Page 36 of Harvest Heat

Panic assaulted Rhys. His head spun, and he didn’t feel like he could get enough air in his lungs. He wanted to run, but even more, he wanted to melt into the ground, to just dissolve so he wouldn’t have to look at Caleb again.

CHAPTER 14

Caleb tried to catch his breath as he saw the panic in Rhys’s eyes. He’d been shocked when Rhys initiated the kiss, but no way in hell was he going to turn him down when he’d been wanting to kiss Rhys from the moment Rhys entered Cloud Nine that night. Seeing Rhys smile about the drink they’d made, especially after seeing him so devastated the night before when he thought he’d failed at creating something worth entering, made Caleb want to pick Rhys up and spin him around.

Rhys had been so upset he’d run through the rain. He’d agree to compromise with Caleb, and even to put pie crust flakes on top of a drink he was co-signing. And if their delicious cinnamon apple concoction was their first try, they were going to end up with pure perfection.

But first, Caleb needed to make sure Rhys didn’t lose it, because even Caleb was uncertain about their kiss—not about how good it had felt, but about the potential consequences.

He watched Rhys glance toward the door, back to him, then to the door again. “Please don’t run. Just stay here and breathe. I’m going to give you space.”

“I want to run.”

“I know, but you’re safe here.”

Rhys chewed his lower lip, and Caleb could tell his hands were shaking. He wanted to pull Rhys to him, wrap his arms around him, and hold him until he was able to settle down. But he knew Rhys wouldn’t accept that type of comfort. Physical contact wasn’t going to fix this.

He filled a glass with cold water and handed it to Rhys. “Here. Drink this.” Rhys took a sip, then pressed the glass to his face. “Thank you for staying.”

Rhys nodded. “I didn’t mean to do that.”

“To kiss me?”

Another nod. “I mean, I wanted to, but it’s a bad idea.”

“Maybe, but it didn’t feel like a mistake while we were doing it.”

“No, it didn’t.” Rhys licked his lips as he stared at Caleb, and it was all Caleb could do not to kiss him again. He couldn’t remember ever wanting a man that much.

“I want to kiss you again,” he said. “I want to do a lot more than that.” Rhys’s eyes widened. “But not tonight, because I want you to be absolutely sure of what you want. When I take you upstairs and lay you in my bed, I want you to be all in. I want to be able to make you stop thinking of all the reasons we shouldn’t do what we want. You won’t be thinking about anything but me.”

“Fuck.”

“Do you need me to walk you back to Frost + Foam? Or drive you home?”

“I… um… I walked here from home. I needed… I needed the exercise to calm my nerves.”

Caleb smiled. “Come on. Let me drive you home.” Caleb gestured toward the back of the store.

“You don’t need to do that. Someone might see us together.”

“Rhys, I don’t think it’s a big deal if I give you a ride home. Maybe you were at the pub and you had several drinks.”

“Everyone will know I wasn’t at the pub, and I rarely drink more than a single beer.”

“Rhys, it’s late, and you’re shaken up. You shouldn’t walk home alone. How far is it?”

“It’s just a mile and a half. Really, I’m good.”

He was far from good. His hands were still shaking, and he wouldn’t look at Caleb. “My truck is in the back. No one is going to see us. I won’t even drive on Front Street.” He held out his hand, fighting back a smile when Rhys accepted it and laced their fingers together like he needed Caleb to anchor him.

Caleb unlocked his truck and waited by the passenger door as Rhys climbed into the seat and buckled himself in. As Caleb seated himself and started the truck, he noticed that Rhys kept his focus on the window. Caleb wanted to reach for his hand again, but he squeezed the gear shift instead. He wasn’t going to push.

“Are you all right?”

Rhys nodded but didn’t speak.

Caleb turned out into the alley, then drove along a road that paralleled Front Street. They were about halfway to Rhys’s house when Rhys finally glanced in Caleb’s direction.