1870.Chloe Lomas-Therriot is the daughter of a rich Lancashire mill owner, and a lovely, but cold French socialite. Her mother's ambition to be a member of the British aristocracy has resulted in Chloe's young life being spent preparing for her marriage to Lord Edmund Charles Haleston, a man much older than herself; cold, arrogant and very eager to receive her dowry. A man she'd never have chosen, if, of course, she'd been consulted.As Haleston is currently involved in a business venture in Kansas, Chloe is obliged to make the dangerous journey to America in order to celebrate the wedding, meeting with tragedy when her convoy is attacked by thieves. Despite being informed that Chloe has survived, Haleston abandons her, assuming that she has been violated, and therefore no longer suitable to be his bride.Taken to a ranch by her rescuers, she is cured of her wounds whilst waiting for her family in England to come for her, enjoying the freedom to live as a normal person without the restrictions put on her during all the years she has spent learning to be the perfect lady. Though terribly naive, with the help of Charlotte and Georgia, the only other women on the ranch, she soon starts to fall in love with the beautiful, wild countryside; the simple, but dangerous way of life; and a quiet, handsome young ranch handBut just as she starts to settle into her exciting new life, Lord Haleston decides to claim her after all...