Following the death of her mother, the impoverished Annabelle travels from Boston to Kansas, and out to her uncle's ranch. To her dismay, she is not welcome there ... Uncle Jacob and his family are openly hostile, and Jacob drives her back to Dodge City. But they are confronted on the way by a masked man who knocks Jacob out cold, ties him to a tree and steals his wagon, his produce, and his wallet. Joshua Boyce is a real man from the tip of his battered Stetson down to his fringed jacket and leather boots. Annabelle wasn't part of his plan and he's unsure what to do with her, but once he hears her story, he contemplates the options. As for Annabelle, she soon learns that Boyce is a man of integrity, and the brooding cowboy is devilishly handsome too. Fate has brought them together, and Annabelle embarks on a new phase in her life. There are many things she must learn out on the prairie, obedience being one of them; when she deliberately disobeys, Boyce doesn't hesitate to give her a spanking to reinforce the lesson. But can two people thrown together for convenience actually make a go of things? Shouldn't love be part of the equation...?