CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Lila watched Burke’s truck take a left as she took a right. She beeped her horn and waved as she buzzed past. She thought she saw him lifting an arm in acknowledgement before he was swallowed up by the stream of cars and lost to sight, but she wasn’t sure. City driving. Ugh. She’d forgotten how not-fun it was.
Strange, because she regularly drove in cities. It wasn’t even that long since she was last in Seattle, for a college friend’s bachelorette party. Perhaps it was the contrast with the quiet stop with Burke, when they ate cupcakes and drank coffee and all she could hear was the rumble of his voice and the chatter of birds, and the wind in the trees.
Yeah.
That was it, that was why she was feeling unsettled and out of place.
Nothing to do with Burke’s odd mood shift when she’d suggested he might like to have kids again.
Which he was dead set against.
And was none of her business, since they weren’t together or anything and she would soon be living here anyway, while he was—
A horn blared, jolting her. It wasn’t a friendly horn. It was a hey lady, move your car, jeez, some of us have places to be not daydreaming in freaking traffic blast.
“All right, all right,” Lila muttered, driving off. “This is Seattle, asshole, not New York.”
Or Emerson.
It was also time to get her head in the game.
Lila drove to the boutique hotel she’d booked for an overnight stay. She could have made the trip there and back in a day, albeit a long day, but she’d thought some distance would do her good.
Now she found herself wondering about Burke.
Was he driving home today? He’d said that Michaela was flying to London. Knowing Burke, he’d leave his truck running, sling David’s stuff in the back, and burn rubber out of the city. They’d be home by dinner.
Was Burke going to cook? Or would they eat at Kurt’s?
Order pizza?
And why the hell was she daydreaming about Burke’s food plans? She had her own plans to be focusing on. Important plans.
Life plans.
Lila left her car in a parking garage and checked in to the hotel. An hour later, she was in her interview suit, and ready to wow Allison’s contact into hiring her.
Stephanie Gower was a plump, perfectly-coiffed fifty-something with unblemished milk-white skin, a manicure to die for, and the stone-cold sociopathic stare of a politician.
They chatted over coffee—not as good as Burke’s—and pastries—not even close to Megan’s—and Stephanie explained that the position Lila was interviewing for was, while a step up in salary, also a step down in seniority.
“But Allison tells me you’ll claw your way up to the top in six, seven months, so it shouldn’t matter,” Stephanie added with a tinkling laugh.
“I’m not afraid of hard work,” Lila said.
“Good.” The tinkling laugh cut off. “If I decide to hire you, I’ll work you hard, Lila. I know that, coming from a small-town outfit like Allison’s, you’re used to doing a bit of everything, lending a hand wherever it’s needed.”
“Of course.” Lila nodded. “It’s part of being a team. We all look out for each other.”
“Quaint. There’s none of that here.”
“Oh.”
“I’ve been doing this job a long time now, and you know what the most important thing to ensure success and a solid working environment is?”
Something told Lila it wasn’t dress-down Friday or bringing birthday cakes to the office.
“Hierarchy,” Stephanie said. “You have your duties and you stick to them. You don’t stick your nose in to other agents’ and brokers’ business. Unless you’re the boss.” Tinkling laugh.
“Of course.”
“Another pastry?”
Lila shook her head. “No, thanks. I’m—”
Stephanie powered on. “Your working hours will be flexible. You will be flexible, and you will make yourself available at all times. After office hours when necessary. On weekends. I’m sure even Allison expects that. I also expect my employees to be on call twenty-four seven. Please understand, this last is not something I can ask or remunerate my employees for. But I do expect it.”
Lila had joked a few times about real estate emergencies, but…on call?
“My clientele is rich, and the kind of money they have comes with expectations. When the properties we’re dealing are valued in the multi-millions, if a client decides they want to view somewhere on a Sunday between brunch and golf, we say…” She raised her brows, leaving the blank for Lila to fill in.
Go away, I’m sleeping in was Lila’s immediate thought. Followed by, I’m playing with my goddaughter/hanging out with my friends/working out at the gym/catching up with my parents, and you’re talking about selling a house here not saving a life. Wait until Monday.
Instead of this, she said, “No problem.” If her voice was sharper than intended, she couldn’t help that.
“Good.” Stephanie polished off the last pastry. “I don’t intimidate you, do I, Lila?”
“I’ve worked for Allison for eight years. Takes a lot to intimidate me.”
Stephanie pinched her lips in a sour smile. “Excellent.”
Twenty minutes over substandard coffee and pastries—she was in Seattle, wasn’t bad coffee a crime?—and Lila found herself back on the street with a breezy, “I’ll let you know in a few weeks.”
A few weeks?
Lila stalked back to the hotel.
She’d come all this way for twenty minutes, and had to wait weeks to hear back? Lila was tempted to check out and head home, but since she already had plans to meet friends in a couple of hours, and then another friend at a bar and for dinner, it would be rude to cancel.
Instead, she went to the hotel gym and worked off the cupcakes, all the time trying not to think about Burke, wonder how it was going with David, were they on the road yet, and why in god’s name she was more focused on that than on her career prospects.
She finished her workout, showered, and hung up her suit. She shimmied into her jeans and pulled on her ankle boots. There was a streak of dark mud from her walk with Burke at the back of the heel.
Lila stared at it, grabbed some tissues from the bathroom, and scrubbed, hard, until no trace remained.
Then she marched out of the hotel and threw herself into getting reacquainted with the city she’d once lived in.
The city that she’d soon be living in again.
* * * *
“How was Seattle?” Jenny asked Lila on Monday night at Kurt’s. “Was it fun? Full of fond memories of your student days at UW? Brimming with the possibilities of real estate domination and a future of fancy living, fancy restaurants, fancy guys on every street corner?”
“Are you talking about male prostitutes?”
“I was thinking more gym-toned suit guys with great big investment portfolios and penthouse apartments who like the opera.”
Lila sighed. There was no getting away from it. She preferred burly mechanics with great big trucks and heartbreaker smiles who were addicted to sugar and hid in the kitchen at parties.
“Lila?” Jenny said.
What were they talking about again? Right. How was Seattle? “Eh.”
“Eh?”
“It wasn’t good. It wasn’t bad. It was eh.”
“You didn’t like your new boss?”
“She’s not my new boss.”
“Yet.”
“It was an interview. I don’t know that I’d take the job even if she offers. I’ve got other places to apply to. And it’s not as if Seattle is my only option. I was thinking.” Lila twisted her water glass a quarter turn one way, then a quarter turn the other. “Maybe I’ll give Gabe a call.”
“San Francisco?” Jenny slapped her hands on the table. “No.”
“It’s a thought.”
“It’s a stupid thought. I’ll never see you if you go to San Francisco. Seattle, I could swing. San Francisco? No.”
“You’re as bad as my mother. Gabe doesn’t seem to have a problem. Before he met Nora, he was back and forth between San Francisco and Emerson so often, he was practically commuting.”
“Gabe is a billionaire. He can come and go as he pleases. He can commute from San Francisco to Ulaanbaatar if he wants. I’m a couple of bucks short of a billion. I can’t. Also, he’s a tech genius. Sure, he tells us he drives up, or says, hey, I was helicoptering past so thought I’d drop in, but he probably invented a device that folds space-time. He probably opens a door in his apartment in San Francisco and walks out somewhere in Emerson.”
They considered this for a moment.
“God, I hope he doesn’t invent that,” Jenny said with a groan. “He’s bad enough as it is.”
“If he does, see if he’ll let you buy some shares, get in on the ground floor. Then you’ll be a billionaire, too, and you can come visit me wherever I end up.”
“I don’t see why you want to end up anywhere else. What’s wrong with Emerson? I thought you were happy here.”
“I was. I don’t think I am anymore. And I don’t think I will be if I let myself stand still.”
Jenny aimed an unblinking stare at Lila.
“What?”
“Burke,” Jenny said.
“Oh, good. It’s time for that conversation.”
Jenny cracked her knuckles. “Let’s do it. I want to hear everything. Start to finish.”
Lila gave Jenny a summary of her relationship with Burke. “He’s really something, Jenny. Special.” Lila smiled, saw Jenny’s soft, answering smile, and scowled. “Forget it,” she said.
“I didn’t—”
“Don’t.”
“But if you wanted my advice—” Jenny tried.
“Which I do not.”
“Then I’d say—”
“My advice is that you don’t say anything.”
“Then I’d say—
“Zip it.”
“I’d—
“Nuh-uh.”
“I’d say you like him youlikehimalotyoushoulddatehim.” Jenny sat back, pleased with herself for getting it out before Lila shut her down.
“Yes,” Lila said. “I like him. So much, Jenny. So freaking much. But I’m not going to date him.”
“Why?”
A few people turned their heads at Jenny’s shrill demand. Lila stared them down before she said, “Because it doesn’t matter how much I like Burke. We are…incompatible.”
“Is it the height difference?” Jenny nodded with sympathy. “Was it awkward getting things lined up?”
Lila snorted. “My guy knows what he’s doing in bed, trust me. What are you smirking for now?”
“You said ‘my guy’.”
“Shut up.”
Jenny threw back her head and laughed.
Lila folded her arms over her chest.
“Okay.” Jenny finally got a hold of her damn self. “Is it the introvert-extrovert thing? Because he’s shy? Because I think it’s adorable.”
Lila rolled her eyes. “Yeah. Burke’s shy. Until he isn’t.”
“What does that mean?”
It means he’s a bossy asshole in bed, he’s got a dirty mind and a dirty mouth, and he really likes a tussle.
Really likes it.
Lila took a sip of water so that she didn’t croak when she said, “You will never know.”
“Whatever incompatibility you think there is, I have to tell you, honey, I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone with as much chemistry as you two.”
“Please. You’ve never even seen me talking to Burke,” Lila pointed out.
“The other day at my house.”
“We said good morning. I called him cupcake. Yes. We were really steaming up the kitchen.”
“No. That was cute. You were steaming up the driveway. Yeah. I saw him kissing you.” Jenny picked up a napkin and fanned herself dramatically.
Lila reached across the table, snatched the napkin off her, and slapped it down between them. “You were watching? Creepy.”
“I was watching. Until my eyeballs fogged up. You think you’re going to find anyone better in Seattle?”
“Of course not. There is no one better than Burke. Don’t make that face at me. It doesn’t matter how good Burke is in bed. I see through you, Jenny Finley. Tate. Fuck’s sake. Jenny Tate. You’re not invested in my orgasms. You want me to start something with Burke because then I’ll stay in Emerson.
Jenny glared. “I want you to start something with Burke because I think he’s the man to make you happy.”
“Except not completely happy.” Lila blew out a breath. “He doesn’t want a family. While I’m not going around sizing up each guy I meet for his ability and willingness to impregnate me, despite what Kurt might think, it is at least something to consider. Burke made it clear we are not even remotely on the same page when it comes to kids. He’s been there, done that, not interested in doing it again.”
No chance. David is the only child I’ll ever have. Hard to misinterpret that tone of voice, heavy with finality, unmovable.
“Jenny, you know why I’m moving to Seattle, right?”
“You want to hurt me.”
“Yep. You, and my mom. I’m trying to ruin your lives and I found the way to kill two birds with one stone. I am withholding my presence from you both. No. Options. I’m looking for options. Options, opportunity, whatever you want to call it. I’m looking to grow. I want choices. I’m not finding them here anymore. I already quit my job. I’m interviewing. What am I supposed to do, change my plans because of a one-night stand with a man who enjoyed himself but isn’t beating down my door for more, and, bonus, doesn’t want kids? That isn’t logical.
“I worked hard to get where I am. A major contributor to my success is that I plan my path, and I do not deviate. I’m relentless. Burke is the best man I’ve ever known. I don’t mean sex, although, hell yes. He’s just…he’s the best. But he’s not for me.” She took a sip of water, stared at the table blankly for moment. “He’s not my guy.” No matter how much I want him. “I’ll flirt with him, and hang out with him, and find him a home, and enjoy spending time with him while I can. That’s all there can be between us. Sucks. But, it’s the way it is.”
Lila changed the subject, not liking the dull ache and feeling of general meh that had become familiar whenever she thought about Burke and Seattle and her future.
Jenny, being the great friend that she was, didn’t push Lila, and soon after, Derek arrived to pick Jenny up.
“Why is your husband lurking all the way over there?” Lila asked after watching Derek curiously for a few minutes.
“Is he here already?” Jenny craned her neck. “I didn’t see him come in.”
“Think that’s the plan.” Lila nodded. “He’s being weird. Check out what he does when I look over at him. Keep it subtle.” Lila made a show of scanning the room. Derek, who was standing by the bar, ducked behind another patron.
Jenny giggled.
“Is this some sort of sex game?” Lila said. “Is he stalking you?”
“No. My guess is, it’s for your benefit.”
“He’d better not be stalking me.”
“Derek got it in his head that you have a problem with him. I think this is his attempt to respect our relationship. Yours and mine,” she explained when Lila looked bemused. “He took it to heart when you said the other day that you checked he wasn’t home before you dropped in.”
Lila looked at Derek again. He ducked. “I should feel awkward, but this is hilarious.”
“What’s hilarious is you thinking any mere man can weaken our bond. Our bond, forged from decades, nay, a lifetime of having each other’s backs and never, ever letting each other down. Our bond that transcends friendship, transcends sisterhood, our bond that—”
“I already promised I’ll be back for the delivery,” Lila said. “You don’t have to lay it on so thick. And sure, for a while there I was harboring some irrational, albeit natural, anger toward him, but I’m over it. I was trying to give you two lovebirds space. Now that I know you don’t need it, fret not. I plan on being all up in your business.”
“Thank god.”
“Go,” Lila said, and Jenny did, creeping up on Derek unseen and making him spill his beer when she slipped her hands in his back pockets.
Lila gave Jenny a wave, held up her thumb and forefinger in an unmistakable L-for-loser shape at a grinning Derek, and decided to stay and order a salad before she headed home.
An hour later, Lila strode for her car, digging around in her tote for her keys, and glanced up to see Burke’s truck turn in. He drove at high speed through the small lot. Was he in a hurry? It was crowded and there was one parking space left, right next to her car, but…
Lila’s jaw dropped as the truck jolted to a brief stop, backed up in a series of bunny hops, and stalled at a forty-five degree angle, half in and half out of the space.
What on earth?
The truck roared back to life, shot forward a foot, then with an audible screech, raked the side of Lila’s Miata as it reversed into the space.
Lila held her arms up in outrage as she stalked for Burke’s truck. “What the hell are you doing?”
The headlights fired up and hit her full in the face.
Lila flinched. “You asshole!”
The lights snapped off and the engine died. Lila made it to the driver’s side window. She banged on it with the flat of one hand. “Get out of this truck. Right now.”
The window buzzed down an inch, back up, down halfway, and back up again.
Lila snatched her hand away. The low sun hit the glass at an angle, and all she saw was the reflection of her furious face. “Are you drunk? Get out.” She grabbed the handle and yanked. “Get. Out. Of. This. Truck. Right now!”
She wrenched the door open, planning to reach in and haul Burke out.
She looked up into familiar wide hazel eyes, only they didn’t belong to Burke.
Lila’s hands went to her hips.
Burke was in the passenger seat, a hand and a boot braced on the dash, the other hand covering his face as he hunched over, his shoulders shaking.
“Oh. Hi,” said the kid in the driver’s seat. “Yeah. Is that…? It is, isn’t it? Hmm. That’s your car, right, the black one?” He pointed out the open door at the car he’d mashed Burke’s truck against. There was now enough space between the cars to see the state of her paintwork.
The kid was tall and rangy, with the spectacular bone structure of an international supermodel, flawless rich tan skin, and his father’s heartbreaker smile, although this smile was open and easy, without even the hint of shyness or mystery Burke’s had. David.
“That is, indeed, my car,” Lila said.
David leaned out and surveyed his handiwork. “Huh. I got you good, didn’t I?” he said.
Lila looked from David to her car, back to David, and across the cab of his truck to Burke. “Yah,” she said.
Burke was biting his lip.
Lila’s eyes narrowed.
“Um,” David said. “I’m really sorry.”
Lila dragged her gaze from Burke and focused on David.
He continued in a hurry, “Really sorry. Total accident. I guess I misjudged… Anyway, listen. My dad knows cars. Like, he works on cars. At a garage. He can fix this for you, swear. He’s like a horse whisperer, but for cars, I’m not even kidding. He can fix anything.”
Lila clenched her jaw, fighting not to laugh. “Can he, now?”
“Yeah. Oh, yeah. Anything. My mom’s dishwasher once flooded her apartment? Made a mess, you know? And she called my dad and he came over and had it sorted in, like, five minutes. Bad example. Not a car. Okay, listen!”
Lila raised her brows.
“Right, there was this one guy my mom was dating, and he had a really nice car. It was a Ford, not a Bugatti or anything but it was still nice and, I don’t know, I was about six, but I put something in his tank. What was it, Dad? Was it sugar? Because I heard mom talking to her friend Sophie about how she once…? Never mind. Anyway, he fixed that too. For free. He’ll totally do yours for free. So, that’s a better example. He’s the best.”
Yeah, he is. “And this is your dad?” she asked, indicating Burke.
“Uh-huh. I moved in with him this weekend. I’m living here now. He’s letting me show him my driving so I can have a car of my own. But I’m thinking that won’t happen just yet.”
They both looked at Burke.
Burke shook his head slowly.
“Damn it,” David said.
Lila rounded the car to the passenger side. She knocked politely on the window.
Burke rolled it down.
“Hey, there,” Lila said.
“Evening.”
“That true, mister? You going to fix my car for free?”
“Yeah.”
“I don’t know. This is a massive inconvenience. How long will it take? And what am I supposed to do without transport while I’m waiting for you to fix it? Walk around town?” She gestured at her shoes. “In these heels?”
Burke’s gaze lingered on her stilettos. “We can work something out.”
“You going to give me a ride whenever I need one?”
His eyes heated, but his voice was level as he said, “Sounds like something I could do.”
“I’ll bet. You should know I have an erratic schedule. You’d have to be at my beck and call. Come running whenever I needed you.” She shook her head. “Nope. It won’t work. You’ll have to give me a loaner.” Derek had at least three cars he let customers borrow.
“Hmm.”
“And while you’re beating out the dents and fixing the paintwork, I want it detailed.”
“Getting demanding.”
“If you prefer, we could exchange insurance information?”
David leaned over Burke. “Let’s not do that. We don’t need to do that, it’s fine. He’ll detail it too. Promise.”
Burke pushed David back upright and into his own seat. “How about I fix it, the kid details it?”
“Does he know how? Can he be trusted?”
“He can learn. And he will be supervised.”
“Like you supervised his parking?” Lila pretended to consider for a moment, then took pity on David, whose face was screwed up with anxiety. “Okay, Burke. I accept.”
“Wait.” David looked between them. “You two know each other?” He slumped with a laugh. “Phew. Had me worried.”
“You still scraped up her car,” Burke said. “Don’t be too relieved. You’re not off the hook.”
“Yeah, but she’s not gonna be pissy about it now, right?” He shot Lila a big smile. “I’m David.”
“Good to meet you, David.”
“Hi. So, how do you know my dad? Are you two…you know.” He made a clicking noise and gave her a big wink.
Did David think that about every woman who knew his father, Lila wondered, or was Jenny right and their chemistry was that obvious?
“I like this kid,” Lila announced to Burke. “Even if he did ruin my car.”
“David, don’t be disrespectful,” Burke growled. “Lila is my realtor.”
“Oh, cool.”
His realtor?
Burke made a gimme gesture at David. “Keys.”
“But I was gonna drive—”
“Keys.”
“Sure, yeah. Here.” David took them from the ignition and passed them over wistfully.
“Back in a minute.” Burke climbed down from the truck, then braced his arms either side of the open doorway and leaned in, pinning him with a stern gaze. “Do not hotwire it.”
David feigned shock. “Me? I wouldn’t know how.”
“He knows how, doesn’t he?” Lila said from the corner of her mouth as Burke set a hand at the small of her back and guided her a few feet away.
“I wouldn’t put it past him.” They came to a halt. “Shit, Lila. I’m sorry.”
She burst into the laughter she’d managed to suppress until then, and attempted to muffle it against his shirtfront.
Burke cupped the back of her head as his chest shook.
Giggling, Lila pulled away. “He’s terrible. He’s a terrible driver. What were you thinking, bringing him into a busy parking lot? Target practice?”
Burke let her go. “I had no idea he was so bad. This is the first time I’ve seen him in action. He drove from Kurt’s house. I’m not joking, there were moments when I feared for my life.”
“He’s going to need a lot more practice before he can get his license.”
“He has a license.”
“Is it real, or did he buy it?”
Burke looked struck.
“Don’t worry about it,” Lila said. “You want me to take him out and log some hours in a car that’s more his speed and size, rather than crashing through the streets in your magnificent manly-man truck?”
Burke stared at her.
“What? Burke? What’s wrong?”
“I really want to say yes.”
“Then say yes.”
He sighed with regret. “No. I’ll borrow one of Derek’s junkers and I’ll do it. I’m his father. I can handle it.”
“I don’t mind. I’ve got nerves of steel. Offer stands. Let me know. I said I’m there for you.” Burke’s eyes hit hers and Lila remembered how he’d reacted when she’d originally said it.
Awkward.
“Thanks.” Burke rubbed a hand over the back of his neck. “Bring your car in first thing. And again, I apologize.”
“Forget about it. What’s a little scrape between client and realtor?”
He shifted. He didn’t come any closer, but it felt like he did. “I apologize for that, too,” he said softly. “You’re more than my realtor. You know you are.”
“I do. Your son doesn’t.” She glanced down at the dirt and heaved a breath. “If you want to keep it that way, I can be professional when he’s around, if you don’t want him to think…” She trailed off with a shrug. “I can be professional whether he’s around or not. Is that what you’d prefer us to be?”
“No.” He touched her chin briefly. “Just you. Just be you. I don’t want you to change or compromise on a damn thing.” His tone was heavy, even though his words were sweet.
Lila smiled, a little uncertain. “No compromise. Got it.”
“Good.”
Lila skipped back a step. “Bye, David!” she called.
He’d opened the door and was sitting sideways, feet propped on the running board, elbows on his knees, watching them with knowing eyes. “Bye!” he called back.
“See you tomorrow, Burke.”