“Sublime,” Janey said with a dreamy smile that was met with more whoops from her friends.

Satisfied with the retelling of the story, Maddie sat back and crossed her arms, sending Sydney a rather calculating look. “It’s interesting, isn’t it, Syd, that Janey thought she was doing what was best for him, and it turned out she was the best thing for him.”

Maddie McCarthy, it seemed, was a whole lot less subtle than Maddie Chester had once been. Sydney raised her wineglass in toast to Maddie. “Touché.”

Maddie waggled her brows at Sydney, and then her expression suddenly changed. “Now what, do you suppose, they are doing here?”

Sydney looked over to see Mac, Luke and another guy who she assumed was Joe pulling up stools at the bar.

“Checking on us, no doubt,” Janey said, even though she lit up with pleasure at the sight of Joe.

Sydney’s heart skipped into overdrive as she feasted her eyes on Luke, startled to realize she’d missed him terribly during the long week since she’d last seen him. How was that possible? She’d had exactly two conversations with him in seventeen years!

“Mmm,” Tiffany said. “That Luke Harris is some kind of sexy.” She added a predatory growl to her statement that set Sydney’s nerves on edge.

Oh my God, she thought. I’m jealous!

“Need I remind you, dear sister, you’re married,” Maddie said. “Besides, I heard Luke is seeing someone.”

While Sydney bit back a groan, Janey pounced. “Who is he seeing? I’ve never known him to date anyone!”

“That’s not true.” Maddie cast another sly glance at Sydney. “He and Syd went out for years back in high school.”

“Is that so?” Janey said. “Well, you must’ve ruined him for all other women.”

Sydney winced at the teasing comment that struck far too close to home. She was saved from having to reply when the three sinfully good-looking men ambled over to their table carrying bottles of beer and wearing predatory grins. Well, two of them were grinning. The third one looked as undone as she felt.

She made an effort to breathe normally as she took in every detail of the white button-down shirt he wore with the sleeves rolled up over strong forearms. Not that she was looking too closely, but he had what looked like a shark’s tooth on a leather string around his neck. Something about that slash of white against his tanned skin was ridiculously sexy.

Sydney felt a stirring deep inside that she recognized as desire. It’d been so long since she’d felt anything other than devastation that the emotions Luke awakened just by walking toward her were overwhelming, to say the least.