Checking In on Ferguson and Madeleine

I am absolutely wrecked. I wrote ~5500 words today, which translates into almost twenty-five pages. I love some of it, I'm struggling with other parts of it -- and now that I've hit page one hundred (!), I need to start figuring out where this story is going and how Ferguson and Madeleine are going to get there and fall in love at the same time.

One of the issues I'm currently concerned about is Ferguson himself. I adore him, the people who've read AN INCONVENIENT MARRIAGE seemed to adore him -- in short, he was the logical hero for my second book. But, I sometimes wonder if the very things that made him adorable do not make him good, stereotypical "hero" material. In essence, he is an alpha male masquerading very successfully as one of the Regency's prototypical metrosexuals -- he feigns a lot of concern for his wardrobe, to the point that even other Regency dandies would find him a bit ridiculous. For example, at one point in today's marathon writing session, Ferguson showed up at a ball with a fan -- a completely over-the-top affectation that amuses Madeleine even as her more serious guardian is appalled by Ferguson's behavior.

I personally find this all very entertaining. But perhaps that's to be expected -- my best friend from high school and I still occasionally send postcards to each other from a sexually-ambiguous globetrotting spy who enjoys both dangerous situations and really great sex. Strange insight into my teenage years, given that we came up with this character to alleviate the excruciating boredom of our typing class, but I digress.

What do you think? Do you want your heroes to be the strong, silent (or grunting, Viking) type? Or are you willing to accept someone who spends too much time tying his cravats and who wears better clothes than the heroine?