Since time out of mind, two clans have contested for dominance in bonny glen Bronach, known as the glen of sorrows. But now, fierce young Rory MacLeod has taken over as chief of his lands and vowed to seize all rival MacBeith holdings. Moira MacBeith, the eldest of chief Iain MacBeith’s three daughters, finds herself with her back to the wall and a sword in her hand. A born defender, she’s not afraid to don armor and march out to fight. But if her enemies discover her secret, that her father has fallen in battle, it will be seen as a weakness. She has no choice but to assume his place and fight on. And then there’s the dratted MacLeod captive who’s fallen into her hands…
Farlan MacLeod is Rory’s lifelong best friend, sworn to follow him in good times and bad. Being seized during a bloody battle was not part of the plan, and the accursed woman who appears to lead clan MacBeith means to use him as a weapon against his chief. He knows he should hate her. Instead, there’s a wild, undeniable attraction growing between them. He can’t possibly be so weak as to give into it, even though he’s never seen a woman to match her for beauty or strength. And even though his heart has begun whispering to him about destiny.
Ever since her mother’s death, Rhian MacBeith has kept the flame burning at the heart of her family. A healer and born nurturer, she stepped in where needed without a thought for herself. Now her clan is at war with the MacLeods across Glen Bronach. Her older sister, who leads clan MacBeith, has taken a MacLeod outcast for her lover. The last thing Rhian expects when she ventures out in the aftermath of a battle is to stumble over a wounded MacLeod warrior, a handsome mountain of a man named Leith. Mercy prompts her to tend his vicious wound. It’s something else that keeps her from calling her warriors to end his life.
Leith MacLeod is a man who will always choose laughter above strife. But he is cousin to the MacLeod chief as well as his heir, sworn to him in fealty. He half believes the bonny woman who tends him on the battlefield is an angel. Instead, he discovers she’s his sworn enemy. That can’t change the way he feels about her, because the more he learns about Rhian MacBeith, the more he sees that her beauty extends clear through to her spirit.
And that makes him long to lay aside his sword in favor of peace.
For as long as she can remember, Saerla MacBeith has been touched by magic. As a Seer, she is helpless to resist the Visions that come upon her, forewarning misfortunes that may befall those she loves. She has given herself over to cherishing the light that gathers in Glen Bronach, and to defending her home however she may, even if it means marching to battle with a sword in her hand. Living for the sake of others, she has no expectations of love or a family of her own.
Rory MacLeod has sworn to conquer all of Glen Bronach and will let nothing stop him—not dire battle wounds, not betrayal by those closest to him, and certainly not a woman. When he captures Saerla in battle, his one thought is to use her as a means to force her sister, the chief MacBeith, to cede him her lands. He has no inkling then that the magic Saerla harbors may weave a spell over him, or that there could ever be a power strong enough to make him lay aside his greed and anger in favor of love.
