Page 48 of Sloane

“Well, I’m not the guest of honor, so we probably should work around whatever time works best for Sloane.”

Since Sloane was off mingling, all eyes turned toward me. I did some quick calculations in my head and said, “Should we say four?”

That would allow us to sleep in and lounge around in bed all morning if we wanted or go out for breakfast if he’d rather do that.

“Four works perfect for us,” Maddie said.

“Me too,” added Grace.

I could tell Ryan was going into planning mode.

“Tammy—you’re invited, of course. I think Josh will want to stop by and see Sloane. I know Tommy and Randy will want to come. Who else should we invite?”

“Damn, I wish Cooper were here,” Craig lamented.

“Me too,” Ryan replied.

They were quiet for a beat as they appeared lost in memory of their friend, then Ryan seemed to snap out of it and his party-planner alter-ego took over.

“I’ve got the usual liquor—whiskey, vodka, gin, tequila, and rum—but I’m not sure about what I have for mixers, so if you want something specific, bring it. Same if you want beer other than Modelo. As far as food goes, I’ll take care of getting the hamburgers and hotdogs and all the stuff that we’ll need for that, along with a tub of potato salad.”

Grace said, “I’ll bring hors d'oeuvres and a fruit salad.”

Craig chimed in, “We’ll bring baked beans and macaroni salad. I’ll also bring some brats.”

Ryan grinned. “Good. I was hoping you’d offer; they were awesome the last time we had them.”

“We could bring deviled eggs and a dessert,” I volunteered.

“Any way I could convince you to bring that cheesecake back?”

I laughed. “Between you and Sloane, there wasn’t much left last night, but I could make another one.”

Maddie’s brows went to her hairline. “You made a cheesecake?”

Ryan inserted, “It was so fucking good,” while Tammy added, “She’s a phenomenal baker.”

“I believe that. Her cupcakes were delicious.” Maddie faced me. “You must really like to bake. I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone who actually made a cheesecake.”

“Sloane said the same thing. It’s really not that hard, just a little time consuming.”

Maddie nodded thoughtfully.

“Maybe you should make something easier. We don’t want Sloane pissed because we’re horning in on his time with you.”

“That’s probably not a bad idea. I’ll come up with something easy.”

“I’m sure it will be delicious, whatever it is.”

Gosh, I like Maddie.

“I can bring soda along with homemade macaroni and cheese,” Tammy offered.

“Oh my god, that sounds amazing!” Grace replied. “Of course, I’m starving, so all this talk of food is not helping.”

I could almost see Ryan’s wheels turning at Grace’s declaration and was surprised that he didn’t suggest they go grab something to eat. I had to give him mad props when ten minutes later, the waitress set down a basket of chicken tenders and fries in front of a surprised Grace.

“Oh, I didn’t order these,” she exclaimed.

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