Name: Texas Destiny
ISBN: 9780451407528

Lorraine Heath

A weary, ex-Civil War soldier travels to Fort Worth to collect his brother's mail-order bride, a beautiful belle eager to escape war-ravaged Georgia, and finds the object of his heart. Original.

Texas Destiny

He’s fallen for a woman…​ Anxious to meet her soon-to-be-husband, Dallas Leigh for the first time, mail-order bride Amelia Carson is en route to Fort Worth, Texas. When she steps off the train and locks eyes with her betrothed, she immediately feels drawn to him. But the cowboy standing before her isn’t Dallas. Instead, Dallas’ brother Houston has been sent to accompany her on the three-week journey to the ranch where she’ll begin her new life. Who belongs to another... The war Houston Leigh fought has left him with visible scars, a daily reminder of his cowardice on the battlefield. Denying his intense attraction to Amelia, he is determined to deliver her untouched, as promised. But during their long dangerous trip, he can’t help but admire her inner strength and fearlessness. And when she looks at him—as if she can see beyond his scarred face and read his innermost thoughts—he loses his heart to her. Now as they near the ranch, Houston must choose to remain loyal to his brother—or find the courage to fight for the woman he’s convinced is his destiny...

b.andherbooks

Recommended to me as part of my #bHeath21 read, this was a bit out of my comfort zone as an American Historical set post-Civil War. I wasn't aware before reading it (or at least didn't think through it), but the hero and heroine were both living in the Confederacy as children during the Civil War, and are dealing with PTSD ten years after. That said, the only mention of slavery is that the heroine lived in the slave quarters after her family's plantation was taken over during the war.

Also, big CWs for PTSD, grief, trauma, rape (off-page, heroine's mother and sisters were raped while she was hidden), snake bite, scary nature situations

The relationship between Houston and his brother's intended mail order bride is quite epic. Houston is sent to retrieve Amelia after his brother breaks his leg, Houston is grumpy and mad and afraid she'll be afraid of his scars and his eyepatch. He refuses to wear the floral embroidered ribbon she sent for the hat his brother was supposed to wear so she could find him at the train.

I loved the road trip aspect of this story, and watching these two bozos fall completely in love with each other along the way. Houston watching her bathe through the tent, how naughty!

I was not sure how Heath would wrap this one up, especially since Amelia does indeed marry the brother!! but then gets it annulled.

Lots to unpack here, but for more notes check out my twitter thread.

Saayan

I'm on such a Lorrain Heath high right now! Loved this. I think I do prefer her Westerns over her Regencies after all. Can't wait for Dallas' story next.