Chapter 1

Zoe sized up the man sitting across from her. Rugged, handsome, tall, successful. Practically every woman's dream. If she wasn't stuck on this stupid ranch the competition for his attention would be steep. Then again if she wasn't stuck on this stupid ranch, she might actually be interested in the man who was silently chewing on the supper she had painstakingly prepared that evening. She hated cooking.

Having grown up as a privileged child, Zoe's nanny had always done all the cooking. Her nanny had done everything for her. Cooking, cleaning, sewing, and comforting Zoe when her parents were out for days. Nanny was like a mother to Zoe. More than Zoe's own mother was actually. It was Nanny's death that brought Zoe to this ranch.

Nate was inciting, adventurous and the exact opposite of Zoe. Poor, an orphan, a self made man. He was mysterious. He was also lonely. Life on his cattle ranch was not something that dreams were made of. It was rough. The days were long and the work was tiresome. Going to sleep in a cold, empty bed at night was what possessed Nate to place an ad for a wife.

Zoe had been desperate to leave her life. It was stifling and uptight. She missed nanny dearly and everything around her reminded Zoe of her beloved caretaker. She spent her days cooped up in an expensive house, playing the piano and learning French. It was awfully boring. She dreamt of the wild stories she heard of the west. Was it really as romantic as people said it was? Nate's ad for a wife seemed like her ticket to adventure and romance. She had learned quickly that it wasn't.

Once Zoe arrived on Nate's ranch it was obvious that this was not the life Zoe had been dreaming off. Instead of laying the grass all day and picking wildflowers, Nate expected Zoe to get dirty. He expected a clean house, meals and fresh laundry.

Zoe was nothing like Nate was expecting. Sure she was gorgeous, with her tiny little body, her mass of black curly hair, bee stung lips and eyelashes that touched her cheeks. However, she was a pain in his ass. She didn't understand work. She was a priss, complaining about being dirty and tired. She had no clue what dirty and tired truly meant.

The two stared at each other from across the crudely made table that Nate had built when arriving on the ranch. In the month that Zoe had been on the ranch conversation had been scarce. They had nothing in common. Nate leaned back in his chair and stretched. "Thanks for dinner, Zoe." His chair scraped the floor as he pushed back. "I have to go check on the cows."

Zoe frowned after him as the door slammed shut, then surveyed the mess in the kitchen. No rest for the weary.

Nate climbed into bed later that night and almost immediately rolled on top of Zoe. He had learned quick enough that just because they didn't get along didn't mean he couldn't enjoy her beautiful body. He had spent enough nights cold and alone and now that there was a hot little body in bed next to him he took full advantage of it. This was the one thing Zoe never complained about, but that didn't mean she was an active participant either.