Fire on the Plains (Western Fire) Read Online Free Page A

automatically sought out the prospective groom. Taken aback by the intensity of Ben’s gray-eyed stare, she experienced a sudden, unwanted flutter of nervous apprehension. While brides were wont to suffer from pre-wedding jitters, there was no reason for her to be so agitated. Unlike her first marriage, this was not a love match. Instead, this was to be a working partnership between two mature adults.
    Infatuation . Passion. Romance. She had been blessed to experience those heady emotions with her first husband and could not conceive of experiencing that type of love with the second.
    Unwilling to dwell further on the matter, Lydia, instead, noted that in lieu of a formal suit, Ben wore his blue captain’s uniform. Over six feet in height, his erect soldierly posture was, admittedly, impressive. Clearly, he’d taken great care with his toilette, his hair neatly trimmed, his face, save for the swooping mustache, cleanly shaved. Beneath the mustache, she could discern the shape of his lips. Firm, masculine lips from the looks of them.
    What will his kisses be like? Will his mustache feel soft against my skin, or bristly and unpleasant?
    The instant the wanton thought crossed her mind, Lydia inwardly berated herself.
    A lady must never, never , entertain wayward thoughts. Purposely directing her gaze away from her intended spouse, Lydia smoothed a nonexistent wrinkle from her skirt.
    Between her family and Benjamin’s, the parlor was filled to capacity, the room enlivened with animated conversation and boisterous laughter. A little too boisterous, perhaps. To Lydia’s dismay, her betrothed’s half-sister, fifteen-year-old Prudence Hibbert, could not stop herself from uproariously giggling at a remark made by Spencer’s younger brother Dewey. Moments later, Ginny loudly joined the fray. Under normal circumstances, Lydia would have gently reminded the youthful trio that such gregarious behavior was highly inappropriate.
    But this was not a normal circumstance. This was her wedding day.
    And so Lydia kept silent.
    Alt hough they had often tried her patience, she would dearly miss Dewey and Ginny. Orphaned when they were still young children, they’d been left in her charge. Having reached the age of maturation, Ginny now nineteen and Dewey almost seventeen years of age, they no longer looked to her for maternal counsel. As she glanced at the pair, Lydia felt a surge of loving pride tempered with a twinge of mournful regret. In betrothing herself to Ben Strong, she’d committed herself to another family, another life.
    Though that was the fate of every bride, was it not?
    A lady must persevere through life’s challenges without complaint.
    Moreover, it was important to bear in mind that this marriage was not for her sake only. Her daughter Dixie would undoubtedly benefit from having a stepfather in her life.
    After all, a lady’s first and foremost responsibility was to her family’s well -being.
    Granted, no marriage came without its trials. But Lydia felt confident that the transition to wedded life would be made easier by virtue of the fact that her intended spouse seemed every inch the sturdy, unprepossessing Kansas farmer. And because of that, there would be no unpleasant surprises waiting for her on the horizon.
    “Are we ready to commence the ceremony?”
    Startled, Lydia realized that Reverend Witherspoon’s question had been directed at her.
    Self-consciously aware that every eye in the room was upon her, Lydia took a deep, fortifying breath before giving an affirmative nod. “Yes, I am ready to begin.”
    The Reverend motioned for Lydia to stand beside the groom. Then, with an air of solemnity befitting the occasion, he said in a deep baritone, “Dearly beloved, we are gathered here in the sight of God to join this man and this woman in holy matrimony.”
    Keenly aware that it was now too late to change her mind, Lydia pasted a civil smile onto her lips.
    No matter the circumstance, a lady must always