Page 73 of Harvest Heat

“Okay, but he also needs to win, so that won’t last long.”

Caleb smiled, thinking about Rhys showing up in the middle of the night in a rainstorm because he’d decided the only way he could win the contest was by working with Caleb. “He really does want to win. Is he always that competitive?”

“He is when it has to do with something he’s really interested in or something that matters to him.”

“Like coffee.”

“Yes, like coffee.”

“Should I just wait him out, or does he need a push?”

Marianne tilted her head as she considered the questions. “Give him a few days, then nudge him. Not too hard, but enough. He’s crazy about you. It’s so easy to see it if you know him. He’s not going to want to go too long without seeing you.”

CHAPTER 26

There was a knock on the door of Frost + Foam the next morning as Rhys was sleepily setting up for the day.

He wasn’t ready to deal with Tessa yet, but when he turned around, he saw Jonah standing there. Jonah had already been many drinks in when Rhys left his party. He was sure Jonah had been up late, so Rhys had expected him to sleep in.

Rhys unlocked the door and ushered him in. “What are you doing up this early?”

Jonah grinned. “I haven’t actually been to bed.”

“Wow. I expected you to be out late, but⁠—”

“I ended up back at Tessa’s. She has the day off, and we sat up talking until five. Then I decided to go on a walk and ended up here.”

“Do you want coffee, or are you going to go to bed?”

“I don’t work today, so sleep would probably be best, but I wanted to check on you.”

Rhys frowned. “Why?”

“You looked upset when you left last night.”

“I’m fine.” Jonah didn’t say a word, and the silence grew uncomfortable. “I was tired of people insinuating things about me and Caleb. I shouldn’t have said anything about us working together. It was better to keep it a secret.”

“It wasn’t that big of a secret.”

Rhys’s pulse sped up, and he leaned against the counter. “What do you mean?”

“You really think no one noticed you going to Cloud Nine in the evenings.”

“Most people aren’t even out in the evenings on weekdays.”

“We aren’t out late, but plenty of us go out to dinner or for drinks or knitting club or⁠—”

Rhys groaned. “Tell me the knitting club isn’t talking about me.”

“No more than usual.”

“What does that mean?”

Jonah shrugged. “Nothing.”

It would probably be bad for his stress levels to learn more. “If people knew, why didn’t they⁠—”

“Why do you think we all kept asking about how progress was going on your drink?”