The stage coach stopped in front of the station, I froze and stared out the window for a long moment. The small townof Red Stone, Arizona stared at me as I stared at it. I closed my eyes and thought back to only two weeks before...

"A mail order bride?" Mrs. Agatha Adderson asked, slapping a hand over her heart, "m'dear there are plenty of many good men here. The mail order brides usually marry farm hands, cowboys, sometimes sheriffs, rarely ever a decent man."

"Aggie," I said softly as I scooped my hair up to the top of my head and twisted it, then formed it into a bun and poked bobby pins in it to hold the hair style up. I pinned on my cameo on my blouse's collar, smoothed out my brown and beaten skirt, and made sure my leather boots were on tightly.

"Your bodice isn't on straight, dearie," Aggie replied, I looked down at the pain trap around my waist and twisted it, Aggie went behind me and tied it tighter. My eyes widened and I gave a slight gasp, my eyes narrowed, "if you wish to be a mail order bride, you must look and act the part while being yourself. They will not let you put an ad about yourself in the Mail-Order Bride Catalog wearing your father's riding clothes."

"I know, Aggie, I know," I replied, "if a man decides he wishes to have me as a bride, will you send Jacob out to be with me?"

"of course, m'dear," Aggie smiled, hugging me close, "I shall keep him close to my heart, he still does not understand why you are leaving."

I looked at myself in the old mirror, once opun a time the house that was now falling apart was one of the most beautiful houses in Bad Rock Texas. Jacob and I's father had been a wealthy doctor, my mother had been the nurse that went around with him; about four years ago their stage coach had turned over in a horrible storm, the driver and passengers were dead, the horses were nowhere to be found. Jacob had only been four then, I had only been twenty. Our house now was one story, the second story was in horrible condition and I dared not to go up there, the lower story was almost the same as the second story. I looked to Aggie, "you will join Jacob, won't you?"

"It depends on where my heart takes me, love," Aggie smiled. I looked to our family's maid and hugged her close. Aggie was more than just a maid to me and Jacob, however, she was our second mother; my parents had agreed to take her in so she could continue to live in America and not be forced to return to Ireland. When they had agreed to let her work for our family she was in her late fourties, now she was nearing her fifties, a late age for most people according to her. She wore her grey hair in a long english braid, a bonnet over her grey hair, her green eyes twinkled all the time it seemed, her smile was always kind and understand - yet, there were times she would become very strict when the time came.

A few hours later I had filled out the add, then the next week a letter from a Jason Kirkland came where he wanted me to be his bride. In the ad it was agreed the mail-order bride had at least three months to live with the man she was going to marry, then after the month was over two couple could decide if they would marry, or if the bride would return to her own home and wait for another caller.

I stepped out of the stage coach a week later and looked around the small town of Red Stone, Arizona; a dance hall called the Faithful Bride greeted me first, then a small inn, a general store, a large stable, a pump, and off in the distance I could see a ranch and homes. I tugged at my blouse's stiff white collar in a small twinge of fear as I felt my stomach twist.

"Ma'am," The stage coach driver exclaimed as he handed me my three carpet bags, "I reckon yer a mail order bride?"

"Yes, sir, I am," I replied, nodding, standing straight, I gave a soft smile.

"Well then, you'll want to go into the station where the man who ordered you will be will waiting," he smiled, "folks in these parts are nice, 'cept for ole' Kalser an' his boys." The driver said, tugging up his pants.

"Who?" I questioned.

"Josiah Kalser an' his three sons, Joseph, Adam, and Jeremy Kalser, family o' outlaw ranchers if ya ask me, but I can't say much else ma'am; people who talk bad about the Kalsers dissapear mighty suddenly," he said tipping his hat and going back to the coach.

I nodded then made my way into the stage coach station and placed my bags down, I sat on one of the large benches. I looked down at my gloves, they were my last pair of clean ones from the nearly week long trip, my other gloves and clothing would need washing. I looked up at hearing the jingle of spurs and heavy foot steps, a cowboy walked into the station chewing on a match stick. He looked up, his dark brown leather hat casting a shadow over the top of his face, his chin and under his nose remained unshaved causing whiskers to stand out.

The cowboy had a square jaw, a slightly curved nose, he was nearly six feet tall or so, his clothing and face were both clouded with dust. A few other women, I gathered were also mail order brides, were looking the man over also; by their looks I would have sworn they would have melted into piles of goo at seeing the handsome cowboy.

"I'm looking for Ms. Emma Pakston," he exclaimed, the women around me glared at me in jealousy as I stood up, I felt my cheeks warm.

"That is me, sir," I replied, smoothing out my skirt.

"Pleasure ta meet you, ma'am," the cowboy smiled, taking off his hat, "I'm Jason Kirkland, I'm the main ranch hand for Burney Murdock."

"It's nice to meet you in person, Mr. Kirkland," I smiled, giving a small curtsey like Aggie had showed me how to do.

"Jason," he smiled, "if we're going to live together call me Jason and I'll call you Emma."

I nodded, "Jason is it is," I smiled, I was about to scoop up my bags when Jason scooped them up for me.

"Allow me," he smiled, "right this way, Emma." He said, I followed him outside the station and took a glance at myself. My bright red hair was slowly falling out of it's bun, my dark brown eyes seemed a shade lighter in the window, I was a good three of four inches shorter than Jason, my clothes...I must have looked like I had just walked out of a train wreck.

Jason loaded my bags into a small wagon, then helped me onto the driver's board, he climbed up next to me, took the ropes, whipped them down and let out a whistle. The horses started out slowly through town, then along the open road Jason whistled once again and the horses started to run. I grabbed onto the seat to keep from falling off.

"It's alright to put your arm around me for balance," Jason smiled, the sunlight helped to clear the shadow from the top part of his face long enough to see a pair of sparkling blue eyes. "If all works out we'll be married,no reason to be shy, I an tell by the looks of ya, you're no dance hall girl."

I blushed and wrapped my arm around his his back.

"In your letter you mentioned y'loved wild flowers?" Jason asked.

"Yes," I smiled, "they're very beautiful, free, and expressive."

"We got lots of them on the ranch, you can pick as many as your heart desires," he smiled.

"As that alright with Mr. Murdoch?" I questioned.

"Well, seeing his daughters an' wife are always pickin' them along with other families of cowboys working for Mr. Murdoch I'd say so," replied Jason.

"How long have you been a cowboy?" I asked.

"Since I was fifteen," Jason replied, "I'm twenty six now, figured it was time to settle down. I just returned from herding cattle to Mr. Murdoch's ranch 'bout a week ago, been getting them to their pens and doin' my other duties 'round the ranch." He smiled.

"What made you decide to want to marry?" I questioned, curiously.

"Well, I dunno," Jason shrugged with a chuckle as they passed a fancy carriage, "I guess I felt kinda lonely seein' all these other men 'round me get married. Plus, I want a family too," he smiled."I have a friend in Bad Rock, Texas, names Charlie Rourke," he smiled, "asked about you, from his wire he said you were a tomboy who was really outgoin' but ya had to become a lady if ya wanted to be a mail order bride. Why did you want to be a mail order bride?" he asked.

I stared, I had no idea the sheriff, Charlie, had been a friend of Jason's. At least I could be me true self around Jason and always be a lady, that made me feel better, "my brother...Jacob, he's four," I smiled, "we were living on my father's money, and it was running out, Aggie, our maid whose a second mother to us, is caring for him."

"You're marrying for the money?" He asked with a frown, his eyes showed that he had been expecting this.

"Not really," I replied, "I could easily get a job. I want to fall in love, but I also want Jacob to have a family, an actual family, to live in so he can grow up a happy boy," I smiled.

"Well, that's a good reason, but are you sure you're doing this for yourself too? Not just him?"

"Positive," I replied with a smile, "I'm glad I can be myself.."

"You can always be yourself, I can understand why you couldn't be yourself before, but around me, I don't mind a tomboy for a wife," he smiled, "I just ask for a lady around Mr. Murdoch and a lady for a wife, but you can feel free to be a tom boy whenever you feel necessary. Though, I really don't need to give you permission to be yourself, that's your own right, Mr. Murdoch gave all of his men a long talking-too when we first started working for him - you don't make women do things against their will unless it's for their protection."

As they rode on to the ranch Jason looked back over to me, "we cowboys try our hardest to live up to the code of chilvary, to help us remember we remember this little slogan: Wounds Heal, Scars Fade, Honor Lasts Forever. Every man and woman has their honor that will always live on," he smiled.

"That's quite beautiful," I smiled, I looked up as we entered the gates of a large ranch, I saw several other cowboys, some turned to look, those who did look smiled and tipped the brims of their caps. Cows and bulls were being herded into pens, a little girl chased after a stray chicken, a little boy was throwing a stick where a golden dog was running after the airborne stick barking in delight.

"This ranch is gorgeous!" I brothe, "it is something out of a novel, beautiful..."

"Not so beautiful when Mr. Murdoch gets out and plays the bugle in the morning until we get up," Jason laughed, "he was a sargeant under U.S. Grant, ya know."

"He plays the bugle?" I asked, staring at Jason in disbelief.

"Oh, yes," Jason laughed, the match stick between his teeth slightly bouncing from his laughter, "and if you're not up after he finishes up his bugling you better just figure you're gonna be either on the floor or get a free bath in bed. You get warnings each time your late up, ole' Tarren got a week's work without pay because he slept in so many times ignoring his duties. Then, when he started being paid again he ignored his duties still, now his job is cleaning up the cow pie that lands in the drive way," he laughed.

My face must of turned a light shade of green because Jason laughed harder, "disgusting," I muttered, "i shall be up at least an hour before he plays that instrument of his."

"Nah, the women usually are up and going before that bugle plays, he's not as hard on women-folk as he is on us, says you women got jobs all of your own." He smiled, "the latest he'll let you sleep in though is eight in the morning, what time are you used ta getting up at?"

"Seven," I replied, "feeding the chickens, cooking breakfast, cleaning the kitchen, washing clothing, and many other things that would bore you to tears," I smirked.

"Well here we are," he smiled as he pulled the wagon into a stable house, another cowboy came up and started unhitching the horses, Jason helped me down and grabbed my bags. We headed to his home, which was a small house a short walk away from the stables. The house's kitchen was small, as was it's family room, it had two bedrooms, and an out house stood outside, not too far of a walk from the house.

"Here's where you'll be sleeping until you feel comfortable being in the same room with me," he replied, nodding to the small bedroom, "I put your bags in there, but we gotta go meet Mr. Murdoch now, he likes meeting all the new faces 'round here," he smiled.