Texas Cinderella Read online

  “Look who came along to keep you company tonight.”

  “Bitsy!” The girl’s delighted smile warmed Cassie’s heart.

  “Cindy will be waiting for you when you get back to Mrs. Flanagan’s,” Cassie said. “I’m sorry I couldn’t fit both of them in my bag.”

  Pru’s gaze shifted and her gaze didn’t meet Cassie’s. “That’s okay.”

  Guessing what the little girl was feeling, Cassie took one of her hands. “It’s okay if you don’t want to play with Cindy anymore. But I want you to think about this. It’s not Cindy’s fault she came from your father, any more than it’s your fault that he’s your pa.”

  Cassie stood up. “Now, let’s get you cleaned up and get your hair brushed. What do you say?”

  With a nod, Pru followed her to the vanity.

  An hour later the child was freshened up, fed and tucked into bed, sound asleep.

  Cassie headed downstairs, knowing she would find Riley waiting for her there.

  And she did.

  Her heart gave a little pitter-patter as she saw the way he looked at her. Could he possibly return her feelings? Those kisses today had certainly said yes. Or was she fooling herself, and was this all merely gratitude for what she’d done for Pru?

  He stepped forward to greet her as she reached the bottom step, and tucked her arm in his.

  “How’s Pru doing?”

  “She’s still a bit clingy, but that’s to be expected after all she’s been through. But right now she’s sound asleep. One of the hotel maids is sitting with her, in case she wakes up before I return, but I honestly think she’ll sleep through the night.”

  Riley nodded as he led her to a secluded corner of the lobby. “I sent a telegram earlier to Sheriff Gleason to inform him that it all ended well and we would be back in Turnabout tomorrow. I asked him to share the information with Mrs. Flanagan and Mr. Humphries.

  “Thank you. I know Mrs. Flanagan and Noah will sleep better tonight.”

  Riley seated her on a padded bench, then settled beside her. Taking her hands, he held her gaze with a steady one of his own. “We need to talk.”

  Her heart fluttered again, but she ignored it. This could be about anything. “I’m listening.”

  He shifted, as if uncertain what he was about to say. “I know you’re probably already spoken for, but—”

  “What?”

  “Perhaps ‘spoken for’ is not the right term here. Should I have said you’ve already made your marriage bargain?”

  “Whatever are you talking about?”

  “That day you were gone all morning, weren’t you visiting the men on your husband list?”

  “Absolutely not.” She held his gaze. “I was actually visiting with my father that day. To tell him I would not be returning home on a permanent basis, that I had my own life to live and would be opening a bakery business.”

  Riley’s whole demeanor brightened, as if a weight had been lifted. “Good for you.”

  “I did agree to a compromise, however.” She explained to him the bargain she’d struck with her father, then frowned. “How could you think I would kiss you like I did today if I’d promised to marry another man?”

  He had the grace to look sheepish. “To be honest, I didn’t know what to think. Why didn’t you tell me about the visit to your father?”

  Now it was her turn to squirm. “I didn’t want you to think... I mean, it was...”

  He grinned. “You didn’t want me to think it had been on my account.”

  “And it wasn’t.” At least not entirely. “It was something I had to do for myself.”

  “I’m proud of you.”

  That should have sounded condescending, but somehow it didn’t. She sat up straighter. “Was that all you wanted to speak to me about, or was there something else?”

  He grinned. “Oh yes, there’s definitely something else. And now that I know you’ve given up that husband hunt of yours, it is even more pressing. Cassie, you have to know, especially after all that happened today, that I am absolutely, totally, incredibly in love with you.”

  “You are?”

  He laughed. “Yes. How could I not be? You make me laugh—at myself and at my problems. You make me think—of possible futures and of different ways of seeing the world. You make me a better man.

  “And you make me want to have you at my side, today and always.”

  “Oh Riley, I love you, too. I don’t know how it’s possible to love someone so much after knowing him only two weeks, but I think I fell in love with you the moment you stooped down beside me to help me up in the livery yard. It’s like I’ve known you forever.”

  He squeezed her hands. “Then you’ll marry me?”

  She slipped her hands from his and threw her arms around his neck. “Yes!”

  The kiss that they sealed their agreement with was the best one yet.

  Epilogue

  Riley gave the nail one final thwack, then stood back to study his work. It was coming along nicely. Within the next two days, he should have half the roomy attic walled off into two bedchambers, one for Pru and one for Noah.

  It had been nearly a month since Guy had been arrested and just yesterday they’d learned that he’d been sentenced to life in prison. At last the children were safe and they could begin to set down roots again. Even Pru’s nightmares had faded and she and Noah were thriving the way children were intended to.

  The two were looking forward to having their own rooms. In fact, if they hadn’t been in school right now they would probably be up here helping him. That the rooms were up in the attic was seen by them as an added bonus. Apparently the kids were looking at this as the tower from one of those fairy-tale stories Mrs. Flanagan liked to read to them.

  The woman had become a surrogate grandmother to the two kids, and the affection ran both ways. As soon as Mrs. Flanagan had heard he and Cassie were getting married, she had insisted that they move in permanently with her. Riley had tried to protest, then tried to insist on paying rent, but the feisty widow was having none of it.

  “I’ve realized over these past few weeks how empty this house has been since all my menfolk left me,” she’d said. “And I’ve gotten used to having young people around me again. Not only used to it, but fond of it. In fact, I’d consider it just plain cruelty if you were to take those two children away from me.”

  The only thing she would allow was that they help with the groceries and the chores, which was fine by him.

  “You look like you could use a glass of lemonade, Mr. Walker.”

  He turned to see that his lovely bride of two weeks had joined him. She was carrying a glass in one hand and what looked like a document of some sort in the other. “Why, thank you, Mrs. Walker, I don’t mind if I do.”

  She smiled. “I don’t think I’ll ever grow tired of being called Mrs. Walker. ”

  “I sincerely hope not.” Riley took the glass from her, then pulled her close, giving her a quick but oh-so-sweet kiss before releasing her.

  She looked up at him with shining eyes. “That’s something else I’ll never tire of.”

  He tapped her nose affectionately, then indicated the paper she held. “What’s that you have?”

  “I stopped by Reggie’s studio while I was out. Our wedding picture is ready.”

  He’d learned that Regina Barr was the town photographer, and he’d hired her to memorialize their special day.

  Cassie handed the photograph to him and then nestled against him as he studied it.

  Riley gazed at the photograph, a feeling of contentment settling in his chest. They were all pictured there—he and Cassie in the center, Noah and Pru on the left and Mrs. Flanagan and Cassie’s father on the right.

  Riley had found a place to belong, and settling down ha
d been no sacrifice at all.

  In fact, with Cassie at his side, he was right where he wanted to be.

  * * *

  Cassie looked at the picture Riley held and couldn’t believe what a beautiful life the Good Lord had planned for her. Two beautiful children, a wonderful, loving, God-fearing husband, a father she was now reconciled with and a woman who was as precious as a mother to her.

  There was no richer life she could imagine. Like the Cinderella in the children’s favorite story, she’d found her prince and her treasure, and she planned to live her very own happily ever after.

  * * * * *

  If you loved this story,

  pick up the other books in the

  TEXAS GROOMS series

  HANDPICKED HUSBAND

  THE BRIDE NEXT DOOR

  A FAMILY FOR CHRISTMAS

  LONE STAR HEIRESS

  HER HOLIDAY FAMILY

  SECOND CHANCE HERO

  THE HOLIDAY COURTSHIP

  Available now from Love Inspired Historical!

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  Keep reading for an excerpt from THE NANNY’S LITTLE MATCHMAKERS by Danica Favorite.

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  Dear Reader,

  I hope you’ve enjoyed Cassie Lynn and Riley’s story. I knew as soon as Cassie Lynn popped up as a secondary character in The Holiday Courtship that she needed to have a story of her own. She arrived on the scene and suddenly she was such a fully realized character in my mind. There was so much I knew about her that I couldn’t show in that book. It took me a while to figure out who her hero would be, but I think Riley worked out perfectly to be her forever match.

  Both of these characters had some tough issues to work through, issues where it wasn’t easy to see what the “right” choice would be, issues that ultimately required them to take a hard stand, a stand they couldn’t have made without this journey they took together.

  And if you enjoyed this book, I hope you’ll be on the lookout for the next in the series. For more information on this and other books set in Turnabout, please visit my website at winniegriggs.com or follow me on facebook at Facebook.com/WinnieGriggs.Author.

  And as always, I love to hear from readers. Feel free to contact me at [email protected] with your thoughts on this or any other of my books.

  Wishing you a life abounding with love and grace,

  Winnie Griggs

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  The Nanny’s Little Matchmakers

  by Danica Favorite

  Chapter One

  Leadville, Colorado, 1882

  The door to the Mercantile jangled and Mitch Taylor looked up from the books. Before he could greet the customers, his sister-in-law, Iris, had already stepped into action. A good thing, since the customers appeared to be a pretty young lady and her father. The lady seemed to be a proper miss, in a pale blue gown edged with lace, ribbons and all the fripperies that went with the latest style. Her strawberry blond hair arranged in a similar fashion to those he’d seen back in Denver, the young woman could have graced any parlor with ease. She laughed at something Iris said, a soft musical tone escaping her pink lips and a pretty smile lighting her face.

  Mitch turned away. Not only was the young lady young—too young—but he had no business admiring ladies of any sort at this point in his life. He’d never imagined that he’d end up crawling back here. Here not being precisely the correct term, as the Leadville store hadn’t opened yet when he’d made the decision to remain in Denver and run his own store while his brother worked to expand the family mercantile empire. Besides, he hadn’t crawled. He’d run.

  Hattie was dead.

  The words rolled in his mind as he considered them. Hattie was dead. Some days those words still didn’t seem real.

  But the ensuing scandal was real enough. He could only hope that it would be a while longer before talk reached Leadville and he would have enough time to—

  A crash and a screech from the back of the store made him set his pen down. Mitch took a deep breath, then casually turned in the direction of the noise.

  As seemed to constantly be the case, before he could even get to the other side of the counter, one of his children, this time it was Clara, ran toward him. Mrs. Abernathy, their nanny, followed behind.

  “You get back here!”

  Clara darted behind him and clung to the back of his shirt. “I won’t!”

  Even the glowering look on Mrs. Abernathy’s face would not be enough to convince Clara. Experience had taught him that while all of his children were stubborn, when this particular daughter refused to do something, walking to China would be easier than getting her to change her mind.

  “What seems to be the problem?” Mitch asked, offering Mrs. Abernathy a smile.

  “Everything is the problem.” Mrs. Abernathy’s face had turned an unmistakable shade of red. He’d seen it on a number of nannies, all shortly before they’d quit.

  Mitch pinched the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath. Could he find a way to convince her to stay?

  The young lady he’d been admiring came into view, covered in flour.

  No. Even before Mrs. Abernathy opened her mouth to utter the fateful words, Mitch knew nothing would keep her. He supposed he should make the effort, but with this being the second nanny in the space of a month, he’d need all of his energy to convince another woman to come work for him.

  “I see,” he said instead.

  “Those children are out of control.” Mrs. Abernathy gave him a sharp look as the flour-coated woman approached.

  “I know,” he said quietly. He could feel Clara relax behind him. She, too, knew that their nanny was a few words from giving notice. For Clara, as well as the other children, this would be another victory.

  The flour-coated woman smiled at him. “You must be the father of the little darling who welcomed me to the store.”

  Iris rushed over. “Polly, I am so sorry. You see—”

  Polly held up a hand. “It’s not your fault, Mrs. Taylor. But I think there’s a young lady who owes me an apology.”

  She looked at Mitch firmly, but not unkindly. Not like the many people who’d been terrorized by his ch
ildren. He’d liked to have said that such occurrences were rare, but in truth, they’d left Denver not just to escape the scandal of his wife’s death. He also needed respite from talk of the antics of the Taylor Terrors, as his children had been dubbed by society.

  Most people, when they saw his children coming, ran the other way. Perhaps people running away was a small exaggeration, but not by much.

  Polly squatted down in front of him. “Come on out now, young lady. I realize that you’re new in town, but in Leadville, we don’t go throwing flour at strangers. That might be what you did where you used to live, but here, that’s not our custom.”

  She spoke gently, sweetly. Without the rage of so many of the others who’d insisted that Mitch do something about his out-of-control children. Even her eyes. A bright blue that matched her dress, they looked almost...nice.

  Clara didn’t budge.

  Polly rose and looked him in the eye, then stuck out a hand, which he shook. “Polly MacDonald. I can see why your daughter might be a bit shy, but she does owe me an apology.”

  Then her blue eyes twinkled as she pointed to a figure peering around a barrel. “Although we could say that our little mishap with the flour was my own fault, since I was so inconsiderate as to be paying too much attention to the dried fruit and not realizing I was stepping into a battle between these two.”

  Rory. Mitch sighed again. Of course it was Rory and Clara. The two of them hadn’t stopped bickering since Rory had the misfortune of being born seven minutes after his sister. A fact she wielded like a weapon in establishing superiority to her younger brother.