Page 19 of 15 Summers Later

His shoulder suddenly felt tight beneath her hand.

“If byout there, you mean the dating scene, I’m not interested in something meaningless.”

“That’s your word, not mine. Why does it have to be meaningless?”

He gave her a long look she didn’t quite understand. “It just would be.”

Before she could answer, the song ended and the band moved into a more up-tempo song. She thought Luke would lead her back to their table. Instead, he seemed content to continue their conversation on the dance floor.

He had moves, she had to admit. How long had it been since he really let loose?

“We should work on finding you someone this summer. What about that nice new nurse from Colorado who works at the hospital with Nicki? Vanessa something.”

“Vanessa Perkins. I’m afraid she’s not available.”

“Did you already try to ask her out?”

“No.”

“Then, how do you know she’s not available?”

He gave her an amused look. “Because last Friday on your afternoon off, I treated her little Yorkie for an ear infection. Vanessa brought him in along with her girlfriend, Courtney, who works at the Topaz Trail Hotel. They are recently engaged, brimming over with wedding plans.”

“Oh. Well, that’s too bad. But still. I’m sure there’s someone out there for you. What about Janie Carlton?”

As the music ended, she angled her head toward a woman with short, streaky blond hair sitting with a couple of girlfriends in a corner booth. “You two have a lot in common. She’s a single mom, too. I guess her son must be with her mom or her ex.”

“Janie is very nice and so is her French bulldog, Alexander. But I’m not in the market, Mad. For either a relationship or for a French bulldog,” he said as they returned to their table.

“If I had to choose, I would pick the French bulldog,” his sister offered with a grin, reaching the table at the same time.

“Would you? You seem to be getting along well with the muscled raccoon over there.”

She didn’t seem offended. “He does have the look, doesn’t he? It’s all those hours spent in the hot sun. It’s hard to get a good tan when you’re hiding behind sunglasses all the time.”

She slid into her chair across from them and reached for a healthy sip of her drink. “I have to say, I’m surprised and happy you decided to leave your cave and join us. Where’s my favorite niece?”

“Sleepover. Her friend Zoe Sullivan is going to stay with her dad for the summer, so the girls wanted to have one last blast before the big separation. As if they won’t be FaceTiming and texting all day, every day, anyway.”

“Does the muscled raccoon have a name?” Madi asked. “You two seemed to be hitting it off.”

“We were. We are. His name is Austin Yates and he’s super cute. He and his buddy Ryan O’Connor are both grad students in the Seattle area. He’s from Canada. Vancouver. This is their second year as river guides. Last year, they both worked over in Jackson Hole, but this year, they wanted a change and wanted to go somewhere less touristy. I told him my friend thinks his friend is cute.”

“Do I?” Madi asked with a laugh. Luke, she noticed, didn’t seem to find the conversation amusing.

“Ryan ordered another round at their table, so I told them to join us as soon as they have their drinks.”

Again, she saw Luke didn’t look particularly thrilled at this. They were at a large table with room for six, but she could see where he might feel like the third wheel. Or fifth, in this case.

She didn’t want him to feel awkward, especially after she had basically dragged him out of his house to join them.

“Sorry,” she murmured.

He shrugged. “I expected it. I know how you two operate. Would you rather I get lost?”

“Don’t be silly,” his sister said. “It’s a big table. We want you to stay, don’t we, Mad?”

“Sure,” she answered. A moment later, the two came over, with Austin carrying a pitcher of beer.

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