Colleen giggled. “It has to be something obvious. Maybe we could work backwards? Where’s somewhere on the island we haven’t visited?”
“There’s the police station,” I said, frowning. “But I doubt they[‘ll want us there.”
“Shit.” Finn snapped his fingers. “I’ve got it . It’s a map.”
“Oh, fuck yes. Which means it’s the old survey map in Town Hall.” Aiden practically vibrated with enthusiasm. “That has to be it.”
We hurried down toward the hall, dodging other teams as they darted to and fro, searching for their next clues. As we burst through the heavy wooden doors, we saw another team already there, searching the walls.
“There!” I pointed to the framed map hanging in a corner. The old parchment was worn and aged, yellowed by time and exposure.
Aiden lifted me without hesitation so I could reach the envelope taped to the top of the frame.
I ripped it open, quickly scanning the contents.
“The mayor’s in her office. First team with all the clues wins.”
Giggling like kids, we rushed down the hall toward the mayor’s office and skidded inside. She sat at her desk, working on some papers.
“Ah, my first group.” She grinned, leaning back in her seat. “Did you find all the clues?”
We handed her the envelopes, and she sorted through them, tallying our score.
“Well done.” She reached under her desk and pulled a small cup-shaped trophy from the floor. “Here’s your prize.”
Colleen lifted the small trophy, plucking the slip of paper from its base.
“Two free drinks each at the pub.” She glanced up. “Isn’t that your establishment?”
Aiden’s face fell. “It is.”
The mayor snorted delicately. “You weren’t meant to win.”
“How about you take the trophy,” I said, taking it from Colleen and handing it to Aiden. “And Colleen and Warrick can have the vouchers.”
Aiden perked back up. “Works for me.”
“And on that note, we should be getting back.” Finn glanced meaningfully at his watch. “We’ve still got prep to finish before tonight.” He flashed me a glance. “You’re still helping, right?”
I nodded.
They left but Aiden ducked back in to press a kiss to my cheek.
“See you tonight,” he murmured with a grin before leaving once more.
I pressed a hand to my cheek, staring at the door to the office.
“Well,” the mayor said, sounding smug. “I see the weekend is already off to an excellent start.”
CHAPTER 5
Iworked beside Aiden, swirling cocktails, pouring wine, and pulling icy beer straight from the keg as the mixer got underway.
Mayor Dorante oversaw the entire event with a self-satisfied smile. She wove between clusters of couples and groups, welcoming the potential women to our fair shore.
“Seems like a lot of ado about nothing.” Finn muttered, standing beside me as he sipped his water. Delicious platters heaped with canapés had streamed from the kitchen for the last two hours, their mouthwatering scent tempting my belly, which in turn rumbled reminders that I had yet to eat dinner.
“You think finding love is easy?” I asked, flipping glasses around to stack them in a rack for cleaning.
