Dangerous Desires by Julia Templeton

Dangerous Desires is a Ellora's Cave book and for those wanting to read an EC title but not wanting to jump into the deep end of the smut pool, this might be a good trainer book for you smutwise but it isn't really a good novel. If it wasn't for the fact the hero kept screwing his mistress, this wasn't any different than you read in most romance novels. Hell make it a Susan Johnson novel and it could be this book. Honestly I didn't really like it, which is a shame because I have been wanting to read Julia Templeton. And I can say part of it is I expected a steamy novel and it really wasn't. Well that and the fact there were many things that annoyed the hell out of me. Things that annoyed me: Arlie finds herself ward to Dominic, a rakehell of the worst order who her father helped out once. They stay alone in a house together for most of the novel and this is ok. The first public 'outing' she has is a house party at his married mistress' home. Where tonish people, not the husband, know this is his mistress but it is ok. She isn't noble blood but he plans to try and pass her off as a baron's daughter - even though she is a daughter of what seems to be a well known actress (who left her father for some man aka she is a whore). He brings a whore (not the mistress) back - along with a friend and his whore - to his house where his ward is staying. He talks her into turning down a marriage proposal to be his (new) mistress. Then he waits four days, without a word, to come see her at the townhome he sets her up in to see if he can stay away and in control of himself. He did get a point here for not fucking anyone else during the four days. He takes his mistress (Arlie) to his best friends wedding, well attended by the ton. He gets engaged without fucking telling arlie first. Arlie hops into a carriage and goes to best friends house and asks him about the engagement. This didn't really bother me, in fact I could see the BF and his wife still being friends with them but historically it seems odd. And the author didn't sell it to me that the wife was the sort to be friends with her husbands friends mistress. yeah.... uh... there is the HEA at the end but I just wanted to deck them both. I do want to try another Julia Templeton book, I like to read at least two or three before I write an author off. And I want to read Surrender to Love - yay for the smutty western!