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

in her hands. “Thank you, but you know I can’t accept it.”
    “What do you mean? You’ll only need it until you marry my son.”
    “Katherine, is he always this stubborn?” She liked the way the housekeeper smiled right back at her.
    “Usually he’s worse. You bring out a softer side of him. That’s a good thing, believe me.” Katherine nodded with approval. “It’s about time someone did.”
    “Oh, he doesn’t look so bad.” She took a sip of tea and stood. “I’m sure you can handle him, Katherine.”
    “What? Now there are two of you.” Jeb held out his hands in mock despair. “Whatever am I going to do?”
    “It’s nice to have an ally.” Katherine smiled and gestured, leading the way through the house.
    Clementine eagerly followed her. Somehow she would talk Katherine in to accepting her help today, since there were no available jobs in town. She wanted to make her time here useful, taking care of the people she cared about—for however long this lasted. It was a privilege she’d missed.
    * * *
    Caleb couldn’t get the image of Clementine out of his head. She’d stood there drenched with rain, battered by wind, unbowed. Lovelier than ever. Then she’d dashed away, becoming nothing but a splash of color in the gray until, finally, he’d lost sight of her.
    “C’mon, Ed, let’s keep moving.” He snapped the reins because the gelding had come to a stop in the middle of the residential street, all because he hadn’t been paying attention. That’s what Clementine Parks did to him. She muddled his mind, and he’d be wise to banish her from his thoughts.
    Then again, how could he banish her at all? If he wasn’t thinking about her, the twins were talking about her. Mrs. Clementine this, and Mrs. Clementine that—it’s all he’d heard when he’d been trying to put them to bed last night and get them off to school this morning. He frowned, because Clementine was a puzzle he didn’t know how to solve—or the strange, powerful pull she had on him.
    The ring of children’s laughter drifted on the rainy wind. Even in the storm, the noontime schoolyard was full of kids running off their energy during their lunch recess. He caught sight of two identical girls racing circles around the schoolhouse. Endless love crept into every place in his heart, every space in his soul. The twins disappeared around the far side of the building, out of his sight.
    Ed plodded along, obediently splashing through the mud and puddles, wet through. Water sluiced down the rain curtains as he drove closer to the school. Any minute his girls were going to come running back into view—there they were. Their faces damp with rain and bright with laughter.
    “Pa!” Gracie spotted him first.
    “Pa!” Hope came running, a step behind her sister.
    He reined Ed to a stop and pushed the curtains apart. “Hi, girls. Are you supposed to be outdoors running in the rain? You’ll be wet clean through for the rest of the school day.”
    “We don’t mind being squishy in our seats,” Gracie assured him.
    “We dry out, Pa.” Hope smiled at him.
    Synchronized, they hopped onto the running board, standing side by side.
    “Did you see Mrs. Clementine again?” Gracie wanted to know.
    “Do you want to marry her yet?” Hope got straight to the point.
    “Because we like her,” Gracie informed him.
    Hope nodded emphatically.
    Clementine. The image of her laughing in the evening, and then that smile of hers shining softly like light in the storm got to him. She was like a brand on his soul, and he didn’t like it. Not one bit.
    “We talked about this last night.” He was gentle but firm. “I’m not going to marry Clementine.”
    “But we picked her out and everything.”
    “And Grandpa helped us!”
    They both gave their best doe-eyed, innocent look.
    It was hard to turn down those heartfelt pleas. He shifted his weight, staring at the reins in his hands, debating. Then he smiled. “Well, maybe Grandpa can marry