Lady Douglass de Clifford is reticent about marrying an English soldier who holds a Scottish castle for their king-after all, she doesn't really believe the English should be battling the Scots for their own land. When she arrives in Dumfries, their party is unexpectedly ambushed. Besieged by rebel Scots, she is tossed from her horse, only to be saved by a Highland warrior who promises safety even as he absconds with her. She vows to run away, until his tender kiss makes her doubt everything she's ever known.

Laird Noah Sinclair had not expected to find an English bride in the center of his battle, and now he's determined to take from his enemy what he prizes most-his lady. As the eldest of his brothers, and laird of his clan, he has a responsibility to those who look to him for leadership. But when Lady Douglass threatens to run away, and is nearly accosted by an outlaw, he is determined to prove to everyone that she is his and his alone. While at first his decision to steal the prize seemed like a punishment, her kiss proves to be rewarding all on its own.

But a love between them seems impossible. Despite the passion igniting between Noah and Douglass, they only wed for her protection, and for his revenge. Tucked away from battle at Castle Buanaiche in the northern most part of the Highlands, Noah fears misfortune may befall his clan for stealing another man's bride, and it seems like danger is a little closer at hand than they both expected...