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“And some kind of breakfast.” Tyler sounded skeptical.

“Well… more like brunch. But delicious. There’s a crepe stand inside. And Westfall Orchards does a homemade fruit-yogurt thing if you want. Or you could hold out for the real deal.” Josh waggled his brows, trying to make a joke of his suggestion.

Tyler looked him up and down and smiled slowly. “Yeah? That’s pretty mysterious. What does that mean exactly?”

“If you can hold out and work up an appetite, I can make it worth your while.”

“I like the sound of that, Ayres.” Tyler didn’t laugh. Actually, he leaned in closer and his voice got husky, as though he were swapping secrets, mumbling right into Josh’s ear. “I’m a sucker for delayed gratification.”

The hair on Josh’s neck stood up at the shivery tickle, though he kept his voice level. “That so?”

But Tyler had walked on, leaving Josh stunned in his wake.

Had Tyler just been flirting with him? That had to be serious flirting, right? Or was this like their “big banana” joke? Did bros talk like that to each other outside of porn?

“This is way more than a farm stand, though. I mean, I see some produce, but it seems more like a fancy flea market.”

“You got weaving. Pottery. Taxidermy. Candy. Leatherwork. Rabbits.” Josh nodded at some of the stalls in their immediate vicinity, raising his hand to a couple of vendors who knew him on sight. “You never know what’ll turn up.”

“Music to my ears, my man.” Without warning, Tyler wrapped a heavy arm around him and squeezed him in a hard side hug. “And I brought cash for both of us.”

“No, no. This is on me.”

Tyler rolled his eyes. “Humor me. Who are the regulars?”

“Sometimes a local barber comes to cut hair. A bunch of local farms and orchards bring produce. That family down there makes the world’s best jalapeño cornbread. Nadia’s favorite.”

“I didn’t know that.”

“Then your sister has been hiding it from you out of pure selfishness for more than ten years.”

“Nadia’s been here?”

“Oh God. All the time. We used to come out every weekend in high school. I even worked here one Christmas, wrapping presents. Your mom loved the strawberries from that place on the right. Huge.”

“Josh?” Tyler said quietly and touched his arm. “Do you think we could stay a little longer? Just to explore some more.”

“Sure.” Josh tried to ignore the flutter in his chest at the prospect of spending more time together. “I’m in no hurry.”

Just then, a young mom browsing a macramé stall with her kids spotted Tyler Fantana, NFL superstar.

Josh watched the whole celebrity sighting experience unfold in real time: America’s Tightest End in the flesh. First the realization dawned on her face, and her whole body stiffened, like a dog seeing a steak hit the floor. The minute she decided to raise a ruckus, the whole crowd would rush them and the day would be ruined.

Josh shifted to Tyler’s left to block her view and to get away from the most active cluster of stalls. Tyler didn’t seem to realize he’d been spotted or clock the danger. He must be used to this kind of continual hassle from strangers. Josh stared at the woman as they approached, willing her to look up and see him.

Finally she did.

She looked from Tyler to Josh and their eyes caught. He saw the urge to interrupt sweep over her face. Holding firm, he shook his head side to side, not grinning or giving her an ounce of permission. Her face fell, but to her credit, she stayed put with a rueful nod. She watched them pass, hope and disappointment warring on her face.

Tyler never noticed.

“I never had a clue this was out here,” Tyler exclaimed, picking up an intricately carved wooden lizard studded with agates.

“Maybe you had other things to think about. Games to win, girls to charm.”

Tyler made a face. “Yeah. Shows you what I knew.”

Josh looked at him a moment before confessing, “I always admired that. Your certainty.”