Free to Forgive Read online

  Free to Forgive

  Book 6

  A Texas Wildflower Novelette

  By Susette Williams

  Freedom Brides

  A controversial new program. A new hope for six women in need. When others wilt, they will thrive. These are the Texas Wildflowers.

  Texas Wildflowers novelette series~

  FREE TO LOVE –Book 1

  FREE TO HEAL –Book 2

  FREE TO PROTECT –Book 3

  FREE TO SERVE –Book 4

  FREE TO ROAM –Book 5

  FREE TO FORGIVE –Book 6

  Published by Family Friendly Fiction

  Copyright © 2015 by Susette Williams

  Cover Design © Susette Williams

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Includes free BONUS story:

  Mail Order Brides: Jessie’s Bride

  PROLOGUE

  The latest arrival made six men. They each sat in the desolate pews—having been escorted by a deputy or sheriff.

  The sheriff reached the front and leaned his back against the pulpit, his arms crossed in rigid form. His eyes landed on each man in the room, resting on them individually for a few seconds.

  “I am Sheriff Daniels. Welcome to Mucksbe, your new home, should you choose to make it.” Again, the sheriff took several moments to make eye contact with each man.

  A dark-haired man in the front shifted to the edge of his seat. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “Yeah, what do you mean new home,” A scraggly blond haired man asked.

  Unfazed by the skepticism, Sheriff Daniels kept his severe pose. “Men, each of you has been handpicked to participate in the new Freedom Brides program.”

  “Brides?” One of the men choked.

  “Yes, Freedom Brides.” Sheriff Daniels grinned—it was an arrogant, mocking smile. “As a joint effort among several local communities, we’ve devised a social outreach program to combat multiple problems facing our towns.”

  “Get to the gist.” The audacious man was the one who’d been the last to arrive.

  Sheriff Daniels narrowed his gaze. “Any more outbursts and your offer to participate will be immediately rescinded.”

  The man clenched his jaw, but remained quiet.

  “Each of you was chosen as a flagship participants because your crimes, while still demanding punishment, are minor infractions. I, and the other sheriffs involved, believe you each have something to offer that will better our community.”

  Silence reigned among the six men, every one of them at rapt attention.

  A hand raised. The sheriff nodded permission to speak. “What does this program entail?”

  “If you choose, you will marry a woman in need in exchange for your freedom.”

  The sheriff removed a handful of folded papers from his inner vest pocket. He straightened them out and handed each man a sheet. “They are all written here. Should you choose to participate, you must sign this paper, agreeing to abide by all rules. Otherwise, you’ll be returned to jail cell you came from, same as if you break any of them.”

  Each man took the paper handed to him and read the handwritten rules.

  1) Remain within a fifteen mile radius of the courthouse for the first three months of program involvement.

  2) Refrain from any alcohol or tobacco use.

  3) Refrain from entering any den of iniquity.

  4) Remain faithful to their spouse and not bring any harm upon them.

  5) Actively participate in assisting with spouse’s needs/requests.

  6) Participate in one day of community service per month for the first six months.

  No matter their individual concerns, when the time came to sign his name, all six men dipped the pen into the ink and signed their name—they were committed.

  CHAPTER ONE

  Aida Hollingsworth paced the wooden floor of her bedroom in the inn. She’d stumbled a few times on the fringed edge of the rose colored rug at the foot of the bed. Thoughts weighed on her mind so heavy it took great effort to raise her feet with each step and she continued the back-and-forth pattern.

  Trey Lawton disappeared fifteen months earlier, just one week after he’d pledged his undying love and asked her to marry him a few days before Christmas. His feet had gotten colder than snow, which they rarely saw in Texas. Seeing him again had come to seem unlikely too, but here he was in jail—only a few miles away from home—her home.

  Had the thought of marrying her become too overwhelming? Why had he run off? Had Trey ever truly loved her? She thought she might never know the answers to so many unanswered questions. But now, she’d found him.

  The only question was, should she leave him in jail? It seemed fitting for the prison of pain and darkness he’d left her to dwell in as her heart had sunk into despair. Now, she had the ability to make him pay for the pain he’d inflicted on her.

  Smoothing her palms against her warm brown dress did little to press the few wrinkles from her clothing. Aida missed having servants to take care of such things, but it was a small price to pay to gain her independence. When she inherited her aunt’s home on the outer banks of Mucksbe, she’d insisted on moving—against her father’s wishes. She was a grown woman and not subject to being controlled by men, not her father, and certainly not Franklin Macallister II. The two had conspired together to sway her to marry Franklin, but Aida refused because she had no feelings for him, and he was at least ten years older than Aida.

  No matter how pleasant, or accommodating Franklin tried to be, something in his eyes made her insides quiver. Her mother suggested that perhaps Aida had suppressed feelings for Franklin. Aida was quite certain that wasn’t the case. She would not betray her memory of Trey. She knew what love was because she’d felt that type of stirring when Trey kissed her the first time—and the last time, and every time in between.

  Sadness filled her at the memories. Now he was back, albeit not of his own free will. But he was here nonetheless, and he was in a program that would make him get married, or be stuck in prison. A fate that she would have control of, if she married him. If he ran this time, he’d go to prison and stay there. Ultimately, the choice was up to him. Her mind continued to wrestle with conflicting thoughts. The only thing she knew for certain was that she needed to see Trey and find the answers to some of her questions, no matter how badly his response may hurt.

  She retrieved her cream colored reticule from the wooden dresser and observed herself in the mirror, brushing back a stray strand of her reddish-blonde hair. The color was different, not many women had such noticeable hair. Trey’s was a lighter shade, but similar. It was one of the reasons she’d been sure they had been perfect for each other—they were unique. Perhaps being around someone who was similar made him feel less special, or her even for having practically the same color of hair. She didn’t feel special any more. Insecurity had never plagued her until Trey left. The only way she’d get p
ast this was to do something about it while she could.

  Taking a deep breath, Aida straightened her shoulders and held her head high as she left her room at the inn in pursuit of Sheriff Daniel’s office.

  When she opened the door to the jail house, a man was carrying a cup of coffee from the back. He nodded, not faltering in his step, rounded one of the desks and sat his drink down.

  “Are you Sheriff Daniels?” Aida forced herself not to clutch her reticule tighter than she already was, or she might appear desperate. Of course, it might look better if she did appear that way—given the obvious point of the Freedom Bride Program, to marry off desperate women to men the government hoped to reform.

  “Yes, ma’am.” He motioned toward the chairs in front of his desk. “Please have a seat.”

  After she took a seat, he sat in his chair, scooted it forward and leaned his arms against the desk.

  “Tell me, little lady, what can I do for you?”

  “I’ve come to inquire about the Freedom Bride program.” She studied his expressions as she spoke, noting the quizzical or curious arch of his brow.

  “You don’t strike me as the type of woman who would want to marry a prisoner.” He didn’t attempt to hide the amusement in his tone.

  Her nose jutted upwards. He was right, she wasn’t. “Normally, I might be inclined to agree with you, but it has come to my attention that you have a man named Trey Lawton in the program.”

  “Most people have not been privy to the names of the participants in this program.” Sheriff Daniels straightened in his seat. “Is there something I should know about this man?”

  “We were engaged.”

  Surprise registered on the sheriff’s face.

  “But Mr. Lawton failed to live up to his obligation.” The pain of his betrayal still made her wince at the memory.

  “I see,” Sheriff Daniels said. “Do you love him?”

  Aida blinked several times. “I. . . I don’t see what that has to do with anything. It was my understanding that the government hoped not to be burdened with having to take care of less offensive criminals, and I am willing to take one of them off your hands.” She swallowed hard, struggling against the air catching in her lungs. The government obviously didn’t care about romance if they were merely negotiating agreements and marrying people off to avoid being burdened with them. Why should it matter whether or not she still had any feelings for Trey?

  CHAPTER TWO

  Trey Lawton heard voices coming from the front of the jail, an area he hadn’t seen in a long while. He rolled over in his cot and closed his eyes. One thing was for certain, whoever was here, wasn’t here to see him. No one, not even family, ever came to see him, much less visit him for any other reason. He’d stopped getting his hopes up months ago. Clint Routson left the jail and got married in November. Now it was February? Or was it March? The days all seemed to run together.

  Agreeing to become a part of the government’s program had only served to isolate Trey, giving him lots of time to think. He should have said goodbye to Aida, but he had wanted to protect her. For the longest time, at night, he would lay awake in his cot and think about her long, curly, red tendrils and how they felt when he played with one between his fingers—so soft and silky. Thoughts of Aida still made his heart ache and his arms feel lonely. He’d never hold or touch her again.

  Quiet times, like now, Trey envisioned what Aida’s life was like after she married Franklin Macallister. Did she melt when Franklin kissed her the way she had at the touch of Trey’s hand gently strumming a teasing line down her spine? It was how he would get her to weaken, her lips parting enough for him to claim. Even now, the flowery scent of her cologne haunted him. Did she miss him—even a little?

  Christmas had been the hardest time for him. He’d proposed and she had accepted. Franklin had told him it wasn’t her place to accept his offer, that her father didn’t approve. There was nothing Trey could do, not then, and certainly not now.

  When the new year had been celebrated by the world around him, which he could only hear through the walls of his cell, he’d prayed and promised God that he would move on and do whatever He wanted Trey to do—even if it meant marrying and caring for another woman—and possibly her children. His life might not amount to much, but he would use every day the good Lord gave him to make a difference, no matter how small. Trey had Sawyer to thank for that revelation. He chuckled to himself, thinking of how the town’s newest pastor had once resided in the prison cell next to his. Trey thought about how God worked in mysterious ways as he drifted off to sleep.

  Keys jingling and the fumbling of the metal door handle turning woke Trey from his slumber. By the grumble in his stomach, he figured it must be about time for supper. He sat up on his cot and stretched, letting out a yawn.

  To his surprise, Sawyer proceeded the sheriff through the door leading back to the cells. He was the only prisoner at the moment, so they were obviously coming to see him.

  “It’s not every day I get a visit from the sheriff and the pastor,” Trey said. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

  Their somber expressions and silence didn’t encourage him.

  “Let me guess.” Trey let out a half-hearted laugh. “You couldn’t find any woman desperate enough to marry me, so I’m going back to the prison upstate?”

  Sheriff Daniels took his hat off and ran a hand through his brown hair before replacing it on his head. The grim expression on his face wasn’t a good sign.

  “Not exactly.” Sawyer sighed. “There’s someone who wants to marry you, but not for the right reasons.”

  Trey chuckled. “Like anything about the marriage arrangements concerning this program had anything to do with the right reasons—‘cause, from what I’ve seen, none of them were for love.”

  “Now, let’s be fair,” Sheriff Daniels said. “They may not have started out that way, but thankfully, they did end up that way.”

  “So what’s different about this one?” Trey looked from one man to the other. There was something they weren’t saying. “You’re going to tell me anyway, so just say it. Is something wrong with this woman? Is she disfigured or something and you’re afraid to tell me?”

  “No, nothing like that.” Sheriff Daniels crossed his arms

  “It’s Aida,” Sawyer said.

  Air swooshed out of his lungs like a tornado sucking in everything around it, throwing things into utter chaos. Aida was here? Trey swallowed hard. She wanted to marry him? Still? “It must be a mistake.”

  “Afraid not.” Sheriff Daniels shook his head. “Seems she feels you are obligated to make good on your marriage proposal.”

  Sawyer gripped one of the metal cell bars and leaned closer. “She wants revenge, Trey.”

  It took a few moments for the pastor’s words to sink in. Could he really blame her? She had every right to be angry with him. Trey remembered her kisses from the day before he left—they were real. Chances were she didn’t know what her father had planned, which made his betrayal worse in her eyes—she thought he wanted to leave.

  “You don’t have to marry her.” Sheriff Daniels’ eyes softened. “We can find a way around this.”

  “I want to marry her—always have.” Trey mustered up a smile. He made eye contact with Sawyer. “And perhaps with time, she’ll come to forgive me. I do believe it was you who kept telling us about forgiveness and second chances while we sat behind these bars.”

  Sawyer nodded, a smirk creased the edge of his lips. “Looks like I’ll be eating those words for supper.”

  Trey knew there were forces beyond him at work. After many months in this cell, he finally prayed and gave it to God and was prepared to marry whoever, and now, that whoever turned out to be his only true love. He had to trust that it was God giving him another chance.

  CHAPTER THREE

  This was not how Aida envisioned her wedding day to be. The church should have been filled with family and friends. Freshly cut wildflowers should have adorned th
e room, and a festive meal with fancy desserts planned for afterwards. But none of those things were evident today. She didn’t even have any flowers for a bouquet or a special new dress to wear for the occasion.

  Aida reminded herself that it would serve as a memory through life that her marriage wasn’t a fictional story or a grand affair that the papers wrote about. Although, the Dallas Daily News might write about their marriage when they learned of the event. By then, it would be too late for her father or Franklin to do anything. She tried to smile at the thought, but this wasn’t the happy occasion she dreamed about growing up—Trey robbed her of that when he snuck out of town like a thief. The only thing he stole was her heart.

  The sheriff walked into the church with Trey by his side. In a black suit, Trey looked slimmer than she remembered. His face was clean shaven, his cheeks more hollow. Memories of his face close to hers surfaced, threatening to weaken her resolve and her knees. Those same lips that had once offered her sweet kisses had also professed an undying love that ran out quicker than he had. Those deceiving lips would never tempt her to believe his words of deception again.

  Both men approached her. Trey held her gaze, undoubtedly afraid of what she might be thinking or planning for him. He should be afraid, because if he chose to run again the law would track him down and he wouldn’t get another chance.

  “You look beautiful,” Trey muttered.

  Aida laughed half-heartedly. “Still lacing your words with honey to hide the bitter truth. It won’t work this time, Trey.”

  “Would the two of you like a chance to speak alone before the ceremony, so that you can get reacquainted?” Sheriff Daniels asked. “Then you can make sure this is really what both of you want.”