Lord Tristan Kane is the third son - not the heir or the spare - not particularly attractive (his nose is just a bit too big) but he has shocking eyes, and he made his fortune in trade. Vienne La Rieux is the older woman (by five or so years) - "the virago, the viper, the vicious vixen" (according to Tristan) is the shrewd business owner of a gambling club and half-owner of a business venture of a shopping emporium. Years earlier, she ripped Tristans heart to shreds after he told her he loved her. Now, years later, Tristan is back and setting himself in a position where he can prove to Vienne he isn't that same 'boy' he was when they had their affair. Threw keen wit, and a bit of luck, Tristan is able to accumulate 50 percent share in Vienne's business venture, forcing them to become equal partners. Though equal partners, each desires to gain the upper hand with the other - for Tristan, he hopes to have Vienne come crawling back to his bed, for Vienne, she hopes to seduce Tristan once again.

The title of this book is a bit decieving - Tristan is not a rogue, and if he was, someone forgot to mention that to him. Besides the title, I really liked this story. I loved that Tristan wasn't the heir or the spare, and his older brothers (did I mention they are protective of Tristan?) are entertaining and hard not to fall in love with. While Tristan denies he still has feelings for Vienne, his actions speak louder than his words.

I liked that Vienne was this shrewd business person who knew exactly how to control men, take what she needed from them and not let them walk all over her. I will admit, I had a harder time liking Vienne than I did with Tristan - almost a role reversal where one can symptathize with the heroine, in this case, I found myself sympathizing more with Tristan. If anyone had to be the rogue in this book, it would be Vienne - hands down.

I liked that there was a build up of romance in this book as Tristan and Vienne are building the shopping emporium (and someone seeks to ruin it - so a little mystery going on in there too) before the steamy sex scenes, which was surprising to me considering Vienne's ability to wrap men around her finger. And the sex scenes were steamy (can we say there is a new use for champagne?) as our hero and heroine each have the deepest desire to be the one in control - oh yes, even in bed they are fighting for that control!