Fresh from the post-Civil War salons and drawing rooms of Boston, Lucy McKenna considers herself a sophisticated young woman. But when she meets Texas rancher Ambrose Quince, she turns into a flustered girl. He's too old, war roughened and unrefined-and she has no idea how to deal with the sensual hunger he inspires. Ambrose falls fast and hard for the innocent debutante visiting Eclipse, Texas. Persuading Lucy to accept his pursuit becomes a duel of wits and passion as he awakens her desire. Lucy leaves Boston and childhood behind when she becomes Mrs. Ambrose Quince. Her lonely days on the Double-Q ranch are filled with work and frustration. But the nights are spent in her husband's arms, learning carnal awareness . . . one molten caress at a time.

Lucy and Ambrose Quince share fiery passion in and out of bed; they love hard but fight often, both having opinions and tempers. But Lucy mysteriously disappears in 1874, leaving the Double-Q ranch and all she loves behind. Three years later, scarred in mind and body, Lucy is drawn back to Eclipse and the life she’s forgotten—including a snarling, lustful husband. Although she claims she can’t remember him, Ambrose hasn’t forgotten a damned thing. Lucy left him and he owes her nothing. Trouble is—his heart remembers too, and Lucy’s the only woman who’ll ever own it. Reader Advisory: This book contains rape and graphic violence. This title was previously published elsewhere as Intimate Strangers, but has been revised extensively for Ellora’s Cave.

Wolf’s Tender McCallister Bounty Hunters Miss Naomi Parker, deportment instructor at the Sparrow Creek Young Ladies Academy, can't forgive herself for hiding during an outlaw attack. When the local sheriff refuses to pursue the gang of renegades who kidnapped her students, she decides to rescue the girls herself. But, she needs the help of the best tracker in the territory—half-Kiowa bounty hunter, Charlie Wolf McCallister. Before he goes out on another bounty hunt, Charlie wants a long soak in a hot bath, a bottle of whiskey, and the pleasure of a woman’s company. He has two out of three when a school marm with cornflower-blue eyes invades his privacy. Having established that he only works for pay, Miss Parker offers Charlie one night of sexual favors in exchange for his tracking services. Though he knows bedding a white woman will cause all kinds of trouble, he operates on the philosophy that a bird in hand is better than no bird at all. After they’ve sealed their bargain with more than a kiss, Charlie tries to leave Naomi safely behind. But the opinionated teacher insists on accompanying him. She’s impatient with his decisions, questions his authority, and generally ignores his warnings. But each time they make love, Naomi captures another piece of Charlie Wolf’s heart. When one straight-laced spinster tenders her body to one cynical sometimes savage, the unexpected bounty, is love.

Comfort Parker Bailey Quince wears her string of names with pride. Before she married Owen Bailey, she was a Parker, from Perry County, Alabama. She wasn't one of the highfalutin branch. Comfort belonged to the scrabble in the dust, do anything to survive including sell herself for food, poorer side of the Parker clan. But, she dreams of being rich someday and studies a copy of Godey's Lady's Book, determined to learn the mannerisms of her more affluent relatives. Though her tall, curvaceous figure, creamy skin, and thick wavy hair might be considered an advantage by some, her beauty proves both a blessing and a curse as she outwits and manipulates men to survive. When she's widowed, Hamilton Quince, a friend and respected local rancher, sweeps her into a second marriage with the assurance he'll always protect and cherish her. But after the wedding takes place and she's invested her heart, Hamilton proves to be a stubborn husband with ideas of his own about marriage and how they'll live. Comfort's fairy-tale dreams come skidding to a halt when Hamilton produces a ready-made family and expects her to move from her Eclipse boardinghouse to his (VERY) rustic cabin on the Double-Q ranch.

Sam McCallister enjoys looking at Eden Pace across a poker table. She has to be the prettiest woman he’s ever seen, smart too, and the best card sharp he’s ever likely to meet. He has no doubt the lady gambler thinks she’ll win in their game of five card stud. He’s got a hole card that says she won’t–a Wanted for Murder poster with Eden’s picture on it. Eden’s doing her own outlaw hunting. She’s on the trail of the man who killed her husband. Though she’d like to forget the past and let Sam McCallister give her a future, she won’t do it. She’ll bring her husband’s murderer to justice or die trying. When Sam gets in the way of her goal, she uses seduction to free herself. But the hard-headed bounty hunter keeps dogging her steps, blurring the line between pursuer and protector. Eden’s got more trouble than Sam chasing her. She’s using herself as bait to unmask a master criminal. The monster knows who she is, and he wants her dead. But Sam’s not about to lose the woman he loves. He’s pushing all the limits in their high stakes game. With hearts are on the table and death on the line, nothing is certain until the last card’s played.

Since both his partners have married and retired from the hunt, Deacon McCallister is alone when he visits the Pleasure Dome, an infamous brothel in Fort Worth’s Hell’s Half Acre. He’s tracking a counterfeiter but what he finds is Trouble—dressed in a man’s ruffled shirt and nothing more. Bounty hunter Miracle Beauregard pretends to be male, calls herself Beau and for years has fooled everyone. But underneath Miri’s disguise beats a feminine heart lusting for Deacon McCallister. Though she spends a lot of time dreaming about her rival, she never expects to act upon her longings. When Miri follows an outlaw to the fanciest whorehouse in Texas and crosses paths with her heart’s desire, she trades her buckskins for bare skin to play the part of Deacon’s paid companion.

Desperate to give her twin daughters a decent life, Julie Fulton agrees to marry Grady Hawks and produce the son he needs to inherit Hawks Nest ranch. At the end of a year, child or not, Julie will receive enough money to escape to San Francisco and leave behind her rough existence. Grady intends to breed back to the fair skin and Scottish features of his father and Julie meets every requirement. Her red hair and pale skin are an excellent way to dilute Grady’s half Kiowa blood. If Julie breeds true, their child will prove that the Hawks family is “white” enough to own Texas land. The formula is right, but the outcome unexpected. Siring a son is the last thing on Grady’s mind when he discovers pleasure in Julie’s bed. And San Francisco no longer seems like paradise to Julie when she finds heaven in Grady’s arms.