Total pages in book: 118
Estimated words: 108382 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 542(@200wpm)___ 434(@250wpm)___ 361(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108382 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 542(@200wpm)___ 434(@250wpm)___ 361(@300wpm)
Prudence Agatha Winthrop is a proper Bostonian lady determined to go West. She’s on a mission to find her mother who she had thought dead these many years. Nothing is going to stop her, not her wealthy father, not the simpering man who fancies himself her future husband and least of all the infamous gunslinger Zac Stewart who warned the Boston Ladies Club of the perils of the West.
Zac Stewart can’t believe that the Bostonian spitfire has actually headed West or that he’s agreed to go after her and return her home. It doesn’t take long to catch up with her and in a saloon of all places where the owner thinks that she’s there to hire on as a prostitute. He saves her from one mess only to find her in another until she gets them into a dilemma that has only one way out… marriage.
As much as Prudence tries to ignore her attraction to the gunslinger, she can’t ignore how his kisses stir her passion and touch her heart. But love is hard for her to accept and it takes a daring act on Zac’s part to prove he’d go to any length to show how much he loves her.
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CHAPTER 1
"Ladies, take your petticoats and corsets off. What you need now is a gun and courage." Zac Stewart didn't smile when he made the strange announcement to the Boston Ladies Social Club. He was serious. Dead serious. The thirty-five women attending the meeting sat staring at the handsome man, their mouths opened in shock, their faces paled off-white.
Zac continued with a telltale shake of his head. Not one of them had actually heard what he had said. The only thing on their empty-headed minds was that he had had the audacity to mention their undergarments.
"The West is far different from the East. There are towns where law and order is the gun you wear strapped to your side. Where weather conditions can prove fatal and food supplies can run so low that you eat one meal a day or perhaps none at all."
Zac gripped the podium in front of him. His long fingers tightened on the sides of the polished wood as he looked out at the sea of intent and shocked faces. "Snake meat is good when nothing else can be found. You learn to kill it, strip it, and stew it."
Several of the women groaned, while others raised their hands to their mouths and ran hastily from the room.
Zac caught the eye of one woman near the back. She hadn't flinched since the beginning of his speech. She sat stiff and straight, so stiff that he was positive her corset ran the entire length of her back, forcing her to retain her rigid posture. Even her lips were puckered tightly shut, and the crazy thought of how difficult it would be to kiss her flashed through his mind, bringing a smile to his face.
Heavy silence descended over the room, and Zac cursed his straying imagination. He'd been told time and time again how devastating his smile could be on the female species, and he wasn't the least bit interested in becoming involved with a specimen from Boston.
They were too stuffy and proper for his sinful taste. "Think wisely about your decision to go west. There are hardships to endure, unpredictable weather, illnesses, and much more."
"You mean the savages, Mr. Stewart?" a young woman in the front row questioned.
"The Indians," Zac corrected, "have proven to be difficult at times."
"Difficult?" another soft, yet stern voice asked.
Zac had no doubt who the staunch voice belonged to. His eyes abruptly settled on the young woman with the puckered lips.
"Difficult is not a word I would use to describe savages who horribly torture decent white people."
"Prudence Agatha Winthrop, really," Caroline Davis admonished. "This is neither the time nor the place to discuss such things. As president of this club, I extended an invitation to Mr. Stewart to speak of the West —"
"And what one could expect if one traveled there," Prudence finished. "He isn't being fair to those who intend to journey there if he doesn't properly explain all the hazards one will face."
"Prudence, you are being obstinate as usual," Caroline scolded with a shake of her finger.
"I only wish to hear the truth," Prudence said, her chin tilted just a fraction, a clear sign of her tenaciousness.
"In full detail, Miss Winthrop?" Zac asked, thinking her name Prudence fit her prudish nature perfectly.
"If it will help those preparing to make the trek west, then yes."
Zac couldn't help but smile once again. Of course, it wasn't Prudence Agatha Winthrop's face that brought the curl to his lips. She was too plain. Her features were too common to stand out and make a man take notice. No, it was her proper posture and speech that rattled him. She obviously thought herself better than others and perhaps more intelligent.
"Very well, Miss Winthrop, details it is. Let's see, shall I begin with how the Indians strip the women bare, burn various parts of their body, gorge chunks of flesh—"
“Mr. Stewart!" Caroline Davis screeched, standing on shaky legs and covering her full chest with her hand as though her aging heart could take no more.
"Excuse me, Mrs. Davis, but Miss Winthrop did request details. I apologize if I offended anyone."
"Nonsense, Mr. Stewart," Caroline responded sharply, then turned to glare at Prudence. "It is Miss Winthrop who should apologize."
The twenty remaining women focused their attention on Prudence and waited. Each face spoke clearly of their disdain for her improper behavior.
Prudence folded her white glove-covered hands primly in her lap. She held her head erect, looked straight at Mr. Stewart, and spoke. "Please accept my apologies. You have made it quite clear this is not a topic for the Boston Ladies Social Club."
"It's not a topic for any decent woman to discuss," Caroline chided, then turned with a distinct flourish to face the eager faces of the other women. "Ladies, I'm certain Mr. Stewart would be glad to answer appropriate questions."