Juliet Astor Lowell comes from a "good family" and her grandmother who raised her has kept her smothered for years, so she's excited when she gets the chance to preside over the opening of a hotel in the company chain (she works for her absent father) in New Orleans away from the family influence (they're from Boston) - or so she thought. The company receives a letter protesting the opening of the hotel (they've converted it from a historical building) so her father calls in a favor and Juliet gets a real life police detective to babysit her - Beau(reguard) Dupree. Beau is a little upset about this considering he was in the middle of some cases dear to his heart, including trying to find the Panty Snatcher who counts Beau's sister Josie Lee among his victims. Also, Beau's just got one sister left in his house (he's been raising 3 of them for 10 years since their parents died) and he was getting excited about the possibility of having indiscriminate sex, something he feels being assigned to babysit Juliet will put a damper in.
Beau wants to drive Juliet to demand someone else be assigned to her asasp, so he starts taking her around to strip clubs, etc., where he is investigating the Panty Snatcher case, but then things happen (such as his breaks being cut while at a pre-opening party where he is escorting Juliet) that make him realize that Juliet really could be in danger...and that he cares about her in a way that's not strictly professional, despite the fact that she doesn't have the big breasts he's been dreaming about. And so Beau moves into the hotel to watch over Juliet. Meanwhile Beau's friend and fellow detective, Luke, has just been seduced by the baby of the family, Josie Lee... Will Beau's life ever be back to normal?
I like this book, but it's not my favorite - mainly cuz I find it harder to relate to the main characters. I love Josie Lee and Luke and Roxanne (Juliet's assistant), but Juliet and Beau themselves just don't really do it for me. Beau is really attracted to Juliet's lips (both sets - and I quote "God, yes, it's just like your mouth" - which is certainly different!) as she doesn't have the breasts he usually goes for, and the couple certainly has chemistry - I guess I just didn't bond with them right. But the book is well written, and I like the approach it took with the crimes - telling us the culprits very early on and not letting that distract from the relationships. The culprits are certainly interesting people themselves, adding to the character of the story. I just kinda wished it was Josie Lee and Luke's story instead, or that they at least would have more screen time.
