Somewhere Only We Know (3 page)

"It's a hard day for me," he admitted.

Chuck nodded grimly. "For all of us. We miss our girl."

"I miss her, too."

"Come to dinner one night," Marjorie said. "We'll catch up. It's been too long, Burke."

"I'll do that."

He stepped back as they got into their car. He was about to leave when his phone rang. It was Shelby. "What's up?"

"You sound better than I thought you would. How's the eye?" she asked.

"It's fine. I've taken worse hits in my life."

"I still can't believe Captain Warren hit you. We were shocked. What's between you two anyway?"

"It's a long story. I don't want to talk about it."

"No problem. Listen, Rachel, Dylan and I are at Brady's. Why don't you come over for a drink?"

"Thanks, but I'm going to head home."

"I thought you went home a long time ago," she said, a question in her voice.

"I did, but I came back to the club to speak to Leanne's parents. I wanted to apologize to them."

"You're always so considerate, Burke."

"I'll see you next shift."

"See you then."

He had just slipped his phone into his pocket when he saw some of the wait staff exiting the building. His heart skipped a beat as Maddie waved goodbye to a friend, then headed in his direction. She hadn't seen him yet. She was checking something on her phone, and he liked having a moment to just look at her.

She'd changed into jeans and a pink sweater under a dark blue wool coat. She'd also taken the band out of her hair, letting the long, blonde waves fall over her shoulders and halfway down her back. She'd always had the silkiest hair, even when it had been streaked with red or purple or blue. He'd been tempted to run his fingers through her hair on more than one occasion, but he'd always managed to stop himself, because Maddie Heller was a free spirit, a troublemaker and the kind of girl who could get a guy off track.

He had a feeling she was still that girl.

Maddie looked up, her jaw dropping in surprise when her gaze connected with his.

"Burke. What are you doing here?"

"I came back to apologize to the Parkers. How did the rest of the event go?"

"There weren't any more fights, so I guess it was a success." She paused. "You have a nasty black eye."

"It looks worse than it is."

She stared back at him, her expression somber. "I'm sorry about your loss, Burke. Emma told me that you were engaged to the woman being honored tonight."

"Yes, I was."

"I guess she was the one you told me about a few years ago, when we ran into each other in Times Square on New Year's Eve."

"I don't remember telling you about her." What he did remember was the shock he'd felt when he'd run into Maddie there. He'd been grumbling about freezing his ass off in a crowd of idiots who thought gathering in a square to watch a ball drop in ten-degree weather was a good idea. And then Maddie had appeared right in front of him with her mischievous smile, her pretty green eyes, and his heart had literally stopped. But they'd barely had a second to talk.

"You said you were seeing someone—that's all," Maddie replied, drawing his attention back to the present. "You didn't mention it was serious or that you were thinking of getting married."

"I didn't know at the time. And it wasn't like we had a real opportunity to talk. The ball was dropping, and you were with someone—a guy with a ponytail."

She grinned. "Jeremy."

"Boyfriend?"

"Not really. Just someone I went out with a few times. He'd always wanted to do Times Square on New Year's Eve, and it was on my list, too, so we went. You were the last person I expected to run into there."

"I was at a family wedding in the city. My cousin Dylan talked me into going to Times Square."

"That makes sense. I didn't think that was your scene."

"But it was definitely yours. You always liked big parties."

"Most people do. It's strange how we keep running into each other, isn't it? The airport in Los Angeles—I was on my way back to Europe. You were heading to San Francisco—"

"After a fire symposium. I remember. You were practically giddy with excitement about your upcoming trip."

"And you looked tired but happy to be learning new fire prevention strategies."

"Did I say that?" he asked, thinking how boring he must have appeared to her back then.

"You did. We also met up at Nicole's twenty-sixth birthday in Lake Tahoe," she continued. "You came up with Aiden for the dinner."

"And you were there with some guy who had a long name."

"Hal Weatherington the Third," she said with a laugh. "He was not as impressive as his name."

Burke grinned. "And then there was the basement of Viper Club."

"I forgot about that one. I was home for two days and my girlfriend insisted we go hear a hot local band. I didn't know it was your brother's band until we got there. How is Sean?"

"Still playing music, but he also runs a music studio now in the Haight."

"Is he single?"

"No, he's seriously involved with a single mom."

"Good for him." She paused. "I always liked how Sean went after his dream of being a musician."

She would like that because she was as big a dreamer as anyone he'd ever met. "So are you living in San Francisco now?" he asked. "What are you doing?"

"Well, in between breaking up fights with a tray of champagne glasses, I'm waitressing and figuring out my next move."

"You told me you were figuring out your next move the last time I saw you."

"That was four years ago. It's time for another plan. Not everyone has their life planned out from birth. I assume you're still a firefighter?"

"I am," he admitted.

"And you like it as much as you always did?"

"I do."

"And you're still a man of few words," she said with a smile. "I should go. I need to catch the next bus, or I'll have to spring for a cab."

"Where are you headed?"

"Home."

"Which is where?"

"Hayes Valley—temporarily. I'm subletting an apartment for three months until I can put a few paychecks together and—"

"Figure out your next move," he finished.

"Exactly."

"I'll give you a ride home."

"Really?"

"It's not a big deal."

She hesitated, then said, "If you're sure you don't mind, I wouldn't mind giving the bus a pass."

"It's the least I can do after knocking a tray of champagne glasses onto you. I'm just glad you didn't get cut."

"Only wet, and now I have a nice champagne smell to my hair. It's better than my usual shampoo."

He smiled to himself as they made their way to his car. Maddie always found a way to look at the bright side, and tonight he wouldn't mind if a little of her positive attitude rubbed off on him. It had been a long while since his side had looked even close to bright.

Once they buckled up, he pulled out into traffic and headed across the city to Hayes Valley. With Maddie sitting so close to him, he could smell the champagne clinging to her skin, but there was another scent that he'd always connected to her and that was lavender. "You still wear that perfume," he murmured. "Something with lilacs, right?"

She gave him a surprised look. "You remember my perfume?"

"I remember that you doused yourself in it, and I had to open the windows in my car when I gave you a ride home after tutoring you in algebra."

"I was a little too liberal with the perfume back then. Lavender is a calming scent, and I was looking for some calm."

"Seriously?" He gave her a quick glance. "I thought you were always looking for trouble. What did they used to say about you—Maddie Heller likes to raise hell?"

She groaned. "I can't believe you remember that, too. Don't you forget anything?"

There were a lot of things he wanted to forget, but he couldn't.

"I didn't like to raise hell," she added defensively. "I was just looking for adventure, excitement—that's what life is all about, isn't it?"

"I suppose."

"Tell me about your family. What's up with the Callaways?"

"We would need a much longer ride for me to cover everyone in the family."

"So give me the highlights. I saw Emma at the party. She said she's married to a police detective now. What about Nicole? Are she and Ryan still together? I think I heard something about their little boy being sick."

"Brandon is autistic but there's been some improvement in the past year. Nicole and Ryan went through some difficult times, but they're stronger than ever now."

"I'm glad. I always liked them together. What about Drew? Is he still in the Navy?"

"No, he flies helicopters for the Coast Guard now. He recently got married, and his wife's eighteen-year-old niece lives with them when she's not at college."

And Aiden?"

"He married the girl next door, Sara Peterson."

"Really? Sara? I wouldn't have put the two of them together."

"They complement each other. They have a little girl named Chloe."

"Is Aiden still a firefighter?"

"He quit smokejumping when he met Sara. He'd been injured on the job, so it was a good time to try something else. He's working in construction for my Uncle Kevin now, and he got his contractor's license a few months ago."

"What about the twins, Shayla and Colton?"

"Shayla is a doctor and Colton is a firefighter, both also romantically involved."

"Wait, are you telling me that you're the only unattached Callaway?" she asked.

He sighed at the question. It wasn't the first time someone had reminded him of that fact. "It looks that way. What about you? Anyone in your life?"

She let out a little sigh. "There was someone, but not anymore."

"What happened?"

"Maybe I'll tell you sometime, but that's my building," she said, pointing to the three-story building on the corner. "You can just drop me off."

"There's a parking spot. I'll walk you in."

"I can make it upstairs by myself."

"I'm sure you can, but I'll come with you just the same."

"Suit yourself."

As they got out of the car, he looked around and said, "This is a nice neighborhood."

"It is. I've only been here three weeks, but everyone seems friendly. I got lucky finding such a deal. The person I'm renting from had to go to work in Australia for three months and needed a subletter on short notice. Luckily, I saw the ad online and was able to snag it before anyone else beat me out. It's hard to find housing in the city."

"Is it? I haven't looked in a while."

She opened the gate and led the way up the stairs to the second floor. "Where do you live?"

"Russian Hill."

She paused. "That’s on the other side of town. I thought you said you were coming this way."

He shrugged. "I said it was no big deal to give you a ride. I wasn't doing anything."

"Well, thanks again."

"You're welcome."

She led him down the hall, stopping abruptly at the sight of a yellow piece of paper taped to her door with two large words written across the top:
Eviction Notice
. "What is this?" she asked in shock.

"It looks like you're being evicted."

"That's impossible. I paid first and last month's rent when I moved in." She grabbed the padlock on the door and stared at it. "I can't believe it. I'm locked out."

"Who did you pay rent to?"

"The person who sublet me the apartment."

"Not this guy, Hector Ortiz?" he asked, reading the name on the notice.

"No, I've never heard of Hector Ortiz."

"He appears to be your landlord. You need to call him."

"I know I need to call him," she muttered in frustration, pulling out her phone. "I cannot believe this is happening." She punched in the number on the notice, then waited. "Voicemail. Dammit." She tapped her foot impatiently, then said. "This is Maddie Heller. I am subletting the apartment at two-twenty-seven Robinson and I've paid rent to Carter Hillyard. I need to get into my apartment. Call me back as soon as possible so we can straighten this out." She left her number, then ended the call. "Well," she said, letting out a breath.

He waited for her to continue, but for a woman who usually didn't run out of ideas, she didn't seem to have an immediate plan of action. Instead, she looked shocked and tired.

A voice inside his head reminded him that this was typical Maddie. She was always getting herself into situations that seemed to take her by surprise. But she should have grown up by now. She should have a better handle on her life.

On the other hand, it didn't appear that she had done anything really wrong, except perhaps to trust the wrong person.

"Do you want me to drop you off at a hotel?" he asked.

"Um, maybe a motel." She pulled her wallet out of her bag and checked her cash. "A cheap motel."

"Don't you have a credit card?"

She shook her head. "I lost those with the last boyfriend." She frowned and waved her finger at him. "And don’t give me that judgmental Burke Callaway look. You have no idea what I've been through."

"I wasn't judging, Maddie." Although maybe he had been doing that—a little. "What about your parents? Do they still live in the city?"

"No, they moved to Portola Valley about ten years ago. They're out of town until Tuesday, and their house is being remodeled while they're gone."

"Friends?"

"I've only been back in town a few weeks; I haven't reconnected with my old friends. There is one woman I know. She was going to her boyfriend's house tonight, but I guess I could call her."

"I have a couch." The words came out of his mouth before he could stop them. "It's not super comfortable, but you can have it if you want. And it's free."

She stared back at him with nothing but doubt in her eyes. "Really?"

"You don't seem to have many options, Maddie."

"You're right, I don't. So I accept, but I'll pay you back, Burke."

"No pay back necessary. I've seen your wallet."

"I can do something else for you. I'll cook for you one night."

"Would that be on a camp stove under a freeway overpass?"