The mail-order contract binds Charlotte to Ivan Maddox and the frontier ranch he will do anything to keep. Her yielding form and the hidden birthmark she carries promise the heir that will secure the land grant, yet his stern commands already stir a hunger she cannot name.
In the sun-baked barn, Ivan's palm rests at the small of her back, lingering while the rival watches from the ridge. The witnessed proof of conception demands he punish and claim her without restraint. She answers his every order with a question that reveals how far she will go before the contract either saves them or destroys what they both crave.
