Reading progress update: I've read 51%.

Noooooooooooooooooooooo...
Well, that's the romance aspect of the story scuppered. Poor Penny.
Incidentally, it just goes to show that the romance angle of the story really is secondary, or even tertiary. I guess, this is just as well. The books are written as supplements to the Bond stories, and apart from On Her Majesty's Secret Service, no one reads a Bond story for the romance part. At least, I can't imagine that anyone would.