Orphan Train Romance Series: Five Books in One! (Clean Western Historical Romances) Read online

  ORPHAN TRAIN ROMANCE SERIES

  BOOKS 1 THROUGH 5

  Contents

  AN UNEXPECTED FAMILY

  Preface

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  THE PROMISE OF A FAMILY

  PREFACE

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  CHAPTER 12

  CHAPTER 13

  CHAPTER 14

  CHAPTER 15

  CHAPTER 16

  BIG SPRING RANCH BRIDES: ANNA

  PREFACE

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  BIG SPRING RANCH BRIDES: SERENA

  PREFACE

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  CHAPTER 12

  BIG SPRING RANCH BRIDES: KATRINA

  PREFACE

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  EPILOGUE

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  ABOUT THE AUTHOR/CONTACT INFORMATION

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  AN UNEXPECTED FAMILY

  Written by Zoe Matthews

  Copyright © 2014

  All Rights Reserved

  No part of this publication may be copied, reproduced in any format, by any means, electronic or otherwise, without prior consent from the copyright owner and publisher of this book.

  This is a work of fiction. All characters, names, places and events are the product of the author's imagination or used fictitiously.

  _________________________________________

  Preface

  Between 1850 and 1930, around 250,000 abandoned and orphaned children traveled on trains from the east coast of United States to different towns in the west in hopes of finding new homes. Most came from New York City.

  This plan was started by a man named Charles Loring Brace who was very concerned about the amount of young children living on the streets of New York. He worked with an orphanage named “Children’s Aid Society.” He came up with this idea that if these children were taken west and placed in homes in rural communities, they would have a chance for a better life rather than spending their childhood in an orphanage or on the streets. Forty-five states eventually participated in this program, including Mexico and Canada.

  Posters were placed around towns to advertise “Homes Wanted for Orphans.” There usually was a committee in the town that would screen interested parents and help place the orphans. These children were supposed to be adopted and treated as family members. This wasn’t always the case though, and sometimes children were placed in bad situations.

  Despite this loosely structured plan, many children did find loving homes with caring parents and families.

  Chapter 1

  Amanda Drake walked into the General store and headed to the back of the large room. She was looking for some specific fabric for a new order she had received for a morning dress from the mayor’s wife, Mrs. Margaret Porter. She had asked for green plaid fabric, buttons, lace and ribbon. Amanda was hoping she would be able to find it all in the Maple Grove’s only General store and that she would not have to travel to another town or to have items ordered in. She was looking forward to making this dress, for it will help her seamstress business grow as word got around about her talents at sewing clothes, since Mrs. Porter had many friends.

  Amanda breathed a sigh of relief as she saw the green plaid fabric that she had in mind was available. She was able to find buttons and lace that would work perfectly with the fabric. Although she couldn’t see ribbon that would match, she thought she might have some in her own dress shop supplies. Amanda brushed away some strands of her dark brown hair out of her eyes that had escaped her bun due to the Texas wind in the short walk across the street from her dress shop to the General store. As she started to gather what she needed, she felt a presence behind her and knew immediately who it was.

  She turned around to face the last person she wanted to see that day and was hoping to avoid. Craig Parker was standing in front of her with a new shovel and a bag of nails in his hands.

  “Hello, Amanda,” Craig greeted her with his big booming voice and teasing grin. Amanda couldn’t help but notice his sun bleached blond hair that desperately needed a trim and surprisingly bright sky blue eyes. He had removed his cowboy hat which was tucked under his arm.

  “Hello, Mr. Parker,” Amanda tried to answer quietly so they wouldn’t attract attention from the shopkeeper, Mrs. Estelle Davis. Mrs. Davis, in Amanda’s opinion, happened to be the biggest gossip in Maple Grove. She said his last name pointedly, reminding him that she had not given him permission to call her by her first name.

  Craig just grinned down at her, looking delighted that he had the opportunity to talk to her. “Have you thought more about my proposal of marriage?” He asked her, his voice sounding a little quieter but still loud just the same.

  “The answer is still no,” Amanda whispered irritably. “Please don’t ask me again.” She walked over to a display of sewing scissors and threads, pretending interest in the variety of choices. She tried to hint to Craig to leave her alone and that she wasn’t interested in talking about it, especially in the General store.

  “I don’t see why you won’t even consider it,” Craig pretended to pout as he followed her. “I know for a fact you have no other prospects, you being a widow and all, and childless besides.” Craig pushed himself between the display and Amanda.

  “My decision as to why doesn’t concern you,” Amanda loudly whispered again. She tried not to look at him because for some reason every time she did, her heart would do a little flip. The last thing she wanted was to feel an attraction to a man other than her late husband, David.

  “Well, I guess if you want to go through life as an old maid, it’s your choice,” Craig teased her. “But my offer still stands. I have purchased a great little farm that is located just outside of town, you know, but it’s kind of lonely out there, and I could use some help.”

  “You don’t marry someone just to have extra help,” Amanda said firmly. “You should marry only if you love that person.”<
br />
  “Ah, love,” Craig said, his eyes still twinkling with laughter. “That will come after we get to know each other.” Craig reached down and handed Amanda a pair of scissors that she had been pretending to study. “Besides, if you marry me, you won’t have to work in that shop of yours anymore. You would have someone else support you.”

  Craig’s words frustrated Amanda and made her more determined to not marry him. She knew Craig had no idea that she didn’t have to work. David had left her a sizable amount of money when he died, along with the small house she was living in. After his death, Amanda had decided to turn part of her home into a dress shop and sew clothes for other women and children. She loved to sew and it kept her busy. Sewing also made her feel close to David as he had purchased the Singer sewing machine for her as a gift for their fifth wedding anniversary.

  Amanda had loved David very much and didn’t think she could ever love another man. She had resigned herself to the fact that she would live alone for the rest of her life. If only she had been able to have a child with David, then she wouldn’t be so lonely, but it wasn’t meant to be, and she had long ago accepted her childless state.

  Amanda felt angry with Craig because she was afraid he was just looking for another free “ranch hand” to work to death, like what had happened to her mother. Amanda’s father had died when she was a young girl and her mother had remarried soon after, mainly because she couldn’t support Amanda on her own and care for the farm she and her first husband had purchased before Amanda was born.

  Her new stepfather was a very stern man and kept her mother and Amanda working and busy all day long and sometimes even late into the night. Despite all their hard work, there was never enough to eat and the small farm home they lived in was crumbling around them. Her mother died when Amanda was 16 years old, probably from exhaustion. She went to bed one night after an extremely hard day’s work and never woke up.

  Amanda left the farm on her own soon after her mother’s funeral and was able to find work as a kitchen maid in David’s family home. Even though it wasn’t the proper thing to do, David and Amanda fell in love and married when she was 18 years old. She had many fond memories of her marriage to David. He was almost 10 years older than her. He was an attorney and they had moved to Maple Grove, Texas soon after they married. He died from falling off of a horse and hitting his head on a rock when he was on his way home from visiting a client on a ranch near Maple Grove. They had been married for 8 years. She has since been alone the last two years, and planned on being by herself for the rest of her life.

  Chapter 2

  Amanda noticed a commotion at the front counter of the General store. She could see a group of ladies crowding around the counter, with Mrs. Estelle Davis behind it talking loudly, waving her arms around as she talked. Amanda put the scissors that Craig had given her back on the display rack and gathered up her chosen fabric and notions. She walked towards the counter to see what was going on, leaving Craig to follow if he wished.

  When she got to the counter she leaned over to one side and noticed a large poster laying on the scarred counter. It said “Wanted: Homes for Orphan Children.” The words confused her.

  “What does the poster mean?” She asked a nearby woman who happened to be one of her neighbors, Mrs. Charlotte Moss. Mrs. Moss ran a bakery with her husband that was located next door to her dress shop.

  “There are a group of orphans that are coming to Maple Grove on the train in a few days from New York,” Mrs. Moss explained as the women around them continued talking. “Evidently these children are from an orphanage called ‘The Children’s Aid Society.’ They all have lost their own parents for some reason or another and they need new families.”

  “Orphan trains have been taking children to new families for the last 10 years or so,” the doctor’s wife, Mrs. Pamela Collins, added to their conversation. “The train drops them off to different farming communities and families are given a chance to adopt them. If some of the children aren’t placed, they get back on the train and go to the next town.”

  The reverend’s wife, Mrs. Abby Watson, added further to the conversation. “There will be about 18 children coming here to Maple Grove in a few days. It would be wonderful if all 18 were placed in our own community.”

  “May I see the poster?” Amanda asked Mrs. Davis. She handed the poster to Amanda as she continued to loudly let everyone know that she and her husband planned on doing their duty in taking a child.

  Amanda leaned over the poster in her hand and faintly noticed Craig standing beside her reading along with her.

  WANTED: Homes for 18 orphan children!

  A group of orphan children from the Children’s Aid Society of New York will arrive in Maple Grove, Texas.

  These children are intelligent, well disciplined, and in good health. There will be both boys and girls of various ages. A local committee from Maple Grove will help assist in selecting the families in which to place these children. Applications will be accepted on Wednesday, May 24th at 10:00 a.m. in the Town hall. The children will arrive on Friday, May 26th and will be available to meet in the Town hall at 2:00 p.m.

  Come see and meet these children and hear the address of Mr. Thomas Carver, the children’s placing agent, along with his wife Mrs. Darlene Carver.

  Amanda looked up, amazed that this event was even happening. She handed the poster back to Mrs. Davis and silently listened to the chatter of the other women. She learned that most of them were wanting to take a child.

  Eventually the women drifted away from the counter and Amanda was able to purchase the supplies she needed. As she left the store, Craig placed his purchases down on the counter and ran after her.

  “Maybe I will take a boy, since you keep refusing my offer,” Craig said to Amanda as he rushed to open the store door for her.

  “It would be irresponsible to adopt a child just to work for you!” Amanda said forcefully to him as they stepped outside in the Texas sunshine.

  For the first time, Craig looked angry at her. ”If you think that is the only reason why I would want a boy, you don’t know me at all.” He turned and walked back into the store to pay for his purchases.

  Amanda sighed with relief that Craig was finally leaving her alone and walked the short distance to her shop. Once inside, she put away her purchases and walked over to her sewing machine to continue her work on a light green dress she was making for a little girl. As she worked on the hem, she thought over the events of the afternoon. She felt so frustrated that Craig kept pursuing her. She had no plans to marry again, and she definitely wouldn’t marry unless there was love between them like there had been between David and her.

  She then started to think about the orphan train and the 18 children what would soon be visiting the town and quite possibly staying. What if she tried to apply for a child, a little girl? Why not a widow like herself? I would be a good parent, she thought to herself. I have a lot of love to give. There might be a little girl who would be happy with just having a new mother. I could provide a suitable home and could even teach her how to sew, so she would have a skill to use when she was older. It would be better for a child to have one parent than no parent at all.

  As Amanda made plans to submit an application for a child, she felt a peace in her heart that this was the right thing to do.

  ****

  Craig hurried back in the store to purchase the items he needed for his farm. He couldn’t believe Amanda would think so little of him that he would want a child just to work the farm. Who did she think he was? She really didn’t know him for her to make a judgment like that.

  Craig was ready to settle down and start a family. He started having this desire when he first met Amanda at a barn raising a year ago. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, with her dark brown hair and almost black eyes. Her hair had some red streaks in it that shown in the sun. Her hair was always in place just right and she always wore beautiful dresses, most likely wearing the clothing she had ma
de herself.

  He climbed on his horse and headed north out of Maple Grove. As he rode along, he started to calm down and thought more seriously of adopting a boy. Would it even be a good idea? He didn’t need a boy to work the farm. He had his friend and his wife helping him. John Sitting Horse had worked with him for a number of years with Craig on various cattle ranches around Texas and the surrounding states. When Craig purchased his farmland, he asked John to live on his land and help him. John recently married a woman named Lily. John agreed and he acted as a foreman rather than a hired hand. Craig provided John and Lily with a small house and food. He also paid them a small salary. Lily helped keep Craig’s farmhouse clean and did all the cooking.

  He didn’t need Amanda to help keep house. He admitted to himself that he was lonely and that he was ready to marry and start a family, but Amanda had rejected his proposal of marriage many times. He had thought he just needed to be patient, that Amanda just needed convincing and some more time to get over her husband’s death. Maybe he should just admit defeat and look to see if there other available ladies around who he might want to marry.

  But no, he only wanted Amanda. I’ll keep trying to get to know her, he decided. I just need to be more patient. I am going to see if there will be a boy from the orphan train who would like to live on a farm. Maybe he will not care if he only has a father as his new family.