Page 29 of Harvest Heat

Of course, he wasn’t that lucky. When Tessa pulled up in front of his house, Finn was in the passenger seat, and Caleb was in the back. Rhys wasn’t sure how Caleb’s long legs could even fit.

Why hadn’t she offered to let him sit up front? Then they could chatter, and Rhys and Finn could just listen.

Rhys contemplated faking a sudden illness or trying to sprain his ankle on the way to the car. Of course, Tessa would try to make him go anyway. He drew in a deep breath and opened the back passenger door.

“All right. We’re ready to go to the orchard,” Tessa said.

“Marianne and Jonah are meeting us there,” Finn said.

Rhys knew Tessa had planned this. His heart was racing, but he was determined to survive somehow.

“I hope you had a good morning,” Caleb said. Why was his voice so sexy?

Rhys studied his hands as he said, “I did.”

There was a brief moment of silence, and then Tessa said, “How about you, Caleb? How was your morning?”

Shit. Rhys should have asked that. He was so focused on not looking at Caleb and embarrassing himself that he didn’t remember to keep the conversation going.

“Busy,” Caleb said. “I didn’t realize how many people would be up first thing on a Sunday.”

“A lot of the tourists want to take advantage of every moment they’re here,” Finn said.

“They sure do.”

“We had a lot of tourists too,” Rhys said.

He couldn’t resist looking at Caleb any longer. He was smiling at Rhys. “I’m glad.”

The words seemed to brush across his skin.

Rhys managed not to combust during the half-hour ride. Fortunately, even though they weren’t sitting together, Tessa and Caleb did most of the talking.

They didn’t touch a single time, but Rhys was so aware of Caleb’s body near his that he would have sworn he could feel Caleb’s warmth like his thigh was pressing against Rhys’s. Whenever Caleb slid his hand along his own leg, Rhys couldn’t help but watch. One time, he laid his hand on the seat between them, and Rhys had to twine his fingers together to keep from reaching for it. This man was making him unhinged.

Rhys practically jumped out of the car when they reached the orchard. He took deep breaths after feeling like he couldn’t breathe properly while sitting that close to Caleb.

Thankfully, Jonah and Marianne were already there, so they didn’t have to wait around. Rhys deliberately trailed behind as Tessa directed them all to the stand where they would pick up baskets for apple picking.

“Let’s get doughnuts first,” Jonah suggested, just like he did every year.

Marianne laughed. “You know Tessa’s not going to let us do that. You have to do the work first and then get the doughnuts.”

“Maybe one day, we’ll just ride out here and get doughnuts. How about that?”

Tessa rolled her eyes and motioned everybody ahead. When they had all collected baskets, they headed out into the orchard.

Caleb was the tallest, so he got tapped for picking lots of apples no one else could reach. Rhys and Finn focused on the easy picks. They were there more for doughnuts and animals and the chance to spend a beautiful day outside.

Rhys managed to avoid having any moments where he had to talk one-on-one with Caleb. When everyone’s basket was full, they headed back to the stand to pay and select other goodies. After selections were made, they got in line for doughnuts.

Rhys handed Tessa some money and said, “I’m going to go see the bunnies. Please get a couple of doughnuts for me.”

“Sure, I’m already getting Finn’s too.” He’d already left to go have a look at the goats and sheep. He kept talking about getting some for himself.

Rhys headed down a dirt path to the rabbit hutch. He was glad to be on his own for a few minutes. Without the concern that he was going to embarrass himself in front of Caleb, he was able to really take in the beauty of the farm. When he reached the top of a hill, he looked out across the acres of apple trees and the playground, where kids were swinging and climbing, and then to the pond, where ducks and geese swam, and finally to the rabbit hutch.

There were a few kids who were picking grass and feeding it through the wire to the bunnies, but Rhys had one side of the hutch to himself, so he sat on the ground and began feeding them the bunny-safe treats he’d purchased.