Like so many eight-year-old girls, Abigail Whitfield dreamed of raising horses when she grew up. Now, as a young woman, the only thing Abby finds more attractive than a Tennessee walking horse is the neighbor family's son, Justin Sterling. Unfortunately, in the rural Ridgetop Valley of 1820's Tennessee, a woman isn't always free to follow her heart or her dreams. Abby's father refuses to acknowledge Justin's lifelong pursuit of his daughter. Instead, he demands that she marry Tobias Johnson His wealthy family is more in keeping with the Whitfields' presumed social standing, but unanswered questions surround the histories of all three families. It doesn't help matters that Tobias was once Justin's best friend.Believing he has no future with Abby, Justin flees the valley, only to be accused of taking stolen cattle with him. Abby's father and Tobias ride west, pursuing Justin and vowing to impose their own form of frontier justice. Horrified, Abby follows them to defend her lover. The chase leads everyone to an obscure Spanish mission in Mexican Territory, where a small army of Texans have declared independence from Mexico. Caught in the teeth of a seemingly hopeless conflict, Abby and Justin struggle as much to save their love as their very lives. Regardless of the outcome in Texas, no one can escape the unraveling family histories that wait for them in their rural Tennessee home, where nothing is what it seemed.