At nineteen, Rafe Jerry had discovered the woman he adored in bed with another lover – his father. Ordered off the family’s California ranch, he swore never to return and ran away to war. The harsh realities of battle had made a crack soldier of him, but a traitor in the ranks had turned him into a man to be feared. He would not rest until he achieved revenge. Rafe rode for California with two goals – tracking down Laveau di Viere and breaking his father’s will. He would never run Rancho los Alamitos for the beautiful yet treacherous widow; he would not help her raise his vulnerable young half brother; he refused to give in to his longing for Maria de la Guerra, the first woman to touch his hardened heart. But with Laveau on the attack and all he held most dear at risk, Rafe realized the one thing he could not fight was love.