the way she would account entries during an audit. Flushed skin. A tingle in her veins. Accelerated heart rate. Dampened palms.
“You don’t look like any bean counter I’ve ever met.” His skeptical expression robbed the words of any compliment and hit a sore spot. After earning an MBA from the local university, Juliana had accepted a position in the family bank’s home office. She’d had to work doubly hard to prove her worth and quiet the rumors of nepotism, and she’d been proving herself ever since. But this wasn’t work. She wanted Rex to see her as a desirable woman, not as a highly credentialed bank auditor.
“I’ve always been good with numbers.” She downplayed. It was people skills she lacked. Growing up, her brother had been the socially adept one who’d held the titles of class president, homecoming king and every other desirable position. Juliana had been an ugly duckling who’d preferred books and horses to people. Andrea and Holly had been, and still were, her only close friends.
Rex thumped a beat on the table with his pen, drawing her attention back to his big, rough and scarred workman’s hands. She’d listened to his music and it amazed her that such strong, masculine hands could pluck a guitar so beautifully. “We’ll meet after you get off work on Mondays and Thursdays, my days off. That’ll give us a couple of hours of daylight.”
She caught herself watching his lips move, blinked and refocused on his eyes—dark, knowing eyes that seemed to look right inside her.
“I’ve leased a smaller bike for you,” he continued, “but you can’t drive it until you’ve earned your motorcycle learner’s permit and mastered a few basic skills.”
The unexpected turn of the conversation pulled her from her corporeal exploration. “A learner’s permit?”
“Required by North Carolina law. I’ll give you the booklet tonight. Start studying. You’ll have to take a written test at the Department of Motor Vehicles.”
Her prize package required her to take a test? That hadn’t been in the fine print, and she always read the fine print. “I work fifty to sixty hours a week. When am I supposed to find time to study and take a test?”
“Before the end of the month—unless you want the newspaper to report that you couldn’t pass.”
Her competitive instincts stirred. She hadn’t taken a driving test in fifteen years, but she’d always been an excellent student. “Fine. Twice a week at six o’clock for four weeks.”
“I’ll let the reporter know.” He closed the calendar and planted his hands on his knees. “Listen, Juliana, Renegade needs all the publicity it can get out of the newspaper series. You might not have noticed but the place isn’t packed.”
“I noticed. Business accounts are a large part of my job. Empty tables mean reduced revenue and reduced revenue means—”
He leaned toward her. Her mind went blank and her heart leaped in anticipation. She snatched a quick breath, wet her lips and lifted her mouth, but Rex didn’t kiss her. Instead he dragged a fluffy pink boa and a small pink purse from beneath his sofa cushion and sat back again.
She blinked in surprise. Had she bought a cross-dresser? “Yours?” she squeaked.
The rugged lines of his face softened and his eyes warmed, turning her insides to mush. “My nieces’.”
Shock receded. The rebel had nieces. And judging from his expression, he had a soft spot in his heart for them. The idea of using him to further her um…physical education had been a lot easier when she’d believed him to be one-hundred-percent bad boy, a heartless seducer of innocents, a man who’d get the job done and not think twice about it. Now the images of reckless rebel, concerned business owner and doting uncle tangled in a confusing mass in her head. But instead of turning her off, the combination intrigued her and made her want to know more. Not a good idea since this was a short-term project.
He stood and tossed the dress-up items into a wicker basket in the corner. “Let me make one thing clear. You bought horseback and Harley riding lessons and you’re going to get them. But riding lessons are all I’m offering.”
Half-dozen heartbeats later, his meaning sank in. Mortification burned over her skin like a desert wind. Was she so transparent? He couldn’t know that she wondered how he’d kiss, how he’d taste and, more specifically, how she’d react to his embrace. Could he?
She wobbled to her feet. “I—I appreciate your candor.”
“You ready to call for your ride yet?”
He couldn’t wait to get rid of her. How embarrassing. Had she ever had a date so eager to show her the door? “Certainly.”
The evening was not going as she’d anticipated and she had no idea how to get it back on track. What did she know about seduction? She’d counted on him doing all the work.
Why hadn’t she developed a backup plan?
“So is he as great as he looks or is he all beauty, brawn and no brains?” Holly asked as Juliana climbed into her friend’s Jeep outside Renegade.
“He’s not just a pretty face.” His dedication to his nieces and his business savvy in using the auction and the monthlong newspaper coverage as advertising proved Rex was more than an empty-headed pretty boy. “Did you get your firefighter?”
Holly abruptly reached for the radio and flipped through the stations. “No.”
The rat. Had she and Andrea chickened out after sending Juliana into the bidding wars like a sacrificial lamb? “You promised you’d buy him.”
“No, I promised I’d buy a bachelor and I did. The firefighter went for more money than we agreed upon—although you certainly broke that rule, didn’t you? Besides, Eric was desperate.”
Juliana recoiled. “Eric! My brother, Eric?”
Holly darted a glance in her direction and nodded.
“You cheated.”
“No, I didn’t. I wanted a man who would give me candlelit dinners and take me dancing. Eric’s package promises Eleven Enchanted Evenings.”
Juliana didn’t like the blissful smile on Holly’s face—not in connection to her brother. “But it’s Eric.”
“So?”
“You wanted romance. Eric is no Prince Charming to your Cinderella. I’m having really icky thoughts of my brother kissing you good night, and I don’t want to go there.” She shuddered.
“I know you don’t want to believe it, Juliana, but Eric is as much of a hunk as your rebel.”
“Ick. Ick.” She stuck her fingers in her ears. No matter what her friend said, Holly had cheated by taking the safe way out. She unplugged her ears. “You and Andrea convinced me to go out on a limb and buy Rex. There is no risk involved in buying someone you know. Did Andrea also turn coward? Who did she buy?”
“Clayton.”
Sympathy squeezed Juliana’s heart and she sighed. “So she’s really going through with it, then?”
“That’s
