Heart of a Lady — Rita Hestand

Randal Thomas made it abundantly clear that Jo Ella Masterson would never be anything but a whore at Al's Saloon. But Jo Ella had other plans. Unlike most of the others she could read and when she found a newspaper ad for mail-order-brides, she talked half of Al's girls into finding a husband and settling down as real ladies.When the stagecoach caring the girls overturned on a sharp curve in the road, the girls were battered and bruised. When Harry Jones, the Sheriff of Veda rescues Jo Ella and the girls, they are taken to the doctor and then to the boardinghouse in Veda. Ma Jones, Harry's mother owned the boardinghouse. She'd be looking out for them. But immediately Jo Ella is pulled between two attractive men, Harry the Sheriff and a dangerous looking cattle rancher named Dillon. Dillon was just shy of the law all the time and intriguing. Harry on the other hand was dependable and always straight with her. When a bank robbery goes wrong and Jo Ella is kidnapped, Harry goes after her. Dillon follows and meets up with Harry. Harry informs Dillon he can rescue Jo Ella, because Harry is going after the robbers. Somehow, Jo Ella must choose between the two of them. Jo Ella is tempted by Dillon, but will the straight and narrow Sheriff be her real hero?