In the scorching deserts of Garber, Nevada, Aaron Brady fights against time to save his family's legacy, the Brady Turquoise Mine. Haunted by debt, he embarks on a desperate quest for rare black opals buried deep within his land, racing against the impending doom of losing everything. Enter Nina Delgado, an ambitious IRS Agent sent to audit the struggling mine. Determined to prove herself for a coveted promotion, she's focused on the task at hand. However, when she encounters rugged cowboy Aaron, a fiery connection ignites, threatening to unravel their carefully constructed lives. Amidst a whirlwind of desire and uncertainty, Aaron does whatever it takes to shield Nina from the harsh reality, craving her presence both in his bed and by his side. But as their forbidden passion intensifies, they must confront the forces working against them. Nina wrestles with the choice between duty and the magnetic pull of love, torn between the allure of Garber's secrets and the comfortable life she's built in Las Vegas. Meanwhile, Aaron grapples with his own self-worth, haunted by past scars that make him doubt his capacity for happiness. In the unforgiving landscapes of the desert, where hidden treasures and untamed desires converge, Aaron and Nina must navigate their way through a dangerous game of emotions. Will they succumb to their undeniable chemistry, defying the odds stacked against them? Or will the weight of their respective worlds force them to surrender their chance at love? Desert Passion is a sizzling tale of forbidden love, fate, and the healing power of trust. Join Aaron and Nina on their captivating journey as they discover that sometimes, the rarest treasures are found within the depths of their hearts. KEYWORDS: enemies to lovers, romance books, contemporary romance, bestseller romance, love, love books, kissing books, emotional journey, emotional, healing, hidden romance, angst, family drama, adult romance, heartbreak, love story, romance novels, top romance reads, best seller, contemporary women, loss, redemption, standalone, standalone romance, drama, beach read, beach reads, romance reads, airplane read, hate to love, western romance, cowboy romance, tortured hero, tortured hero romance, independent woman, Readers also enjoyed books by: samantha cole, j.b. havens, lexi james, brittney sahin, jill shalvis, nora roberts, francine rivers, lolly winston, lauren willig, dina silver, shannon gilmore, mavis cheek, karyn monk, wendy holden, anna matted, nicholas sparks, candace bushnell, giana darling, john hough, holly kerr, jill mansell, Dava shastris, plum sykes, laura dave, colleen hoover, olivia dade, kait nolan, chelle bliss, elle james, diana palmer, cheyenne mccray, jennifer ryan, kendall ryan, cynthia dees, parker grey, kaci m rose

Throughout history, precious stones have inspired passions and poetry, quests and curses, sacred writings and unsacred actions. In this scintillating book, journalist Victoria Finlay embarks on her own globe-circling search for the real stories behind some of the gems we prize most. Blending adventure travel, geology, exciting new research, and her own irresistible charm, Finlay has fashioned a treasure hunt for some of the most valuable, glamorous, and mysterious substances on earth. With the same intense curiosity and narrative flair she displayed in her widely-praised book Color, Finlay journeys from the underground opal churches of outback Australia to the once pearl-rich rivers of Scotland; from the peridot mines on an Apache reservation in Arizona to the remote ruby mines in the mountains of northern Burma. She risks confronting scorpions to crawl through Cleopatra’s long-deserted emerald mines, tries her hand at gem cutting in the dusty Sri Lankan city where Marco Polo bartered for sapphires, and investigates a rumor that fifty years ago most of the world’s amber was mined by prisoners in a Soviet gulag. Jewels is a unique and often exhilarating voyage through history, across cultures, deep into the earth’s mantle, and up to the glittering heights of fame, power, and wealth. From the fabled curse of the Hope Diamond, to the disturbing truths about how pearls are cultured, to the peasants who were once executed for carrying amber to the centuries-old quest by magicians and scientists to make a perfect diamond, Jewels tells dazzling stories with a wonderment and brilliance truly worthy of its subjects.

Updated 5th Edition with new sites & museums! Learn Where & How to Dig, Pan and Mine Your Own Gems & Minerals SOUTHWEST Arizona California Colorado Hawaii Kansas Nevada New Mexico Oklahoma Texas Utah Whether you’re digging for the first time or are an experienced rockhound or “prospector,” with a simple rock hammer and a little luck, you too can strike it rich ... or at the very least, have fun trying. This guide offers you easy-to-use information on the ins and outs of “fee dig” mining, complete with locations, costs, tips on technique, entertaining legends and important information on everything from safety kits to the location of the nearest restrooms. Included are resources for use in identifying your finds, exploring the lapidary arts, and further pursuing an exciting—and possibly profitable—hobby. Equipment and Clothing: What you need and where to find it (or how to make it yourself). Mining Techniques: Step-by-step instructions on panning for gold, sluicing for gems and other methods. Gem and Mineral Sites: Directions and maps, hours, fees and equipment needed. Also includes info on guide services, local camping facilities and more. Museums and Mine Tours: Where to visit commercial and historical mines, as well as museums with exhibits of gems and minerals (for help in learning what to look for). Special Events and Tourist Information: Listings of regional events involving gems and minerals, and sources of general travel and tourism information for every state. Other Features: Where to find your birthstone ... your anniversary stone ... your zodiac stone; Index by State; Index by Gem/Mineral; U.S. State Gems & Minerals Chart; and more!

Updated 5th Edition with new sites & museums! SOUTHWEST Arizona • California • Colorado • Hawaii • Kansas Nevada • New Mexico • Oklahoma • Texas • Utah Whether you’re digging for the first time or are an experienced rockhound or “prospector,” with a simple rock hammer and a little luck, you too can strike it rich ... or at the very least, have fun trying. This guide offers you easy-to-use information on the ins and outs of “fee dig” mining, complete with locations, costs, tips on technique, entertaining legends and important information on everything from safety kits to the location of the nearest restrooms. Included are resources for use in identifying your finds, exploring the lapidary arts, and further pursuing an exciting—and possibly profitable—hobby. • Equipment and Clothing • Mining Techniques • Gem and Mineral Sites • Museums and Mine Tours • Special Events and Tourist Information • Other Features The Treasure Hunter’s Gem & Mineral Guides to the U.S.A. in 4 regional volumes: Northeast ISBN: 978-0-943763-76-7 Northwest ISBN: 978-0-943763-74-3 Southeast ISBN: 978-0-943763-77-4 Southwest ISBN: 978-0-943763-75-0 Kathy J. Rygle & Stephen F. Pedersen combine their scientific training with a hobbyist’s passion. Lifelong rockhounds, both authors have shared this hobby—begun with their parents—with their children, and have traveled to many “fee dig” sites, museums and mine tours across the United States.

What does it mean to live in the West today? Do people tend to identify with states, with regions, or with the larger West? This book examines the development of regional identity in the American West, demonstrating that it is a regionally diverse entity made up of many different wests--Great Plains, Southwest, Rocky Mountains, and more--in which American regionalism finds its fullest expression. These fourteen original essays tell how a sense of place emerged among residents of various regions and how a sense of those places was developed by people outside of them. Wrobel and Steiner first offer a compelling overview of the West's regional nature; then thirteen other rising or renowned scholars-from history, American Studies, geography, and literature-tell how regional consciousness formed among inhabitants of particular regions. All of the essays address the larger issue of the centrality of place in determining social and cultural forms and individual and collective identities. Some focus on race and culture as the primary influences on regional consciousness while others emphasize environmental and economic factors or the influence of literature. Some even examine western regionalism in areas that lie beyond the West as it has traditionally been conceived. Each of the contributors believes that where a people live helps determine what they are, and they write not only about the many wests within the larger West, but also about the constant state of flux in which regionalism exists. Many books speak of the West as a place, but few others deal with the West's different places. Many Wests presents a vision of the West that reflects both the common heritage and unique character of each major subregion, building on the revisionist impulse of the last decade to help redirect New Western History toward an appreciation of regional diversity and integrate scholarship in the regional subfields. It is a book for everyone who lives in, studies, or loves the West, for it confirms that it is home to very different peoples, economies, histories-and regions.

Have you ever wondered about those rocks under your feet? How old they might be? How they got their colour and texture? Could they contain some unknown mineral or fossil treasure? Rocks, Fossils and Formations: Discoveries Through Time is an introduction to geoscience, which uses clues in rocks and the landscape to tell the story of the Earth. It's a story so old and so fascinating that it's almost hard to believe – except that the evidence can be seen all around us! Come on a 4.6-billion-year-long time travel adventure to explore rocks, minerals and fossils, meet ancient plants and animals, and discover how the continent of Australia was created! Reading level varies from child to child, but we recommend this book for ages 9 to 14.

This is book 2 of the Ruined by the Hitman Romance series! Book 3 is available everywhere now! Rule number one in my line of work: no emotions. And I’m breaking that in a major way. I had a job to do: Put a bullet in Vanessa Powers’ head. From what I’d been told, she deserved every bit of it. But what if everything I’ve been told is a lie? The man who hired me says his ex-wife beat their daughter. He says it’s time for her to die. I’ve never backed out on a job before. It’s not my place to decide what’s right or wrong. But as I’m looking down the barrel of my gun at this beautiful, terrified woman, I make a choice. This one belongs to me. That one decision starts a chain of events that I never could have expected. I’ve gone from hitman to family man in one fell swoop. Now, I have a woman and a daughter to protect from the men who once hired me to kill for them. But I’ll do whatever it takes to keep them safe. I may not be a hired killer anymore. But I’ll always have a bullet to spare for anyone trying to hurt my family.