Patience: Bride of Washington (American Mail Order Bride 42) by Caroline Clemmons Page B
Authors: Caroline Clemmons
Tags: Fiction, Humorous, Romance, Historical, Saga, Western, Short-Story, Business, Washington, Religious, Christian, Inspirational, Bachelor, wealthy, Marriage of Convenience, Faith, destined, victorian era, Forever Love, Single Woman, Fifty-Books, Forty-Five Authors, Newspaper Ad, American Mail-Order Bride, Factory Burned, Pioneer, distrust, complications, Forty-Two In Series, Getting Acquainted, Turbulent Period, Older Gentlemen, Respectable Boarding House, Commercial Apple Orchard, Job, Future Stepson, Mother Deceased, Younger Son, Compromise
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secure. Knowing that’s possible has eased our concern.
Please write again soon.
Love,
Mom
P. S. Papa sends his love and says to tell you he’s feeling fine. Jason and David say they miss you.
She smiled thinking her brothers said no such thing. Mama wanted to assure her she was loved. At least Papa was no worse. Mama’s letter reminded Patience she’d had only one note from Mercy.
By now her sister would have received hers. Perhaps she really did go on a cattle roundup and couldn’t send mail. She tried to imagine her sister, who had only occasionally ridden a rented horse in the park, helping the cowboys. Maybe she rode on a wagon.
Patience was so used to ensuring Mercy came to no harm, that she couldn’t stop worrying about her sister. She sighed. Mercy was a grown woman and able to take care of herself, at least Patience hoped that was true. With her optimistic nature, her sister was sure to be enjoying her new life even if that meant cows and horses.
She tore open the other envelope, the one from her younger cousin Jessie Wilcox.
Dear Patience,
Forgive me for not writing to you sooner! I have so much to tell you.
1. I did not go to Montana… I gave my ticket to my friend Anna.
2. I married Joel!
3. When my father found out... the news killed him. Literally.
4. My friend Anna used to re-write my letters for me and well... now that she's not nearby, this is my best attempt.
All my love,
Cousin Jessie (Mrs. Joel Cunningham)
Patience laughed at her cousin’s lack of letter writing skills. She supposed Jessie and her husband would remain in South Carolina. Patience longed to learn all the missing details Jessie had omitted from the story. Although Patience should mourn her Uncle Lionel, she couldn’t.
She’d only seen him twice when he brought his family from South Carolina for a visit and hadn’t liked him at all. After his parents in Lawrence died, he never again brought Aunt Martha to visit Mama. Poor Aunt Martha and Jessie had endured his high-handed, constant verbal abuse and penny-pinching but Jessie was allowed to visit several times in summer. Patience was glad Jessie was away from him and happy. With a sigh, she tucked the letters into her valise.
The letters had caused her to forget her packages. Now she untied them one by one. In addition to lace-trimmed unmentionables, she found gloves, fine linen handkerchiefs, stockings, fans, and shoes. A new corset caused her to grimace, but it was so lovely she couldn’t refuse to wear the thing.
After putting her finery away, she went down for supper. She’d become friends with all four of the other boarders. Jenny was still a bit snippy but Patience had learned that was the other woman’s constant disposition and her mood wasn’t directed at anyone in particular. Hattie was fun and so was Dessie. Of the four, Agnes and she shared more in common.
Tonight, Dessie was full of stories about the people she’d seen that day in the mercantile, what they wore, and what they said. Patience believed the mercantile must be an interesting place to work. Dessie’s way of storytelling was entertaining.
Dessie gestured wildly as she spoke. “You should have seen Apple Blossom Queen Virginia today. She swept in like she really was royalty and became angry when she had to wait. I’d been told to put away a new shipment of garden tools. Of course, I may have taken my time.”
Everyone laughed at the idea of high-handed Virginia waiting and fuming.
Agnes smoothed a hand across her skirt. “If I wouldn’t lose my job, I could tell you plenty about Miss Winfield and her family. She’s not as exalted as she believes.”
Patience said, “How could anyone be as lofty as she thinks herself to be?”
Dessie broke into another story about someone with whom Patience wasn’t acquainted but who was known to the other women. Dessie pranced to copy the woman in the story and mimicked the person’s voice.”
Patience leaned forward. “You’re a wonderful
Please write again soon.
Love,
Mom
P. S. Papa sends his love and says to tell you he’s feeling fine. Jason and David say they miss you.
She smiled thinking her brothers said no such thing. Mama wanted to assure her she was loved. At least Papa was no worse. Mama’s letter reminded Patience she’d had only one note from Mercy.
By now her sister would have received hers. Perhaps she really did go on a cattle roundup and couldn’t send mail. She tried to imagine her sister, who had only occasionally ridden a rented horse in the park, helping the cowboys. Maybe she rode on a wagon.
Patience was so used to ensuring Mercy came to no harm, that she couldn’t stop worrying about her sister. She sighed. Mercy was a grown woman and able to take care of herself, at least Patience hoped that was true. With her optimistic nature, her sister was sure to be enjoying her new life even if that meant cows and horses.
She tore open the other envelope, the one from her younger cousin Jessie Wilcox.
Dear Patience,
Forgive me for not writing to you sooner! I have so much to tell you.
1. I did not go to Montana… I gave my ticket to my friend Anna.
2. I married Joel!
3. When my father found out... the news killed him. Literally.
4. My friend Anna used to re-write my letters for me and well... now that she's not nearby, this is my best attempt.
All my love,
Cousin Jessie (Mrs. Joel Cunningham)
Patience laughed at her cousin’s lack of letter writing skills. She supposed Jessie and her husband would remain in South Carolina. Patience longed to learn all the missing details Jessie had omitted from the story. Although Patience should mourn her Uncle Lionel, she couldn’t.
She’d only seen him twice when he brought his family from South Carolina for a visit and hadn’t liked him at all. After his parents in Lawrence died, he never again brought Aunt Martha to visit Mama. Poor Aunt Martha and Jessie had endured his high-handed, constant verbal abuse and penny-pinching but Jessie was allowed to visit several times in summer. Patience was glad Jessie was away from him and happy. With a sigh, she tucked the letters into her valise.
The letters had caused her to forget her packages. Now she untied them one by one. In addition to lace-trimmed unmentionables, she found gloves, fine linen handkerchiefs, stockings, fans, and shoes. A new corset caused her to grimace, but it was so lovely she couldn’t refuse to wear the thing.
After putting her finery away, she went down for supper. She’d become friends with all four of the other boarders. Jenny was still a bit snippy but Patience had learned that was the other woman’s constant disposition and her mood wasn’t directed at anyone in particular. Hattie was fun and so was Dessie. Of the four, Agnes and she shared more in common.
Tonight, Dessie was full of stories about the people she’d seen that day in the mercantile, what they wore, and what they said. Patience believed the mercantile must be an interesting place to work. Dessie’s way of storytelling was entertaining.
Dessie gestured wildly as she spoke. “You should have seen Apple Blossom Queen Virginia today. She swept in like she really was royalty and became angry when she had to wait. I’d been told to put away a new shipment of garden tools. Of course, I may have taken my time.”
Everyone laughed at the idea of high-handed Virginia waiting and fuming.
Agnes smoothed a hand across her skirt. “If I wouldn’t lose my job, I could tell you plenty about Miss Winfield and her family. She’s not as exalted as she believes.”
Patience said, “How could anyone be as lofty as she thinks herself to be?”
Dessie broke into another story about someone with whom Patience wasn’t acquainted but who was known to the other women. Dessie pranced to copy the woman in the story and mimicked the person’s voice.”
Patience leaned forward. “You’re a wonderful
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