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“Yup.” Dev passed the Market and turned right onto the two-lane county road that led toward Merrilton. “The town contracts with him for maintenance on all the common spaces, and since everyone in town likes to toss everyone else business, all the residents pretty much hire him too. He does snow removal in the winter, tree pruning, garden mulching, you name it. Then there’s his ride-share side hustle.”
Casey bit his lip. “I may have stuck my foot in it a bit this morning. I noticed that Sylvia doesn’t shop at the Market.”
Dev grimaced. “Yeah. That’s kinda been a bone of contention between her and Kat for the last fourteen years. I don’t think it was intentional, originally. Sylvia was fresh off the show cancellation and newly in recovery. Figuring out alternate supply chains was one too many new things for her to deal with. But Kat took it into her head to be insulted and the rift never healed.”
“Well…” Casey drew out the word. “I may have talked Sylvia into letting me take over ordering for the school. And may have mentioned partnering with Kat to source things locally and to act as intermediary.”
Dev glanced at him, eyebrows raised. “She agreed?”
“Yeah. And I’m pretty sure Kat will go for it, too. We’ve already chatted about her local suppliers.”
“Casey, my friend,” Dev said, approval lacing his tone, which doubled down on the spine tingles, “we’re very lucky you showed up in Home.”
We? Casey turned away, throat thick. Does he mean he’s lucky too? He reminded himself not to rush the process, not to barrel toward the product, and to keep the intrusive questions to a minimum. They passed the Home town limits, the sun casting dappled light on the road through the towering trees.
“I haven’t been out of town since I arrived. Where are we going?”
“You’ll see. Not far.”
Casey turned back to Dev. “All this secrecy is not filling me with vast levels of confidence.”
“Nothing nefarious, I promise. Check in the back.”
Casey twisted around, craning his neck to scan the rear seat. An enormous basket covered with a blue gingham cloth rested behind him. He couldn’t contain his grin and bounced in his seat. “A picnic? Where’d you get the food?”
“Some of it from Sylvia. Some of it from Kat.” He winked. “You’re not the only one who’s trying to broker a truce between those two.” He flicked on his turn signal and pulled off the road onto an unpaved path barely wide enough for the CR-V. He made another hard left and eased the car between the trunks of two sturdy maples, clearing the lane for other traffic. “Can you get out on that side?”
Casey eased his door open. “As long as your fancy car can handle a close encounter with some holly bushes.”
“It can take it. But keep clear of those leaves in your shorts. Wouldn’t want to start out the date with a dip into the First Aid kit. Could you grab the basket, please? I need to collect some things out of the back.”
“Sure.” Casey collected the picnic and joined Dev by the side-opening hatch door, where he was pulling an armful of folded… stuff out of the rear of the car. “What’s all that?”
“Blanket. Inflatable camping cushion. Insect netting.” He shut the door with a sharp bump of his hip. “I enjoy Mother Nature as much as the next guy, but I draw the line at rocks under my ass and wasps in my salad. Plus”—Dev’s smile turned almost shy—“I’m hoping we’ll be here for a while, and I don’t want to fight the mosquitos for a taste of your skin.”
Casey may have squeaked. Just a little. He swallowed twice and said, “Gotta love a man who thinks ahead.”
This was a process he could both enjoy and embrace, because the product would be so worth it.
In fact, this time, process and product might be exactly the same thing.
As they stood on the rocks overlooking the quarry, Dev was mesmerized by the play of sunlight on Casey’s hair, the way it brought out hidden glints of gold and copper amid the brown, like hidden treasure.
“Is this the quarry where the marble for the Home sidewalks came from?” Casey asked.
“Yep.” Dev leaned closer, catching a whiff of citrus and vanilla, like a tender and perfect Summer Kitchen delicacy. Casey on the menu. Mouthwatering. “Stopped producing back in the Sixties when it started to fill with water. Now it’s kind of the town swimming hole. The first chilly—and extremely brief—swim in spring is like a rite of passage for every kid in Home.”
“Yeah?” Casey grinned up at him, eyes widening at how close Dev’s face was to his. “You ever go skinny dipping up here?”
Dev leaned closer. “What do you think?”
The sun picked out more buried treasure in Casey’s eyes. “I think I’d pay big money to see that.”
“I’d give you the show, free of charge, except we’ve got a picnic awaiting us and by the time we’re done eating, the mosquitos will be out in force. One day, though. When you’re free in the middle of the day when the rocks are warm and the sun has dried up all the mosquito-spawning puddles.”
“In the middle of the day?” Casey’s tone was a nice blend of scandalized and thrilled.
Dev shrugged. “Everyone around here knows the quarry is clothing optional.” He winked. “We’ll both take the plunge.”
