The independent bride

the long version

In 1868, Colorado Territory was about as rough-and-ready as the West could get, a place and time almost as dangerous as the men who left civilization behind, driven by a desire for land, gold . . . a new life. Fort Lookout was a rugged outpost where soldiers, cattlemen, and Indians lived on the edge of open warfare, the last place any woman in her right mind would choose to settle Abby Pierce was everything a man should avoid – with a figure made for temptation, a face of beauty, and an expression of stubborn determination. Colonel Bryce McGregor knew there was no room for such a woman at his fort or in his heart. But no matter how many obstacles he put in her path, Abby was determined to make a go of her father’s store. And as she received proposal after proposal from his troops, Bryce realized the only man he could allow to marry her was himself.