It was a marriage of convenience for everyone except the bride and groom. He never wanted to be a laird. She never wanted to marry one. Wee Ellen Mackintosh, sickly and quieter than a church mouse, holds a secret that even time hasn't healed. Unable to use her voice since childhood, she's not up to being lady of the castle, but her father wants a MacKenzie son-in-law. So when the giant Silas MacKenzie returns to the Highlands, both their fathers' schemes take off like runaway stallions. Too tall and broad for anyone's good, but especially his own, Silas breaks everything he touches. To appease his dying father and an increasingly rebellious clan, Si reluctantly agrees to the marriage, vowing to keep it in his kilt-no less so when he sees the tiny, perfect creature they expect him to wed. Unwanted but undeniable, the spark between them burns hotter by the day, even as they try to push each other away. But can Silas fight the monsters within his clan-or at war within himself-without her? Or will Ellen finally find her voice, only to disappear forever?