Romance in the Badlands Novella Collection
by Vickie McDonough
In the rugged North Dakota Badlands, the three McFarland siblings struggle to make their ranch a success.
Wild at Heart
Dime novelist Mariah resents Adam McFarland claiming her facts about the West are wrong. At his invitation, she heads to his ranch in North Dakota. But when her train is robbed, and a man is shot trying to help her, she makes sure he gets home. When he turns out to be the very man she came to visit, she is shocked into silence about her identity. As she falls for the troubled cowboy who has his own secrets, will the truth ruin their blossoming romance?
Outlaw Heart
When Deputy Marshal Brett Wickham’s younger brother is killed in a bank robbery, he goes after the gang responsible. However, a bear attack lands him badly wounded in the gang’s hideout, with Lottie Salinger nursing him. The woman seems too kind and caring to be an outlaw, but the evidence against her is strong. When Brett starts to care for her, he wonders if he can still do his job. Will justice prevail or will love win out?
Straight for the Heart
When the mail-order bride his grandmother secretly ordered for him doesn’t arrive, Quinn McFarland is relieved. But the only way to keep her from ordering another one is to find his own wife—and fast. When the sheriff suggests Quinn marry the gal in his jail, he balks. Marriage to Sarah could solve Quinn’s need for a wife and fix Sarah’s problems—but dare he marry an outlaw?
ISBN: 9781953957-19-1
Wild at Heart
(ROMANCE IN THE BADLANDS, #1)
by Vickie McDonough
Mariah is a woman in a man’s world.
Under the pen name Drew Dixon, Chicago native Mariah Lansing writes dime novels detailing hair-raising adventures of heroines in the Wild West. But then she receives a letter from a rancher in the Badlands of North Dakota who takes exception to her meticulous research. When Mariah finds her fiancé in the arms of another woman, she accepts the rancher’s invitation to visit his ranch and flees Chicago.
Adam McFarland has a dream—to travel the West and document its people and beautiful landscape with his drawings. If only he weren’t tied down to the family ranch in North Dakota. When dime novelist Drew Dixon makes repeated mistakes about his beloved West, he invites the author to visit his ranch. But the author who shows up isn’t exactly who he was expecting. Will Mariah and Adam be willing to share the secrets they are keeping? Or will they allow false perceptions to continue to hinder the plans God has for them?
Outlaw Heart
(ROMANCE IN THE BADLANDS, #2)
by Vickie McDonough
Deputy Marshal Brett Wickham is ready to retire from law enforcement and settle down.
But when his brother Taylor is killed in a bank robbery, Brett pins his badge back on and goes hunting for the Sallinger gang. Then a bear attack lands him right in the middle of the outlaws’ hideout. Anna McFarland, aka Lottie Sallinger, tends Brett’s wounds. She seems too sweet and innocent to be an outlaw. But looks can be deceiving. When his heart is drawn to Lottie, Brett fights the attraction. Can he do his job when everything within him wants Lottie to be innocent?
Anna McFarland is lonely now that her twin brother has married and moved away. She contemplates moving to Bismarck and looking for work, but when a stranger is wounded while saving her from a bear attack, she has her hands full caring for him. The handsome stranger intrigues her. When he recovers, he accepts a job on the ranch. One day he escorts her to town, and they discover a group of ragtag orphans. Somethings seems off at the home for orphans, and they work together to investigate the situation. Anna quickly falls for Brett, but he sends her confusing signals. When Brett accuses her of being an outlaw, Anna is devastated and loses all hope of winning his heart. Why did God send him to her if they weren’t meant to be together?
Straight for the Heart
(ROMANCE IN THE BADLANDS, #3)
by Vickie McDonough
Orphaned and destitute, Sarah and her two siblings hope to find a home with their uncle. But when she learns he’s an outlaw, they flee, taking his bag of loot. The children are exhausted, so Sarah leaves them at a hidden campsite, and she takes the gold into the nearby town alone, hoping for a reward. Instead, she’s thrown in jail for being a bank robber. She worries about her younger siblings, and as the days pass, her only hope for release is to marry a man she doesn’t know.
Quinn McFarland comes to town to meet the mail-order bride his grandma sent for, unbeknownst to him. When she doesn’t show, he’s relieved, but he knows Grandma will probably order another bride. The sheriff suggests he marry the gal in his jail so he can drop the charges against her. Quinn balks, but she looks so sweet and innocent that he reconsiders. If he comes home with a bride, he’ll get his grandma off his back about marrying. But when Sarah surprises him with two youngsters, he regrets his decision. And what of the outlaws who are seeking revenge for their loss loot? Maybe this marriage can resolve Quinn’s and Sarah’s predicaments, but can it ever result in true love?
