Regan Muldoon of the New Camelot metropolis is a shapeshifting Silkie running from the law. Fleeing on a ferry to the Scottish Isles transformed as a horse, she realizes she has more than a traitorous partner and a determined lawman to worry about—she's too exotic looking to blend in with the local farmers and seamen and there is no large town in which to conduct her business of selling stolen goods and information. Befriended by a virile blond warrior, she finds herself agreeing to a pretend marriage, just until the ferry returns and she can travel back home. However, her benefactor's hand feels solid on her waist. The proud gleam in his eyes seems real. And the way he looks at her with possession and desire is too intense to be a charade. Alistair Campbell, heir to Sky and Leòdhas, wants peace and prosperity for his islands and people. Fighting since he could lift a sword, he sees in the beautiful sorceress a means to solve two major problems—stop an erupting civil war and avoid an unwarranted marriage to the scheming daughter of Mull. Making Regan his legal wife is going to take patience and determination; for a woman who can become a dragon or a lioness must be convinced, not forced. Hindered by sea serpents, marauding pirates, treacherous neighbors and orphaned children, he must convince her to fall in love with him and his isles before time runs out for both of them.