Second Lt. Jack Walker doesn't always think ahead and when he
decides to defy logic and send off for a mail order bride, he might have left
out only a few details about his life at the all-but-forgotten Fort Gibson...
Upon arrival at a forsaken military fort in the middle of Indian
Territory, Ella Davis learns Jack's situation isn't quite what she's believed
from his letters and while hoping to avoid such a fate, she's been made the
fool again. Unfortunately, this time she can't run and hide from the man who's
done her wrong, but neither is she convinced their marriage will be the same
one she'd envisioned for them...
Now it's up to Jack to find a way to show his always skeptical
bride that he is indeed trustworthy and that despite what she might believe she
does belong somewhere in the world: right there, with him.
Excerpt:
Fort Gibson,
Indian Territory
Late
September 1845
Second
Lieutenant Jack Walker scanned the endless brown grass that stretched out for
miles ahead of him from where he stood in the top of the northwest lookout
tower. Lush, open
prairie, he scribbled on his paper. He mindlessly drummed his
fingers on the wooden ledge of the lookout, thinking of what else to write for
the ad he was placing for a mail order bride.
He
swiped the back of his hand across his forehead. Warm weather. He jotted
that down and looked up in time to see a man on his horse. Jack tipped his hat
to the man and the rider returned the gesture. Friendly neighbors.
There,
that should do it. He rescanned the lines of his ad, a slow smile spreading
over his lips. Perfect. He folded up the paper and stuffed it in his pocket,
lest anyone see him carrying it.
Whistling,
he went downstairs and across the large courtyard to his office where he
dripped hot wax on the top edge of the folded paper and sealed it.
“Jack?
Are you in here?”
Jack
snapped his head up to see the curious blue eyes of his friend and the reason
he’d had the nerve and motivation to
write the ad in the first place: Captain Wes Tucker. Wes had married a mail
order bride not even a week ago and everything seemed to be working out
perfectly for the two of them, giving Jack hope the same would be possible for
him.
“Do
you need something, Wes?” he asked as he shuffled around the
papers on his desk to hide the address of the Savannah newspaper he was writing
to.
“Yes,
it’s time for you to hie yourself up into
the watchtower.”
“Oh.
Right,”
he
said trying not to scowl. Now that Wes was married, he was exempt from having
to spend a night in the watchtower. Just another point in the favor of
marriage. “I
just need to finish getting the mail addressed and in the basket, then I’ll be right out.”
Wes
nodded his head slowly and gave him a quizzical look. “Don’t be long.”
As
soon as Wes was out of the room, Jack finished addressing his letter, then
slipped it into the middle of stack of letters that were waiting to go out with
this week’s mail.
This is the second in a series of three Historical Westerns set in Indian Territory (modern day Oklahoma) in the mid 1840s. The first in the series is The Officer and the Bostoner, which is also available, and Book 3, The Officer and the Traveler
Coming Soon
USA Today Bestselling and Award Winning Author of more than a
dozen unusually unusual historical romances that have been known to include
scarred heroes, feisty heroines, marriage-producing scandals, far too much
scheming, naughty literature and always a sweet happily-ever-after.
When not escaping to another world via reading or writing a
book, she spends her time chasing two young boys around the house, being hunted
by wild animals, or sitting on the swing in the backyard where she has to use
her arms as shields to deflect projectiles AKA: balls, water balloons, sticks,
pinecones, and anything else one of them picks up to hurl at his brother who
just happens to be hiding behind her.
website: www.rosegordon.net
blog: roseunscripted.com
EE—Do you write while listening to music? If so what kind?
Rose—Absolutely! I’m a hick from the sticks, so my favorite music is country love
songs. Not the ones about cheating and honky tonks necessarily, but those old
country love songs where the guys compare their love for their girl as being
better than owning a mansion or taking their dream trip or making it to the top
and becoming famous—just as long as they have her hand in his or if seeing him makes
her as excited as seeing her makes him, then life is perfect. I’m a sap, it’s why I write and read
romance!
EE—Do you read reviews of your books? If so, do you pay any
attention to them, or let them influence your writing?
Rose—A long time ago I did. But you know what, spending your 25th
birthday in tears over something you can’t change…just isn’t worth it. Fortunately
that was at the beginning of my career and I can say it’s been more than five
years since I’ve bothered to read a review. Some people will love your book
and some won’t, you can’t please everyone. Besides, if you get a bad review, take it as
a compliment—albeit a backhanded one—it means you’ve sold enough books to
get outside your niche! Think positive and keep at it.
EE—What do you do to unwind and relax?
Rose—Crafts. I’d love to go on Flea Market Flip and would design something
absolutely nuts that has a one-in-the-world audience. In other words, I am
terrible at crafts and upcycling, but it doesn’t keep me from loving
it.
EE— What sound or noise do you love?
Rose—That’s a toss up. Here are the runners up: 1. click, click, click of
an old typewriter. 2. the clicks and whirs of the dial on a rotary phone. 3. A
heavy ran and thunderstorm heard under a tin roof.
EE— What’s your favorite kid
joke?
Rose—Alas, another tie:
1.
Knock, Knock
Who’s there?
Owls.
Owls who?
That’s right, owls do whoo!
Who’s there?
Owls.
Owls who?
That’s right, owls do whoo!
2.
Knock, Knock
Who’s there?
Interrupting Cow
Interrupt—
Moooooo!
Who’s there?
Interrupting Cow
Interrupt—
Moooooo!
3.
Where does a general keep his armies?
In his sleevies!
In his sleevies!
These jokes were staples for many years in my house. Now we’ve moved onto ones I don’t think are appropriate
to share (nor would I want to admit I even know the joke). Boys. What can ya
do?!
EE—What has been your most rewarding publishing moment?
Rose—Making the USA Today on my own. No mega ads. (This was back
before the days of BookBub.) No special promotion other than a book being on
sale. I was truly humbled by the experience.
Rose will give away two copies of her first book in the series, The Officer and the Bostoner.
Enter the drawing below...and be sure to leave a comment.
Have you ever visited any of the old forts along the former frontier? If so, which ones? If not, is there one you'd like to visit?
The only fort I recall visiting was the one at West Point... was interesting to see and imagine what it was like way back when...
ReplyDeleteno, any
ReplyDeleteI just love historical places… I can't remember visiting a fort in particular, but I always thought it would be interesting to explore any with historical significance. Trdivincenzo (at) gmail (dot) com
ReplyDeleteI live near Ft. McClellan which is not famous. I did visit an old fort in , I think, was in Pensacola, Florida.
ReplyDelete