Mary's Guardian (21 page)

‘Well, you certainly know how to shut a girl up,’ Mary finally managed, tears running down her cheeks as she looked at the gold band on her finger and then back to his face. ‘I can’t imagine anything more beautiful…or more precious to me.’ She sniffed back more tears and wiped her nose on her sleeve. Then she beamed a smile at him and her face lit up with adoration as she took the other ring from the bag and pushed it on to William’s gnarled finger. ‘I was sad when those old cloth rings gave up the ghost, but I suppose this means we’ll be together for good, eh?’

‘We’ll be together for the rest of our lives, Mary.’ He pulled her close to his chest and wound his arms about her.

‘Pa,’ Thomas tugged at his shirt. ‘There’s been enough kissin’ an’ huggin’, hasn’t there? It must be time for the party now.’

William and Mary drew apart and laughed softly, their hands still firmly joined.

‘Yes, son,’ William said. ‘It’s time for the party. We have a great deal to celebrate today.’

Charlotte’s Angel

The story continues from

Mary’s Guardian

Eliza Plumb is obsessed with finding a life of pleasure and ease at someone else’s expense. And what gets in her way even more than her husband, Tommy, is her unwanted child, Charlotte.

But through a strange twist of fate Charlotte meets the Douglass family, who will change the course of her life. Though she and young Thomas Douglass have some things in common, in most ways they are worlds apart. Thomas has great respect for his father, William, who has taught him to believe in himself despite his circumstances. Charlotte has nothing but disgust for her mother, who has shown her only the most depraved way of life.

With the wisdom and compassion of his father, Thomas sees in Charlotte a needy soul, a pure young girl who deserves to be rescued from the hideous fate her mother would lead her into. Charlotte finds in Thomas a guardian angel. But there are circumstances that will test Thomas and Charlotte’s relationship to breaking point and take them both to the brink of despair. This is a story about the battle to change attitudes, to overcome the past, to rise above the basic instincts of human nature and to nurture the best of human potential.

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Carol lives with her husband, Neil, in Wollongong, New South Wales. After their two children, Tammy and Adam, started school, Carol returned to study and completed a PhD at Wollongong University in 1986. She is now a Psychologist in private practice. Carol enjoys gardening, bushwalking, spending time with her four grandchildren and researching her family history. This novel is the first in a new series of novels about her Australian ancestors. For more information about Carol’s books and her other interests she can be contacted on her website: www.carolpreston.com.au

Mary’s Guardian

Published by Even Before Publishing; by Wombat Books.

P. O. Box 1519, Capalaba Qld 4157

www.evenbeforepublishing.com

www.wombatbooks.com.au

© Carol Preston 2011

Design and layout by Even Before Publishing

ISBN: 978-1-921633-31-7 (paperback)

ISBN: 978-1-921633-47-8 (ebook)

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in, or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the publisher.

With thanks to

To my family for their continued support and interest in both the historical and fictional aspects of my writing

To Rochelle Manners for believing enough in my stories to undertake their publication.

To Meredith Resce, Wendy Noble and others who have invested time and interest in helping with the editing.

To the many groups and individuals who have gathered and shared information about the early Australian colony and the men and women who fought to make their lives here.

Author’s note

While some of the events and people in this story are taken from historical records, the characterisation of these people and the course of their daily lives is entirely a work of fiction.