But no one knows what happened in that room, Sloane reminded herself, pulling her phone out. Other than Brady, and he isn’t going to tell. I hope.

“Hey, give me a second,” Sloane said, reading the caller ID. “I need to take this.”

Brady made a noise, but Sloane was already retreating back to the driveway.

“What’s wrong?” she answered, new worry thronging through her. Emma never called during the school day unless it was something.

“The mayor wants to talk to you.”

Sloane blinked at the concrete. “Say again?”

“The mayor wants to see you.” Emma was whispering. It must have been quiet time for her kindergarteners. “He pulled me out of class to tell me so.”

“He pulled you out of class?”

“Yes. I thought I was in trouble somehow, but, nope, he wanted you.”

Now it was time for Sloane to feel like she’d done something wrong. “Wanted me for what?”

He certainly didn’t know about her seeing the mostly naked and very wet Brady.

“To talk about officially sponsoring the kickoff party at Cassidy’s. He gave me his card for you.”

“Why not come to me instead?”

“He apparently tried? Said no one was home earlier.” Suspicion sprung up into Emma’s voice as quickly as the grumpiness had lit across Brady’s face at being left alone on Roger’s front porch. Even now, from the distance between her and the house, Sloane could feel the annoyance still emanating. “What have you been up to all day? Writing that new blog post that Rizzie wanted?”

Sloane turned to the sound of the front door opening. Roger Norman.

She could really feel Brady’s annoyance now.

“Just running around. Brady and I are actually seeing a man about a boat right now.”

“Is that some kind of sex euphemism?”

“No,” Sloane defended a little too harshly. Then a bite of laughter broke through. “Wait. What would that even mean if it was one?”

“I don’t know. Maybe the boat is a penis?”

“That both of us want to get?”

“The boat could like, I don’t know, represent the idea of sex?”

“So we’re going to see another man about the two of us having sex?”

Emma groaned. “Dammit, woman. I just called to let you know the mayor wants a piece of you. I’ll text you the number, but I have to go now. Dante just got up, and I have two point five seconds to get him to the potty before things get wild over here.”

Sloane laughed as the phone call ended. The sound drew Brady’s and Roger’s attention.

The thought of them having a threesome, on a boat no less, popped into her head.

Dammit, Emma!

She shook the image away and pulled on a quick smile. Then she joined her fake beau on the front porch.