And somehow, young Vaden managed to be ever in his way-either by accident or because of her own unique ability to stumble into a quandary.Yet the enigmatic Ransom Lake would involuntarily become Vaden's unwitting tutor. Through him, she would experience joy and passion the like even Vaden had never imagined. Yes, Vaden Valmont stepped innocently, yet irrevocably, into love with the secretive, seemingly callous man-Ransom Lake.But there were other life's lessons Ransom Lake would inadvertently convey to her as well. The darker side of life-despair, guilt, heartache. Would Ransom Lake be the means of Vaden's dreams come true? Or the cause of her complete desolation?

    Three sons. Only one will inherit...and on one condition. Tired of waiting for his sons to settle down, Arizona-territory rancher Angus McKettrick announces a competition: the first son to marry and produce a grandchild will inherit Triple M ranch. Now, three distinctly different, equally determined cowboys are searching high and low for brides. If Emmeline Harding knows one thing, it's that she can't hold her liquor. And though she's not sure how she came to wake up next to a stack of gold coins in a brothel, she fears the worst. Fleeing town as a mail-order bride, she wonders: how will she ever confess her past to her handsome new husband? Freedom-loving Rafe McKettrick is a man of strong beliefs and stronger passions and he'll do anything to win the Triple M—even marry a stranger. To his surprise, Emmeline's charms beguile him even as the secrets he senses she's hiding ignite jealousy and suspicion. But when a visitor from the past enters the high country, the newlyweds have no choice but to give up on a marriage in name only and seek a union that satisfies them body and soul.

    Just as he arrives in the Judith country of Montana, he’s arrested for robbing the Bozeman stage and killing a shotgun guard. Desperate to reach his long-lost brother in Helena, and knowing he doesn’t stand a chance with this version of the law, Sam breaks loose – and rides hard and deep into the mountains.

    After a card game with Benny Gellerman, a man good with a gun, but bad with cards, Ketcham decides it is time to head out again. He finds a place to bed down on a lonely New Mexico farm run by old Corely Mattlin and his widowed daughter-in-law, Margaret. Ketcham has his eye on pretty Margaret, but he'd better keep his eyes open wide for trouble. A local rancher named Jeb Ollfinger is trying to run the Mattlins off their land, and he is not above using violence, even murder, to get what he wants. Margaret is sure her husband's killer was one of Ollfinger's men, a gunman named Gellerman. If Ketcham knew what was good for him, he would head out again. But this time he has a job to do first.

    Unlike most cowboy outlaws of his day, Butch Cassidy defended the poor and oppressed, refused to shoot people, and shared his stolen wealth with those in need. Early in his outlaw career, Butch discovered true love. Her name was Mary, and the love they shared lasted for decades. However, Pinkerton agents, law officers, bank detectives and bounty hunters chased Cassidy relentlessly, making it impossible for him to leave the outlaw life, eventually pushing him to seek refugein Argentina and Bolivia. But in the end Butch outsmarted them all.

    For a poor Scottish immigrant with a gift of talking to horses, it all began with love.A Daring EscapeFrom the moment he set eyes on his beautiful Faith, Ian Duncan knew she was the only girl for him. But her unbreakable betrothal to his employer's vicious son forced him to steal his love away on the very eve of her marriage.A Secret WeddingRunning for their lives, Faith and Ian were married clandestinely, their only posessions a magnificent horse, a family Bible, a wedding-ring quilt and their unshakable belief in each other.A Double BirthWhile their homestead waited to be carved out of the Iowa wilderness, Faith presented Ian with the most precious gift of all: a son and a daughter, born of the winter snows into the spring of their lives. The golden years were still ahead, their dream was coming true, but that was just the beginning.

    Clay Culver thought the Civil War was the last battle he'd ever fight, until he got word of his sister's abduction-and suddenly had his own war to wage.

    But Bud buried his father after an Indian attack, and as the wagon train pushed on through Sioux country, the boy stood as tall as any man ... Tell Sackett killed cougars at fourteen and fought a war at fifteen. Now Tell was hauling dangerous freight--a soldier's wife and a fortune in gold--knowing that someone wanted him dead ... Laurie Bonnet was a mail-order bride who thought she was a failure on the frontier. But when the chips were down, she was the only one who could save her husband's life. . . Horse HeavenWhen Jim Locklin pays his brother George a visit, he finds George missing, his horse ranch taken over by his brother's estranged wife, and a shifty gambler named Chance Varrow who seems to have become a permanent visitor.As Jim's suspictions build, they center on one person – Varrow, whose relationship with George's wife, Amie, is a little too close for comfort. Taking matters into his own hands, Jim vows to find out the truth, no matter what the cost. In the end, it will all come down to just two men – and only one will walk away.

    Flynn is at his best in this collection of Western stories that combine mystery and suspense.

    Overholser, winner of three Spur Awards from the Western Writers of America, weaves his usual spell of excitement and emotion in these two short novels, appearing in paperback for the first time. Wheels Roll West tells the story of a wagon train making the perilous journey from Ohio to Colorado. Before they reach trail’s end, a Pueblo gambler and his gang arrive, declaring that if the settlers want to continue they will have to pay—with everything they own. And in Swampland Empire, Riley Rand arrives in Blue Lake Valley, announces he owns the entire area, and will be bringing in a herd of cattle to take possession. But some of the local residents don’t take too kindly to the news.

    Civil War, on a mission to avenge atrocities suffered by the Farrell family during the war years. Rogue Yankee solders had raped their mother and burned their plantation to the ground. After the War, Before the Peace, follows these Southern brothers on their journey to manhood, a quest for love and peace with respectability.The story begins when Michael has just turned eighteen and has asserted his right and responsibility to join his two older brothers, Jim and Joe, in activities bordering on breaking the law. Eventually, youngest brother, Danny demands to ride with his brothers.Once all four Farrell brothers are united in their cause to avenge the Farrell family, their exploits take them further and further up North to find the men who hurt their mother. A raid on a farm in Illinois brings them in touch with a Yankee couple who, after hearing of what had been done to the Farrell family during the war, become their adversaries.While the brothers take care of Family Business, the Farrell women work toward providing the brothers a measure of peace and safety during their brief retreats between raids. Elizabeth, their mother, and Jim’s wife Nora manage the family ranch in Missouri. Michael falls in love with Lita, a girl in a border town, who provides solace for both him and his brothers between raids. Danny is used by Deborah, a hometown girl, who craves adventure not preached by her minister father.After one significant raid, the brothers decide that their quest to avenge is over. Serious family issues arise as they begin to work toward convincing legislators to grant them an amnesty - issues that threaten their manhood, their quest for love and their need for peace in their lives.Reader comments include – has a Gone With the Wind flavor, reminiscent of The Thornbirds and another Lonesome Dove.

    But when a strange twist of fate—and a poker game he'll never forget—leaves an innocent little girl in his care, Duel vows to defend his new family to his very last breath. If only he knew a single thing about taking care of babies.Just as Duel swears his life can't get any more complicated, a beautiful woman stumbles into the light of his campfire, desperate for help. Jessie Foltry is hungry, tired, and running for her life. She agrees to help Duel care for the child in exchange for his protection, even as she fights to guard her broken heart. But Duel will do whatever it takes to make Jessie see that the Texas plains have more than one kind of knight, and perhaps their salvation is closer than either of them could have dreamed.

    Until one of their number betrayed them all. In the aftermath of tragedy, they swore they would live to hunt down the traitor. But to each, life would bring first a woman and then a revelation: Far sweeter then revenge is love.Cade ... Captain of the Night Riders, he led the survivors home to Texas to make a fresh start. His grandfather still lived, his ranch still stood, and waiting there was a dark-eyed temptress who made him all too glad to be alive. When he took Pilar in his arms, his blood surged hotly and he felt like the wild young man who'd once abducted her for a lark. But the war had changed them all and now he would allow nothing to come between them -- not her family, not his heritage, not even her turncoat of a brother.This is the first in the Night Riders Series