Last post I had Jed Holt as my guest, the hero of Rescuing Her Heart. Today, I asked Delilah James the heroine to share a bit of background information on her life. Welcome Delilah, I’m happy you are here.

I’m nervous sharing with your readers about my past. But Jed told me it would be all right.

Let’s start out with a bit of life back in Baltimore.

I grew up in the Hollingsworth family home. My parents were servants for two different Lords in England before I was born. They came to America when Mr. Hollingsworth offered them a better wage and ship’s passage to come work for them. Momma and Pappa met on the ship and married before they set foot on American soil. I came after Momma had lost a few babes. They were older parents. They doted on me. My father was the master gardener and Momma the head cook. And Juliet Hollingsworth and I were playmates. Also, schoolmates because her tutor found she studied harder if there was competition. I got an excellent education. After Juliet left for finishing school things changed. I worked with my mother in the kitchen where she taught me all she knew. Then Juliet returned and I was promoted to her personal maid. Our relationship had changed. I was no longer her playmate. I waited on her hand and foot, and she came home from balls and outings and went on and on about her male conquest. That got old. And it hurt to be treated as an inferior after all the years we had together.

I caught her brother’s eye. I thought Toby was the handsomest man. He flirted with me and made promises to marry me. My mother tried to warn me away. Insisting we were of different stations, and it could never be. Foolishly I defended our “love”. When he married a woman of his father’s choosing, I was crush. Things got worse. He informed me I would be his mistress when he returned from his honeymoon, I was frightened. His family was powerful.

That’s when I came up with the ill-advised idea of becoming a mail-order bride. I was so desperate to avoid the awful proposition Toby made. I pressed on. Lemont’s letters were charming, and he seemed wonderful.  I assured my parents that once I was settled, I’d send for them. If we were far away from Baltimore the Hollingsworth’s couldn’t hurt us.

How did your marriage work out?

A nightmare. Lemont hadn’t written the romantic letters at all. He was illiterate. Although he said nice things to me when I first arrived that changed. He whisked me away to a homestead in Kansas far from town. His cruelty brought me to my knees. I was a prisoner, not a wife.  I never wrote my parents because I couldn’t lie to them. Lemont monitored everything I did and, said. Beatings were frequent. And when he set our house on fire during a nightmare and died, I didn’t grieve.

What happened next? Did life get better?

You know the answer to that, Cindy. I was rescued from the barn I hid in after the house burned down. But my heart remained imprisoned. It took time and a sweet man to set me free. I’ll stop before I spoil your book for your readers. Rescuing Her Heart tells my story after the fire and the nightmare marriage. Even I was shocked at all the unexpected things that come my way before I find love.

Delilah, thank you for giving us a bit of your background. My readers can read the rest of your story in Rescuing Her Heart. It’s available in paperback and Kindle e-book. It should be out in audiobook soon.