I’d found this pumpkin farm last year when this bright idea came to me. A whole fucking year I’d been preparing for this day. I’d researched the family-owned business as if I were going to buy them out and knew the owners by first name now. When I’d approached them with the idea, they were thrilled to be a part of this big day. Now, it was up to me to deliver.
The store inside the barn-not-barn had pumpkin-flavored everything. I wanted to check it out before we left, but first things first. I grabbed Cal’s hand and marched toward the rows of pumpkins as if the plan would expire in seconds. I’d written speech after speech, and when I settled on one, I’d memorized it. If I didn’t get it out soon, I’d forget every word, every letter.
“What’s the hurry, Princess?” Cal chuckled behind me, yanking me to a stop, then wiggling out of my clutching, sweaty hand.
His bright blond hair was even more so on this gloomy day. Like me, he wore jeans and a sweater. His tan jacket had wooden buttons, but he’d left them undone.
“Sorry,” I breathed as I slipped my hands inside the open material to twist in his shirt.
Cal cupped the back of my neck, then tucked my head to his shoulder. I had limits when it came to displays like this. I wasn’t as closed off as I used to be, but I wasn’t ready to make out like porn stars either. A hug, a brief kiss, was fine. Cal never pushed, which made what I was about to do even more of a big deal than it already was.
“Still worried about Ty? You know he can come over whenever he wants. We’ll probably see him more now than when we lived in the same apartment.”
His rumbled laugh made me smile as it warmed my insides. Cal and I had grown since we met five years ago, matured some, but one thing I could always count on with him was hiscompassion. He cared, deeply, with no ulterior motive than to please others, to make sure everyone was happy.
And the one person he wanted to make sure was happy above any other was me. How could Inotlock him down?
I kissed his neck, then his ear, before pulling away enough to return his hint of a smile. “Sorry,” I said again. “Just a bit excited for this.” Fact, just not all of it.
I was excited. Nervous, but excited, delighted, overjoyed, and all of those lovey-dovey emotions rolled into one, which had me shaking with nervousness that I’d fuck up this moment.
“Then let’s not keep them waitin’.”
Rows of pumpkins sat ready to be selected like puppies at a pet store. For a fruit, they had more personality than I’d expected. While Cal ooo’d and aww’d over the ones with weird bumps and colors, I discreetly texted the owners to let them know we’d arrived. According to them, they were a common spot for proposals and even weddings from time to time. I didn’t know if Cal would want to get married here, but the country setting made me think of Alabama, so maybe he’d like that.
Neat lines of orange were broken only by people, stray wheelbarrows, and one with a little flag marking ittheone. We still had a few rows to wander through before we made it there. Perfect. Plenty of time for my stomach to knot even harder. If we didn’t get there soon, I was liable to throw up.
Fuck, just how many pumpkins was I going to have to buy today while I fumbled my way through this?
“Check it out,” Cal said as he batted my arm. “Let’s get the green-and-white one.”
“Don’t you want to see them all?”
Cal made a quick survey of the remaining rows. “I mean, those look boring compared to these guys.”
I rolled my eyes. “No, we will not pick the first pumpkin we see.”
“Why not? It’s a fuckin’ pumpkin.”
“Did you pick the first gay man you saw?”
Cal furrowed his brows and placed his hands on his hips. At my continued heavy breathing and what might have been a grimace on my face, he smoothed his expression and reached for me again. “You sure you’re okay? You look a little sick.”
I sucked my lips in and rubbed my stomach. “Maybe the coffee,” I lied. I’d barely had any of it. The way my insides had gurgled and rolled all morning, the last thing I wanted was an unrelenting need to find the nearest toilet mid-proposal.
“Oh.” Cal turned left and right. “Uh, the store probably has a bathroom.”
“No. No, let’s keep walking. I’ll be fine.”
“You’re sure?” He wasn’t convinced, but neither was I.
“Yeah. Absolutely,” I said, pitched too high. Fuck me. He had to know something was seriously up. Would he figure out what exactly?
Cal, being the sweetheart he was, chatted at my side—trying to distract me, no doubt—while we slowly meandered our way closer and closer tothepumpkin.
“Did you know a lot of people consider pumpkins a vegetable?” Cal asked but didn’t wait for my answer. “They’re a squash, but squash’re one of those hidin’-in-plain-sight veggies.”
“A what?”
