Shot and crippled trying to help her friend, Nell Smith struggles to survive at her ranch. The townspeople consider her worthless since she's the daughter of a bordello madam. Nell's adopted mother sent her back East to smooth the rough edges, but the town has always whispered and treated her as an outsider. Instead of wallowing in pity, Nell surrounds herself with other misfits at her ranch and advertises for a husband in-name-only to help her with the ranch and other holdings. The one man she will not accept is Ranger Jacob Dalton. She loves him too much to saddle him with a cripple.

Since he was 17 and a newly appointed Texas Ranger, Jacob Dalton has watched over Nell and seen her turn from an unruly girl to a beautiful, vibrant woman. After the ambush, Jacob watched in anguish as Nell tried to recover. Unable to shield the pity from his eyes, Nell banished him from her bedside. Upon hearing about her latest scheme, Jacob returns to Nell and makes an offer of marriage. This time Jacob plans to convince her that pity has nothing to do with his proposal.

Jacob and Nell battle while trying to ignore their feelings. Jacob knows they can make a marriage work, but Nell believes taking her for a wife will result in making Jacob miserable. When an attempt is made on Nell's life, she and Jacob put aside their differences to discover the culprit.

As the final installment of the Wife Lottery series, THE TEXAN'S REWARD ends it with a resounding bang. Its cast of motley characters quickly catches readers' interest with their foibles and backgrounds. Thomas once again proves herself a terrific storyteller.