Page 1 of A Groom for Lauren
Prologue
“Something’s wrong with Lauren,” Ruth Chambers mused as she folded the letter she received from her sister. “Something dreadful.”
Looking at her reflection in the mirror above the mantle, she noted her appearance. The sun-ripened hair of gold. The smooth, unblemished skin. The large, brown eyes and narrow nose. The rather cold, placid expression no man’s compliments could ever change into a smile.
Both Chambers sisters were known as Snow White and Rose Red in certain circles. It was a play on words that aptly described their personalities.
Especially among the male constituents of Philadelphia’s high society.
“Snow White may be quiet,” grumbled one rejected would-be suitor, “but once she opens her mouth, she’s a right harridan.”
Remembering that, the tiniest smile lifted the corner of Ruth’s lips. ‘Harridan’ was another word for a woman who did not believe it was a God-given right for a man to rule over a woman.
More reason why she had objected to Lauren’s decision to marry some worthless farmer and leave the life they’d always known in the city, the center of civilization, to travel to the…
She gave a shiver of disgust.
The west.
Glancing down at the letter again, Ruth knew Lauren was now regretting her decision. Maybe she always had for the past five years but had too much pride to say it. Among their set, most saw Ruth as the prideful one because she voiced her thoughts and ideas without concern for what others thought of it.
Lauren may not be as blunt, but she had the Chambers’ pride. A Chambers did not admit defeat.
But at what cost? Death was a better alternative than to admit you were wrong.
Lauren’s letter had more than just news about her miserable life in Last Hope or Last Prayer, or whatever that forsaken town in Nebraska was called. Ruth scanned the letter once more, looking for clues in what wasn’t written. Her sister was screaming for help, although the words didn’t explicitly appear on the page.
The door to the drawing room opened, and a man of average height appeared in the doorway. “Ruthie, are you ready? We’ll be late for the theater if we don’t leave soon.” He was checking his pocket watch impatiently.
She lifted her eyes to see Samuel McIntyre, her escort for the evening. He hadn’t been courting her long, and she was certain this outing of theirs would be their last.
He was a bore, like most of the men in Philadelphia were. None of them had any backbone, any sort of gumption. When they tried to assert themselves, it was only to subjugate the female to their wants and desires.
Thank God she would never marry!
“I believe I told you never to call me by my Christian name,” she admonished him.
A bright flush shaded his face. “My apologies, Miss Chambers.”
Mollified by his instant obedience to her demands, she pondered the problem with her sister.
Lauren should have never married Jonah Hale. Oh, she understood how Lauren was enamored by his unsophistication. Compared to Philadelphian men, he was different.
What woman wouldn’t be attracted to ‘different’?
But marriage only sought to enslave women in an institution meant to gratify a man’s needs and wants and leave women to provide it at their own cost. How many suffragette meetings had they gone to over the past few years? How often had the women of those meetings shared stories of husbands who only dominated?
She had to rescue her sister from the dusty country wilds. Had to bring her back to the life that suited her. Away from the memories of a man who must have dominated her into submission and thus controlled her.
That’s what her letter was saying.Save me, Ruth. Save me!
Well, I will, sister.Ruth vowed as she tucked the letter away in the side drawer and stood, as Samuel instantly offered her wrap to drape over her shoulders.I’ll be there as soon as I can.
Chapter One
May 1879, Last Chance, Nebraska
Bands of steel wrapped around Lauren Hale’s arms.
