The Sweetest Mail Order Bride (Sweet Creek Brides Book 1) Read Free

She read the anguish on his handsome face.
    “I am sorry.” He had bronze flecks in his baby blue eyes. Crinkles made him look mature and gave his face character. He was more than handsome—he had a sense of honor that radiated as surely as the heat from the sun. “You came here expecting something that can’t happen.”
    “I see that now.” She tried to keep the disappointment out of her voice. She wasn’t sure how successful she was.
    “How far did you come?” He reached into his back pocket and pulled out his billfold.
    Money. It was a sensitive subject. Especially after all she’d been through. How could she accept cash from him now that she knew the truth?
    “It’s my problem, not yours,” she assured him. She had gotten used to handling problems on her own. “I’m the one who took the risk in coming. You are not responsible for this.”
    “But my daughters are.”
    “They only wanted a mother. There’s no faulting them for that.” She held up her hands, refusing the wad of greenbacks he held out to her. It wouldn’t be right. She rescued her valise from the boardwalk. “It was nice meeting you, Dr. Blake.”
    “You can’t walk away from me like this.” He straightened his broad shoulders. “Not without accepting something for your trouble. The journey here had to be costly.”
    The wind ruffled his dark hair, scattering it beneath the brim of his hat. A spark of awareness snapped within her—as sweet as comfort, as friendship. But it was best not to open that door to her heart. “I would appreciate advice on a reputable place to stay in town. Ideally, a place that might be hiring?”
    Had he heard the waver in her words? His gaze swept hers with startling intimacy, as if he was looking deeper into her than she wanted him to go. There was a lot of disappointment she tried to hide from him. Not to mention her broken heart, in need of healing. She hoped he could not see that.
    “Come with me.” He jammed the money into his pocket. “I think I know a place.”
    “Thank you.” She accompanied him across the dusty street, spotting a boardinghouse sign swinging in the wind. If they needed help, then she could work for her room and board while she figured out what to do. Could she be that lucky?
    “I’m sorry things didn’t work out the way you were expecting.” Caleb tipped his hat against the sun, the movement innately masculine. He looked more like a cowboy than a doctor, yet despite his brawn, there was a gentleness to him. “You know I can’t marry you.”
    “Of course. You don’t need to explain.” She stepped into the shade of the covered boardwalk. They were at the boarding house. Her journey—for now—was at an end. “Don’t worry about me, Dr. Blake. Life never works out the way you expect. I learned that lesson long ago.”
    “Yes, so have I.” Sadness glinted in his blue eyes. “Of course, this time things may have turned out better for you. You might not have been happy as my wife.”
    “True, but I suppose I could have done worse.” She smiled at him as he opened the door for her.
    Delicious scents from the dining room made her stomach growl. She flushed, hoping he hadn’t heard it. “Goodbye, Dr. Blake.”
    “Goodbye, Miss—?” He waited, as if he wanted to know her last name.
    “Parks.” She could have pointed out that she wasn’t a “miss” but didn’t. That was a long story, and she didn’t want to open the door on her sad past. Looking forward, that’s what she intended to do. “It was a pleasure meeting you and your wonderful girls.”
    “They aren’t so wonderful,” he insisted, but the love warming his voice said otherwise.
    He tipped his hat, nodded with respect and walked away, leaving her alone as the door drifted shut behind her. Shafts of golden sunlight seemed to frame him, following him as he disappeared from her sight.
    Her heart sighed, as if it sensed that he could have been the one.

 
     
    -Chapter Two-
     
    Caleb scowled. The