This was not a good story. The hero, Court, is physically and sexually abusive throughout the first 2/3 of it, and there's no actual chemistry between him and the heroine, Leya. All they do is bicker the whole time before magically "admitting" that they love each other in the last few pages. And the thing that really appalled me is the behavior of Leya's brother, Keith. He not only encourages Court to abuse his sister, he actually helps facilitate it!! Disgusting!(view spoiler)[To start at the beginning, we have Leya and her brother Keith as co-owners of their late father's company. Leya is supposed to be a "silent" partner in every sense of the word but technically Keith can't make any major business decisions without her consent. The story opens with Leya reviewing a contract that Keith wants to sign with a guy named "C. Tremayne" that will ensure Tremayne spends 2 years teaching Keith how to run the company, but will also give him complete authority over every decision made during those two years. Leya is wary of the contract and is immediately turned off of Tremayne when he orders Leya come into his office at a specified date so he can "deal with" her.Leya doesn't take kindly to Tremayne's orders and condescension so she deliberately books herself a vacation during the specified meeting date and takes the contract with her so she can make her decision while she's there. She goes to a seaside inn in Oregon and meets "Court Gannon" who single-mindedly targets Leya to sweep her off her feet. She's confused by his devoted attention to her because she realizes that she's of average looks and not the sort of woman men like Court pursue so persistently. After less than two days of knowing Court, however, she apparently trusts him enough that she discusses her dilemma about the contract and asks Court for his advice. He happily tells her that she should sign the contract because he personally knows "C. Tremayne" and that he's a perfectly trustworthy guy who would never take advantage of her naive brother.Leya isn't convinced and Court takes her for a walk on the beach where things get hot and heavy. Court has been very candid that he wants to be her lover but Leya is fighting it because she's not interested in a meaningless vacation fling - particularly because she feels it would only be meaningless for the devastatingly handsome Court while she'd be left thinking of him for years to come. That night however, Court succeeds in seducing her to the point where she allows herself to be brought up to his hotel room. They come close to doing the deed but Leya manages to stick to her guns to say no and Court lets her leave, though they're both sure that if he had continued to work his magic on her, she would have eventually surrendered.While she's in Court's room, she takes back the contract she'd given him to review and decides to go ahead and sign it and mail it to her brother. Court's reassurances that everything is legit have finally convinced her to let her brother have his way. The next morning she calls her brother to let him know she's signed it and he happily exclaims that Tremayne must have been successful in convincing her after all. When she asks what he's talking about, Keith unconcernedly explains that Court is the infamous C. Tremayne and that it was Keith himself who had informed Court of Leya's location specifically so that he could drive up and convince her to sign the contract. And what's really disgusting is that later on in the story we find out that, before he left, Court actually came straight out and TOLD Keith that the only way to "handle" a woman like Leya was to get her into bed. So Keith knew that Court planned to seduce his sister into signing the contract and he was totally fine with it!!! That's so disgusting.Leya is, naturally, outraged that Court deliberately hid his identify from her the whole time they've been together. Her only consolation is that she hadn't yet given in and slept with him, but she still feels like three kinds a fool for having been deceived the way she was. Court comes to take her to breakfast directly after her phone call with her brother and realizes immediately that the jig is up. Instead of apologizing to her and giving her space, he behaves in typical 1980's "hero" fashion by refusing to admit he's done anything wrong and trying to turn everything around so that it's Leya's fault. He wouldn't have "had" to resort to this deception if she'd come to his office when he ordered her to, etc.In fact, Court’s only regret about the whole situation is that he didn't force the sex issue the night before when he had the chance because he feels that once she'd been in his bed, his unbelievable sexual prowess would have won over any possible objections to his deception. Talk about a massive ego! He goes on and on about how it's just her "feminine pride" that's been hurt but that she should just get over that so that their sexual relationship can continue where they left off...because he's decided that she absolutely WILL be his woman.Leya, for her part, feels completely betrayed and used and doesn't want anything to do with Court. She keeps telling him, in no uncertain terms, to get lost but he refuses to leave her alone because she "belongs" to him. She threatens to call the hotel manager to force Court to leave her room but unfortunately doesn't actually make good on the threat. Instead, she agrees to go for a walk on the apparently completely deserted beach where Court sexually assaults her. He grabs her by her long braid and uses it to drag her into his arms where he proceeds to feel her up and force aggressive, unwanted kisses on her. She responds by saying "no" and punching him in the ribs, but that only makes him use even more of his brute force to subdue her. It's disgusting.But what's even more disgusting is JAK's depiction of Leya secretly feeling desire when Court abuses her in this way and indeed throughout all his abuse in the entire book. How many real-life rapes have occurred because authors like this insisted on perpetuating the idea that when a woman says "NO!" to a brutal sexual attack, what she really means is "yes"? And how many impressionable young girls grew up reading these kinds of books and thinking that when a man forces unwanted sexual attention on you, what it really means is that he's your one true love? I'm not saying it's all JAK's fault, she was just following the conventions of romance novels of the time, but it's still chilling to think about.For some reason, after this brutal attack, the fact that Court let her go after just forcing kisses and feeling her up, somehow makes Leya feel safe and empowered with the knowledge that he "wouldn't" actually rape her. (Gee, might as well marry the prince right now, eh?) So she allows him to drive her back to her house in Seattle. That's just idiotic. After he's broken her trust and assaulted her, the absolute LAST thing she should do is let him get her alone in a car and the next-last thing she should do is show him where she lives!!! Does this girl have no sense of self-preservation at all? Of course, keeping her address a secret was probably impossible since her douchebag brother knows where she lives and is completely on board with Court screwing his sister so he probably would have just told Court her address before giving him a slap on the back and saying "go get her, tiger!"When he drops her off, Court orders Leya to go to dinner with him the following night. She doesn't agree but her wishes are irrelevant at this stage. The douchebag brother calls and invites Leya to a party the following night and she jumps at the chance to avoid Court's dinner date. The next evening, she gets out of her shower and finds that Court has broken into her house and is waiting for her in her bedroom when she emerges wearing just a towel. He again forces sexual advances on her, ignoring her protests and using his strength to pin her arms so that she can't prevent the towel from falling off her naked body. He again forces unwanted kisses on her and, of course, she again feels unwanted desire for this psychopath.He then orders her to get dressed so that he can take her to this party where the douchebag brother offers lots of nods and winks and elbows in the side about how it's "obvious" that Court is indeed banging his sister and isn't that just fantastic! Court basically plasters himself to Leya's side the whole night, making sure to stare menacingly at any man who so much as looks at her so that everyone knows she's Court's property. He also, completely out of nowhere, starts accusing her of drinking too much alcohol. Even though she has less than one drink throughout the whole night he keeps ordering her to stop drinking like she's three sheets to the wind or something. It was a weird scenario since everywhere else in the story Court has no problem with Leya drinking and, in most cases, is the one supplying her with the drinks. Not to mention that Court himself is rarely without a straight-up scotch and at several points makes comments about how he "needed" the drink.Also at this party is Leya's ex-fiance, Alex. Alex pretended to be in love with Leya because he was using her as a cover for his true relationship with a married woman; one of Leya's friends. Once the friend filed for divorce from her husband, Alex promptly dropped Leya and she was left feeling humiliated and foolish. Court notices Alex staring at Leya and demands to know who he is. You'd think that after she explains Court would recognize that Leya has been betrayed by men whom she thought were interested in her before and realize that made Court's deception that much harder for her to take. Instead all Court sees is a potential rival and orders Leya not to see Alex.Leya finally manages to get away from Court at the party and goes out on the terrace to be alone. Alex follows her and says that he and the other woman have broken up and he now realizes what a great thing he had going with Leya so he wants to pick up where they left off. She allows him to kiss her and then tells him that he's too late; she's already in love with Court and they're engaged to be married. Alex gets angry and Court appears from the shadows to say that he and Leya are indeed engaged. The pissed off Alex storms off and then proceeds to tell everyone at the party that Leya and Court are engaged. For some reason, Leya is so elated at Court having participated in her little revenge game that she's apparently ready to forgive and forget everything he's done to her up to that point....until the douchebag brother shows up. This is where he informs Leya that Court set out for Oregon with the sole strategy of seducing her into signing the contract in mind. Up to this point she'd been under the impression that he'd just intended to talk to her about the contract and their attraction for each other was separate. Now she feels that all of Court’s romantic overtures towards her are rooted in his business motives and that his continued pursuit of her must therefore also have an ulterior motive; such as keeping her from interfering in his plans for the company.Leya is incensed that Court has been using seduction to try to "handle" her (although strangely unaffected by the news that her jerk brother was in on the idea) and throws a drink on Court. She then tries to leave the party but is waylaid by all the oblivious party-goers wanting to congratulate the "happy couple" on their recently "announced" engagement. In a circle of presumably sane people, Court and Leya have an ill-concealed argument and Court tells her that they're leaving the party right then and there and she can either go voluntarily or be thrown over his shoulder. She balks and he makes good on his threat to toss her over his shoulder. No one at the party does anything to stop this barbaric display or pays any attention to the fact that Leya is clearly in trouble. She begs her brother to intervene and the douchebag just laughs and says that she "brought this on herself". God, has there ever been a slimier character??Court forces her into his car and then drives her to his apartment. Any sane woman would have made a run for it the moment the car stopped at a red light but of course Leya doesn't do this because deep down all women crave to be carried around like a sack of potatoes . She voluntarily follows Court up to his apartment where he orders her to make them tea while he changes his shirt. She meekly does this and they sit down to talk. The talking just involves Court calling her an unreasonable shrew and ignoring all the perfectly logical complaints she has about his ill-treatment of her. Once again he opts to force seduction on her because he's certain that will solve everything. And once again she's "unwillingly" swept up in desire because he's just that darn good.He carries her off to his bedroom, despite her protests that she doesn't want to have sex, and before long they're both naked on the bed. His masterful technique has succeeded in sweeping away all of Leya's objections and by the time he's poised to enter her, she's begging for him to do it. He pauses at this point to ask her questions. Does she want him? Yes, she says she does. Does she need him? Again she says yes. Does she trust him? No, she says she doesn't. Court basically explodes with irritation. He accuses her of just trying to exact revenge on him for that silly little matter of lying to her in Oregon and then makes a completely illogical leap to say that she's abused his trust too by claiming they were engaged when getting her revenge on Alex. That they should be "square" now. When she asks why her desire for him can't just be enough he insists that no, he wants her complete surrender. She MUST say she trusts him. She basically shrugs and says that she doesn't trust him. Trust takes a long time to repair and she can't just get over his deception in only a few days. He again calls her a shrew and insists that she's just being stubborn and petty and trying to make him pay but in the long run she's hurting both of them. Then he throws on his clothes and orders her to get dressed as well so he can take her home.The story moves on from there with Leya constantly trying to convince herself that Court must have ulterior motives for continuing to pursue her. First it was the contract, then it was because he was afraid she'd continue to be a thorn in his side during the next two years with her half-shares of the company, and finally she thinks it's just the challenge of it all. That serves as the basis for most of their fights for the rest of the book where Leya alternatively accuses him of these motives and Court tries to convince her that no, he really just wants to have sex with her and she's a shrew for not trusting him. It's ridiculous that Leya chooses to accuse Court of these things instead of focusing on the dangerously violent behavior he's been exhibiting but that's 1980's romance for you. The next time Court and Leya go out, Court changes his mind about needing Leya to trust him before they have sex. Once again they're partially naked and about to take the plunge but it's Leya who calls a halt to things now because she's decided that she really does need to trust him before they sleep together. They part ways again with Court frustrated and insisting that she's just trying to punish him.Eventually Leya decides to call Court's perceived bluff and she signs all her shares of the company over to her douchebag brother. Now, she reasons, Court will have no reason to continue pursuing her because she has no way of interfering with how he runs the company. Court is overjoyed with her decision because he says that it secretly means she's decided to trust him. That by giving up her ability to stop his actions, it means she trusts that he won't gobble up her idiot brother's company. Leya hadn't thought about it from that angle and denies that she trusts him but Court isn't listening. He gives her a jewelry box with emerald earrings in it. They're post earrings and he knows that Leya doesn't have pierced ears. He tells her that when she's really ready to give up on punishing the both of them, she'll show it by having holes put in her flesh and wearing his earrings. That it'll show him she's willing to make a commitment to him. She asks what he'll give her in return if she makes this commitment and he says he'll agree to whatever she wants. Then he leaves for a few days of business in Silicon Valley.While he's gone Leya basically just decides to throw in the towel on fighting him and quickly following that is the "realization" that she's loved him all along. That she fell in love with him way back in Oregon and nothing that's happened since then has killed that love. So the night before he's due back, she gets her ears pierced and puts on his earrings. The douchebag brother is hosting a party the night Court is due to return and the couple agree to meet there so Leya puts on her sexiest outfit and heads over. Upon seeing her, the brother makes more crude sexual remarks about how Court will "go crazy" when he sees her. Several men at the party proceed to devour Leya with their eyes and quite a few take the opportunity to hit on her. One is in the middle of doing just that when Court finally arrives. He makes a beeline for Leya and tells the other guy to buzz off before accusing Leya of flirting with the man. He's in a dangerously possessive mood and puts a hand on the back of Leya's neck to start forcing her out of the party. When his hand accidentally brushes against the earrings, however, he forgets his jealousy and is overjoyed that she's finally surrendered to him. When he asks what she wants from him in return, she tells him she wants marriage.The brother shows up at that moment and Court instantly tells Keith that Leya has agreed to be his wife. Keith gives Court a bunch of "atta boy!" slaps on the back before happily excusing them from the party with a "knowing look". At this point I'm only surprised that the sleaze-ball brother didn't ask to be a spectator at their wedding night. They drive back to Leya's house where they finally sleep together for the first time. It's a fairly anti-climactic scene because they've already come so close to sleeping together so many times in the story that JAK apparently felt it was best to rush through a lot of the seductive lead-up since we'd read it all several times before. She wasn't wrong in that decision not to repeat herself, but it did make the actual big event seem less exciting than the previous "almost" encounters.A week later they get married but Leya isn't really happy. Ever since they consummated their union the night of her brother's party, Court hasn't tried to get Leya back into bed. She frets that she shouldn't have demanded that he marry her as his part of their "earrings deal" and thinks that he's having second thoughts because he doesn't love her. Instead of talking to him about this before she takes this huge, life-changing step, she keeps quiet and goes through with the wedding. They marry and for their honeymoon Court takes her back to the Oregon Inn where they first met. He asks her what's troubling her and she admits that she should have asked for his love rather than marriage. He says that he does love her and has from the moment he saw a picture of her in her brother's office. She admits that she's loved him all along too and they have a very long conversation about how all their arguments and misunderstandings throughout the whole book were just the result of them both secretly feeling insecure and afraid of the depth of their feelings for each other. (hide spoiler)]
I'm heartbroken. This is the first JAK novel I didn't like. However, it is one of her early works and had been very rough around the edges. There were familiar moments which had the finesse we're used to seeing in her later works but the male character was just too alpha and rough around the edges. The contest of wills tended to border on near-date rape scenes. The novel also lacked the usual intrigue that is mixed in with the courtship. This novel was pure courtship with a little corporate manipulation but only as a means to an end.
