Autumn woke to the smell of bacon, buttery eggs, and the rich, aromatic blend of brewing coffee. He’s still here…

Perhaps that shouldn’t have pleased her as much as it did, and maybe that should have concerned her more, but she didn’t want to think about why the butterflies she believed were long dead and buried seemed to come to life every time Balen was close to her. The scents infiltrating her room reminded Autumn she hadn’t eaten last night. Her mouth began to water, urging her to get out of bed.

She glanced at the clock and scowled—5 a.m. Seriously? Who voluntarily gets up so early? Not bothering to get dressed because Balen had already seen her in a hell of a lot less than a tank top and boxer shorts, she trudged through the living room and headed straight for the coffee pot.

Balen was sitting at the table with a plate piled high of scrambled eggs, bacon, and toast. Huh…breakfast of champions apparently, because that guy could have been on the cover of any Wheaties box. He had a huge glass of orange juice beside him but no coffee. Had he made that just for her? He glanced up as she walked by and his chewing ground to a halt. She felt his amber-flecked eyes follow her and tried to ignore the way her nerve endings lit up as he watched her reach into the cupboard.

“You’re still here…” she commented, grabbing the carafe from the hotplate and filling her mug. Autumn came over to the table and pulled out the chair across from Balen before sitting down, taking a sip of the delicious brew. She couldn’t help but notice the corded muscles in Balen’s throat bob as he swallowed his bite of breakfast.

“I decided I liked my odds with you better than my ex.”

Well, at least he was being honest. Obviously, Balen wasn’t as altruistic as he’d made it sound when he’d so graciously offered to take Summer’s place and be her “best friend” for the week. But then people rarely did something for nothing and at least she knew the truth.

Autumn’s pulse began to quicken as he studied her across the table. She was starting to resent the effect he had on her, especially when his gaze dropped below her neck and her nipples hardened, beading against the soft cotton of her nightshirt. Perhaps she should have gotten dressed after all.

Playing it cool, she pretended not to notice she was making a fine impression of the Grand Tetons and sipped her coffee. She reached across the table, plucked a piece of bacon off his plate, and began to munch it. “You’re up early.”

“This is the best time of day to catch the waves.” He reached behind him, pulled open a drawer, and grabbed another fork. Handing it to her, he pushed his plate into the center of the table and took another bite of his breakfast.

It seemed oddly intimate, sharing Balen’s plate, but she was hungry and he acted like it was a perfectly natural thing to do. No big deal. So she forked a glob of scrambled eggs and popped them into her mouth. They ate together in silence a few minutes then Autumn finally broke it by saying, “Who would’ve thought you were such a great cook.” She grabbed a slice of toast and took a bite. As she chewed, Balen pushed his glass of juice her way and gave her one of those dimple-flashing grins.

“Guess I’m just full of surprises.”

Yes. Yes, he was…

* * *

It was damn difficult sitting across from Autumn with a granite-splitting hard-on tenting his board shorts. Yeah, he’d be waiting here awhile and he was probably going to miss his wave. The woman even woke up beautiful, with that sexy bed-ruffled hair hanging down to the middle of her back. The low scoop of her tank top exposed the top swells of her breasts and those boxer shorts were just about the sexiest thing he’d ever seen. Autumn had curves—and she wore them well—perfect tits and long shapely legs…legs he desperately wanted to crawl between.

Not for the first time, he questioned his wisdom in staying. Would it have been better for the both of them if he’d left? Possibly, because every day was proving to be a greater challenge to keep his hands—and mouth—to himself. As much as she might have thought she was ready to move on after her divorce, it was obvious she wasn’t there emotionally and he refused to pressure her into something she may look back on and regret.

Without a doubt, he enjoyed spending time with Autumn, and perhaps that was the crux of the problem. He literally could not remember the last time he’d enjoyed a woman’s company without getting horizontal. But Balen genuinely liked Autumn, maybe a little too much.

That kiss on his beach yesterday was still haunting him. All night, it kept playing through his mind on an endless loop of possibilities he could never allow to come to fruition. Maybe when she had been some random woman on a plane he could have justified the meaningless fuck, but after spending ten minutes with her, it was easy to see there was nothing meaningless about Autumn Harris. She may have thought she could do casual, but that wasn’t her style, even if she wanted to tell herself otherwise.

The temptation to seduce her was strong—he’d have to be deaf, dumb, and blind not to want her—but maybe, more than anything, Balen needed to prove to himself that there was still some shred of integrity left inside him. That Monica hadn’t destroyed all the goodness in him with her betrayal, and that he was more than the image he’d so effortlessly cast himself.

What had originally been self-preservation had quickly spiraled out of control until he no longer recognized the man he saw in the mirror—the man whose face graced more tabloids, internet articles, and YouTube videos than he wanted to admit. Even if the sex tape debacle disappeared, the internet still proved a legacy of bad decisions. And for the first time, he found himself hoping Autumn didn’t discover who he was for an entirely different reason. If she knew the truth, there was a high probability he wouldn’t be sitting here having breakfast with her.

“So…” he said, pushing aside his thoughts and reaching across the table to retrieve his orange juice. “What’s on the itinerary today?” He took a sip to wet his suddenly parched throat, ignoring the pinch of guilt in his chest.

“Umm… Surf lessons.”

His brow arched. Surfing lessons… The thought of getting Autumn stripped down to a bikini and on his surfboard painted some hot imagery he tucked away later for his spank bank. But in all reality, she was not ready for that. “Autumn, you’re just learning to swim and these waves have a mind of their own.”

She took another bite of his toast and set the slice on the side of his plate. “You don’t have to convince me that it’s a bad idea.”

He chuckled. “What about this? We’ll table the surfing until you get more comfortable being in the water. When you’re ready to tackle the waves, I’ll give you a surfing lesson.”

She eyed him over the rim of her coffee cup and took a sip. “I don’t know. Swimming lessons are one thing, but are you sure you’re qualified to take me surfing?”

Trying to keep a straight face, he answered with as much seriousness as he could muster, “I’m pretty sure I can handle it.”

She studied him a moment, as if deciding something. “All right, then what do you want to do today instead?”

A lot of suggestions were jockeying in his mind, none of them fit for repeating. She took another bite of eggs and reached for his glass of orange juice. For not liking breakfast, she sure was enjoying his. An odd feeling of satisfaction filled his chest. He probably shouldn’t have enjoyed sharing a plate of food with her as much as he did. It had always annoyed him when Monica had picked off his plate, but with Autumn it was comfortable—natural.

“If you want, I can take you someplace you won’t find on a tourist map.”

It wasn’t until she shot him a skeptical look that he realized how suggestive that had sounded. Not missing a beat, she said, “Is this one of those ‘there’s a party in your pants and I’m invited’ jokes?”

Balen laughed. Damn, he wished. “No, smartass, it really is a place. Tourism is huge here, and there are a few less-known places in Cyprus the locals like to keep off the map.”

“Does it involve sky diving, alligator wrestling, or eating sushi?”

“No, no, and no. But you’re going to need your bikini, sunscreen, and a good pair of walking shoes.”

The smile she sent him made his chest feel tight and his heart beat a little faster.

“Then I’m in.”