done, that was what counted the most. And even Hope wasn’t truly aware of that until she said it. She did not want to live as her mother did. Sure, she had her events, clubs, and friends she liked to gossip and play cards with, but to Hope that simply wasn’t enough.

  Hope did not want to sound ungrateful. She thanked God every day for everything she had. She loved her life and all that it entailed, it was just that as of late, she started to feel like something was missing.

  Hope wanted more out of her life, plain and simple. Because you only get one. She wanted to learn so much more, she wanted to see more things, experience everything this life had to offer. Only then would she feel like she truly lived. Not simply accept the role her father and mother chose for her.

  Playing house with a complete stranger, some dull husband her father chose for her, was not on her list of things. Realizing all this calmed her completely.

  Hope nodded to her father and mother. “If love is for poor people then I wish with all my heart to be poor,” she announced, raising her chin ever so slightly. Hope’s intention wasn’t to upset her parents, only speak the truth. Sadly, they did not see it that way.

  “You do not know what you are saying,” her mother was outraged, placing a hand across her heart.

  Her father stood up, placing a hand on his wife’s shoulder, offering comfort. “I gave you everything, and this is the gratitude I get,” he growled.

  “You crossed the line, Hope, go to your room this instant,” her mother ordered.

  “With pleasure,” Hope replied simply. She was aware this was far from over. For now, it was prudent to retreat. The emotions were running too high.

  “And do not come back down until you apologize,” her mother added.

  Hope turned on her heels. “See you in fifty years then,” she muttered to herself.

  “What did you say, young lady?” Her father asked in all seriousness.

  Hope started marching toward the door. “I said goodnight, Father, Mother.”

  “It is not even lunchtime yet,” her mother stated, clearly confused by her words.

  “I won’t be joining you for meals, I lost my appetite,” Hope explained. Maybe for good.

  “As you wish,” her father replied, guessing her true meaning. It was better if they stayed out of each other’s hair for a while.

  Hope could not believe her mother and father did this to her. She expected a big birthday gift, and oh Lord, did she get one.

  Do they really expect me to be all right with this? By their reaction, it was more than obvious the answer was yes. They did expect her to do what she was told because she always did. Hope always tried to be a good daughter, and please her parents in any way she could.

  When her father wanted her to learn how to play the flute, even though she already played the piano perfectly, she took up the flute. His reasoning was that every other respectable young lady in town knew how to play the piano and he wanted Hope to stand out. In other words, when they entertained guests, her father wanted to brag about how exceptional and unique Hope was. The same could be said for Latin, riding, fencing, archery, and ballet. Until she hurt her ankle so badly her mother decided it was not for her.

  And truth be told, Hope loved the attention all that variety brought her. That was the reason she never complained while learning, doing all those things. Those extra traits made her more popular in their circle of acquaintances, but this arranged marriage was something else entirely. In her mind, that was taking things too far. She couldn’t simply say, “Yes, Father,” this time and do what he wanted. Because that would go against everything she believed and everything she was as a human being.

  Even with all that in mind, Hope was no fool. Despite all the words she said to her father and mother, Hope was very much aware she did not live in a fairy tale. She knew most of the marriages were arranged, especially among the wealthy, who wanted to remain that way. However, she never believed something like that could ever happen to her. The way she was brought up, Hope always assumed she would be left with the ultimate right to choose.

  How foolish of me. Slowly walking up the stairs toward her room, Hope was still in a state of utter disbelief. She needed to get over that and fast. I need to find a way to make Mother and Father see reason. But she knew the chances of changing their minds were rather poor. They seemed pretty convinced they were doing the right thing in arranging her marriage. They are wrong. She prayed to Heaven for some guidance.

  Entering her room, she realized all the fire had disappeared from her body and now she simply felt spent, tired. She flung herself across her bed. Mother would be so displeased. She was wrinkling the dress as she moved her legs this way and that simply to make sure it was properly ruined. And then she realized her act of rebellion would only mean extra work for their servants—her mother wouldn’t be bothered in the slightest—so she stopped.

  She returned to wracking her brain with more pressing issues than her attire. I need to make Father nullify this engagement. At the moment no one even knew she was to be wed to Mr. Hewitt’s son. Dear Lord, I don’t even know his name, came a sudden thought. So there was not going to be any harm if they simply canceled it. Apart from her father losing a great deal of money.

  But what if I can’t do it?

  What if she could not stop thi
s from happening? Hope banished that thought immediately. She couldn’t think like that. There was always a way. She simply had to think hard and find it.

  You can do it, Hope, she started encouraging herself. If you learned to deal with Mr. Mackenzie, you can deal with anything. Mackenzie was a really mean, grumpy, old man, who taught her Latin. She just needed to have good, solid arguments on her side next time around. Her first mistake was losing her temper. Her second mistake was mentioning emotions. She needed to show her father it would be a better business decision to let her be. How on earth am I going to do that?

  Then something else occurred to her that put her mind at ease. If talking failed, she always had another option at her disposal. She could make them abandon this course of action. She would behave in such a horrible way, Mr. Hewitt himself would call off the wedding. Nobody wanted a nightmare as a wife or a daughter-in-law, and that was precisely what she was going to turn herself into.

  Only if everything else fails. Despite everything, Hope did not want to tarnish her father’s reputation and that put her in a very strange, uneasy position.

  How far am I ready to go to free myself of this engagement? Hope shuddered. That word, engagement, made her feel sick to her stomach. She did not want all this upon herself. Maybe that was the real sign she was no longer a child that could only deal with childish things. This was her first test of maturity. Looking back at her tantrum, she handled it badly. On the other hand, she was unpleasantly surprised and simply acted accordingly.

  Hope could not stop hearing her father’s voice inside her head. This is all for my good, she fumed. Then why did it feel as though she was being punished, not rewarded? Because as it turned out, she was not as meek as everybody believed.

  If or when I decide to get married it is going to be on my own terms and no one else’s. And the consequences be damned. Hope was unyielding about that. She absolutely meant what she said to her father. She would rather lose everything in her life and be poor than have to marry someone without love.

  Lucky for her, the angels listened.

  3

  Hope needed a concrete plan. Sabotaging the wedding any way she could or antagonizing her future husband-to-be did not feel like enough. She needed some extra cards up her sleeve, just in case. Mr. Hewitt—Junior, she decided to call him that since she did not know his actual name, nor did she wish to— proved to be difficult and hard to shake. The promise of a substantial amount of money could be reason enough for most men to go through any ordeal. Hope just prayed Junior would lack the necessary willpower to deal with her.

  Realizing this was going to be just the first of many sleepless nights, Hope stood back up, only to then sit behind her desk. Since two heads were better than one, Hope decided to ask for some assistance. And there was only one person she wished as her accomplice.

  Jessamine was her best of friends in the entire world. Sadly, she wasn’t here anymore. Jessamine did not die, or anything horrific like that, she simply moved away to a different state.

  As far as Hope was concerned, she could have moved to the Moon, the distance between them was just as vast. They still wrote to each other constantly and that was of great comfort to Hope, that they managed to remain friends.

  Jessamine’s family worked for Hope’s family for a very long time. Hope never treated Jessamine like she was anything other than her dear sister. They were the same age, birthdays only a week apart.

  Hope always believed she and Jessamine would grow old together, such was their bond. And it almost broke her heart when they decided to move away a year ago. Hope begged her father to give Mr. Reynolds anything he desired so Jessamine could stay, but it did no good. And eventually, Hope understood why. Mr. Reynolds had to do what he thought was best for his family. An opportunity arose and they moved to live at the edge of the world. Hope was highly exaggerating. They settled in the West, in a town called Rippingate, where they bought a small farm they could work and live on without depending on anyone else apart from fickle Nature.

  Mr. Reynolds always dreamed of becoming a farmer and once he grew tired of the city life he made that dream into a reality. And Hope was genuinely happy for them, even though it meant she lost her friend. They still wrote to each other, and that meant everything to Hope. She liked to read about all the things that happened to Jessamine since she moved from Aligate. At times, life in the Wild West did not sound as Hope pictured it.

  Jessamine will know what I am to do, she thought with confidence, taking a blank sheet of paper and starting to write her dear friend a letter. She had so many thoughts inside her head that were battling for dominance, it was difficult for her to sift through everything and actually start.

  Stop! She commanded herself. Take a deep breath, and start at the beginning. And that was exactly what she did.

  Once she managed to actually start, the words simply flew across the page at an impressive speed, and onto another one. She filled sheet after sheet, even though she did not have that much to say.

  She poured her heart out, sharing everything with Jessamine. Hope was very saddened and heartbroken by this turn of events. Worst of all, she was outraged her father would trade her to another man in the name of profit.

  It was not like there were no signs of her father’s shrewd business inclinations, and sometimes straight out ruthlessness, while dealing with other people in the past. It was no secret he valued money and power above all else. Nevertheless, Hope still believed that she, as his daughter, was somehow removed from that business aspect of his life, that she was an exception to the rule.

  She was wrong. Everything in his life revolved around business, there was nothing else, which was sad. But Hope did not feel sorry for her father at the moment.

  Now I know better. And the notion her parents could treat her, their daughter, in this way, was something she wasn’t so accustomed to dealing with. Despite everything, her father was right—Hope had lived a rather sheltered life up to this point, and perhaps she was a bit spoiled. That did not mean she was about to surrender and accept this as her fate.

  At some point, Maria knocked on her door so Hope paused with her writing.

  “I brought you some supper,” Maria announced, stepping inside, carrying a large tray. It was overflowing with everything. Apart from supper, Maria brought her some fruit, as well.

  And even dessert, Hope noticed. Is this Father’s attempt at bribery? Hope thought, snidely. Probably not, he would aim higher. This was all Maria, since she was clearly worried about Hope. Hope was worried about herself as well.

  Hope discretely hid the letter under some books. Maria was Hope’s maid, employed by her father, but Maria was dear to her and Hope did not want to put her in a difficult position. So Hope pretended to be looking outside the window. The window in her room overlooked the garden. The flowers were all in bloom now, yet they held no joy for Hope as they once did. Her father managed to spoil everything for her. But not for long, she promised herself.

  Only then did she remember Maria was in the room with her.

  “I am not hungry, take that away,” she instructed. “And you can retire for the night.”

  Maria looked like there was something on her mind, but at the last minute she changed her mind about speaking out and simply nodded.

  She probably heard the news of my impending doom, Hope exaggerated to herself. She had to admit, she did not like this side of herself. “Do you wish me to help you with your attire?” Maria offered, as Hope knew she would.

  “No need, thank you, Maria, goodnight.” Hope had unfinished business with the letter and making other plans, stressing about her future, so she did not need any witnesses around. Besides, she was perfectly capable taking off her own dress and putting on a nightgown.

  Maria wished her goodnight in return.

  There are small chances for that. Hope sighed. She couldn’t allow herself to be too focused on the negative. The battle hasn’t even started yet. Hope needed all her wits and her willpower to
outsmart her father. He was the most successful businessman she knew. On the other hand, she was his daughter.

  She returned to the letter to Jessamine. “Please, help me. I need us both working on this problem,” she wrote to Jessamine. “I do not want to marry someone for the sake of money.” That fate seemed worse than anything to her. Worse than death. It was true she was very young and did not know anything about romantic love. However, to force herself to live without it for the rest of her life sounded terrible. “I love you, my dearest friend, and I’m looking forward to your swift reply,” Hope concluded.

  She spent the entire night tormenting herself with all the possibilities regarding Junior. What if he is ugly? What if he is cruel? What if...what if? Her mind wandered from one horrible thing to the next as she watched the sky change colors. It slowly, almost imperceptibly, switched from black to dark blue, and eventually, to lighter tones. A new day was dawning. When the first rays of sunlight reached their garden, Hope finally stood up. She was completely stiff and her limbs ached. She ignored all that.