Page 32 of Harvest Heat

Rhys was waiting at the door of Cloud Nine when he got back from the pub. He should’ve known Rhys would be early. “Sorry you were waiting.”

Rhys shook his head. “That’s okay.”

“I guess if we’re going to be working together a lot, we should exchange keys.”

Rhys’s eyes widened. “I… um…”

“Or if you’re not comfortable with that, it’s okay. I just thought it might be convenient.”

“It would be, I guess.”

“Let’s talk about it later.” He wasn’t going to push Rhys. He was lucky Rhys was here working with him at all, and it wasn’t like they really knew each other well or anything. Surely, Rhys didn’t think Caleb would sabotage his shop or something if they had each other’s keys, though. A lot of people in Frostwick Harbor left their businesses and homes unlocked most of the time. It was certainly nothing like Boston. But maybe Rhys was a lot more security-conscious.

“I’m not trying to be difficult,” Rhys said.

“I know. It’s really fine.”

“I can be a little weird about privacy. I just… I don’t even like anyone to be in the shop when I’m not there.”

“Did you close for the afternoon today or…?”

“No, Sam was working, but I’ve gotten used to them. They’re the first person I’ve ever let run the shop without me.”

“So you worked all the hours the shop was open for how long?”

“Nineteen months.”

Of course he knew exactly. “Whoa, Rhys. That’s way too much. You’re open seven days a week.”

“We weren’t, at first. When I first opened, the shop was open Wednesday to Sunday, then I added Tuesday and then Monday, but not until I trusted Sam to be on their own.”

“Still, you deserve more time off. Have you not gone out of town or taken a vacation in that time?”

“No. I… It’s fine. I like my store. I like this town. I’m good here.”

Caleb decided he wouldn’t push that, but no wonder Rhys was tense. Even with Sam working for him, he was still overworked.

“I should’ve asked you what you wanted to eat before we left the orchard. Since I didn’t have your number, I just ordered your usual at the pub. I hope that’s okay.”

Rhys’s face lit up, and his smile sent tingles through Caleb’s body. “You remembered what I order?”

“Of course. You told me the other night.”

“But I didn’t expect you to remember it. I guess we need to exchange numbers.”

“Yes, we do need to be able to contact each other if we’re going to work together.” He held out a hand. “Give me your phone.” Rhys looked concerned. “Or I can give you mine.”

“No, it’s just… It’s fine.” He pulled his phone from his pocket, unlocked it, and handed it to Caleb, who entered his number, created a contact for himself, then texted himself so he would have Rhys’s number as well.

After he returned Rhys’s phone, he gestured toward one of the tables toward the back of the shop. “Come on. Let’s sit down so we can eat. I can run upstairs and grab you a beer or a soda or whatever.”

Rhys looked uncertain.

“How about this: It’s been a long week. I’m going to go upstairs and get myself a beer. Would you like one?”

“Sure.” Rhys looked relieved not to have to make a choice.

“All right. I’ll be back in a second.”