Free The Sweetest Mail Order Bride (Sweet Creek Brides Book 1) by Jill Summers

it—”
    “I’m not gonna slip,” he interrupted.
    “—and I’ll bring you some tea,” Katherine finished, quite as if she hadn’t been interrupted at all. She swiped the floor with the mop and turned around. Her black skirts and white apron snapped as she disappeared down the hallway.
    “What brings you out this way, missy?” Jeb eased down into one of two chairs by the hearth, breathing heavily. Too heavily.
    Clementine couldn’t help worrying about that. She untied her bonnet, wincing at the water dripping onto the carpet. “I didn’t know you had a housekeeper. This could thwart my new plan.”
    “What new plan?”
    “The one where I take care of you, at least until my future plans come together.” She shrugged out of her coat. “I hear you’re having spells.”
    “Jeremiah has been talking. It’s no doubt why Caleb showed up here this morning wanting to listen to my heart.” Jeb scowled, but nothing could chase away the look of love he had for his sons. “I see the worry on your face, too. I’m an old man. Things go wrong when you’re old. It’s a plain fact of life.”
    “That doesn’t mean I can’t help.” Clementine spotted a few hooks on the wall by the hearth and snagged her bonnet and coat on them. “Will you at least tell me what’s wrong with your heart?”
    “The doc says I have some sort of sickness in it.” Jeb waved off her concern. “Katherine is making sure I’m taking my daily powders. But if you tell any of this to Caleb, I’ll hold it against you.”
    “Your secret is safe with me.” While she didn’t think it was right, one look into his eyes told her why. “You don’t want Caleb to feel responsible or guilty if the treatment doesn’t work. That’s why you won’t let him doctor you.”
    “I saw enough of that with his wife and then the diphtheria.” Jeb’s lightness faded away. Sadness drew deep lines in his face. “You didn’t see how hard my boy worked to save everyone. He was sick himself and wouldn’t stop working. Finally, he collapsed, too weak to do more and Katherine came in to take over.”
    “You must have been terrified of losing your sons then. You have to know that’s how they feel about you now.” She eased down into the chair, grateful for the heat of the crackling fire. “It’s a burden for Jeremiah and Katherine to carry alone.”
    “We’re talking too much about me.” He cleared his throat, as if taking a moment to put aside his emotions. “What did you think of your little cottage?”
    “I don’t understand how you could do such a thing.” She didn’t know if she was laughing or crying. Probably both. “It’s a house. A home.”
    “One that can never be taken from you. After what you’ve been through, you deserve that. Have you seen it yet?”
    “Yes. I went over to look at it before I came here.” She held her cold hands out to the fire, where the radiant warmth chased away the chill. “It’s adorable.”
    “You like it?”
    “Like is too small of a word.” She couldn’t begin to describe the feeling she had, turning the key in the lock. Pushing the door open and stepping inside, hearing the little three-room house echo around her. Knowing she would never have to worry about finding a safe place to sleep for the night because she already had one. “It’s just right.”
    “I didn’t want to get you anything too big, since you’ll be moving in with my Caleb soon, providing you have a short engagement.” Jeb winked, turning toward the housekeeper bustling into the parlor. “Isn’t that right, Katherine?”
    “I expect that’s the way it usually goes with couples in love.” The robust woman set a cup and saucer on the little table next to her boss’s chair. “Being as Caleb isn’t in love yet, it’s hard to set a date.”
    “My point exactly.” Clementine took the teacup Katherine handed her. Steam curled up from the fragrant brew. Oh, it smelled good. It felt even better when the cup was cradled