If you like romances with a healthy dose of cowboys, serious love, and some spanking, then you need to read Amelia Smarts. That is her specialty and each of her books is special.

As a teenager, Wade got caught stealing bread from a mercantile. The owner dragged him down to the sheriff, who ended up taking Wade home and raising him as his own child, along with his biological child as well as other children that he has adopted.

Sadie, the oldest child until Wade gets there, is the sheriff's biological daughter. She has taken over all the duties that a mother would, running the house, taking care of the other children, cooking meals, so on and so forth. When Wade came in, he upset Sadie's natural order, and she didn't like him. That means she went out of her way to make him as miserable happens.

Eventually, Wade sneaks away in the middle of the night and goes out to make his way in the world and Sadie is left with several younger children that she has to continue to raise.

This is an enemies-to-lovers story. It takes a lot to get there, but it's OK. I loved the journey. The story doesn't always have to be about the ending, but about the journey instead. The book shows a whole lot of growth for all the characters and lets us fall in love with more than just the main characters. Amelia did a great job of pulling me in and leaving me happy. ( )