The Delicious Series: The First Volume

by Stella Starling

  “Not hair, silly,” the munchkin said, giggling. “‘Hare.’ It’s an animal. Like a rabbit, but bigger, and the ears are longer. You squeaked, and you sounded like one.”

  “I was just clearing my throat,” he said, trying and failing to duplicate the sound in a more manly tone.

  “Don’t lie. My daddy says it’s bad form.”

  “Your daddy sounds like a smart guy.”

  “Well, I wouldn’t go that far.”

  Surprised, Jeremy made the hare-not-a-rabbit squeaking sound again. It was Nick’s voice, laced with laughter, and now Jeremy was embarrassed.

  Again.

  How was it possible that after twenty straight minutes of watching-not-watching the clock, he’d still managed to miss it when Nick had finally come through the door? Although now that he was here… God.

  Nick was Not Helping with Jeremy’s resolution to stop crushing on him.

  Jeremy’s memory of Nick’s hotness-factor had apparently faded over the last few days, and while he was definitely a fan of the gym-attire look—what with all the skin and muscle that it showed off—Nick managed to do amazing things with a pair of jeans and a Henley, too. Although really, with the smile Nick was giving him, the man could have been wearing a burlap sack and still sent Jeremy’s heart into overdrive.

  Not to mention other parts of him.

  Jeremy swallowed, disciplining his libido as he reminded himself that Nick wasn’t there for him. Well, okay, so, technically, he was—but not the way that Jeremy’s randy hormones wanted him to be. He tucked the book he’d been quality checking under the counter, blaming Nora Roberts for his reaction. That woman had definitely spoiled him when it came to his expectations for a happy ending.

  “Hey, Pumpkin,” Nick said, winking at him. He nodded toward his sidekick. “This is Ava.”

  “Nice to meet you, Ava,” Jeremy said, ignoring the fact that Nick had just called him Pumpkin.

  The nickname did nothing for him.

  No fluttering occurred.

  He did not get a little zing of excitement upon hearing it.

  Jeremy grabbed the to-go cup he’d picked up at Delicious that morning. It was almost empty, but hopefully the last sip of his mocha would help keep his inner-hare under control. It was cold, but whatever. Caffeine plus chocolate had never let him down.

  “Nice to meet you, too,” Ava said, clasping her hands in front of her. “Are you my daddy’s pretend boyfriend?”

  Jeremy sputtered, choking on his coffee.

  “You okay, J?”

  “Fine,” he said, crumpling the traitorous cup in his hand before tossing it into the trash.

  Caffeine plus chocolate was officially fired.

  For now.

  Definitely a decision he might reverse in the future, though, if circumstances warranted it.

  “Do you like kids?” Ava asked, blinking up at him innocently. “Because my daddy promised me that he’d never date anyone who didn’t.”

  “Your dad and I are just pretending to date,” Jeremy answered, feeling flustered.

  He hadn’t expected to be discussing his love life—even this fake version—with a six-year-old. So far, she’d managed to throw him off his game twice, which meant he definitely wasn’t giving Nick the second first-impression he’d been hoping for. But he didn’t have time to worry about that at the moment. Ava’s eyes had narrowed at his answer, and now she pinned him with her tiny gaze-of-steel, adding to the fluster factor.

  “Is that a no?” she asked, putting her hands on her hips. And, before he could answer, “You’re saying you don’t like kids?”

  “What? No!” He hadn’t said that. It wasn’t even true. She’d barked the questions at him rapid-fire, as if he were on trial, and just like all those poor witnesses that got twisted around in their testimony on crime shows, now he was having trouble remembering his point. He took a breath, finding it again. “I was just pointing out that your daddy’s promise doesn’t apply to me,” he said. “If you want to get technical about it. Because we’re not actually dating.”

  “Hm,” she said, eyeing him speculatively. “I don’t think you’re using that word entirely accurately.”

  Did six-year-olds say things like “entirely accurately”?

  Jeremy bit back a smile. He had at that age, of course. Learning to read so young had definitely given him a broad vocabulary, and even before that, he’d been addicted to words—to stories—since, well, birth. Probably before. Given his late grandmother’s voracious reading habits, he suspected it was genetic.

  In this case, though, Ava had lost him.

  “Which word?” he asked, trying to remember exactly what he’d said.

  “‘Technical,’” she answered, grinning up at him with her father’s sunny smile.

  She really was amazingly cute. Also, correct, if you wanted to get, er, technical about it.

  “I know what you were trying to say,” she added. “But the meaning of that word isn’t precisely right in that context. I do not think it means what you think it means.”

  “Did you just quote The Princess Bride at me?” Jeremy asked, eyebrows shooting up. He wasn’t sure which impressed him more, the fact that she’d suddenly started talking like a miniature adult, or her stellar taste in movies.

  “Yes,” she said, beaming. “It’s one of my favorites. And I like you for recognizing it.”

  “Well, I like you for calling me out on sloppy language. Most people let me get away with it.”

  “My mother is an attorney, so I’ve learned to pay attention to details like that. Also, you didn’t answer my question.”

  “About dating your dad?”

  “No,” she said, rolling her eyes and reverting to a first grader again. “The important one.”

  “Oh, right,” he said, trying not to laugh. “Yes, I do like kids.”

  Kelley walked over, holding a stack of books. “I like kids, too,” she said, smiling down at Ava. “And I’m guessing you’re here for story time. Do you want to help me get set up?”

  “Can I, Daddy?” Ava asked, tugging on Nick’s shirt.

  “Sure, Sprout,” Nick said, ruffling her hair. “Have fun.”

  Ava and Kelley walked off, chattering happily, and Jeremy made a show of looking over Nick’s shoulder toward the door.

  “So, where’s your six-year-old?” he asked.

  Nick laughed. “Yeah, Ava’s a pistol. She can talk circles around me.”

  “She’s definitely bright,” Jeremy agreed, charmed. “And not just because of her fantastic vocabulary. Do you read to her much?”

  Nick shook his head, looking away as he rubbed the back of his neck with one hand.

  “Her mother has custody,” he said, frustration flashing across his face for a moment as he gave that non-answer. Then his usual expression of good cheer reappeared, and he leaned a hip against the counter, crossing his arms in a way that stretched the thin material of his shirt in extremely interesting ways. “But let’s talk about us.”

  Us. Jeremy bit back a smile. The word did nothing for him.

  Oh, fine.

  Ava was right; lying was bad form.

  “Um, Candi’s thing,” Jeremy said, forcing himself to focus on what Nick’s “us” had actually referred to. “I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you breaking up with me.”

  Nick grinned.

  Jeremy laughed.

  “You know what I mean,” he said, his commitment to not-crushing severely tested by the way Nick’s eyes sparkled at him.

  Well, sparkled.

  In his general direction.

  Not that it meant anything about him, personally.

  Jeremy cleared his throat, refocusing. “So I figure we can just sort of stage a fight while we’re there? You know, break up right in front of her, so she doesn’t expect to see us together again.”

  “Hm,” Nick hm’d.

  What did that sound mean? Was Nick agreeing? Did he have a better idea? Did he not want to break up? />
  Jeremy held his breath.

  “Sounds good,” Nick said. “So what do you want to fight about?”

  Jeremy’s breath whooshed out in a stuttering laugh. Right. Okay. Reality check. Of course Nick was planning to break up with him. This little trip to the land of romantic make-believe came with a built-in end date. Time to think about the type of thing Nick wouldn’t like about him. That should help put a damper on things. Which was good, right?

  “Maybe we can fight about how I don’t work out enough?” Jeremy suggested. “You’d probably want a real boyfriend who could keep up with you.”

  “Breaking up with you for not hitting the gym very often?” Nick repeated back, raising an eyebrow. “That would officially make me an ass. Besides—” he reached out to squeeze Jeremy’s modest bicep. “—you did great the other day. Like I tell my clients, it’s not really about where you’re at now, but what you’re willing to do in order to get where you want to go.”

  “Right,” Jeremy said, liking that philosophy.

  Also liking the feel of Nick’s hand on him.

  And then that part ended, so he refocused. Again.

  “Okay, so… maybe you cheated on me?”

  Nick frowned. “I would never do that.”

  Not fluttering.

  Not.

  Fluttering.

  Jeremy cleared his throat. “Okay. So, I cheated on you?” He shook his head even as the words left his mouth, his lip quirking up ruefully. “Okay, no. No one would believe that.”

  “Why not?” Nick asked, his brow furrowing in confusion, as if he really didn’t know the answer.

  Jeremy wanted to laugh, but he held it in. Nick probably didn’t get it because this was all just make-believe to him. No, not “to him”—God, Jeremy really had to watch himself—it was all make believe. Period.

  They were both pretending.

  But that didn’t change the fact that there was no chance in hell that Jeremy would want someone else, if they were actually dating for real.

  He already didn’t.

  But he’d get over that, eventually, right?

  He ignored Nick’s question, instead suggesting, “Leaving dirty dishes in the sink? That one has ended it for me before.”

  “I don’t do that, J.”

  “But I do,” Jeremy said, grinning like he’d just rolled Yahtzee. “I’m horrible with housework.”

  “Well, I can live with that,” Nick said agreeably. “Besides, I wouldn’t break up with you over something so petty.”

  “Of course you wouldn’t,” Jeremy said. Of course Nick wouldn’t have a fatal flaw, since, by definition, he was already out of reach. “Well, why don’t you tell me what bugs you, then? I’m sure there’s something about me that would qualify.”

  “Road rage?”

  Jeremy shook his head. “I hate that.”

  “Me, too,” Nick agreed. “How about talking during movies?”

  “Ugh.”

  Nick laughed, nodding. “Maybe we get along too well to break up.”

  “There’s got to be something,” Jeremy insisted. Because otherwise, it would just be too cruel of fate to bring Nick into his life this way.

  “Not putting the cap back on the toothpaste?”

  “I thought you weren’t going to be petty,” Jeremy reminded him, biting back a smile.

  “That’s a serious offense, J.”

  The smile Nick gave him was far too sexy for Jeremy’s well-being.

  “You’re not being helpful,” Jeremy said sternly. At least, he hoped he managed “stern,” although it may have been more along the lines of hopelessly infatuated. “What’s an actual reason you’ve broken up with someone before?”

  Nick’s brow crinkled, his eyes flickering back and forth slightly as if he were sorting through memories.

  “I don’t think I’ve ever been the one who did the breaking up,” he said after a moment. His cheeks turned a little pink, and he gave Jeremy a sheepish smile. “I tend to be pretty devoted, so I guess you’ll have to be the one to end it, J.”

  “Why on earth would I do that?” Jeremy blurted without thinking.

  Nick grinned. “To get Candi off your back?”

  “Right.” Because this was all pretend. “Well, let’s just play it by ear. I’m sure we can manage to pick a fight about something. I, for one, have had plenty of experience breaking up.”

  “Okay,” Nick said agreeably. “I’ll follow your lead then. But what about the rest of our plans? You never answered me about what time to pick you up.”

  “I don’t want you to go out of your way. I mean, it’s not a real date.” Which Jeremy was going to do a much better job of remembering, starting now. “I can just meet you there.”

  “Really? You don’t think arriving separately will give away the charade?”

  “Maybe you’re right,” Jeremy said, giving in without a fight because apparently he had zero willpower. More time with Nick? Yes, please. “I live above the store here, so any time after six is good for me.”

  “Perfect,” Nick said, doing the sexy smile thing again. And then, “You free tomorrow?”

  “I’m working until two,” Jeremy said, ignoring the way his pulse insisted on racing at the question. He wasn’t sure why Nick was asking, but it definitely was not Nick asking him out.

  “Two is good,” Nick said. “I’m gonna hit the rock climbing gym. That was one of the things you listed in your Facebook post, wasn’t it? Do you want to come?”

  With Nick? Um… yes.

  Oh, but he’d meant rock climbing.

  So, actually, in this case, maybe the answer was no. The idea of actually climbing, on rocks—even faux-rocks—was a bit intimidating. It had sounded exciting when he wrote it, but the truth was that Jeremy had never really been good at sporty things. If he were going to start pushing himself to break out of his normal routine, it might be best to start with something a little less physical.

  “The Facebook thing wasn’t real,” Jeremy reminded Nick, feeling his cheeks heat up as he gestured toward his less-than-athletic self. “I’ve never been rock climbing before.”

  “That’s not a problem. We can call it a practice date,” Nick said, winking. “I’ve never been out with a guy before, so I’ve gotta figure out how to sell it before putting my acting skills to the test in front of Candi.”

  “All she really needs to see is us breaking up. I really don’t think it matters if it looks like we’re a happy couple or anything. You and I are only going to last until our big fight, and then we’ll be done.”

  “Okay. No problem,” Nick said, the teasing light fading from his eyes as he straightened up. “I’ll just pick you up next weekend for Candi’s thing, then.”

  Nick glanced toward the back of the store where Kelley's voice was leading the wide-eyed children into the wardrobe where they would discover Narnia for the first time. He shoved his hands in his pockets, rocking back on his heels and not meeting Jeremy’s eyes. In anyone else, the body language would be all about hurt feelings and rejection, but that obviously wouldn’t apply to Nick.

  Right?

  Feeling utterly stupid but doing it anyway, Jeremy asked, “You are straight, right?” And yes, he knew for sure that his face had gone cherry-red with the question. His cheeks felt like a four-alarm fire. He cleared his throat. “I mean, you weren’t actually asking me out…?”

  “Yeah, no. I just thought checking out the rock climbing gym might be something you’d want to do, since you’d mentioned it before,” Nick said, still keeping his eyes glued on the story-time group. “But it’s cool if it’s not your thing or whatever. No big deal.”

  “I just don’t think I’d really be that good at it,” Jeremy said, feeling a little flustered by Nick’s behavior. For all Jeremy’s headlong rush into Crushville, he’d figured Nick was just doing him a favor with the whole Candi thing. Humoring him, or just being nice, or… something. But now the man was acting like he wanted to spend time with Jeremy. “I me
an, you saw me at the gym,” Jeremy added. “I’m not exactly Mr. Fitness. Also, um, I’ve never been that good with heights.”

  Nick finally looked at him, cracking half a smile. “You did good the other day, J, especially for your first workout. I already told you that. Everyone starts somewhere, and there are some small walls at New Heights. It’s not a test. Rock climbing is supposed to be fun.”

  Which, actually, was why Jeremy had included it in his list of faux-hobbies. It did sound fun. And hadn’t he committed to trying to become the version of himself that he’d made up?

  That Jeremy wouldn’t be intimidated by heights.

  That Jeremy would jump in and go for it.

  And that version of Jeremy definitely wouldn’t let anything hold him back from seeing Nick again.

  Screw his fear of heights.

  “So, two o’clock works?” he asked, deciding to be that Jeremy.

  “You’re coming?” Nick asked, the half-smile that had been hovering around his lips bursting into something full-blown and ridiculously swoon-worthy.

  Jeremy nodded, catching his breath. Had he ever had a real boyfriend look that happy about seeing him again?

  Nick probably had ugly feet, though. Or hogged the covers. No doubt he ate too much garlic and left his clothes on the bathroom floor and forgot birthdays and left embarrassingly small tips at restaurants. He probably had a million flaws that would stop Jeremy’s heart from doing that stupid flutter thing whenever Nick smiled, if he could only find them.

  “I’ll pick you up when you get off tomorrow, okay?” Nick asked, reaching out to squeeze Jeremy’s arm again. Flutter-licious. “And don’t worry, J. I won’t let you fall.”

  Was it that obvious what Jeremy had been scared of?

  Nick seemed to have a talent for reading him like a book, but even though Jeremy trusted that Nick meant it, he suspected that he wouldn’t be able to keep that particular promise.

  Jeremy was already falling.

  4

  Nick

  Jeremy held the climbing harness up in front of him with a look of utter confusion on his face. There really weren’t that many straps, but since this would be his first time wearing one, Nick could see how he might not be able to tell at a glance what went where.