Reuben's Lass — Catherine Marshall (1)

Reuben Armstrong, Sam Armstrong's eldest son, is faced with marriage to a faithless local lass who may or may not be carrying his child. Then he bumps into Hannah Rigby and his life is changed forever.Hannah is a gritty, stubborn Yorkshire lass whose life is devoted to supporting her ageing parents and their small farm. She finds Reuben's compelling attraction hard to resist, but resist she does - she is not his lass, whatever he might say.Then one day she defies her grandfather's stepson, Matt Kelly, who contests the will that bequeaths the farm to her parents. She wins, but pays a terrible price. Matt's retribution all but takes her life and leaves her broken in body and spirit.Reuben finds out what happened to Hannah but before he can find her he must extricate himself from Mary Ann's clutches and track down the abducted wife of his gypsy friend Stefan. With dogged determination he succeeds but finds that Hannah wants nothing to do with him and refuses to countenance marriage to him or any man.When Reuben must leave to farewell his dying mother he tells Hannah he won't return. Rosie Armstrong dies not knowing of her son's torment. Reuben is offered the chance of a new start in Quebec with his uncle and is forced to choose which road his life will take - the Old World or the New. And what of the Armstrong's quest to regain Strathvoe, a charge laid squarely upon his shoulders by his father.As Reuben grapples with decisions, Hannah finds herself in deep trouble. Matt has tracked her down once more and this time will not be thwarted. He is determined that the Rigby farm will be his. Can Hannah find the strength to defy him a second time?