Nathaniel knows that he is not the blushing bride-to-be for which the newspaper was advertising, but it is 1877 and he is desperate for a way to move to the frontier and start a new life. What he finds is Jamie Landry, a farmer not expecting a spouse to arrive by train, let alone for the bride to be a groom. But Nat makes himself useful in the kitchen of Jamie’s Kansas farm, finding an outlet for his love of domesticity and beauty. He also finds something unexpected in Jamie, the quiet, sincere, and handsome man who has Nat’s fate in his weatherbeaten hands. Thrown together, will Jamie and Nat find a way to live—and love—on the open range?

This sweet MLM story is ~18,500 words long and previously featured in the anthology Wild Blue Yonder.

Can’t say as I’d mind eating like this more often,” Jamie says thoughtfully as he uses his fork to scrape the last of the butter and molasses from his plate. “You said you cook?”

“Yes.”

Nat forces himself not to lean in eagerly. He feels like he’s twelve again, too excited, too hopeful, too ready to get disappointed. “Yes, I’m a good cook. I’m also fond of baking.

from You Be the Flower