seducing stephen

Stephen is visiting the home of a friend during holiday from university when his bed is invaded by a late arriving, drunken houseguest stumbling into the wrong bedroom. From this dubious beginning, a romance slowly develops.

At first Lord Peter Northrup is only interested in the young man as a lusty diversion. He tutors him in the ways of most homosexual liaisons of the time—brief, light, and always temporary. But after he leaves, breaking young Stephen’s heart, he can’t forget him.

Both men grow during their time apart and when they meet again, their affair flames hotter than ever. Is there any possibility for a real relationship between a peer of the realm and a middle-class young man with heavy responsibilities on his shoulders? Will Peter accept the possibility of true love in his shallow life, and will Stephen risk everything and trust a man who’s already hurt him once?

Reviews

Mrs. Giggles, 85
The whole thing works splendidly. The melodrama, I find, is compelling rather than overblown and ridiculous. The characters' larger than life reactions to their emotions only enhance the illicit thrill of their taboo relationship.

Speak Its Name, Erastes
The affair starts as sex and then moves into more complicated territory and that’s the nice surprise; it could have easily have been nothing more than a sex-progression story, but for a small book it packs a lot more punch.

Shuffling Through a Book-less Desert
I was impressed by Seducing Stephen. It's being added to my short list of favorite m/m historicals. The conflict within this novel was not just "does he love me" but "how can we (can we?) be together while meeting our obligations?"

Well Read, Jenre, Excellent
It's the old story of the rake brought low by the love of a virgin, but the m/m setting and complex characters lent this story a freshness which I found quite delightful. ... The bright spark of Stephen helps to lift Peter out of the gloom, another part of the book which I liked a great deal.

Rainbow Reviews, Permafrost, 5 stars
Seducing Stephen turns the oft-used cliche of mistaken identity/mistaken sexual partners on its head and makes it seem new once more. ... the story captivates from page 1, when the twists in the plot line begin, and tension ~ both sexual and emotional ~ escalate.

Ebook Addict, Kathy K.,
It was an enjoyable historical tale with sexy man-on-man action and a romance that really touched my heart.
When it comes to historical romances I’m a big sap for the rake-to-romantic hero and in Seducing Stephen Bonnie Dee and Summer Devon created one that’s unforgettable.

Literary Nymphs, Chocolate Minx
Seducing Stephen is a tender and enjoyable happy-ever-after romance.

Joyfully Reviewed, Cassie
The evolution of Peter and Stephen’s relationship is slow, with fits and starts. The love scenes between them are hot from the start, and the blossoming emotions made them even more so. Overall, I found Seducing Stephen to be a lovely, emotional read. Fans of Victorian England can’t go wrong with this one!

excerpt

Summer 1856
“Gads, there’s a boy in my bed. It’s Christmas come early.”

The laconic drawl jerked Stephen from a deep sleep, snapped him awake and set him bolting upright, blinking in the candlelight at the dark devil who stood over him. He gasped for breath and sputtered for an answer, but words failed him, as they so often did. “Who?” “Why?” and “What?” all stuck to his tongue, and only an anguished, stammering “w-w-w-w” came from his throat.

The man shed his midnight jacket and began to unbutton his gleaming white shirt. His shoulders broad, his back ramrod straight, his dark hair falling in loose curls around harsh, shadowed features -- he was Stephen’s every nighttime fantasy made flesh, the fascinating, frightening creature of erotically charged dreams, the man who would touch him in ways he’d only furtively touched himself up to now.

“Shove over then, and make room for an old man on the warm side of the bed.” The devil’s quiet chuckle was like fingernails scraping Stephen’s spine. “Well, perhaps not old. I prefer to think of myself as seasoned, like a good piece of meat.”

“W-who…?” Stephen finally managed to blurt. He was deeply aware of the man’s gaze lingering on his bare chest, so he pulled his gaping nightshirt closed.

“Lord Northrup, Earl of Stafford, but you may call me Peter since it appears we’re going to be such intimate companions as to share sleeping quarters.” He pulled the shirt off his shoulders, and the candlelight made his skin glow golden. Shadows delineated the muscles of his biceps and chest. A darker shadow of hair furred his pectorals and his flat belly.

“I’m not one to raise a fuss in the middle of the night, when it’s my fault for arriving so late to the party. So, my lad, I’m willing to share if you are.”

Stephen could no longer manage so much as a vowel. He was struck speechless by the outspoken earl who made suggestive comments without a thought for how they might be construed by a stranger. The man was stripping off his boots and breeches now. What kind of an earl traveled without a valet to help him with his attire?

When the stranger tossed back the covers and started to climb into the tall bed, Stephen scooted over as fast as a fox chased by hounds. The man wore no nightshirt. He was barely clothed in drawers, the drawstring of which was tied loosely so they hung halfway down his hips. Before Northrup pulled the covers over himself, Stephen beheld the shallow indentations below each hipbone and the shape of his erect cock beneath the undergarment.

“Sir, I could go elsewhere,” Stephen finally said with a gasp. “It’s no b-bother at all for me to move to another room.”

One dark brow rose high as Northrup settled back against the pillow, an arm behind his head. The position lifted his chest, and Stephen’s gaze was drawn to the hard nubs of his brown nipples. “Come now. No need to keep pretending. I know Euphemia Pratt and her pranks. This is the room she always gives me. If she placed you in my bed, it’s for a good reason. One I think we’ll both enjoy.”

Beneath the covers, Stephen pinched his forearm, checking to see if he was perhaps still asleep. This was the stuff of dreams, waking up to the impossible fact of a handsome man making sexual suggestions -- and reaching for him under the covers.

The young man flinched when a warm, heavy hand settled on his thigh, burning through the light cotton of his nightshirt, but his cock swelled, thrilled at the touch. Swallowing hard, he took a deep breath to calm his pounding heart. He smelled the fresh scent of night air and a whiff of whiskey on his late night visitor.

“Will you deny Mrs. Pratt told you to expect me?”

Here it was -- the moment for him to explain this was a huge misunderstanding, a double booking of one of the bedrooms. He was a friend of Brian Pratt, come to visit over the holidays. All he had to do was protest and climb out from under the bedcovers. But Stephen felt paralyzed by the hand on his thigh, sliding nearer his groin. He held utterly still, kept his denial to himself, and held his breath, waiting to see what would happen next.

The demon gazed at him with heavy-lidded eyes. “You’re a very pretty one, with your tawny, tousled hair and that pouting lower lip. However, I’d like to see more of you. Why don’t you take off that rather unattractive nightshirt and show me.”

Another hard swallow, and Stephen moved to obey. It was as if Northrup was a hypnotizing cobra and he a quivering rodent eager to be eaten up. With shaking fingers, he gathered the soft cotton of his nightshirt, pulled it over his head, and tossed it onto the floor. He tried to convince himself he had no choice, that he had to obey the earl’s commanding tone, but deep inside he knew the truth. This was something he’d craved for a very long time -- for someone to take control and “force” him to give in to his natural inclinations.

“My God,” the earl muttered, his gaze raking Stephen’s body and setting his flesh afire. He reached out a hand and rested the palm against the younger man’s chest, then slid it down from chest to groin.

Stephen’s stomach muscles trembled and his cock hardened further. Northrup focused his gleaming eyes on the erect shaft. “No drawers beneath your sleeping attire? Now tell me you weren’t expecting me, my lad.”

A grin transformed the man’s severe features into the face of a fallen angel -- once holy, now dark and dangerous. “Don’t look so frightened. I’m not going to hurt you.” His hand curved around Stephen’s cock and gripped it, squeezing lightly. “Much. What’s your name?”

“S-stephen.”

“Pleased to meet you, Stephen. Now we’ve introduced ourselves, why don’t you come here and get to know me better?” The earl’s hand snaked around the back of his neck and pulled him down for a kiss.

Heart nearly choking him, Stephen leaned over the other man’s reclining body, naked chest to chest. His lips touched another man’s for the first time in his life. Warm, moist, moving, Northrup’s mouth was a living thing, and the touch of it thrilled him. Their breath mingled. Stephen tasted the sharp, oaken flavor of whiskey. Was the earl drunk? Would he be angry when he realized what he’d done while in his cups?

But from his words and actions, it seemed Lord Northrup was accustomed to having men in his bed. He wouldn’t have later regrets such as Stephen might have. No regrets now, however. Stephen pushed guilt and doubt from his mind, closed his eyes, and pressed his lips more firmly against the soft mouth.