Jocelyn Montrose is the perfect woman to marry Clay Blackthorne. A man who was once groomed to be President of the United States and is now a Federal District Court Judge and needs a good woman by his side. Jocelyn has breeding, manners, looks and charm. She's also loved and worshiped him long before he was betrothed to her sister, Giselle. Clay and Giselle's marriage was a happy one until Giselle was taken from them by cancer. Now it's Jocelyn's turn, for Clay has found he loves her in a different way than her sister.

However, the Grayhawk family intrudes into Blackthorne business and everyone is preparing for an upcoming battle. Even though she's not his wife yet, when the family dynasty is threatened to be taken over by North Grayhawk, Jocelyn is willing to make the ultimate sacrifice and stand up to North, who alternately terrifies and attracts her. Before anyone can stop her, she's off to make North a deal he can't refuse.

Libby Grayhawk is different from the Montrose sisters in every way. First and foremost, she's a hated Grayhawk, a name that branded her at birth as a creature to be despised for eternity. However, Libby was Clay's first love back before he knew she was fatefully branded with the enemy's name. Libby and Clay fell deeply and unequivocally in love, and Libby became pregnant with his daughter, Kate. But then King Grayhawk stepped in and the truth was revealed. Fate brought them back together again a year ago, when Kate, now in college, was kidnapped and Clay helped save her. For a brief moment in time, their love burned fiercely and consumed them with its perfectness. But Jocelyn's confidences to Libby of her love for Clay, and the fact that Jocelyn is not branded by the Grayhawk name, caused Libby to walk away. Now that Clay is sitting on the bench in a dangerous bombing case, no one close to him is safe. However, Libby has a burning hope rekindled in her heart, plus Kate has plans to make her mother the next Mrs. Blackthorne. Only time and fate will tell who will become the next Mrs. Blackthorne.

If tension had a name, it would be Joan Johnston for she delivers the goods on all levels. Her characters reach out and lasso you into their loves, their losses and their lives. Another installment in the Blackthorne and Grayhawk saga, these two families are more interesting and fiery than the legendary Hatfields and McCoys. There are enough emotional fireworks going off to satisfy even the most ardent explosion aficionado. Refreshingly fast-paced and intriguing, the action is nonstop. Romance and humanity runs through the story like a river through a steady plot of land. You can't help but be swept up in the lives of people who have more in common than they'd ever think possible. The spirit of Texas lives and breathes on with a passion and a zest like no other in Johnston's world.