Jonah's Bride — Jill Henry

Returning to Connecticut Colony to be at his dying father's bedside, Army Major Jonah Hunter had no choice but to seek help from sharp-tongued spinster Tessa Bradford, a local healer. And yet as she tenderly ministered to the old man, Jonah discovered kindness behind her deep blue eyes. Thinking she was a practical choice of wife, Jonah wed Tessa, only to discover himself charmed by her quiet beauty. Suddenly the solemn helpmate he'd engaged for her nursing skills was the only woman he wanted in his arms.

Enduring miserable servitude to her mean-spirited grandfather, and pending marriage to the town drunkard, Tessa was overwhelmed when Jonah proposed. The arrogant and brash boy who pulled her braids long ago was now an honorable man whose kiss promised so much more than a lifetime of duty. But when ugly rumors about Jonah's proposal surfaced, Tessa fled to the hard life she knew before. And unless she could forget her pride, she would lose the man for whom her empty arms hungered.