Shaina Stewart Sterling is tired of living a lie, but she feels she has no choice. It was bad enough that her entrepreneurial husband died an untimely death, but now she's learning just how deep in debt he wasAnd#8212;in spite of the lavish lifestyle he led. She resorts to selling off valuable possessions, piecemeal, to avoid arousing suspicion. She only hopes the profits will be enough to preserve her stately home and protect her reputation.Sloan Remington is staying afloat, but the successful rancher wants to branch out and invest in an industry less vulnerable to the perils that threaten cattle. He decides on the company now managed by the beautiful widow of Harper Sterling. But before he opens his pockets, he wants to investigate the reasons why the firm is foundering. What he finds makes Shaina beholden to him, and he wields his influence by becoming part owner. But Sloan has a secret of his ownAnd#8212;one he isn't ready to share with his business partner, as much as he is attracted to her.When cholera descends on Denver, both business partners jump to help, Sloan conveying the sick to the infirmary, where Shaina draws on her nursing skills to tend to them. This time of trial only brings the two closer together. But is there more in store for them than mere monetary profits?