Devil in Spring

“I’m not your enemy,” he managed to say.
“You’re not my fiancé, either.”
“Not yet.”
“Not ever.”
Gabriel wanted to pounce on her. He wanted to haul her into his arms and kiss her senseless.

Unlike most debutantes Lady Pandora Ravenel has no plans to marry. She has dreams of making her board game business a success, of being free to do as she wants. She refuses to throw away her freedom on a man and marriage. Not even for the wickedly beautiful stranger Gabriel, Lord St. Vincent, who she was caug

“I’m not your enemy,” he managed to say.
“You’re not my fiancé, either.”
“Not yet.”
“Not ever.”
Gabriel wanted to pounce on her. He wanted to haul her into his arms and kiss her senseless.

Unlike most debutantes Lady Pandora Ravenel has no plans to marry. She has dreams of making her board game business a success, of being free to do as she wants. She refuses to throw away her freedom on a man and marriage. Not even for the wickedly beautiful stranger Gabriel, Lord St. Vincent, who she was caught with in a scandalous position that no one wants to believe was not what it looked like.

What was happening to him?
The rules of logic by which he’d always lived had somehow been subverted so that marrying Lady Pandora Ravenel was now the only acceptable outcome. He was unprepared for this girl, this feeling, this infuriating uncertainty that he might not end up with the one person he absolutely must be with.

Gabriel has been successful for years escaping all manner of marital traps, until a high-spirited beauty manages to snare him without even trying. Pandora couldn’t be less suitable as the wife a man of his position needs, but Gabriel can’t help but find her irresistible, of wanting her like he’s never wanted or needed anyone else. However, Pandora wants nothing to do with him or marriage, and Gabriel will do whatever it takes to make her his.

But when it came to Pandora, he was no better than a primitive brute. He wanted her all to himself, every word and glance, every touch of her hand, every glint of light on her hair and breath from her lips. He was jealous of the air that touched her skin.

There aren’t many romance authors who can write as loveable and captivating characters as Lisa Kleypas. She has the ability to make you fall hopelessly in love not just with the main characters and romance but also with the secondary characters. And with this series has some of my favorite characters.

“I never wished on falling stars, or pulled the petals off daisies while reciting ‘he loves me, he loves me not.’ At my brother’s wedding, they handed out slivers of wedding cake to all the unmarried girls and said if we put it under our pillows, we would dream of our future husbands. I ate my cake instead. Every crumb. I’ve made plans for my life that don’t involve becoming anyone’s wife.”

I fell in love with Pandora in the first book. She’s impulsive, energetic, honest to a fault, opinionated, compassionate and so unconventional for a woman of her time. And I loved every quirky and interesting thing about her, especially her love of inventing new and interesting words. How hard she fought for her independence, how determined she was to start her own board making company, how she accepted that she would always be different from most ladies and that she was fine with that. I loved that she was so unwilling at first to marry Gabriel, seeing marriage as a trap, a cage that would take all her freedom away. And I loved how hard she fought for that.

“You’re so beautiful . . . so precious to me. I’m not asking for a surrender, I’m offering you one. I’ll do anything. It has to be you, Pandora . . . only you . . . for the rest of my life. Marry me . . . say you’ll marry me . . .”

Of course I was super excited to learn more about Gabriel, seeing as he’s the son of two of my favorite LK couples, Evie and Sebastian St. Vincent. And I loved that he was such an almost perfect blend of both their personalities. Evie’s big heart and Sebastian’s wicked charm. I loved how instantly drawn and fascinated he was to Pandora, even though he was upset at having to offer marriage because of the circumstances they were found in. But even when he was presented with ways to evade marrying Pandora, he couldn’t stand the thought of her belonging to someone else. The way he craved her and how he tried to convince her to marry him was total swoon-worthy. My only complaint, and it’s a small one, is that his current mistress (whom he had no romantic and physical interaction with after he met Pandora) added drama to the story which I could have done without.

“Pandora,” he said huskily, holding her against his violently thumping heart. “I love you more than I can bear. You’re everything to me. You’re the reason the earth turns and morning follows night. You’re the meaning of primroses and why kissing was invented. You’re the reason my heart beats. God help me, I’m not strong enough to survive without you. I need you too much . . . I need you . . .”

The romance was excellent. I loved that Pandora was the reluctant one, and that Gabriel pursued her so relentlessly. And the fact that he tried so hard to make things just so that she wouldn’t feel that she was losing her freedom, but that she would always be safe with him. The sexy times were quite scorching and I loved these two together.

“Why is he your son when you’re pleased with him, and my son whenever he’s done something wicked?” Evie asked as Sebastian removed her apron and began to unfasten the front of her bodice.
“Since I’m the virtuous parent,” he said, “it only stands to reason that his wickedness must come from you.”
“You h-have that exactly backward,” she informed him.
“Do I?” Sebastian fondled her slowly as he considered her words. “I’m the wicked one? No, my pet, that can’t be right. I’m sure it’s you.”

The secondary characters are so freaking awesome in this series. I absolutely LOVED seeing Evie and Sebastian again, and it was so awesome seeing how loving and funny they are still together after 30years of marriage! And their children are fantastic! I really hope LK will write stories for all of them too, especially the heartbroken Phoebe. I absolutely adore Devon and the way he looks after his cousins. And the feisty Dr. Gibson and mysterious Ransom were excellent also. I especially enjoyed learning more about Ransom.

Lisa Kleypas is an amazing author and she shines with this series. If you haven’t read her yet, you are missing out!!! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

For the past two years, Nola had fully indulged Gabriel's every desire, their encounters unhindered by morals or inhibitions. She always knew when to push the limits further, coming up with new tricks to spark his interest and satisfy his complex desires. ... [H]e kept going back for more.

“The title, the fortune, the estate, the social position . . . to her, they’re all detractions. Somehow I have to convince her to marry me despite those things.” With raw honesty, he added, “And I’m damned if I even know who I am outside of them.”

“How do you like your name to be pronounced?” she asked. “Lord St. Vincent says it with an ah sound, but I heard the butler pronounce it with a long a.”

“Neither’s right. ... It’s like dragon, without an n.”

“Oh.” A smile spread across Pandora’s face. “I like that much better. I’ll call you Dragon.”

His brows lowered. “It’s Drago.”

“Yes, but if we add that one extra letter, people would always know how to pronounce it, and more importantly, everyone likes dragons.”

“I don’t want to be liked.”

With that coal-black hair and his dark eyes—and the way he looked just now, as if he were actually capable of breathing fire—the nickname was so perfect as to be sublime. “Won’t you at least consider—” Pandora began.

“No.”

She stared at him speculatively. “If you shaved off your beard, would you turn out to be improbably handsome?”

The quick change of subject seemed to throw him slightly off balance. “No.”

“Well, in any case, footmen can’t have beards. I think it’s the law.”

“It’s not the law.”

“It’s tradition, however,” she said wisely, “and going against tradition is almost like breaking the law.”

“Coachman has a beard,” Drago pointed out.

“Yes, coachmen can have them, but footmen can’t. I’m afraid you’ll have to get rid of it. Unless . . .”

His eyes narrowed as he realized she was going in for the coup de grâce. “Unless?”

“I would be willing to overlook your inappropriate facial foliage,” Pandora offered, “if you let me call you Dragon. If you don’t, the beard goes.”

“The beard stays,” he snapped.

“Very well.” Pandora gave him a satisfied smile. “I’ll need the carriage ready at two o’clock, Dragon. That will be all for now.”