Hello! It’s Tara here at the Indiana Christian Leadership Network. Tonight, my guest is none other than the young, handsome bachelor taking the Indiana political scene by storm – Harrison Coulter.
Thank you so much for coming tonight and talking with me tonight.
Harrison: It’s my pleasure, Tara.
Tara: Viewers, if you don’t know Harrison, you haven’t been paying attention. Just 33 years old, Harrison is one of the youngest senators in the Indiana Senate and has made quite the name for himself as someone who makes things happen! Now Harrison, I understand you’ve been in politics for only a few years now, tell us about that.
Harrison: That’s right. After I became a lawyer, I figured I would fight for justice in the courtroom. But I joined the city council in Terre Haute and then became a state senator for my district. It was never something I aspired to, but God definitely called me into this role. And He has seen me through every step. Including the ones most people view as crazy.
Tara: That’s wonderful. There is such a need for godly men to take on the mantle of leadership. Tell me about your family, Harrison. Of course, we are all familiar with your grandfather.
Harrison: My grandfather is one of my biggest inspirations. He served Indiana faithfully as governor for many years and I hope to make him proud. My parents, Reggie and Marilyn, are wonderful and still live near where we grew up. My brother Easton… Well, he moved out of state a few years back.
Tara: Now, you are going to make me ask, aren’t you? Rumor has it that you were recently married?
Harrison: *smiles tightly* Yes, actually. Just before Thanksgiving I married my longtime friend, Poppy Bloom.
Tara: Wow! Who is this woman and why haven’t we seen the two of you together until now? You don’t look thrilled that I’m bringing it up, to be honest.
Harrison: *Flashes a big smile* Well, Tara, a gentleman never kisses and tells, you know. Poppy and I reconnected last fall at a banquet for the Indiana Organic and Sustainable Farming Association. She runs the operations at Bloom’s Farm near Terre Haute and is quite passionate about it. Anyway, that meeting really rekindled a lot of old feelings and we decided to take the leap!
We’ve been keeping it pretty quiet, just enjoying our first few months of marriage without any intrusions. Plus, there have been some personal matters to take care of as well, which is another reason we waited. I knew as soon as it was public, we’d be asked for interviews and have lots of events to attend together. We weren’t quite ready for that.
Tara: Well, I imagine the former “Most eligible bachelor in Indiana” is bound to take some heat when he finally settles down!
Harrison: *cringes* Yes, well… I’m taken. See? *Holds up his left hand and points to the ring* Now if only my ex-girlfriend Stacey could remember that. Sorry, ignore that comment. I just mean to say, Poppy and I are in this for the long haul.
Tara: So, you’re telling me that you and Poppy had a whirlwind romance and decided to take the leap into marriage? That is definitely romantic… But I have to ask (I’m a reporter after all) Are you sure this wouldn’t have something to do with rumors in the capital that you are considering a run for governor?
Harrison: Well, Tara, I uh…I can’t comment at this point about any future plans. I’m focused on the current session of the state senate and all that we hope to accomplish there. All I will say is that if God calls me to run for governor of Indiana, I’ll be lucky to have Poppy by my side. She’s strong and smart and I’m thrilled that our long friendship has transitioned into a forever marriage.
Tara: Hmm, I didn’t hear a declaration of love there, did you? Well, you heard it here, folks. Harrison Coulter is officially a married man. And while he is staying tight-lipped about his future plans, I suspect we will be hearing more from this rising star.
***Keep reading for an exclusive excerpt of Poppy’s Proposal (A Contemporary Christian Marriage-of-Convenience Romance) ***
“You need a wife. Right? In this political arena, you are still positioned as the home-grown country boy who made a name for himself. Your wife needs to be someone who shares that heritage. Someone who loves Indiana as much as you do. Someone voters will love.” Neil raised an eyebrow at him, “Someone people would believe you fell for.”
Harrison snorted.
Sure, they could pull a perfect Miss Indiana out of a box and he would propose next week. Still, as Neil continued to describe his ideal candidate, Harrison’s mind wandered about 200 miles west of his current Indianapolis office back home to a little speck on the map, fifteen miles from anywhere. There was a girl he knew like the one Neil was describing.
The only problem was, Poppy Bloom was unlikely to vote for him, let alone marry him.
***
I had so much fun getting to know Poppy and Harrison! I love Marriage of Convenience stories, but they are hard to do in modern times! Poppy’s Proposal and the rest of the Bloom Sisters Series is available in paperback, Kindle, and Kindle Unlimited!
Would you ever have considered a marriage of convenience? Do you think they can work in real life? Do you have a favorite marriage of convenience book?
I’ll give a $5 Amazon giftcard to one random lucky commenter who answers the questions above!
Winner will be chosen Monday, September 7 and announced in the Sunday Edition, September 13th.
Yes, I would consider a marriage of convenience. Sometimes, love can grow in the most unlikely places.
Yes, I think I would consider. Depends upon the circumstances. With respect as a basic beginning who knows.
I love the trope, but no absolute favorites.
this sounds like an interesting book. hmmm a marriage of convenience? i do love reading about them because i like to see how it fails and they fall for each other anyway. Do I think it would work in today? I think it might work because so many couples are both working and it seems like just keeping up appearances.
I think there are modern marriage of convenience stories, and yes, I think I’d consider one. I love these types of stories! The first one I read was probably a Betty Neels, or maybe a Barbara Cartland book. Betty Neels is one of my favorite authors. You couldn’t class her books as CF, but she did have characters that went to church, and they were sweet/clean.
I do believe in MOC and have seen it work in real life as well!
I don’t think I’ve read any contemporary MOC stories but this sounds like a fun one.
I don’t know if I would ever have the courage it would take to enter into a marriage of convenience. I know that God world things out for good, but it would take a very strong faith to do it.
This book sounds so good! I love marriage of convenience stories.
I think I like reading about them much more than I would like being in one. However, I think there could be circumstances where I would consider it.
I would never consider a marriage of convenience. I’m 52 and way too independent.
I don’t think I would consider a MOC, but maybe under certain circumstances. I do love reading about them, and the way they usually work out better than planned. This one sounds good, especially since I live in Indiana! Thanks for the chance.
I love the trope, but I don’t know if I could ever consider a marriage of convenience myself. I think the only circumstance I could see myself in would be if my kids were little, my husband died, and I couldn’t take care of them financially. I would have a hard time sharing a bed with a man I didn’t love, though. Those men who let their new wives sleep in different beds in marriages of convenience (Love Comes Softly, my all-time favorite, as well as one I just finished, Vivian’s Morning Star) have my deep respect.
I like reading about them but wouldn’t want to be in one. Great excerpt, thank you for sharing and for the chance to win your giveaway!
Great interview! Now I want to read their book :)
As for the questions, I honestly don’t know if I’d ever consider a MOC. I guess the circumstances would have to be… unique(?) to say yes to it, lol.
I’ve actually heard of two cases in my family (one from each side of it), and at least one of those gives hope that they can actually work in real life.
And my most recent favorite would be The Cowboy’s Convenient Marriage by Jessie Gussman :)
Awesome interview :)
I love marriage of convenience stories <3
Would you ever have considered a marriage of convenience? I don't know…not likely lol
Do you think they can work in real life? I do…with God everything is possible, right?
Do you have a favorite marriage of convenience book? I love them all :)
I don’t think I would consider a marriage of convenience, unless I was really in a very, very bad situation, but I would really have to think about that one, I do like the marriage of convenience, I just would have to think about it. It would really have to depend on the circumstances.
Gotta love that Bloom family!
It seems I have always had a soft spot for the marriage of convenience trope. I think it’s because it centers around commitment, the most challenging (and needed) of the kinds of love. Then the other kinds (friendship, passion, companionship) all grow from that.
If a marriage of convenience had included benefit on both sides (some kind of provision other than a sexual relationship), I might have considered it. My deepest concern is not being alone or abandoned so there would need to have been some element of real relationship, not just an empty shell.
I do think such marriages can work, but, as Mary Preston said, respect is essential. With God, all things are possible. :)
I have several MOC stories that have spoken to my heart:
Discovering Home by Carol Moncado
See You by Dawn Lee McKenna
The Billionaire’s Fake Wedding by Hanna Hart
Love Comes Softly by Janette Oke (of course!)
I think they can work but I wouldn’t have considered it. My favorite marriage of convenience was Love Comes Softly series.
I agree! I never expected to fall for my husband!
The circumstances are everything in a MOC, aren’t they! Thanks for stopping by!
I think you are on to something… For some modern relationships, the marriage can changes to a convenience thing if the romance has died! :(
I much prefer reading the other way around!
I think there are probably more than we know of! I’ve never read those authors, I’ll have to check them out!
Thanks for sharing. I would love to talk to someone who had a real-life MOC… Call it research, right?
Thanks, Jessica! It was fun to write!
Totally agree. As another commenter said, it is definitely circumstance-dependent. I don’t know if I would ever feel so strongly that it was my only option. But if it were? I guess I would do it!
Thank you. I do too!
Hah! Yes, one great thing about reading is that we get to enjoy the concept without actually experiencing the reality!
You go, girl!
I hope you’ll check it out! Funny thing is, I lived in Indiana for 6 years and never visited the Statehouse… then I had to write this book and scenes happening there. Plus COVID, so I was doing youtube virtual tours of the statehouse and kicking myself for not going when we lived there! :)
That’s a great point, Lila!
Thanks for stopping by!
I love Jessie’s books! I hope you’ll check out the book and let me know what you think :)
It’s one of my favorite tropes, too!
Agreed — all about the circumstances!
Thanks, Lincoln!
One thing that was important to me in writing a modern MOC was that the characters agreed ahead of time that the sanctity of marriage was still important. No cheating and a forever together. Plus, they had a foundation of friendship (though it had faded) to build on.
Janette Oke’s books were perhaps the first CF I ever read (when I was a young teenager)! Great stories.
don’t think I would accept a marriage of convenience. It would depend an why and maybe if it was a dire situation but I can’t see me going that direction.
I think it can work as there are times people will marry to save someone being deported or for some legal reason but that can be dangerous cos of all the checking that happens. I guess it could happen when it’s an option to save someone having to marry for the wrong reason or if they married someone it would be dangerous or harmful. (say to save someone from domestic violence or forced slavery)
I don’t mind it in historical fiction haven’t read a lot in contemporary but if done well it could work.
Historically there was only marriage of convenience, feelings are a relatively modern reason for marriage. For me, reading about, absolutely, in real life, probably not, like in fiction it would all come down to the circumstances. Interesting how varied the opinions are. Thanks.
Would you ever have considered a marriage of convenience? Maybe? Like the others have said, it would be circumstance dependent and I think it would take a certain drive and guts to potentially seize and make the most of that marriage.
Do you think they can work in real life? Sure.
Do you have a favorite marriage of convenience book? I have read several MOC stories but the one I can think that’s both contemporary and memorable was Marrying Kate by Kimberly Rae Jordan.
I have to say that marriage-of-convenience is my absolute favorite troupe in a book, closely followed by Mail-order Bride! It works best in historicals, though I have read a few contemporary ones. The author did an excellent job in making it work for the right reasons :-)
I’m really not sure if it would work in real life. I suppose it would depend on the circumstances surrounding the reason why. I think for me personally, I’d have to know the person at least a little bit before I’d even consider something like this. I don’t think I could marry a complete stranger, especially if I hadn’t even met him. How would I know if he’s a good man? How would I know if we could get along well enough? So many questions would come to mind for me :-)
I certainly can’t possibly name a favorite book in this troupe, there are so many! Like I said, I’ve read more historical than contemporary :-)
It would have to be under specific circumstances, but I probably couldn’t do it. I’m sure it can work for the some people.
I think a marriage of convenience could work because the couple could grow to love each other. I enjoy reading the trope.
I don’t think I would ever consider a marriage of convenience myself – I am too much of a romantic! I do believe that they can work, however, and I really enjoy reading the trope. One of my favorite is Seeking Persephone by Sarah M. Eden. Such a fabulous read!
I loooove marriage of convenience stories it fun to see them grow to love each other. It’s one of my favourite tropes.
I enjoyed reading A Proposal for Poppy! It was a fun story and the marriage of convenience storyline worked well in it.
Really enjoyed Poppy’s Proposal! I think given the right circumstances I would consider a marriage of convenience, but only if we were both going into it as the forever kind, not the temporary kind. And even then I would be pretty reluctant, I think. Definitely enjoy the trope!
I don’t think I would have considered it but I do enjoy reading them. I do think that love can come out of a marriage of convenience.
Probably not for myself…. but I have enjoyed several good stories about them.