**READERS**

This story was previously published several years ago. I’d never been fully satisfied with the twists, so I’ve revised this story to the way I wanted it. If you’ve read this before, it has many changes and a very different ending. I hope you enjoy the changes I’ve made.

The ultimatum has been set.

Celia Robinson has exactly one month to find a husband. If she doesn’t, her father will force her to wed her disgusting cousin. Celia knows she’ll never find a man equal to the fiancé she lost in the Franco-Mexican War, but she’s unwilling to tie herself to a man she loathes. Out of options, Celia does the unthinkable and propositions her dead fiancé’s brother, Nash Devereaux, to marry her in name only. Will the rogue accept the bargain she’s offered?

Carrie Porter doesn’t know what she’s lost until it’s gone. With her husband dead, and a young child to feed, she must rely on herself to improve her situation… or find a wealthy husband to care for her desolate family. When she chooses a man looking for a mail-order bride, she prays he will be her salvation.

Austin Tanner is ready to settle down and marry, but as the bounty hunter works his last case, he receives an unexpected surprise when a woman who is bent on revenge takes him at gunpoint and forces him to find her father’s killer. Strange, how this little slip of a woman would make him forget that he had ordered a bride and would be married soon. But Eleanor Lawson is making him rethink his hasty decision.

Amelia Florence is determined to make her way to Spruce Hill on the Oregon Coast. Her heart tells her that is where she’ll find her grandparents. As a young girl, her parents sailed to Spain but never returned, leaving her traumatized, and with no family. As a widow and caring for her child, she craves family desperately. Along the way, she meets Chet Logan, a man heading toward the same place, who immediately proves he is a protector with a kind heart. But she soon discovers that he’s been following her for a purpose, and his confession is quite unsettling. However, he’s not the only one with secrets…

Nicole Bastian wants a life of adventure, just as her father and brother have as government secret agents, but because she is a woman, they don’t want her assistance. She overheard about the string of train robberies in which government money was stolen, and she decides to do her own investigating. What she finds, however, is something that indicates the man of her dreams, Ashton Lee, one of the wealthy owners of Conrail as the number one suspect. Desperate to remain cool and impartial, Nicole strives to keep her suspicions quiet until she learns what Ashton is keeping from her. At the same time, she’s determined to keep her own secrets from Ashton, hoping he never finds out.

Ashton Lee is immediately attracted to the woman he’d met at the masked ball. Unfortunately, there’s something not right about her, and he can’t put his finger on why he thinks this way. She’s mysterious, beautiful, but very secretive. Dare he allow her to soften his heart? And more importantly, will she understand why he keeps secrets from her?

Sabine Clayborne is running from someone she’s never met before, but they are after a keepsake given to her by her father. She must do everything she can to keep it out of the thief’s hands. When she stumbles upon a man from her past, she’s hesitant to believe he is the man who will help her. He’d broken her heart once, and she isn’t about to let him do it again.

Bounty Hunter, Grange Keller is looking for a woman from his past. He’s being paid to find her, but it’s his conscience that tells him to help her instead. There was a reason he left her years ago, but now he needs to protect her. People are after her inheritance – a treasure she never knew she had. Can he do his job without losing his heart?

Texas Ranger, Wyatt Donovan comes to Topeka, Kansas, to face his past heartaches. When he meets his childhood friend’s sister after thirteen years, he’s more than ready to become the hero she sees in him.

Josette Allen was always an odd girl, but as a woman, her inquisitive mind makes the town believe she’s insane. When her childhood crush saunters into town, stirring up old feelings, Josie is ready to catch his eye. Unfortunately, the only thing she’s good at catching is mayhem.

Will she ever be the reason he has stars in his eyes… or will she always be the thorn in his side?

Ladies’ man Anton Romero is smitten with Vivian Wentworth from the very beginning. Her beauty captures his interest, but knowing that she’s lying to him makes him want to know why she acts so charming. But when he learns that she thinks he’s a spy, he knows he can’t hold his secrets any longer.

Innocent and somewhat naïve, Vivian wants to prove to her boss that she deserves a promotion from working in the office to actually becoming a field agent. She’s determined to catch a spy—even if he’s charming and extremely handsome. She’s convinced that Anton is her man, but now she has to catch him in the act. But her over-zealous determination puts both of them in danger and he is forced to play the honorable rogue.

Sweeping her away to Padre Island off the coast of Spain seemed like a clever idea at the time. But how can he protect them both from his uncle’s murderous games when Anton's heart falls victim to a woman as full of independence as she is desirous?