I read Paradise for the first time when I was 14 and adored it. I passed it on to my sister and our friends who read romance and to this day, saying Matt Farrell inspires lots of sighing from all of us. Like you, I thought it wouldn't have aged well, but I reread it a couple of years ago and it was still surprisingly good.

I think I know exactly which scene you're talking about in The Duke and I, and yeah, it completely ruined the book for me.