Chapter Two

      William Black stood in muted astonishment. That hair. Wild and glorious, the sight of those untamed curls refusing to obey their pins drew him yet another step forward.

       Was this woman his future bride, the one he’d sent for all those months ago?

       Surely not. Yet several people had pointed at her when he’d mentioned her name—Bridget—and then given her ordinary description of brown hair and dark eyes.

       There had to be some mistake. There was nothing ordinary about the woman. She was a blend of the unexpected and the extraordinary, a beautiful female impossible to overlook. In short, everything he avoided in a woman.

       As if to mock him, a beam of sunlight escaped like a finger through a crack in the clouds, landing directly on her, bathing her in golden brilliance. Under the bold light of midday she looked delicate, inviting, almost ethereal.

       What if this was his Bridget?

       He’d paid for her passage and promised to marry her, promised to make her a much-needed part of his family. He couldn’t go back on his word, regardless of his current misgivings. Duty and honor were the principles that guided his life, all that a man had left when everything else was stripped away.

       Will swallowed, remembering what had driven him to acquire an Irish mail-order bride in the first place. Irish women were supposed to be honest, hardworking and proper.

       No proper woman had hair like that.

       Whoever she was, the beauty staring back at him was perfectly unsuitable to become the mother of his three-year-old twins.

       Not after the pain Fanny had put them through this past year and a half.

       For a dangerous moment Will’s mind fled back in time. To the day when he’d been fool enough to think he could make his marriage work. When he’d thought love was enough to conquer every obstacle thrown their way.

       He knew better now. He would never marry for love again. His children deserved stability. And his poor mother deserved relief from the physical demands of caring for a pair of toddlers, no matter how well-behaved.

       If this woman with her wild hair and commanding eyes was the one with which he’d corresponded, then Will would honor his promise. As he would any other business transaction. But what would become of his family then?

       Mind made up, he continued forward, then stopped, frowned, dropped his gaze. The woman was holding a baby in her arms.

       The letter hadn’t mentioned a child. Had his intended lied to him? A burning throb knotted in his throat. Was she using him to—

       He cut off the rest of his thoughts. He was jumping to conclusions before he’d even met her. The baby might not be hers. And there was still no proof this was indeed his bride.

       Will owed it to his children to find out for sure, before he brought the woman into his home and his life. As much as he wanted stability for the twins he would not condemn them to living with a woman of loose morals. Not again. Not ever again.

       Closing the distance, he forced a smile on his lips and put as much charm into his voice as possible. “Are you Bridget?”

       “I…well, yes.” Her lovely Irish lilt washed over him and brought an odd sensation of comfort. “Yes, I am Bridget.”

       An echo of a smile trembled on her lips and Will found himself responding in kind.

       Despite his first impression, this woman with her radiant smile and soft expression looked the picture of innocence. A bolt of yearning struck him out of nowhere.

       Will ruthlessly suppressed the unwelcome sensation. He didn’t want, or need, a wife for his own sake.

       “Hello, Bridget. I’m Will,” he said without feeling. “Your future husband.”

      * * *

       Her future…what? Her…her…husband?

       The boldly spoken words echoed around in Bridget’s mind, yet she couldn’t make sense of them. She must have misunderstood the stranger—no, not a stranger anymore. Will, his name was Will.

       Bridget shook her head free of her jumbled thoughts and tried to focus on the relevant matter at hand. He wasn’t here to claim Grace.

       Relief made her legs go weak. But then confusion took hold. Surely this man, this…his name was Will. Surely Will hadn’t just referred to himself as her future husband.

       It was really quite absurd to think that he had.

       So Bridget waited for him to continue, or rather to explain himself in greater detail.

       He remained completely, perfectly silent.

       When the moment stretched into the uncomfortable, she swallowed several times and then opened her mouth to respond.

       To her horror, nothing came out.

       She snapped her mouth closed.

       And still, Will held to his silence, with only a hint of impatience in his stance.

       All Bridget could do was blink up at him in return. He towered over her by at least six inches. The breadth of his shoulders and the powerful muscles beneath his finely cut jacket indicated a man familiar with physical labor.

       Bridget should be afraid of him.

       She was not.

       She was, however, rendered speechless. Still.

       “I…I…” The rest of what she’d