Wilma's Outlaw — Agnes Alexander

Wilma Lawson works in the town's only mercantile and lives in the apartment above the store. Her job gives her a chance to get to know all the town's residents as well as to see her three best friends, who have all married: Amelia to a half-breed rancher, Grace to the sheriff, and Nelda to a retired Army major who now owns the mercantile. Would Wilma ever meet a man and establish a home of her own instead of envying her friends? After a severe beating from his father, Clay Hunter left town before his 13th birthday. After falling in with the wrong crowd, he ended up in prison. The government offered him a pardon if he'd secretly work for them. He was in his mid-twenties when they released him, and he decided to return to his hometown. Though he planned to keep a low profile in town, he came upon a wagon load of orphans and their murdered guardian. He soon found himself not only the man who rescued them, but the man they looked to as their new guardian. Would he ever be able to lead a normal life and pursue a relationship with Wilma, or would he always be Mr. Clay, the children's provider?