All dressed up and no place to go.

      Juliana paced Rex’s bedroom. An early riser by habit, she’d awoken without an alarm. She needed coffee immediately and a newspaper soon. Today’s edition should contain Octavia Jenkins’s first installment about the auction. Juliana didn’t want to wake Rex or the girls by running the sputtering coffee machine, and she didn’t know if he subscribed to the local paper.

      Clutching her key to the apartment and her wallet, she eased open the bedroom door. As silently as possible, she tiptoed into the den. Her heart stalled when she spotted Rex sprawled on the sofa and then raced as her gaze drank him in. His shiny hair spilled over the cappuccino-colored leather like bittersweet chocolate drizzled over milk chocolate. His bare feet hung over the opposite end. He’d shed his shirt and unbuttoned the top button on his jeans. The sheet he’d used lay puddled on the floor beside him. Her gaze returned to that unfastened brass button and the shadow of his navel behind it, and then raked over his bare chest to his bristly chin and parted lips.

      Her mouth dried. He definitely knew how to use those lips. The question was how did she get him to use them again. On her. With each encounter, her desire to be held against that broad hair-spattered chest grew and her ambivalence over this crazy scheme faded, but she didn’t appear to be getting any closer to her goal, so her uncertainty was a moot point. What was she going to do to tempt him next, and how far could she go with the girls in the house?

      She tiptoed to the girls’ door and found them sleeping peacefully. Her heart twinged a little. She’d never expected to enjoy caring for them so much. They were sweet and funny and obviously adored their uncle. Unfortunately, Juliana was getting a bit too fond of their uncle as well. The idea of one month of naughty thrills and then a quick goodbye didn’t sound nearly as attractive as it once had. In fact, she wondered if one month would be enough.

      She wanted to know more about Rex Tanner than her online searches had revealed. Like what put those shadows in his dark eyes? And what had driven a man at the top of his career to self-destruct? Unfortunately, the girls couldn’t tell her and Rex wouldn’t.

      Rex slept through her examination, but that was understandable since he’d only come upstairs four hours ago. Juliana eased through his apartment door—the one leading to the exterior stairs instead of through Renegade—aiming for the coffee shop she’d spotted down the street yesterday. The early morning humidity clung to her skin on the short walk. She purchased her caffeine fix and a newspaper and headed back to Rex’s, where she settled at the picnic table on his upstairs deck overlooking the Cape Fear River.

      The sun had risen high enough at 6:30 for her to read the newsprint, but not high enough to bake her skin. She wasn’t one of those women who tanned well. She turned an unbecoming shade of boiled-shrimp pink, but she’d forgotten to pack her sunscreen. She’d have to retreat inside in a few minutes—back to the space dominated by Rex. And she didn’t think she could handle him without a full load of caffeine in her system.

      With her back to the house, she flipped straight to the Lifestyles section, found Octavia’s byline and winced at the title of the article: Love at Any Price? She quickly scanned over the introductory info. Her eyes skidded to a halt when she found her name, and then she backtracked and began the paragraph again.

      Bachelor nine. Rex Tanner and Juliana Alden each claim to have pure motives for participating in the auction. The former Nashville headliner says all he wants is publicity for Renegade, his new waterfront bar and grill. Ms. Alden declares her interests lie in the motorcycle lessons. But this reporter believes the relationship will yield more than improved revenues and riding skills. The sparks between the dashing biker and the proper banker nearly set the room ablaze.

      Appalled, Juliana dropped the paper on the table and pressed cold hands to her hot cheeks. Was she so obvious? Everyone in Wilmington would know she was pursuing Rex. Everyone including her mother and Wally. The fallout from that would not be pleasant. Her mouth dried and panic made her heart palpitate erratically. She’d wanted a month of breaking rules, not a month of public embarrassment.

      She dug her cell phone out of her pocket and hit speed dial. “H’lo,” Andrea answered in a groggy voice.

      “Andrea, I’m sorry if I woke you, but I’ve just read Octavia Jenkins’s article. It’s awful.”

      A groan carried over the phone line. “You didn’t wake me. I’ve seen it. Oh my God. ‘This romance is ready to be rekindled. Is Ms. Montgomery carrying the matches?’ I am so not trying to win Clay back. I’m going to ask Octavia to print a retraction.”

      Juliana grimaced. She’d been so concerned with her own predicament she hadn’t even read about Andrea or Holly. She scanned down the page and read the section Andrea had quoted. “I don’t think you’ll get a retraction. She hasn’t really crossed the line.”

      “Says you.”

      “Did you see what she wrote about Rex and me? Now everyone knows what I’m doing. And if that’s not humiliating enough, guess what? It’s not working. You said he was such a womanizer that all I’d have to do was show up and keep breathing and he’d do the rest. Well, he’s not doing it.”

      “What are you talking about?”

      Juliana shot a quick, cautious glance over her shoulder and then whispered, “Getting Rex to seduce me.”

      “He’s not interested?”

      “He’s interested…at least I think he is, but I…I wanted someone who would sweep me off my feet and overcome my doubts about this whole crazy scheme. He’s not sweeping.”

      “Men are so obtuse. You’re going to have to nudge him in the right direction. Let’s meet for breakfast and plot our way out of this mess. I’ll call Holly and tell her to meet us at Magnolia’s Diner.”

      “I can’t.”

      “Why?”

      “Because I’m babysitting Rex’s nieces today.”

      “Babysitting? No, no, no. Juliana, kids and sex don’t mix. I’m coming over. We need to talk.”

      She took a fortifying gulp of coffee. “You can’t come over because I’m not at home.”

      “Where are you?”

      She hesitated and then confessed. “Staying at Rex’s apartment above Renegade.”

      Silent seconds ticked past. “I’m sure there’s a good explanation why you’re living with him and not getting any? Besides the children, I mean.”

      Tapping drew Juliana’s gaze to the girls’ bedroom window. Two angelic faces grinned out at her. She smiled back and waved, and then pressed her finger to her lips in the universal Be quiet sign. “It’s complicated, but I can’t explain now. I have to go.”

      “You can’t leave me hanging like that,” Andrea squawked.

      “Sorry. Have to. Bye.” She disconnected over Andrea’s protests, gathered her paper, coffee and keys and let herself inside.