Historical Cowboy Romance Two Book Box Set - Mail Order Brides (2 page)

Claire interjected, “But, Tessa, Mama and
Papa have to live with these people. Think of Father’s business.
It’s crucial that we don’t embarrass them because it’s Papa’s
business that keeps us living in the style we do.”

Though young, Claire was highly intelligent
and most likely a genius. She had a strong interest in Geoffrey’s
shipping business and his other ventures, and understood much of
the operations even at her age. Geoffrey often took her to his
office on Saturdays and unlike many men of that time, he was very
proud that his youngest daughter was interested in the family
business and had an aptitude for it.

Tessa sat back in her chair and considered
what Claire had said. Sometimes, Tessa felt as if Claire had more
sense than anyone she knew outside of her parents. She saw the
wisdom in her little sister’s remark. “I think you’re right,
Claire. I need to consider their feelings, too. It’s only
respectful to do so.” She turned to Maureen. “Mother, I apologize
for my quick words. If you insist upon throwing parties for me,
I’ll do my duty, but no more. I should be grateful for you and Papa
taking care of me so well and I certainly do not want to cause you
any shame.”

Maureen smiled. “Although I thank you for
that, I truly don’t think these parties are doing any good. I think
continuing them is futile. However, we will require you to go to a
certain number of parties to which you are invited. Especially
Roxanne and Johanna’s parties. Oh, and you must continue the dinner
parties we throw for your father’s business associates. Is that
acceptable to you?”

“Yes!” Tessa’s smile was luminous. “I think
those are very reasonable terms. Do you think Papa will agree?”

Maureen smiled sweetly. “Oh, I think I’ll be
able to convince him.”

“Excellent!” Tessa said and went back to her
paper.

Geoffrey kissed his wife and rolled over. His
breath was slightly ragged and he was perfectly content to lie
still for a few moments. Maureen was in a similar state. Their
lovemaking was always active and passionate and extremely
satisfying. She rolled over and snuggled against her handsome
husband and ran a hand over his muscular chest.

She planted a kiss there and Geoff put an arm
around her and held her close. “Well, you were particularly frisky
tonight,” he said.

Maureen giggled against his side. “You just
bring that side of me out, husband. It’s not as if you weren’t
frisky yourself.”

Geoff laughed. “Touché.”

Maureen turned serious. “We need to discuss
Tessa.”

“Oh, no. What’s she done now?”

“It’s not what she’s done; it’s what she
isn’t going to do. These parties are not doing anything but making
her more dissatisfied. I don’t think we should bother with them.
Maddie is the one who wants them and she is so excited about her
coming out. I think we should focus on that and give Tessa some
breathing room. However, she should go to some parties she’s
invited to and also continue with our business dinners,” Maureen
said in a rush.

Geoffrey’s response was to laugh and roll
Maureen back over. “You are a conniver, Maureen O’Connor. Did she
agree to that?”

Maureen arched a delicate brow at him. “A
conniver I may be, but only for a good cause. Yes, she did. I
thought they were decent terms. You’ve always said that in any good
agreement, there’s give and take.”

“So I have.” Geoffrey weighed the subject and
saw that the deal was a good one. “Very well. I agree with
you.”

Maureen laughed and hugged Geoffrey. “You are
the best husband and father!” She wiggled under Geoff.

He grinned and kissed her neck. “Really? So
how about we seal the deal?”

“Oh, absolutely,” Maureen said.

Their lovemaking was slower and tenderer this
time and Maureen did indeed show Geoff what a wonderful husband he
was to her.

Geoffrey called Tessa into his office in the
morning. Tessa knew this was not her father’s usual schedule and
was nervous as she perched on one of the chairs in front of his
large, mahogany desk. She watched her father close the door and
settle in his office chair. He was a large man, standing around
six-foot three and close to two hundred pounds, and the chair
creaked a little under his weight. He didn’t speak right away. He
merely looked at her for a few moments.

Tessa knew he was sizing her up, much the way
he did a business opponent. He was looking for any weakness. She
lifted her chin and looked him in the eye.

“What’s on your mind, Papa?” she asked.

Geoff smiled inwardly at her bravado. She was
tough as nails and it made him feel good. Whoever she did
eventually marry wouldn’t be able to run roughshod over her. He
wanted his daughters to be appreciated and loved, not ruled over.
At least with Tessa, he knew that wouldn’t happen.

“Your mother has informed me that she and you
have come up with a proposal on which you agree. She brought this
to me last evening and wanted to know if I approve,” he stated.

Tessa fought the urge to fidget, knowing it
would be a signal of her nervousness.

“Yes. That’s true. Both of us thought it
reasonable and beneficial to both parties,” she said.

Geoff barely contained his smile at her use
of business lingo. Apparently, she was paying attention somewhat
during their dinners with his colleagues. “If I agree to the terms
set forth, what is it that you propose to do with the extra time
you will have on your hands?”

Tessa was stunned. She hadn’t given any
thought to that. Her father was waiting for an answer and her mind
spun, trying to come up with something acceptable. She decided on
honesty because Geoffrey would be able to see through any lies she
would come up with.

“No, I haven’t, simply because I didn’t think
you would agree to this.”

He nodded. “I can understand that. If I agree
to this, I expect you to come up with a worthy way to fill your
time. I’ll not have you simply lying about eating bonbons and
such.”

Tessa grinned. “When have you ever known me
to lie around eating bonbons?”

“True. You’ve always been active. It was
annoying as hell when you were a little girl,” he confessed. He
didn’t often swear in front of his girls, but Tessa was not as
sensitive as the other two.

“Is it my fault that I take after you, Papa?”
she said.

He frowned. “You know, it’s rather irritating
that everyone keeps reminding me of that.”

“You’re full of it. You love it and you know
it,” Tessa teased.

“Back to our subject. I’m serious about you
spending your time on something worthy. I don’t care if it’s a
charity or some type of education. You have a fortnight to do so.
Come back and tell me your answer. As of this moment, there will be
no more parties, but if you do not live up to your end of the
bargain, the agreement is null and void and the parties will
resume,” he told Tessa.

She could see her father was dead serious and
even though she was thrilled with his answer, she kept her
happiness in check for the moment. “We are agreed.”

Only then did he smile again. “You are
incorrigible. Now, come give me a kiss goodbye. I must get to the
office.”

Tessa jumped up and went around the desk and
hugged her father. She planted a huge kiss on his cheek. “Thank
you, Papa! Have a wonderful day. I love you.”

“I love you, too. Now, off with you,”
Geoffrey said gruffly.

Tessa wanted to run from the room, but walked
out as a lady was supposed to do. She mounted the stairs and kept
her composure until she reached her room, where she ran to her bed
and buried her face in her pillow and shouted her joy. Then she got
up and twirled around the room and performed some more moves that
had anyone been watching, they would have thought her crazy.

A weight had been lifted and now she could
start to live life somewhat as she wanted. She lay back on her bed
and began thinking about what she would do with her extra time and
there
would
be extra time because she didn’t have to spend
hours getting ready and hours at the dreaded parties. During the
season, it wasn’t unheard of to have an event almost every
night.

If she became involved in a charity, it would
mean more functions and because that was what she was trying to
avoid, she decided against it. What could she do educationally?
Society had little use for truly educating women, although her
father was very forward thinking in that respect and had made a
large donation to Chatham College for Women in Shadyside, an
affluent area of Pittsburgh.

She decided to contact them to make an
appointment to visit. The idea of taking a few classes was
appealing to her. It would certainly be something different and she
would meet new people, too. Tessa ran downstairs to tell Maureen
the news.

One month later found Tessa miserable yet
again. There were only two of her courses she liked, English and
history. The others were lost on her. She discovered an aptitude
for writing and seemed to constantly be scribbling down notes,
which she rewrote and expanded later on. She was trying her best at
the mathematics courses, but couldn’t seem to grasp anything higher
than beginning algebra. Claire put her to shame by being able to
complete the whole book, and correctly at that.

The foreign language courses were all right,
she supposed, but it was really the English class that was
fascinating to her. She’d been studying other writers and trying to
learn as much as she could about the great writers down through
history. Her professor was very pleased with her progress and told
her that she had wonderful insight and wrote beautiful, descriptive
passages.

Tessa would have liked to have dropped out of
the other courses and only kept writing. She knew that if she did
that, however, the parties would begin again, so she kept going to
classes while trying to come up with another solution.

One day after class, Tessa asked her English
professor, Mr. Rothwell, about what made great writing. She loved
reading the newspapers and thought she might like to write an
article someday. He thought for a moment and then said, “You have
to experience life, pay attention to the little things, and know
your subject. Research is the key to writing an accurate,
meaningful article, or writing anything worth reading,
actually.”

Tessa took that nugget of advice to heart.
Over the next couple of months, she observed everything in her
neighborhood and around various parts of the city where she
traveled. She became aware that there was little in her life that
was different to write about. She needed to travel to other lands
and experience new things but she would never be permitted to do
that.

Lying in bed late one night, Tessa thought
about running away to follow her dream. Her vivid imagination began
concocting various scenarios that would allow her to do that. She
would need money. She had some in her account, but her father
managed that account and would know if she took any out. But if she
waited to take it out right before leaving, he wouldn’t be able to
do anything about it. She fell asleep dreaming of escape.

She was again scouring the newspaper when an
advertisement caught her eye.

The Brooks Agency is seeking eligible women
of good reputation to correspond with gentlemen from the West who
are seeking a wife. Please reply to this advertisement with a
letter of description or come to our office located at the address
below.

Tessa read the advertisement several times,
growing excited with every read. Her mind began churning as she
weighed the pros and cons of doing such a thing. She would
certainly begin an adventure that would be worth writing about and
perhaps find true love in the meantime. She would miss her family
greatly and most likely anger them, but she was of age and could
make her own decisions. Tessa was no fool and realized that she
would have to be sure of the man before going to see him.

Knowing that she would be noticed writing
down an address and most likely asked about it, Tessa memorized the
address listed in the ad. After a rather boisterous breakfast with
a lot of teasing between the four women, Tessa went up to her room
and began making her plans to go to the Brooks Agency the next
day.

She would need a taxi because she didn’t want
the family’s driver to report where she was going and Tessa had no
doubt Mr. Richards would tell her father if she were to go anywhere
out of character for her. She decided she would go for a walk to
the park and get a cab from there. Money was no problem, as she had
a rather large sum saved and stashed in her room.

Each of the girls was given an allowance
every week and it was rare that Tessa used all of hers because
almost all of her needs were met by her parents. Maddie, on the
other hand, was prone to spending her money on frivolous items and
then wanting more money to buy more things that caught her eye.
Tessa hoped Maddie married a rich man who could keep up with her
spending habits.

The day seemed to pass slowly even though
Tessa kept busy. She was impatient for the day to be over and for
the next day to come. She lay in bed that night and couldn’t sleep,
try as she might. She wanted to look her best tomorrow so that she
didn’t look worn out. Finally, she slept.

“Well, Miss O’Connor, you seem to be exactly
what we’re looking for and what the men are looking for,” J.D.
Brooks said with a smile.

Tessa returned his smile and said, “Splendid!
What do I need to do to get started?”

J.D. turned and took a large file from a
cabinet behind him. “These are advertisements from prospective men.
Look through them and see if any appeal to you. I would ask that
you choose only one to correspond with at a time because you may
become confused as to whom you are writing. Men are jealous
sometimes and it may not sit well with them that you are talking to
other men as well.”