With a Pinch of Love: A Slow Burn, Best Friends to Lovers, Bi-Awakening MM Romance by Hayden Hall

Author:Hayden Hall [Hall, Hayden]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Independent
Published: 2021-09-14T16:00:00+00:00

Fifteen

Marshal

I picked up an eggplant and turned it in my hands to make sure it wasn’t going bad. With four good-looking ones, I paid the man who sold them at the farmers’ market, exchanged a few polite words, then moved on.

There was an explosion of scents in the air. It was a combination of the fresh produce with the alluring smoke from the grills at the edge of the market, where two food-trucks sold food in heaps. Chatter around me drowned any possibility of internal thoughts, but it also removed any chance of overhearing any single conversation.

I pushed through the crowd, learning quickly that seven in the morning, when the market opened, was the busiest time of the day here. Nobody thought it was trouble to get up early for the best meat, fish, fruits, and vegetables in town.

I wondered when the farmers selling here had to get up. They’d need at least an hour to set it all up. Were there queues each morning, people tapping their feet on the ground while the merchants prepared their stalls? It seemed like there should be, except this town exuded calm patience at every turn.

Just the day before, I’d spent half an hour with the bank teller talking about Rochester House, and the person who stood in the line behind me not only failed to complain, but joined the conversation.

“It’s lovely to have new faces around here,” said the lady who’d been waiting for her turn.

“Hopefully you’ll turn a profit soon,” said the teller.

I waded through the throng with paper bags in my hands, done with my shopping for the day, but in the mood for exploring. A spontaneous bidding war erupted to my right where Mr. Green’s Greens ran low on the greens, so I paused and observed two men and two women persuading Mr. Green to sell the last items to them. “I baptized your first-born,” said a voice in the group.

I chuckled to myself and moved on. Just as I turned the corner, planning to go around the market and toward my car, someone tapped me on the shoulder. I spun around and found the shining smile of none other but Jesse.

“Hey,” I said.

“Hey yourself,” he said. “I thought I might find you here.”

“Oh, you’re stalking now?” I teased.

He waved a celery stick in his hand. “Outrageous. I’m shopping.”

“That’s not enough to feed a rabbit,” I pointed out.

Jesse threw his head back and laughed. “Got me. I’m out exploring…”

“But?”

He smirked. “But I was hoping to catch you alone.”

My lips stretched into a smile against my will. Why did I have to be so obvious?

“Are you in a hurry?” he asked.

“If I said yes, the townsfolk would exile me.” I looked around at the slow progression of the throng and the laid-back movements of the merchants.

“Good point,” said Jesse. “Walk with me then.”

It was a request and I couldn’t say no to it, even if I wanted to. Luckily for both of us, I didn’t want to say no. We headed between the rows of stalls selling homemade trinkets and jewelry.

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