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to—”
    “Laura? Laura Riley?”
    Laura looked up at the sound of her maiden name and spotted salvation in blue jeans, a button-down shirt, and a beloved, familiar face she’d never dreamed of seeing again. “Bryan? Oh my God. What the hell are you doing here?”
    Bryan Sinclair had been Laura’s best friend for four years. An Army brat, Bryan and his family had been stationed at the base near Harrisburg when she and Bryan were in seventh grade. One of the saddest days of Laura’s life had been the day Bryan told her his dad was being transferred. They were halfway through their junior year in high school and Laura had felt his absence in her life profoundly. They’d tried to stay in touch, writing letters and calling occasionally, but eventually, they simply lost touch.
    “I was going to ask you the same thing.” Bryan smiled at Kevin. “Mind if I cut in?”
    Kevin loosened his grip, but didn’t move away. Laura suspected the alcohol was dimming his senses and slowing his response time. “Uh…”
    Laura used Kevin’s distraction to step away from the young man. “Thanks for the dance, Kevin.” She grabbed Bryan’s hand, leading him away from the dance floor and toward the bar.
    As soon as they found a quiet corner, Bryan hugged her tightly. Laura returned the embrace. “You saved me, stranger.”
    Bryan chuckled. “Yeah. It didn’t look like you were enjoying the mauling. Damn, you’re a sight for sore eyes.”
    She laughed. “I’m so glad to see you. I have to admit you’re probably the last person on earth I expected to run into tonight.”
    “I’m here for the band.”
    She laughed. “Wow. Really? How many years has it been?”
    Bryan shrugged. “I haven’t seen you since we were sixteen, so what’s that make it? Twenty-seven years?”
    Laura winced. “Talk about making me feel old. I was just thinking about you the other day.”
    “Oh yeah?”
    She nodded. “One of my girlfriends talked me into joining Facebook. I wound up getting out an old yearbook and started plugging in names trying to find people from school. Your name was the first one I typed in.”
    “I’m not on Facebook.”
    She grinned. “I noticed.”
    “I’ll correct that oversight as soon as I get home tonight.”
    Laura marveled at how at ease she was with Bryan even after the years apart. Despite all the time that had passed, she could still see the boy he’d been in his face and hear it in his voice. While they’d never been anything more than friends, Laura had felt closer to Bryan than anyone at school. There was nothing they hadn’t talked about when they were younger, nothing they wouldn’t try together. Shortly after Bryan moved, Laura’s ex-husband, Mason, asked her out for a date. Sometimes Laura wondered what Bryan would have thought about Mason’s invitation. Would he have encouraged her to go out with Mason or told her to steer clear?
    They say hindsight is twenty-twenty. That was certainly true for Laura. Mason had come along at a time when she was lonely, missing her best friend, and she’d hopped at the chance to go out with the hottest, richest guy in high school. She wasn’t so sure her answer would have been the same if Bryan had still been around.
    “Are you seriously here for the band?”
    Bryan nodded, pointing to the stage. “The blonde on the keyboard is my daughter, Trina. She’s a sophomore at the Conservatory.”
    “That’s your daughter? She’s incredible. My girlfriends and I were talking earlier about how talented she is.”
    Bryan lit up. It was clear he adored his daughter. “She’s pretty amazing.”
    “Are you just in town visiting her?”
    Bryan shook his head. “No. My company offered me a transfer here a few months ago. Trina had already done her freshman year at the Conservatory and I’d missed the hell out of her. I asked her what she would think of her old man moving closer. She told me to go for it.”
    “What’s your wife do?”
    “My wife passed away five