More to Love

by Alison Bliss

  It wasn’t a big secret in town that Max worked out and liked to look good. Anyone with eyes could see that he was packing some muscles. And just by hanging out with him over the years, Sam had probably already figured out that he didn’t eat a lot of junk food. Okay, any junk food. But Max had never actually explained that he had a weight problem as a child. Or that, as an adult, he still struggled with a food addiction on a daily basis.

  Not only because he didn’t want anyone to feel sorry for him. But because he didn’t want anyone—especially Sam of all people—to treat him differently by catering to him. And they would. He just wanted everyone to look at him like he was normal. It had taken Max years to finally find a place where he fit in completely. Now that he had that, the last thing he would ever do was single himself out and put his eating disorder on display for everyone to see. Not gonna happen.

  “All right, guys. I’m going to take off,” Max told them. “I might swing back through on my way out though.”

  “Bye, Max,” Leah said, stepping up to the table to help another customer.

  “See ya, buddy.” Sam grinned. “Good luck with the ladies.”

  Max shook his head and laughed as he walked away from the booth. He wasn’t nearly the horn dog that Sam and his other friends thought he was. Sure, Max had had his fair share of women. But he didn’t pick them up at every event he attended, nor did he sleep with every woman he talked to. Otherwise, I might’ve ended up with Leah or Valerie the first night I met them.

  Sam and Logan would kick his ass if they knew that thought had even crossed his mind. But truthfully, from the moment Max had met both women, he knew the three of them would be nothing more than good friends. Mainly because both of them worked in a bakery. And he didn’t think it would be smart to date anyone who smelled like sugar all the time. For a guy on a special diet, that would’ve been the ultimate kind of torture.

  Besides, Max had known that Sam had an interest in Leah from the get-go, one that it took him a while to admit. And Valerie had told Max straight up that first night that she was hung up on some man who wasn’t the least bit interested—and apparently needed a seeing-eye dog. Undoubtedly, they were both gorgeous women. But with the added complications of the other men in their lives, Max would’ve never made a move on either of them anyway. Whether they worked in a bakery or not.

  He’d been known to pull some crazy stunts over the years, but he wasn’t the type of guy who would stoop so low as to steal another man’s girl. Some things were unforgivable. As far as he was concerned, that was one of them.

  Max made his way through the lines, stopping occasionally at individual booths to look over the wide range of products available for sale. Some vendors brought in new items each week, depending on the season, while some of them were just new vendors altogether. Either way, it was fun to see what each individual booth offered.

  The meat booths were the largest at the market and usually drew a huge crowd. A guy wearing white rubber boots and a long yellow vinyl apron peddled his seafood while advertising it as the freshest gulf shrimp, fish, and shucked oysters you could buy. They guy in the booth next to him wore a cowboy hat and sold grass-fed, pasture-raised beef and chicken, but he also had a huge array of fresh milk, free-range eggs, and homemade cheeses that had come straight from his dairy farm.

  But not everything at the market was edible. One couple from a nearby nursery offered drought-resistant plants and flowers that were free of pesticides and other chemicals. Not far from them was a lady who sold organic skin care products as well as custom artisans jewelry made from sustainable, recyclable products such as walnut and pecan shells.

  None of those were booths Max usually shopped at though. He kept things simple and always bought everything he needed at one table in particular. Betty’s Garden was just up ahead, and the sweet, old woman who ran it recognized him immediately. “Hey, Max. I missed seeing you the past two weekends. How was your vacation?”

  “It was great, Miss Betty. Thanks for asking.” He smiled at the kind woman. “How have you been? You had a cold or something coming on the last time I saw you. Did you get over it?”

  “Must’ve been my allergies acting up again. I’m all better now.”

  “Good. I’m glad to hear it.” He glanced over her produce on the table as Betty reached for a large brown paper bag that she had already filled before he had arrived. “What do we have today?”

  “Sweet potatoes, baby arugula, vine-ripened tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, fresh peas, heirloom green beans, bundles of carrots, and I brought out the last of my peaches for you since they’re about to go out of season.”

  “Great, thanks,” Max said, pulling cash out of his pocket and paying for his prefilled bag of goodies. He’d been ordering from Miss Betty long enough that they both knew the drill by heart.

  She nodded at him. “In the next few weeks, I’ll be harvesting different types of lettuce, and I’ll bring in some bags of pecans for you too.”

  “Can’t wait.”

  “Oh, and I almost forgot,” she said, reaching behind her for something on the ground. “One of my sons took a trip down to the Texas valley this past week, and I had him pick you up a ten-pound bag of grapefruit. I know how much you like them.” She placed it on the table next to his other bag.

  Max grinned at her. “That was nice of you. Tell your son thanks for picking them up for me. What do I owe you for them?”

  “No charge.”

  “No way. Let me pay for them. I appreciate you going to the trouble of getting them for me. The least I can do is pay for them.”

  She shook her head adamantly. “You’re one of my best customers, Max. I didn’t mind and neither did my son. He was driving down there anyway. Keep your money.”

  “Are you sure?”

  She fisted her hands onto her hips and pursed her lips.

  Max sighed. She was always doing nice things for him, and he knew that he wouldn’t win in an argument with her. He never had in the past. “Okay,” he said, putting his money away. “Well, thanks. I appreciate it.”

  She smiled at him. “I know you do.”

  He made a mental note to pick Miss Betty up a thank-you gift. She had always been generous when it came to him. Like she said, he was her best…Wait a minute. That wasn’t what she said this time. When the hell had his status with her suddenly changed? “So what happened to me being your best customer? Did I lose that title to someone else because I’ve been gone for two weeks?”

  “Well, technically yes, but you’re still my favorite.”

  “Well, thank God for that. I was wondering who I was going to have to fight to get back into your good graces. I don’t want anyone taking my place.”

  Miss Betty giggled at him. “It would never happen. But I do have a young woman who has been buying up a lot of produce from me for the past two weeks. I don’t know how many people are in her family, but she must be feeding an army.”

  No way. It can’t be. “Does she happen to run a food truck?”

  “Hmm. I’m not sure. But I guess it would make sense. She’s a short redhead with the sweetest demeanor. Do you know her?”

  “Yeah, I know her,” he grumbled. “Her name is Jessa Gibson.”

  “Oh. Well, you just missed her.” She shifted to look around him and then pointed toward one of the exits as another customer walked up. “Actually, I still see her. She’s right over there.” Then Miss Betty moved away from him to help the newcomer.

  Max glanced over his shoulder and caught sight of Jessa walking slowly toward one of the exits that led to the parking area while carrying three good-sized cardboard boxes stacked on one another. Her fingers were white from her tight grasp and her arms trembled relentlessly, suggesting that it was probably a heavy load.

  No sooner had the thought crossed his mind, Jessa stumbled a little and the top box crashed to the ground. Green peppers and white onions scattered across the pavement. Jessa set the other two boxes down and began gathering the runaway
vegetables and placing them back in the box she flipped right side up.

  Max instantly reached for his brown paper sack and his bag of grapefruit and started for her. But then he faltered. What the hell was he doing? Was he seriously going over there to ask her if she needed help? Christ. He was supposed to be running her out of town, not loading the damn food on the truck for her.

  Once all the peppers and onions had been returned to the box, she stacked it on top of the other two and frowned down at them while wiping sweat from her brow. Then she laced her fingers and cracked her knuckles before struggling to lift the boxes once more.

  Max sighed. He just couldn’t do it. There was no way he would sit by and watch her possibly injure herself by carrying something that was clearly too heavy for her. He admired how determined she was, but the woman couldn’t even see over the boxes to know where she was going. In a busy parking lot, that was nothing more than a recipe for disaster.

  He could live with a lot of things on his conscience, but Jessa hurting herself sure the hell wouldn’t be one of them.

  Chapter Five

  Jessa could’ve kicked herself. If she hadn’t left the dolly behind, she wouldn’t be breaking her back to get these boxes to her truck in one trip. Who knew a couple of boxes of vegetables and fruits could be so heavy?

  “Need a hand?” someone asked from somewhere on the other side of the stack.

  She couldn’t see him but she would recognize that gravelly, masculine voice anywhere. “Max?”

  “Yep.”

  “Yeah, I’d love a hand.” She adjusted her hold on the boxes and grunted. “As you can probably tell, mine are a little full at the moment.”

  “Here, let me take those from you.”

  Rough fingers brushed against hers as he gripped the edges of the bottom box, and the entire load was immediately lifted out of her straining arms. Relief swept over her as blood circulation instantly returned to each of her poor limbs. Thank God.

  She shaded her eyes from the bright sun and gazed up at his smiling face over the top of the boxes he held. “Thanks. I really appreciate the help.”

  “No problem. But now could you do me a favor by carrying my bags?” He nodded down to the ground, where a brown paper sack sat next to a red mesh bag of grapefruit. “They’re much lighter than these, I promise.”

  “Sure.” She lifted them both. He was right. They weren’t nearly as heavy.

  He looked around. “Which way?”

  She motioned to the back of the lot. “I parked at the very end. Sorry. Big trucks aren’t always easy to get in and out of these tiny parking spots. But if those boxes get too heavy, I’ll happily take one back and lighten your load a little.”

  “That’s okay. I’ll manage,” he said, starting toward the back of the lot.

  They walked side by side, and the farther they went, the more Jessa appreciated his help. She would never have made it on her own without passing out from overexertion. So as they maneuvered their way to her truck, Jessa became increasingly aware of his strength and impressed by his endurance.

  As he moved much faster than she had, the veins in his forearms showed prominently, and the bulge of his biceps flexed against the sleeves of his white T-shirt. But all of that only served as an added bonus.

  She glanced down to the red mesh bag with the white label. “Where did you get these grapefruit? They’re huge.”

  Max grinned. “They were a gift from my favorite vendor. Her son picked them up for me while he was down in the Texas valley.”

  Wow. He still wasn’t even out of breath yet. “Really? I might have to take a special trip down there just to pick some up. My regular supplier only carries the little ones. They look pitiful compared to yours.”

  “After tasting these, I stopped buying the ones in the grocery store. But it’s too far to drive down to the valley just for a bag of grapefruit.”

  Jessa shook her head. “Not if they look like this, it isn’t.”

  He glanced over at her and smiled. “I thought I was the only one in town who took my produce shopping so seriously.”

  “Well, you haven’t seen anything yet. I was going to wait until you looked the other way and slip a couple of your grapefruit under my shirt. You would never know they’re missing.”

  “Slick,” he said with an amused chuckle. “But I think I’d notice if you suddenly developed an extra set of…” His gaze fell to her chest, and his smile faded. “Uh, never mind.”

  She laughed. “They’re called breasts.”

  “I know that. But I didn’t have to say it out loud to get my point across.” The way he kept his eyes forward, she wondered if she’d embarrassed him.

  The last few days had been quite interesting. Max would flirt with her on occasion, but whenever she flirted back, he would withdraw instantly as if she’d somehow flustered him. Though it was confusing, the whole thing was strangely endearing.

  They made it to the truck, and Jessa unlocked the back door, holding it open for him as he stepped inside and placed her boxes on the counter. She stepped into the truck behind him and shut the door. “So why can’t you say it?”

  He turned to face her with confusion quirking his brows. “Say what?”

  She smiled. “Breasts.”

  His gaze drifted down to her chest and then quickly lifted to her face. “I can say it. I just don’t want to.”

  “Then do it.”

  Max shook his head. “I’m not going to say it, Jess.”

  “I dare you.”

  He rolled his eyes. “What are we—six-year-olds?” He took his bags from her and started past her.

  She stepped in front of him to block his path. “Okay, fine. Don’t say it then. But at least tell me why you won’t.”

  Max stared at her in silence for a moment, as if he were deciding whether to answer the question. Then he sighed. “Because I’m a man and you’re a woman.”

  “Um, okay. I’ve noticed that too. So what?”

  “All right, let me spell it out for you. If we start talking about breasts, I’m going to think about yours. Not only that, but I’m going to start imagining what they look like without your clothes on. After that, things are probably going to start getting really uncomfortable between us. Especially for me.” He nodded toward his groin and shifted awkwardly, as if punctuating his comment.

  Her gaze went straight to his crotch and landed on the large bulge pushing against the seam of his jeans. God, Jess. Don’t look at his junk. What the heck is wrong with you? She quickly lifted her eyes to meet his, and her cheeks heated. “Um…oh.” Oh? That’s all I could come up with? Jeez.

  “See? Told you.” He offered her an uneasy grin as he set down his bags and wiped away a bead of sweat trickling down his temple. “Is it just me or is it hot in here?”

  It wasn’t all that warm outside today, and she’d even left the air conditioner running in the truck. So no, it wasn’t hot in there. But it seemed a sweltering heat wave had suddenly invaded both of their bodies. “Would you like some water? I put a bottle in the fridge before I left. It’s probably not cold yet, but I can pour it into a cup of ice for you.”

  He swallowed audibly. “Yeah, that would be great.”

  Jess moved around him and reached into the fridge for a bottle of water. Just like she thought, it wasn’t very cold. So she got him a paper cup and tossed some ice into it before filling it with the water. She took her sweet time in doing so just in case he needed a moment to rearrange himself.

  After a few minutes, she finally handed him the water. “Here ya go.”

  “Thanks,” he said before taking a large gulp.

  “You’re welcome.”

  As he drank his water, Max regarded her with curious eyes. His gaze seemed to be drawn to her lips. Which only made them go dry and made her continually lick them. Every time her tongue darted out, his brows rose a little higher. But the longer they stood there looking at each other in silence, the more an unbearable awkwardness crept in.

/>   When his jaw suddenly tightened and his eyes filled with something that looked a lot like regret, Jessa grew concerned. “What’s wrong?”

  “I, um…” As if he were nervous, he ran his long fingers through his thick brown hair. “Look, I can’t do this anymore. I…I need to tell you something.”

  “Okay. What is it?”

  He hesitated. “It’s just that…” His words trailed off as his wide eyes flickered over her face. Then he cringed and shoved the paper cup toward her. “I’m out of water.”

  Hmm. That wasn’t at all what she thought he was going to say. She accepted the cup from him. “Would you like some more?”

  “No, thanks. I should probably get going.”

  “Okay. Well, thank you for helping me with the boxes. I really appreciate it. I’d left my dolly behind by accident. I don’t think I would’ve made it back to the truck with all of those boxes on my own.”

  He pulled open the door and started through it. “You’re welcome.”

  “Max?”

  He stopped just outside and glanced back at her. “Yeah?”

  “Will you be coming by the park later?”

  He hesitated but eventually shrugged. “I don’t know. I guess you just never know when or where I’ll pop up.” He must’ve realized what he said because he glanced down at his groin and cringed. “Uh, I didn’t mean—”

  She raised a hand to stop him. “It’s okay. I know what you meant.”

  Max sighed again. “See ya around, Jess.” Without waiting for a response, he walked away while shaking his head.

  Jessa stayed in the doorway and blew out a large breath. There was something strange about that man. Something she couldn’t quite put her finger on. For a moment, she’d been sure he was about to admit to being attracted to her. But he hadn’t. And now she was left wondering why.

  He obviously liked her. Why else would he be flirting with her and stopping by her truck every day? Besides that, what else could it be?

  Maybe his job as the health inspector and her role as a business owner made it difficult for him to openly admit his attraction to her. After all, other people in town could easily view it as unethical. And that would actually explain all the mixed signals she was getting from him. Hot one minute, cold the next.