Marty Samuels had been cursed with plain looks and a curvy body. It didn’t help that she had to work as hard as any man to keep a roof over her head. But Marty was good at protecting what she loved, including the strays she’d taken in and made part of her little family. So why couldn’t she keep her heart safe from the sexy cowboy next door? Ethan Blackhawk had been blessed with good looks and an abundance of charm. It didn’t hurt that his family was rich as sin, either. He’d always been sure about what he wanted out of life—until one bad dog forced him to take a second look at the woman who could change his mind. “You just be careful and don’t let Ethan get to you.” Too late. Marty didn’t dare share with her aunt that Ethan Blackhawk had been getting to her for years now. That she’d fantasized about the gruff cowboy since grade school and her feelings had only deepened over the years. Nope, she wasn’t going to share any of that because she, Marty Samuels, the girl most likely to blend into the wallpaper at any social function, didn’t stand a snowball’s chance in hell of ever having any part of that particular fantasy come true.