They were sworn enemies by day - and passionate lovers by night.

The cowboy moved so quickly Caroline didn't have time to think, much less react. One moment he was standing there looking at her across the blazing hot Nevada street, the next moment, she was in his arms.

Her protests were stopped as he bent his head toward her. A complete stranger, a cowboy she'd met just moments ago when she stepped off the dusty stagecoach was actually going to put his mouth on hers and kiss her. Things like this never happened in Boston!

Just before she thought she would certainly swoon from the heat and the breathlessness and the shocking thrill of anticipation, the sound of gunshots pierced the fog she was in and a bullet whizzed past her left ear.

The cowboy swooped her up into his arms then dropped to the ground and rolled with her under the stagecoach. Her heavy skirts rode up over her thighs and she struggled to pull them down before he got a glimpse of her lacy pantalettes but it was no use. He had her pinned with his body and the way they fit together was shameful. His chest was pressed so close to her that she was certain he could feel the outline of her breasts through her blue dress. His hip bones jutted against the slight soft curve of her stomach and she dared not imagine the cause of the powerful heat pressing against her belly.

He took full advantage of the situation and positioned himself between her legs and she hated herself for noticing just how handsome he really was. She'd never felt more vulnerable - or more alive - in her entire life.