When Alaina Ryan promised to take her father home to die, she never dreamed he wished her to marry a stranger. After surviving the War Between the States and a violent attack, she's unable to stand the thought of a man's touch. But her betrothed awakens new feelings and Alaina finds herself trusting him despite her fears. Torin O'Brien regrets his misspent youth and the death of his first love. Unwilling to burden another with the shadow cast over his life, he refuses to consider marriage. Then Alaina's beauty and sweet nature tempt him beyond measure, and his resolve is sorely tested. But what kind of life can they share if no one trusts a man accused of murder?