Bayou Heat (27 page)

“What sort of job was it?”

“Construction. I sweated more that summer than I ever have in my life, helping Johnson
build his lake house. He let me stay in a little trailer on his property too, so I
could get away from home.”

Lana shuddered, remembering the awful place he’d grown up, the parents who cared more
about beer and cigarettes than their own kid.

“By the end of the summer I had some skills and a letter of recommendation. Johnson
told me to shake the dust of Destiny off my boots and find opportunity elsewhere,
and I did.”

“And what about Nicole?” Lana couldn’t help asking.

Sloan smiled slyly. “Johnson kept me so busy and so exhausted, my little fling with
Nicole died a natural
death.” He shrugged. “It was all very amicable. We’re still friends.”

Lana digested this. What was that unpleasant feeling in the pit of her stomach? Surely
not jealousy. Surely not after all these years.