Elizabeth Scott, a lovely, spirited young maiden from the Scottish Lowlands, is outraged to learn that she must leave the comforts of Ballantine, her ancestral home, and journey to the remote and barbaric Highlands in order to honor a marriage contract with Robert Kirkland. The arrogant and handsome Laird of Ashkirk, her intended husband, is not only a notorious womanizer, but is also a supporter of the hated Montrose in Scotland's Civil War. In Robert's wilderness fiefdom, antagonism flares between the bridal pair, and Elizabeth resolves to flee both her husband and the Highlands at the earliest possible opportunity. But the heat of conflict ignites flames of passion, melting old grievances and fusing together their proud, rebellious hearts, until the man Elizabeth has vowed to despise becomes the man she cannot live without.