Caroline patted her head. “Don’t worry, girl. Mayor Francis Buttlee couldn’t kill a fly. I remember when he peed his pants in fifth grade.”

  Sofia pouted, still unconvinced. I kissed her. “I promise. These bums won’t hurt us.”

  We made our way toward the building’s entrance where groups of townspeople were shuffling in.

  I adjusted my suit—the only one I’d brought with me on my travels. Caroline wore a short pencil skirt with stockings, while Sofia had chosen a dress with a slit that revealed one toned leg when she walked.

  We found Kate getting off a small sleek motorbike, removing her helmet. She wore a leather bomber jacket over a blouse that revealed a line of cleavage, paired with fitted black dress pants.

  “Nice hog,” I said.

  She snorted. “Not sure this qualifies as a ‘hog,’ but I’ll take it.”

  “She’s bad to the bone!” Caroline sang, wiggling her hips. “Buh-buh-buh-bad.”

  “You guys are awfully cheerful this morning,” Kate said, taking a folder from her bike. Her boss lady persona seemed firmly in place

  When our eyes met, I caught a flicker of passion. She smirked and headed for the main doors.

  Inside, the entrance hall buzzed with anticipation. Kate nodded toward a familiar red-bearded man across the room. “Warren got everyone here.”

  Leading the way through the crowd, I noticed Amber near the council chambers, clipboard in hand, surrounded by developers. Her eyes widened when she spotted us with Kate.

  “Ready for this?” I murmured to Kate.

  She nodded, standing taller. “Born ready.”

  We followed the crowd into the chamber and found seats in the gallery. Ferguson sat off to the side, carefully avoiding looking in our direction.

  Mayor Buttlee sat behind the council table, his beady eyes darting around behind thick glasses. Dabbing his forehead with a tissue, he slammed his gavel and called the meeting to order.

  Kate sat rigid beside me, her folder of evidence clutched in her hands.

  “First item on today’s agenda,” the mayor began, “consideration of the Riverdale Heights sidewalk improvement project.”

  A collective groan rippled through the public gallery.

  Forty-five minutes later, they finally got to the rezoning bylaw. The mayor called up Kate as the first public presenter.

  The room was silent as she strode to the podium and laid out the evidence — property purchases by shell companies, suspicious timing, clear patterns of insider trading.

  “This isn’t development,” she concluded, her voice ringing through the chamber. “It’s exploitation of our community.”

  As Kate returned to her seat, the crowd was electric, stirring restlessly. Revolt was in the air.

  I squeezed her hand. “Perfect setup.”

  My name was called next. Mayor Buttlee watched me sweatily as I approached the podium.

  “I’m here to connect some dots,” I began, making eye contact with each council member.

  I presented consulting contracts, exposing the duplicate billing and Ferguson’s authorization of payments structured to avoid review.

  As Ferguson squirmed, a councilman with bristly eyebrows leaned towards his microphone. “Point of order, Mayor! This is misinformation.”

  “I have all the documentation right here,” I replied, holding up the folder. “Lots of copies to go around.” I started handing them out.

  Ferguson fiddled nervously with a pen.

  I saw Caroline watching me with admiration. Sofia leaned forward, eyes wide with excitement and nerves.

  Kate sat straight-backed, pride mixing with something hungrier in her expression.

  The meeting dissolved into chaos as copies of the evidence circulated.

  “Order!” the mayor shouted, banging his gavel uselessly. “Council will proceed in camera!”

  As we filed into the hallway, Kate’s eyes were bright. “That went off really well! I can’t believe we just did that.”

  Caroline pressed against my side. “That was amazing—and very entertaining. Great job, Ryan.”

  Making our way into the hall, workers in flannel shirts surrounded us, Warren at their front. “That was something else, man. You really stuck it to them.”

  “Been waiting years for someone to stand up to those criminals,” another man said, pumping my hand.

  Warren leaned in. “What’s the next move? We need to keep the pressure on.”

  Kate spoke by my side. “We should organize a formal citizens’ committee to—”

  “Ryan, you think we should go to the state authorities?” Warren boomed, not even hearing Kate.

  I watched her face flush, first with embarrassment, then anger.

  The woman who’d led the charge of this fight was suddenly invisible because I’d taken the spotlight.

  “Both good ideas,” I said, meeting Kate’s gaze. “Kate’s right about organizing, and yes, state involvement makes sense too.”

  “Alright, Ryan’s our point man now,” Warren declared to the gathered men.

  Kate crossed her arms beneath her breasts. I could see the conflict in her eyes — pride in our victory battling with the sting of being sidelined.

  Amber approached through the crowd, clutching her clipboard to her chest like armor.

  “That was quite the performance,” she said, eyeing me up and down. “But it doesn’t change anything. The development will still happen.”

  I smiled. “We’ll see about that.”

  “You don’t understand the political reality,” she insisted, stepping closer than necessary.

  I raised an eyebrow. “Oh yeah? Enlighten me.”

  She swallowed. “Look, you’re obviously resourceful.” Her eyes flicked down to my neck, then back up. “And smart. But you can’t stop development with one council meeting.”

  “We don’t want to stop development,” I replied. “We just want to do it differently.”

  Caroline and Sofia moved closer, flanking me possessively. Kate watched the interaction from a few steps away, her expression unreadable.

  Amber’s chest rose with a deeper breath. “The town’s plan will happen,” she said, with less certainty.

  I shook my head. “You’re backing the wrong horse, Amber. Not smart.”

  She clutched her clipboard tighter. “Oh, so I’m not smart?”

  “I think you’re very smart. You’re just a bit young. Inexperienced.”

  Amber rolled her eyes, tossing her ponytail, but her cheeks flushed. “I’m not that much younger than you.”

  “But he’s very mature for his age,” Caroline cut in, wrapping her arms around my waist.

  Amber’s eyes flicked to Caroline and Sofia, then back to me.

  She couldn’t hide the growing curiosity in her eyes.

  I put my arms around Caroline and Sofia’s shoulders, directing them towards the doors. “Let’s go celebrate. How about The Main? Sound good?” I raised my voice, addressing the crowd. “Alright, everyone! We’re going to The Main.”

  The crowd murmured agreement and started shuffling out the doors. Amber stepped back, composing herself.

  I gave her a smirk over my shoulder, half teasing, half serious. “See you there?”

  She hugged her clipboard and looked away, tucking her ponytail under her chin like a comforter blanket.

  Outside, the temperature had dropped and night had fallen. Sofia took my arm, shivering.

  Kate walked briskly ahead of us to her motorcycle and straddled it, putting on her helmet.

  “See you at the bar?” I asked, touching her shoulder.

  Without a word, she grabbed my jacket and pulled me down into a hungry kiss, her public restraint abandoned.

  The message was clear to anyone watching — she might have been sidelined in the meeting, but she was claiming her place with me.

  Chapter twenty

  The Main was packed with townspeople, the atmosphere buzzing.

  We had a table in one corner. Caroline and Sofia sat beside me on one side of the booth, Kate across from us. Four beers sat on the table, and I was finishing off a burger.

  Kate leaned forward, her elbows on the table, “So, we’re going to need to formalize our citizens’ group. I can probably draft an organizational structure tonight.”

  Sofia sighed and leaned against me. “Ugh! Didn’t you guys do enough for one day? You need to relax.”

  “Yeah, I think we can call it a day,” I said, munching the last bite of burger.

  “Ryan’s right,” Caroline said, her hand reaching past Sofia to stroke my hair. “Tonight’s for celebrating.”

  “Celebrating what?” Kate said. “It was good that we got this information out, but we don’t know what happened during the ‘in camera’ meeting. They probably passed the second reading anyway.”

  “Bet they didn’t,” Caroline said, twirling a strand of hair.

  “If they did, I’m gonna scream,” said Sofia, still resting her head on my shoulder.

  I sipped my beer, studying Kate’s face. She blushed under my gaze.

  Suddenly, a roar went up from the other side of the bar. People started shouting and cheering.

  Warren strode over, phone in hand, his face lit with triumph.

  “Did you hear? Mayor Buttlee and two others resigned! Ferguson’s gonna be next!”

  The bar erupted in cheers. People pounded on tables, raising their glasses.

  Kate’s mouth fell open, genuine shock replacing her skepticism. “Really? Wow.”

  Caroline grinned. “Told ya!”

  Kate broke into a smile, her rigid posture loosening as the news sank in. “We just brought down the council government!”

  We all raised our beers in a toast, clinking glasses. Kate’s eyes shone with victory and vindication. It felt good to watch her get what she’d been fighting for, and to know that I helped her get it.

  “Ryan for Mayor!” Warren boomed. Others around the bar called out their agreement.

  I chuckled. “That is definitely not happening.”

  Sofia sat up straight. “Mayor Ryan. I would be First Lady.”

  “We’d all be First Ladies,” Caroline corrected with a sly smile at Kate.

  But Kate’s smile faltered slightly as she watched the crowd’s focus on me.

  Even in this moment of shared victory, she was seeing how easily I’d stepped into the leadership role she’d worked so hard to establish.

  As we finished our beers, Sofia kept cuddling me, practically crawling into my lap.

  Caroline pinched her butt. “Quit being a Ryan hog.”

  Sofia pouted, snuggling closer. “No! He’s my baby.”

  Kate watched us, her eyes calculating. I could see she was jealous. But this time it wasn’t because of my role in the town drama.

  She was jealous of Caroline and Sofia.

  Kate suddenly sat up straighter, clearing her throat. “Hey, I was thinking, we should probably move our operating base to my house.”

  I set down my empty beer. “Operating base? I didn’t know we had one.”

  Her tone became businesslike. “I mean, we should make my house our main base instead of Caroline’s.”

  Caroline’s eyebrows shot up. “Oh?”

  “Yes. Your house is nice, but mine’s bigger.”

  Sofia raised her head, looking between the two women warily. “I think Carolina’s house is perfect, no?”

  Kate’s fingers drummed the table. “As I said, it’s fine, but my place is larger, and it has a home office and a gym, too. Plus, I’m closer to town, so it just makes more sense as headquarters.”

  Caroline’s smile remained, but her eyes cooled. “Headquarters,” she repeated, rolling her eyes.

  She reached past Sofia and pincered my chin, squeezing my cheeks possessively. “Ryan seems pretty comfortable with our current arrangement.”

  With my cheeks squished between Caroline’s fingers, the realization dawned on me. My hens were vying to establish a pecking order among themselves.

  This was something I hadn’t expected, though I probably should have seen it coming. To be fair, though, this unconventional territory was uncharted for me.

  And there was no map, no instruction manual.

  “I am very comfortable,” I said diplomatically, removing Caroline’s hand from my face and sliding out from the table. Sofia let out a whimper of protest.

  I moved around to Kate’s side of the booth. She stiffened as I settled beside her, then relaxed slightly when I put my arm around her shoulders.

  “Everyone’s a little tense,” I said, my fingers kneading the tight muscles at the base of her neck.

  Kate’s breath caught. “I… I do get tight right up in there.”

  “Yeah, I can feel it.” I pressed my thumb into a knot, watching her begin to melt.

  She bit her lip, eyes fluttering. “Oh, that feels good.”

  Caroline and Sofia watched from across the table, their smirks softening to something more empathetic. They knew Kate had some issues with control, and things going on that we didn’t understand yet.

  But we all wanted to make it work.

  Kate’s eyes were closed, and she let out a moan.

  Our young waitress appeared. “Um, sorry, can I get you anything else?” Her eyes widened as she took in the scene — my hands on Kate’s shoulders, Caroline and Sofia pressed together on the opposite side.

  “Just the bill, please,” I said.

  The waitress nodded, lingering a moment longer than necessary. “S-sure.”

  As she left, Kate sighed and tried to relax further under my touch, though I could still feel her shoulder muscles wanting to tense up again.

  “Coming over, Kate?” Caroline asked, her tone softer now that she felt her position had been reaffirmed.

  Kate hesitated. “I don’t know. It’ll be too late to do any planning—”

  Sofia looked at her indignantly. “No talk about that! We’re just gonna relax. Have some ice cream.”

  Kate glanced at Caroline, then back to me, weighing her options. Her commander side probably wanted to push the headquarters issue, but I could feel her body surrendering in my hands.

  Kate made a show of hesitating. “Well… I should probably get home. Have to work tomorrow.”

  “It’s early,” I said, checking my phone. “Only eight thirty.”

  She shivered as I continued massaging her neck, her resistance visibly crumbling.

  Sofia leaned over the table. “Come on, Kate. Just for a little. It would be nice to have you over.”

  Kate turned and met my eyes with a dreamy look. “Alright. Let’s go. We can talk more about headquarters another time.”

  She smiled at Caroline and Sofia, but there was a hint of a challenge in her eyes. Caroline smiled with feline smoothness, satisfied that she’d come out on top for now.

  Just as we were getting up from our table, the bar’s door swung open, letting in a gust of cool air.

  Ian Ferguson stepped inside, his face drawn tight with barely contained fury.

  The chatter fell quiet as he paused in the doorway, scanning the room until his gaze locked onto our table.

  His eyes narrowed as he adjusted his glasses and started toward us. His voice carried across the now-quieting bar: “Look who’s celebrating! The town saviors.”

  Kate stiffened beside me, her defensive posture returning. I rested my hand on her shoulder, feeling the tension in her muscles.

  “Hey, Ian,” I said casually. “Surprised to see you here.”

  He ignored me, focusing on Kate. “That was quite the performance today. I hope you enjoyed it.”

  Kate met his gaze steadily. “I told the truth.”

  He laughed without smiling. “Truth? It was a malicious attack.” His eyes flicked to my hand on Kate’s shoulder. “I see you’ve found yourself a comfortable arrangement.”

  “What do you want, Ian?” Caroline asked, leaning forward with her elbows on the table.

  “Just wanted to congratulate our local heroes,” he said, smiling stiffly.

  Sofia slapped her palm on the table. “You’re trying to intimidate us!”

  Ferguson’s icy gaze settled on her. She winced.

  “Aren’t you the owner of that little Colombian restaurant?” Ferguson asked darkly. “I understand you’re hoping to acquire a new location.”

  Sofia blanched, as if the eye of Sauron had spotted her. “W-why? Why do you mention that?” She glanced at me, looking for help.

  “That’s enough Ian,” I said. “Stop this passive aggressiveness. If you want to say something, just say it. Otherwise, stop harassing us.”

  He shrugged, then looked at Kate, his spectacles reflecting the lights. “And you. You shouldn’t be throwing stones. I’m sure your business isn’t perfect. If one were to look at it closely, who knows what one might find.”

  Kate stirred. She wanted up, but I was sitting in her way—probably a good thing. “What are you talking about, Ian? Stop threatening us!”

  Her shout carried through the bar.

  Ferguson adjusted his tie, looking around at the watching crowd. His confidence faltered slightly when he noticed Warren and several workers watching him with open hostility.

  “Not at all,” he said, softening his tone. “Just making observations about how complicated business can be.”

  He took a step back. “Especially for people who don’t understand how things work around here.”

  I placed my arm around Kate, who was trembling with anger. “I think we’re learning exactly how things work,” I said, meeting his gaze. “And we’re not intimidated.”

  Ferguson’s jaw tightened. He smoothed his expression and inclined his head slightly.

  “Enjoy your evening,” he said quietly. “See you all very soon.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean,” Caroline murmured.

  I squeezed Kate’s shoulder. “You okay?”

  She nodded, but her expression remained grim. “He’s going to retaliate somehow.”

  “Let him try,” I said. “We’ll handle it together.”

  Sofia’s big dark eyes were filled with worry. “My restaurant—”

  “Is going to be fine,” Caroline assured her, taking her hand. “Ryan is here, and we’ve got Jim Muller on our side, remember?”