Slim took it all in, laughing at Mac’s antics and enjoying one of the fine cigars Dan had brought. This was usually one of his favorite ways to spend a night—with his best friends, juicy steaks, good vodka and fine cigars, laughing and bullshitting. But on this night, he wasn’t able to relax or fully enjoy the party because someone was missing.

Erin would be here tomorrow, but that felt like a lifetime from now. He’d only gotten there himself late that afternoon, in time for the bachelor party, which was why he’d had her come the next day. He knew he wouldn’t want to leave her for any reason after she arrived, and he couldn’t miss Evan’s party.

So he was destined to spend one more night alone and was half out of his mind waiting for her. From the moment she’d said yes to his invitation, time had slowed to a torturous crawl for him. Every minute felt like an hour, every day like a year. The flight from Palm Beach to Anguilla had been pure torture. But once he’d arrived, he’d found the ebullient McCarthy family in high spirits, and it was impossible to be anything other than sucked into their excitement.

Finn McCarthy joined the bachelor party late, having taken part in an all-day scuba-diving expedition that had returned after dark. He was drawn right into the circle of friends and family, given a beer and a plate of food.

“Ran into the ladies on the way over here,” he said between bites.

“Where were they heading?” Luke asked.

“I’m almost afraid to tell you guys.”

“Now you’d better,” Blaine said in his sternest cop voice.

“There was talk of skinny-dipping at the beach.”

The boisterous group went silent.

“Like hell,” Blaine said, getting up from the table and heading toward the beach.

“Wait! Blaine, wait!” Mac called after him. “This is our chance.”

Blaine stopped, turned back, hands on hips, clearly seething. “For what?”

“Revenge,” Mac said, drawing out the single word with dramatic flair. “Come back here, and let’s make a plan.”

“Uh-oh,” Finn said, giving his full attention to the steak. “Was it something I said?”

“You just threw gas on a fire, son,” Kevin said, chuckling.

Slim sat back, filled with amused detachment, listening to the guys plot against their women and imagining the many ways this could go wrong. As a single guy, he didn’t feel he had any place to speak up and suggest they might want to reconsider their plan. What did he know about being married or engaged, or committed, for that matter? He hoped to change that status very soon, but in the meantime, he couldn’t resist tagging along on their mission, just to see how it turned out.