CHAPTER ONE
Jack made his way along the row of booths at the farmer’s market. So far he’d purchased peach preserves and blueberry jam to serve with scones for the Saturday afternoon tea he prepared for guests at the inn. Some beets had caught his eye too. He could pickle them and include them with the picnic lunches he offered.
He’d deliberately started at the far end from Sumner Farm. Was he really going to ask Luke out when he finally reached his booth? Probably not. He’d been too much of a coward every other week since he’d caught Luke checking him out.
By the time he finished purchasing onions and garlic, his palms were sweaty and his throat tight. He was only two booths away. He glanced toward Luke to see if he was watching him again, but Luke was busy with a customer.
Come on. You can do this. What’s the worst thing that could happen?
Luke might punch him and then ridicule him to the entire town.
That is not going to happen.
Probably not. If there was a vote of the nicest man in town, Luke would likely be in the running, but there was a huge chance that—if Jack was right and Luke liked men—Luke wasn’t ready to admit it.
But Jack would never know if he didn’t ask.
If Lauren, the only person Jack’d had a serious relationship with, could see how nervous he was, she’d laugh so hard, she wouldn’t be able to stand up straight. And if anyone at his favorite club realized he ever got this nervous, this incapable of asking for what he wanted, he’d never live it down. Good thing none of them would ever know. Unless… No. Even if Luke agreed to go out with him, what were the chances…
Just ask him to dinner.
Not yet.
“How are things at the inn?” Cal asked as Jack stepped into his booth. Cal and his partner, Beck, ran a farm that offered tours, trail rides, and event space.
“Good. Business is holding steady. I thought I’d see a huge drop-off after Labor Day.”
“The weather’s been perfect, and you’ve gotten some great reviews.”
Jack nodded. “I got really lucky with those.”
“So what do you need today?”
“I’ll take these.” He laid several bunches of spinach on the folding table where Cal checked out customers. “And two quarts of blackberries.”
Cal rang up the sale while Jack looked over the blackberries. He had trouble choosing the best ones, since they all looked good. It had been a great summer for berries.
As he bagged up Jack’s purchase, Cal grinned like he knew a secret.
“What?”
“Someone’s watching you.”
Jack turned and saw Luke staring right at him. Luke lowered his gaze, but even from that distance, Jack could see the color in his cheeks. Luke had inherited his mother’s pale skin, which meant anyone could tell if he was blushing even slightly. Jack wanted to do a number of things guaranteed to make him blush. Do not think about that now.
He turned back to Cal. “Is he…?”
Cal shrugged. “He was certainly watching you—your ass, if I had my guess—so I’d say yes.”
“Why on Earth is he watching me?”
Cal shook his head like Jack was hopeless. “Do I really have to explain that to someone your—”
“Age? That’s exactly what I mean. Why isn’t he busy gawking at someone at least as young as you?”
“I’m not saying I haven’t seen him looking over here when it was just me. But maybe he likes experience. Why don’t you ask him?”
“I…” Now Jack was the one blushing.
Cal studied him for several seconds. “You’re interested.”
“So what if I am?” His friend Brad was the only person he’d come out to as bi, but apparently Cal had guessed. Jack didn’t really mind. It wasn’t like Cal was going to judge him for it.
“Go over there and do something about it.”
“You really think I should?”
“If you’re asking me for relationship advice… You’re damn smart. I have got the best relationship ever.”
Jack glanced over to see Beck entering the booth.
“Oh, you do, do you? That is so not what you were saying last night when I reminded you it was your turn to check on the foals.”
Cal scowled at him. “Do not sully my picture of domestic bliss.”
“Ha! And since when do you use words like that?”
“Since I started hanging around with a fucking English teacher.”
Jack laughed. “You two enjoy your ‘bliss.’”
“Ask him,” Cal insisted.
Beck frowned at him. “Ask who what?”
Jack rolled his eyes. “You can tell him, but not anyone else, okay?”
“I’m not one to spill secrets. Now get out of here.”
***
Luke rearranged the ears of corn and baskets of tomatoes for the third time. Business at the tailgate market had slowed as they moved into mid-September. School had started back, tourism declined, and people stopped thinking as much about fresh summer produce. But his family still sold enough at the market to make it worthwhile, and as usual, he was the one stuck at the booth, even though he’d rather be doing something more physical. If he had to stand around in the heat, he might as well get a workout. But no, his dad always assigned him the lightest job, no matter how many times he’d proven he was perfectly healthy enough to do heavy farm work.
He was thinking about slipping over to the Bread Basket booth to see if they had any chocolate croissants left; those things were amazing. But when he looked up from scrawling a note saying he’d be right back, he noticed Jack Lawrence across the way at Cal’s booth.
Jack came to the market every week to buy produce for the bed-and-breakfast he owned. Every time he stopped at the Sumner stand, Luke became a tongue-tied mess. Luke doubted today would be any different. He couldn’t take his eyes off Jack as he examined the berries Cal had for sale. His long-fingered hands gently cradled each basket as he searched for the best one. The gray pants he had on clung to his ass and his muscular thighs, and his deep-blue shirt would bring out the color of his beautiful eyes.
Jack looked his way, and Luke quickly dropped his gaze, praying Jack hadn’t seen him.
For all Luke knew, Jack was straight as an arrow and would be disgusted if he realized Luke fantasized about him. But he’d seen Jack assessing other men in a way most straight men didn’t. The fact that Luke had noticed meant he’d spent far too much time watching a man who probably thought of him as a kid. Why did he always crush on older men who were out of his league?
When Jack crossed the grassy area between the rows of booths, Luke’s mouth went dry and his pulse pounded in his head.
“How’s the afternoon going?” Jack asked.
“Um…fine. It’s…uh…hot.”
“It is. It shouldn’t be this hot so far into September.”
“Right. It…um…shouldn’t.” Great. He was making a fool of himself.
“How’s your corn?”
The change of subject threw Luke at first. “Oh…um…it’s still producing. We’ve got some beautiful ears right here.” He pointed to his left where he’d placed the corn in bushel baskets. Produce was a safe subject. He could talk produce in his sleep.
“Great. I’ll take some. I’ve got a recipe for a Mexican casserole I want to try.”
“For your guests?”
Jack nodded.
“You…um…you seem to like choosing recipes for them.”
“Cooking for people has become my favorite part of running the inn, which has really surprised me.”
“Yeah?”
“Before I decided I wanted to run my own inn, I was, at best, a mediocre cook. I knew I wouldn’t be able to hire anyone to cook for me, though, so I started watching videos and practicing, and now I’m quite good, or at least the guests think so.”
“I bet you are.” Heat filled Luke’s face as he realized how breathless his words sounded.
“You should stop by the inn for breakfast sometime.”
“Oh, um…” Luke’s heart pounded.
“Since your family supplies so much of the food, it only makes sense for you to see how it gets used. And I like to show off my skills because I—”
“Worked hard for them.” They said the words at the same time.
“I know that feeling,” Luke said.
Jack smiled. “I guess you do.”
Unlike most people, especially anyone older than Luke, Jack didn’t patronize him. He simply acknowledged that Luke had worked hard for opportunities a lot of people took for granted.
“Call me if you want to stop by one morning.”
Luke would love a chance to spend more time with Jack, but he also knew he wouldn’t have the nerve to call. If he let Jack feed him a delicious breakfast, he’d be even more of a wreck around him than usual, or, even worse, he might lose his mind altogether, follow Jack into the kitchen, and try to seduce him right there.
He packaged up the produce Jack was buying and rang up the sale.
When Jack handed him his credit card, his fingers brushed Luke’s. The heat of the contact startled him, and he dropped the card. His gaze met Jack’s just before he bent to pick it up, and the intensity of Jack’s gaze said he wasn’t unaffected by the touch. That knowledge made Luke’s dick perk right up.
Fuck. He was going to give himself away. Hell, if Jack wasn’t stupid—and he wasn’t—he’d already figured out how Luke felt.
“S-sorry about that,” he said, needing to break the silence.
Jack just smiled, a slow, seductive curl of his lips that made Luke glance down at his iPad. Unfortunately, he’d forgotten how to scan a card. Or read. Or breathe. Get yourself together. Someone’s going to think your heart’s about to give out. It was beating so fast, he worried that maybe it was.
You’re fine. He just makes you horny. That’s all. So do plenty of other men.
Not like Jack did. There was just something about him, something so… Luke didn’t know how to explain it. Jack had this presence, this way of talking, that both put Luke at ease and made him needy. He was gentle but commanding at the same time. That sounded ridiculous, and it wasn’t like Luke really knew him that well. But he was sure Jack would take good care of him, not that he needed anyone to do that. He’d been fighting to show people he could take care of himself for so long. Yet when he jerked off, he always imagined a man who told him exactly what to do, and Luke loved every second of it.
But would Jack ever want to do the things Luke imagined, like tie him up, order him around, spank him? No. No way.
Jack picked up his bag, but he didn’t leave. When Luke glanced at him, he shifted from one foot to the other. Something in his eyes made him seem almost scared. But that was crazy. Jack always seemed so together.
“You’re still welcome to breakfast and all,” he said, “but I was also wondering if you’d like to—”
“Luke Sumner, is that you?”
Julianne Mathis, his mom’s friend from high school, stepped into the booth. He’d forgotten she was going to be in town this week.
“It’s me,” he said.
She glanced around, frowning. “Are you here all by yourself?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Oh my. They’re letting you run the stand now?”
Luke took a deep breath. “I’ve been running the stand for several years.”
“Well, goodness, how old are you now? How’s your heart?”
“My heart is fine and has been for years. I turned twenty-one last February.”
“Twenty-one? Wow. You still look fifteen. I guess it’s because you’re so small.”
Luke drew himself up. He was five feet nine, which was a perfectly respectable height. He was lean, but he had well-toned arms, and while he might not be built like The Rock, he had some really nice muscles. What was her problem?
It wasn’t just her, though. He was used to hearing shit like this. Normally, he would let it go, but did she have to say those things in front of Jack?
Jack! Luke turned. He was still there, but now he seemed to be trying not to laugh. Great. What had he been going to say?
“Miss Julianne, why don’t you check out the booth while I finish up with Mr. Lawrence?”
“Oh, I’m not going to buy anything. Your mother said she’d have a basket for me when I come for dinner tonight.”
“Of course, well, I—”
“I just wanted to say hello, but I’ll see you then.”
“Actually, I—”
“Oh, there’s Lou Ellen.” She sailed out of the booth as fast as she’d entered it.
Luke let out a long breath, then looked at Jack. “I’m sorry about that. What were you saying?”
“Oh, just…do stop by the inn sometime.” His words were stilted, not at all like they’d sounded before. And he had been going to say something else, Luke was sure of that.
“I… I’ll think about it.”
“Okay, I guess I’ll see you around.”
“Sure. Have a good rest of your day.” Luke managed to get the words past the knot in his throat.
Jack walked away, and no matter how much Luke willed him to, he didn’t look back. For a moment, Luke had thought… No, Jack hadn’t been going to ask Luke out. That was ridiculous. And the breakfast thing was just professional courtesy. Unless Luke was right, and he had been going to ask Luke out, but then Miss Julianne fucked it up.
Luke released his fists and breathed deeply, trying to get his anger under control. Why couldn’t people see him for the man he was? He wanted to overturn every bin in the stall, bring the whole thing down, and then run and not look back.
Julianne hadn’t seen him in a few years, but he’d been grown up then. Did she really think he was perpetually ten? And did she have to fucking embarrass him in front of the one man he really wanted?
Jack was everything he liked: older, kind, confident without being arrogant, warm, with a low, rich voice that…
He grabbed the note he’d started writing before he’d seen Jack, and finished scrawling a brief message. If he couldn’t have the satisfaction of squashing every last fucking tomato in the booth—by this time of year, he was well sick of them—then he at least deserved that chocolate croissant from the Bread Basket.