Page 49 of He Loves Me Knot

“Did you just call me crazy?” Her mouth opened with a laughing grin. “You jackass. Just ask the vendor for the spiciest pepper he has.”

He gave her a distrustful look. “Am I going to find this chopped up in my drink later? Because Costa Ricans don’t like spicy?—”

“Ask!”

Callum’s lips twisted in a frown, and he turned and rattled something to the vendor in rapid Spanish.

The vendor’s face lit up. With a smile, he reached toward a small section of his cart and pulled out a bag of red peppers, each of them no larger than a dime. “Esté.”

“I want two.”

“If you’re intending for?—”

“Two, Callum.” She turned toward the vendor and held out two fingers. “Dos.”

The man smiled and put two of them in a small resealable bag for her. She paid, then wandered away from the cart with a smile.

Callum followed her. “And what, exactly, are you going to do with those?”

“Weare going to eat them. You want spice. Fine. You’ll get spice from me. But I’m not doing it alone.”

“If I had a nickel for every time a woman said that to me . . .” Callum cleared his throat. “But seriously. Can I havesomesay in this? I meant something like . . . white-water rafting.Noteating the hottest pepper you can find at the farmers’ market.”

“Should we get something to drink first?” Lydia turned and scanned the market, looking for anyone selling refreshments.

“I do not agree to this plan.”

Something about seeing him squirm egged her on, and she grinned mischievously. “I mean, if you think you can’t handle my level of spice . . .”

His eyes locked with hers, and the amusement there told her he might even enjoy their banter. “I definitely can’t handle your level of spice.”

“That’s too bad.” She gave him a playful pout. “Because I like things spicy. I wouldn’t want you to think I’m looking for anything else.”

Oh my God, am I flirting with him?

She was definitely flirting with him.

But it was. . .fun.

Oh God, this needs to stop. What am I doing?

He closed his eyes, breaking eye contact, and his firm jaw clamped shut for a second. “All right, fine.” He let out a slow breath and stepped away from her. “But I’m getting a beer first.”

“You want to go do this in a bar?”

“Nah. It’s Costa Rica. You can open carry here. We can grab some beers—if you want one—and then do your spice challenge outside.”

Liddy couldn’t help but feel a smidge of satisfaction. Finding a vendor selling craft beers didn't take long, and Callum purchased two.

They wandered back toward the car without a place to sit, then stopped on the sidewalk near it. Liddy sat beside him and fished out the peppers as Callum opened the beers. Nerves fluttered in her stomach.

Sure, this isn’t exactly what Callum had in mind, but I can be adventurous and impulsive, too, right?

“Ready?” Liddy asked, holding the pepper in her hand.

“No.”

She laughed. “Come on, you wuss.”

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