Page 5 of The Great Maple Mistake (Love in Maplewood #8)

Cody

July: Seven weeks until the Cook-off

Maplewood sure does love its festivals. When I saw them all written on Aunt Viv’s kitchen calendar, I wondered how everyone doesn’t get sick of so many in a row.

Seriously, a festival a month? Wouldn’t they lose their charm?

Surely the anticipation tapers off as the year goes on.

If this weekend’s Frozen Fest is anything to go by, boy am I wrong.

The town is as worked up for this festival as they were for Pride, which was only two weeks ago.

And that’s cool. Really. I love the buzz in the air and the happy chaos.

There’s only one thing I’d change about it.

“Hey, Cody.” From behind me, a feminine voice says my name, and there are definite sexual undertones.

I turn to see a pretty woman in her mid- to late twenties, with long brown hair pulled up in a ponytail, wearing denim cutoffs and a tight baby-blue V-neck T-shirt.

“Wanna try my maple buns?” She winks and thrusts a tray of pastries drenched in maple syrup in my direction.

Oh, hell no. I hold my breath and shake my head, backing away as fast as I can.

Maple Bun lady stares wide-eyed, pointing at something behind me.

And then I bump into someone. Spinning around, I grab for them, trying to keep us both from toppling over.

A few things happen at the same time. I recognize Alex, register the camera in his hands, and realize we’re both going to hit the ground.

I can’t let him or the camera get hurt because of me.

Mid-air, I grab him around his waist, execute a twist, and hit the ground with a thud that rattles my teeth.

Thankfully, I do manage not to crack my head on anything.

And now I have a very handsome, very nice-smelling Alex sprawled on top of me.

His eyes are such a pretty hazel. Well, the parts I can see.

His pupils are so wide that there’s only a sliver of color at the edges.

And his lips look really soft. “Sorry about that.”

“I’m not.” His voice is a bit winded, and his gaze drifts to my mouth as he licks his lips.

Perfectly plump lips that are so close, if I lean up just a little, I could easily kiss him.

His smile is slow and sensual, and oh god, I’m chubbing up.

When his grin turns wicked, I know he’s felt it. “So. Very. Not. Sorry.”

“But what if I’d broken your camera? Or you?” I’d have felt so awful!

Alex repositions himself on top of me, and I gasp as his hip grinds against my cock. I press my fingers into his back, stopping his movement as I try to keep from groaning. His gaze drops to my mouth before snapping back up to my eyes. “But you didn’t.”

I stare, mesmerized by everything about him, ready to close the distance between us and kiss him in front of everyone.

Before I can, someone clears their throat.

We both look up to see a tall man with floppy brown hair and an amused expression on his face.

His blue medical scrubs have cartoon dogs and cats all over the shirt. “Hi, Alex. Enjoy your trip?”

Alex groans. “What, are you seven?”

“Twelve. Give me a little credit. Who’s your friend?” He nods at me.

Alex props his chin in his palm and grins up at the guy. I don’t even mind that his elbow is digging into my sternum. “Finn, this is Cody. He’s new in town. He’s a fireman.”

“And an EMT.” I reluctantly remove my hand from Alex’s back and extend it up to Finn. “It’s nice to meet you.”

Laughing, Finn leans down and shakes my hand. “Nice to meet you.” He glances between us, one eyebrow quirked. “You two comfy?”

“Mmm. Very.” Alex grins and pats my chest. “Cody is an expert at cushioning falls.”

Finn blinks. “What happened?”

“It was my fault.” I carefully return my hand to Alex’s back and not his ass where I’d really like it to be.

But I didn’t ask permission. No asking? No touching.

My golden rule of dating. Not that we’re dating.

“That person at the bakery booth offered me her buns, and they were drenched in maple. And I can’t do maple. ” I shudder at the thought.

Alex smiles down at me. “Cody accidentally backed into me, knocking us both over, then valiantly cushioned my fall with his body.”

Finn nods, his expression serious, but his eyes say he gets that Alex is being a tiny bit dramatic. “As one does.”

Alex points a finger at him. “Exactly. He saved me and my camera.”

“Well, now that you and your camera are no longer in danger of smashing on the ground, do you think maybe it’s time to stand up? The crowd has to walk around you both. I’m worried you’re going to be trampled on.”

With a dramatic sigh, Alex extends a hand to Finn, who grasps it and hauls him to his feet. I roll up and onto mine, shoving my hands into my pockets so I don’t reach for Alex’s. “Anyway, sorry again. I didn’t mean to bump into you or knock you over.”

Alex smiles, and it lights a spark in my chest that has heat radiating out to the rest of me. “No worries. I know how you can make it up to me.”

Is that innuendo in his tone? “How?”

“Let me buy you lunch.”

I raise my eyebrows. “Shouldn’t I be buying you lunch? I’m the one who ran into you.”

He shrugs. “Okay. I’m not picky. But I am hungry.” He holds out a hand. “Come on. Let’s go.”

Well, if that isn’t an invitation to touch him, I don’t know what is.

I pull my hand out of my pocket and take his.

He tugs me to a booth with a sign that says “BBQ and Burgers.” The line is only a few people deep, so it shouldn’t take long to get food.

I scan the menu quickly and sigh with relief.

The burger doesn’t seem to have maple in or on it.

“I have to warn you, I’m not usually a picky eater, but I can’t do maple. ”

They both stare at me, eyebrows raised in shock. Then Finn narrows his eyes. “Allergy?”

I shake my head, but before I can explain, we’re interrupted by an older woman in a white T-shirt, a hip-length, studded, black leather jacket, red plaid capris, and black Doc Martens.

Her pure white hair is styled perfectly beneath her black beret, and her lipstick is the same red shade as her pants.

I can’t see her eyes because they’re hidden behind what appear to be genuine Ray-Ban sunglasses.

On most people, it might look ridiculous, but she pulls it off, even though she’s at least in her seventies.

Maybe older. “Oh, you poor boy. Allergies are the worst! And to be allergic to maple! I hope it’s not a contact allergy because you’ll be hard-pressed to avoid the sticky stuff here.

” She puts her hand on my arm and gives me a surprisingly strong squeeze for someone so tiny.

She can’t be more than five feet, two inches tall, because I’m at least a foot taller than her.

“No, it’s—”

“You’re going to tell me it’s fine, and I say nonsense. Allergies are no joke.” She peers over her Ray-Bans and pins me with her bright blue gaze.

An elegant Black woman in a white button-front shirt with the sleeves rolled up her forearms, black capris, and strappy sandals saunters up and puts her arm around the waist of the first woman. “Rae, making new friends?”

Rae leans up and kisses her cheek. “Eleanor, the poor boy has an allergy to maple, and he’s trying to make light of it.”

Eleanor tisks. “Young man, allergies need to be taken seriously. One of our bandmates has an allergy to bee stings, and she almost died on tour.” Eleanor turns to Rae. “When was that, lovey? Nineteen eighty-four? Eighty-five?”

“Ninety-five. We were playing Metropol in Pittsburgh.”

Eleanor kisses Rae’s temple. “Yes, that’s right.

We were walking down by the Monongahela River at Station Square, and bam!

Bee stung her right in the shoulder. Thank god there were three or four hospitals right in the area.

Paramedics arrived in minutes, administered epinephrine, and she was fine, but it could have been much worse. Do you have an EpiPen?”

I shake my head and try to explain again. “No, I—”

Rae interrupts again, but Finn comes to my rescue. “It’s fine. I’m here, I have an EpiPen on me.” He pats the fanny pack around his waist. “And Alex and I will make sure Cody’s fine.”

They look skeptical. Alex nods vigorously, and when he gets a word in before they can, I’m hopeful he’ll clear things up.

“Really. We’ll make sure he doesn’t eat anything with maple in, on, or near it.

In fact, maybe we’ll just go back to my house and make lunch.

” Okay, so much for the hope that he’d end their mistake.

I also have no idea if Alex is serious about going to his house, or not, but both women immediately relax.

“That sounds like a good idea.” Eleanor shakes her finger at me.

“You should take your allergy more seriously, Cody. I’m not sure what you were thinking by coming to Frozen Fest with a maple allergy.

” She squeezes my hand. “Be careful. Our Alex here seems to like you, and we’ve been waiting for him to find his person.

” She leans in, looking me dead in the eyes, and I admit it’s a bit nerve-racking. “Do not disappoint him.”

“Yes, ma’am. I mean, no ma’am, I won’t.” What am I saying? We aren’t even dating. Yet, anyway. At least, I don’t think we are. I glance at Alex, and his cheeks are a rosy red. It’s adorable. “I would hate to ever disappoint him.”

Her smile is brilliant, and she puts her arm around Rae’s waist again, giving her a gentle tug. “Okay, lovey, what say we go find some ice cream? I have a taste for something sweet.”

“Sweets for my sweet. Absolutely.”

We watch them walk off in search of dessert, and then I turn to Alex and Finn. “What just happened?”

They shrug, and Alex squeezes my hand. “Hey, you don’t really have a maple allergy, do you?”

“No. Not at all.”

Finn laughs. “Good, because I don’t really have an EpiPen on me.” He peers into my eyes. “You’re sure you don’t have an allergy to maple?”

“Hey, I have no idea where they came up with that. I don’t eat maple because—” I cut myself off and wipe my hand along my jaw, trying not to shudder at the memory.

“There was an incident when I was little.” I try to think of the best way to explain.

“The first time you got drunk, really drunk, was it on one specific kind of alcohol?”

Alex blinks. “Please tell me you didn’t get drunk when you were little.”

“What? Oh!” I laugh and shake my head. “God, no.”

“Okay. Well, to answer your question, yes.” Alex looks at Finn and they both grimace. “Peach schnapps. I can’t drink it to this day.”

Finn winces. “Me either.”

I nod and point between both of them. “Yes! That! My best friend and I—we may have eaten far too much maple butter as kids. His mom made it to put on roasted carrots, hoping that would tempt us to eat them.” Saliva starts pooling in my mouth and I can feel myself sweating.

“We ate enough carrots to satisfy her, but after dinner we snuck into the fridge and got the tub of maple butter and two spoons. We ate so much of it we made ourselves sick.” I wipe my forehead and take a deep breath.

Alex gives my hand a shake, bringing my attention back to him. “Hey. No need to relive the trauma. We understand. No maple. Not a problem.”

I laugh. “Says the guy standing in the middle of a Maplewood festival.” My stomach attempts a small heave.

Alex squeezes my hand. “Quick, we need to distract him.”

He glances at Finn, who shrugs. “Don’t look at me. I don’t have any anti-nausea medication on me.”

“Ugh! Fine.” Alex jogs toward the burger booth, skipping the growing line, and says something to the guy working the grill.

He looks over at me and nods, tossing Alex a bottle of water fresh from the icy tub behind him.

Alex rushes back and hands the wet but deliciously cold bottle to me. “Here. Drink this.”

Instead, I place the icy cold bottle against the base of my neck, and the nausea recedes enough for me to crack open the water and chug it down. “Thank you. That helped a lot.” When I look at Alex, he’s chewing on his lower lip, something obviously bothering him. “What?”

“Um, when I asked Max for the water, he looked over at you and said, ‘Oh, is this for the guy who’s allergic to maple?’”

“Noooo. I swear, I’m not allergic to maple!”

Finn chuckles. “Yeah, we know. But it’s in the town rumor mill now. I hate to break it to you, but short of a small miracle, you might as well have a maple allergy because that’s what everyone is going to think.”

I glance at Max. “What if I explain?”

Alex is already shaking his head. “Not gonna help. Once this town is convinced of something, that’s it. But look on the bright side. Now no one will offer you their maple buns.”

I groan, unsure if I should be grateful I won’t have to eat anything maple, or worried that everyone will be upset if they find out my ‘allergy’ is fake. After what I just witnessed, I’m pretty sure no one will believe that I didn’t tell Rae myself. “The town’s gonna hate me.”

“Nah, we’ll vouch for you. Right, Finn?” Alex elbows him in the arm.

“Right. It’s not gonna help, though. Just suck it up, Cody. You now have a maple allergy. Enjoy your maple freedom.”

He and Alex seem unbothered by the turn of events. So why do I feel like this is going to come back to bite me in the ass?