Bound together by salt and blood. Love is the last thing Elspeth MacDougall expects to find when a fierce pirate captain sweeps her from her home straight to the high seas, demanding she ply her skills as ship surgeon to work off her father’s gambling debt. She’s determined to survive the three-month arrangement, but dangers abound and there’s more to this vagabond group of raiders than it seems. As sea battles and intrigues mount, she finds a place among the crew. But can her healing skills save her own heart when her bond with the captain intensifies and passion flares, harder to fight than the crashing waves. Captain Graeme MacNeil never intended to bring a woman on board his ship—they always cause trouble. Yet Elspeth serves a need he can’t deny. If only she didn’t possess an inner blaze that sparks a fire in him as well. His attraction to the bonnie surgeon only grows stronger when they return to his homeland in the Barra, but lurking in the shadows is an old rival, waiting for the chance to strike. As they learn to trust each other, hearts are won, but one question still what will happen once her father’s debt is paid? Will Elspeth return to her family, or choose a life with Graeme on the open sea?