The life of a warrior is all Callum has ever known, but after a long, meaningless war he is tired of fighting. Instead, he chooses to accompany his brothers in arms to a new life on a backwater planet and finds an unexpected peace in the hard work of restoring their isolated ranch. When his former commander finds a bride amongst the human settlers nearby, he has no intention of following in his footsteps. He learned long ago that females could not be trusted - not even the deliciously curvy female with the sad eyes who haunts his dreams. Pearl married young - only to find out that the charming man she married was a monster behind closed doors. Although she stayed with him for the sake of her sister, now that he’s gone she has no intention of becoming involved with another male - not even the big, silent alien warrior who arouses long forgotten feelings.