Bess Carson writes steamy, historical romances, but she certainly doesn't want a man. So when fellow author Geoffrey Barrett, a Tasmanian author of rugged, outback historical adventures, suggests she leave her beloved Colorado and fly to Australia so they can co-author a book together, she scoffs at the idea. Yes, they share a common interest, but fly to Tasmania and co-author a book? Together . . . at the same computer, in the same house, without the safety of an ocean and a "delete" key between them -- not on your life! But that's suddenly a much better option than fighting off another corporate marriage bid being arranged by her manipulative father. Suddenly, Bess is flying halfway round the world on a date with destiny. Geoffrey Barrett is everything suggested by his Web-site photo, a man as rawboned and vivid as Bess's suppressed emotions, and a man determined to drag Bess into his life and keep her there. Then her malicious father takes a hand, and Bess is on the run again, fighting kidnappers, her own inhibitions and a growing love for her co-author. Now everybody's out to find Bess -- the father she fears, the man she has come to love, and -- not least -- Bess herself!