Barbara

Orphaned at 13, a mail-order bride at 14, widowed at 16, Sarah Kennedy has learned to depend upon no one but herself, reserving all her love for her younger brother Conner, and for the wounded hawks she heals and returns to the air. Personal tragedy has taught Case Maxwell to love nothing that can die, and that justice is blind. But when a confrontation with his sworn enemies, the Culpepper clan, leaves the hardened Civil War veteran near death, Case finds himself under the tender, unwanted care of Sarah Kennedy.

Desired by many, cardsharp Evelyn Starr Johnson will go to any lengths to recover the treasure map stolen from her murdered foster parents. It's her deal, and she antes up the only thing she has left--her innocence. Staring coolly at the killers across the poker table, Evelyn deals the winning hand to the handsome, unsuspecting sharpshooter Matt "Reno" Moran. But when she takes off with his winnings, Reno vows to hunt her down. He wants the beauty he desires with all his soul.

Willow Moran wants to find her gold-mining brother in the Colorado Rockies and start a new life. Dark, strong, unsmiling Caleb Black is going to be her guide. As threatening as he seems, this former army scout is Willow's best hope for a safe passage through the treacherous mountains past comancheros and Indian renegades. But torn between his need for a woman and his thirst for vengeance, Caleb has his own reasons for helping the innocent young Willow.

Wolfe Lonetree, the illegitimate son of an English viscount and a Cheyenne woman, has agreed to rescue his friend, Lady Jessica, from an arranged marriage to an abusive Englishman. In return, she will accompany him to America to live in the Rockies as his frontier wife. Despite the frightening passion her handsome husband arouses in her, Jessica fears a man's touch and is determined to be married in name only. But Wolf has other plans for his naive young wife.

Eddie Olczak, devoted husband and father, a man of unshakable faith, derives intense pleasure from the life he's built with his wife, Krystyna, their 2 daughters, and the Catholic church where he both works and worships. So when a tragic accident takes Krystyna's life, Eddie is sure his heart is broken forever. Friends and family rally around the Olczaks in their time of grief, but with Sister Regina, things are different.

Out of the deepest grief, the greatest love. A widowed woman in her forties, Lee Reston has overcome many obstacles to raise her 3 children and run a prosperous business. Tragedy comes once again when a motorcycle accident kills her eldest son. Lee turns to his best friend for comfort, and as they mourn together, she finds emotions stirring within her that she never thought she would feel again.