There are few people in this world who know more about chocolate than Lucy Fitzhenry. Since her love of chocolate almost equals her knowledge, life without it is simply unthinkable. Working in the infamous Bernard Chocolate’s research facilities, Lucy cultivates some of the more unusual varieties of chocolate plants and has high expectations for her latest breed of cacao. A true workaholic, Bernard’s is Lucy’s second home and retired owner Orson Bernard like a grandfather to her. But his sexy grandson Nick is now at the helm of Bernard’s and working with him is not so easy – within minutes of seeing him, Lucy can’t help acting a fool in one manner or another.

Nick Bernard travels the world in his day-to-day running of the family business but lives, as his family always has, on the grounds of their Minnesota operation. Raised around the chocolate industry, Nick grew up knowing he would be integral to the managing of the company someday and works well with his grandfather. Although Nick is known for his fast living, he doesn’t experience much of that lifestyle when at home and things seem relatively calm around the family compound – that is until each time he sees Lucy. He’s known of her crush on him these many years and realizes it is an embarrassment for her since she becomes a bit ditzy and clumsy each time he is near. He always considered her the kid sister type, but now things have changed and it is becoming increasingly difficult for them to work together.

All who know Lucy understand that she thrives on responsibility and doing the right thing. A fussy perfectionist who has lived like a saint most of her years, Lucy wants to add some wickedness to her boring personal life. However, she soon discovers that changing one’s personality is unavoidably stressful, even when you put your whole heart into it. For the first time in her life she is sleeping nude on outrageous purple sheets. She runs naked around her house on her new highly impractical white carpet. And those clear glass doors she installed on her shower definitely mean she is grabbing life with both fists. Of course, her new wickedness regime is confined to the privacy of her home – she can’t really let anyone know about it – so when her dad moves in uninvited her adventure comes to a sudden halt. Lucy can’t find it in herself to say “no” to her family and, therefore, must temporarily bid goodbye to any dreams of an uninhibited lifestyle.

But Lucy’s quest to integrate some naughtiness into her daily routine has, unfortunately, already born some rather unexpected fruit. In that part of her brain called denial lurks a dark memory she can only refer to as The Night of the Chocolate. Weeks earlier after sampling a bit of superior chocolate from her prized cocoa plant, Lucy invited Nick to share a taste and celebrate her discovery. Her cursed attraction to him got the best of her that night and, the best her memory can serve, she blatantly seduced him. Now, with that disastrous night looming in the background, Lucy and Nick’s relationship is more strained than ever before and, to top it off, Lucy realizes she is pregnant. Is this the payback she gets for attempting to be only slightly wicked?

It seems Nick and Lucy truly did have reason to celebrate – Lucy’s creative horticulture talents produced a plant that could revolutionize the chocolate industry, as well as provide Bernard’s with an unbelievable windfall. Although the elder Bernard wants Lucy to manage the production of their newest product, Nick believes she is too naïve and idealistic to manage such a vast program, doubts that are only intensified when his suspicion of Lucy’s pregnancy is confirmed. Nick understands Lucy’s limitations better than most, but knows that the fact that she carries his child may be the biggest limitation of all.

Blame It On Chocolate tackles the pregnancy issue up front since The Night of the Chocolate occurs prior to the beginning of the book. Although there are reflections on that night, the focus is on the shared responsibilities of prospective parents who were never a couple. This is not your basic pregnancy storyline and I appreciated its straight-forward manner and found it charming as well. Lucy’s reticence was a bit tiring at times, but I could easily sympathize with her situation and respected her stand.

Lucy’s slightly eccentric character plays well against the overly responsible Nick and their push-pull relationship is more entertaining than most contemporary romances I have read this past year. I personally enjoy the boss hero and thought Nick played the part admirably without the overbearing nature one usually expects of such a hero. But neither the lead characters nor their interaction had that extra bit of magic to make this book a personal favorite for me.

I only recently discovered the HQN lines and I’m impressed with the quality and plan to search out more of these contemporaries. As one of this line, I can definitely recommend Blame It On Chocolate for a pleasurable, albeit tame, reading experience, but its lack of excitement should in no way be interpreted as boring. It reminds me more of a quiet, thought-provoking drive down a picturesque county road.