Seduction by Amanda Quick

Julian Sinclair, the Earl of Ravenwood, has a very low opinion of marriage and women in general. But the need to have a son or sons and ensure his line doesn't end makes him propose marriage to Sophy Dorring. Sophy is a country-bred girl from a good family, but she turns down his offer, which makes him angry enough to seek her out.

Sophy has put off marriage because she wishes revenge on the man who raped her sister and was responsible for her death. On her way back home, Julian finds her riding, and she tells him not only why she turned him down, but what she ants in a husband- a list of demands that he considers, frankly, impossible.

But he agrees to her demands, including not to pressure her into having a child right away- but he doesn't agree not to try and persuade her differently. However, when she uses her knowledge of herbs to make him pass out on their wedding night, then makes a tea stain on the sheets, he is horrified, thinking he attacked her like a wild animal. When she confesses her deception, he is enraged, thinking she is like his first wife.

But Sophy is nothing like Julian's first wife, and he soon finds himself wanting her more than he thinks he should. He's determined to hold back, to keep himself from the same pain that his first wife's infidelity caused. He's more annoyed that his first wife's lover is now sniffing around Sophy, confident that he can get Sophy to betray Julian as well.

But he hasn't dealt with someone of Sophy's character before, and like it or not, she will not betray her husband. She even challenges a famous courtesan to a duel to defend Julian's honor, a state of affairs which enrages him further, but at the same time, he feels strangely flattered when he learns it was to prevent the woman from blackmailing him.

But Sophy is in greater danger than she realizes. When his wife's former lover kidnaps her to rape her as a ploy to hurt Julian, who he blames for his lover's death, it's up to Sophy to use her knowledge of herbs to ferret out the truth. But will he accept her conclusions, or is he so bound and determined to hate and blame Julian for her death that he will even deny the truth?

I usually love Amanda Quick's heroes, and take to them right away. But Julian was a little different. While every hero and heroine comes to a romance story with baggage, Julian would need about fifteen carts to haul his around. Whereas Sophy, by contrast, merely has to deal with her fear of sex because of the death of her sister.

The book is further complicated by Sophy's tricking of Julian on their wedding night, leading him to do a fair bit of grovelling that he wasn't really obligated to do, and it harkens back to his treatment at the hands of his first wife, which really enrages him. But Sophy refuses to be banished to the country and takes matters into her own hands, and it's Julian who slowly comes to realize that she is nothing like his first wife, and that his heart is safe with her.

It's true that he acts in a very high-handed and arrogant manner towards her, but when he begins to soften, you can really feel the "zing!" it imparts to the story. The accomodation they come to, and the love they come to share really makes you melt into a puddle. And at the end, you are sure that they are destined for a true "Happily Ever After". Definitely recommended.