Elise Vickerson, on the run after an elaborate escape from an abusive husband, wouldn’t dream of jumping into another relationship of any kind. Her only focus must be the months of manual labor to resurrect the dormant ranch that she inherited, and sell it for a profit. Her future depends on it.
Cody Campbell has worked on his own ranch since he was able to walk. The under-developed property adjacent to his was promised to him by Elise’s father. Her appearance on the scene ignites not only his anger, but also the heat of a desire too strong to resist, and forbidden in so many ways.
Cody Campbell
There isn’t a damn thing I don’t know about running a ranch. I told my crew to tear down the line that runs between our acreage and the V-Bar–no one’s lived there for years–and start herding the bulls there to summer. Turns out some snooty eastern woman shows up claiming to own the place. I know that dad had finalized the deal with Edward Vickerson. It should be a done thing. So why is Edward’s daughter out here thinking she can fix the place up and sell it? If she thinks she can sell something that isn’t hers, she doesn’t know a damn thing about me. I’d love to go over there and throttle her, but every time I get close to Elise, I want to protect her from anything that might hurt her. Something tells me she’s been hurt before.
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Elise Vickerson
I had to leave Virginia. If I were to stay, Jonathan would eventually have killed me. I’ve been close to death at his hands on more than one occasion, and it pained me to call him husband. Daniel, whom I love like a father, escorted me to Wyoming. I spent most of my childhood here, and I knew I’d be safe at the V-Bar, it is quite isolated. As soon as I make the necessary repairs to the homestead, I will be able to start a new life. I’m not afraid of hard work, but the chores on a Wyoming ranch are quite different from keeping house in Virginia. I can do it. I have to. If only the owner of the neighboring ranch didn’t insist that my father had already pledged the property before his death. I don’t have time to decipher that when there is so much work to be done. It would certainly be easier to focus on my goal if Cody Campbell hadn’t crawled under my skin and invaded my dreams. Nothing can come of such infatuation. I’m married, after all.
Portrait by Erkki Makkonen. Click to go to the photographer’s website.