Marybeth and Edward are compelled by their circumstances to marry as they trek west to the newly formed railroad town of Cheyenne. But life in Cheyenne is fraught with danger, and they find that they need each other more than ever. Despite the trials they face, will happiness await them in this arrangement of convenience?

Tell us something about where you live. 

My name is Marybeth Kruger…well now it’s Vogel since I married. Up until a few months ago we lived in Independence, Indiana, but now we live in the middle of nowhere in a railroad town called Cheyenne.

Is there anything special about your name? Why do you think you were given that name?

I was given the name because my mother liked the sound of it. There wasn’t anything really special about it, but she always said I looked like a Marybeth.

Do you have an occupation? What do you like or dislike about your work?

My full-time job is to care for my little sister Carrie. My mother died when I was young, and my father remarried.  Carrie’s ma died in childbirth and made me promise to care for Carrie as if she were my own. Since then, I’ve done just that. I’m the only mama Carrie has ever known, and I love her dearly. When our pa died recently some folks figured to take Carrie away from me since I didn’t have a job to support our family. But Edward Vogel came to our rescue, and we agreed to a marriage of convenience.

Who are the special people in your life? 

So many of the special people in my life have died, but Edward and Carrie remain.  Edward is my husband of convenience. He needed a wife, and I needed a husband in order to keep from losing Carrie. We’ve loved and cared about each other as friends for many years since Edward was married to my best friend Janey. After she died, however, we just sort of looked out for each other.

What is your heart’s deepest desire? 

To have true love in my life and raise my little sister in a happy home.

What are you most afraid of?

Losing my sister and Edward never really loving me as a wife.

Do you have a cherished possession? 

Not really.  Things have never been all that important to me. My mama taught me early on that things are replaceable, but the people in your life are what really matter.

What do you expect the future will hold for you?  

I’m not sure.  This town called Cheyenne is a wild place with lots of low-life criminals. Danger is all around us and I fear that Edward may get killed in his deputy job. I’m praying God’s protection over him, of course, but in a town where it’s not even safe to walk the streets, I worry that someone will take his life and leave Carrie and me without his support and protection. I pray all the time that God will keep all of us safe.

What have you learned about yourself in the course of your story? 

I learned that God is truly faithful to watch over us and that love really matters. I thought I could live without love, but I was wrong.

Is there anything else you’d like people to know about you? 

I’m a woman of strong faith in God and that is what has seen me through so many bad times. Without God, I’d be all alone in this world, I’m sure.  His love for me has gotten me through all these bad times and I’m sure it will get me through bad times to come.

Thanks for allowing us to get know you a little better!

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Tracie Peterson is the bestselling author of more than one hundred novels, both historical and contemporary, with more than six million copies sold. She has won the ACFW Lifetime Achievement Award and the Romantic Times Career Achievement Award. Her avid research resonates in her many bestselling series. Tracie and her family make their home in Montana.

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