a gentleman never keeps score seducing the sedgwicks cat sebastian

✔ cute baby + three-legged dog + Hartley with said baby and dog (all the cuteness!) ✔ non-white MC (Sam was well aware of the scrutiny upon him as a free black man) ✔ likable MCs (particularly Sam, who was maybe too sweet)

✔ fantastic secondary characters (I loved Alf and Sadie, not to mention Kate and Nick!) who added depth to the story ✔ vivid sense of time/place (London, 1817) ✔ strong writing (Cat Sebastian has a way with words) I just truly enjoyed both of our heroes and watching them fall in love! I do think the story went on a little too long, but other than that, I really loved reading this book. Sam is also constantly harassed by a policeman who is determined he is breaking laws with his bar just because he's Black and serves other Black people in society. There was also an ongoing mystery of where the painting was, along with a number of other shocking paintings and Hartley is determined to find them. There is so much communication and consent in here and I loved how much Sam and Hartley worked to make each other comfortable and find what worked for them. Because of Hartley's past, he doesn't like to be touched and Sam is so respectful about that. Sam runs into Hartley and they begin such a sweet and steamy relationship. Sam is a bar owner and he breaks into Hartley's estate to find a risqué painting of a friend of his. He is such a sweetheart and I loved how close he was with his staff and how much he really cared for him. Now, his reputation is ruined and he feels as if he cannot interact with anyone. Hartley is living as a recluse after being taken advantage of as a young boy. Whew was this book such a good and steamy romance! From the start, my heart went out to Hartley.

A gentleman never keeps score seducing the sedgwicks cat sebastian