When Mairi MacKenzie's marriage contract with the Earl of Seaforth is broken, her world implodes. There's no way she would consider Sir Dunn MacRae, a mere chieftain instead-- no matter that he's an incredibly handsome laird. But when government troops attack at a gathering of the Highland Defenders, Mary is caught in the crossfire. Running for her life, she is separated from her kin and hides in a forest. Cold, frightened and alone, she prays for a miracle. Dunn MacRae has been in love with Mairi ever since he first set eyes on the lass. The daughter of an earl, she has never done more than give him a cursory glance-albeit an eyebrow-arching, smoldering-eyed glance. When Dunn sees her chased into the forest by redcoats, one thing consumes his mind: to stop the dragoons at all costs and protect Mairi's virtue. Once he rescues the lovely redheaded maid, he has every intention of safely returning her to her father. But an army separates them from her kin and the only direction they can go leads them further from her home...and closer to his heart.