Deidre Kenney made a deathbed promise to her father after he was shot by two gunmen looking for the land deeds he was hired to deliver: to finish the dangerous job. She and her cousin Maura each take a different route west. But what Deidre didn't count on was a bodyguard - and that's what she gets in Patrick Callahan. With his broad shoulders, steady gun, and a crooked grin that's stirring secret desires - and a Christmas wish - Deidre knows the real danger ahead lies in the uncharted territory of her own heart....

Maura Kenney hopes her cousin is having better luck. The tiny blue-eyed spitfire is too busy fending off drunken oafs and serious gunmen to have a lot of faith in her own success. But then she meets Mitch Callahan. He takes one look at her and knows Christmas has come early. But convincing a prim-and-proper miss that a tough, tender-hearted rancher is the only man for her promises to be about as hard as keeping them both alive to share a Christmas together....