Page 4 of The Great Maple Mistake

Josh:You made it. Good. You ditch your Aunt Viv already?

Me:Nah. She ditched me.laughing emoji

Josh:LOL

Me:You missed the point of my video

Josh:You had a point?

Me:middle finger emojiMAPLEWOOD

Me:watch the video

There’s a pause, and I assume Josh is watching.

Josh:O M G.nauseous emoji

Me:IKR?! I totally didn’t think this through

Josh:Fuck. I’m so sorry man. That sucks balls

Me:And not in a good way

Josh:laughing emojiWhat are you going to do?

Me:man shrugging emojiCook my own meals for once? Eat out only in the next town over?

Josh:Good luck with that. I’ve had your cooking

Me:fuck off. I’ll let you know if I find anything edible

Josh:Sounds good. Gotta run. Alicia and the baby are waiting in the car. We’re headed to her mom and dad’s for a BBQ. Thank god her dad uses a dry rub and not a maple glaze!barf emoji

Me:Lucky. Tell Alicia I said hello and kiss her and baby Mia for me

Josh:Will do.left facing fist emoji

Me:right facing fist emoji

I put my phone away and wander through the food booths, eyeing the options, desperately looking for something without maple. It takes longer than it should, but I finally find a vendor selling hamburgers with a spicy maple sauce, and beg the guy to hold the sauce. He gives me an odd look, and I try to scramble for an excuse, because obviously this town takes its maple seriously. I can see that now. And I don’t want to offend anyone, especially on my first day here. Luckily, when he hands me the burger and bottle of water I ordered, the sauce is in a little tub tucked in next to the pickle. I pay and head toward one of the picnic tables, dropping onto the bench seat and diving into the food. Without the sauce. The burger is pure perfection, and I turn to check out the sign on the booth. Sparky’s Restaurant. I vaguely remember eating there during my last trip to Maplewood, and I’ll definitely be eating there again. This burger is incredible.

Just as I take a huge bite, I feel a tap on my shoulder. I turn and look up into the face of an angel. Okay, not a real angel because I don’t believe in that whole heaven and hell as actual places thing, but wow, he is something else. His short brown hair is swept back in loose waves, and he has kind, hazel eyes and the cutest freckles dotting the bridge of his nose. I quickly chew my mouthful and set down my burger, wiping my hands on my napkin before straddling the bench so I can face him head-on. “Hi.”

The cutie smiles, and damn if I don’t get a fluttery feeling in my chest. “Hi.” He thrusts out a hand, and I take it, giving it a shake. “I’m Alex MacDougall. I’m taking promotional photos of the festival for the town website.” He grabs the camera hanging around his neck and lifts it with his free hand. “I was shooting several pics of the area here, and you happen to be in a few of them. Do I have your permission to post one or more of them, if they turn out to be pictures I want to use?”

I’m about to tell him he can have anything he wants, but that’s probably not appropriate. “Can I see them? I mean, what if I have my mouth full of burger, or I’m blinking or something? I gotta make sure I don’t look foolish. Right?”

I grin up at him, and his smile gets bigger. “Sure. Here, I can show you the raw pictures right now.” He gently removes his hand from mine and motions for me to scoot over so he can sit next to me. God, he’s practically between my legs, and I feel the tendrils of arousal tickle up my spine. He flips the camera so the lens is pointing at the ground and fiddles with the buttons on the back for a minute. Then he tilts the camera so I can see the screen. He hasn’t removed the strap from around his neck so he has to lean in or risk choking himself. He smells like clean sweat and some cologne I’m not familiar with, but damn it smells good. Fresh but sensual.

I focus on the camera screen and not how close his face is to mine. What did he say his name was? It takes a minute, but I get there. Alex. Alex Mac-something-or-other. But definitely Alex. He flips through four or five photos, and they’re all great shots of the area. I’m not the focus of the pictures, but he still managed to make me look good. No chewing shots or me with my mouth open wide in an attempt to fit as much of the burger into my maw as possible. I linger as long as possible without being creepy, and then lean back. He leans back too, putting arespectable distance between us. Damn. “They look really good. And yes, you can use them if you want.”

His face lights up, and he reaches for his back pocket. “Great! Would you mind signing this release form? It’s just your standard consent to allow me to use your picture.” He pulls a small stack of papers out of his pocket and sets the top sheet and a pen on the picnic table.

The few short paragraphs cover who he is, why he’s using the pictures, and a short statement giving my permission for him to use the photo or photos. There isn’t much to it, and it seems straightforward, so I pick up the pen and print my name on the first line and then scrawl my signature on the second. “There. Done.” I smile at him again, because I can’t help myself.

“Thanks.” He glances at the paper. “Cody.” He hesitates for a moment before pushing to his feet, collecting the paper and pen, then tucking them back into his pocket. “If you want to see the final product, you can check out the events page on the town’s website.” He fidgets with his camera and then meets my gaze again. “You visiting? Or live in the area?”

A million butterflies swoop around my belly. EvenIknow that’s no casual question. He’s interested. “Actually, I just moved here last night. Aunt Viv’s active but getting older, and I wanted to be near in case she needs me.” I don’t mention that she’s my last remaining relative, now that my parents are gone. “Family’s important.”

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