A Choice Considered by Tracie Peterson (The Heart of Cheyenne #2)
July 2, 2024; ISBN 9780764241086; Ebook ISBN 9781493446575
Welcome to Novel PASTimes! We are pleased you stopped by today.
Tell us something about where you live.
My name is Melody Doyle, and I live in 1867 Cheyenne, Wyoming Territory, with my Irish father whom I call Da. Da is helping build the Transcontinental Railroad, and that’s what brought me here. It’s a happening kind of place, let me tell you. This is a railroad town set on the edge of a vast prairie in the Front Range area of the Rocky Mountains. It’s not very big yet, but there are plans for it to grow into a city to rival Denver and Chicago.
Is there anything special about your name? Why do you think you were given that name?
Having me put a song in my mother’s heart. She always loved music, but she died when I was ten, which was fifteen years ago.
Do you have an occupation? What do you like or dislike about your work?
I do house cleaning and gardening for a woman who owns a boarding house for men. I like working for her. I’ve always enjoyed keeping busy, and these are the kind of skills I’m good at, since I’ve been practicing them since my Mama died fifteen years ago and I had to take care of our home.
Who are the special people in your life?
My da. He’s the best father in the world. He loves God and has incredible discernment when it comes to knowing if a person is bad or good. He’s an amazing man, and I love him so dearly.
What is your heart’s deepest desire?
It may sound silly, but I just want to get married and settle down. After growing up as an only child, I want to have a big family with lots of music and laughter in our house.
What are you most afraid of?
Losing the people I love. I lost my mother when I was just ten years old, and because of Da’s job with the railroad, I’ve always been afraid of losing him too. I think being alone in the world frightens me more than anything, which is why I want to settle down in Cheyenne. I have lots of really good friends here, and Da will be working close by as the railroad moves west. He can come visit me often. Hopefully when the railroad is finished, he’ll settle here too.
Do you have a cherished possession?
Not really. There are things I love, but they’re just things. I cherish people most of all.
What do you expect the future will hold for you?
Marriage and a family is my goal, and that’s Da’s goal for me. I want to settle down in Cheyenne and not move on down the road with the railroad, but Da says I can’t stay here unless I have a husband. And not only that, but he has to be someone Da can approve of. That won’t be easy, but I’m trusting God to deliver the right man.
What have you learned about yourself in the course of your story?
I’ve learned a lot of things, but maybe the most important is that I’m better as part of a team than on my own. Trusting God and putting myself in His hands is the first and best thing I can do. Trying to manage on my own often gets me in trouble. My relationship with my earthly father is also something that has been very special, and I’m blessed to have such a good father. My prayer is that I can find an equally good husband. After all, it’s not good for man to be alone—God said that, and I think He would say the same is true for women.
Is there anything else you’d like people to know about you?
My faith in God is what has gotten me through the roughest times, and God has never failed me. I know there will be ups and downs in life, but God is faithful and constant. He will never leave me to face anything by myself. So long as I walk close to Him, I know I will be all right. Also, cherish friendship. Friends are special gifts that I believe come from God. They help us along the way and often fill the role of being God with skin on in the sense of encouraging and uplifting us. Never underestimate the power of friendship. Especially in marriage. It’s good to be friends with the love of your life.
Thanks for allowing us to get know you a little better!
Tracie Peterson (TraciePeterson.com) is the bestselling author of
more than one hundred novels, both historical and contemporary,
with nearly 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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