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
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
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