Bendigo, 1890 Ard O'Rourke is Linley Seymour's perfect man. They've known each other since they were children and she has never wanted anyone else. But when she discovers Ard has fathered a child with another woman, her dreams turn to dust. Then fate takes a hand. Linley and her Aunt Cee Cee run a women's refuge and Linley finds herself unexpectedly and painfully the guardian of Ard's baby: a child that needs her protection from the greed-filled schemes of a violent man. Ard knows he has no hope with Linley and decides to follow his own path: one that brings him close to redemption. But when he learns Linley and the child are in danger, his own child at that, he cannot stop himself speeding to their aid. Will he prevail? Can Linley find it in her heart to forgive him? Or will their love come to nothing at the hands of a violent man? A compulsively readable historical adventure, set on the banks of the mighty Murray River.