In the first novel of a brand-new Texas trilogy, award–winning USA Today bestselling author Jodi Thomas takes her “exquisite and often lyrical” writing (Inside Romance) to passionate new heights as an emotionally wounded man and woman discover the true nature of love and marriage...

Thrown off a wagon train with two other women and trying to avoid jail for a murder they committed, Bailee Moore agrees to enter a “Wife Lottery”—a ploy concocted by the Cedar Point sheriff to secure wives for the men in the small Texas town. For the sensible Bailee, however, marrying Carter McKoy is like exchanging one life sentence for another—especially since her new husband hasn’t even seen fit to utter a single word in her presence. But still, she can’t help thinking that something about this strong, silent farmer could be the key to leaving her troubled past behind—and making a worthy wager with her heart.