The Husband Hunt
Theater singer Fiona O’Keefe is on a quest to form the perfect family for her orphaned niece. It’s a shame handsome and musically talented Sawyer Evans can’t support a household on his sawmill-manager wages. Fiona needs a respectable gentleman of means. And if she can’t find one in Singapore, Michigan, then she’ll just have to look for a husband in the mail-order want ads...
Sawyer doesn’t want Fiona to marry a stranger...or anyone other than him. It would be easy to reveal that he’s secretly heir to a railroad fortune. But Sawyer’s determined to be a self-made man, so he isn’t willing to take his father’s money. Instead, can he prove to Fiona that the man she needs is already by her side?
“Sawyer!” Fiona called out.
This time he turned toward her. After giving the coil of rope to another man, he loped down the short distance and relieved her of the blankets.
“Take my arm,” he said.
The security of his strength washed over her. He would help her. He would ensure her niece was safe.
“Must help...” she began, but could get no further before gasping for breath.
They managed the last few yards to the top of the dune. There Sawyer released her and returned the blankets to her care.
She caught his arm. “You need to rescue them.”
He shook his head. “Don’t know if we can with those waves.”
“You must. You must.” She hung on him with desperation. “My niece. She’s only seven. She could be on that ship.”
His expression, highlighted in the eerie light of the lighthouse, twisted with concern. “I’ll do what I can.”
Thank you for joining Fiona and Sawyer through the ups and downs of their journey. It was fun to take two characters with opposing backgrounds and hopes and find a common ground for them. Sometimes things are not as they appear!
That’s true of Astor House, the local hotel, which according to some sources did exist in historic Singapore. I love the pretensions of naming a lodging establishment in a small lumber town after the first luxury hotel in New York City. Someone had a lot of optimism!
The village of Harmony is fictitious, however, the islands of Lake Michigan have been host to some breakaway sects that established their own “colonies.” The first and most recognizable was established by James Jesse Strang’s followers who broke from Brigham Young and settled on Beaver Island in the mid-1800s. Books, articles and a museum on Beaver Island detail that episode in history. In the early 1900s, the House of David established a colony on nearby High Island. When I visited that island as a child, there were still remnants of buildings left, and I imagined they belonged to that colony.
It’s been fun incorporating snippets of history in the novels in this series. I hope you will join me for the fourth book. Questions or comments? Contact me through my website at www.christineelizabethjohnson.com.
Blessings,
Christine Johnson
A small-town girl, CHRISTINE JOHNSON has lived in every corner of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. She enjoys creating stories that bring history to life while exploring the characters’ spiritual journeys. Though Michigan is still her home base, she and her seafaring husband also spend time exploring the Florida Keys and other fascinating locations. You can contact her through her website at christineelizabethjohnson.com.
Mail Order Sweetheart
Christine Johnson
And ye shall know the truth,
and the truth shall make you free.
—John 8:32
For my sister, Donna,
who taught me a lot about strength.
To God be the glory.
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