Free Country Heat (King Creek Cowboys Book 1) by Cheyenne McCray

stopped before they reached the first vendor as the words tumbled out. “There’s a patch of ground that isn’t being used by the guest house.”
    He raised an eyebrow.
    Heat flushed her cheeks. “I’m sorry. My mind has just been whirring ever since I arrived. I feel like I’m back with my grandparents.”
    “Don’t be sorry.” He rested one hand on her shoulder, and she felt the weight and heat of his hand through her top. She almost couldn’t breathe as he spoke. “You’re free to do what you want with that plot. I’ll get you whatever seedlings and fertilizer you need, and I’ll have the area fenced in to keep out the wildlife.”
    “Thank you. There’s so much I can grow for the meals and to be able to go and pick it fresh will be wonderful.”
    He gave her a slight nod and a sexy little smile. “Anything to keep our best cook ever happy.”
    She laughed as they walked beneath the awning of the tarp-covered market.
    Rows and rows of produce greeted them as they walked onto the dirt path between the stands.
    The basket swung on Kit’s arm as she moved to the first vendor and perused the varieties of lettuce and cabbage. Considering the refrigerators at the ranch contained zero fresh produce, she had a lot of produce shopping to do.
    “I’ve missed this.” Kit smiled as she selected lettuce and other fresh leafy vegetables, including spinach and kale. “I loved the smell of the earth and the vegetables as we harvested them.”
    “My mom always says pretty much the same thing.” Carter paid the vendor and they moved on to green beans and sugar snap peas. “She said there’s something about getting to know mother earth up close and personal.”
    Kit nodded. “She’s right.”
    “A lot of the vegetables are out of season,” she said. “I imagine most of the local growers here at the market have greenhouses.”
    Carter nodded. “You’re right, they do.”
    She gathered tomatoes, onions, and garlic and set them in her basket as Carter paid. “I’ll be able to put together much better and healthier meals now.”
    “What you’ve been making has been damned good.” He looked amused. “Topping that is going to take some work.”
    She flashed a quick grin. “You haven’t seen anything yet.”
    “Looking forward to it.” He reached for the basket she carried. “This looks like it’s getting heavy.” He said as she loaded it with crook neck squash and zucchini.
    She shook her head. “Really, it’s fine.”
    “No arguing.” He took the basket. “I’ll let you carry the empty one. For now.”
    She shook her head but smiled.
    While they shopped, she made sure she collected fresh herbs and spices. Mint, rosemary, thyme, cilantro, dill, and parsley. She also picked up some fresh ginger root, and peppers. She did the selecting and Carter paid.
    After the first basket was nearly overflowing, she started on the next, filling it with fruits, some brought into the market from organic growers since April was out of season for a lot of the items.
    “We’re at the end of the shopping trip,” he said casually as they walked to a large display of several kinds of apples. “You know what that means.”
    She tipped her head to the side as she thought about it then smiled. “I guess you earned your two dozen cookies.”
    “You bet I have.” He raised the basket a bit. “You can see the fruits of my labor.”
    “Oh, please. ” She rolled her eyes.
    He winked. “You’ve been so busy I’ll bet you haven’t had a chance to tour the ranch,” he said as she put apples into the basket she carried.
    “It has been a little hectic.” She had to tilt her head to meet his gaze. “I’m sure once I get into the flow of things, I’ll have time to do just that.”
    “I’ll take you around.” His eyes held hers for so long she thought she thought her heart might stop beating. “Let’s plan on it this week sometime.”
    “Sure.” She forced herself to turn away and peruse the oranges, lemons,